Cassiopaea Forum Reading Workshops - Public

(CRW Am-EU) What temporary schedule is best for you?

  • Sunday 17:00-19:00 UTC (18:00-20:00 French time)

    Votes: 30 66.7%
  • Saturdays 17:00-19:00 UTC (18:00-20:00 French time)

    Votes: 15 33.3%

  • Total voters
    45
Hi Aus-Asia-Am group, just a heads up that I will helping one of my kids move house over the next few days and may need to start the meeting later by and hour or so (8pm-8:30 pm my time) on Saturday. Let me know if y’all can still attend, or if it would be better to postpone till next week. Cheers!
 
Hi Aus-Asia-Am group, just a heads up that I will helping one of my kids move house over the next few days and may need to start the meeting later by and hour or so (8pm-8:30 pm my time) on Saturday. Let me know if y’all can still attend, or if it would be better to postpone till next week. Cheers!
A later start works okay for me.
 
Hey y'alls,

The Am-EU group finishes the chapters 14-15 of William B. Irvine's A Guide to the Good Life on January 26th. The Audio and Video are collated by Turgon.

I've attached the mind map below in both PNG & PDF form. For readability, I've also printed the mind map in bulleted form here:


Chapter 14 - Personal Values: On Seeking Fame
  • Stoics say that one of the main reasons people are unhappy is because they're confused about what is valuable--they seek things like fame that make them anxious and miserable.
    • It doesn't have to be world fame--this dynamic can be present even when looking for admiration from another.
  • Epictetus advises to be indifferent to what others think of us and to not seek social status as it gives away power to another. This is because it's easy to make it one's goal to do things to please others, expecting something in return.
    • This indifference should be consistent in that one should be dismissive of another's approval in addition to their disapproval. Epictetus says that when others praise us, that we should laugh at them, but not out loud. Indifference as a whole should be concealed in order to be considerate towards another.
    • (RedFox): See COVID, going with the crowd proved to be disastrous.
    • (IL Matto): It's like in church--sit up, kneel, sit down, etc. It sort of creates a resonance with one another.
    • (Turgon): It seems like the Stoics didn't care what people thought about them.
  • (Mari): From 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: one should live by their principles that align with his/her deepest values.
  • Marcus advises against valuing immortal fame, as it is foolish to think that others will praise one after being long gone. It also takes one away from the present--to "make the best of today".
    • (RedFox): The irony of Marcus Aurelius being immortally famous.
  • (anartist): What does he mean when Marcus says "spend this time on something I have complete control over, namely, not doing anything that deserves a sneer".
    • (RedFox): Act impeccably so that there isn't something worth sneering at by others. Even when sneers come, one can be assured that one is indeed impeccable.
    • (Redrock12): I tend to give the benefit of the doubt to other older folk that act out, as some have a lot going on in their lives.
  • One way to stop seeking admiration is to realize that to win the admiration of others, one has to adopt their values, therefore taking on what their notion of success is. Is this notion of success compatible with one's values?
    • Another way is to go out of our way to trigger another's disdain as a way to practice ignoring it (like not following dress etiquette, etc.).
    • (IL Matto): The book Unholy Hungers deals with the vampirism of admiration.
  • (RedFox): "Regrets of the dying" on SOTT reveals that people tend to regret spending too much time in their career, and less time with family and friends.
  • (Breo): Developing the true self, it always ties back to it when reading Stoic literature.
  • (Mari): The other reading group is reading Laura's Secret History and are at the part where they speak of starting with ourselves, working on false programming in order to bring about and see the true self. Then work on the environment around you, then branch out further from there.
  • (IL Matto): Treading that line between STO and STS is incredibly difficult. Like when we do something nice for others, are we doing it for ourselves or others?
    • (Mari): Networking helps a lot in this regard. It helps see our blind spots.
    • (RedFox): Am I doing this to please another? But can we still give even if in the back of our mind it serves us as well?
    • (Mari): We can see from the feedback of another--what's the energy like when we interact with others?

Chapter 15 - Personal Values: On Luxurious Living
  • Epictetus states: "it is better to die of hunger with distress and fear gone than to live upset in the midst of plenty", and that "not needing wealth is more valuable than wealth itself is".
    • Musonius adds that wealth won't let us live without sorrow and won't console us in old age. It can never bring contentment and remove grief. It does however, have the power to make people miserable in life.
    • (Redrock12): There are rich people that don't know what they have. They look stressed out and unhappy despite their wealth
    • (Breo): They seem to be run too much by external influences--even with kids. The wealth gets to their head at times.
    • (Mari): In the romance novels, the rich folk don't seek fame or fortune, but end up being well off anyway. They seem happier too.
    • (IL Matto): The attachment to the wealth is in part what causes the problem. In the Bible, a rich man goes up to Jesus and asks for advise on how to get to heaven. Jesus tells him to let go of his wealth, and one can interpret this as not forming an attachment to it.
  • Stoics favor simple diets and clothing as opposed to extravagant ones--to teach one to be grateful with what one has and to be satisfied with it.
  • Epictetus encourages people not to focus on wealth, but to focus on other character values like self-respect, trustworthiness, high-mindedness, etc.
    • (RedFox): If you don't have a strong character, these things can easily overwhelm a person.
    • (Turgon): The internal vs the external locus of control. People fall within a spectrum of it. The external control means one is led around by their external environment.
    • (RedFox): There are those that come into great, sudden wealth, only to go back to where they started after spending haphazardly. It goes to show how important working on one's character and being is.
    • (Mari): Shares a post on the forum (The Money Masters!)
  • Nonetheless, Stoicism can be financially rewarding, as it cultivates self-discipline, single-mindedness, and being of good service to others.
    • Stoics don't renounce this wealth and instead use it to benefit oneself and others without clinging to it and/or letting it negatively effect their characters. The same can be applied to fame too.
    • (anartist): If one desires luxury, then it is easier to be dissatisfied.
    • (Turgon): Living in an area with rich folk, some seem happy with their lives, while some are mean-hearted. They look at others like peasants--someone lesser.
      • (Mari): Maybe there's a distinction to be had between being born into money and working hard to get to that wealth.
      • (Laurs): Knew someone who worked hard for their money in order to live well off for a while. They found joy in sharing their wealth with others who are not as wealthy. They have good hearts and appreciate their wealth.

General Notes
  • Trump discussion.
    • (Anya112003): While Trump is doing a lot of good, it is upsetting to see him side against the Palestinians.
    • (Laurs): Peter Thiel is developing technology to locate Palestinians.
    • (Breo): Trump's daughter is married to a religious Jew, which may effect his decision-making.
    • (?): Maybe we should send books like Political Ponerology to Barron Trump.
  • (Mari): Records were broken by places near the gulf with all the snow there.
  • (Mari): Dehumidifiers work well in preventing mold in the house (i.e. the bathroom).
  • (Mari): Lots of meteors over the USA in the past two weeks. In one day there'd be 2-3 sightings of them.
  • (Mari): Why are they not letting people get to their homes that got burned down by the Pallisades fire?
    • (Anya112003): To increase the misery.
    • (?): Trump said that they should just clean up their lots themselves. Otherwise they may be charged Upwards of $20k or so for as third-party to clean the lot.

For Next Meeting

Our next meeting will be on February 2nd, 2025. See y'alls soon!
 

Attachments

The list of books that were discussed before as potential reading for Am-EU group:
  • Randall Carlson´s articles: Cosmic connection with the Grail mysteries
  • Laura´s articles: The Grail Quest and the Destiny of Man - basically SHOTW, so it´s currently being done by Au-Asia-Am group
  • Comets and the Horns of Moses (The Secret History of the World) by Laura Knight-Jadczyk - will possibly/potentially be done by Au-Asia-Am group?
  • The Sufi Path of Knowledge: Ibn Al-Arabi's Metaphysics of Imagination, William Chittick
  • Books by G.I. Gurdjieff
    • Meetings with Remarkable Men by G. I. Gurdjieff
  • Books by P.D. Ouspensky
  • Books by Boris Mouravieff
  • The Controversy of Zion, Douglas Reed
  • From Yahweh to Zion, Laurent Guyenot
  • Paul and the Stoics by Troels Engberg Pedersen - we are currently doing the other Stoics book
  • Paul's Necessary Sin by Timothy Ashworth
  • Political Ponerology by Andrew Lobaczewski
  • The Polyvagal Theory by Stephen W. Porges PhD
 
Hi everyone,

Here are the links for the recent Aus-Asia-Am group discussion on Phosphorus and The Frequency of Light thread & the article Supernovae: Vehicle of Ascension? by Laura Knight-Jadczyk.

Here's the video of the last meeting
The audio
And the folder
And the slide show


We will read Chapter 3 of The Secret History of the World and How to Get Out Alive for our next workshop on Saturday at 7 pm Sydney AEDST time (GMT+11).

See you all then!

___________________________________________________________________________________________
 
Hi everyone,

Here are the links for the recent Aus-Asia-Am group discussion on The Secret History of the World and How to Get Out Alive by Laura Knight-Jadczyk.

Here's the video of the last meeting
The audio
And the folder
And the slide show


We will read Chapter 4 of The Secret History of the World and How to Get Out Alive for our next workshop on Saturday at 7 pm Sydney AEDST time (GMT+11).

See you all then!

___________________________________________________________________________________________
Below are the links to what we discussed:

Viktor Schauberger- Living energies and Water
Language, Sounds and Intelligent Design
Judi Dench reciting Shakespeare sonnet (& does it so very well).
Sonnet 29: When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes
By William Shakespeare

When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes,
I all alone beweep my outcast state,
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
And look upon myself and curse my fate,
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
Featured like him, like him with friends possessed,
Desiring this man’s art and that man’s scope,
With what I most enjoy contented least;
Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
Haply I think on thee, and then my state,
(Like to the lark at break of day arising
From sullen earth) sings hymns at heaven’s gate;
For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings
That then I scorn to change my state with kings.

Connecting with ancestors, as part of things to do for spiritual protection as listed in this post from Session 18 May 2019.
 
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