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Mystical Paganism.
Jason
God EmperorArrakis Moderator
My teacher was reading a book, and in that book she said that she found some interesting insights that paralleled her own experiences. A great deal of this had to do with quantum theory, the interconnectedness of all life, and in particular, how from the viewpoint of quantum physics all things are nothing more than vibrating energy. We are us, we are each other, we are the Goddess; and yet we are the bastard who kills life, we are the weapon he uses to destroy, we are the destroyed. The insight, however, led to the question, "How do I change my vibration in allegiance with the universe to affect change upon the destroyer and the ghosts of the past which are also me?" Essentially, the answer that she came up with was that her vibration must be peace, at peace, reflecting peace.
For me, this insight is reflected in my personal idea that the Divine is a part of the world and apart from the world all at the same time (not that I can fully explain such paradoxes coherently). From one point of view, this web of interconnectedness is a problem. Essentially, it doesn't always work in our favor and shit happens. In regards to the sphere of peace that we associate with the Divine, how can there be peace in an ever changing web of arising and ceasing, in an endless process of consuming, in a never ending cycle of death and rebirth? In a sense, for one in the midst of this flux, there is no peace. As above, so below. I think that it is in this aspect of the Goddess — the aspect that is a part of the world — that we have the convention of maiden, mother, and crone.
To find peace, however, one has to touch the sphere of being that lies outside of this raging river of existence. What does this mean to me? To me this means that the nature of this mysterious concept that we label the Divine is something which is unchanging, independent, unconditioned, outside of the process of consumption, free from the cycle of death and rebirth, or in other words, in a state of peace. This state of peace, or whatever you wish to call it, is something that we as interdependent, conditioned, impermanent beings can touch or experience; and it is this experience that many magicians, mystics, and spiritual seekers strive for. I think that it is in this aspect of the Divine — the aspect that is apart from the world — that we can find ultimate peace.
In our drive to consciously create our reality, we fabricate our experience of the world. Everything that we experience in the conditional world is itself conditional; and being subject to the laws of conditionality it must follow that these experiences have the characteristics of stress, impermanence, and selflessness. Whatever is conditional is interdependent, and whatever is interdependent is subject to change. Change is an active process that causes an inherent amount of stress regardless of the nature of change that takes place. Implicitly, whatever has the nature of change cannot be clung to as me or mine. As such, what in our everyday experience is free from this inherent stressfulness and impermanence? What can we cling to as a refuge in this world?
If everything conditional is dependently arisen, or in other words arises from previous causes and conditions, then everything conditional is said to be empty of inherent existence—essentially lacking an independent substance or fixed identity. Nevertheless, it is my conviction that there is an unconditional reality that is not subject to the laws of conditionality, a reality free from stress and impermanence. This unconditioned reality is by its very nature unfabricated, and as such it lies beyond the range of normal conceptualization—although it can be directly experienced. The reason that we remain blind to this unimaginable experience is that we are continually fabricating our experience of this reality, and it is only when we cease to fabricate that we can touch this peaceful state.
It begs to question how this is possible. The answer might seem like a paradox, but in reality it is as simple as learning how to perfect a skill. In order to get to the point where we are able touch this dimension of ultimate peace — to cease all fabrications — we must use the process of conditionality to get us there. In essence, we must perfect the skill of consciously creating our reality to the point that we fabricate our experience of the world in an entirely new way. We skillfully fabricate our reality in such a way that we come to a point of gnosis or transcendental understanding. It is due to the experience of this profound gnosis that we are finally able to transcend the conditional world in an experience that is completely free from fabrication, and therefore stress and impermanence.
For me, this insight is reflected in my personal idea that the Divine is a part of the world and apart from the world all at the same time (not that I can fully explain such paradoxes coherently). From one point of view, this web of interconnectedness is a problem. Essentially, it doesn't always work in our favor and shit happens. In regards to the sphere of peace that we associate with the Divine, how can there be peace in an ever changing web of arising and ceasing, in an endless process of consuming, in a never ending cycle of death and rebirth? In a sense, for one in the midst of this flux, there is no peace. As above, so below. I think that it is in this aspect of the Goddess — the aspect that is a part of the world — that we have the convention of maiden, mother, and crone.
To find peace, however, one has to touch the sphere of being that lies outside of this raging river of existence. What does this mean to me? To me this means that the nature of this mysterious concept that we label the Divine is something which is unchanging, independent, unconditioned, outside of the process of consumption, free from the cycle of death and rebirth, or in other words, in a state of peace. This state of peace, or whatever you wish to call it, is something that we as interdependent, conditioned, impermanent beings can touch or experience; and it is this experience that many magicians, mystics, and spiritual seekers strive for. I think that it is in this aspect of the Divine — the aspect that is apart from the world — that we can find ultimate peace.
In our drive to consciously create our reality, we fabricate our experience of the world. Everything that we experience in the conditional world is itself conditional; and being subject to the laws of conditionality it must follow that these experiences have the characteristics of stress, impermanence, and selflessness. Whatever is conditional is interdependent, and whatever is interdependent is subject to change. Change is an active process that causes an inherent amount of stress regardless of the nature of change that takes place. Implicitly, whatever has the nature of change cannot be clung to as me or mine. As such, what in our everyday experience is free from this inherent stressfulness and impermanence? What can we cling to as a refuge in this world?
If everything conditional is dependently arisen, or in other words arises from previous causes and conditions, then everything conditional is said to be empty of inherent existence—essentially lacking an independent substance or fixed identity. Nevertheless, it is my conviction that there is an unconditional reality that is not subject to the laws of conditionality, a reality free from stress and impermanence. This unconditioned reality is by its very nature unfabricated, and as such it lies beyond the range of normal conceptualization—although it can be directly experienced. The reason that we remain blind to this unimaginable experience is that we are continually fabricating our experience of this reality, and it is only when we cease to fabricate that we can touch this peaceful state.
It begs to question how this is possible. The answer might seem like a paradox, but in reality it is as simple as learning how to perfect a skill. In order to get to the point where we are able touch this dimension of ultimate peace — to cease all fabrications — we must use the process of conditionality to get us there. In essence, we must perfect the skill of consciously creating our reality to the point that we fabricate our experience of the world in an entirely new way. We skillfully fabricate our reality in such a way that we come to a point of gnosis or transcendental understanding. It is due to the experience of this profound gnosis that we are finally able to transcend the conditional world in an experience that is completely free from fabrication, and therefore stress and impermanence.
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Comments
A very interesting reflection. Thank you. And all the more interesting that it comes from you.
I imagine that you have come across the growing interest in sound/vibration. It is my view that, since Newton in particular, scientific thought has used optics as the basis for physics and has tended to ignore the power and laws of sound.
If I remember correctly, you have also passed through a period of interest and study of 'paganism'. My own take on our great neolithic monuments here in the UK is that they have fascinating acoustic qualities. The builders clearly used principles which we are less capable of employing. Take, for example, the circles at Stonehenge where sound in the inner ring is unheard beyond the outer. This manipulation of acoustic qualities, using only shaped standing stones and in the open air, suggests a degree of sophistication that we no longer possess. An understanding of vibrational qualities and putting them at the service of the tribe and nation.
Remnants of this skill remain in the building of the great Gothic cathedrals but seems to have been lost around the same time as artists and architects began to focus on light rather than sound. I would date this shift to the 14th/15th centuries and the 'discovery' of the use of perspective.
So much Buddhist ritual seems to use sound in a way that has been mislaid by the West. Perhaps this is yet another gift from the Turning of the Wheel in the West.
I am full of suprises.
Brigid,
Thank you. Go for it.
inthedharma,
Thanks for enjoying it.
Regards,
Jason
BTW, Simon, it also has something to say about "hearing" as an avenue of enlightenment.
Ha! Maybe I'll take a look at it when I have the time. Who knows, maybe I'll become a Mahayanist one of these days.
Jason