The notion of a 'middle' probably has a religious origin. In the Bible it is displayed in many different contexts. In the work of the mystic Angelus Silesius, talking about the middle assumes the character of the soul’s union with God:
IN DER MITTE SIEHT MAN ALLES
Setz dich in Mittelpunkt: so siehst du alls zugleich, Was jetzt und dann geschieht, hier und im Himmelreich.
When in certain neo-religious movements today an altered world view manifests itself in a seeking for divine identity, it is not simply a pure caricature of, for example, the internalized spiritual direction Angelus Silesius expresses, but also a loss of the Judeo-Christian understanding of existence. All is not one, and we are not God. Poems cannot possibly be written from such a position. The story of creation is a narrative about multiplicity and separation. The innermost zone is not identical in two individuals. And above all: the zone – and the individual – are not one with God.
translated from Danish by David McDuff
Over the Water I Walk (V) - 1
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