An Extravagant Hypothesis
As a hypothesis, I propose that humanity may be undergoing a rapid transition from the biological to the psychic phase of species evolution in the next few years. The inertia of physical forces, chemical processes and cellular mechanisms, precisely coordinated over billions of years, has brought us to this make or break point. In order to continue our evolution, we need to reach a deeper level of species consciousness and self-awareness, transform our planetary culture and social systems so they serve the entire community of life, and integrate and anchor psychic capacities as part of a new paradigm and mythological substrate. This shift would also require a different approach to technological progress. We would use technology to create long-term benefits for people and planet, rather than shortsighted profits for individuals and corporations.
As individuals, we have the choice to contribute to this process in essential ways. We can shift from passive spectators to active participants, taking full responsibility for our own development and the unfolding of the whole. Currently, the first wave of individuals who are part of this tipping point phenomenon are learning to observe themselves as participators within the cosmos, and to act in our earthly realm with impartiality and compassion.
According to this hypothesis, as this level of presence crystallizes among the few, it will become increasingly available to wider circles of humanity, until it encompasses the entirety. We will supersede the confusion and destruction caused by the modern process of individuation by establishing new models of inclusive collaboration. As one aspect of this phase shift in consciousness, we will see a shift from hierarchic to holarchic models of social organization, and the melding of masculine rationality with feminine intuition. The form of the modern nation-state, obsessed with defending its own insecure boundaries, will be outmoded by a global direct democracy in which local communities realize themselves as fractal expressions of the whole, like healthy cells of the planetary organism.
Many mystical traditions propose that what we experience as reality is actually a kind of waking dream, projected from an infinite source of consciousness. According to this hypothesis, each of us can identify with our personal ego -- the dream character in the dream play -- or switch our center of identification to the projecting source. While the ego is trapped in limitation, the projecting source is infinite and free. Given the right marketing campaign, the awareness of our connection with this infinite creative source could permeate the global mind in the same way a new pop song or advertising jingle insinuates itself into the collective subconscious.
The uncertainty that many of us feel right now is, in itself, part of this transitional process. Whether we like it or not, the responsibility for the future of the species has now been placed in our hands. If we don't answer this call, our species will experience traumatic outcomes and cataclysms as the negative feedback loops of climate change, species extinction, resource depletion, fundamentalist violence and overpopulation create hell on earth, perhaps leading to our own extinction.
As I have discussed in previous works, there are good reasons to think that the positive feedback loops could also come together and self-reinforce to create a successful outcome -- what Buckminster Fuller described as a "win-win" situation for global humanity. It appears that successive transformations of human civilization happen at exponentially faster rates of linear time: while the agricultural revolution took thousands of years, the industrial age took under two hundred years, and the knowledge or information age required only a few decades. By this model, as Peter Russell has suggested, the next revolution in human society could happen in two or three years. This would be a revolution of wisdom, of consciousness, that could, potentially, open the gates to the psychic phase of our development.
More and more people appear to be experiencing psychic phenomena -- synchronicities, intuitive realizations, telepathic episodes and even occasional phenomena such as sudden manifestations or telekinesis. Anecdotally, I also encounter many people now undergoing classic Kundalini experiences, which were once extremely rare. A number of scientists have proposed that the solar system and the earth are undergoing a transition to a higher energy state. The level of electromagnetic activity may be increasing on our planet, accelerating and intensifying our psychic evolution. We may find that there is a non-dual relationship between changes in our lives on earth and processes happening throughout our solar system and the galaxy.
The correlations between ancient mystical traditions and the discoveries of quantum physics and other modern scientific disciplines could be firmly established, and presented in popular media so that they become socially accepted. The empirical tools of modern science could be repurposed to facilitate the development of psychic awareness, while our communications technologies transmit a new understanding around the planet in an extremely concentrated timeframe. At the same time, we could use the mass media and the Internet to disseminate the best techniques for growing food locally, for producing renewable energies, for reinventing industries and creating complementary currencies, and so on.
Of course, I don't know if this hypothetical outcome will come to pass. However, I see no reason why it couldn't. The tools are there for us. All that is required is the individual and collective will to make use of them.
This article originally appeared in Conscious Choice.
Image by aussiegall, courtesy of Creative Commons license.
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Hypothesis?
> Anecdotally, I also encounter many people now
> undergoing classic Kundalini experiences,
> which were once extremely rare.
About as rare as the smile on Sting's wive's face, of course the smile on the second wive's face is a completely different story, no?
I think that the technical term for the above is "taunting" and I think that the technical term for this article is "wild conjecture"--I like Daniel's writing *much* better when he goes out and does primary research--actually interviews Crop Circle Experts, heads into the jungle chasing experience, writes about the books & authors with which he is working--that is the stuff that got me interested in his writings.
Articles like these are so easy to come by these days--we need much less speculation & a lot more investigation, in my opinion.
Also, according to Scientists at UCLA the purpose of a hypothesis is to create a testable explanations of phenomena--not to work out the possible implications of wild speculation, right?What Daniel proposes here is *very* hard to test since there is very little consensus on some of the basic terms used ("rapid", "species evolution", and "psychic") let alone accurate ways to measure said terms.
Thanks, David S
Community
Hmm, I'm still new to Reality Sandwich, cautiously beginning to embrace text as glowing screen instead of text as cozy, island book, but isn't this site about building community??
community list
Try http://www.ic.org/
Get involved with wich ever ones are close to you many are very welcoming.
Also Daniel, if you are reading these replies, it looks like there are a ton of intentional communities in upstate new york as well as california. Visit and write about some!
HYPOTHESIS?
I think this response to Daniel's blog illustrates the need for us to recognize different standards for determining the validity of information.
The statement about a hypothesis being "testable" (and I assume this means by empirical observation) is a correct statement of the scientific method.
Though some sciences such as quantum physics and certain aspects of molecular biology border on the metaphysical, let's recognize that hard science is limited to descriptions of the physical world and physical processes. We can call this the "objective" world for sake of dsicussion.
Non-material phenomena are the provinces of psychology, philosophy, metaphysics, and mystical experience. I arranged this in the order by which these more "subjective" studies shade away from the boundaries of the hard sciences and scientfic method, although the borderline is fuzzy as in the case of psychology.
Truth is a loaded term, but it would be hard to argue that truths do not lie within each of these "subjective" fields of endeavor mentioned above. We just have to recognize that the methodologies and descriptors are different because the "subjective sciences" are penetrating dimensions of reality beyond the material.
Since I believe everything is one, perhaps a better way to state it is that the objective and subjective sciences are describing different layers of the same reality.
Most of Daniel's blog was unscientific by the defintion above, but so what? Much of what he says correlates with the experience of people in the "subjective sciences" in this and in other ages. I just take it as a measuring stick against my own non-material experiences of what the furture might be.
I think there was value in his speculations for they show imagination and that is a non-material faculty even Einstein used to discern physical laws.
Where I might depart from some speculations of Daniel and others is not so much in the premises of how and why we are evolving, but in the specifics of how it will all shake out.
For some reason, the stated or implied results of such conjectures usually seem to gravitate toward a quasi-eco-socialistic utopia. I get wary when the rationale starts to describe or imply any particlar poltical form. The fact is, we don't know what concrete forms our evolution in consciousness will take.
Not that we can't speculate on it. I've done that myself in my new novel, Pope Annalisa (popeannalisa.com) but I submit that the more we try and shape it into a pre-existing political philosophy the more we are trying to squeeze an evolutionary unknown into the form of known flaw.
Socialism, globalism, and the eco-movement can be just as dangerous and totalitarian as fascism; perhaps even more so because they hold out utopian promises of equality. I hope people in the consciousness movement recognize that.
Whatever practical forms our evolution ultimately takes, I would hope the critical mass of our expanded awareness will come up with new social and poltical tools to match.
yes
not extravagant at all
i could not ask for a more synchronized, timely, and relevant grouping of thoughts than this. thank you daniel, again, for so gracefully formatting into words my very thoughts and intuitions, and no doubt those of many others.
what is so important at this time is the passionate nurturing of each and all toward this awakening. i keep imagining the rapid developement of psychic abilities before reaching this common ground; i see your thoughts and you see mine, shadows and demons included. imagine the purging required to clean our polluted noosphere! society as we know it will be forced to crumble. how can we buffer this transition? yes david, in this case logic and preparation are most important.
i especially like daniels vision of "a global direct democracy in which local communities realize themselves as fractal expressions of the whole, like healthy cells of the planetary organism." this simple analogy tames many concerns ive had with the terrifying idea of an oppressive new world order forcing, controlling, tracking, smacking us into "servitude in the name of the planet." we must all arrive at this conclusion together. communication is key... we are all servants of gaia without losing our freedom, of will... working toward the common realization of inherent connectedness, oneness, through community, cooperation, and coherence.
after years of lucid dreaming, i recently had my first "real" out-of-body/astral travel experience just the other day, and although it was but a glimmer of the infinite potential, it far exceeded the impact of any and all such similar experiences. it was scary, alien, comforting, but more importantly reminded me i'm already home, we all are. home is where the heart is. so lets change our hearts.
This is very New Age Daniel, and that aint good...
I agree with Davidgiven above.
This article seems very pie-in-the-sky New Age idealism which isn't very realistic.
I recently saw the most awful videos about what neo nazis are doing in Russia! I red what they believe in. They also claim they believe in 'nature'---just like errrm us, but in nature they imagine wants to get rid of the weak and inferior races kinda thing? Just like their predecessors the Nazis, and theirs, the American Eugenics Movement, etc! Where, pray, is ignorant evil such as that going to suddenly go when the 'vibratory planetary levels' increase the old 'Kundalini' ...etc??
I often feel that the 'hope' for help always seems to be in some MONO-event. The assumption: in a Rapture--a big global event where the good are whisked away to heaven; the idea of 2012 being when the 'secret government' unleash their technology, a 'project bluebeam extravaganza' of holographic gods, prophets, UFOs, and real secret advanced technology which again will gbe an event that will change the whole globe. And so on
But isn't reality much more not like that. Where some people don't even know what is going on somewhere's else. Where groups of people have different styles, sense of time etc?
I mean I admit to being as confused about things as the next person. Not only about what has happening, but is happening, and what will happen.
I am not personally aware of spontaneous sychronicities, kundalini experiences, etc. (though I have my moments), nor with people I know. I know there is lots of stress, and hope for change . As there has always been in civilization, and modern world.
In your article, Daniel, I was surprised not to hear you mention psychedelics/sacred medicine once. This subject to me is the major taboo that needs us being aware of and talking about it, all the time! It is not called sacred medicine by the Indigenous peoples for nothing. I firmly believe that the sacred medicines are our means to heal.
Because what is really causing the self-destruction all around, and extrenal destruction of the life systems which are nature, are not the other species, but 'our 'worldviews which can become rigid and toxic. And only sacred medicine can heal this by encouraging flowing of blocked emotional energies, not romantic dreams.
Please can I ask people to support the Save Our Shrooms Campaign in Holland http://www.saveourshrooms.org/
Thanks ;)
psychic change will happen but evil New world order could form
... Nice mention of the secret government unleashing their fancy impressive technology to push us in a controlled state which is very threatening. But hopfully the win-win situation would unfold in which the only reality is one of love, and the bad guys (grays/reptilians david icke nuts will say, illuminati occultist, or black magicians) won't have any power anymore.
Thanks for the little reminder....
These days it seems like I can't win. I talk to people using language and a tone similar to what is in this article- from reinvigorating local community to potential psychic evolution- which is indeed what I feel primarily in my heart, and people accuse me of being quixotic. I then shift to talking about the fallacy of the fractional reserve system, the inevitability of peak oil and climate change, and the gambit of factors that make up the current systems of unsustainability, and I'm accused of being a paranoid doomer, championing the fall of civilization.
So given those two options, I'm trying to stick with being quixotic. I feel mentally, emotionally, spiritually and psychically healthier when I do. If there's one hard lesson I've learned (and indeed it continues to be a hard one to swallow) is that you can't brow-beat people into "waking up." That doesn't do you any good, and in fact it leaves you vulnerable to be dragged down into the collective blindness that blankets humankind right now.
The Scientific Method is very useful when kept in its proper place- the linear domain of reductionism, determinism, and objectivity. But just because something can't be tested or measured using the Scientific Method doesn't mean for a moment that those things are not just as important as what we've achieved through the understanding that Science has given us. Psychic phenomena, synchronicity, and the like are subjective experiences, and one of the primary tenants of the Scientific Method is to deny the importance of subjectivity. Therefore, trying to use the Scientific Method to test or measure these phenomena is about as effective as filling a beaker with orange juice in order to determine how good the OJ tastes.
It seems to me that Daniel DID write this article with the research he has done in mind. Simply because he has done so much research I think pretty much precludes anything he writes to be conjecture, simply by default.
Either way, I enjoyed this article. It was a simple reminder that synchronicities, consciousness exploration, and immediate experience are all far more useful and important to us than abstract concepts like the Dow Jones Average or the value of the dollar.
Well said, my friend
~illuuminuus~ myspace.com/illuuminus
Thank you for speaking my mind Wakingsleep! When will our 'insiders' ever tire of correction and criticism I often wonder? I guess I tend toward making the erronious assumption that we can come to a general, harmonious accord here. I often think that if a person makes it this far in the the right direction then he/she must be a bit brighter than the rest. Heh. Yes, I do see my own ego at the heart of that fallacy. In any case, this article is a reiteration of the author's ever fluctuating and evolving view of Reality. It is a good and hopeful way of viewing our current situation that in no way requires rebuke. Pitiable degradations of the viewpoints of others can hardly be the way of a true shaman. Then again, not all shaman have been guilty of wisdom... But must we endure the same tired processes even here?
Even in disagreeing, the wise man admits he knows nothing.
I for one appreciate the way Daniel hypothesizes rather than 'instructs'. With the magnitude of the audience he has attracted to our realm of study, and dare I say 'the good' that he is doing, he might very easily be converted by the guru seeking crowd. Oh, believe me, they are out there just dying for someone to worship. I propose we give him a modicum of respect for what he does rather than spouting off angrily at every article he posts here.
By the way, Daniel, this article was a bit of a reiteration perhaps, but it reflects the very same viewpoint that I have been pondering and wrestling with for months now. There are sooooo many of us reaching this same conclusion every day...
the dreamer & the dream
Daniel,
under the construct of your hypothesis, to what factor do you attribute the "precise coordination over billions of years?"
Are we dreamers in a dream with a pre-determined outcome? Or are we dreamers dreaming the dream forward in such a way that each dream influences the Dream? Or something else? Care to share your speculations and intuitions concerning the source of the coordination?
@davidgiven — we need much less speculation & a lot more investigation
how much value do you place on imagination? What is the value of "investigation" if the paradigm examining the data is obsolete?
precise coordination
i am a supporter of the Vedantic perspective of sages like Ramesh and Nisargadatta. There is only one consciousness, beyond space and time, that projects itself into dream worlds in order to explore its own creative potential. So yes, everything is entirely determined and conditioned, and you will never be happy as long as you identify with this drama. However you have the potential to realize you are that singular source consciousness that is projecting.
Ramesh describes "enlightenment" as the extinction of personality.
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
Ramesh book recommendations?
Daniel, I always get a lot out of what you write. Thank you.
For far too long Nisagardatta's I Am That has been sitting patiently for me to take off my bookshelf and crack open.
Am not so familiar with Ramesh, can you recommend one of his? Thanks.
Who Cares!?
Ramesh's book aptly titled, Who Cares!?
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
Tonight and Friday in SF
Thought i would post these here - 2 events this week in SF - in case people are scanning the article but miss the news post.
yours, dp
Tonight:
Psychedelics & Spirituality A Dialogue with Daniel Pinchbeck & Dharmanidhi Sarasvati Wednesday, March 11 7-9pm Throughout human history the use of psychoactive substances has played a prominent role in spiritual development. There are differing opinions on the importance or necessity of psychoactives for the contemporary spiritual aspirant. In this discussion, two experts in the field of human consciousness will highlight divergent opinions on the merits of psychedelic use in the quest for spiritual growth. This event will be held at The Lipman Room on the UC Berkeley Campus. Directions to the Lipman Room Cost: $20
Friday:
Daniel Pinchbeck will be joining us on Friday, March 13 for a dynamic conversation engaging perspectives on 2012, the evolution of consciousness, community building and co-creating the new paradigm.
A respected author and cultural visionary, Daniel's books include Breaking Open the Head, The Mystery of 2012, and most recently, a collection of essays featuring a who's who of contemporary thinkers entitled Toward 2012: Perspectives on the Next Age.
Precious Life Wellness VIllage is an emerging sanctuary in the heart of the city. Both a holistic healing clinic and community education center, this project promises to be a profound resource for the greater bay area community. Featuring on-going classes in movement, permaculture, martial arts, yoga, creative expression and spiritual practice, PLWV is a collective vision offered up for the benefit of all.
Friday March 13, 2009 7pm suggested donation $13-20
Precious Life Wellness Village 2116 Berkeley Way Berkeley, CA 94704 "Will the transformation."-Rilke
Anastasia Book Series
Hello
I was wondering if yu had heard of these writings from Siberia as they may be something in which yu would feel a deep connection--
http://www.ringingcedars.com/
“In the book you are going to write, Vladimir, there will be unobtrusive combinations, formulations made up of letters,
and they will arouse in the majority of people good and radiant feelings. These feelings are capable of overcoming ailments of body and soul, and will facilitate the birth of a new awareness inherent in people of the future. Believe me, Vladimir, this is not mysticism—it is in accord with
the laws of the Universe.”— Anastasia
all the best on yur journey to peace
Anastasia
Hi there
I have heard about these books through Nexus Magazine - apparently they have sold millions, mostly in Russia I think, but aren't widely known over here and don't even have a Wikipedia entry last I checked. The story behind them of this wise Siberian woman living in the woods is very interesting and seems to be real. I will probably try the first in the series and see how it is.
Ringing Cedars...
~illuuminuus~ myspace.com/illuuminus
Indigobliss,
I found this work to be fascinating and provocative. Glad to see others here who did as well. The sacred attachment to our Earth and to the soil and the plantlife is something we have forgotten that needs remembering. I also find the concept of 'sungazing' to be so attractive... As unlikely as it seems, it's an idea that has captured my imagination. This could very well be the direction of our next evolution...
You Raw Vegans think you're the cat's meow? Hmph. Meet the Suneaters...
But seriously, What could be more beautiful than subsisting on direct starlight??
Ringing Cedars
"The direction of our evolution"
The concepts of the book are refreshingly simplistic, I often feel exhausted with all the existential theories, quantums, etc. out there!
Make or break
I will base my approach to the article on the following citation:
"The tools are there for us. All that is required is the individual and collective will to make use of them." Published earlier on 'Conscious choice'.
Whether we consider our present awareness level as a result of a locally created 'cosensus realitytunnel' process or as an expression of a general cosmic dreamstate, the basic ideas appears similar and valid.
Looking at the pragmatically observed consequences, this dreamstate/lowlevel awareness is dysfunctional (on the assumption, that it isn't a wise move to destroy ourselves and the planet).
The suggestion of a 'make or break' outcome also sounds reasonable, implying that purely mechanistic causality will FORCE us to react. But as the above citation and its first appearance on 'CONSCIOUS choice' contains elements of 'will', 'choice' and 'consciousness', I will suggest that a closer look at 'conscious willing' could lead to a much more pleasant alternative, than the 'make or break' situation.
I acknowledge the almost incredible naive optimism in this suggestion, but we haven't got much to loose, have we? Criticism that this could be too abstract is justified, as the actual EXPERIENCING of the 'conscious willing' process (if such exist) can't be transferred direct verbally. Still something valuable could come through the media of verbal information.
My guess is, that many contributors to RS are 'outsiders' (in the Colin Wilson sense), and as such less influenced by major cosensus-realities, and in a possible position of looking at their 'liberation' from cosensus.
How did it happen? Was it a mechanical process, or did elements of 'will' play a part?
The World
Marketing campaign
I find Daniel's idea of a marketing campaign interesting. A couple days ago I spotted an ad on the side of a streetcar saying:
"THERE PROBABLY IS NO GOD.
Now stop worrying and enjoy your life."
This would be seen as positive or negative depending on your view of what god is. However it's curious to see an ad campaign promoting a philosophical point like this.
The idea of a marketing campaign for the infinite creative source sounds hilarious when phrased as such, but in its essence, the purpose of advertising is to stimulate thoughts in a particular direction. It doesn't make anyone believe anything; it can draw attention to an idea.
Synchronicity side note - a google of "atheist street car ad" turned up this as the first result - note the streetcar numbers next to the ads.
Re: poeting
Inward peace and outward
Re 2: poeting
OK, I asked for it.
I give verbal appreciation of your subtle sense of humour, (as you can't see me smiling while reading your post).
Consciousness marketing
The idea that the internet and marketing techniques are useful in the outward spread of new global consciousness is cringe-worthy.
All these systems are built in a mainframe of consciousness that has been developing for thousands, millions of years. If, as Daniel believes, we are entering a phase of conscious acceleration; what need of these communication conventions of the past?
The OJ metaphor for science, used by Wakingsleep, was wonderful. It took about two chapters of 'The Invisible Landscape' and beautifully recast them as a small, condensed kernal of truth. Science itself, like our current forms of communication, are levels of conscious understanding that conform to our current global awareness. They are both the consciousness of our current mode of being.
I would assume then, possibly wrongly, that the acceleration would transform our Being into a completely new paradigm; making obsolete the archaic frameworks of our historical understanding. What use then would current 'marketing skills' have? If the cosmos is in charge of out flux then we need not worry over that which we have no control.
If, on the other hand, we are in control of this change (as Winmtn eludes to) are we not then just spreading ideal, in a manner which will be unescapably dogmatic, as every wave of human idea becomes, when it demands the attention of every individual in a complete global recognition? Would we have a sort of 'dictatorship of the consciousness'?
I may be castagated for using the term dogmatic; but only rarely does good come of the influential power of one or more, inflicting their beliefs on others; it creates duality and resentfulness. The difference between this understanding of the world now and into what it might become seems gravely important to all our conversations.
Rob Dickins
Journeyman in the psychedelic 21st
Who's on the 2012?
Re: cjmoore
i see it now
dang, were my eagle eyes nailed shut or what?
We are the ones we are looking for
I think this article is correct. Humanity's next step will be psychological/spiritual.
Not everyone will jump to this next step, but it will happen, and probably on or before December 21, 2012. Get ready.
fire and wine and microchips
Daniel you have taken on the
Distracting Dogma Deviants
Think about it,...the cyber (spider)web that the earth finds itself wrapped up in, as described within The Hopi prophecy, that the human species has connected globally, is only now beginning to show the possibilities of how humanity can begin to de-code the illusions of mainstream dogma, media manipulation dumb downs, economic $lavery, religious guilt extremisms, governmental (to govern the mind)control, militaristic fear mongering is now being exposed to the layers of deceit perpetrated by these institutions against the evolution of humanity. Good Hypothesis Daniel, I agree with you ...We MUST collectively as individuals become the change we want to be able to spiritually share with all life forms on this fragile planet. Resisting Tyranny and surrendering to the Love of our Divine creator gives us All HOPE!Namaste! Visit;
Myztico Visionary Psychedelic Surrealism www.myztico.mosaicglobe.com
Well said myztico
... and great website! Amazing art, photography, music etc... but really amazing art bro!
Rob
Seeking Truth and Beauty... Always.
Kudos to you Mr. Pinchbeck,
change of heart
im like the tiniest fractal, an ignorant curl, seeking understanding and meaning through feeling. touching, grasping, "seeing", asking questions "who am i? what am i doing here?" stirring then fleeing. stretching outwards for the infinite being. teach me. let me. be me. wanting embrace then wanting freedom. loving and hating, NOT seeing, its wholeness. i wanna bite it. fruity, juicy loveliness. but too much apparently, its fleeting. i thank thee for the opportunity, bless you all, you are my eyes my ears my feet my hands my heart my soul. my healing. i want to kiss you all. theres that feeling, again.
i came across an incredible bit of advice recently going, "There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that is your own self."
weird, i just googled the quote to see if it had a source (Alduous Huxley) and the search results that came up are, "Preposterous Universe" (a humbling reminder), "What Brazil Can Expect from Obama on Environment, Economy, Energy - 'The important part of that phrase "green jobs" is not the green, it's the jobs.'" (what is this mad world? humbling, again), "He-Man.org" (ok i get it.), and finally "Are You Ready To Create A Life Beyond Imagination?" (yes.)
i find this observation horribly (in the best sense of the word) startling.
wasn't there a study done somewhere on the patterns/predictions made by individuals entering words or phrases into internet search engines, similar to using the bible as an 8-ball? (please forgive me for that horrible analogy) could we not then use google in the same manner? im out of control right now, but thats good right, im letting the isness just flow right through me. go on, tell me im nietzsche-y.
so we use the digital matrix like the external matrix via internal matrix. this is getting heavy. or lighter? i did have a similar inkling on the helpfulness of the internet in that its re-teaching us how to traverse this matrix, through a mini-me version. but now im thinking (im getting tired of this) what we (i) really only need is shamanic healing. forgiveness of the ego, not feeding. humbling. thats where id like to be. wow, i am, by golly! breathing, beating, uh oh 4:20! stoners unite! free the weed! on that note, im leaving. done thinking. see you in my (our) dreams!
for the record, for anyone who cares, the sun is in my ninth house. what a strange journey. it was as if centuries worth of experience were compressed into hours. i need a shower.
brothers, sisters, and geniuses: cant tell you enough: namaste. yours and IN love, that annoying tweeter, shadow in the sky, a bird, eye.
I couldn't agree with you
thank you
This is my favorite piece of your writing to date. Brave. Simple. And honest. Thank you for this one. It lifts me higher. I am reminded of Jesus saying to the Pharisees and cynical religious officials, of the perfected balance between his ego concealing the light and of the light concealing his ego, "Those who are with me gather together, and those who are against me scatter abroad."
Adam Elenbaas
JUST BEING
What's the Point?
This is the best of all worlds...or what?
Having read all the posts on this article, it strikes me, that they can roughly be put into two categories:
1/ Those who rely on deterministic outcomes (as already decided by BrahmaN, Yahweh or Allah)/Those who look for answers from outside authorities, ranging from beliefsystems to what your friendly neighbourhood guru has told you. This group is in majority.
2/ A few contributors, amongst them me, suggest, that we take a personal, individual responsibility, and try to DO something. Admittedly sometimes getting lost in semantic knots about doing as non-doing, secrectly being belief-system believers after all, and other pitfalls of individual responsibility ideology.
Well... Category 1 supporters can with good conscience lean back and let things sort themselves out. Even saying that the present situation originates from group 2, which is a bunch of messing, interfering dualists, who bring disorder into an otherwise harmonic universe. So when Harmageddon comes around, group 1 can with follow it on TV, knowing they never participated in any way.
Marketing an ideology
The zen-disciple very exitedly came to his teacher and said: "Master, master, I got it. Nothing exists." The master punched his disciple hard on the nose, and the disciple got angry and said: "Hey, why did you do that?" to which the master answered: "If nothing exists, where does this anger come from?"
Demonstrating that you can't even trust zen-masters, because the master should have known, that the disciple's anger ofocurse originated from somewhere outside of the disciple. 'Somewhere outside' his reach.
So next time your car breaks down and your mechanic makes an extremely sloppy job of repairing it, and at the same time overcharges you, remember that it was predestined to be so, and your poor mechanic just is another will-less cog in the cosmic machinery.
From: 'Bogomil spaketh'ed thus', undertitled: Are even gurus responsible for their actions? vol. XXXVI. Revised version.
solar cycle 24
Solar cycle 24 which peaks in 2012, has been very slow in getting started, and now it is predicted by NASA to not be as big as originally expected, which seems a good thing considering what seems to be a weakening of the earth's magnetic field.
http://wawanonly.wordpress.com/2009/01/09/the-new-nasa-solar-goalpost-cycle-24-maybe-not-so-big/
Floral Consciousness
'..humanity may be undergoing a rapid transition from the biological to the psychic phase of species evolution..'
This reminded me of something Tom Robbins wrote - 'humankind is about to enter the floral stage of its evolutionary development'
'In late mammalian times, we evolved a third brain. This was the telencephalon, whose principal part was the neocortex, a dense rind of nerve fibers about an eighth of an inch thick that was simply molded over top of the existing mammal brain. Brain researchers are puzzled by the neocortex. What is its function? Why did it develop in the first place? LeFever has postulated that the neocortex is an expanded memory bank, and it certainly possesses that capability. Robert Bly thinks that it is connected somehow to light. If the reptile brain equates with cold and the mammal brain with warmth, then the neocortex equates with light. Bly's hunch makes a lot of sense because the third brain is a floral brain and flowers extract energy from light.'
'With reptile consciousness, we had hostile confrontation.
With mammal consciousness, we had civilized debate.
With floral consciousness, we'll have empathetic telepathy.'
Tom Robbins is a fiction writer, so I'm not sure how much of this passage is based on fact, but I liked some of the analogies and ideas.
http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/9250277/fpart/1/vc/1
Yessss!
~illuuminuus~ myspace.com/illuuminus
We will forsake our eggy wegs and steaky wakes for pure energy! Let us become consumers of starlight!!!
It's All Good.
"Partying on the MotherShip!"
-George Clinton
I'm not into the idea of a slick marketing campaign for consciousness because I don't think there needs to be. Reality Sandwich IS part of this "campaign". As are the many explorers, lecturers, writers, podcasters, musicians, artists, etc that are pushing the boundaries or connecting people to the newer visions. I think that just "regular" people who aren't actively engaged in the public dialogue are still yet another part of this "campaign".
We don't need commercials or media attention. We come from underground and emerge in unpredictable ways. We have to let go of expectations, hold the visions, do what work we can, and just relax. The more we worry about transition the less likely it will turn out the way that is most beneficial for us. Not to say Pinchbeck is so worried, but really who knows?
We're all so confused, but really I think we're just coming into closer contact with our emotional/intuitional centers. Your world alters centimeter by centimeter in this process, but it still opens up more than before, and that means new territories open up before us- and that usually leads to some kind of fear or anxiety. Such fears and anxieties needn't be prolonged, though, especially since we have so many possibly valid paradigms to look at this situation with.
Let's more actively communicate both hemispheres of our minds, I think that may be what is happening here. We have a highly developed "left-brain" and now our "right-brain" is on the rise, which means that our brain must then integrate the two even more so as to maintain homeostasis. Think of this as Corpus Callosum Training for the Mammalian Brain Structure.
The world isn't changing, WE are. The forests are going about business as usual. The animals still are doing their thing as well. Only humans are noticing anything funny going on, so that means it's probably all in our heads. . .but that just leads to what Lon Milo DuQuette likes to say and that's, "It's all in our heads, but our heads are just bigger then you ever imagined!"
I think most of the beneficial elements of this transitional phase are actually found in the "Transition Initiative" movement that is now spread to America. Re-localization of all aspects of society, re-skilling of the people, consensus processes for decision making as opposed to council voting(elitism), local food sources. . . Yes, hierarchy is over, but it aint dead yet. A dying creature fights with every ounce of energy it has to maintain it's grip. Things are gonna get pretty hairy soon, but that won't matter if we're doing our own thing already. . .right? That's what I think.
If/When chaos hits, there will be the old structures who will try and swoop in to put their system in place, but that can't happen if they find we've emerged our own system instead!
Transition phase or not, I think we're all just growing up, and growing up without the limiting belief systems that previous generations had. The internet is the expression of this, where we can access all points of view on something and then come up with a decision or belief rather than just repeating what was forced onto us from our surroundings. We have a chance to really change things just by being open minded and seeking others of the same ilk.
Think about it, but keep your ass moving!!!
Premature Enlightenment can be found at: www.blacklightintheattic.com
Re: Michael Garfield
Hear, hear.
But do you think, that anyone else than you and me really read your post?
I sometimes get the feeling, that when people are 'talking with each other', they don't listen to what the other says, they only use this break to formulate, what they are going to say next.
It's a bit like this with the posts here. It's not often a reciprocial dialogue starts nowadays.
Discourse
It's a bit like this with the posts here. It's not often a reciprocial dialogue starts nowadays.
Too true. I don't think it is anything conscious...I think most people here get so tired of constantly having to defend their beliefs to naysayers in the 'real world', that they don't want to bother.
You never can tell, you might end up wrong, or at least finding out that you are holding on to a belief that you cannot actually support... and who wants that?
And, on a more compassionate note...it is just plain exhausting having constantly to explain and/or defend yourself.
I sometimes get the feeling, that when people are 'talking with each other', they don't listen to what the other says, they only use this break to formulate, what they are going to say next.
Sure, but that is true of most people, all the time, anywhere. A lot of it isn't even conscious...you get so excited/angry/etc about one thing that is said that you can't focus on the rest effectively.
I still mostly hold with Spiralyst and poeting: I love the discussion (more when it is actually discussion, but I do enjoy just being able to get a glimpse into the reality of another as well), but its all about building a community. And community is all about acceptance, cooperation, and civility.
What is at odds here are not people, but ideas. Let not your ideas separate you from your brethren. A good debate, a true seeking and sharing of Truth between two or more persons, a full dialectic...these are all good.
But let us not undo the good works of Love over petty differences in semantics or emphasis. We each have our role, our part to play, our individual Truth. Where would we be if every cell in our body was a brain cell?
A big puddle on the ground, being licked up by cats...that's where.
That being said...what about the dialectic nature of progress? Very rarely is there a huge jump the likes of which people around here are usually hoping for (me included). Most often, things happen through a developmental process. Even the phenomenon of punctuated equilibrium still happens over several hundred to several thousand years. Things don't generally teleport: they move and/or transform.
Therefore, I still hold that, as nice and necessary as it is to keep tabs on potential crises and sudden craziness -- and to have some sort of plan just in case they do occur (and history tells us they do indeed occur occaisionally) -- the best thing any of us can be doing right now is to be doing something. Some small little step, consistently. Then adding another. Then another.
Realistic things, like starting a garden. Connecting with our neighbors. Learning a tangible skill or trade. Maybe starting a business that is closer to what you want businesses to be in a sustainable world.
Steps. They are what get you through a journey, even one of a thousand miles.
Sure, you have to think, and plan, and discuss until you decide where you are going and how, exactly, you will get there...but it is unlikely that your words will take your body there by themselves.
And, Daniel, for what it is worth, I liked the article. Vague, perhaps, but hopeful. Hope can be dangerous, but it can also be helpful. It keeps one looking ahead, and looking ahead can cause you to stumble on something near you.
But, in order to plough a straight furrow, one must keep their eyes on a distant target.
Eyes on the prize, as they say.
"You must *be* the change you wish to see in the world." Mahatma Gandhi
Re: ChibiOne
That was a lucid post, you wrote. And thanks for the communication.
My reason for bringing this special perspective on communication into focus is, that the subjects we are interested in are very 'fantastic' and we invent 'fantastic' methods on the way for answer-finding.
So not from fear of being ridiculed personally, but rather to avoid, that the SUBJECTS we are working with, are ridiculed by the establishment, we need to be observant on communication, both 'outwards' and amongst ourselves. Otherwise it's too easy to write us off as cranks.
Besides if sites like RS only are treated as bulletin boards for monomaniac self-expression, we will never arrive at workable methods.
And MAYBE we're approaching a cataclysm, MAYBE this planet is crawling with aliens, MAYBE our lifestyle is making us terminally insane. If some of the 'fantastic' claims made from the fringe are true, it's our important job to relate to them functionally, because nobody else will, and our credibility is a major point.
I'm old enough to have experienced a time, when environmentalism, vegetarianism, ecologically farming, alternative medicine etc were met with extreme scepticism. You could even get into trouble with authorities, if you weren't careful. And I fully agree with you, Chibi, that it's pragmatic results, which in the end will make ideas real, realistic or acceptable.
It may come as a surprise for some readers here, but I have been pioneering as an ACTIVE ecological farmer for 25 years; having an import-business (based on a fair-price principle) with vegetarian food for ten years; and functioned as an unpaid alternative healer, dietician and spiritual journey-guide for years. So I know the value of getting things done at a practical level. I'm not always living in those rarefied abstractions, I'm presenting here. We never got those new ideas accepted by lofty speculations.
As to 'tolerance', I feel it's necessary to weed a bit out, or at least offer some opposition to the most unbriddled 'fantastic' claims. Is it really too much to ask, that the, often self-appointed, 'specialists' on the fringe (including 'gurus' and that ilk) will be expected to start communication-dialogues with the unbelievers, where they will be asked to make some kind of basic verification for their claims. That is if they want to propagate their ideas (what people make with their own lives is nobody's business). And as in other areas of life, and especially when questioning established dogmas, some criticism must be accepted. Ofcourse I'm not suggesting witchburnings or inquisitions, I've had more than 40 years of scepticism directed at me.
The presently popular new-age method of 'winning' a situation by presenting this little 'I'm holier-than-you-and-can-forgive-you-better-than-you-can-forgive-me' smile smacks too much of a 'spiritual' version of being 'discotheque-cool'; it's a fake, and has very little to do with tolerance or compassion. Anyway I was last in the line, when those smiles were handed out, and feel it much more honest to be grumpy on occasion. Remember, that not everyone on the fringe is competent or even honest. Saying NO can be necessary sometimes, unless we want to turn this into a circus.
Yes, pretty much exactly.
Yes, pretty much exactly. The biggest thing we, as a subculture/community, need to learn how to do is to communicate effectively with those who do not already share our viewpoints.
The greatest weakness this movement has is its inability to communicate effectively the understandings that lead to this perspective to those who have not, as yet, come over the horizon mark that allows us to see what now seems so obvious.
We tend to forget the process we ourselves needed to undergo in order to become that which we now are.
In a way, it is the teleport scenario all over again. The expectation is that, after they hear the profundity of our realizations, they will have no choice but to believe as we do...I mean, its so obvious, right?
But was it always obvious? Aren't we expecting others to do immediately that which took each one of us years of study, training, and downright painful experience to come to understand?
I suppose, for some, the answer will be "It's always been obvious to me" on the topics currently under discussion. But, to those few, I imagine there were (and very probably are) other things, obvious to those they condemn, that they have not yet realized. The fact is, there is no 'correct order' these lessons come in. It is idiosyncratic in the extreme.
And, yet, we still get infuriated by people that aren't ready to completely give up what seems right to them based upon our word...and, in our fury and subsequent snarkiness, we give them no good reason to do so.
There is a point, referred to as 'Third Tier Consciousness' by Ken Wilber and others, wherein, suddenly, the developmental process becomes obvious. Metaphorically, it is the equivalent of coming to a point on the mountain you are climbing where you can see, finally, the path you have been treading laid out before you.
It suddenly all becomes obvious.
The places you got stuck in, now that you can see them from above, were small...if you had gone right four feet, you would have been out faster. The little streams you passed were all one stream that you criss-crossed repeatedly. You can see a place where you could have cut through, and saved yourself hours.
The fact is, however, that this realization does little good to those still stuck in the mire. You can give them a map, but you can't traverse the territory for them. They must do that for themselves, as must we all. At best, they can be given direction from afar, and help from those still with them.
"Now its coming to you, and the lessons I've learned won't do you any good, 'cause you've got to get burned. The curse and the blessing, they're one and the same...baby its, Ah!, such a treacherous gain." The Indigo Girls
I agree with your assertion that those who claim themselves as gurus, teachers, masters, etc, being held to a higher standard, however. A very high standard indeed, in fact. Anyone claiming such things has a good chance of believing that they know better than others, and of having desperate people cling to their every word.
That being the case, it behooves us all to ensure that any such individual is called out when they do wrong...otherwise, all that follow them might commit the same mistake.
"You who choose to lead, must follow." The Grateful Dead
"You must *be* the change you wish to see in the world." Mahatma Gandhi