The Crossroads – Life changes with every decision

Sep 01, 2019 Book Review…

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Book: Aje and The Master Key
Author: Day Dream Alston
Critic: Glenville Ashby, PhD

In ‘Aje and The Master Key’, author Day Dream Alston shares a common tale, one of unrequited love. However, hers is not the run-of-the mill recount of a broken heart shedding sophomoric tears of victimhood. There is a spiritual and psychoanalytic depth to her narrative, an ongoing existential search for meaning in a world replete with challenges.
For those of us yearning to know about African traditions, this work is a boon. It delivers liturgical, cosmological and ontological lessons with insightful lucidity.
In the most tempestuous of times, when the unconscious mind pushes Aje, the protagonist, to the brink of self-destruction, her faith becomes her bedrock, an enduring salvific recourse that is ever-present.
More than once, Aje is troubled by “the trajectory of her life…thrusting her into severe depression,” but her spiritual anchoring rescues her. She perseveres, searching for deeper understanding of her faith. She consults with her Baba (teacher), a man who openly expresses his concern for his troubled client. No one, though, can decide for Aje. She must make a decision. Her heart and mind fight a bruising duel – pleasure and pain, a war of attrition that is potentially deadly.
It is never easy to break free from a situation that satiates every carnal desire. Aje must resist mightily, determined to heal her fractured self. Steadfast and faithful to the Orisas (deities), she begins to listen, really listen to the dynamics of self. Every answer is within, if only she knew. She leans on Esu, the messenger and nexus between the worlds.
“He is the divine messenger and owner of the crossroads. He is the intermediary between heaven and earth. Nothing moves without Esu. No prayer, no ase, nothing. When we pray… we call on Esu to carry it for us. He is the one who hears our pleas and approves our prayers. He is the master key.”
It is a profound lesson that Aje must absorb.
Her exchange with this otherworldly figure forms the crux of Alston’s work.
Esu is provocatively instructive, although impish and sardonic. “You indicated that you love Stan and desire to be in a relationship with him,” he tells Aje. “I placed you in that specific thread of consciousness at your request. Are you unhappy with the experience? Every time you make a choice, a consequence follows. Some consequences are pleasant, some are not.”
She learns of the many realms of existence, “the threads of consciousness,” it is called.
“This stream of consciousness presents all the choices at your disposal at any given time. In any singular moment you have the option of making a multitude of choices and they are all represented right here,” she is taught in her many altered states.
In addition, Alston delivers a sound psychoanalytic message: We are products of our past; our formative years offering an incontrovertible barometer of our present space. Amid Aje’s turmoil, her best friend, Ona, is selflessly supportive. She recalls her own doleful experiences, her searing supplications for relief, and her ultimate triumph.
“I looked into my own eyes and saw eternity reflected back…I acknowledged my own glory.” She counsels and cajoles, “Never forget the promises of Ifa (faith). No matter what you are going through. Review the notes from all your readings and your initiation. Do that constantly as a reminder of all the blessings that are coming your way.”
Aje’s decision to welcome professional counsel proves fortuitous. The message is clear: We oftentimes recoil at knowing the truth, afraid to address the pain that has long dogged us. Why does Aje falter, repeatedly seeking validation from a narcissist and violent man? With guided analysis, she discovers the root of her emotional shortcoming.
“I realize my search for love has been misguided. I have sought love desperately. Using it as a Band-Aid to cover up my pain…I have lacked confidence and have really made some bad choices as a result. I know what I want…I choose me…I want to be whole and heal from the trauma of my past. I choose me. I want to be whole and heal from the traumas of my past. I choose myself, healing, peace and self-love”
Aje and the Master Key is a mélange of themes: culture, religion, mysticism and quantum physics, all deftly integrated into a definitive human experience.
When the curtain falls on this providential tale, we recall its indelible moments; none more so than her cry for help, “Baba, please help me to make better choices…Help me to live in a way that supports my well-being and destiny. May my heart and head be in alignment. Please help me Baba, I can’t take the pain anymore.”
Depleted and confounded, she yearns for clarity. She must connect to her Ori, her higher self or spiral toward self-immolation.
“A veil lifted and Aje experiences an insight she’s never had before.”
In her fits of despair, we root for her. In the end, we cheer her on. Aje transcends her quotidian troubles, triumphant finally; life’s purpose, she finally grasps. Aje recaptures her magic, her enduring desire to sing is now a reality. She finds the Master Key, the very Elixir of Life that rewards the seeker with strength, courage, and enlightenment.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper)

Feedback: glenvilleashby@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter@glenvilleashby
Aje and The Master Key by Day Dream Alston
© Copyright 2019 by Day Dream Alston
Available at https://www.daydreamalston.com/store/aje-and-the-master-key-ebook
Ratings: Recommended

 

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