#main principles

[ivkio]

Seven Main Principles: Part 7

Celebration of sosim'wipa.

Pronounced so-seem-we-pah, sosim'wipa is a lunar-based rest day. Sosim'wipa is inspired by shabbat in Judaism, and the Chinese agricultural calendar breaks called huan during the Han Dynasty.

For an entire day, from sunrise to sunrise on primary and intermediate lunar phases (new moon, first quarter, full moon, and third quarter), ivkos are not suppose to work.

Work is defined as physical and mental effort or activity directed towards the productions or accomplishment of something for exchange. This encompasses cleaning out of responsibility (exception to this is cleaning for your enjoyment and ease), harvesting, production for sale, physically and mentally draining labor.

Ivkos can celebrate sosim'wipa alone, or with others. Each have different obligations.

Alone, an ivko should enjoy the day with non-productive rest, joyful creation (not for profit), and self love.

Together, a community of ivkos are to gather for free food, sharing of art (dancing, singing, and music), creating art, story-telling, bonding, and compliments (none are to be about physical appearance). Non-ivkos are allowed to join the celebration, even if it's just for food.

The sharing of art should be done through live performances and participation, rather than pre-recorded. No one is required to perform, but all are encouraged to share their joy. People can sit and enjoy the presence of the community without input if they wish.

The free food provided by the community should accommodate for the majority (meaning the elimination of common allergens), and ideally will accomodate for each individual with food restrictions. "Healthy food" is subjective to the individual, and there should never be the goal of eating "pure".

Sosim'wipa should always include a space seperate from the main event for people to escape the noise, and create art quietly (in the form of sewing, painting, pottery, etc). This space is dedicated to silence, and has a strict no-talking rule to accommodate for those who need the silence for their wellbeing. However, each individual can use headphones to listen to music, podcasts, etc. The goal is to keep the overall volume in the room to a minimum.

In addition to the quiet space, a confession box should be left in a public area for community members to submit anonymous confessions if they are overwhelmed with guilt. This confession box is brought into the main space on sosim'wipa, and addressed by the community together. Community members are required to keep an open mind, and are refrained from judging. The goal is to resolve, support, provide wisdom, and reassure the anonymous person.

[ivkio]

Seven Main Principles: Part 3

Believe all in the universe to be inherently valuable*.

The simplification of splitting the world into categories of good and evil is an injustice to the complicated nature of the universe. Is a lion evil for eating a gazelle? Is that gazelle evil for the destruction of flora?

Our natural functions in the universe are inherently valueable because we are designed to be different, we are designed to destroy and create and die. Bad, evil, good, and righteous are subjective to every individual's imagination, and not based in a universal truth.

Perhaps the greatest injustice of labelling any being as good or evil is the seperation of others from ourselves. All people are capable of making harmful decisions, and doing harmful things, but we are also capable of kindness, and capable of change. Our actions and thoughts are a culmination of our lived experiences, and reflect our past.

"We must learn to regard people less in the light if what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer." -Dietrich Bonhoeffer

A cat that hisses at humans might've been traumatized by one, or is unsure how we'll interact with them, and responds with agression out of fear. A person who steals may not have enough money or goods to exchange, or perhaps they see the system as unjust and does so in an act of rebellion.

But when you reduce people to your perception of them, when you stop believing all people are inherently valueable, you allow mistreatment. You'll justify mistreatment as punishment, instead of seeking to end harm, you end up perpetuating it.

This doesn't mean we should accept wrongful actions and harm, but rather to recognize that all people are capable of change, and they are not doomed from corruption. A nazi should absolutely be fought against and stopped, but an ex-nazi is not your enemy. Fixing an individual to one label (good, or evil) denies them change. It denies their undeniable positive and negative influences on others, and the world.

When you accept that all beings are inherently valueable, you can focus on nurturing. You can forgive yourself for the harm you have and will cause, and do your best to make reparations. People thrive when given the support and opportunity to grow. "People grow when they are loved well." -Mike McHargue

*Valuable in this context does not mean monetarily valuable, or valuable to humans or domesticated animals.

[ivkio]

Seven Main Principles: Part 6

Anti-proselytizing.

Simply put, the ivkio religion is against proselytizing. People will convert and leave this religion at their own volition, and should be supported for their decisions. Using fear or force to entice converts is strictly prohibited.

To avoid the development of cults within the religion, I encourage all protential and current converts to look at Bonewits' Cult Danger Evaluation Frame.

[ivkio]

Seven Main Principles: Part 5

Only your own body is yours to control and own.

Control over other beings is inherently harmful. Every living being in the universe has it's role, and preventing their true and unique existence causes imbalance, and stress within the individual.

Just as you cannot force a tomato to function like a fish, you cannot force people to be something they are not without resulting in their dissatisfaction and disconnection with life, and resentment towards you.

There is no inherent hierarchy of beings; quash your desire to have authority and importance/ superiority over others.

You cannot control, nor have ownership over your children, your pets, land nor food. You are, however, responsible for what is under your care.

At the same time, no one can control you and your body; what you do with your body and life is only your concern. Dare to live an authentic life!

[ivkio]

Seven Main Principles: Part 4

Believe we are all of the same energy and source, continuously recycled.

Following the theory of the big bang and evolution, believe that we are of the same source. The energy and atoms that created the universe are a part of who we are; we are in the belly of the universe, not a seperate creation from it.

Because we are all connected, hurting any part of the system hurts us all. If you kill the soil, you kill the plants, you kill the herbivores, and you kill the carnivores. But our energy doesn't die, it is recycled, so the remains of the carnivores and herbivores and plants nourish the soil, and give it new life. We live in a delicate balance, and need to practice equivalent exchange to keep that balance.

This is why it's important to only keep and use what you need; if you harvest all the seeds this year, there will be none to sprout for next year. Ivkos are encouraged to practice anti-consumerism, choosing a subsistence lifestyle instead.

Similarily, if you are ashamed of and try to kill parts of yourself, you kill your health. If you restrict your food intake to lose weight, you lose your health and may experience dizziness, pain, hair loss, muscle loss, bone deterioration, and even death depending on your destructive tendencies.

This is why ivkos keep the first principle in mind; if we take care of one part of the universe, it will ricochet to other parts of the universe.

[ivkio]

Seven Main Principles: Part 2

Do not deprive others of what they need for your own personal gain.

As we are in a relationship with all living beings in the universe, it's important not to deprive others of their needs. For how can we live together if we purposefully harm others? How can the universe function if we destroy more than we create and love?

All human beings deserve and require access to food, medicine, clean air, drinkable water, shelter, and safety.

Though capitalism and other imbalanced power systems make our needs commodities, it's important as ivkos not to play into that system. If we require money or goods in exchange for these resources, we automatically deprive others. Those who don't have money or goods to trade will not be your customers, and will suffer as a result. If we horde these resources, we automatically deprive others by removing their access.

This religion discourages being a landlord, making money from growing food or medicine, building companies that destroy the quality of air or take clean water from dependent communities, being a police officer or any other oppressive force that is unsafe for vulnerable communities.

It is against this religion to reserve needs for ivkos only; if someone is in need of a resource you can provide, they should have access to it depite their beliefs. It is okay (and encouraged) to give first to the most needy, such as giving a homeless person shelter first, and upgrading the living conditions of another second.

[ivkio]

Seven Main Principles: Part 1

Take care of yourself, take care of others, take care of the Earth.

The responsibilities of ivkos (followers of the ivkio religion) consist of caring for the universe, and the interdependent system we live in.

We may be a miniscule part of the universe, but every individual is important to the functioning of it. No life is superior nor inferior in the universe, we all have different functions, different personalities and needs, which collectively creates something spectacular. By the simple act of breathing, you give life to plants, and your purpose doesn't need to be more grand than that. After all, you are the universe in one body.

While it's not necessary, nor expected to "save" the world as individuals or collectively, we should do our best not to disturb the harmony of the universe. This includes the harmony of your own body. All the energy and lifeforms in and on your body came together, and work together to sustain your life, so it is your responsibility to take care of yourself as best as you can (mentally, physically, and/ or spiritually).

First and foremost, you are your most important responsibility. By prioritizing others before yourself, you risk neglecting your own needs, and end up harming an essential part of this universe.

If you are able, you can extend your responsibilities to caring for others (especially those who are limited in their ability to take care of themselves), and care for the environment. You as an individual do not need to burden yourself with higher ambitions, but collectively, the goal should be a reliable community of care.