philosophy
“The Modern Shaman: A Guide to Carl Jung”
Saturday, 03Aug2019
“Always work as a team.”
Lexicon mini-indexes
Thursday, 25Jul2019
“One cannot and must not try to erase the past merely because it does not fit the present.”
Not the thing
Thursday, 13Jun2019
“Like attracts unlike; energy and actions often attract their “opposites.””
Desert
Thursday, 23May2019
“Understanding brings control; the more that is known about a subject, the easier it is to exercise control over it.”
Habitual nakedness
Thursday, 23May2019
“Complete nudity in itself is not erotic. It becomes so only when preceeded by or contrasted to a state of dress. In this limited context then, all clothes become somewhat immoral, if we define immorality as inciting sexual interest. Habitual nakedness may indeed be capable of elevating man to a higher mental plane.”
Added to the lexicon
Friday, 03May2019
Their compromise gave other faiths a wedge into the American religious landscape.
Read More...NeoNote — Mostly
Saturday, 20Apr2019
It means I watch for the exceptions where neither IS nor IS NOT applies. It means our understanding is limited by our perception and assumptions at the moment.
Read More...Change
Thursday, 07Mar2019
“I had the fortune or misfortune to learn how to read fluently starting at the age of three. So I had read maybe 150 books by the time I hit 1st grade. And I already knew that the teachers were lying to me.”
Not even the same subject
Friday, 11Jan2019
Philosphy foundation
Sunday, 23Dec2018
“Conservationists plant a 'super grove' of redwood trees cloned from ancient stumps”
Read More...❝Nothing is more active than thought…❞
Thursday, 20Dec2018
“Nothing is more active than thought, for it travels over the universe, and nothing is stronger than necessity for all must submit to it.”
❝Nothing exists except atoms and empty space…❞
Thursday, 20Dec2018
NeoNote — Nature and the World are not cruel.
Monday, 19Nov2018
“I'm not shy about heated debate or passionate discourse, but when people get crazy or rude, that's a buzz kill. There's got to be a better code of conduct, some basic etiquette.”
“Freud, Jung, Luke Skywalker, and the Psychology of Myth: Crash Course World Mythology #40”
Saturday, 17Nov2018
NeoNote — Good and evil
Monday, 24Sep2018
❝Obviously I am not heathen, but I question that phrase "forces of darkness." Our World has both light and darkness, both are necessary for life, death, growth and renewal.
Perhaps it is just me, but I have issues with assigning good to light and evil to darkness. I probably have issues with the dualistic ideas of good and evil too. Sometimes what is "evil" for one group is "good" for another. If they are anything like the ones I've argued with, your "extreme right ideologies" probably see inclusiveness as very evil and damaging. I disagree, but it is their "evil."
Ah, now that is an interesting bit.
Bonewits pointed out that dualism, especially religious dualism, quickly shifts things to IS and IS NOT. If something IS NOT on the approved list, it is evil because the definitions and underlying assumptions don't allow any other possibility.
Long story short, without monotheism, the meaning of good and evil aren't so clear cut. It tends to be more in the nature of "this HELPS my tribe/city/nation" and "this HURTS my tribe/city/nation." It becomes relative and based on cost/benefit. It depends more on individual judgement and less on an Official List of "THOU SHALT NOTS."
But, since Bonewits is on the Disapproved List, this is just academic, right? An accused sexual predator and pedophile couldn't possibly have had good ideas…
I disagree.
I agree that unrestrained greed and unrestrained tribalism are bad. But so is unrestrained sex, unrestrained pacifism, unrestrained sugar, unrestrained sunbathing, unrestrained hair dyeing, unrestrained television, and unrestrained concrete. A little goes a long way, or as the old saying goes, moderation in all things.
Competition keeps us honest and is one big reason why we try to make things better.
*grins* I may bring the philosophy bit out. I enjoy it, I practice it, and I encourage it.
I was thinking about the Greeks and some of the philosophy of the Golden Mean, although the Buddhist version applies too.
Specifically I was thinking about self-discipline and responsibility. The Ethic of Reciprocity is usually associated with Christianity but predates Christianity and exists independently in other cultures. One of my party tricks is showing how people can build an entire social, ethical, and legal system using the EoR and without depending on authority granted from an Official Religion. And that brings us to unrestrained.
If we are talking about ethical restraints, those restraints have to be self-imposed. It's not really ethical otherwise. If a choice is imposed by force, it's not really a choice, is it?
Self-restraint goes right back to the EoR. If I want to be treated right, it's in my best interest to treat others right. We expect others to act morally and honorably. That gets into defining the Other which is a long subject. I'm going to skip that for our discussion here.
Every morning I have a glass of citrus juice with my breakfast. But it's a water glass, not a juice glass. Is that excessive? Some might say so. But it's my breakfast and my choice. As long as I am not depriving or harming others, then how is it anyone else's business?
That brings us to greed. If I want to continue having OJ, somehow I have to do something that someone else wants and is willing to pay for. With the division of labor, that becomes the free market. Voluntary exchanges between mutually consenting adults. To get what I want, I have to provide something they want.
Competition brings the second keystone of the free market: I can do better than that! Most fail, but the successes change everything.
You're absolutely right pointing out that competition doesn't mean destroying the other (odd how that word keeps cropping up). But the free market means that a company or person has to offer at least as much value as those around them, or someone else will sell.
It's not just buying and selling. Most people reading this site chose paganism or an alternative religion because that religion offered something that they couldn't get elsewhere.
One of the things I recently added to my lexicon, the two most important phrases in human history (www DOT neowayland DOT com SLASH lexicon SLASH tt SLASH #two)
“Let me help.”
“I can do better than that!”
And yes, I gave credit to Star Trek for the first.❞
NeoNotes are the selected comments that I made on other boards, in email, or in response to articles where I could not respond directly.
Six new pages
Friday, 17Aug2018
❝I learned a long time ago that it's worth the trouble to make sure she's got at least two climaxes for every one of mine.
Keeps her smiling too.❞
Philosi-bear
Tuesday, 14Aug2018
“This week, we're continuing our discussion of heroes by talking about Gilgamesh, star of one of the earliest written hero stories, The Epic of Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh was a terrible ancient king who left his kingdom seeking adventure, and eventually on the prowl for immortality. Along the way, he checks pretty much all the boxes on the checklist of Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey.”
Read More...Nothing supernatural exists.
Saturday, 21Jul2018
Acquiring knowledge
Thursday, 08Mar2018
“The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.”
❝Things are always more complicated than you think.❞
Friday, 11Aug2017
❝Beware of jargon.❞
Thursday, 10Aug2017
❝Don't essentialize.❞
Wednesday, 09Aug2017
❝Focus on the primary text…❞
Tuesday, 08Aug2017
❝Respect texts about texts.❞
Monday, 07Aug2017
❝Be broadminded about what counts as “philosophy.”❞
Friday, 04Aug2017
❝Take religion seriously.❞
Thursday, 03Aug2017
❝Take metaphors seriously.❞
Wednesday, 02Aug2017
❝Think about the audience.❞
Tuesday, 01Aug2017
❝Silence is not louder than words.❞
Friday, 28Jul2017
❝Read the whole text.❞
Wednesday, 26Jul2017
NeoNotes — Judaism
Monday, 24Jul2017
“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it.”— Roald Dahl
❝Take "minor" figures seriously.❞
Friday, 21Jul2017
❝Respect the context.❞
Thursday, 20Jul2017
“It's possible for the same idea to appear independently more than once.”Read More...— Peter Adamson
❝ Suspect the text .❞
Wednesday, 19Jul2017
Yes, sometimes you can taste the Moonlight in the predawn. It's full of promise and hope and wonder, with the ever so slight tartness of regret.
Read More...❝Respect the text.❞
Tuesday, 18Jul2017
❝4 Rituals That Will Make You Loved❞
Monday, 17Jul2017
❝Make it better today. Keep polishing.❞
— NeoWayland, Quick notes to a new seeker
I don't know
Tuesday, 20Jun2017
Yesterday's news…
Tuesday, 29Jun2010
h4 class="blurb">I don't have a stake in that fight. Or the other three either. Read More...
Skeins
Thursday, 19Nov2009
❝There is an old saying that the difficult truths are the only ones that must be told.❞— NeoWayland, Discipline, the Modern Pagan, and power from victimhood
Forget the red pill, go for the green drink
Tuesday, 04Aug2009
Flipping through the quote file
Wednesday, 01Oct2008
This is a page from the third version of Technopagan Yearnings. There are some formatting differences. Originally published at www.neowayland.com/C1982366546/E20081001145525
My handy dandy Palm provides a couple of thinkums for the day
“I hear and I forget; I see and I remember; I do and I understand. In the doing is the learning.”
— ancient Chinese proverb
“It is not necessary to know. It is only necessary to try.”That's it for now. After all, philosophy doesn't put OJ and tortillas in the fridge.
— Babylon 5
Absolutely mythical
Tuesday, 09Oct2007
This is a page from the third version of Technopagan Yearnings. There are some formatting differences. Originally published at www.neowayland.com/C1325529963/E20071009133622
Dualism and modern mythology
From some reason as I write this, I've got the tune to Robert Palmer's Simply Irresistible running through my head with new lyrics.
When it comes to modern Pagan philosophers, Isaac Bonewits was one of my earliest influences. His writings on the distortions created by dualistic assumptions were some of the best I had ever read. It was one of those "ton of brick" moments, I was struggling with my identity as a Pagan despite being raised Christian. And Bonewits is absolutely right.
Except when it comes to his own politics.
It's common. Those EITHER/OR blinders are a lot more widespread than we comfortably admit. Especially when it comes to ourselves.
My own blinders include prejudices against "fluffy bunnies" and until quite recently otherkin. Part of that was because I didn't make the effort to dig deeper, but mainly because the "noisiest" examples aren't necessarily the people you'd want around you. There are exceptions, but they are difficult to find.
I absolutely love Wren's Nest, I consider it one of the the best Pagan news sources around. But it doesn't take long before a commenter trots out the anti-Christian bit on almost any thread.
One of my hard won life lessons that I am willing to share is very simple. When you see two and only two alternatives, start looking for the third.
In most situations, either/or choices don't work.
A dualistic mind set is one of those REALLY BAD™ ideas.
It doesn't matter if it's Christian vs. Pagan, Democrat vs. Republican, or Freemasons vs. the Elks.
I made that last one up. And that is my point. The myths we choose to talk about and live are the memes that shape our lives, regardless of their "truth."
I want to talk about one of the best known myths of our time, and how it illustrates the Third Way that overcomes dualism. I'm talking about the Star Wars films.
Specifically, I want to concentrate on the differences between the pre-Empire Galactic Republic and the Galactic Empire on the large scale, and between Anakin Skywalker and Luke Skywalker on the small scale.
From the original films, we know that the Galactic Empire is EVIL BAD in capital letters. They destroy entire planets. They make their stormtroopers wear dorky armor that doesn't seem to deflect much blaster fire. They squeeze the economies of their member planets. They send secret operatives to ferret out dissent.
From the prequel films, we know that the Republic are the good guys. They have a democratic tradition which prevents justice and can be manipulated behind the scenes. They make their cloned stormtroopers wear dorky armor that doesn't seem to prevent much blaster fire. They squeeze the economies of their member planets. And they send secret operatives to ferret out dissent.
The Empire has the Death Star, but the Republic is incapable of defending one of it's members from the advances of another. Is it evil to destroy life with the push of a button or with the procedural vote?
Be careful, that is one of those either/or choices I warned you about.
So let's look at how Anakin Skywalker fared under the Galactic Republic.
Time after time, he's told that he has to deny his passions, his connections to other people. It's not pure, it's not the Way of the Jedi. At first, he's even denied the Jedi training. The mighty Jedi Council sits on high, dispassionately evaluating everything and totally blind to the Sith.
The one Jedi Master who thinks outside the box well enough to help Anakin come to terms with his feelings is dead by the end of the first prequel film.
Despite promises of freedom and justice, Anakin's mother remains a slave and is killed without the protection of the Republic. Anakin's visions torment him with visions of his beloved dying in despair. The Jedi Council won't make him a Master, despite his obvious gifts and abilities.
To Anakin, the Republic betrayed him long before he took up the path of a Sith Lord.
Luke Skywalker fared even worse under the Galactic Empire. His guardians were killed by stormtroopers. He knew that Darth Vader had "killed" his father. He watched as Vader sliced his mentor in half. If anyone had a reason for revenge, it was Luke.
As Luke progressed in his training, his teachers stress that he must disassociate his feelings from his actions. Time after time, he is told that only a fully trained Jedi could hope to face Vader and the Emperor.
Yet there was an x-factor, something totally unexpected. Even before Luke knew Leia was his sister, there was a connection that grew only stronger the more time they spent together. Luke could feel how his sister felt about Han Solo, the charming rogue who only became a hero because his friends were in danger.
Anakin didn't have a Han Solo. Luke did.
That's why Luke knew his father could be redeemed. He had already seen Han redeemed.
I'd like to say that the clues were there. Red Flight became Rogue Flight. Han's military and practical experience showed up on Hoth and in the deference that the Rebels gave Han and Chewie. More than anything else, more than the pronouncements of Yoda or the promises of Ben Kenobi, Luke knew that he could count on Han to pull him out of a disaster.
"That's two you owe me, junior."
It was the connection to Leia that let Luke survive his first encounter with Vader. It was Han's willing sacrifice that let Leia, Chewie, Lando, and the droids escape.
Because, you see, even though the good guys won and the Emperor was destroyed, it wasn't done by the way of the Jedi.
It was a man who had mastered the way of the Jedi but chose a path of compassion.
Luke Skywalker looked for the third way beyond either/or. That's what let him win.
That's the real myth of Star Wars. Not good versus evil.
The Sith could only exist because the Jedi were incomplete. And the Sith were doomed because they were the flip side and just as incomplete.
The only lasting solution was to find another way not in the assumptions of either "side." And the man who made it possible wasn't a Jedi, but a good man who chose to be better out of friendship and love.
So how does this relate to us?
Maybe it doesn't. Maybe it is enough to know that there are usually more than two answers. Maybe it is enough to know that sometimes our expectations shape our answers more than any truth.
And maybe it is enough knowing that only two answers mirror each other.
When it comes to modern Pagan philosophers, Isaac Bonewits was one of my earliest influences. His writings on the distortions created by dualistic assumptions were some of the best I had ever read. It was one of those "ton of brick" moments, I was struggling with my identity as a Pagan despite being raised Christian. And Bonewits is absolutely right.
Except when it comes to his own politics.
It's common. Those EITHER/OR blinders are a lot more widespread than we comfortably admit. Especially when it comes to ourselves.
My own blinders include prejudices against "fluffy bunnies" and until quite recently otherkin. Part of that was because I didn't make the effort to dig deeper, but mainly because the "noisiest" examples aren't necessarily the people you'd want around you. There are exceptions, but they are difficult to find.
I absolutely love Wren's Nest, I consider it one of the the best Pagan news sources around. But it doesn't take long before a commenter trots out the anti-Christian bit on almost any thread.
One of my hard won life lessons that I am willing to share is very simple. When you see two and only two alternatives, start looking for the third.
In most situations, either/or choices don't work.
A dualistic mind set is one of those REALLY BAD™ ideas.
It doesn't matter if it's Christian vs. Pagan, Democrat vs. Republican, or Freemasons vs. the Elks.
I made that last one up. And that is my point. The myths we choose to talk about and live are the memes that shape our lives, regardless of their "truth."
I want to talk about one of the best known myths of our time, and how it illustrates the Third Way that overcomes dualism. I'm talking about the Star Wars films.
Specifically, I want to concentrate on the differences between the pre-Empire Galactic Republic and the Galactic Empire on the large scale, and between Anakin Skywalker and Luke Skywalker on the small scale.
From the original films, we know that the Galactic Empire is EVIL BAD in capital letters. They destroy entire planets. They make their stormtroopers wear dorky armor that doesn't seem to deflect much blaster fire. They squeeze the economies of their member planets. They send secret operatives to ferret out dissent.
From the prequel films, we know that the Republic are the good guys. They have a democratic tradition which prevents justice and can be manipulated behind the scenes. They make their cloned stormtroopers wear dorky armor that doesn't seem to prevent much blaster fire. They squeeze the economies of their member planets. And they send secret operatives to ferret out dissent.
The Empire has the Death Star, but the Republic is incapable of defending one of it's members from the advances of another. Is it evil to destroy life with the push of a button or with the procedural vote?
Be careful, that is one of those either/or choices I warned you about.
So let's look at how Anakin Skywalker fared under the Galactic Republic.
Time after time, he's told that he has to deny his passions, his connections to other people. It's not pure, it's not the Way of the Jedi. At first, he's even denied the Jedi training. The mighty Jedi Council sits on high, dispassionately evaluating everything and totally blind to the Sith.
The one Jedi Master who thinks outside the box well enough to help Anakin come to terms with his feelings is dead by the end of the first prequel film.
Despite promises of freedom and justice, Anakin's mother remains a slave and is killed without the protection of the Republic. Anakin's visions torment him with visions of his beloved dying in despair. The Jedi Council won't make him a Master, despite his obvious gifts and abilities.
To Anakin, the Republic betrayed him long before he took up the path of a Sith Lord.
Luke Skywalker fared even worse under the Galactic Empire. His guardians were killed by stormtroopers. He knew that Darth Vader had "killed" his father. He watched as Vader sliced his mentor in half. If anyone had a reason for revenge, it was Luke.
As Luke progressed in his training, his teachers stress that he must disassociate his feelings from his actions. Time after time, he is told that only a fully trained Jedi could hope to face Vader and the Emperor.
Yet there was an x-factor, something totally unexpected. Even before Luke knew Leia was his sister, there was a connection that grew only stronger the more time they spent together. Luke could feel how his sister felt about Han Solo, the charming rogue who only became a hero because his friends were in danger.
Anakin didn't have a Han Solo. Luke did.
That's why Luke knew his father could be redeemed. He had already seen Han redeemed.
I'd like to say that the clues were there. Red Flight became Rogue Flight. Han's military and practical experience showed up on Hoth and in the deference that the Rebels gave Han and Chewie. More than anything else, more than the pronouncements of Yoda or the promises of Ben Kenobi, Luke knew that he could count on Han to pull him out of a disaster.
"That's two you owe me, junior."
It was the connection to Leia that let Luke survive his first encounter with Vader. It was Han's willing sacrifice that let Leia, Chewie, Lando, and the droids escape.
Because, you see, even though the good guys won and the Emperor was destroyed, it wasn't done by the way of the Jedi.
It was a man who had mastered the way of the Jedi but chose a path of compassion.
Luke Skywalker looked for the third way beyond either/or. That's what let him win.
That's the real myth of Star Wars. Not good versus evil.
The Sith could only exist because the Jedi were incomplete. And the Sith were doomed because they were the flip side and just as incomplete.
The only lasting solution was to find another way not in the assumptions of either "side." And the man who made it possible wasn't a Jedi, but a good man who chose to be better out of friendship and love.
So how does this relate to us?
Maybe it doesn't. Maybe it is enough to know that there are usually more than two answers. Maybe it is enough to know that sometimes our expectations shape our answers more than any truth.
And maybe it is enough knowing that only two answers mirror each other.
This week's thinkum
Thursday, 23Mar2006
This is a page from the third version of Technopagan Yearnings. There are some formatting differences. Originally published at www.neowayland.com/C1982366546/E20060324050200
Do you live your faith or does your faith live you?
I've been thinking about that a lot this week.
I've been thinking about that a lot this week.
Religion and popular culture
Monday, 24Oct2005
This is what happens when you hit deadline and you can't think of anything to write. You bring out something from your poetry file. This started as a chant and developed into something else along the way.
Read More...The Word is Not the Thing
Thursday, 04Aug2005
A narrow slice of life, but now and again pondering American neopaganism, modern adult pagans & the World.
A narrow slice of life, but now and again pondering American neopaganism, modern adult pagans & the World.
Pagan philosopher, libertarian, and part-time trouble maker, NeoWayland keeps truths alive despite a wash of nonsense. But don't be surprised when he's doing the “nekkid pagan guy” thing.
There are pagan news & opinion sites. Technopagan Yearnings is not one. It’s more like a digital binder with interesting pagan stuff. And nudity. Don’t forget the nudity.
Since Wren Walker retired the Wren’s Nest of The Witches’ Voice, there is not really a pagan news site anymore.
The Pagan Vigil Reader is a pagan news aggregator.
You won’t find porn or erotica here. I do discuss nudity & sex, but I do not describe sexual events. As a naturist I admire the human body so you will find nudes here. You will not find photos of sex. There is some art showing sex and orgasms in a ritual or mythical context.
Updated weekdays when possible, otherwise irregularly as circumstances permit and the mood strikes.
This is the fourth major version of Technopagan Yearnings. I still have № 3 on file with it’s comments. I’ll convert that bit by bit as I get the chance. This version uses
RealMac’s RapidWeaver instead of Lifli’s iBlog.
Monday
casual & vintage nudes Tuesday
main entry for week Wednesday
gallery Thursday
quotes & thinkums Friday
journal
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journal
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WitchesAndPagans.com
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