Literal and Metaphorical

   I find it interesting to reflect on the difference between literal and metaphorical interpretations of spiritual teachings. "Literal" often denotes a kind of supplanting of one level with another: for example, 'let go' might literally mean a spiritual supplanting of rational thinking or language. In spiritual practices, however, the idea is not to return to some state of no language or no thought: rather, it's to transcend these while containing them at the same time. A literal interpretation of spirituality often involves trying to escape, supplant or diminish other ways being, but a more metaphorical way of looking at it would be to preserve the proper place of these nested wholes in a total 'spiritual' whole. That is, the integrity of each sphere is preserved in its own right without disturbing the others. A lot of these ideas have been articulated in the writings of Ken Wilber, by the way.
   Are the places we go to 'literal' embodiments of spiritual qualities? That is, can we say that a place is sacred just by being in the location that it is in? Or are we the ones who endow these places with sacred qualities? I think in a sense, designating some spaces as sacred and 'apart' from the congestion of daily life serves the purpose of reminding us of who we truly are. There is nothing sacred or special about the place itself, beyond how we are assigning meaning and importance to it. This is because a place wouldn't have meaning unless we are willing to project our energy onto that place, such as when we designate a place as 'the first time I met so and so'. If I confuse the place with the meaning I assign to it, I can make the mistake of thinking that the place itself is endowed with magical qualities which in fact it doesn't possess, and this only sets up for further disappointment. This is why it seems important to remind ourselves that what we see as literally 'true' might only be an expression of a mental relationship, which is often expressed symbolically or as a kind of living metaphor.