About

What Is the Grail, and Why Should I Care?

There are many versions of the Grail story from the late Medieval and early Renaissance. What the Grail is varies considerably (and it’s not always Christian):

  • Chrétien de Troyes’ “Perceval, the Story of the Grail” (late 12th century) – Grail as a Serving Dish
  • Robert de Boron’s “Joseph d’Arimathie” (late 12th to early 13th century) – Grail as the Cup of the Last Supper
  • Wolfram von Eschenbach’s “Parzival” (early 13th century) – Grail as a Stone (Lapis Exillis — a fabulous precious stone believed to cause the phoenix to renew her youth)
  • The Vulgate Cycle (Lancelot-Grail Cycle, early 13th century) – Grail as a Christian Relic
  • Sir Thomas Malory’s “Le Morte d’Arthur” (15th century) – Grail as a Christian Relic and Symbol of Divine Grace.
  • “Perlesvaus” (The High Book of the Grail, early 13th century) – Grail as a Sacred Vessel and Healing Object
  • “The Quest of the Holy Grail” (part of the Vulgate Cycle, early 13th century) – Grail as a Chalice of Divine Origin

But they all agree the Grail is something of inestimable value, for which one is willing to go on a Quest to find it.

There are things of inestimable value to each of us, unique to each of us. Which could be:

  • Family
  • Healing (from trauma, or serious medical issue)
  • Accomplishment
  • Knowledge
  • Enlightenment
  • Making a difference

Not all quests need to be overarching life-long efforts: we can have ‘sub-quests’ like “get through school” or “get my business launched.”

So what are your Grails — great and small?

About William

When I was 16, my family experienced a horrible tragedy. Which launched me on my own desperate quest to make sense of it. In the course of that Journey to the Underworld, I learned Greek and translated the New Testament for myself. And studied voraciously — Western Philosophy, the Great Religions, mathematics. And Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell. And I’ve been a harpsichord builder, a college mathematics instructor, and a computer programmer (including several years at Microsoft on the C++ team).

As a musician, I’m an organist, pianist, and composer. I’ve composed film scores for documentaries — including one airing on the Portuguese equivalent of PBS, and another for the European Space Agency. And in my travels, I chanced upon the glass armonica — a musical instrument invented by Benjamin Franklin, which works on the wet-finger-around-the-wineglass idea. Mozart and Beethoven composed for it. I’ve played my glass armonica at the Kennedy Center, with the Blue Man Group, and my hands playing the glass armonica were a clue on Jeopardy!

Now I’m hoping that in some small way I can share what I’ve learned on my own Quests, and encourage others on theirs.