John B., 3WD, Rod, Scott, (Glenn),
Mr. Beasely used the following quote on mysticism...
Hameed Ali says "we believe that spiritual development must be seen
not only as a correction to normal experience, but more importantly, as
further development of the self. Much spiritual work functions to correct
the delusions of the self regarding its true nature and the nature of the
world by encouraging disidentification with self-concepts. However, we
understand the natural unfoldment of the soul to lead to one becoming
discontent with, and seeing through, one's identifications. This unfoldment
need not involve a rejection of the capacity for conceptualizing; it can
simply allow and increasing transparency of mental concepts as the
appreciation of our nature as essential presence reduces our identification
with self representations." ('The Point of Existence' p183)
Thanks, John. This is one of the things I was trying to get at. Mystics
aren't necessarily the same thing as hermits. The aim is neither to be
disengaged nor mindless. Quite the opposite. This kind of disassociation and
transcendence takes a certain kind of effort and concentration. It depends
on a kind of inward engagement.
These "delusions of the self" and "the self-concept" exist on the
intellectual level, but even more strongly on the social level. Consider all
the talk in Lila about fame and fortune, "the anthropology of celebrity",
the mirrors in the faces of others, in the media and at the movies, all the
morals of all the stories in all the churches and myths. All this stuff is
at the social level and bear upon "the self-concept'. Yer basic maya. See
through it? Hell, yes. Disassociation from all that is a liberating
experience of the first order. Its about getting more in touch with the
world and the essential self. That's why the mystic students are the first
ones off the stove. They're more engaged in the real world.
DMB
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