This is similar to a discipline I practice to lead into contemplation. I light a candle and focus on the candle itself, then the flame, then the wick. The candle is stolid and unadventurous; you put it somewhere, and there it stays. But without it, there is no flame. The flame gutters in every passing breeze of movement, but always returns to its fixed centre. That centre is the wick; grounded in the candle, it allows the flame to sway, flicker, and return to giving it fixed attention.

None of these three elements is complete without the others. When my attention wanders, like the flame, I return to centre. When my body becomes “heavy”, distracting my attention, I allow the flame to draw energy from that source. And my mind must be steadily intent, like the wick, that never leaves the wax but allows the flame to leap.

There was a chapter there, explaining how “Affection develops over time”, if you will. A woman’s affection was indeed expressed in a sine wave, the same function that describes the pendulum’s location. It has its high points and low points, it said.

I can’t say this is true or not because I am not that keen of observation, but what was told of the male side is quite true. A Saw wave, or tooth wave, or whatever you call it. It looks like an asymmetrical zigzag that decreases gradually then snaps back up. Perhaps it is the power of suggestion, but I have indeed observed myself to act somewhat similarly to that.

I know this comment is about ‘affection’ and not ‘love’, but the Pendulum reminded me of that little piece of knowledge and I felt like sharing.