Citation de: Evolutionary1 le juin 25, 2009, 01:34:57 am
Not to mention, I too, have a tendency to "make things my own" by collecting and combining portions of various belief systems in response to the often conflicting religious and philosophical interpretations of how things are.
That's all fine and good and we are all about individuality. In fact, Gurdjieff's description of the Esoteric Circle emphasizes individuality. But there is something about objectivity that just is what it is. Our society has been so influenced by Post Modernism and "I create my own reality" that individuality has come to mean little more than "If I wanna believe it, that makes it so." Few people stop to really consider the pathology of such a position.
In the same session quoted, the Cs also made the following remark:
Citation de: Cs
Q: (L) In other words, there's no hope for our planet or our species if normal human beings do not come together and get over these varied pathological belief systems and religions and "your truth" and "my truth" and all that sort of thing?
A: Yes. All of that was created and spread by pathological types under the influence of their hyperdimensional masters for the purpose of turning this planet into a "hell on earth" with them as the masters. They have succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. What is needed is for many people to begin to make direct connections with their higher centers. This has been done via the "work" up to now, but there are other methods to accelerate the process and obtain the needed assistance.
Some further considerations about "individuality" as a twist on reality were addressed in the thread about the May 30 session, but I'll include it here since it is appropriate (again) to the discussion.
Let me try to explain with a little help from psychologist John Schumaker who wrote a nifty little book entitled "Wings of Illusion" about the human tendency to hide from reality and make up beliefs in saviors and so on.
First, let's establish what reality is. Primary reality is reality as it would present itself if only information and data was available. This is raw data with no critical or analytical thinking. It is reality that is uncorrupted by analysis and thinking. It has not been modified, translated, or otherwise distorted.
Consider the squirrel. With no bias from higher order thinking, the reality of a squirrel is stable. Things are "as they are," so to say. An acorn is always something to eat or to stick in holes. The squirrel doesn't think about why it does that, but later in the winter, it turns out to be handy that all those acorns got stuck in holes.
In the absence of any rational, analytical mechanism to misinterpret acorns, squirrels never have acorn gods and never develop acorn phobias. When another squirrel dies, decomposes and disappears, the remaining squirrels have no ability to alter the empirical data ... the dead squirrel is gone. The reality of the squirrel does not permit a squirrel heaven or happy acorn ground of an afterlife. Because of its brain design, the squirrel is prevented from interpreting empirical data which is its only access to reality.
Human beings, on the other hand, possess something that can automatically banish them from reality. Human beings, in all cultures, construct realities for themselves that are not empirical. Under the influence of pathology, these realities are irrational and false. Socrates frequently began his speeches by imploring his listeners not to be angry with him if he tells them the truth. Socrates definitely knew that falsehoods and errors envelop the human mind.
What is shocking is the astonishing human capacity to tolerate beliefs that make fools of our brains. The surprising fact about human beings is that a belief does not have to be true in order to be believed. Most of the belief systems that generations of humans have lived by and died for are in fact patently false. Yet they were held with deep conviction and fervor. Fads and fallacies, delusions and fantasies, are so numerous in human history that they constitute the very fabric of our existence. Human culture is comprised of castles in the air that are products of our imagination and yearning in the face of a cold, cruel and forbidding reality.
The universality of the distortion of reality is a reaction against pathology. Finding order and meaning in life is a powerful human drive - the drive that can lead us to deep reality, to higher spheres. Reality, after pathology moved in and took it over, became so unpleasant, that this drive for order and meaning was subverted.
At the same time, the human being is quite capable of arriving at reliable knowledge. It is within our capabilities to process incoming information in order that our mental constructions correspond to reality.
Now, let's consider personal reality.
For the squirrel, the personal reality and the primary reality overlap exactly. This is because the squirrel doesn't have the ability to translate and then re-translate incoming information.
To a human being, on the other hand, acorns can be little bombs planted by aliens, or the source of powerful magic, or just an acorn. Many options are open to human beings that are not there for the squirrel. Why do humans avail themselves of these optional interpretations? All things being equal, it is done for purposes of social, psychological and physical survival.
The reality of human beings almost never overlaps completely with primary reality. It is "interpreted" for better or worse. This is true in normal as well as abnormal individuals. These interpretations can be delusional or they can be paths to DEEP reality. DEEP REALITY may, indeed, reveal that acorns are little bombs planted by aliens or the source of powerful magic (not probable, but all possibilities have to be kept open when assessing empirical observations). But one cannot GET TO that deep reality without first being able to face Primary Reality without flinching. One MUST have data and that data must not be skewed.
Human personal reality is FULL of errors when using primary reality, raw data, as the criterion.
The question is: why do humans do this?
The probable answer is that it is a response to emotionally terrifying facets of existence in this world.
The human brain has the ability to:
1) selectively perceive its environment,
2) selectively process information,
3) selectively store memories,
4) selectively disengage from already stored memories, and
5) selectively replace dissociated data with more "user-friendly " data.
These abilities empower human beings to regulate their reality. It's like a thermostat.
So, personal reality is defined by its deviation from primary reality even if it partially overlaps. Personal reality is Empirical reality + or - whatever empirically unjustified modifications have been made.
Ernest Rossi, an Ericksonian hypnotherapist, estimated that at least 80 percent of the information contained in the human mind is false. What makes this estimate remarkable is that Rossi was referring to the vast amount of error that is accumulated not as a result of any kind of hypnosis, but just during the normal waking life of the individual.
Remember, we are not talking about an animal with insufficient brain power to get things right. We are dealing with the creature with the most highly developed cerebral cortex known. Despite our cerebral talents, the mental world of the human being is most often at odds with the true nature of things. Not only that, but we will fight to preserve what is false. We are able to do this while, at the same time, apprehending SOME areas of our reality with astonishing precision!
Whatever the actual extent of our cognitive errors, we need to remember that the generation of these errors is a result of complex cerebral processes that work to safeguard the integrity of the entire nervous system. We aren't doing this "on purpose," so to say.
Next, there is the Cultural Reality. The reality of the individual is, to a great extent, the result of constructions that are fabricated and propagated by culture. Cultural reality is the constellation of externally delivered suggestions that are normalized on the basis of group endorsement.
One central function of any workable culture is to offer mental constructions of reality that are erroneous in relation to empirical reality. Culture is the central bank of cognitive distortion. Ernest Becker described culture as a "macro-lie".
Mental health is assessed by psychologists and psychiatrists as a person's ability to "perceive reality accurately." And, of course, they mean the socially accepted reality! In short, a considerable amount of insanity, in the sense of being out of touch with reality, is requisite to be diagnosed as mentally healthy! (This tells us a lot about the pathological state of psychology and psychiatry.)
Scholars throughout the ages have described empirical reality in terms so noxious that humans must somehow defend themselves from it. The average humans' distaste for the facts of life has been recorded since writing began.
Over the past decades, researchers have tested hypotheses that people do generate transformations or distortions of reality prophylactically. The results of these studies all point to the remarkably consistent tendencies of all human beings to self-deception, illusion and other biases about reality.
In short, it seems that reality is "too strong" for most humans to tolerate.
Several studies dealt with the "illusion of self-control". That is, the illusion that individuals possess environmental or situational control that they do not have in actuality. Several experiments have shown that the illusion of control is inversely related to depression. That is, depressed people are less adept than nondepressed people at generating such illusions. This particular category of illusion appears to insulate people from depression. One can reduce depression by imposing on reality "alterations" that are illusory.
Studies of self-consciousness, or self-insight and self-awareness show that people who rate high in these aspects are less inclined to resort to denial and self-deception. As it turns out, this self-consciousness correlates with negative emotional states. Increasing the apprehension of reality, both internal and external, can precipitate negative emotional responses.
The problem with reality is that it makes no sense. Terror is the normal emotional state for someone in full view and bearing the full psychic brunt of reality.
So, obviously, the ability to create and believe in illusions can make a person more functional.
But, here's the problem. When psychopaths use the human tendency - ability to dissociate to make them believe in illusions that are beneficial to the psychopaths - it always and inevitably is to the detriment of the person engaged in the illusion.
We are unquestionably creatures of genius, but we are engaged in actions, as a society, of such stupidity that our own survival is in jeopardy.
The question is, can we wake up in time?
Can we figure out what really works and the scientific basis of that practice? Can we marry science to mysticism?
That is the perspective of the Cs: PRIMARY REALITY combined with DEEP REALITY.
It takes some getting used to.
Citation de: Evolutionary1 le juin 25, 2009, 01:34:57 am
I suppose it is a belief that if I do not "reinterpret" something into my own language, I have not done the work necessary to "get it." I still think this is a useful approach to integrating knowledge, but I see how this belief has often led me to do things the hard, long way--re-doing what's already done well--when it was not necessary and I certainly want to conserve my energy!
It can also be an effect of pathological Post Modernist thinking. Two very useful books on this topic are Ernest Gellner's "The Psychotherapeutic Movement" and "Postemodernism, Reason and Religion." On the topic of how pathology has spearheaded the ideas that we all create our own reality, have a look at Psychopath Humanoids - Beyond Insanity.
Citation de: Evolutionary1 le juin 25, 2009, 01:34:57 am
Though I do my best to eliminate wishful thinking, having others shed light on one of my oldest patterns and beliefs has given me a lot to think about (as usual) and for that I am very grateful. Thank you for taking the time, all of you, to respond.
As the Cs said, again from the May 30 session:
Citation de: Cs Session
(L) Okay. What is the most essential thing for us to know about Paleochristianity, about what people need to know?
A: People need to know about pathology as you call it. In former times it was often referred to as demonic possession. In some cases, they were right.
Q: (L) But clearly not in all cases, and that needs to made absolutely clear because there are some people who are just sick.
A: Yes. Hyperdimensional influences are often the cause of pathology. This can be due to influences at this level of reality including dietary and nurture.
Q: (L) Okay, what else?
A: Just as detoxing the body can lead to abundant health, so can detoxing the mind and environment lead to abundant life and happiness for all. But as was the "fall", it must be a group decision and the differences and pathological blocks to objective understanding must be removed.
Q: (L) In other words, there's no hope for our planet or our species if normal human beings do not come together and get over these varied pathological belief systems and religions and "your truth" and "my truth" and all that sort of thing?
A: Yes. All of that was created and spread by pathological types under the influence of their hyperdimensional masters for the purpose of turning this planet into a "hell on earth" with them as the masters. They have succeeded beyond their wildest dreams.
I already mentioned John Keel's book "Operation Trojan Horse" - a useful read at this point for everyone. Just remember that STS/entropic forces are the source of division and confusion. Remember the Biblical story of the Tower of Babel... it wasn't a "good" god that created that confusion despite the perspective of Judaism which is a distillation of patrism which is anti-female and advocates the torture of children. Those are also core characteristics of psychopathology.
We need to identify all the threads and tendrils of pathology that wind their way through our thinking, strangling and twisting and distorting our vision and our emotions. It's difficult because it's been a part of our Western culture for over 2000 years. We cut our teeth on those ideas and it's hard to get outside of them. But it can be done. We can open our eyes and see, open our ears and hear, and have our hearts cleansed so that we can truly love and BE individuals who all see the same Truth.
« Modifié: juin 25, 2009, 12:26:25 pm par Laura »
