The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
PDF:https://theomarkhayyamclubofamerica.fil ... 50-dpi.pdf
(the PDF can get larger)
In 1600 Rome, the Baroque theatre
Of political intrigues and inquisition trials,
One of the most influential secret societies
In history was born: The Illuminati.
Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Galileo Galilei,
The twin heads of the society,
Scattered throughout the Eternal City
Clues and enigmas which, once solved,
Would lead Illuminati adepts to a hidden lair.
- JackDaydream
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
Thank you for sharing the link to your pdf book and it is interesting and, of course, illustrated beautifully. I do wonder to what extent the Illuminati do operate behind the scenes of the political structure of religious and other organisations. I try not to get too carried away with conspiracy theories, although I admit that I went through a phase of reading some of David Icke's books.
I have been reading an old book on secret societies by Charles William Heckethorn(1897) which does look at the Illuminati briefly, as well as a number of other movements, ranging from the Freemasons, the Cathars and The Knights Templars. It also describes torture which was given to people who were seen by certain powerful authorities as heretics. This author also refers to ideas and symbols underlying movements, including the Kabbalah and Adam Kadmon, as a spiritual principle.
All these ideas are worth thinking about, but knowing the actual operation of secret societies is hard to know, because they are operating 'secretly'. I have wondered about certain aspects of life interaction, wondering about hidden political influences, but I also try not to go too far because it is easy to end up becoming paranoid. However, it is so interesting to read about, although I am trying to read less at the moment,, because I am having a bit of an eyesight problem and have to wait 2 weeks for a doctor's appointment at the eye clinic.
as heretics.
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
Omar Khayyam worked for the palace just after Islam had arrived in Persia, around a thousand years ago, on algebra, astronomy, the new calendar, and more, but his Rubaiyat poems had to remain secret. Somehow his Rubaiyat survived, being found in the Bodleian Library in the mid 1800s by Cowell, who sent them to Edward FitzGerald, who then transmogrified them into Victorian English from the Farsi Arabic. The world eventually went wild reading the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.
The Victorians doubly reeled in shock, as too from Darwin's 'On the Origin of the Species' published in about the same year.
Omar's private words about the necessary secrecy of his Rubaiyat quatrains were even more difficult to locate, but I did, although I can't reveal the source… ha ha.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnNMBOPQo3c
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
I have just watched your video and the one you linked in a previous post. Generally, I have looked towards more ideas about the esoteric within Western traditions and some arising within the traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism, rather than in Islam. This has been partly influenced by my reading of writings within the theosophical tradition, which as far as I can see don't pay that much attention to Islam. However, I am aware of the critical approach to theosophy of Krishnamurti, who was viewed as a future leader of that movement, but distanced himself, and began his unique search.
However, I am sure that there are many important thinkers within Islam, especially the Sufi movement. It definitely appears that the esoteric tradition draws upon Eastern philosophy and, in this way, is separate from the mainstream of Western philosophy. I think that Taoism is extremely important and while I was studying Jung, I consulted the I Ching, and did find that it was a way of tapping into intuitive wisdom. I notice that the Oriental does permeate your art work, especially the characters in your art.. One other tradition which I am aware of is Jainism. The main reason I came across this was, being an indie music lover, I have listened to the music of the band Kula Shaker, which is influenced by the singer's interest in Jain philosophy. Also, it does seem that psychedelic music going back as far as the Beatles and John Lennon has drawn upon Eastern mysticism, and that the 60s drug culture lead to that kind of thinking. My own experimentation came more in the context of the new age hippie revival, and I believe that there is still some influence of this in counterculture of the present time, especially in dance music subculture.
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
Trying to contact a 'God' of their supposing who is strangely totally silent. After all is said and done, much more is said and nothing was done. And now we have quantum healers…
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
Quantum healers quacked me superimposed;
Fortune tellers revealed the palms’ tales told;
Astrologers read charts now a month behind;
Theophostics claimed understanding blind.
- Greatest I am
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
Every ostic does.PoeticUniverse wrote: ↑August 20th, 2021, 3:55 pm The Secret Knowledge
Quantum healers quacked me superimposed;
Fortune tellers revealed the palms’ tales told;
Astrologers read charts now a month behind;
Theophostics claimed understanding blind.
The Secret Knowledge is in plain sight.
Argue the God's ways till we all find better.
Think like the ancients did. It is better.
I hope you can see how intelligent the ancients were as compared to the mental efforts that modern preachers and theists are using with the literal reading of myths.
Rabbi Hillel, the older contemporary of Jesus, said that when asked to sum up the whole of Jewish teaching, while he stood on one leg, said, "The Golden Rule. That which is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor. That is the Torah. And everything else is only commentary. Now, go and study it."
Please listen as to what is said about the literal reading of myths.
"Origen, the great second or third century Greek commentator on the Bible said that it is absolutely impossible to take these texts literally. You simply cannot do so. And he said, "God has put these sort of conundrums and paradoxes in so that we are forced to seek a deeper meaning."
Matt 7;12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
This is how early Gnostic Christians view the transition from reading myths properly to destructive literal reading and idol worship.
Hell on Earth, and the beginning on the ongoing Dark Age of Christianity, thanks to belief in a genocidal, homophobic and misogynous god.
Regards
DL
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
- JackDaydream
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
I think that it is important to step outside of the literal interpretation of myth, although it is not always that simple. I would say that many mainstream Christians take the Bible in a very literal way. I remember a time when I used to think about the Book of Revelation in a literal way and I got extremely stressed. I feel that being able to understand the symbolic nature of texts and life is liberating.
But, I do wonder where the ancients stood in this respect, based on reading Julian Jaynes' 'Origins of the Bicameral Mind', in which the author argues that ancient people often experienced 'voices' and were unable to separate inner and outer reality in the way that we do. But, I am not certain of Jaynes' argument although I do believe that it is likely that ancient people thought in a way very different from the way of our times. Also, Frazer, in 'The Golden Bough' speaks of humanity going through stages: magic, religion and science.
I wonder if the scientific approach does make us try and view everything too concretely and often leads to a closure of the imagination and that it is beneficial for us to follow pathways to access this lost dimension of human experience.
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
Your poem , 'The Secret Knowledge' and your picture has made me wonder to what extent does knowledge have for destruction or healing, especially regarding the planetary crisis of our time? Is there some deep underlying mythic level of sickness pervading the ecosystems? Certainly, that is hinted at in James Lovelock's Gaia hypothese.
Within Eastern systems of thought we have the ideas of the chakras, which indicate a more energetic approach to health, as well as the meridians spoken of in Chinese philosophy. These ideas are incorporated into holistic medicine, and I do believe that ideas of healing within such systems of complementary medicine do offer some wisdom which can be glossed over within the science of medicine. I am not suggesting that this is superior to conventional medicine, but may offer us some additional wisdom and indeed it is possible that some clairvoyants and those with some degree of prophetic vision may give us hidden wisdom for the healing of the individual and the planet.
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
No, just the man-made problems on top of any 'bad' natural happenings. It is an exponential crisis and so it can no longer be halted. We need some luck, such as cooling from Yellowstone blowing up. I'll consult with my quantum computer forward predictor…JackDaydream wrote: ↑August 21st, 2021, 3:55 pm Is there some deep underlying mythic level of sickness pervading the ecosystems?
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
The End Times?JackDaydream wrote: ↑August 21st, 2021, 3:55 pm to what extent does knowledge have for destruction or healing, especially regarding the planetary crisis of our time?
Our planet is very good at promoting life,
But it is much better at extinguishing it.
Of the billions upon billions of organic things,
99.99% are no longer around here living.
Of all extinctions, the Permian was the worst.
245 million years ago, for 95% of species perished,
Suddenly disappearing from the fossil recording.
Life had almost come to a total obliterationing.
…
Time, gray with age, yet hurls its changes’ ‘when’,
‘Gainst existence’s rock, time and time again,
The entropic seas laying bare the sands,
Though some life’s preserved, via nature’s wands.
Still, the waves of the ancient swells of Time’s
Relentless tides sweep ever on, anon,
Like we, too, gray and hoary with age,
Ever onwards bear forth the ashen change.
The charge is ever san, pale and colorless,
That which drives the roasting Earth to its death,
That force born to summon decay, so endless,
‘Gainst nature’s paradise every day.
Reminiscences have greatly weathered
But some tendencies seldom wither,
As back in the woven mists of time
Yesteryear appears in memory’s mind.
Time and time again, Time feeds all upon
In its bloodless, white, and waxen way;
Our everlasting rose begins to fade,
Its luster e’er darkening by the day.
Entropic seas e’er denude the mountains
As our once durable flower strains to
Cast the Heat aside, a losing battle,
But, at least somehow to endure as less,
E’er unsuccumbing to the sickly, peakèd
State ever draining drawn our lives away,
As to regain our melted permanence—
The undying light of life’s glorious dance,
As like the ‘IS’ of the Imperishable,
Its flame of beauty ne’er extinguishable,
Forever celebrated as immutable,
Deathless, ne’er created, ungenerated.
…
We did it once, so very long ago,
According to Marine Isotope Stage 6.
(A near extinction of Homo Sapiens)
Life was good 195,000 years ago;
The climate was mild; food was plentiful.
Earth then entered a long glacial stage.
It became cool and arid, the deserts expanding,
Making most of the Earth uninhabitable.
The number of people plummeted
To just hundreds of breeding individuals.
We humans today are all from them;
We exhibit very low genetic diversity
Relative to many other species.
The southern coast of Africa,
Rich in shellfish and edible plants, year round,
Seems to have been their only refuge.
A cave has been found, along with tools—
A coastal cornucopia.
We almost never were.
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
The question is who or what hidden source of wisdom can help us now. Time is running out and the catastrophe is escalating. Climate change is accelerating at a much faster rate than first imagined. 2000 passed and the end of the Maya calendar. The leaders are at a loss to know what to do to conserve the world and sustain future generations and lifeforms. Is it really the end of time, and life as we know it? We need some masters of widoms to step forward and show us some hidden solutions before we are consumed by the 'dark god' of destruction.
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
The intelligentsia suggest that globalization is bound to happen as shown by the historic rapprochement of various nations.
How to kick start that election process is the not so simple solution to our problems.
The numbers of people in our various demographics who would want globalization, as a problem solver here, are the majority, --- but are not heard.
A problem cannot be solved, when there is no one in charge of fixing it.
Regards
DL
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Re: The Esoteric: Understanding Hidden Aspects of Religious and Spiritual Traditions
2023/2024 Philosophy Books of the Month
Mark Victor Hansen, Relentless: Wisdom Behind the Incomparable Chicken Soup for the Soul
by Mitzi Perdue
February 2023
Rediscovering the Wisdom of Human Nature: How Civilization Destroys Happiness
by Chet Shupe
March 2023