LOVING A NEW "FURTHEST IN" BOOK
I wrote to Daniel Pinchbeck today, who's coming to Los Angeles next week with his marvelous new book, "Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism". He's the author of a great piece about crop circles that was in "Wired Magazine." (See it in my conversation with Daniel that's posted on TheConversation.org.) I said:
I am really excited reading your book. It keeps making me want to cry. It's that ring of truth thing. And you write so deliciously. I can't help but think, deluded though I may be, that if everyone read it, the world would change. Or is that masking something else that is calling to me, where, if those who read it and felt as I do were to be in touch, we would change the world? Could we be the "small group of thoughtful, committed citizens" that Margaret Mead talked about?
So far, I've just read the introduction and the last chapter -- a tip a voracious reader gave me about how to approach a non-fiction book (read the table of contents, too). Sometimes, in fact, that's all you need to read to get the whole book. But not in your case. I will relish every adventure of the mind and soul that lies ahead.
The book is so quotable -- I'd mark a sentence, and then keep extending the mark until one selection blended with the next. I resonate so with your observations and opinions about the repression of psychedelics in this culture of ours that is so deeply entrenched in the material plane. You talk about the world psychedelics reveal, of "abnormal perceptions" -- i.e. "paintings that breathe, statues that dance, trees that writhe with faces and limbs...geometric and hallucinatory vistas of unleashed Otherness," and then come some musings that I find particularly compelling in "making sense of these times":
The visionary power of psychedelics remains a mystery, one that was abandoned by the scientific academy when psychedelics were made illegal a generation ago. Equally mysterious: Why should the private exploration of one's inner reality, by chemical or other means, be considered a serious threat to a "free" society?
In "The Long Trip," a study of visionary drug use through history, Paul Devereux muses: I sometimes wonder if our culture, acting in the manner of a single organism -- in the way a crowd of people or a classroom of students sometimes can -- somehow senses a deep threat to its own philosophical foundations residing in the psychedelic experience. This might help account for the otherwise irrational hatred and repression of the use of hallucinogens, and the smirking dismissal of the psychedelic experience as a trivial one by so many of our intellectuals."...
And yet it cannot be said that our culture frowns on the use of consciousness changing substances. Marijuana is forbidden, but alcohol and nicotine -- far more destructive drugs -- are consumed in mass quantities. While psychedelics are outlawed, 27 million Americans currently take antidepressants such as Zoloft or Prozac. These days, most people are far more suspicious of plant compounds safely infested by human beings for tens of thousands of years than they are of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or other powerful, utterly synthetic, mood and mind-altering drugs created in the last decades by a pharmacological industry motivated by profit.
Antidepressants fit our society's underlying biases. Psychedelics, emphatically, do not. Is it possible that we have demonized hallucinogens because we fear the contents of our own minds?...
The self-knowledge achieved through personal discovery and visionary states seems alien, even repellent, compared to the voyeuristic gaze, the virtual entertainments and hypnotic distractions of contemporary culture...
It may well be the case, as the late Terence McKenna wrote, that "the suppression of the natural human fascination with altered states of consciousness and the present perilous situation of all life on earth are intimately and causally connected." We have pursued frighteningly Faustian knowledge about the physical world without developing deeper awareness of our inner selves. If we don't find some means of correcting this imbalance, we may face the most dire consequences.
What a powerful plea you make for the value of psychedelics in accessing what's "furthest in," an "outside the box" place to look for solutions to the world problematique. That Einstein idea, about not being able to solve a problem at the level of consciousness that created it, should be the guide to wisdom now.
(Daniel Pinchbeck has an event in Los Angeles on Wednesday, October 16. See post on October 13.)
posted by suzanne at 11:22 AM
QUOTE ABOUT IRAQI PEOPLEFrom Detailed Analysis of Bush Speech on Iraq, quote by James Jennings, president of Conscience International, a humanitarian aid organization that has worked in Iraq since 1991"The president has repeatedly claimed, 'We have no quarrel with the Iraqi people.' In his speech to the nation on Oct. 7, he said, 'America is a friend of the people of Iraq.' Try telling that to a friend of mine in Baghdad who walked out of his house following a U.S.bomb attack to find his neighbor's head rolling down the street; or to a taxi driver I met whose four year old child shook uncontrollably for three days following Clinton s 1998 'Monicagate' bombing diversion. Try telling it to the mother of Omran ibn Jwair, whom I met in the village of Toq al-Ghazzalat after a U.S.missile killed her 13 year old son while he was tending sheep in the field. Try telling it to the hundreds of mothers I have seen crying over their dying babies in Iraqi hospitals, and to the hundreds of thousands of parents who have actually lost their infant children due to the cruel U.S.blockade, euphemistically called 'sanctions.' Are the Iraqi people supposed to rejoice now that a new war is being forced upon them by their so-called 'friends?' It is understandable that people are frightened following the disastrous attacks of September 11. But fear is not a good reason to stop thinking. In fact, when we are in danger is when clear thinking is needed most of all."
PROTESTING ABOUT IRAQ, AND THE "NOT IN MY NAME" STATEMENT -- A ConversationListmember Holley Rauen, holleyd@sbcglobal.net, an old friend, is the ex wife of the man who lost his legs some years back sitting on a train track making a social protest. She emailed me, urging me to join in the Iraq protest organized by the Not in My Name project. Here's what I wrote in response:
The Not in My Name statement says, "We believe that questioning, criticism, and dissent must be valued and protected. We understand that such rights and values are always contested and must be fought for." That's endorsing endless war, just like they're trying to prevent. I've emailed them to try to get that last sentence off. It makes me sick that that statement is part of the psyche of this, so I watch them from a distance, glad they're there but not drawn to engage. We still haven't learned.
Holley answered:
I had to think about your response for a few days before writing back. At first I was a little miffed and was thinking that you put yourself too much above the rest of us and judge me for being a political activist. I do not believe that speaking out when there is injustice and saying NO to war perpetuates more "endless war."
But, you are referring to this one sentence, right? "We believe that questioning, criticism, and dissent must be valued and protected. We understand that such rights and values are always contested and must be fought for." Is the language you are objecting to the use of the word "fight?" Or is it saying our right to dissent will always be contested? How would you rephrase this statement in a new way? I think that it is really great that you took the time to email these folks and try to raise their consciousness a little...I am sorry that they did not listen to you.
I have mixed feelings at these demonstrations. I feel moved by conscience to say NO to all that Bush is doing. So I get out there to add to the numbers. I did the same, as you know in the 80's when my husband lost his legs protesting against arms shipments to Central America. I protested against Vietnam War in the 60s as well. I went on strike with my union. These are actions of deep conscience that may have made a difference.
So now what can I do as I see the Military-Industrial war machine raise its ugly head more than ever? I write and email my representatives in Congress. I continue to network and reach out to people to educate and raise consciousness, I am working on my own self. But it is not enough. I fly my Peace flag.... I really believe in the power of non-violent resistance and our own countries rich tradition of non-violent resistance to war and injustice. That's why I still let myself be seen in the streets when I am so moved. The more radical folks (Like the WTO protesters) that throw things and destroy property etc at demos are not helping the majority of "We the people" in our cry for Peace. It is an issue in the community. So, I am asking today. What more can I do. How can I be a stronger channel for transformation, conservation and love? Make love, Not War???
Keep the conversation going:>)
I wrote back:
They say, "We understand that such rights and values are always contested and must be fought for." That acknowledges that humanity will be in endless conflict. I look forward to a time when everyone will know better, rather than understanding that fighting -- i.e. war -- is inevitable. I don't have any problem with political activism. My whole website is that. I've always thought my time was better spent fomenting dissent rather than parading it -- but it's not a judgment, just a use of my time.
You ask, "What more can I do? How can I be a stronger channel for transformation, conservation and love?" These are the torture questions. When you see insanity so clearly displayed, the frustration is unbearable. How can these idiots line up behind attacking Iraq? The urgency to pass legislation before the election is so clearly a political maneuver, where those who normally would be opposed won't risk losing their elections by being on the unpopular side. And how can that nitwit Bush be talked about as a great leader, delivering brilliant speeches? And no matter what their motives, like getting elected, can't politicians see how we wake the sleeping giant by backing him into a corner, where he'd use biological weapons if he had nothing to lose? We are watching the ship of state heading for the iceberg. How can we bear this?
The Not in My Name people are doing a real job. It's the most organized wing of protest. Were there one place where everyone would put their efforts, I think that could be the best chance to have all the effort be meaningful. Maybe it is these people, but I have this other set of eyes that sees that sentence as an energetic anchor, indicating that the group isn't yet at the level of clarity that would allow its empowerment to be totally realized. I wish they would have been open to a dialogue about that sentence. At the same time as I say this, don't think I don't know how little I am. Who am I to imagine that my opinions could be significant? What can I say? I am just doing my best. Thanks for the thoughtfulness to talk to me. We all are learning.
Holley answered:
"I've always thought my time was better spent fomenting dissent rather than parading it -- but it's not a judgment, just a use of my time." I love it! Indeed your website is a type of activism. I hope to bring more people to it and I do thank you for this discussion, your reply and humility. I understand more clearly what you are saying and I agree. I share the "torture" question with you...What more can I do? We are all learning indeed. Thanks again, for the conversation.
MAINSTREAM MEDIA AND IRAQ1.5 Million Take to the Streets in Italy to Protest Bush War Plans, by Eric J. Lyman, UPI International "The stance is significant because up to this point, Rome and London have been President George W. Bush's strongest allies in Europe."Did anyone see this in our mainstream media? Or much play about last Sunday's demonstrations, where over 500,000 people protested in cities across the US?
FOLLOW-UP ON DAVID HAWKINS
Hawkins may turn out to have been one of the great avatars of our time. He uses applied kinesiology (AK) as a source for information about which people consciously know not. I posted a quote from Hawkins on 10/4, and listmember David Haith, visions@ntlworld.com, emailed me, quoting from Hawkins' s website.
POWER vs. FORCE is the culmination of twenty years' research. In it, David Hawkins conclusively proves the ability of kinesiological testing to distinguish truth or falsehood in any statement—an astonishing idea in itself, with far reaching implications for every aspect of human life. He goes on to demonstrate the application of his method (explained dearly for the layman) in commerce, art, sport, etc. Then he explains its spiritual application, as a path to enlightenment.
Beyond this, Dr. Hawkins demonstrates kinesiological calibration as a tool for assessing value and motive, revealing the hidden determinants of human behavior—and establishing a Map of Consciousness that illuminates the spiritual ladder we must follow as a race and as individuals.
The volume concludes with compendious notes and bibliography, and, finally, a fascinating narrative of the author's own journey from atheism to spiritual enlightenment.
Dave said:
Despite the prolific notes his book unfortunately contains no details of his tests which "conclusively prove" his main thesis. I too was very excited about this book and looked around for some confirmation that, asked the same question, 100 per cent of people round the world would get the same answer. I found two or three studies which found that even medical muscle testing has been found not to work over and above chance and not a single study - except Hawkins's - which suggests it works. As he gives absolutely no details about all these thousands of people who confirmed his findings - where, when, how and who - this one must sit securely in the 'doubtful' tray. It's an extraordinary idea but one which does in this case require extraordinary evidence and Hawkins hasn't provided it. If you or your group knows otherwise and can point me in the direction of these positive studies I'd be delighted!
I told Dave that who Hawkins is -- gleaned from the bio that's in his books, which paints him as an advanced soul -- makes me receptive to his technology. And his books have that feel that you get in your guts of resonation with truth. I forwarded Dave's email to listmember Jonathan Reams, Jonathan@Reams.com, in Canada, who teaches a university class on David Bohm and David Hawkins. I was happy to get this reply:
Jonathan said:
I came across Power vs. Force about six years ago. I had the opportunity to use it as a text in a graduate style seminar I taught shortly after that, and was able to do a great deal of experimentation and learning about the AK methodology. Subsequently, I taught a freshman course using it as a text, and each year would meet with similar questions as to the claims Hawkins makes regarding the testing. We would do demonstrations using different students as test subjects and always came up with answers in a very narrow range on the calibration scale, often giving students a feeling of being in a "twilight zone."
In the course of my learning about this, I have been able to verify or at least get the same results as Hawkins in relation to a number of the things he talks about in the book. One thing that was of great interest to me was when I began to get a particular finding that seemed to be at odds with what he said in PvsF. When I read through his latest book, the Eye of the I, I found a passage where he noted a change that had occurred since the earlier publication, and his finding correlated exactly with my own.
This said, I have come to realize that the way Hawkins presents the AK methodology in PvsF is, how shall I say, an early assessment, immature in light of further learning. By this I mean that it had become apparent to me early on that there were numerous considerations involved in having the testing be effective that were not mentioned in the book. I spoke with him about this at one point, and he agreed that there are a number of things that appear to be required for the testing to be accurate. His experience is much better documented in a dissertation he did which can still be gotten from Veritas Press I believe (I got a copy a couple years ago). This work goes much more thoroughly into the history and development of the methodology, his design of the experiments, statistical results of the testing on over 4800 subject over a period of many years.
One thing that has been discussed on a list about his work lately is that his findings of the testing being universally applicable may have been based on his ability to create the necessary conditions for it to work well in others as well as himself, at least while in his physical presence, a sort of field effect if you will. My experience and experimentation (not thoroughly scientific, but with a modicum of academic rigor) has led to similar conclusions, including seeing that intention or motivation are crucial factors. In this I found a critical element regarding the ethics of being able to misuse such a technology. If one has an egotistical oriented motivation, this in itself weakens the effectiveness of the testing. Thus it is not a party trick, and using it for evil purposes seems to negate it, thus preventing such use. One minor example of this was that we tried it in regard to picking winning "scratch and win" lottery tickets. Seemed like a good test, but when it didn't work we investigated and found that the energy field of gambling was a negative field, and thus interfered with the accuracy of the testing.
As for "conclusive proof," well, each paradigm has its own set of parameters for what constitutes such "proof." The history of scientific learning is full of such examples, where the growth in understanding came about because the proofs that explained phenomenon so well within one paradigm began to break down in the face of evidence gained at its boundaries, and required a new set of parameters and understanding of reality in fundamental ways to find new "proofs" that worked. This is how I see it with Hawkins's work in AK. There is scientific evidence and theory supporting what he says, and I know of more than he talks of in his book, especially in quantum physics. Conclusive proof in the framework of mainstream, popular, widely accepted scientific ideas will not be possible. The kind of science that supports this is on the growing edge - not quack science but cutting edge work that is rapidly growing in acceptance in many areas - and thus is not provable or reducible to the more generally accepted perspectives in use.
All this said, know that I always take the results of calibrations I do with a grain of salt, not as the TRUTH, but as something to possibly guide and inform. Not as a final arbiter in decisions, but as another piece of information to be weighed in the context of other factors, such as intuitive feelings of resonance and good old reason and common sense. I have also learned that what is meant by consciousness in these measurements is not well understood at all, but that's a whole nother story . . . I do have a published article going into some of this a bit more if you want more on this specific area of interest.
Dave gives a cheer:
What an excellent reply! Thanks so much for putting me in touch with Jonathan. He seems just the kind of person I was seeking - forward thinking with regards quantum physics and consciousness etc., but with an understanding of the limits of 'normal' research and the factor of belief and ethics playing a part. In my view this is all getting very much closer to the Seth ideas of "You create your own reality." But he seems to have been down the road I was on, so may save me much walking! Thanks again.
(Hawkins has an event in Los Angeles on Saturday, October 19. See post on October 13.)
posted by suzanne at 8:18 PM
WALTER STARCK SPEAKS
Walter Starck, whom I post in a Featured Conversation on The Conversation.org, is writing essays that are mainline sense-making for people who pivot around integrity, which puts them above 200 in David Hawkins's schema of levels of consciousness between 0 and 1000.
(The crossover from a destructive tendency to a creative capacity is at 200, where "integrity" becomes the motivating factor. Hawkins pegs 78% of the world's population below 200. That's the bad news. The good news is that every person above 200 offsets a larger number below, and, when you make the computation, you find that humanity for hundreds of years was at a calculated average of 190, which meant it could not function positively as a whole. In 1987, it leapt to 207, so that for the first time we had a chance to organize ourselves in a positive way. You'll have to read Hawkins for an in-depth understanding of this, which is so fascinating to me that I distributed a copies of his last book, Power vs. Force . Now, I'm impressed again reading his new book, The Eye of the I. At the 200 pivot point for humanity, we can switch from aggression as our modality -- not switched yet, but there is a potential -- to where we get our power from cooperative rather than aggressive means.)
This conclusion to an essay by Walter, to be posted when my archiving function in our new mode is in place, has an echo of Hawkins's work on power as the enlightened modality and force as a function of our more primitive selves. Walter says:It is clear that the current path of humankind must change fundamentally if we are to avoid mega-disaster. Consumption must become sustainable, pollution must be severely curtailed, WMDs banned and eliminated. Ultimately, war itself must become unthinkable. To achieve this our very notions of self, others, and the world as all being separate and distinct must be changed. We must come to a realization that even though individually unique we are also part of a greater whole and the well being of others and our world is a part of our own.Can we do this? I don't know. We have no choice but to try. To fail is to ultimately become extinct or at very least suffer repeated disaster until we succeed. Technology has opened Pandora's box. It offers the power to create and heal but also the power to destroy. We cannot control such power without learning to control ourselves. This cannot be imposed. It cannot be achieved by force. The U.S. jails a higher percentage of its citizens for longer that any other country. It also has the highest crime rate of any developed nation. Among developed nations it is one of the few to still retain capital punishment yet it also has the highest homicide rate. Pursuant to the war on drugs, arrests, convictions and severity of sentencing has steadily increased but so has the drug problem. Force doesn't work. Change must come by change from within. It must be something desired by the individual, not something others try to make us do.To argue otherwise, that all this force is necessary and effective to prevent an even worse situation despite other nations using less force and having better results, is to argue that Americans are somehow more prone to criminal behavior and/or American society is such as to produce more aggressive and antisocial citizens. Alternatively, we can recognize that incarceration is having the opposite to the desired effect and our jails may in fact be serving as advanced schools of criminality.
THE AGONY OF IRAQ
This piece of Iraq outrage is by listmember George Cappannelli INFOCO1@aol.com. It speaks for many emails I've gotten. Robert Byrd's speech also stands for many other impassioned rundowns of why we are so foolhardy, where war supporters must be in the 78% of the world's population that David Hawkins identifies as not yet up to a level of consciousness where integrity rules. George writes:
Dear Friends,
By the time you read this, and the statement from Senator Byrd, Congress Must Resist the Rush to War, those fools in Congress who call themselves "our" representatives, will have passed the Iraq Resolution and placed into the hands of the least competent president this nation has ever had (with the possible exception of Warren G. Harding) the ability to set us on a course of unprecedented and unwarranted aggression. That this "dry drunk" can now, of his own volition and with his own distorted and clouded judgment, set this nation back hundreds of years in its relationship with the world; that he can set in motion a series of actions that are at best disastrous and at worst costly beyond scope, is unconscionable.
Surely, our government and its representatives have stopped listening. And just as surely, we - each and every one of us who has a deeper conscience and a higher vision of what is possible for America and for the world - should do all in our power to turn the bastards out. While we have not been able to bring reason and wisdom to this vote, we do, in the matter of a few short weeks, have the opportunity to express our dissent as never before. We can vote in November to take America back! Let's use our votes to disinvite everyone who currently is in office that does not have the courage, the decency and the understanding needed to be one of our representatives. Let's send a message loud and clear that this stupidity will not be tolerated any longer! We have, after all, allowed this administration the opportunity to manipulate and assault the most fundamental rights of a democratic society. It must stop. And we are the only ones who can stop it!
God Bless America - We certainly need it!
THE FURTHEST IN
Quote by Brian Swimme
This is from a Q&A with Brian Swimme, author of my favorite book, " The Universe is a Green Dragon,". Brian addressed a core question. It's an especially relevant question at this time, when the material world is so chaotic. Is caring about the world basic to our spirituality, or is our service unrelated to what enlightenment fundamentally is? Here's the close of an interview Brian gave in "What is Enlightenment?," a fine magazine that deals with spiritual questions. (This issue is themed, "Can Enlightenment Save The World?") The founder of the magazine, Andrew Cohen a teacher of non-duality, who's on the program the same day as Brian at Come to the Edge, in Ontario, California, 10/16-10/19, which I'm recommending. (See post on October 13.)
WIE: Your vision of spiritual awakening is an embrace of the cosmic evolutionary journey of the universe as ourselves and a shift from seeing ourselves as separate individuals to identifying with the universe itself as the greater Self. What do you think about the Eastern mystical traditions that direct us to solely look within for enlightenment, and about statements such as this one by renowned Hindu sage Ramana Maharshi, : "All controversies about creation, the nature of the universe, evolution, the purpose of God, etc., are useless. They are not conducive to our true happiness. People try to find out about things which are outside of them before they try to find out ‘Who am I?' Only by the latter means can happiness be gained."
BRIAN SWIMME: I can only tell you my orientation. It's just that there are so many things that we care about, that we carry in our hearts, that we want to help. People are suffering. Animals are suffering. So how can I interact in a way that would be helpful? That's my focus. All that I think about is somehow related to that. Just to be responsible and to participate in a process that will deepen joy. That's the only way I can put it. That's my high hope. There can be such a tendency for the individual to focus on "my enlightenment" and so forth. But it just doesn't seem to be what is really needed right now. Or it's not enough.
posted by suzanne at 2:03 PM
THE FURTHEST OUTCrop circle lessons: how to "Debunk the Debunkers"Dutch physicist, Eltjo Haselhoff, says: "Tired of those sneering family members, laughing at you because you just bought another crop circle book? Are you getting your doubts when 'renowned specialists' state that there is no mystery at all about the crop circle phenomenon? Don't you know what to reply exactly when a crop circle debunker attacks you in public? In that case, perhaps these 'self defence' lessons are something for you! Learn how to 'debunk the debunkers.'"Lesson One (August 31 in our Crop Circle Diary) came after a sneer at crop circles on the cover of "U. S. News and World Report," which said believers "never use double-blind testing to eliminate bias from their experiments. When they test plants for anomalies, they always know beforehand which plants came from circles." Eltjo's answer: "The lack of-double blind tests is an often-heard attack against crop circle research. However, although it probably sounds good to the layman, this remark only demonstrates lack of factual knowledge about crop circle research. Or even profound ignorance." You'll have to read the whole lesson for an education on double-blind testing.Now there's Lesson Two, on Gravitropism. My friend, Eltjo, is dealing with what he published in a scientific journal (the way new science gets accepted). There are nodes in the stalks of grain plants. Gravitropism is a natural process of node lengthening that occurs when young plants are bent over. This natural process cannot account for the node lengthening found in crop circles. Eltjo showed that the nodes get longer the closer the downed crop gets to the center of the formation. Gravitropism would have every downed plant in a formation producing the same node enlargement.(Note that Eltjo calls the crops "corn related," after the penchant in England to call all grains "corn." In "Signs," the crop circle no doubt is in a corn field because the English hoaxers, who were hired to make it, must have told American location scouts to get a "corn field." Although a few crop circles have been in corn -- and in just about everything in the plant kingdom, including trees --most formations are in wheat, barley and canola.)
VERY NICE TO HEAR FROM LISTMEMBERSFrom Richard Hood solunar@powerup.com.au: Thanks for a great site. A friend sent me some material. It is so good to get some real news and commentary. I don't even put on the local news anymore as it is controlled and uninspiring. Thanks for all your hard work. Ya, I would like to be on your list. I agree we have to keep together and support the good. We get so swamped with negative things that people accept as the norm. I feel we have to be informed as to what is going on out there, so it can be countered.
From my good friend, English croppie and consciousness sage, Simon Peter Fuller 06160.235@compuserve.com, some dirt re my travails with my filmmaker after spending the summer before last in England shooting CROP CIRCLES: Quest for Truth, and the troubles in the English croppie community, in which arguments about hoaxing have driven people into hostile camps: Croppies are seldom generous with one another, but last summer you really were a shining example and I remember thanking you in sacred ceremony inside Stonehenge on behalf of many of us locals...You put yourself in a vulnerable position last summer by what you achieved energetically and many lesser lights won't forgive you! So it is within the duality in which we learn and grow spiritually. Take comfort in the great work you did and even it has not turned out as you hoped, don't get too stressed. The hardest thing to remember is that we create all these dramas for our own growth, and the test is what we learn from them for ourselves, rather than projecting blame onto others! Fight the good fight!
Richmond Shepard richmondshepard@yahoo.com, mime extraordinaire, said: It's fun to have people to talk with who are interested in the spiritual/esoteric. Having always been a grasshopper rather than an ant, and without obsession with the material, I don't find a high percentage of our fellows who focus on the artistic/spiritual paths." He sent me a forthcoming book, "HYPHEN -- a Spiritual Adventure between Two Dates."
Excerpts:
"Just as the child can't understand above its level of comprehension, neither can the adult. So The Problem is: how do we get people to leave spiritual childhood and climb out of the sandbox if they are incapable of seeing that they are in it? How can they be shown that we humans all share a common soul -- that we are all part of each other -- that we should be rid of the dangerous toys and focus on more constructive goals?"
"Maybe the creativity of Art and Science can help lift us out of the sandbox. Perhaps connecting with 'Upstairs' as I do in Subud and as others do in their own ways, the awakening of our souls may help us see and others to see with us. Maybe this view of Earth, the real connectedness of all people, is what we have to see (and feel) before we can move on to the next lesson. And so I think that what we all need is a 'Declaration of Interdependence.' We need to see that there is no 'us' and 'them.' There’s only US -- and that includes all peoples, all tribes, all factions, everyone on Earth."
Wade Frazier wade.frazier2@verizon.net, and I have been talking not-for-publication, while he readied his astonishing website of whistle blowing about crimes of the power elite, and about the need for consciousness as the antidote. Guarantee that if you start reading his pieces, as overloaded with reading and you are, you won't want to stop. I'll get some Wade conversation posted soon -- till then, here's what he says about the newly opened access to his work: The goal of my work is to help people awaken, if they want to. I woke up the hard way, and would like to make it a slightly less painful and time-consuming process than what I lived through, for those trying to understand what is happening. I doubt that Americans have the luxury of a couple more generations of fitful sleeping. Time is short, and humanity is near the abyss's brink, on several fronts.
Walter Starck goldend@bigpond.net.au, who keeps writing so cogently about the saga of our time, has been speculating with me about how to make massive sense to a world massively sleeping. He put it well with this: The meaning of life has to be the ultimate special interest topic. It's a subject that has hardly been touched. There is a wealth of fascinating material. It's audience demographic is as good as it gets and it's an audience where genuine trumps glitz by an order of magnitude.
And a few neat cheers that keep me knowing where the track is:
Gil Friend gfriend@natlogic.com:
Quite a compendium, Suzanne! Wow.
(Critical geopolitics AND crop circles too! :-)
Forwarding it on to my lists...Rosalind Robinson, rosalindr@hotmail.com
This was your best yet! I've spent hours reading and following the links. The face images were astounding. Swimme's comment, "The creation of a new planetary mythology is an organic process requiring the intelligent participation of millions of minds" made the hair stand up on my neck. Surely the crop circles will be part of this new mythology.Arjuna daSilva, MaArjuna@aol.com:
Wow, Suzanne,
That ought to keep me busy for a week, checking all those sites, but I'm hooked and I will. Thank you so much for being the clearing house in these times.Pennell Rock PennellR@aol.com:
Almost everyone in Europe that I see is terribly upset and very much in agreement with the opinions you express. Too bad we can't filter world view into the US dialogue.Holley Rauen, holleyd@sbcglobal.net:
Thank you so much for the fantastic service you provide to keep the discussion alive from your living room to the air waves and now in cyber space.A'keara (Liz Daly), dalyreiki@earthlink.net:
Greetings to Your Peace Heart, Suzanne: I really resonate with what you are doing with theconversation.org. Excellent work in the Light. Thank you for sharing your blog. I truly honor your work.
posted by suzanne at 7:07 PM
EVENTS COMING UP
DANIEL PINCHBECK: Wednesday, October 16, 8:00 pm, Booksoup, West Hollywood, California. "Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism" is his great new book about his field investigation of hallucinogenic substances and shamanism.
Publishers Weekly says, "Open City editor Pinchbeck's book debut is a polemic that picks up the threads that Huxley's The Doors of Perception, Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters and counterculture idealism left in the culture. Charting his gradual transformation from a cynical New York litterateur to psychedelic acolyte, Pinchbeck uses elements of travelogue, memoir, 'entheobotany' ('the study of god-containing plants') and historical research to ask why these 'doorways of the mind' have been unceremoniously sealed, sharing Walter Benjamin's melancholy about the exasperating nature of consumerism: 'We live in a culture where everything tastes good but nothing satisfies.' …Pinchbeck's earnest, engaged and winning manner carry the book."
COME TO THE EDGE : October 16-19, Ontario (near Riverside), California. "An extraordinary gathering of transformational leaders...Join other innovators, pioneers, visionaries, champions of change, lovers of life, people who dare to live and learn at the edge." Brian Swimme is part of the first day.
DAVID HAWKINS : "The Realization of the Presence of God or Self: The Pathway to Consciousness" October 19, 1:00-5:00 pm, Agape Sanctuary, Los Angeles
SIGNS OF DESTINY(Crop Circles and Sacred Geometry), November 22-24 in Tempe, Arizona, "A Unique Gathering of cutting-edge thinkers, joining forces at the 1st North American Conference devoted to one of the Greatest Mysteries of our Times." Put on by Chet Snow, old timer croppie and producer of conferences. I'm on a panel. It's a very good line-up of super stars! Early-bird rate till October 31.