[FRIAM] mysticism

[Steve Smith]

DaveW -

A well spun description. It definitely reached ME well.

I more often ponder, the "actuator" complement to your "sensor" subset
of the human /extended phenotype/.  I am more focused on how the
metaphor of the "lever" applies to things like power-tools,
transportation devices, etc.  how by magnifying one's "leverage" (force
multiplier) one diminishes one's sensitivity (often leading to damaging 
the lever, the fulcrum, or the target of one's leverage).

However, sensor/actuator are tied together in my singular claim to fame
as "an Artist" was a piece I put together from found items that was in
fact accepted into a juried art show, making me officially "an Artist"
(though I prefer the term Artifex), which in turn gives me the
credentials (I assert) to claim anything I call art to BE art.   Or so
it seems to be the convoluted logic of the art world.



    Transit and Gun


    Tool of the Conquerors: Action at a Distance


    the Emic and the Etic



    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1D0LfO-NV6pAFQgiXYZNjeqNlQFpBoh5K/
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1D0LfO-NV6pAFQgiXYZNjeqNlQFpBoh5K/>

I followed that piece with another equally simple/trite piece on a
related subject:


      Monkey Wrench Gang


      Foot in Mouth


      Tooth and Claw

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XDfd4xxbGsKyKaadNptQQwj-TXhY9_3Y
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XDfd4xxbGsKyKaadNptQQwj-TXhY9_3Y>

But this was not in a juried show, it was at Gerald Peters Gallery
<https://gpgallery.com/>as an open invitation to show the other piece as
well as an additional piece (unjuried).  

Nominally, the "Emic" and the "Etic" provide the context of which end of
the gun/scope you are on, which end of the lever/tool.   Context matters.

- Artifex Smythe



On 8/22/21 9:36 AM, Prof David West wrote:
> RE: Mysticism. Peradventure (archaic sense of the word) the following,
> paraphrased from an honors class I used to teach at St. Thomas, would
> be of interest to this group. (Sorry if disjointed — artifact of
> semester class to single post.)
>
> Everyone is aware how our perceptions, our knowledge, and our
> understanding of the universe was altered with successive inventions
> like the lens (telescope), radio astronomy, and the ability to detect
> multiple spectra from infrared to X-ray.
>
> For the sake of this discussion, grant an assumption of an individual
> mind embedded in, perceiving (experiencing), and interacting with a
> pervasive /Reality/. (An analog of an individual stargazer/astronomer.)
>
> If we imagine "/Reality Apprehension/ /Technology;/" is it
> unreasonable to assume that our perceptions, knowledge, and
> understanding, of /Reality/ would be altered in some manner analogous
> to our enhanced scientific comprehension of the universe?
>
> The Mystic would assert, "of course."
>
> And, predictably, there are numerous advocates of various
> "technologies': ranging from meditations to exercises to drugs. But
> the most ancient traditions, pretty much universally, assert that no
> "technology" needs to be added at all. Innate to every organism,
> including humans, is a complete "Reality Apprehension System."
>
> The near opposite of what was required to enhance our understanding of
> astronomy is required to enhance our understanding of Reality. Instead
> to "adding" something, we must "eliminate" something.
>
> That which is to be eliminated, is a host of "brain accretions" that
> put artificial barriers between our 'apparent mind' and "it's"
> apprehension of Reality. (My dualism is temporary and for the purpose
> of explanation only.)
>
> An example of an "accretion:" consider a person in a jungle. Imagine
> the totality of sensory inputs (and not just the traditional 5)
> constantly bombarding that person. Now imagine the survival potential
> that a person whose brain had developed filtering shortcuts like edge
> detection, or part-whole generalization, over one who had to evaluate
> and analyze the entirety of the sensory input volume before
> concluding: "Tiger! Run."
>
> Another: the attenuation of our awareness to "background" noise,
> simply because it is constant. We are not unaware of that noise — if
> someone across the room mentions our name we are immediately tuned
> into it — but it is below the threshold of conscious awareness.
>
> Culture is another accretion, as is "rationality" (the ascendance of
> the left brain). (Science is a manifestation of the latter accretion,
> or rather what can be accomplished when we employ it.)
>
> The net effect of all these accretions is to 'reduce' our Apprehension
> of Reality and restrict it to a small subset of stimuli that
> evolution, or habit or predilection, has deemed "important" or worth
> paying attention to.
>
> And, of course, the Illusion of Maya is taking the 'VGA image' of
> Reality and accepting that it is the only thing "Real."
>
> The full "Reality Apprehension System" of every organism continues to
> operate, even when we are foundering in the Illusion. What is lacking
> is awareness of that System and its products (knowledge,
> understanding, perception). We regain awareness by
> circumventing/eliminating all those pesky 'accretions'.
>
> The famous Zen parable of a pond filled with ripples and waves; making
> it impossible to see a clear and accurate depiction of the Moon on the
> surface of the pond. Only when you have 'stilled' the multiple
> disturbances will the moon be reflected in all its glory upon the
> still surface.
>
>   *  *  *  *
>
> From this small thought kernel it is possible to develop a semester
> worth of lectures and the various aspects of Mysticism and its
> challenges and arguments against, etc.
>
> Not addressed: what is the "value" or what is to be "gained" if one is
> successful in regaining awareness of the "Reality Apprehension System"
> and its products?
>
> Another time, I will eliminate the dualism, the illusion of an "I"
> apart from Reality, but only upon request.
>
> davew
>
>
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