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  <channel>
    <title>Gaia: +Magick+Life+ The Eye of the Storm</title>
    <id>tag:gaia.com,2008,:Gaia</id>
    <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/discussions/feeds/pod/21</link>
    <language>en-us</language>
    <ttl>20</ttl>
    <pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:42:53 GMT</pubDate>
    <description>Gaia: +Magick+Life+ The Eye of the Storm</description>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Ken WIlber / Andrewe Cohen</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>Julian</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2008:Gaia-306485</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:42:53 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/17445#306485</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      &lt;span style="font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline"&gt;*EDIT*&lt;/span&gt; (typo)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now, I&amp;#39;m &lt;span style="font-weight: bold"&gt;*not*&lt;span style="text-decoration: line-through"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;denying&amp;nbsp; that some people are more &amp;ldquo;conscious&amp;rdquo; than others, to prove that just look around you&amp;ndash; I am, however, questioning the usefulness of such a system, and I am questioning its more subtle implications. &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Ken WIlber / Andrewe Cohen</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>Julian</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2008:Gaia-306409</guid>
      <pubDate>Thu, 26 Jun 2008 21:50:08 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/17445#306409</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      I&amp;#39;ve read many of Ken Wilber&amp;#39;s books, but my only exposure to Andrew Cohen has been through YouTube videos, so I&amp;#39;m not well-versed on his work.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Essentially, my stance in regards to Wilber right now is shakey. His work was extremley influential for me and in the development of my mind and map of the world, but over the years I&amp;#39;ve became very skeptical about the practical and interpersonal effects that categorizing people into a Spiral Dynamic has. I think its very easy for the Spiral Dynamic system to become a sort of&amp;nbsp; Caste System for the Intelligencia, granted with lots of flexibility. Now, I&amp;#39;m denying&amp;nbsp; that some people are more &amp;quot;conscious&amp;quot; than others, to prove that just look around you-- I am, however, questioning the usefulness of such a system, and I am questioning its more subtle implications.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I consider Ken Wilber to be a philosopher, and a damn good one at that. I do NOT consider him to be a Spiritual Pandit, as many people regard him, and the Integral System alone will NOT Wake You Up. For that, see an authentic spiritual tradition, where you can visibly WTINESS the emergence of Awakened Beings. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Also, having read one of his rhetorts to an e-mail criticising aspects of his theory, I was completely taken a back by the childishness and pure narcisism in which he publically denounced the person, with an argument that boiled down to &amp;quot;I&amp;#39;m Turqouise vMeme, and thus perfect, and if you see flaws in me or anything that comes out of me, then you&amp;#39;re just not smart enough yet&amp;quot;. This, coupled with his backing AND promoting of the (Pure Bullshit) &amp;#39;Big Mind&amp;#39;, make me conclude that this guy is NOT Awake. Fairly realized? Sure. Awake? Meh.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As of right now, I highly reccomend all of his early Phase I books (No Boundary, Spectrum of Consciousness, the Atman Project). Pre-Integral, Pre-Spiral Dynamics work. Now, I don&amp;#39;t have anything against Integral Theory in and of itself, like I said before, my main issue is with Spiral Dynamics. Unfortunately, most of his recent work hinges on Spiral Dynamics, so its somewhat turned me off (Although I&amp;#39;ve read them anyway). &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Still though, I haven&amp;#39;t read any modern Ken Wilber books since I was about 16 (about 2 1/2 years ago), so I&amp;#39;m&amp;nbsp; going to re-read Integral Spirituality and A Brief History of Everything pretty soon&amp;nbsp; to see how I re-internalize the information now with my (drastically) diffrent mind, way of thinking, world-view, and intentions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Also, (although I understand he does this to maintain Academic Credibility) he unfairly marginalizes the Western Esoteric (Magickal) Tradition. He falls subject to his own (in his terminology) Pre/Trans fallacy. Granted, the WET will NOT Wake You Up, and far too often&amp;nbsp; DOES lead to psychosis or an enormous ego (hence the demon Choronzon)&amp;nbsp; unless done in conjunction with some other Authentic spiritual practice, most High Magick is NOT pre-rational, as Wilber posits, but trans-rational. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And, in terms of Andrew Cohen? The whole new-age mish-mash &amp;quot;All spiritual traditions are the same, so lets just marginally investigate 5 diffrent schools, then speak in a smorgasboard of terms to sound deep and spiritual&amp;quot; is total crap to me. Don&amp;#39;t mix-and-match Maps unless you are COMPLETELY versed in the map, and of course, the Territory, since the Map is not the Territory*. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Spiritual Practice often gets treated with the same attitude as Philosophy. This is NOT just more head-games and semantic word-play. I personally believe it should be approached with the attitude of a scientist. Theory without Practice is fruitless. Dry Intellectualization will NOT Wake You Up, itt&amp;#39;l only further embed you in your own delusion. Right View, however, does lead one out of their own embeddedness. Its a connundrum, but basically, if Spiritual Practice is something you&amp;#39;re intrested in, after you put down that book, go somewhere and learn how to Meditate. Then, take some time to deeply investigate a tradition of your choice (which not only involves reading books, but experimenting with practice, internalizing information, and speaking to other practicioners/teachers), &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Reading a Wilber book alone isn&amp;#39;t going to cut it. Neither will a Cohen book.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And &amp;#39;Big Mind&amp;#39; is a scam.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Ken WIlber / Andrewe Cohen</title>
      <author>http://enlightenmentadvisor.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>Enlightenment_Advisor</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2008:Gaia-253264</guid>
      <pubDate>Tue, 04 Mar 2008 22:06:36 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/17445#253264</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      I first was introduced to Ken Wilber&amp;#39;s work in 2001 when I began studying Transpersonalism and the theories of Cayce, Grof and Wilber himself. He appealed to me on a level far reaching mere ego satisfaction, he stimulated the senses (all 6 of them). I was thirsty for a new way to approach a better life besides simply living it. Mundane consistency and schedules other people expected me to meet was detracting from my self-hood.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ken Wilber has written some fascinating books on the levels of consciousness an awake and numb person can reach if willing to transcend the shackles society places on the human being. If not for the spirit housed in the physical host, this body would collapse under the weight of &amp;#39;it&amp;#39; all; Wilber offers the key to unlocking those shackles and becoming weight-less. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A special favorite of Wilber&amp;#39;s, Up From Eden, allowed me to cast aside indoctrination shackles of religious nature and step into boundaries where the feminine divine was far-superior and not delineated by power but of compassion. I have not read anything from Andrewe Cohen and am embarassed to say I have never heard of him, or at least I don&amp;#39;t recall being taught anything he did or said. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I graduated having been opened up to a philosophy that &amp;quot;transcends traditional mythic and ethnocentric altitudes&amp;quot;, helping me push prejudice, racisms, sexism and any other negative ISM out of my cognitive construct. It realy helps these days . . . I love ken Wilber for how integral he is after having lost the love of his life and granting loss as wonderful as being here with her right now. Nothing is really different &amp;#39;cept the perspective and oh what a gift that can truly be.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;sharing the light and happy March,&lt;br /&gt;Miss Erica Hidvegi, the Enlightenment_Advisor, B.A. Psych/M.A. &lt;br /&gt;Transpersonal Studies- Cnslng/Author, Artist, Photographer, &lt;br /&gt;Entrepreneur &amp;amp; Freelance extraordinaire&lt;br /&gt;http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AU_ARE/ &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: deconstructing depression</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>mm</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2007:Gaia-140715</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 11 May 2007 01:59:27 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/13616#140715</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      April,&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You have have a point. in an earlier post i substituted anger for doestructive enrgy, but coming to think about it, anger plays a role to.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In my personal experience, one of the biggest shocks ive had is when i realized that i was not the same person to different people. And while i was seen for example in college as a kind, funny and smart guy, at home i was percieved as always in a lousy mood, not caring about communication or interaction, etc.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;That epoch was when i was really really angry, about the whole thing, but i always took it out on myself, trying to &amp;quot;protect&amp;quot; the others and trying not to let them know (backfired on the long run), but the depressions then were too heavy to handle, and i had nowhere else to go. And my therapist then was a young freudian surrealist full of himself that only fueled my sense of &amp;quot;thats the way of the artist / genius&amp;quot;, etc. On the other hand, the manias back then were limited to a feeling of elation, pouring of ideas and designs and chasing women around.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now (the last couple of years), the depressions remained as deep as always, but the manias (fueled by drugs*), went completely out of control. I&amp;#39;ve ended up in hospital, jail and a couple of asylums (where iv&amp;#39;e met some of the most interesting, cool and sensible people, i might add) Everybody was scared s---less about what was going on, because from their standpoint they saw this incredible release of energy, and took it as builded-up-anger of course. But the funny thing is that by then i had already made peace with myself in a way, and i didn&amp;#39;t feel angry at all. Even though i was destroying toilets with my knuckles, trying to jump police cars and getting in apparent fights with them, screaming at my parents for all they did and didnt do in the past (which i don&amp;#39;t even remember i had no intention of ever doing) and remodeling our house in a more &amp;quot;cosmic&amp;quot; way (forget feng-shui), the carpets and couches in the garden, book-roads for the turtles and labyrinths made of furniture for the cats, pools in the kitchen and my headquartes in a room of the house i don&amp;#39;t know the name for, where i have made some of the most amazing drawings. of course everybody got scared and pissed of at me for being so self-conceited (i had no idea what was going on) and disrespectfull, and thats the price i&amp;acute;m still paying now for the lesson. But i was never angry, during the whole time [of course if you hear your son screaming from the depths of his lungs, locked in the bathroom from which under the door rivers of water &amp;amp; blood are flowing, you might think he&amp;#39;s angry at something :) ]&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;*going on a tangent, I tried my first real drug at age 28, and before that, i wasnt exposed to them in any way at all. When i did, as a responsible adult, i immediately reasoned that marijuana, to make an example, could become legalized (to take my side on that issue) with no problem at all, being it has no side effects, doesn&amp;#39;t damage the body or cause addiction, it even has medicinal properties. Now i think differently, from my own experience, i have learned that it has different effects on different people, and catastrophic doesnt even begin to describe what might do to some. Now i think that if it would become more, how could you say, accepted, it would have to be in a way that adults should have complete responsability to walk the younger ones until at least they find out how their particular bodies react. Sounds like going back to sacred rituals, which sounds good to me :)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;hope this was not too long&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;love&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&amp;reg;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: deconstructing depression</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>mm</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2007:Gaia-140701</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 11 May 2007 00:55:38 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/13616#140701</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      Yes :)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Purgings are very very good, but sometimes merciless. and surviving them most of the time doesn&amp;#39;t depend on oneself. Luck, some might say, but i would disagree.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&amp;reg;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

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    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: deconstructing depression</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>mm</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2007:Gaia-140699</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 11 May 2007 00:52:10 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/13616#140699</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      hi all, this is my first post here [and i haven&amp;#39;t read all the thread] :)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I agree with cate, in a way. i think the story above is interesting and it &amp;quot;fits&amp;quot;, but bipolarity has a lot of factors, like cate said. And i don&amp;#39;t agree with the concept &amp;quot;anger&amp;quot;, to me it is more like a &amp;quot;destructive energy&amp;quot;, in balance with the &amp;quot;creative energy&amp;quot;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;in my own personal experience, being bipolar for the last 15 years, i have learned this things:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;- bipolarity (or My bipolarity, everyone is different) is 99% chemical (also the food you eat, drugs, etc.), and depends in a very big way on the environment as well as the &lt;strong&gt;people&lt;/strong&gt; you interact with.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;- &lt;u&gt;when one identifies him/herself with it,&lt;/u&gt; one never has a clear picture of whats going on, because when in depression, although you &amp;quot;remember&amp;quot; what the mania or &amp;quot;normalness&amp;quot; is, you don&amp;#39;t feel it or reason it, its like a fairy-tale you believe in. The same applies the other way around. Its like having 2 brains that are not connected to each other. In depression, you will remain that way forever and theres Nothing you or anybody can do. and in mania youre too busy being hyper-active to worry about anything.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;u&gt;But when you detach yourself from both&lt;/u&gt;, and don&amp;#39;t think that &amp;quot;that is you&amp;quot;, then you just see it as something standing next to you, like an uninvited pesky remoraic guest. In depression all the symptoms are the same; suicide thoughts, complete lack of energy, complete lack of self-confidence, etc. But there you just have to be &lt;strong&gt;patient&lt;/strong&gt; and eventually it leaves you alone (meds and other techniques are just in an experimental stage and they don&amp;#39;t know if they really work for some people, you might take them or not and maybe it made no difference). and in a Mania you just have to be carefull of what you say to which people and not breaking too many &amp;quot;material&amp;quot; things or looking too scary or out of control :)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;- what i understand by karma, and personal good and bad habits also have a big part in it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;- In a book by castaneda i read that Don Juan told him one of his problems was that he was in the middle of the road, out in the open, for anybody who passed by to throw a rock at him. I think this a very good recommendation for bipolars. In my case my friends and family by now understand that if i dissapear and don&amp;#39;t want to see them for an indefinite period of time (maybe just say hi) there is no problem. One has to secure a place where one can retire into where nobody bothers him/her. On the other side of the coin, I try to watch myself who to trust with my feelings and ideas when im in a Mania, which by now is just to my close circle of friends and family. to everybody else i might just look like a madman, but becuase one is an artist, they are not scared easily :)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;-Also, becoming interested in spirituality helped me a lot (and that came as a result of a shroom trip, go figure), things like suicide for example i was able to &amp;quot;reason&amp;quot; out, and develop my onw &amp;quot;rules&amp;quot;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I think thats pretty much it for now, i will continue reading the thread.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&amp;reg; &lt;/p&gt;

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    <item>
      <title>Re: ... Mathematical Chaos Theory and Fractal Geometry</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>mm</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2007:Gaia-140387</guid>
      <pubDate>Thu, 10 May 2007 09:33:18 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/23692#140387</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      Hello!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;this is my first post in this pod, and this topic was the one that caught my attention to join.&lt;br /&gt;I am currently working on a project you might enjoy:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Contemporary folklore. Mythology, Math and Women: Fractal Mermaids and other Fantastic Creatures.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;http://merrmaidmaker.wordpress.com&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;hope you like it!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;regards,&lt;br /&gt;&amp;reg; &lt;/p&gt;

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    </item>
    <item>
      <title>corporate magic and human gifts</title>
      <author>http://libramoon.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>libramoon</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2007:Gaia-128750</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 08 Apr 2007 05:22:39 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/128750</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      from _Stolen Lightning: The Social Theory of Magic_&amp;nbsp; (c) 1982 ,by Daniel Lawrence O&amp;#39;Keefe, pp. 494-496&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;How Odd the Corporation.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/em&gt;Consider some of the strange attributes of the dominant corporate non-persons of our era, &amp;quot;magical&amp;quot; attributes built into them by legal fictions.&amp;nbsp; For one thing, these &amp;quot;legal persons&amp;quot; are almost ectoplasmic in their increasing independence:&amp;nbsp; they are independent of people.&amp;nbsp; (First stockholders wither away with &amp;quot;managerial revolution&amp;quot; ... then managers lose power as it &amp;quot;passes down into technostructure,&amp;quot; ... finally, with automation, many workers are not needed either.)&amp;nbsp; Corporations are independent also of place, of nationality, of stated purposes ... or anyone&amp;#39;s goals. ... In the end, they even become free of the profit motive; they cause governments to prop them up ... .&amp;nbsp; They have mysterious powers that ordinary individuals do not possess:&amp;nbsp; Their taxes are lower; they do not liquidate their property at death but are immortal; they have limited liability while individuals do not.&amp;nbsp; They started as voluntary associations but become governments that evert individuals from membership.&amp;nbsp; Instead of being regulated by governmental authorities, they often capture these and turn them into additional independent, policy-free, autonomous, impersonal entities. ... Even without a lawyer, any citizen of the United States, simply by using forms contained in books ... can create dozens of nonpersons who are recognized at law, have to file tax returns, and can outlive him, can live forever, in fact.&amp;nbsp; ...&amp;nbsp; Increasingly they influence our basic political thought ... .&amp;nbsp; In our daily lives, we increasingly confront or work for, or are entangled by, these legal non-persons, and they feed our growing helplessness. .... &amp;nbsp; The non-persons create their own social force fields, thereby defeating the &amp;quot;general will&amp;quot; or &amp;quot;reason&amp;quot; or the rational state, just as they baffle the individuals who at one time projected this state.&amp;nbsp; They refract law like power prisms; they bend general rules to particular cases.&amp;nbsp; Increasingly they are ruled by compacts, agreements with other powers rather than general laws ... .&amp;nbsp; They fight law, then settle out of court on an &lt;em&gt;ad hoc&lt;/em&gt; basis that reflects their power, thus refracting law. &amp;nbsp; Originally corporations were powerful engines that individuals or groups of people used to get rich; they still provide a living but personal control wanes ... .&amp;nbsp; For long periods, some people are on top of these organizations, they ride the lion, they have power; but even they are retired or fired or early retired or forced out in the end.&amp;nbsp; Meanwhile, they try to amass enough money to be &amp;quot;independent.&amp;quot;&amp;nbsp; Wealth increasingly turns back into pure money (which is mana) as ownership evaporates, what Barzelon calls &amp;quot;the paper economy.&amp;quot;&amp;nbsp; Berle has shown that the percent of personal wealth held in cash, securities or other paper has grown enormously; real property passes into the hands of non-persons.&amp;nbsp; Thus property, power, status translate back into mere money, which derives from mana, from magic, and is simply some fractional value notation for a quality-space position in a consensus that is no longer there.&amp;nbsp; ...&amp;nbsp; Community and nomos have vanished so thoroughly that egos strive increasingly just to amass enough coined and minted magical power to escape from pseudo-community into private worlds.&amp;nbsp; The desire for capital to escape arises at a time when engineered inflation and government tax policies make such escape increasingly difficult ...&amp;nbsp;.&amp;nbsp; Economic status and economic wealth are pursued as economic power slips out of the hands of even the managerial class. &amp;nbsp; *&amp;nbsp; *&amp;nbsp; *&amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&amp;nbsp; Gifting&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A gift of grace &lt;br /&gt;A gift beyond price &lt;br /&gt;Outside of grumbling space, &lt;br /&gt;hold me deeply in your heart, your mind &lt;br /&gt;granting lucid respect and affection &lt;br /&gt;that I might live. &lt;br /&gt;That I might gift ...&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;April 7, 2007 libramoon &lt;/p&gt;

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    <item>
      <title>Spellcasters Weakness</title>
      <author>http://hunterseekerfinder.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>&#208;&#238;v&#234;r&#167;&#239;t&#165;</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-77204</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 05 Nov 2006 14:43:02 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/77204</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      &lt;h4&gt;Weakness is not the amplitude of energy one wields, it is the willingness to wield it without the benefit of wisdom.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://hunterseekerfinder.zaadz.com/"&gt;&amp;ETH;&amp;icirc;v&amp;ecirc;r&amp;sect;&amp;iuml;t&amp;yen;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h4&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
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    <item>
      <title>Re: Merry Meet</title>
      <author>http://LifeTripper.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>Sekhmet</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-62955</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 24 Sep 2006 02:04:12 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/13706#62955</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      Hello, Deseree,&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I just read your letter and looked at your profile. We certainly have beads in common. I love making necklaces with natural beads. I love rocks (yes, crystals) and gems, and very old, antique beads thrill me. I just attended a Denver bead show and went off poorer but happier.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I used to be a Wiccan but have become a Sufi. I still love the Goddess in many forms. I am named after a Goddess, Sekhmet. My Sufi guide gave me the name. Right now I&amp;#39;m also studying Vedic knowledge and love to attend pujas. We do a new moon and a full moon puja and I&amp;#39;m the fire goddess -- e.g., I keep a small fire going which we use for offerings. Love that fire!!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Technically I must be a dropout because I don&amp;#39;t know how to find your blogs or I&amp;#39;d comment on them.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Blessed Be,&lt;br /&gt;Sekhmet&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Poetry</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>C A M E L O T</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-56582</guid>
      <pubDate>Sat, 09 Sep 2006 10:04:35 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/1045#56582</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      Isnt it the divine that loves through us? and is&amp;nbsp; that we hunger for? if so we should really now just let us have it dont you think? :) &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
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    <item>
      <title>Re: Poetry</title>
      <author>http://professionalhumanbeing.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>luap</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-56010</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 08 Sep 2006 05:39:19 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/1045#56010</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      thrum

thrum thrum thrum

I construct the light
and drive out the dark

I pour out the water from my inside
and water rushes in from the outside up

splish

splish splish splish


no deception--these are not distinctions

but love's tiny bubble frothing, frothing


yes. &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: deconstructing depression</title>
      <author>http://catemurray.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>cate</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-50754</guid>
      <pubDate>Mon, 28 Aug 2006 22:25:34 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/13616#50754</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      &lt;p&gt;letting go of the past ....a conscious approach to forgiveness.........moving on and moving through.....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Using directed thought,creative writing and directed energy connection through meditation..&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Tools that worked for me.....I wrote down and focused on an incident which caused me extreme pain..&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I&amp;nbsp;created a mind map ..a diagram of the people involved...i made notes...then I looked at them and decided to let them ..I sent reiki or directed energy healing to each person..&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;energy and thought with a loving intention...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I repeated the process when things came up....and it stopped being an issue for me.....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;the healing mindset of forgiveness works , lifts and empowers.......&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;with love and light and strength for you&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;cate&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: deconstructing depression</title>
      <author>http://heartcenter.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>Sister</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-50282</guid>
      <pubDate>Mon, 28 Aug 2006 01:01:54 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/13616#50282</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      &lt;p&gt;There are two root vibrations to everything, one is the contracting fear vibration and the other is the expanding love vibration.&amp;nbsp; We are either contracting or expanding. There is no in between. Since each one of us is inter-connected, the choice you make to expand or contract effects everything&amp;nbsp;else including the planet and each other. You must consciously choose to be in the expansion of Love.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Negative feelings eventually turn into a state of war toward each other as well as within each other.&amp;nbsp; From here is a downward spiral into lower frequencies of energy.&amp;nbsp; This causes contraction in every cell of our physical body.&amp;nbsp; Contracting cells will eventually cause dis-ease, depression, pain and suffering.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This energy wants to survive, and it does this through the ego. The ego will try to dissuade you from your journey to expansion because it does not want to starve. It will try to justify our actions of the lower frequency emotions. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;You may be attached to your home; your family, your car but when you lose the body you have none of those things. Attachment traps you in lower emotions and creates false desires. It causes one to stimulate the local mind and ego directing us into lower frequencies of vibration. When one moves into lower frequencies, these actions and thoughts attract more dense energies that bind together to create an &amp;quot;entity&amp;quot;.&amp;nbsp; These entities continue to feed off of destructive energies and enter into one&amp;#39;s thoughts, feelings and actions with progressive destructive effects. Instead of being this compassionate being of love, you think you are unworthy and then you hold on, you attach yourself to the outer world so you can feel more secure, to feel you exist, to feel a sensation in your life.&amp;nbsp; The result of this is evident in the imbalance of our selves, ecosystem, and our inability to curb the behaviors causing such devastation. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;When in doubt, ask yourself if the root resonance is Love or fear. Then act accordingly. You, the conscious being can choose to expand or contract. Do not give this power to the ego anymore. It is a personal choice to make.&amp;nbsp; If you want to live in a peaceful, safe, abundant world but choose to live by the current of fear, who is to blame for the contracted state you find yourself in? Open your heart, choose to forgive and transformation will take place, in your inner and outer world. Then the joy of life can fill the space of resentment and fear.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;When one chooses to forgive, you stand at the door to freedom. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is important not only for us to forgive those who have hurt us but also to ask for forgiveness. When we do this we become more humble and are able to forgive ourselves. There is a great healing power in forgiveness. The moment forgiveness happens there is no guilt, shame or discomfort. At that very moment there is reconciliation with the self and one is liberated. We have the power to be more comfortable and free within ourselves. This expanding energy causes the heart center to open and find more light, more peace because light and love we are is resonating from within. This means more light and love for the world. We have more capacity for joy, and unconditional love. Unconditional love is what everyone is looking for. To be loved and accepted regardless of past or future actions is medicine we all need&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Franz Bardon - Initiation into Hermetics</title>
      <author>http://magi.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>Drake</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-47345</guid>
      <pubDate>Tue, 22 Aug 2006 12:18:26 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/20372#47345</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      Hermeticism is sucha a valuable resources for occultist today because in the proper light it can energize the entire paradigm of occultism. Occultism its self has its roots in Hermetic philosophy. I am currently working on a book that updates and articulates new hermeticism.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Namaste&lt;br /&gt;Drake &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: deconstructing depression</title>
      <author>http://tonyakay.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>creature</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-46963</guid>
      <pubDate>Mon, 21 Aug 2006 18:07:16 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/13616#46963</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      I've deconstructed my own manic depression and host a little online forum for unmedicated mental health here:  http://tonyakay.com/phpbb/index.php.  Here's a blurb from one of the posts:

"It's not relapse. It's withdrawal. 

How many psychiatrists told me that "manic/depression is an incurable chemical imbalance" and without medications, I was doomed forever to repeat the exhausting emotional roller coaster that had threatened my life countless times in the past? That doesn't sound like freedom to me. 

When I did drop my medications, my current psychologist (I've seen over 8 for this shizzle) refused to see me. My beloved boyfriend threatened to break up with me. Obvously it was a scary time, going off medications - I was low, delusional, unreachable, gone. They were frightened for my life. I was, too, to tell you the truth. For all intensive purposes, it looked like I had relapsed, just like the psychiratrist said. 

But that, too, wasn't freedom. 

So much of the journey to the mediation-free lifestyle has been mind games. Trying something out, keeping it if it works, discarding it quickly when it doesn't and creating a new reality. The key for me was to remain ultimately flexible in my belief systems. 

So where the doctor offered me a cage called relapse that would keep me running back to meds every time I fell down, I chose another reality and called it withdrawal. Heroine addicts, too, exhibit symptoms when going off their chemical, and those symptoms , too, can be easily prevented by taking more of the drug. But if you see it out, if you can make it through, if you can stay off the drug long enough for it to detox from your system, it is gone. And you never have to feel that way again. 

That my friend, is freedom. 

It was difficult for me, going off medications. It may not be for you (especially going raw before). We are all so very deeply unique. I literally had to do it alone, without support from the "professionals", my boyfriend, even my family. And who would blame them, seeing me go through what I was going through, it would be difficult to believe I was doing myself any good. 

So I joined a Biploar support group in San Francisco. Ironically, none of my fellow maniacs supported my departure from medication either, but that weekly meeting with the others who understood, who related, who existed, really helped me. In fact, it was another integral factor in my recovery to my natural healthy state. 

Below is a link to help you find a support group in your area. Don't expect anything from them. Just be with them. The lessons come from just being there. These lessons are pivotal whether you are going off meds, remaining on meds, never been mediated, et all. Search the DBSA website thoroughly, by the way. There is information and online support as well. 

Julie, it sounds like YOU have decided to give it a try - to find out what freedom might taste like. You are coming at it from such a joyous, intentional and educated place, I see success and stability in your future. Because that is your belief. You are creating that reality. 

Thank you for asking me about my journey. It really is a miracle and I do not use that word lightly. This week I have began counting how many times I actually experience exstacy - the feeling that whatever I am doing, feeling, experiencing in any given moment is absolutely perfect. Five (FIVE!) distinct moments this week where I wouldn't ahve changed a thing. That is really different than some of the horror stories I could share, but won't, from my past. I'm looking forward to my bliss states becoming even more frequent and lasting even longer, melding into one blissful life, full of gratitude and exstacy every day. I belive it is my natural state. 

Feel free to ask me anything. But since this is such a huge topic and I want to badly to share whatever I can, please ask me specific questions, so I don't get too verbose. Like this time:-) 

In summary, the keys to my succesful transition from medicated Bipolar symptoms (a whole nother chapter could be devoted to maintaining that lifestyle) could be summed up like this: 

1. going raw, hands down 
2. It's not relapse. It's withdrawal. 
3. joining a support group 
4. making sure to take my omega oil supplements just in case 
5. relentless acts of self intimacy and love 
6. a belief that I am healthy at the core of it all 
7. the flexibility to discard an entire belief system if it's not working, which includes the entire medication-free experiment if the detox symptoms become life threatening - we have to first be alive, then we can discover bliss! 

http://www.dbsalliance.org/Info/findsupport.html "






Tonya Kay
http://tonyakay.com
 &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Franz Bardon - Initiation into Hermetics</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>Ruad Dragun</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-45543</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 18 Aug 2006 18:16:04 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/20372#45543</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      hi saw the comment on Hermes T.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I am only familiar with the emerald tablet, it is in the book:&lt;br /&gt;three books of occult philosophy - henry cornelious agrippa III of Nettesheim &lt;br /&gt;I hope i spelled that right&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;it is a powerful document, I have a song that is so labeled Hermes, because it is based entirely on the emerald tablet.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Franz Bardon - Initiation into Hermetics</title>
      <author>#</author>
      <dc:creator>whitegalacticwizard</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-45469</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 18 Aug 2006 16:53:05 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/20372#45469</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      &lt;p&gt;Thank you very kindly for this gift! I&amp;#39;m almost embarrassed to ask...Do you have any others? I&amp;#39;m looking for the &amp;quot;next one&amp;quot; too.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Warm regards,&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Michele&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Sexual Abuse</title>
      <author>http://folksoul.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>folksoul</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-45138</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 18 Aug 2006 03:00:28 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/1034#45138</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      abuse perpetuates. self loathing people often act out in different ways. sexual abuse is generally about power. an act of violence on some level. older guys seeking power on some level who feel out of control themselves. lots of layers to that sort of things. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;often you have to consider things like that not from your own frame of reference, but from the framing of the offender. definitely hard to understand and painful. natural to be angry about it. good to have compassion for all involved and even the anger if used in a way to bring a healthy sort of change in one way or another can be useful. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;i myself have been angry with sexual abusers on more than one occasion and have worked to educate people about sexual abuse as something to do with the pain and anger. a way to work with it and help make a difference rather than holding it in or expressing it through violence or other acts which would be self destructive and/or not serve anyone.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;good luck with your struggle to make sense of this situation. i find prayer and meditation to be quite helpful for me in times of frustration and pain with others&amp;#39; actions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;-d&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Sexual Abuse</title>
      <author>http://moltencuriosity.gaia.com</author>
      <dc:creator>Moltencuriosity</dc:creator>
      <guid>tag:gaia.com,2006:Gaia-41439</guid>
      <pubDate>Thu, 10 Aug 2006 16:44:47 GMT</pubDate>
      <link>http://groups.gaia.com/magick/conversations/view/1034#41439</link>
      <description>


&lt;p&gt;      &lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;I just read in the paper yesterday that a violent sexual offender just moved into&amp;nbsp;a neighborhood very near mine. I was out with friends last night and it seems that the man in question is already messing around with a thirteen year old girl who is a client of a friend of mine. Why? that is all I want to know. Why would a 37 year old man do something like that? I am boiling so hot with anger right now that I think the furniture around me will catch flame.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

      </description>
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