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Everyday Gnosis
A great deal of breath can and has been wasted by modern gnostics about just what the heck “gnosis” actually is in the first place. The most common definitions I see are usually roughly synonymous with “enlightenment” or “illumination.” While such terms are intriguing, they define by obfuscation. If gnosis is enlightenment, then what is enlightenment? If enlightenment is defined as illumination, then what’s that? And so on. You go further and further down the chain of words - and quite possibly farther away from what the words actually point to.
For my own purposes, I’ve found it useful to not so much define as connect the word “gnosis” to the word “experience.” I like that as a replacement because if you want to know what “experience” means, you don’t look in a dictionary - you go outside and actually do something.
In the gnostic Gospel of Thomas, Jesus says:
Split a piece of wood; I am there.
Lift up the stone, and you will find me there.”
This saying teaches us not that Christ is hiding under a rock or inside a log (although maybe he is). And it doesn’t simply say that the divine is omnipresent. It says that the divine is to be found in actual experience - in the processes of living. You have to split the wood. You have to lift the stone.
Don’t let anyone tell you it’s not hard work. There’s lot of heavy lifting and backbreaking labor in the business of living. It’s easier and safer to remain ensconsced in words and try to entangle others in your webs of meaning. Luckily the divine processes of life always find a way to break through to you, pushing you into new experiences, new moments of gnosis. As in Jurassic Park, “life finds a way,” whether you’re ready for it or not. And usually the parts you’re not ready for are the most significant.
There’s a quote attributed to Anais Nin that I just found and love:
There are very few human beings who receive the truth, complete and staggering, by instant illumination. Most of them acquire it fragment by fragment, on a small scale, by successive developments, cellularly, like a laborious mosaic.
With that in mind, I’d like to make a new list of life processes within which we might experience these small moments of gnosis - the small scale, laborious mosaic kind. The kind we struggle through without ever realizing them for the brush with the divine that they are. These are taken from my life right now, but feel free to take this list and extend it into the small and big experiences ahead of you in your life, or surrounding you right now unawares.
Split a piece of wood; I am there.
Lift up the stone, and you will find me there.
Ride a train cross-country; I am there.
Look up at the stars and trees passing by, and you will find me there.
Kiss a beautiful girl; I am there.
Talk to strangers and make new friends, and you will find me there.
Feel the rain on your face; I am there.
Sing along to music in the supermarket, and you will find me there.
Cry and laugh and get drunk; I am there.
Wherever you are, whatever you’re doing - look around, and you will find me there.
Myself, I leave for Seattle tomorrow. I’ll get back to regular posting next week when I’m settled. Take care!
January 19th, 2006 at 11:28 pm
Yes, this idea resonates with me. I have never had an “ephiphany”, at least one whose contents have withstood the test of time. Most of what I know I know through a fairly laborious process that involves mostly experience — if not out-in-the-trenches-facing-the-world experience, at least a very solid intuitive feeling of “rightness” that is consistent with my real-world experience.
It is said (I can’t remember by whom, maybe the Dalai Lama, who has his own issues) that one measures ones spiritual progress in years and decades. That is, in the moment it may be quite frustrating that you’re not “getting anywhere” because, day-to-day, things don’t change much. But I know that when I look back on where I was ten years ago, wow, I really have changed quite a bit, in mostly good ways!
January 19th, 2006 at 11:34 pm
Ha ha! Nice disclaimer!
January 20th, 2006 at 12:06 am
Tim: If gnosis is enlightenment, then what is enlightenment?
It’s a loaded word for starters. I don’t like it because it implies an end-statement, as if saying, “you’re all done now”. Many people take on that word or have it thrust upon them in the aftermath of some experiences, but honestly, any word that’s going to actually limit you is not a word you should pick up and hang around your neck, nor allow others to do the same.
My own rule of thumb is, if you’re still breathing you’re not done. I think it’s more important to live your life to the best of your abilities within whatever moment you find yourself. And don’t forget to breathe.
January 20th, 2006 at 12:49 am
Agree totally. “Gnosis” and the way it is usually defined makes it sound like something alien and esoteric and elitist.
It isn’t that at all. Its just being present and aware and engaged. And it takes time - years.
Mystical experiences and mushroom tribs and freaky tantric sex are great and all but as the sufis point out - if you tried to live like that all the time you would be fragmented in both worlds.
Those are a taste, not a place to live.
January 20th, 2006 at 1:09 am
As simple as it is difficult…
January 20th, 2006 at 1:19 am
Yay… Thank you guys I have finally found the answer for that which has been puzzling my mind for the longest time. “What exactly is the Occult?” Webster’s of course has the standard definition that I’m sure most of ya’ll know, The Occult: Hidden from the eye or understanding; invisible and mysterious; unknown… I feel that basic definition is somewhat lacking, as proven by the plethora of assimilated comments of the pop occulture followers in here. I would like to add my personal definition of the occult based on what I’ve seen on this blog/forum…
The Occult: A falling away from the truth and light, adhered to by followers who seek “enlightenment” through esoteric knowledge, which enevitably brings them towards pale gnostism and a constant persistent failure to understand the real truth of Jesus Christ…. The pinnacle of these defeatist efforts lie in their shallow esoteric knowledge of the Gnostic gospels, i.e. gospel of thomas, magdalene, etc… However the Occultist is fundamentally lacking in any and all basic knowledge of the truth, therefore they are forever doomed in the quagemire of trying to understand the esoteric teachings, but never really being able to comprehend the substance and divine spark that gave those teachings original life and meaning…
Thank you
(That definition isn’t copyrighted yet, so its up for grabs. I know, not quite as watered down or astounding as Tom Robbins, but oh well. Fault me for being original.)
January 20th, 2006 at 1:34 am
JR: I’d like to repeat my comment to you from an earlier post, but I will repeat it in case you missed it:
I’ve been waiting and waiting for you to make a comment that doesn’t accuse somebody of being “queer” or “fake” or a “pseudo-intellectual” or something else that doesn’t quite meet your approval. I’d love very much to find out what does get you excited about life and living and people - rather than just the things you find it necessary to tear down and attack for whatever reason. What is it you actually stand for and love?
January 20th, 2006 at 1:38 am
Additionally - and I’m really not being sarcastic in this response:
I would very much love it if you were to share that truth with us here - right now - as I don’t doubt your oft-stated expertise. I would humbly ask that you have patience with those of us not yet at your level, and kindly offer us insight as to how we should proceed. We need the truth - we want it - we’re looking for it. And yet you have it, but won’t share it. Such a beautiful truth as you say you possess is a thing which should be shared and celebrated with all. So let’s celebrate!
January 20th, 2006 at 2:26 am
Actually, most ‘occultists’ I can think of aren’t really that interested in Christianity at all, Gnostic or otherwise.
Tim - you related gnosis to experience to Jurassic Park. I love you. In that you-are-my-God sort of way. Yeah.
Also, for dealing with wunderful folk like this, I suggest you check out Key23.net’s lovewar with one ‘Vault-Co,’ the records of which I can’t seem to find at the moment. This fellow similiarly insisted that anyone eating a mystical shit sandwich at the Diner Perilous was some kinda effiminate, pathetic, live-at-home loser who couldn’t make a buck. Gay, too, for some reason. Anyway, they offered him many, many a chance to actually engage with them - even if he didn’t agree in any way, they wanted him to really give things like ‘discussion’ and ‘honest communication’ a chance. Rather than the internet equivalent of standing on a streetcorner and throwing shite at passers-by. Fortunately, Vault-Co saw right through their limp-wristed tactics, and seized the day by re-affirming their status as stay-at-home dandies. Eventually they simply started editing his comments off the website as soon as they appeared, since all the actual members there are also admins.
Now, I’m no God-damned fan of censorship. But if someone throws shit at you all day, eventually you have to get an umbrella.
January 20th, 2006 at 2:28 am
January 20th, 2006 at 2:34 am
JR, that’s a step forward, but it’s not the kind of total engagement I’m inviting you to join in with us. Keep going! I’d like to hear more - but in your own words. Anyone can throw around quotes all day long! You’re here, so teach us. I can’t speak for anybody else, but I know I can use all the help I can get.
January 20th, 2006 at 2:38 am
Charlie’s Horse: Actually, most ‘occultists’…
*scratching head* What exactly is an ‘occultist’ anyway? I checked with my ever faithful ouiji board but all my usual channels are at some “Spiritual Gay Boys Poker Retreat” and the stand-in couldn’t tell a goat from a llama…
January 20th, 2006 at 2:44 am
Okay, seriously now…
Also, for dealing with wunderful folk like this, I suggest you check out Key23.net’s lovewar with one ‘Vault-Co,’ the records of which I can’t seem to find at the moment.
Unless the wonderful folk are bordering on criminal behavior I see no need to silence a voice. The mere fact that someone defines their spirituality/religion/divine connection in terms that are different from mine shouldn’t really threaten my own view, unless my own view is rooted in shaky ground. I don’t neccessarily agree with JR’s perspective but I see no reason why I should have to, nor why he is under any obligation to agree with mine.
January 20th, 2006 at 2:46 am
Charlie Horse, I’m sorry if this verse seems blunt in that it might directly apply to you and your fellow brethren on this site. Unfortunately there is only one person in the world who can really do anything about that, and that is of course you. Calling Tim Boucher “God” is probably not the best route to seek that type of change, but if that is your perogative, then I truly sympathize.
Also, if Most Occultists weren’t interested in Christianity, then why does your God, Tim Boucher, post day after day, endless trite discussions on Christianity, as if he has some kind of deep deep seeded animosity against that religion? All you have to do is scan through some of the recent (and not so recent articles) on this place, to see a good percentage, if not majority, specifically aimed at Christianity itself.. The Gospels, Church, Jesus, Gnostism, etc… It’s ridiculous, I had no idea that the Occult had such an innate hard-on for trying to figure out the truth of what Jesus really was. I thought the Occult was like vampires, werewolves, and ufo’s and stuff… I didn’t know that it was really a huge collaborative dedicated campaign to destroy Christianity. If that’s what it is, then you would think that someone in here would at least have the balls and courage to admit that. I guess that would be asking too much from some of these wusses hiding behind a computer screen.
January 20th, 2006 at 2:50 am
JR, quite honestly, you sound jealous, envious maybe — certainly defensive. Do you know what it is that you’re defending?
January 20th, 2006 at 2:54 am
JR, we love you. You know that right? You’re a lovable misfit! A true scamp among scamps. It’s good to have you on our side. Your insights are always uniquely yours and its a pleasure watching you find your voice and place in this world.
January 20th, 2006 at 5:46 am
Disclaimer: This has nothing to do with your current article.
I didn’t used to think much about Universalism, but I got reeeeeeeally drunk tonight and found out that it’s apparently something I believe in very strongly. I’ve suspected for a while that I may be an accidental Cathar (or perhaps Marcionite) and at any rate a Docestist. I just thought you’d like to know that your discussion has had an effect on my inner struggle for spiritual truth.
January 20th, 2006 at 8:35 am
Since coming on this site ive felt like a fish out of water, lots of discussion on what other people said or think. I am a tricky character indeed who has lived and im never suprised by peoples response to a stranger on there knees, somoene can read a million books but when a real human starts talking in a way that is human its a knowing smile that watches them talk above you or steer clear. Its perfectly natural in this society we live in because people are shown a mirror by this behaviour and it is usually there reaction to those people that is a good indication of the weight of the shadow they posess, but only if there willing to see. I guess its easier to see such behaviour as strange or sad but maybe its the result of someone really thinking about things and rather than talking about it doing the greatest act of self sacrifice and opening themselves up to all that may come there way, its an act of bravery and humanity not stupidity or loneliness. It seems to me that alot of intellectual gnostics are now doing what the government does by translating information at source and hence absolutely defeating the object, whilst there apathy is all to clear the methods employed are animalistic at the core. The occult and jesus arent outside to me,there inside and once you see that you realise that they arent seperate but one. Why people search for things that are already within themselves is beyond me. Jesus never mentioned worshipping him or the church or the bible or any of this nonesense he pointed to you knowing you and trusting in that better nature that resides within us, the divine spark. Anyway i hope you take time to muse amongst nature on things
tim and marvel at the wonder of it, i like to stand in a forest and look up at the sunlight braking through the treetops(but thats just me).J.R. we are all just people.
January 20th, 2006 at 9:15 am
perfect!
January 20th, 2006 at 9:41 am
eye think j.r. (and his various avatars) are simply playing the brother jed game. well, eye’m not offended at all, j.r. eye won’t attack you and prove you right. eye just wanna communicate and grow and learn. if you’re into that, too: awesome. if not, it’s more useful for kmee to accept it and not expend any energy on negativity–that ain’t gonna get kmee any closer to the holy heart. though, maybe it would and you can explain.
Suffice to say, when people attack stuff, it makes kmee wanna check it out. So eye’m gonna check out Tom Robbins cuz eye’ve never read him and eye wanna see what’s so offensive about his stuff. So, for that, thanks, j.r./dakota-mosh. eye will also, however, check out the ol’ bible again. So thanks for that, also.
But eye’m also gonna get out more and enjoy what this world offers–so thanks nem and tim and everybody that put out that reminder.
Happy journeys, Tim. Get there safely.
peas aught, everybody.
January 20th, 2006 at 12:52 pm
back to the topic, i agree that there’s not enough focus on gnosis as a *process.* too many people think it’s the end of all things, that acheiving gnosis means you can now quit. in fact, the opposite is true. acheiving gnosis means realizing just how responsible you are, just how much work is required within the world of forms. achieving gnosis is just the beginning.
although many of my gnostic brethren might disagree, i don’t believe that gnosis is exclusively the slap-upside-the-head people think it is. i think it can be either gradual or immediate. o, here’s something from a while ago on the subject:
January 20th, 2006 at 12:53 pm
Damn you, that was actually a really touching post! The life experiences you added managed to elicit, ya know, feeling inside of me. And for that, I blame you. Have fun in Seattle man.
January 20th, 2006 at 1:08 pm
In youre opinion how would one know or recognise these things if you never set out for attainment or had no religious or spiritual background.
January 20th, 2006 at 1:58 pm
jp: i agree that there’s not enough focus on gnosis as a *process.*
I like this quote from Jack Kornfield…
nemesis: … how would one know or recognise these things if you never set out for attainment or had no religious or spiritual background.
Bear in mind, words are only labels that allow you to express yourself in a manner that can be interpreted by others within a specific culture or setting. A Gnostic has a “gnostic” experience; a mystic has a “mystic” experience; a Hindu has an experience of “realization”; a shaman has a “shamanistic” experience; a philosopher has an “illuminating” experience, etc. — upon closer inspection, each of these different experiences reveal themselves to essentially be the same experience.
Individuals who go through such experiences likely know that they’ve gone through an experience, although it’s possible that they’ll lack the labels with which to define and convey that experience to others within a specific culture or setting. That hardly renders the experience itself any less “an experience”.
January 20th, 2006 at 4:41 pm
Ive just been reading these quotes and listened to Anais Nin, was mesmerised
manning-This is what gets me the most, except for the marketing they all seem to be saying the same thing and yes youre right about the label thing.
January 20th, 2006 at 6:58 pm
Tim is our God?
I guess that makes you Satan then, right JR? Or at least that’s what you’d like us to think in order to further the narcissistic persona you pursue so badly.
btw: Did Tom Robbins screw your wife or something? What do you have against him? I mention the one book of his that I read once and now you can’t get it out of your head. Wipe your bum with it already.
January 20th, 2006 at 9:07 pm
Hey All:
Just to add my 2 cents to the whole occult thing….
Isn’t occult derived from the Latin “occultus” meaning “secret” or “hidden?” The past participle being occultere, meaning “to cover over?” Hence one could argue that all “mystical” teachings are in fact “occult,” that is, secret or hidden, actually uncovered by the deep, unique, and profound “religious” or “spiritual” experience that many often seek - which is often found in the most mundane of places (such as a in a log or beneath a rock).
The definition of occult being “a falling away from the light” or whatever, that’s derived from the banal opposition of light and dark, black and white, good and evil that unfortunately to which many (but not all) “religious” folks subscribe.
BTW - Tim, your site kicks ass! I used one of your posts for one of my grad school presentations (one about the future of religion - where’s it going and so forth). Some of your speculations were so far out (and frighteningly possible) that I had to bring it up in class!
January 20th, 2006 at 9:30 pm
JR is a gift from God. I say this only because I cannot stand his tact nor his attitude. For the same reason I can’t stand the occult, as in that which is occluded from me understanding or at least apprehending a situation I yearn to know more about, I cannot stand enflaming trolls that hide behind their aggressively inane attempts to derail a perfectly peaceful, thoughtful meeting of curious souls — such as here at Tim’s site. And by “cannot stand” I mean, I hate. Luckily I hate hate. So there we are.
So, upon pondering the nature of this “JR”, who supposedly identifies with a version of Christ that turns many men into atheists, I wondered if perhaps JR has been sent by Christ, the Christ of the four gospels, in order to recognize just who Christ’s enemies are. From the forktongued seeding of violence to the preoccupation if not obsession with sex especially the kind of sex that rhymes with “hugger”, I wonder is this the grace of Christ blessing the very comment threads of Pop Occulture? As if we’re being trusted to think for ourselves about the subtext of these vague threats of a powerlessly actor of mundanity. Sure, one can read any one of JR’s screeds, but I wonder, are we being spoken to on a deeper level through the patent absurd vindictiveness of it? Being taught to love as it were, those who hate us?
It could be said that Christ had enemies and it could also be said that also did not. For Christ did not teach a curriculum of hate, but rather one of love. Loving thy enemies.
So come full circle, you JR are not anyone’s enemy afterall. It seems you have been a reminder that we all need to “get right with Christ”. The blessing in all this is that you didn’t even know it! Which following what I think I know about your religion, makes your existence a miracle!
Why don’t you start treating other’s as though they are miracles too?
January 20th, 2006 at 10:18 pm
I thought id enclose this link to anyone who is interested in the pre-roman version of christianity that existed in britain from the 1st to 2nd century. Christianity was already established in britian hundreds of years before the romans came though its barely mentioned and thats probably because it was gnostic/eastern mysticism. The romans came over with there orthadox version only to find that in the far reaches of britain gnostic christianity was living harmoniously alongside paganism.
more-
January 20th, 2006 at 10:18 pm
January 20th, 2006 at 10:22 pm
One last try at link
January 20th, 2006 at 10:24 pm
Haha, its late and cant do link so heres wesite-www.sacredconnection.ndo.co.uk/holyland/sacredbritain.htm
January 21st, 2006 at 12:07 am
Charlie’s Horse: The dialogue you are referring to– http://www.key23.net/occulture/post/242
The whole thread was something of a train wreck, and I doubt that anyone involved could be said to come out looking better for it… but I am hopelessly off-topic.
Gnosis!
Struggling to understand the forces that are the Universe by fragmenting it into chunks for sifting and study. “Split the atom; I am there. Extract the stem cell, and you will find me there.”
Everything is a process. Nothing ever stops or slows down, even if you’ve got it in a petri dish, or trapped between the pages of a book, or hidden away from curious onlookers in a box. Dead or alive, it’s still in motion.
We are very large, even as we are very small. We don’t get to look at the fireworks we’re made of, so we have to direct our eyes to the stars.
And I get the feeling I haven’t contributed a lick to this discussion, so I’ll stop before I get out of hand.
January 21st, 2006 at 1:29 am
On the contrary, that was lovely.
January 21st, 2006 at 4:26 am
or whatever…
Nico, thank you for proving how much of a lost cause most graduate students are. The balance of polar opposites is not only the thinking and basis for most ancient religions and ancient eastern philosophies but is also an absolute in science, both physical and metaphysical. If you call “banal” things that are above your realm of comprehension, then I suggest you go back to school and retake physics 101. I guess you’ve also never heard of Taoism, the ying and yang, North South, left right, Black white, male female, etc… I take it you are a hermaphrodite, blessed with the qualities of both - or perhaps even unsure of which one exactly you are? That sounds like an excellent topic for a thesis paper, and one in which I’m sure you have much first hand knowledge about.
January 21st, 2006 at 9:43 am
Maybe because history should have them as indivisible but maybe you need to stand back from all this and think for youreself. Moses came from where? what philosophy did he learn?
This is why i said jesus and the occult are different sides of the same coin as with most religion.
you worship Re.
January 21st, 2006 at 11:29 am
Jr I’m jeasus christ and your a sodomite so go jack off and quit trying to get on my ass. Anyways how’s and being. Define it and you will be there commune wit it and eye am there
January 21st, 2006 at 11:43 am
That is true, although you could have easily made it without resorting to insults. Why do you feel that is necessary? You have something to say, obviously, why is it difficult for you to just say it?
You are right in saying that polar opposites are a fundamental concept. What Nico is saying is that the word “occult” has nothing to do with good/evil, but rather refers to an occultation of the light, as in an eclipse. If one is a student of the occult, one is a student of “hidden things.”
I would have said just the opposite!
January 21st, 2006 at 5:04 pm
I have always believed that Gnosis was knowledge through experience…whatever that knowledge is.
January 21st, 2006 at 9:17 pm
Gnosis for me would be knowing when to comment and when not to comment, oh yes and knowing how to do simple things like links.
saying that and with my sanity on a leash id like to respond to the topic,
Who knows? the intellects will say its enilghtenment of the mind,the hard men will say its strong rules weak,the spiritual will say its of the spirit,some religous groups will say my way,its like a spiders web that we weave to reinforce our personal myth.
illumination?maybe its just as simple as knowing something is or learning a new lesson. The philosopher may stand on the hill looking down at the people in the cave pointing and saying”na na ne na na,you dont get me! but they are still his/her brothers and sisters so he is still part of the same picture. In short i have not nor will i ever know,but i tried and maybe thats the point.
January 21st, 2006 at 11:36 pm
This discussion (the good one, not the funny one), made me think of my favorite quote and guiding principle:
In this case it can relate to the types of ‘enlightenment’ experiences that exist. Living within your true nature and accepting the path that is best for you. I personally would love the quick, lightening shock experience, but my true nature, in everything I do, tends to be slow and methodical. I hate it, but damn it, that’s the way it’s gotta be.
January 22nd, 2006 at 1:32 am
Hey JR:
When I used the word “banal” is wasn’t to insult anything that you were saying. Banal just means commonplace. The meaning behind occult seems to be the exact opposite. That’s all.
Besides, you’re right about duality. We all know that virtually all philosophies have the principle of duality involved. That is one of the most obvious things about many religions and philosophies in general. I didn’t see the need to point that out. If you really read what I wrote, I never refuted that, instead, I just noted that is the principle to what most people cling.
Thanks for understanding and for being such a good sport!
January 22nd, 2006 at 3:44 am
JR, we love you.
Speak for yourself here, Tim.
I call JR what he she or it is: TROLL. Tim is being unnecessarily polite to this object.
January 22nd, 2006 at 5:47 am
eh, this place is a joke. The only person here who has the faintest understanding of the truth is under “moderation.” There is obviously a lot of hidden fear in this place that I must have touched upon. The Pop occulture inquisition. Abide by our occultic atheistic rules or face MODERATION!! yikes.
January 22nd, 2006 at 6:56 am
Thats a lovely quote about living with youre nature but i wish i had more patience and concentration but i guess the grass is always greener on the other side.
January 22nd, 2006 at 10:18 am
JR, I am not an “occultist”. I am interested in ideas so I like reading this blog.
I am also not confined, occulted, occluded, oddballed, whatever the fuck -
by one specific religious organization or allowable thought stream.
Would like to hear you finally get to your point and make it - doubt u have one.
Whyncha just fuck off? Or link us to the great “true” blog where you and your associates (I won’t say friends that’s kinda gay, don’t u think?) discuss.
Then we could all get up to speed with you. I know I’d really like to sit quietly at your feet (sort of like a dog) while you expound on the real trueness once and for all…
January 22nd, 2006 at 12:29 pm
Can’t people just ignore the attention seekers. Obviously it gives pleasure to the attention seeker when one responds to his comments. He wouldn’t keep on posting the antagonistic- provokative statements if it didn’t give him a form of pleasure. If one doesn’t respond he won’t be given any satisfaction, nor pleasure, and my psychological motivations will become less potent. It is pretty easy to identify JR or Mark S or whatever the name I post under. SO please ignore me because I have issues. I’m not a bad person just a little socially retarded, lonely and isolated in my real life.
January 22nd, 2006 at 1:46 pm
Can’t people just ignore the attention seekers. Obviously it gives pleasure to the attention seeker when one responds to his comments.
What you’ve just said reminds me a little bit of JR when he cautioned others to not accept Tim as a “God” and in the process, attributed him (Tim) with a power he does not have in my mind, but certainly seems to have in JR’s mind.
Likewise, by making a post that defines JR as an attention seeker, you have just given him the attention that you not only seem to believe he’s seeking, but also seem to believe he should be penalized for seeking (i.e., through insult). It’s a little like that Leader/Follower side discussion that was generated in the vortex thread.
With rare exception, I don’t think those who stir the pot a little should be ignored, tossed out the door, scapegoated, etc. Those individuals often serve a very productive purpose — namely by allowing one’s self to identify where you/I/we can be hooked by the words of another and before you know it, we’re insulting them for the crime of insulting others. Battle not with monsters, lest you become a monster.
It is the role of the Follower that defines the role of the Leader, just as it is the role of the Leader that defines the role of the Follower. If you see only the roles, without seeing the relationship between the roles, you will continue to blindly dance into them.
Meantime, perhaps JR’s actions could be cast in a new light. Perhaps — like you or me — he merely has a piece to say. Whether or not anyone else wishes to pick it up and run with it is entirely up to them, but if they do, they shouldn’t accuse JR of making them carry it.
January 22nd, 2006 at 2:12 pm
JR: The only person here who has the faintest understanding of the truth is under “moderation.”
I’m going to leap to the assumption that you are the individual under moderation and therefore, are also “the only person here who has the faintest understanding of the truth.” Could you please explain this truth to me so I can determine whether or not the truth you present is one I can believe and accept.
JR: There is obviously a lot of hidden fear in this place that I must have touched upon.
Have you ever seen a cat come upon itself in a mirror and then leap back in fright? In short, do you think it’s possible that the fear is yours and merely being projected upon others that you then hold accountable for the fear that belongs to you but is too fearful (a.k.a. painful) for you to accept? If so, try not to feel too badly about it — after all, entire nations have been known to do the same.
January 22nd, 2006 at 4:23 pm
I’m not sure how warranted or germane this comment will be, but I will note that Doug Rushkoff turned off his comments on account of trolls. My suspicion is that the Normie Organic Body has gotten all warmed up from the counterculture cum open source cum gnostic infection and we’re seeing some form of inflamattory response; strange that this happens here in the cyberworld, tho.
Re Everyday Gnosis, there’s this concept of “the holy moment,” e.g., the sudden, brief-lived breakdown of perceptual screens. Maybe you’re looking at the sidewalk, and you see colors brighter and things click into sense and connection. You can’t force the hand but it helps to have a name for it when it shows up.
January 22nd, 2006 at 5:59 pm
Adios (go with God) u lonely social retard
January 22nd, 2006 at 11:02 pm
Fukan trolls. WOop guppy givin board
January 22nd, 2006 at 11:13 pm
JR,
Do you have any experience with art, in any medium? The lovely thing about art, is that it is a creative process, and I stress the word creative. You have the ability to create something truly wonderous and beautiful. Now, you can use black and white to create something, but it isn’t very interesting, nor is it very beautiful. To create something truly beautiful and inspiring, it needs color and depth, dark and light, etc.
The problem with creating something, however, is that it still has to be interpreted by everyone else. Ever seen a black and white movie? Now, it probably wasn’t truly black and white, it probably also had a grayscale, but even so, is that movie a true representation of life? Were the people (and sets, etc) without color, or just our technology for viewing/recreating them?
I believe “truth” is the same way. It is not black and white, but there is certainly light and dark. It is not just shades of grey, though grey does exist. The grey, however, is an oversimplication between the play between light and dark. With a BnW tv, one cannot see the difference between black and dark navy, and sometimes that is how truth is. The fault lies in our perceptions and level of consciousness. Slowly, we build on how we perceive and understand things, and life is suddenly so much more complex, and yet so much more simpler. Ahhh, the beauty of true life.
Relying on old documents and beliefs does not lead to true understanding. Only experience can do that. And not just any, ol’ experience, but experience that has been tuned by the proper perceptions and underlying understandings and beliefs. Or, to go back to Physics 101, life isn’t black and white BECAUSE the uncertainty principle dictates that we can never truly predict where a particle may be at any given time. We haven’t honed our perceptions well enough yet.
:)
January 23rd, 2006 at 9:10 am
I’m with ya, JR! Anywhere you go. I’m totally there. I hope I get moderated soon, too. That will indicate that I’m closer to the truth! And I want to know the true truth that you know. And I’m kind of confused. Is Taoism, ying yang, good or bad? Is being a hermaphrodite good or bad? I’m totally confused. Make it clear to me because, as you say, you’re the only one not in the dark here. And I believe that. And I guess the fact that you haven’t taken me up on the Yoohoo and the Red Vine and the movie night means I’ve offended you somehow. Have I? And if so, is it anything I can make up for with a deep tissue massage? I mean, a massage I give you. I hear your massage, but I don’t get it quite yet, totally, even though I know in my ungay bones that your massage is the right massage. Please make your massage clear to me. I mean, I’m beginning to think I should drink all this Yoohoo by myself. Or something.
Fuck fuck faggiddy fuck-o! I want to be moderated!
January 23rd, 2006 at 2:44 pm
Personality clashes and conflicts may lead to one or more members adopting troll-like identities in order to flame or harass others without having to be accountable for their actions in their known (possibly respected) identity. This may be especially true in instances where community standards are not explicitly understood or where one party is or has been unfairly targeted by another individual or group of individuals. Group attacks such as the latter are also known as sharking or gang-banging. They occur when a group pulls together in an act of solidarity and loyalty to “attack” the perceived offender. They are more common in communities with absent or ineffective administrative involvement. Such actions are often a desperate attempt to maintain control. It can create community dischord, long-standing resentments, and may scatter the seeds of troll development.
Dealing With Trolls
January 23rd, 2006 at 5:58 pm
dude that is so catholic, works vs faith, bro.
-tc
syseng@msn.com
“the sleeper must awaken”
January 23rd, 2006 at 6:49 pm
I must admit that this is my first contact online so forgive me if i appeared as a troll, i didnt understand the community protocols but im learning.
+
ok, last one.I presume j.r. stands for j.r.tolkien, good and evil pathology maybe but thats ok because im a hobbit from the shire. Tolkien gained inspiration for hobbits from the folk that lived around pendle hill in lancashire and thats where i hail from so if youre against me j.r. youre against the hobbits and that really does make you a troll. If you would like to see transcripts from the trial of the pendle witches j.r.-http://www.pendlewitches.co.uk/ ,make youre own mind up. If youde really like to spot the fakes j.r. then this may help-http://www.thecrookedheath.com/witchnf.htm .
My point is that im here because its part of my culture and ill learn with experience. This is what wickpedia says under witchcraft
J.R. This link is to a webcam that looks out on pendle hill-http://www.copstergreen.co.uk/webcam.htm (theres mystic gold in those there hills), finally j.r. i was born on Beltane and the faeries are my friends.bye for now