I've had some thoughts rattling around today and wasn't finding it easy to clarify. As often is the case, I read something on the forum that helps bring some focus. This is one of those times. I was thinking about
transmarginal inhibition and how it might explain some of the changes in anti-vaxxers who have decided to take the jab or anti-authoritarians who seemed to have changed and now buy the party line.
Basically, transmarginal inhibition is a kind of shut down due to stress where one of the end results is that previous conditioning is undone. So that might explain the changes seen. However there's more. Under the current circumstances where the stress isn't just particular to anti-vaxxers or anti-authoritarians, it also affects vaxxers and authoritarian followers. So what if their previous conditioning is being broken down too and they are also changing? What if they become anti-vaxxers and anti authoritarians meaning the net effect of applying the stress globally is close to zero?
The above also gives another idea. What if we can use transmarginal inhibition consciously and actively choose self limiting conditioning that we want to break down rather than have something or someone else choose for us?
I think you are describing Initiation.
The conscious use of transmarginal inhibition (or Initiation) is very different from the PTB's Pavlovian conditioning techniques. Initiation is designed to generate a breakthrough, rather than a breakdown. This seems to hinge on whether or not the 'person going through Hell' has the Faith or Knowledge (or both) that there is something beautiful, good, and true on the other side of the suffering. That's the breakthrough aspect -
the suffering has meaning. In my life, passing through a stage of intense suffering generally results in deep, deep gratitude. But without this kind of experience or understanding, and without an Aim, even conscious suffering can get out of hand and downgrade to automatic suffering. Then the whole world of life drops into meaninglessness again, which can very quickly fry our circuits.
The way I see it, a life practice of intentional suffering and conscious labours generates a 'natural immunity' to the breakdowns caused by externally-imposed transmarginal inhibition. This 'natural immunity' is created in us by finding the heaviest cross we can and then doing our level best to bear up underneath it - again and again and again. Over time, our neural pathways are grooved to turn any frequency bombardment, emotional harassment, or physical hardship into more fuel for further breakthroughs. Pain becomes understood as information - the study material of our current lesson plan. It's an opportunity for curiousity. Rather than the dopamine pathway being hooked up to the pleasure centre and more sleep, we can turn those neurochemicals towards the pursuit and mastery of challenges.
So long as we choose sufficient challenges in our lives, we can increase our threshold and tolerance for suffering, so that whatever the PTB throws at us becomes just another challenge. Despair just can't enter. This is one way that I understand Paul's phrase, 'being crucified to the world'. And according to Don Juan, when the Predator tries to feed on the energy of a person with that kind of discipline, it becomes bewildered, and moves on to seek easier prey.
A couple of quotes from Castaneda about challenge and warriorhood:
"A warrior considers himself already dead, so there is nothing to lose. The worst has already happened to him, therefore he's clear and calm; judging him by his acts or by his words, one would never suspect that he has witnessed everything."
"Only a warrior can survive the path of knowledge because the art of the warrior is to balance the pain of being a man with the wonder of being a man."
"Only as a warrior can one withstand the path of knowledge. A warrior cannot complain or regret anything. His life is an endless challenge, and challenges cannot possibly be good or bad. Challenges are simply challenges."
"A warrior takes his lot, whatever it may be, and accepts it in ultimate humbleness. He accepts in humbleness what he is, not as a grounds for regret but as a living challenge."
"To be a warrior is not a simple matter of wishing to be one. It is rather an endless struggle that will go on to the very last moment of our lives. Nobody is born a warrior, in exactly the same way that nobody is born an average man. We make ourselves into one or the other."
And I don't think it's 'too late' to continue with the daily Work just because all this shiny new fascism is rolling out across the world. I say this because I see a lot of people posting these days that they are 'done with 3D', which I understand in part as a cry of grief when witnessing the truth of this world. But I also find it troubling see that signal being sent out into the cosmos with such regularity. It's as if there is nothing left to learn here, about ourselves, each other, and all of Great Nature. This could be a cry of fatigue, too - and an effect of the PTB's transmarginal inhibition.
So there are many small, daily challenges we can choose to face to continue to temper our spirit. Whether it's cold showers, starting to journal, intermittent fasting, that one chore that you've been putting off, starting up standard therapy, learning to play the violin - or (specifically for those convinced they're already somehow 'done with 3D'), finding new ways to love, to be of service, and to truly give what is being asked.
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