College of Thelema: Thelemic Education

93

Thanks Jim,

I didn't actually do the EST course itself, but a sort of derivative run by someone who particiapted in the originals in the 1970s - seemingly, "a wise old alchemist tending his garden". I only did the course about a year ago and having spoken to others who have done other similar "derivatives" these courses are almost identical, from the "parenting" to the "role playing" (sometimes called "stretches") etc.

WOW! 'm glad to find another Thelemite saying how Thelemic you found the experience because it was as a result of this course that I finally embraced Thelema. Indeed it seems that the new Aeon is manifesting everywhere!

Of course it would be far too soon for a review at this stage - and yes, it was far more "alchemical" than mystical per se - I just feel like I need to put the experience into context, but I do intend to participate a lot more in this work as an assistant and perhaps eventually as a "facillitator" - if only to grasp it better myself.

93s

@darrene2002 said

"Bind and torture the little buggers like the grimoire says. I mean if you can bind them and force them to appear in the first place why bargain with them? At the same time I do think one should respect them, but like you would respect a wild dog. Unless of course you dont believe they are exactly what the grimoire says they are....Eh just my 2 cents."

Agreed. There is no reason to bargain with demonic entities. Remember, given half the chance, they too would love to bind and torture.

Goetia is never something to take lightly.

He needs cognitive therapy.

The voice thing is basically a form of OCD.
The obsession is what the voice tells him to do.

The OCD person normally is not obsessed with washing his hands, but the hand washing is a way to make the obsessive thought go away. Be it obsession that he is dirty or sick, or even an obsession that he might accidentally kill his parents, the hand washing is an attempt to make the obsession go away, to fight it. Only since he associated the compulsion with the obsession, the act makes the obsession worse and worse until it eventually burns out.

in any effect his obsessions "talk to him in his mind" and "fighting" the voices makes it worse. So needs to learn a method of reducing anxiety so the obsession goes away, rather than fighting with it and making himself more anxious. The voices are basically an expression of anxiety, fear and worry.

The meth has set his amygdala too high, so that he is always in a high-anxiety state.

93 Arsihsis.

Thank you.

Basically I was saying that whether my novel gets published or not, I will continue writing. Of course I believe that having the right attitude is important.

@Jim Eshelman said

"Invoking a principleis really an aligning of your consciousness with it so that you both embrace it and have dominion over it within yourself (and, thus, outside of yourself). Banishing revrses this, divorcing you from the principle (at least consciously) - which means, it supports conscious denial."

David Allen uses a great quote in one of his productivity books (not sure if it's his quote or someone else's), "What you resist you're stuck with."

@Jim Eshelman said

"As much as I'd like to relate them to the Kerubic constellations, their symbolism relates them to the constellations Libra through Capricorn. These are the signs that "kill the Sun.""

By "them" are you referring to the Horsemen or the Crown Princes?

If Libra - Capricorn are the signs that "kill the Sun" does that mean one must attain mastery over paths 22, 26, 25, 24 and 20 to become centered in Tiphareth?

hmmm.....thanks for the insights. My initial interpretation of these statements was always in terms of present tense...perhaps I'm now reading too much into them.

I should really get a decent Dictionary.

From "the Free dictionary":

The traditional rules for using shall and will prescribe a highly complicated pattern of use in which the meanings of the forms change according to the person of the subject. In the first person, shall is used to indicate simple futurity: I shall (not will) have to buy another ticket. In the second and third persons, the same sense of futurity is expressed by will: The comet will (not shall) return in 87 years. You will (not shall) probably encounter some heavy seas when you round the point. The use of will in the first person and of shall in the second and third may express determination, promise, obligation, or permission, depending on the context.

Aum418,

I've studied a bit of Chinese traditional medicine- acupressure and the like, and from what I learned, the western medicine correlative of the eastern meridians is not only the nervous system of the body, but also the vascular system, and muscular system, and even the psychological effects certain kinds of contact with certain body parts have. Just as it's not so easy to translate certain foreign words into simple and accurate English correlatives, it is likewise not so easy to translate foreign physiological concepts into western correlatives.

Also, getting rid of tension in an area does release stress (psychological and physiological), and allow for more ability to move without hindrance. It does a lot more than that, too. Less tension allows the mind to move more freely through that body part, and if you experiment for a while, you may find that where the mind goes, blood and oxygenation (and a feeling of energy) go as well. It removes fatigue and removes pain, and can assist in the body's ability to heal an injury. My guess is that the perceived cause of these effects are what is generally meant by the terms "Chi" and "Prana", both can be translated roughly to mean breath/mind/spirit, which in my experience sounds like a pretty accurate description of what it feels like.

Will and Love. I have had this in my brain for along time. I always assume a respect for my children's will. And train them accordingly. Ask.questions that direct from both? If I see or detect selfish will, something not moving outward for the good of everybody they are in direct contact with, I ask.questions about that love that should have been there. Coaching along those lines get children that respect and love you. They will talk to you, when they become teenagers, if they don't feel that, they don't understand mentality. Because they know I will try to understand their will for.doing things, the intent for the.action versus the social morality of it.

@modernPrimitive said

"I Must agree about Nietzsche's "Will-to-power". It is often interpreted in a sort of Darwinian sense.

I have found strength where one does not look for it: in simple, mild, and pleasant people, without the least desire to rule—and, conversely, the desire to rule has often appeared to me a sign of inward weakness: they fear their own slave soul and shroud it in a royal cloak (in the end, they still become the slaves of their followers, their fame, etc.) The powerful natures dominate, it is a necessity, they need not lift one finger. Even if, during their lifetime, they bury themselves in a garden house

Friedrich Nietzsche. Nachlass, Fall 1880

Aum418, thanks for your response - you've given me a lot to think about. I do hold Crowley in high regard but Id ont' necessarily agree with him on all aspects (of course since I'm here to learn, that may well change as time goes by). Perhaps as you have said it is the "imitatio Christi" concept that so many religions hold that does not apply to Thelema so we should not conflate these issues. But on that matter isn't Crowley (or the Beast) "deified" in some of the rituals - I'm not that familiar with the New Aeon rituals (only the GD stuff) though I did briefly read through a few of them a while back."

93,

"THERION" in rituals can symbolize Chokmah and Atu XI... which Crowley in many ways symbolized (and manifested) in the physical but I dont (and Im sure many dont) see this as deification or reverence of Crowley. Then again, Liber AL says "blessing & worship to the prophet of the lovely Star!" People do this out of gratitude and awe of Liber AL/Thelema/Crowley's work, and its certainly not enforced by any Thelemites I know.

IAO131