Monday, November 30, 2009

Compassion and Evolution

Compassion is a mysterious emotion, the development of which defines the human realm. Paradoxically, this development is based on both a visceral identification with one’s experience, existing prior to one’s separation of self from other, and its more refined manifestation in the province of the intellect- the evolution of a faith based on an unprovable but nevertheless persistent idea that the pursuit of one’s material self-interest, or even the interests of those close to one, will not suffice in the attempt to confront the wretchedness of one’s condition. The first element is, of course, a latent potential common to all experience; the second development, however, characterizes the human realm in its gradual, if uneven, progress toward ever-widening considerations of connectedness and community. Universalism, the idea that certain truths apply to all of existence and that no entity is irrelevant, is the logical extension of this development. Human awareness presents its inheritors with a unique challenge and opportunity: to embrace the sentient Universe as a single living being, and consciously confront the physical deficiencies of material existence – bodily pain, disease, senescence, mortality, temporality, the limits of physical transformability, and separateness. To a degree without precedent in any of the earlier states of being, the Human Realm, both in its microcosmic form as a individual striving for greater self-actualization and in its more general form as a species defined by history and culture, stands at the threshold of taking control over its own evolution and radically accelerating the progress of consciousness towards divinity.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

Thursday, November 26, 2009

The Minimization of Pain

The refinement of the process of minimizing pain results in the realization of pleasure, and the consequent pursuit of pleasure. Pleasure is an experience both of relief - the process of moving toward lesser pain - and also of the anticipation of further lessening of pain. Such activity, the most basic maximization of the individual’s physically selfish interests, characterizes the Animal realm-stage. Such motivation does not, however, preclude the cooperative behavior in which some species engage, as such behavior results from instincts pre-selected by the process of genetic evolution rather than any internal evolution of thought. The attainment of a “pleasure-maximum” ironically leads to an awareness of its limitations. The maximum level of pleasure that the animal-self may attain is limited to the individual’s potential for physical pleasure (in terms of degree and frequency). Also, the sense of one’s own mortality, implied by the knowledge that others die, results in the suspicion that the current pursuit and potential attainment of physical pleasure may be ephemeral. This dissonant coupling of physical satiation with a less defined, though ever-present, feeling that the self is insufficient unto itself exists in higher animals, at the border between the animal and human realms. It is a flickering recognition that beings other than one’s self have existential significance, and that there is a world outside of one’s physical self, to which one is connected, in an intimate and perpetual, albeit unknown manner. It is natural to assume that the animal self might experience the first semblances of such notions in the form of dreams; for sleep, the decceleration of physical activity and period in which the resting mind makes play of thought, occurs when the day’s overriding demands for safety, food, and sex have been satisfied to the degree that circumstances allowed. More evolved animals take greater care of their young than the more primitive forms, and some, especially those which congregate in groups, such as herds and packs, evince feelings of a sort of group, or species, sympathy, which may be likened to a primitive form of compassion. Whether this is merely a Darwinistically selected instinct, by which those of like genes favor one another, or a more deliberate and conscious form of cooperative reciprocity, enhancing the coherence and survival of the group, it represents a significant practical step beyond the preservation and promotion of the individual self.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

The Minimization of Pain

The refinement of the process of minimizing pain results in the realization of pleasure, and the consequent pursuit of pleasure. Pleasure is an experience both of relief - the process of moving toward lesser pain - and also of the anticipation of further lessening of pain. Such activity, the most basic maximization of the individual’s physically selfish interests, characterizes the Animal realm-stage. Such motivation does not, however, preclude the cooperative behavior in which some species engage, as such behavior results from instincts pre-selected by the process of genetic evolution rather than any internal evolution of thought. The attainment of a “pleasure-maximum” ironically leads to an awareness of its limitations. The maximum level of pleasure that the animal-self may attain is limited to the individual’s potential for physical pleasure (in terms of degree and frequency). Also, the sense of one’s own mortality, implied by the knowledge that others die, results in the suspicion that the current pursuit and potential attainment of physical pleasure may be ephemeral. This dissonant coupling of physical satiation with a less defined, though ever-present, feeling that the self is insufficient unto itself exists in higher animals, at the border between the animal and human realms. It is a flickering recognition that beings other than one’s self have existential significance, and that there is a world outside of one’s physical self, to which one is connected, in an intimate and perpetual, albeit unknown manner. It is natural to assume that the animal self might experience the first semblances of such notions in the form of dreams; for sleep, the decceleration of physical activity and period in which the resting mind makes play of thought, occurs when the day’s overriding demands for safety, food, and sex have been satisfied to the degree that circumstances allowed. More evolved animals take greater care of their young than the more primitive forms, and some, especially those which congregate in groups, such as herds and packs, evince feelings of a sort of group, or species, sympathy, which may be likened to a primitive form of compassion. Whether this is merely a Darwinistically selected instinct, by which those of like genes favor one another, or a more deliberate and conscious form of cooperative reciprocity, enhancing the coherence and survival of the group, it represents a significant practical step beyond the preservation and promotion of the individual self.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

Friday, November 20, 2009

The Relativization of Pain

The first stage of existence is that of Pain, symbolized by the Hell Realm. Agonizing as it is, this stage is, in fact, a positive progression from the Non-Existent and proto-existent state which came before it. Pain is an inversion – a violent and uncontrolled implosion of the incoherent wonder that was felt without the awareness that the feeler exists, a forceful realization of the discrete and separate existence of an “inside self” – the individual awareness being born amidst an alien “outside” of other, foreign and alien, entities impressed upon its awareness.

Inevitably, experience of pain leads to a more complex awareness of it, and the crucial lesson that there may be means of avoiding greater pain in favor of lesser pain. This realization constitutes the basis of the realm-stage of the Pretas, or Hungry Ghosts. Tibetan paintings of the Pretas portray them as starving beings with necks that are so thin that they cannot digest very much of the food, which nevertheless sustains them. Like the denizens of Hell, the Hungry Ghosts still exist within a realm of pain, but it is a hierarchical realm in which each desperately strives to lessen the agony.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

The Symbology of Tibetan Buddhist Wheel of Maya

The stages encountered during the internally directed evolution of consciousness, both of the individual on the microcosmic level, and of society or even the Universe as a whole, on the macro- level, is symbolized by the realms portrayed in the Tibetan Buddhist Wheel of Illusion (Maya) or Rebirth. The ultimate goal is to transcend the cycle of Time and Ignorance, and arrive at the still, calm center, Enlightenment. Within the traditional version of the Wheel, however, the soul revolves around and around between the different realms for millions upon millions of rebirths, although the guide toward Enlightenment (Nirvana), symbolized by the Buddha, appears within each realm, and offers opportunity for attainment at any point in the cycle. Hence, the traditional ordering of cycle’s realms reflects the notion of a nearly perpetual repetition of cycle by the journeying soul, and proceeds as follows through the realms of: the Gods (or Heaven), Titans or Demigods, “Pretas” (or Hungry Ghosts), Hell, Animals, Humans, and then Gods again. A simplification of the cycle is also portrayed within many Tibetan paintings of the Wheel, in which a black pig (representing Ignorance or Fear), is chased by a Snake (representing Anger), chased by a cock (representing Greed or Desire), who is in turn chased by the original Black Pig. Obviously, Ignorance is viewed as the quality which is furthest from Enlightenment, and is the basis for all delusions.

The traditional ordering of the realms is somewhat problematic in that it makes no distinctions of value between the various realms. Obviously, it is more pleasant for a soul to exist in the Heavenly Realm than to suffer in Hell; however, in traditional depictions of the Wheel, all of the realms are equally distant from the Center (Nirvana), and the Buddha appears in each, offering the possibility of attainment. In fact, it is a tenet of Mahayana Buddhism that the Human Realm offers the greatest opportunity for attainment, although the most convincing explanation for this belief is one of anthropocentrism - that it is created by and for human adherents.

That the Buddha appears in each of the the realms, offering different means (suited to the denizens of each) of attaining immediate enlightenment is meaningful both in the sense that, under any circumstance, a direction toward greater spiritual evolution is possible, and also in that, though a being may be situated at a particular stage in the process, he may at any time connect to an essential self which transcends it all. An internally directed evolution, however, may not wholely rely upon a system which, though valid on an ultimate level, does not offer a sufficient practical description of the stages by which on may recognize progress, the means toward its continuation, and some notion of how future, higher levels of awareness should appear.

Starting with the traditional assumption that all of the realms contain delusion, we may consider two modifications of tradition: that some realms are more proximate to Enlightenment than others, indicating that a progressive evolution is possible, and that, generally, those “realm-stages” progress from those portrayed most negatively (as being the most painful) to those that are more pleasant, and onward, to final Enlightenment. We may envision these realm-stages as a sort of “onion” – a sphere of concentric layers, in which the soul moves ever-inward towards the center.

Outside of the sphere, before even the first stage commences, we encounter the “Neverness,” an abyss of utter ignorance, incomprehension, non-existence - Nothingness. It cannot be said to exist, so terming it an “abyss” is actually meaningless, though perhaps a better approximation than calling it a region, or realm. Approaching the “border” between Nonbeing and Being there lies an incoherent, unexpressed sense of amazement, reminiscent of the Biblical statement: “The Light shone through the Darkness, and the Darkness could not utter it.” It is a mental state which precedes even the utterance of “What?,” the primal query of the just-born infant. That first question, posed in the hope or expectation of an answer which does more than simply replicate the question in more complicated form, defines this border between non-existence and existence, between mental nullity and awareness. It is the foundation impulse which demands definition, of self, of universe, and of all existence, and it grasps at all that it is given – most obviously: a world of multiplicity in which the self interacts with stimuli within and without its corporeal form. This self attempts to attain a solution initially based upon an internal projection of its dominant interactions (those which were the most profoundly stimulating and well-remembered), and later by reflecting upon the possibility of a meaning, or essence, common to the cumulative range of experience, which may unite and encompass it all.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Solar Religion in Ancient Egypt

"Lockyer's researches make it clear that in the main the temples of Egypt were oriented with reference to the point at which the sun rises on the day of the summer solstice. The time of the solstice had peculiar interest for the Egyptians, because it corresponded rather closely with the time of the rising of the Nile. The floods of that river appear with very great regularity; the on-rushing tide reaches the region of Heliopolis and Memphis almost precisely on the day of the summer solstice. The time varies at different stages of the river's course, but as the civilization of the early dynasties centered at Memphis, observations made at this place had widest vogue. "

(from Williams, Henry Smith, HISTORY OF SCIENCE)

Friday, November 13, 2009

Solar and Lunar Time

Among the first of the regional empires of human history were those of two agricultural civilizations centered on two rivers, the Nile and the Indus.

The Egyptian civilization, based upon the union of an African South, symbolized by the Snake, and a Semitic North, symbolized by the Eagle, was able to maximize its agricultural production, based upon the innovative use of solar time, and as a result, the ability to predict exactly when the Nile would flood. In consequence, Egypt developed a solar-based, linear-triangular view of time, oriented to the Eye, and focused upon the material progress of society.

The Indus Valley civilization was able to maximize its agricultural production, based upon the use of lunar time, and as a result, the capacity to predict approximately when the Monsoon rains would come. In consequence, India develop a lunar, curvilinear-cyclical view of time, oriented to the Mind, and focused on the spiritual and mental progress of the individual.

The Solar view of Time, symbolized by the triangle, is concerned with domination. The triangle is always dominated by what is at the top, whether it is its apex (One Above All, representing Material Order), or, in the case of an inverted triangle, its base (Many Above All, representing Material Disorder).

The Lunar view of Time, symbolized by the circle, is concerned with definition. The circle is defined either by its center (One Central to All, representing Spiritual/Mental Freedom), or by its periphery (Many Peripheral to All, representing Spiritual/Mental subjection).

A society based upon Solar Time may maximize material progress (Material Order), but is vulnerable to spirtual enslavement. A society based upon Lunar Time may maximize spiritual/mental progress (Spiritual/Mental Freedom), but is vulnerable to material disorder.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

The Three Elite Groups

The material progress of human history is not the synthesis of a process of dialectical class conflict between those in power and the oppressed, but rather as the result of rivalry between three elite groups, each of which claims to represent the greater good of society. These three groups correspond to the body's digestive processes, and in order of succession, they are: the priests/philosophers, warriors/administrators, and merchants. They also may be referred to, in more derogatory terms, as liars, murderers, and thieves. Collectively, the groups may be symbolically represented as a 3-pointed star within a triangle representing the social order. They are the dynamic force which perpetually rotates the social order between six stages of domination and upheaval, like the blade of a food processor. The food processor analogy is apt, because the continual instability of the social order dissolves the materialistic aspect of individuality of those most involved in the process, rendering the disillusioned survivors ambiguous and ambivalent in their identification with their material interests. In effect, the survivors become the “food of the gods,” in that they wish to disengage in the outward struggle for material dominance, seeking deeper introspection and self-definition. Of course, the “trialectical” competition is maintained by the diehards and their new recruits among the young.

Interestingly, these three groups closely correlate with certain paradigms of both Hinduism and Buddhism. The Hindu caste system accords with its cosmic view of energy. “Thought” is considered the highest, purest form of energy, and the Brahmin (priests/philosophers) are intended to embody thought. Action, corresponding the the Ksatriyahs (warriors), emanates from thought. Finally, energy dissipates as Inertia, represented by the Sudras (merchants and craftsmen). A well-known allegory illustrates this: at an athletic competition, those watching the game represent Thought, the players- Action, and those betting on the game- Inertia.

Buddhism correlates the three types as partners in a vicious cycle of delusional emotions, perpetuating Rebirth. At the center of a Tibetan painting of the Wheel of Rebirth, we may find three animals chasing one another: a dark Boar, representing Ignorance or Fear, being chased by a Snake, representing Rage, who is in turn chased by a Cock, representing Greed or Desire, who is in turn chased by the Boar, completing the cycle. These emotions lead into one another, and it is no great feat to see a relationship between the three emotional weaknesses and the three types of elites which exploit them: Fear/Ignorance- Priests/Philosophers, Rage- Warriors, Desire/Greed – Merchants.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

Monday, November 9, 2009

The Three-fold Process of Consumption

Humans, as well as most living beings of which we are aware, are biologically constructed in a manner which necessitates that physically, they must devote all of their time to the process of consumption of air, water, and food. This process is a cycle, divided into three sub-processes: ingestion, digestion, and excretion. The cycle mirrors that of the material universe – the phases of expansion and contraction, divided by momentary, reflective “pauses.” Given Man’s organic and constant involvement with the consumption process, it is inevitable that this three-fold process serve as a pattern for the more developed psychological processes in which the individual is engaged, as well as the more complex historical processes undergone by human society as a whole.

Ingestion, the experience of choosing, tasting, and accepting the formerly external object to be consumed, is the individual’s first revelation of and union with, the world of external phenomena. This novel and unfamiliar experience, an acceptance and exploration of an active principle outside of the self is the origin of one’s spiritual and philosophical perspective.

Digestion involves the breaking down of the ingested object, and the absorption of those elements which the body can use. In a sense, digestion is a transitional process, partaking of both ingestion and excretion. It occurs between digestion and excretion, yet partakes of both, because it involves the body’s absorption and casting off of the ingested object. It also occurs between excretion and ingestion, however, in that a “meta-ingestion” and “meta-excretion” proceed before the actual consumption of an object, a choosing and rejecting of prospective objects to be consumed. Digestion may be said to be an "administration" of ingested objects.

Excretion is the process of getting rid of those elements which the body cannot use. That which cannot be exploited by the body is determined to be valueless and is excreted as waste, although it becomes part of a larger "trickle down" process, in which it is consumed by lower organisms.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

Friday, November 6, 2009

The Ideology of Slavery

The ideology of a Slave Empire must assume the identity of a civilization progressing toward the education and improvement of those it considers primitive, wild, and barbaric. Hence, the notion that the civilized better the lot of the uncivilized, as well as the world as a whole, through education, and, when necessary, faster and less oblique modes of persuasion. At times, unpleasant examples must be made of the most recalcitrant among the “unwashed,” in order to “guide” the others back to the path. The exemplary killing of rebellious slaves, an apparent regression back to the former institution of human sacrifice, sustains the institution of slavery by demonstrating that it is progressive in comparison to what came before. It proclaims to the slave class: “We could kill you if we wanted to do so, and we have slaughtered subject peoples in the past, but now we only do so if you force our hand.” Necessarily, though regrettably, the costs of such a mission of civilization must be born, at least in part, by its human objects, the “under-people.” Furthermore, these under-people must be seen to be grateful, admiring, and humbly subservient beneficiaries of the ruling civilization’s graces. In its ostensibly liberal, tolerant mode, the ruling civilization may condescend to view these subjects as perennial children and pets, amusing and stimulating due to their quaint simplicity and exoticism. The longing for the exotic may even extend towards a flirtation with eclecticism: a desire to assimilate those aspects of the subject people’s culture which seem attractive as ornaments, enhancing and accentuating the superiority of one’s own. Such a stance may be accompanied by feelings of compassion toward the benighted inferior, similar to that which one might feel toward a wounded pet, or it may even take the form of sexual desire for the slave, prompted by occasional atavistic, animal urges, but it never involves losing sight of the primary assumed directive- the present dominating superiority of the ruling civilization, as justified by its eternal mission: the salvation by purification of all.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky

Sunday, November 1, 2009

The Aborted Sacrifice of Isaac and the Abolition of Human Sacrifice

The Old Testament story of the aborted sacrifice of Isaac by his father is illustrative of many cogent points regarding this transition. Abraham, the father of his people, is tempted by God, given divine order to sacrifice his son, and the instructions are detailed and explicit regarding ritual and methodology. Hence, the symbol of an incipient, quasi-Canaanite Judaism in a transitional state between a reluctant but ready acceptance of the old form (human sacrifice) and the fruits of a new revelation. The institution of human sacrifice is here credited as the result of a temptation by God, a means of testing the faith of his followers. After having proven his devotion by readying for the sacrifice, Abraham’s hand is stayed by an angel of the Lord, who then points to a more suitable substitute, a stag with its antlers caught in a thicket. Why is Abraham’s devotion praised, when it has almost resulted in a barbaric end? It is praised for its totality, because the very repulsiveness of the act is a test of Abraham’s faith. In this case, the ends justify the means, yet there is a paradox in that a semi-divine intervention is required to resolve both. That an angel rather than the Lord Himself resolves the contradiction represents a key lesson of the story: God will not resolve humanity’s moral problems or guide us toward progress; that role is filled by angels, however we may wish to define them. To some, they may seem the better, or more evolved, aspects of our nature, or those among us who best express them. It is similarly significant that “Isaac” means “to laugh” in Hebrew. What does it mean to say that we must not sacrifice Laughter to our god, or for that matter, to what we worship? If Laughter is seminal, essential for hope and progress, then our actions must befit its preservation. But since some cruelty in life is unavoidable, the compromise that we make (and the best that we can do) is to gradually minimize its destructiveness. The institution of human sacrifice is shown to have rendered a historical function appropriate to its time- humans have proven their capacity for devotion- but it is now rendered obsolete and considered primitive and brutal. Thus, the command of “I AM THAT IS,” with Being entailing a progressive, futuristic element, delivered by His angelic intermediary: Humans will not be sacrificed either for God or in His Name. Lastly but no less significant is the meaning of the substitute sacrifice, the stag trapped by its antlers: an adult male animal, whose masculine attribute, the antlers (representing its masculine sexual function) has become a hindrance. Herein lies a lesson of evolutionary dynamism: neither females nor the young animals are sacrificed, for these carry the future of their kind; instead a male past his sexual prime is offered. This mirrors the moral at the heart of the story: just as angelic intermediation has abolished human sacrifice in the present (the time of the story’s narration), so shall it one day abolish animal sacrifice, and beyond that, eventually, the necessity for all sacrifice, whence comes the Sabbath of Days.

(c) Copyright 2009 by A. Rogolsky