Reality by Lisa
What is reality? At this very moment in time I believe my own personal reality is making my head hurt, as I try to decipher a question that has been pondered since the dawn of man. Who are we, do we exist and why?
So what do we know, or should I say what do we think we know our reality is? Firstly there is our physical reality. This being what we are consciously aware of; if we touch something we know it is there, to smell means that small molecules of matter have hit sense receptors and sent a message to our brain. We see, we hear and believe whatever it is; is really there. The physical world is made up of atoms held together by energy forces discovered by scientists, this we know and believe because we trust the scientists and their tested theories, thus our physical reality.
Then things go a bit wobbly, we do not all see things (metaphorically speaking) the same way. My reality of seeing a green leaf is not the same as someone with colour blindness. My reality of the world I live in is certainly very different to an individual with learning difficulties who will see the world in a very different light. And of course, the reality of the world is skewed if an individual is in a self induced altered state of mind; I had a very different reality after taking magic mushrooms many moons ago.
Who is to say that our physical environment really exists, this we do not truly know, mathematicians and physicists may be able to explain it in a complicated equation but can they really say that we exist? We certainly believe that we exist, therefore we do, or are we a figment of someone/something else’s conscious. I’m sure that there was a Star Trek episode on this.
Back to what we do know, physical reality exists because we believe it does. This is only one level, reality of what we do not know about ourselves and that others do know our unconscious self. This is a reality for others but not for the individual. Others may see things about a person that the person is unaware of but could possibly tap in to.
On the flipside of this is the reality of what an individual knows/believes and is observed only by them. We all have our own individual experiences to reflect upon, making our own personal reality. This could feed in to our own spirituality, to reflect upon the world we live in, our beliefs and feelings. Spirituality being our own personal thing, i.e. I believe that I will go to heaven, therefore heaven exists and is part of my reality.
Not forgetting the reality of our dreams. They exist, we dream them. Is this our sub-conscious reality coming through? Are our dreams thoughts we are unaware of mingling with our present thoughts and state of awareness?
What about the reality of what we do not know yet. It could still be a reality but not one we are aware of?
It seems to me that reality can exist on many different levels. It is an individual thing and it can also be a collective consensus of belief/agreement.
Selling Wicca by Rhys
Whilst on holiday recently, in the West Country, my girlfriend and I stopped off briefly in
We could get into a heated debate about what Wicca and the Craft really are. Certainly, from the perspective of the initiatory Craft, practitioners would agree that this commercialisation of training is fundamentally wrong. However, this argument is unlikely to influence those who have a very different view of Witchcraft. It would simply end in a row about what Witchcraft is.
As such it is difficult to show, philosophically, that selling all forms of Wicca/Witchcraft is unethical or wrong, but it is possible I think to show that it denotes an undesirable trait, by looking at how we value things.
Before I go on I would say that I am not talking about people who charge a small fee to cover their expenses in training, nor am I having a go at craftsmen who put a lot of time and effort into their work and produce wonderful and beautiful artefacts which are sold at a fair price. Nor am I talking about people who charge a reasonable price for providing a service, nor is it about people who write books, most of whom write for love of their subject rather than financial reward. My target for this essay is those that sell over priced ‘Wicca’ stuff and Witchcraft training for profit.
The argument is simple in that I am going to assume that all who practise Witchcraft value it, it is important to them. In her essay, ‘Neither use, nor Ornamental”, the philosopher Jane Howarth talks about two kinds of valuing, “Instrumental” and “non instrumental” value.
“Things with instrumental value include consumables, raw materials and literally instruments…such things serve a means to an end, they serve our purpose” (Howarth, p.230).
Arguably Witchcraft has an instrumental value, regardless of whether you consider it as a discipline that leads to experience of the mysteries and self empowerment as in initiatory Craft, access to the favour of the gods in Pop Wicca, or as healing and therapy as per New Age Wicca. It serves a specific function. People don’t tend to get to uppity when it comes to selling things with instrumental value like knives, washing machines or cars. These things are replaceable, you could in theory replace initiatory Craft with Sufism, Mystical Christianity, or the Qabbalah in order to experience the mysteries or you may replace New Age Wicca with Reiki for healing. However, somehow, where spiritual traditions are concerned that just doesn’t seem right.
“The crucial feature about non instrumental value, in contrast, is that the [thing] has value because of the specific properties it has. A change to those properties would affect, or at least require a reassessment of its value” (Ibid., p230).
Therefore we may value an oak tree for the particular properties it possesses. If someone was to dig up our oak and replace it with an ash, or a supermarket, we might get upset as the oak is replaced with something else. Non instrumental value is a value that is not replaceable. We value it not because it has some use to us, but in and of itself. I would suggest that this is true of whatever type of Witchcraft we practise.
It goes deeper than this, as Hoswarth nodding towards Heidegger’s concept of care, suggests a third way of valuing, i.e. cherishing. She argues that cherishing is not simply behaviour or instrumental, but is an interaction, a relationship between two things. She claims that cherishing has three aspects.
Firstly, that which one cherishes is irreplaceable, so for Witchcraft, replacing it with something else whether it is Qabbalah or Reiki just will not do. Secondly, we have a history of past interaction with it, in other words we have spent time, energy, hard work and discipline practising it and presumably have gotten results. Thirdly we take care of it; we want the best for it, and do our best when working with it.
I would argue that it is within this non instrumental cherishing that it becomes undesirable to sell the Craft. Who amongst us would want to sell our most treasured possessions? Some things are simply beyond a price. They are just too valuable to us that we would want to use them to make money. As such if we cherish the Craft, however we practise it we would not want to sell it on to just anybody or see it turned into a mere money making commodity.
We also find it undesirable when other people sell the things we cherish. Imagine how you would feel if something you cherished was sold by someone else. Consider something sacred to you being turned into nothing more than a commodity, so it is with the Craft. Yes we all know that what is being sold in these £200 plus courses is not the same thing that we would call Witchcraft, but somehow, because of the name being used to sell it, it feels to us that what we cherish is being turned into a commercial money making enterprise. Sadly some people know the cost of everything, but the value of nothing!!!
However, that having been said by the more cynical amongst us, high price charlatans can perform a useful function, in that the gullible may learn the lesson of discernment from their experience of being fleeced. Maybe even feel the cold wind of Reality blow around their nether regions, awaking then to a chance to take a second take on what they are doing with their Lives and the basis of their personal value systems.
"Buying" so called experiences and tools only reduces involvement to that of the vicarious. It is only when we pay the full price of Involvement, of Hard Work and of Dedication, do the "doors of the inner temple" open to us, and then we own, by dint of our efforts, the key to Self Actualisation. Making ones own tools leads to a greater understanding of that they "are" and what its symbolism and uses are, as well as the limitations inherent in either the tool or in its user. They are your tools, with part of you in the making and forming of the implement. And at the same time you too are forged in the fire of involved construction and self development.
It is true that we do give away what we cherish as valued gifts to people whom we believe are worthy it. It is the same in Craft. Craft training was always traditionally given away free of charge. One reason is that the people who train had gained a great deal from the Craft and they feel it is their duty to give something back. They want to ensure the future of the thing that they cherish by passing it on to people that they believe will work with it and treat it with the same respect.
To my mind, the Craft has both instrumental and non instrumental value. It is this non instrumental value of the Craft which leads to us cherishing it. We find it undesirable that things that we cherish should be turned into money making commodities. Therefore it is undesirable that Craft is sold for hundreds of pounds in Wicca courses and is used to sell over priced new age ‘nick nacks’.
References
Hoswarth., J., (2007), Neither Use Nor Ornament, (Environment, Ethics and Human Concern), Open University
My Quest for the Craft by Lara
“It was a full moon this evening and I went for a walk to the field. The moon cast shadows of the trees on the pitch and it felt so still like time had stopped. I sat outside the cricket pavilion and looked up at the stars and felt totally at peace with myself. This has been my home for years and it feels strange to be leaving, but I feel the need to travel. Not only to see the other places where the stars shine down on, but to travel inside me like the journey up the Congo river in the Heart of Darkness which mirrors his internal journey of self exploration.”
I wrote this in my diary just before leaving boarding school to travel around
This would have been a great moment to have encountered a craft training group, to have had that guidance in the right direction of self discovery and development. I had already started a herbal medicine diploma and had many experiences of feeling ‘at one’ with the natural world and ‘at home’ amongst the trees and meadows surrounding my home.
I had started searching amongst various religious groups too, to find a teaching that would show me the way. I had gone along to bible groups, Hare Krishna meetings and Buddhist meditation classes. Then I had found a book by Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh (Osho) on his active meditations. I tried some out and enjoyed them so visited his Ashram in
Then came several years of disillusionment and my ‘dark night of the soul.’ I tried to put my longing and searching to the back of my mind. I was a bit lost and before I had worked out and chosen my life, life chose me! My son was born and now I was too busy to worry about anything other than looking after him. I studied massage so I could earn an income and my search was put on indefinite hold.
During this time I started to attend sweat lodge ceremonies which a friend introduced me to. They were Native American ceremonies and I started to wonder what sort of ceremonies my British ancestors would have held. I researched this and came across some books on Paganism and Wicca and my search eventually led me to this pre initiation training. Reading the topic lists for the two years it seemed that everything I had been interested in was covered!
What I have found though during this training is that it is quite different from what I expected. Although exactly what I did expect I am not sure of now! What I can say is that it is much more challenging (in a good way) than I could ever have imagined. Topics that I thought I knew something about I find that actually I don’t know as much as I thought and this has made me feel quite humble (again in a good way!) and also keen to continue learning and questioning.
The only words that I can think of to describe what this training is giving me are ‘richness’ and ‘colour.’ I am certainly looking at a lot of things from a different perspective. I feel like I have been given new eyes and a part of my brain has been put into use that has been dormant till now. I question everything, especially things I have taken for granted. At times this self questioning has made me feel that I have been missing the point all my life! But I am just grateful that my eyes are starting to see at last what is, as I can only describe as being ‘hidden in plain sight.’
The Theory of You-Won-Wwa by Kevin
YOU - (flowing, as in water)
Water always flows with gravity. It never struggles with an obstacle it encounters. If a stream comes upon a rock in its path it simply flows around it, if the rock is too large the water will be patient, waiting until its level has risen, and then it will flow over and around the obstruction.
In your own life do you “go with the flow”? When you’re pushed do you pull? When you’re pulled do you push?
Water has no shape. Put it in a box and in takes the shape of the box; freeze it and it becomes solid; boil it and it turns to steam. Although changed by its environment it remains unchanged
Water is adaptable are you?
Think about the element of water and what it symbolises to you. For me water represents, amongst other things, Adaptability, fluidity, softness, yet it is also capable of unbelievable strength and force. It can literally move mountains given long enough.
WON - (circle, or sphere)
A circle is the perfect geometric shape, changing, and yet eternal, no beginning and no end. Each person has their own “personal space”, which they seek to protect from intrusion by others, (you only need to go to your nearest waiting room to witness this for yourself). As a practitioner of martial arts I will only react to those things which enter my bubble and become a threat, If I reacted to things that I know won’t be coming near me, wouldn’t I waste a lot of energy.
Do you waste much energy and effort in your life?
When I block a strike, I don’t meet it head on. I will use only the energy necessary to redirect that force around the circle or sphere, therefore turning the attackers own energy against them. Think of a circle as something that is always moving.
Could you apply these ideas to everyday situations?
HWA- (Harmony)
How often in your training and the rest of your life for that matter, have you learnt something new, that you understand the theory behind it, only to find that when you attempt to put it into practice it invariably goes pear-shaped.
There is only one sure fire way of , not only getting the hang of something new, but continuing to improve at it, and that is practice, perhaps more specifically repetition, repetition, repetition. You’ve experienced this with your meditation homework. Your mind to start with is like an untrained puppy. You plonk it down and say “sit”. Where upon it gets up and wanders off. So you pick it up and bring it back and you again say “sit”. The puppy has a wee and then wanders off, and so this process goes on, and on, and on. But something amazing occur, slowly you realise the puppy will sit for longer and longer periods without being distracted.
Paganism and the Brain by Rhys
Is the brain a necessary condition to having religious and mystical experiences? Is there a biological underpinning to the experiences of deities and spirits as reported by religious people? Is there a connection between the brain and consciousness of the whole as described (metaphorically) by those who have undergone mystical experience? The established science of Neuro-theology, a branch of neurology suggests that there is.
The brain is an amazingly complex organ, containing millions of neuronal connections, the product of eons of evolution by natural selection. It is through the complex interactions of these neurons, with the rest of the body and the environment that consciousness, unconsciousness, cognition, and emotions emerge (Toates, 2007). Pretty much everything that we experience, everything we see, hear, smell, taste, touch, think and feel is mediated through the brain; so it seems to be the case that religious and mystical experience are no exceptions.
The neurologist and Zen Buddhist, Dr James Austin, underwent a spontaneous mystical experience while waiting for the tube in the
As a neurologist
All this was corroborated by Dr. Andrew Newberg and Eugene D’Aquili who suggested that these kinds of mystical and religious experiences seem to share common themes across all cultures. They carried out an experiment which involved the scanning of brain activity with a single photon emission computed tomography machine, SPECT for short. Essentially what they did was to scan the brains of meditating Zen Buddhists at the peak of their meditative experience, and compare these with the SPECT scans of Franciscan Nuns at the climax of their prayers. Although both groups interpret their experiences differently the underlying experience of unity (with God or whatever) is the same. What the SPECT scans show is an increased level of activity in the prefrontal cortex, where, as you would expect the function of attention is located. However there was also a drop off in the parietal lobes; that part of the brain mentioned above which is to do with location of self in space. Newberg concluded that it was this shutdown in this region of the brain that forces the self to associate with the entirety of the whole. In other words the meditators don’t know where they stop and the rest of the universe begins- a familiar experience for those engaged in magical operations (Begley, 2001, Newberg and Aquili, 2001).
Interestingly Newberg argues that certain kinds of practices associated with the Craft and paganism have a direct affect on the brain. For example, drumming, dancing, invocations, rituals, scourging, sex, chanting, etc, all focus our attention onto one source of stimulation. No doubt these techniques will sound somewhat familiar to those you practise the Craft and other Occult traditions. They can also invoke heightened states of emotions within us, which seems according to Newberg, to be the key to their success.
These techniques can have the effect of stimulating the hippocampus. The hippocampus is located in the medial temporal lobe and amongst other things is associated along with other parts of the brain with maintaining neuronal activity equilibrium. It can put the breaks on neuronal activity, limiting the flow of activity to the parietal lobes and other parts of the brain associated with religious and spiritual experiences (Begley, 2001, Newberg and D’Aqulli, 2001). This again leads to the sense of loss of self and identification with the whole.
More often associated with religious experience is where individuals hear the voice of God, gods and spirits. Does neurology explain George W Bush’s assertion that God asked him to invade
The Neurologist Dr, Ramachandran suggests that religious feelings may be caused by naturally occurring activity within the temporal lobes. This is born out to some extent by Michael Persinger’s helmet, a strange device that creates an electro-magnetic field around the participant’s head so as to stimulate the temporal lobes. The result is that participants experience strange sensations, such as unseen presences; even within arch atheist and psychologist Susan Blackmore when she wore it as reported on a recent Radio 4 programme. This part of the brain is also associated with speech perception.
The Psychologist Richard Bentall suggests that when people hear the voice of God, they are actually misinterpreting their own inner voice. The Brocca’s area of the brain which is associated with speech production turns on, and when sensory information is restricted such as in mediation and in the use of other altered states of consciousness techniques, such as prayer, the practitioner may be fooled into thinking that the inner voice has an external source. This is also likely to happen in time of high stress and heightened emotions such as in times of jeopardy (Bentall, 2000).
There is also evidence that the anterior cingulated part of the brain activates when people hear actual sounds in the environment and also when they hallucinate sound, but not while they imagine hearing something. This part of the brain may be responsible for deciding whether a sound is external or not, and if it is appropriately activated it may fool us into believing that our own inner voice comes from an external supernatural source (Begley, 2001).
Does all this mean that mystical and religious experiences are all the result of biology? I would suggest not, though the evidence does suggest that the brain is a necessary condition of spiritual experience, as it is a necessary condition for all aspects of our lives, but it is not a sufficient condition. Our experience of numinous depends not just on our biology, though it underpins it, but also on our complex interactions with our environment, including the enormous complexity of the culture in which we live. Within our culture we encounter the myths (the metaphors) and the science and philosophy which we use to interpret our experiences, enabling us to weave our personal patterns into the warp and weft of the world. It is a two way process, the metaphor of myth inspire within us spiritual experiences, and we reinterpret them in accordance with these myths thus socially constructing our complex realities.
This may mean that mystical and religious experiences are not mere wishful thinking, but can be rooted within the natural world with potentially life changing consequences. In other words they are genuine experiences that really do matter. As to whether this biological underpinning refutes or confirms the literal existence of supernatural beings, or the literal existence of other levels of reality, that is for you as intelligent people to decide.
References
Austin, J, (2001), Zen and the Brain, MIT
Begley, S, (2001), Your Brain and Religion: Mystic Visions or Brain Circuits at Work, Newsweek
Bentall, R, (2000), Hallucinatory Experiences, in (eds., E. Cardena, S. Jay Lynn,
D’Aquili, E, Newberg, A, Rause, (2001), Why God won’t Go Away, Baltimore Books
Toates, F, (2007), Biological Processes and Psychological Explanations in (eds. D, Meill, A, Phoneix and K, Thomas, Mapping Psychology, Open University