Returning Citizens
"Greek emphasis on the pursuit of knowledge finds resonance in Russian literature's focus on intellectual exploration and the search for truth."
— The Collector
Athenians and Muscovites
Modern Russia appears to be heir to classical Greece. Several Athenian statesmen, lawmakers and poets returned to help reform (democratise?) Muscovite society. Some of these souls were also active in Tsarist Russia and the Soviet Union. This elite handful represents a horde of souls that chose to return to this part of the world in the 19th and 20th centuries. Tolstoy, Solzhenitsyn and Gorbachev were all leading Athenian thinkers; philosophically and politically. "Solon was an Athenian statesman, lawmaker and poet. He is remembered particularly for his efforts to legislate against political, economic and moral decline in archaic Athens. His reforms failed in the short term, yet he is often credited with having laid the foundations for Athenian democracy." — Wikipedia Like Solon, Solzhenitsyn is remembered particularly for his efforts as an outspoken critic who helped raise awareness of political repression. Our understanding is that this select group of Athenians and Muscovites have repeatedly reformed their societies through philosophy, law and a sense of historical identity. No doubt they all had other lives in between but, for whatever reasons, both cities and cultures provided these souls with a striking parallel.
Gorbachev had been Tsar Alexander II who freed the serfs and initiated other reforms, but was assassinated. It seems he was ever the Reformer. He too had lived in ancient Greece and was named Cleisthenes, one of the founders of Athenian democracy. (El Ochre, 3 April 2022)
"I am under the direction of messengers from heaven, daily and nightly…"
— William Blake, letter to Thomas Butts, c.1802
Leo Tolstoy was a reincarnation of Socrates, even though William Blake once boldly declared himself: “I am Socrates, or a sort of brother… I have an obscure recollection of having been with [him]”. In a sense Blake was correct, yet Tolstoy was no reincarnation of Blake. It appears that Socrates and Blake are separate souls who shared a common oversoul, known to us as Ezekunu or the prophet Ezekiel, the daimon or genius behind both men. In turn, Tolstoy was oversouled by Orfu, better known as Orpheus. In short, these transpersonal lives involve two souls and two oversouls. (El Ochre, 28 October 2023) Above are three independent portraits of one soul: First, a Roman portrait of Socrates after a bronze head by the Greek sculptor Lysippus, 4thC BCE. Second, William Blake's sketch using his visionary imagination to capture the physical likeness of a spiritual being or cosmic entity he identified as Socrates, c.1819. Today we know it to be Orfu, the incarnate oversoul of Socrates, and that he was co-oversouled by Ezekunu during the latter part of his own life. Blake himself was an incarnation of Ezekunu, so this could also be a portrait of Ezekunu, not Orfu? Third, a posthumous portrait of the great Russian writer by his son and sculptor, Lev Lvovich Tolstoy, 1911.
"We leave something of ourselves behind when we leave a place. We stay there, even though we go away. And there are things in us that we can find again only by going back there. We travel to ourselves when we go to a place where we have covered a stretch of our life, no matter how brief."
— Pascal Mercier, Night Train to Lisbon, 2004
A Return to Lisbon
King Manuel I was nicknamed 'the Fortunate' because fate/luck had ruled that the crown should pass to him. It was an era of exploration and discovery in Africa and Manuel saw himself as "the serene and all powerful ruler, on this side of the world and beyond the sea, and always visible”. Linked via birth and karma to Henry the Navigator, Manuel's magnificence led to new territories and increased prosperity. His rapid overseas expansion made Portugal the largest empire in world history.
“When I look to Africa I see a continent of hope, promise and vast potential”. While this sounds like something Manuel could have said, it's actually a statement made by António Guterres.
António Guterres is a former prime minister of Portugal and the current Secretary General of the United Nations. As an active socialist and devout catholic his early career was marked by some lucky political breaks, successful social reforms, and humanitarian aid for refugees; notably in Iraq, Syria and Africa. He is a soul clearly striving to bridge borders and consolidate countries in the name of peace.
According to El Ochre (1 January 2017), António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres is a reincarnation of King Manuel. "We know why the Manuel is there. Could the Olive allusion in his name be as to an olive branch of peace? And if so, will the nations accept it?" (Laurence Oliver, 6 February 2017) The name Guterres means 'he who rules'. Note the laurels in both portraits above, then and now.
King Manuel was known as the Sovereign of the Seas, so it comes as no surprise to see Guterres campaigning to #SaveOurOcean today: "The ocean of our ancestors — teeming with life and diversity — can be more than a legend. It can be our legacy". (9 June 2025)
Right now we note Guterres' denunciation of Israeli attacks on Palestinians and his concern for the escalating refugee crisis in Gaza. As Manuel he was compelled to expel all Jews and Moors from Portugal. Are his actions today a reparation for that past? We hope so. It's our belief a career in service of others can repair a soul too. Let's hope fate/luck is on his side again.
"There is deep reason why God does not usually allow us to recall our previous lives. It is because we would be clannish, tending to re-associate with those we knew before, instead of expanding our love to encompass others."
— Paramahansa Yogananda
From Florence to New York
As shown in relation to the Romanovs and Muscovites, both families and citizens tend to return together, to the same place, albeit spread over time. Likewise, the Medici and Rockefeller figureheads appear to return in sequence as leading bankers, investors and patrons of the arts.
Indulgences and Intelligence
Born Giovanni de Medici to the Italian Renaissance banker and patron, Lorenzo the Magnificent, Leo X was a reputed hedonist who indulged in spending other peoples' money. As J Edgar Hoover his reputation would again be tarnished by alleged abuses of power (blackmail) and his rumoured sexual proclivities (homosexuality), both of which he hotly denied and fiercely condemned in others.