"What Yogananda did for Hinduism and D.T. Suzuki did for Zen, Michael Harner has done for shamanism, namely bring the tradition and its richness to Western awareness."
— Walsh/Grob
![kristof Gabriel carina van hooymissen [my ancestor lieven once brewed the beer saint-michael]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuf5AId3Z3RVqmJkfVPVXsz_-LO89rYUHadTXsJnXUtENc6Q3DYO4cH6Ii3cJfHvIOyYLuyB4usNk9rXPfKXqGqnUPGe6D30imXQzsKAEvPnR478_6_CpifikjSMW-V0GLBp8BWPUB_B32/s250/Red+PIll.jpg)
shamanic artist - pleiadian gabrielian - michaelian - having faith in G-d above all else - sovereign - ethical - refuse RFID chipping / Uniting 144000, peaceful bodhisattva-buddha (nirmanakaya) mahatma- defender of freedom : physical, mental, spiritual - following my highest calling (Shamballah), ASHTAR “We all shape the world together, be wise and virtuous in your life loyal immortal legions visionary mystic Gabriel Sadhu turtles integral & bhakti, raja & siddha, maha yogi
Know Thyself - Welcome @ Kristo's blog
David - I adore the community of saints / Gelukpa's
zaterdag 30 september 2017
Recommended book : Shamans Among Us: Schizophrenia, Shamanism and the Evolutionary Origins of Religion Kindle Edition by Joseph Polimeni
Shamans Among Us is a thought-provoking essay on the idea that the
psychology of people who we today diagnose with schizophrenia is akin
to that of shamans in ancestral societies. Joseph Polimeni’s scholarly
book challenges several traditional concepts of both evolutionary
biology and medicine. I strongly recommend it to all those who dare to
think outside the box.”
– Martin Brüne, MD, author of Textbook of Evolutionary
Psychiatry: The Origins of Psychopathology
“What an aptly named book. Joseph Polimeni raises the interesting
notion that present-day schizophrenics are, in a real sense, descendants
of latter-day shamans— evolutionary selectees who served the
important societal function of communication with the supernatural.”
– David Koulack, PhD, author of To Catch a Dream:
Explorations of Dreaming
“As with other evolutionary theories, it casts a new light on matters
which were previously confusing and even inexplicable.”
– John Price, DM, MRCP, MRCPsych, DPM, co-author of Evolutionary
Psychiatry: A New Beginning and Prophets, Cults and Madness
From the Foreword (written by John Price):
This book is about man’s contact with the supernatural, and about the
people who make that contact, and how, if their contact does not go well,
they run the risk of being labelled as mad. The author, as an atheist,
analyses this process according to the latest knowledge of anthropology
and psychiatry.
Contact with the supernatural has at least three advantages for a group
of human beings, and these advantages may be described as morals,
divination and morale. There is little doubt that a group with a good
moral code functions well, and better than groups lacking a moral code.
If the code has the backing of the supernatural, it is more likely to be
followed by the group members; and if violation of the moral code is
punishable by supernatural forces rather than by other group members,
then so much better for the peace of the group.
Joseph Polimeni’s book makes a case for the shaman as a facilitator of
group processes and an agent of cohesion for the group. It may seem odd
that I am strongly recommending this book when I co-authored Prophets,
Cults and Madness with Anthony Stevens (Duckworth, 2000) in which we
made a case for the medico-religious practitioner being an agent of group
splitting, as the prophet proclaimed a new world order which made him
and his followers unacceptable to the group, as a result of which they
went off to a “promised land.” Is the medico-religious practitioner an
agent of homeostasis or an agent of change? It seems likely that he is
both. While the group is growing in size he is an agent of homeostasis,
but when the group gets to a certain size, he uses the same talents which
made him a shaman to become a prophet of a New Religious Movement
and so split the group. Like an amoeba, the same genetic material which
makes the group cohere changes function when it is time to split, and then
it organises meiosis and enables the amoeba to divide into two. Rapid
group splitting is important in evolution because it favours selection at
the group level rather than the individual level, enables the members of
the group to put the group interest before their own private interests, and
so makes the group more effective in its competition with other groups
(Price 2010). The idea of selection at the level of the group as well as
at the level of the individual and the gene has been out of fashion for
half a century, but is coming back into mainstream biology as a result of
arguments made by David Sloan Wilson and Edward O. Wilson (Wilson
1997,Wilson and Sober 1994,Wilson 2012). The human race is eusocial,
like ants and termites and some bees and wasps, and this has enabled it
to be almost as successful in conquering the earth as the eusocial insects.
Personal Note : The history of enlightenment dates back to thousands and thousands of years of enlightening traditions in the past, and is similar to the rise of christianity, islam, judaism, freemasonry and so on and so forth, both esoterically and exoterically in nature. Shamanic people for decades have been pointed out as weirdo's without any evolutionary task in the West, but these views are changing, fortunately. The so called mentally ill and hypersensitives of today might, in a way, become the shamans, prophets, healers, visionaries, artists, writers, doctors, psychologists and / or psychics of tomorrow. How they will co-opt their gifts is a great challenge for the future.?Will they take an ordinary job in psychology or healing, or remain in a kind of counterculture and do their work overthere? It's very hopeful that the evolutionary purpose of altered states of consciousness and spiritual crises in the early ages might lead to a great future, once the community starts to understand what is going on. All might benefit from understanding of these facts. This might be an important task for the healthcare professionals and those involved in government policy on these subjects.
https://www.amazon.com/Shamans-Among-Schizophrenia-Shamanism-Evolutionary-ebook/dp/B00AZZ9FEM
psychology of people who we today diagnose with schizophrenia is akin
to that of shamans in ancestral societies. Joseph Polimeni’s scholarly
book challenges several traditional concepts of both evolutionary
biology and medicine. I strongly recommend it to all those who dare to
think outside the box.”
– Martin Brüne, MD, author of Textbook of Evolutionary
Psychiatry: The Origins of Psychopathology
“What an aptly named book. Joseph Polimeni raises the interesting
notion that present-day schizophrenics are, in a real sense, descendants
of latter-day shamans— evolutionary selectees who served the
important societal function of communication with the supernatural.”
– David Koulack, PhD, author of To Catch a Dream:
Explorations of Dreaming
“As with other evolutionary theories, it casts a new light on matters
which were previously confusing and even inexplicable.”
– John Price, DM, MRCP, MRCPsych, DPM, co-author of Evolutionary
Psychiatry: A New Beginning and Prophets, Cults and Madness
From the Foreword (written by John Price):
This book is about man’s contact with the supernatural, and about the
people who make that contact, and how, if their contact does not go well,
they run the risk of being labelled as mad. The author, as an atheist,
analyses this process according to the latest knowledge of anthropology
and psychiatry.
Contact with the supernatural has at least three advantages for a group
of human beings, and these advantages may be described as morals,
divination and morale. There is little doubt that a group with a good
moral code functions well, and better than groups lacking a moral code.
If the code has the backing of the supernatural, it is more likely to be
followed by the group members; and if violation of the moral code is
punishable by supernatural forces rather than by other group members,
then so much better for the peace of the group.
Joseph Polimeni’s book makes a case for the shaman as a facilitator of
group processes and an agent of cohesion for the group. It may seem odd
that I am strongly recommending this book when I co-authored Prophets,
Cults and Madness with Anthony Stevens (Duckworth, 2000) in which we
made a case for the medico-religious practitioner being an agent of group
splitting, as the prophet proclaimed a new world order which made him
and his followers unacceptable to the group, as a result of which they
went off to a “promised land.” Is the medico-religious practitioner an
agent of homeostasis or an agent of change? It seems likely that he is
both. While the group is growing in size he is an agent of homeostasis,
but when the group gets to a certain size, he uses the same talents which
made him a shaman to become a prophet of a New Religious Movement
and so split the group. Like an amoeba, the same genetic material which
makes the group cohere changes function when it is time to split, and then
it organises meiosis and enables the amoeba to divide into two. Rapid
group splitting is important in evolution because it favours selection at
the group level rather than the individual level, enables the members of
the group to put the group interest before their own private interests, and
so makes the group more effective in its competition with other groups
(Price 2010). The idea of selection at the level of the group as well as
at the level of the individual and the gene has been out of fashion for
half a century, but is coming back into mainstream biology as a result of
arguments made by David Sloan Wilson and Edward O. Wilson (Wilson
1997,Wilson and Sober 1994,Wilson 2012). The human race is eusocial,
like ants and termites and some bees and wasps, and this has enabled it
to be almost as successful in conquering the earth as the eusocial insects.
Personal Note : The history of enlightenment dates back to thousands and thousands of years of enlightening traditions in the past, and is similar to the rise of christianity, islam, judaism, freemasonry and so on and so forth, both esoterically and exoterically in nature. Shamanic people for decades have been pointed out as weirdo's without any evolutionary task in the West, but these views are changing, fortunately. The so called mentally ill and hypersensitives of today might, in a way, become the shamans, prophets, healers, visionaries, artists, writers, doctors, psychologists and / or psychics of tomorrow. How they will co-opt their gifts is a great challenge for the future.?Will they take an ordinary job in psychology or healing, or remain in a kind of counterculture and do their work overthere? It's very hopeful that the evolutionary purpose of altered states of consciousness and spiritual crises in the early ages might lead to a great future, once the community starts to understand what is going on. All might benefit from understanding of these facts. This might be an important task for the healthcare professionals and those involved in government policy on these subjects.
https://www.amazon.com/Shamans-Among-Schizophrenia-Shamanism-Evolutionary-ebook/dp/B00AZZ9FEM
Alides Hidding & Charles Jarvis
Turn it off and turn it on - Demo Charles Jarvis & Alides Hidding now on the website :
www.charlesjajarvis.com
www.charlesjajarvis.com
vrijdag 29 september 2017
White Lodge members support Wilhelm Reich.
White Lodge members support Wilhelm Reich.
Dr. Wilhelm Reich
Dr. Wilhelm Reich (1897-1957) was a famous psychiatrist who abandoned psychiatry in mid-career to found a new science of natural healing energy he dubbed “Orgone.” Dr. Reich’s tests, research, and clinical studies showed that “Orgone Therapy” cured patients of psychosis, neurosis, cancer, and just about every mental and physical disorder known to man. Orgone Therapy was truly a powerful and natural cure-all therapy. The Illuminati secretly own and control the medical/pharmaceutical establishment and extort trillions of dollars annually from the unsuspecting masses of Earth in the form of “endless pills and treatments” for cancer, disease, and every disorder from A to Z. Dr. Reich’s work and success with “Orgone Therapy” posed a serious threat to Illuminati profits, so the Illuminati did everything in their power to hinder Dr. Reich’s work, and ultimately murdered Dr. Reich by covert lethal injection, which they neatly covered-up and labeled a “heart attack.” But Dr. Reich’s genius and work shall not be in vain. Several of Our members are being “called” inwardly and outwardly to resurrect, restore, revitalize, augment, and improve the “Orgone Therapy” that Dr. Reich began, but was never allowed to finish.
Dr. Wilhelm Reich (1897-1957) was a famous psychiatrist who abandoned psychiatry in mid-career to found a new science of natural healing energy he dubbed “Orgone.” Dr. Reich’s tests, research, and clinical studies showed that “Orgone Therapy” cured patients of psychosis, neurosis, cancer, and just about every mental and physical disorder known to man. Orgone Therapy was truly a powerful and natural cure-all therapy. The Illuminati secretly own and control the medical/pharmaceutical establishment and extort trillions of dollars annually from the unsuspecting masses of Earth in the form of “endless pills and treatments” for cancer, disease, and every disorder from A to Z. Dr. Reich’s work and success with “Orgone Therapy” posed a serious threat to Illuminati profits, so the Illuminati did everything in their power to hinder Dr. Reich’s work, and ultimately murdered Dr. Reich by covert lethal injection, which they neatly covered-up and labeled a “heart attack.” But Dr. Reich’s genius and work shall not be in vain. Several of Our members are being “called” inwardly and outwardly to resurrect, restore, revitalize, augment, and improve the “Orgone Therapy” that Dr. Reich began, but was never allowed to finish.
Crazywise Conference 4 Will Hall
www.crazywise.nl 3 november organiseren we de vierde Crazywise Conference. Will Hall is een van de sprekers. We nodigen je uit mee te helpen met de paradigma shift, de acceptatie van psychose als transformatieve gebeurtenis in plaats van een ziekte.
donderdag 28 september 2017
woensdag 27 september 2017
THE MIND BLOWING POWER OF MEDITATION TO BRING PEACE TO A VIOLENT WORLD.
We often feel powerless to change the violence we see in the world. We feel utterly destroyed when war tears through Syria, Ukraine, Iraq, Nigeria, and Afghanistan, or our governments put more ‘boots on the ground’ in yet another foreign country it has no business being in. The US has more military installations on foreign land than any other people, nation, or empire in history, but there is something even more powerful than this perpetual war machine. It is meditation.
If just the citizens of the United States alone were to practice meditation for a mere ten minutes every day, concentrating on peace, the wars would lessen, and eventually stop.
This is no bogus claim. It is backed by over 100 scientific studies proving that meditation stops war. It has been shown at Harvard, at Princeton, and Yale. Add MIT, and Stanford.
Quantum physicist, John Hagelin describes the possibility to change the world’s peace barometer as such:
Let’s Start with the Maharishi Effect
Many are familiar with the Maharishi Effect which was demonstrated in 1978 when 7,000 individuals gathered to meditate over a course of three weeks to hopefully alter their community in a positive way. The participants were able to lower suicide rates and automobile accidents, but they also lowered ‘acts of war’ and terrorism by an impressive 72%. Should you suppose this was a mere coincidence – something science could not replicate, think again.
Mind Blowing Proof That Meditation Alters the Field Toward Peace
An even more convincing study was conducted that involved the war in Lebanon in the 1980s. At that time, Lebanon was war-torn in the same manner Syria is today. Scientists wanted to see if they could stop the war and affect numerous other things, as varied as the performance of the stock market in Tel Aviv to crime levels in Israel.
The meditation experiment did not go as planned, but this turned out to be a blessing, because some very telling information was revealed. Instead of having a consistent number of meditating volunteers over an 8-week period, similar to the Maharishi experiment, the number of participants that were meditating at any time over the course of the experiment varied dramatically. When they plotted the participation of the meditators to the ‘quality of life index’ which was based on factors like lower crime rates, less war, higher stock performance, etc., they found that the rise of society’s experience exactly correlated to when there were high numbers of people meditating.
Using a specific formula, the researchers found that when the group of meditators was large enough, they actually stopped the war in Lebanon.
This study was published in one of the most prestigious journals on peace studies in the world, the Journal of conflict resolution, published by Yale University. Ref. Journal of Conflict Resolution, vol. 32, no.4, Dec 1988, pp. 776-812, but it was years before the writers would acknowledge their findings, because they were so controversial.
Where is Your Attention?
Meditation is all about creating awareness. If you are constantly being pulled around by your nose by television and radio advertisements, societal undercurrents of violence or greed, and the seemingly perpetual treadmill to consume, then you won’t likely sit for ten minutes and say to yourself, “let all beings be happy and free,” or any other simple mantra which would contribute to world peace.
The powers that prosper from perpetual war don’t want you to know just how ridiculously simple it actually is to change the world. They don’t want you to sit quietly – even for ten minutes a day – and consciously create less tension in your family, your neighborhood, your state, your nation, and your world. They don’t want you to create peace, though you can.
They keep you distracted with political circuses, celebrity gossip, polarity-causing issues like GMOs and vaccines, or even debates on religion.
There is something so profoundly effective to change the world that the only way they can keep us pouring our tax dollars into a never-ending war machine, dumbly sending troops off to fight the elite few’s war, that if we were all to just stop and DO IT, this nonsense would stop forever. We would experience peace.
Here’s the caveat – we have to create it. Go figure.
Ask yourself, are you creating war, by letting your attention slip, and be swayed to topics that are not peace-creating, or are you demanding a better world by meditating for a less violent, and loving planet? The choice is, and always has been yours.
Read more articles by Christina Sarich.
About the Author
Christina Sarich is a staff writer for Waking Times. She is a writer, musician, yogi, and humanitarian with an expansive repertoire. Her thousands of articles can be found all over the Internet, and her insights also appear in magazines as diverse as Weston A. Price, Nexus, Atlantis Rising, and the Cuyamungue Institute, among others. She was recently a featured author in the Journal, “Wise Traditions in Food, Farming, and Healing Arts,” and her commentary on healing, ascension, and human potential inform a large body of the alternative news lexicon. She has been invited to appear on numerous radio shows, including Health Conspiracy Radio, Dr. Gregory Smith’s Show, and dozens more. The second edition of her book, Pharma Sutra, will be released soon.
Like Waking Times on Facebook. Follow Waking Times on Twitter.
This article (The Mind Blowing Power of Meditation to Bring Peace to a Violent World) was originally created and published by Waking Times and is published here under a Creative Commons license with attribution toChristina Sarich and WakingTimes.com. It may be re-posted freely with proper attribution, author bio, and this copyright statement.
Washington crime study shows 23.3% drop in violent crime trend due to meditating group
Washington crime study research findings:
A two-month national demonstration project conducted in Washington, D.C., showed how a coherence-creating group of TM-Sidhas can reduce crime and social stress and improve the effectiveness of government.
This was a carefully controlled scientific demonstration carried out between June 7 and July 30, 1993. The study involved a coherence group of TM-Sidhas who increased in number from 800 to a maximum of 4,000 over the trial.
This was a carefully controlled scientific demonstration carried out between June 7 and July 30, 1993. The study involved a coherence group of TM-Sidhas who increased in number from 800 to a maximum of 4,000 over the trial.
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| TM crime prevention project in Washington showed a maximum 23.3% reversal in the predicted violent crime trend. Before the project the Chief of Police had exclaimed that the only thing that would create a 20% drop in crime would be 20 inches of snow. The TM crime prevention project took place during blistering summer weather. Read full article ... |
Before the project, violent crime had been steadily increasing during the first five months of the year.
A week or so after the start of the study, violent crime (HRA crime: Homicides, rapes and aggravated assaults, measured by FBI Uniform Crime Statistics) began decreasing and continued to drop until the end of the experiment.
Before the project the researchers had publically predicted that the coherence group would reduce the trend of crime by 20%. This prediction had been ridiculed by the Chief of Police who asserted that the only thing that would decrease crime that much would be 20 inches of snow. In the end, the maximum decrease was 23.3% below the time series prediction for that period of the year. This significant reversal in the predicted crime trend occurred when the size of the group was at its largest in the final week of the project and during a blistering heat wave.
The statistical probability that this result could reflect chance variation in crime levels was less than 2 in 1 billion (p < .000000002).
When the project disbanded HRA crime began to rise again.
A week or so after the start of the study, violent crime (HRA crime: Homicides, rapes and aggravated assaults, measured by FBI Uniform Crime Statistics) began decreasing and continued to drop until the end of the experiment.
Before the project the researchers had publically predicted that the coherence group would reduce the trend of crime by 20%. This prediction had been ridiculed by the Chief of Police who asserted that the only thing that would decrease crime that much would be 20 inches of snow. In the end, the maximum decrease was 23.3% below the time series prediction for that period of the year. This significant reversal in the predicted crime trend occurred when the size of the group was at its largest in the final week of the project and during a blistering heat wave.
The statistical probability that this result could reflect chance variation in crime levels was less than 2 in 1 billion (p < .000000002).
When the project disbanded HRA crime began to rise again.
The research is extremely reliable by the usual standards of social science. As a result we know that the effects of the coherence group can not be attributed to other possible causes, including temperature, precipitation, weekends, and police and community anticrime activities.
Incidentally, as predicted by the theory of Super Radiance, during this trial period there was increased popular support for the US President.
Incidentally, as predicted by the theory of Super Radiance, during this trial period there was increased popular support for the US President.
Or read more about this fascinating study in our free download "The Super Radiance effect"
Research details
Hagelin JS1; Orme-Johnson DW; Rainforth M1; Cavanaugh K1; Alexander CN1; Shatkin SF1; Davies JL2; Hughs AO3; Ross E4; "Effects of Group Practice of the Transcendental Meditation Program on Preventing Violent Crime in Washington, D.C.: Results of the National Demonstration Project, June--July 1993", D.C.Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy Technical Report 94:1, 1994. Social Indicators Research (vol 47 issue 2: 153-201, 1999)
Author Affiliations
1. Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy, Maharishi University of Management, Fairfield, Iowa, USA
2. Center for International Development and Conflict Management, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA
3. Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of the District of Columbia, Washington, D.C., USA
4. Planning and Research Division, District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department, Crime Research and Statistics Section, Washington, D.C., USA
The full paper can be read in the Collected Papers of the Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Program vol 6 - 489 published by Maharishi European Research University and Maharishi International University.
2. Center for International Development and Conflict Management, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA
3. Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of the District of Columbia, Washington, D.C., USA
4. Planning and Research Division, District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department, Crime Research and Statistics Section, Washington, D.C., USA
The full paper can be read in the Collected Papers of the Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Program vol 6 - 489 published by Maharishi European Research University and Maharishi International University.
Please support Puerto Rico.
During this try-out solo tour by Gabriel Rios you can support Puerto Rico by making a donation at one of these venues. If you can help him reach the goal of 1000 euro before the end of the concert, he will play an extra 30 minutes set, playing songs from back home.
There will be jar at each concert with the Puerto Rican flag on it where donations will be collected and counted before the end of each show!
All proceeds will go to Fundación Comunitaria de Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico Community Foundation) and Fundación Hospital Pediátrico (Pediatric Hospital Foundation) offering medical aid and community services across the island.
dinsdag 26 september 2017
Boek : De verovering van de vrijheid - Recensie door Dirk Verhofstadt.
De verovering van de vrijheid - Alicja Gescinska
Sinds de ondergang van de totalitaire systemen in Europa in de 20ste-eeuw die geleid hebben tot de grootste verschrikkingen in de menselijke geschiedenis, staat het belang van het begrip vrijheid weer helemaal voorop. Onder het extreem nationalisme, het communisme en het fascisme werd mensen niet behandeld als een doel op zich maar als een middel. Hun rechten en vrijheden werden dermate zwaar geschonden dat vandaag een overgrote meerderheid van de burgers dergelijke ideologieën met klem verwerpen. Dat maakt ook dat zowat alle politieke partijen en ideologieën vandaag de vrijheid van het individu omarmen en voorstellen als één van hun voornaamste doelstellingen. Toch bestaan er nog grote verschillen over de mate waarop het vrijheidsbegrip invulling moet krijgen. Hardleerse communisten, nationalisten en orthodoxe gelovigen vinden dat de vrijheid van de mens ondergeschikt moet blijven aan een collectiviteit, een volk of een geloof. Libertariërs, neoliberalen en anarcho-kapitalisten zeggen dan weer dat de vrijheid radicaal moet uitgebreid worden en pleiten zelfs voor een absolute en onaantastbare vrijheid. In feite gaat het hier om een strijd tussen negatieve en positieve vrijheid, twee begrippen die de Britse filosoof van Letse afkomst Isaiah Berlin gebruikte in zijn beruchte werk Two concepts of liberty (1958).
Negatieve vrijheid is de afwezigheid van externe dwang of inmenging zodat de mens kan doen en laten wat hij wil. Positieve vrijheid is de aanwezigheid van een concreet vermogen om te doen wat je wenst en behoort te doen. Om dat vermogen te concretiseren is er inmenging van de overheid nodig in de vorm van onderwijs, sociale voorzieningen, publieke diensten, enz. In haar boek De verovering van de vrijheid houdt de Poolse filosofe Alicja Gescinska een vurig en indrukwekkend pleidooi voor de positieve vrijheid dat ze nodig acht om een menswaardig en vooral zinvol leven te kunnen leiden. Haar (nog jonge) levensloop en familiale omstandigheden hebben een belangrijke rol gespeeld in de argumentatie die ze gebruikt. In 1988, op zevenjarige leeftijd woonde ze nog in het toenmalig communistische Polen waar ze samen met haar ouders en twee zusters opgroeide in een kleine flat van vier op vier meter. De familie hunkerde naar het Westen en slaagde erin om naar België te reizen waar ze net als andere asielzoekers terechtkwamen in het Klein Kasteeltje. Al snel voelde de kleine Alicja een vorm van Ostalgie (heimwee naar de tijd voor de val van de Berlijnse Muur). Ze merkte dat de zo geprezen vrijheid in het Westen niet evident was. Wat had je aan speelgoedwinkels als je het geld niet hebt om een pop te kopen? En wat als je als mens niet in staat of bereid bent om je vermogens aan te spreken?
Gescinska schreef haar boek in de periode dat haar vader kanker kreeg en stierf. Ze ergert zich over de vele jaren waarin hij zich voor weinig zaken interesseerde. Vandaar ook de ondertitel Van luie mensen, de dingen die voorbijgaan. Blijkbaar besefte haar vader pas op zijn zestigste in het aanschijn van de dood, dat hij met zijn leven veel meer had kunnen doen. Met de moed der wanhoop probeert ze haar vader aan het lezen te krijgen en in het ziekenhuis leest ze hem ook voor. Maar beiden beseffen dat het te laat is. ‘Alles wat we doen, doen we in het aanschijn van de dood, maar ook voor de eeuwigheid. Net door die eenmaligheid, die onomkeerbaarheid, die onherstelbaarheid van alles wat we doen en nalaten te doen’, schrijft de jonge filosofe met een opmerkelijke maturiteit. Zo verwijst ze naar Spinoza dat de mooiste en beste dingen de meest zeldzame zijn en daarom waren die laatste maanden met haar vader ook de meest intense en liefdevolle. Waarop ze besluit dat het goede en het geluk niet vanzelf komen maar dat men het actief moet veroveren. In die zin keert ze zich ook tegen al die denkers die de luiheid verheerlijken waarop ze haar grote eruditie demonstreert en citeert uit de Slavische literatuur. Gogol, Poesjkin en vooral Gontsjarov die met Oblomov de lof van de verveling bezong. Het gaat allemaal over leven dat niet geleefd werd. Ze vergelijkt het met Homer Simpson die dag na dag voor zijn televisie zit, bier drinkt en niets doet.
‘Het oblomovisme (is) niet enkel een ziekte van die tijd, maar vooral ook een ziekte van onze tijd’, schrijft Gescinska. Het lijkt me een te pessimistisch beeld, zeker als ze er ook een diepe zingevingcrisis aan toeschrijft. Ik kan me niet voorstellen dat de arbeiders in de industriële periode die als robotten aan de slag waren en zich niet konden vervelen, meer levensvreugde kenden. Luiheid en verveling hebben altijd bestaan en wie de jongere generaties bezig ziet met sport, kunst, cultuur, studies en jawel, ook uitgaan, plezier maken en communiceren via sociale netwerksites beseft dat veel mensen juist te weinig tijd hebben om al hun begeertes te voldoen. Dat neemt niet weg dat Gescinska gelijk heeft dat het probleem van de verveling ook het probleem van de vrijheid is. Want wie niets doet, maakt geen gebruik van al zijn vermogens om het goede te doen. Mensen moeten dan natuurlijk wel in staat worden gesteld om hun vermogens, zeg maar hun talenten, te ontwikkelen en te gebruiken. Armoede bijvoorbeeld is in dat opzichteen concrete beperking van de vrijheid, zoals Amartya Sen en Martha Nussbaum betogen. ‘Echt vrij is bijgevolg slechts diegene die over het vermogen beschikt om die keuzes te maken die overeenstemmen met zijn morele wezen, zodat hij in zijn eigen handelen universele, menselijke waarden verwerkelijkt’, aldus Gescinska. Enkel negatieve vrijheid is dan ook niet voldoende om echt vrij te zijn.
‘Vrijheid draait altijd om wat een mens kan’, schrijft de auteur, ‘het is de overgang van wat is naar wat zou kunnen zijn, dat de mens zichzelf verwerkelijkt, zijn vrijheid verovert en zin geeft aan zijn bestaan.’ Ze gaat dan ook in tegen de visie van Etienne Vermeersch die in mijn boek Een zoektocht naar waarheid stelde dat het leven op zich geen zin heeft. Maar dat bedoelde hij niet voor het menselijk handelen op zich. De mens stelt zich immers voortdurend doelen en in de verwezenlijking daarvan schuilt natuurlijk wel heel wat zin. Essentiëler is de vaststelling van de auteur dat de mens ‘geen vrijheid (wil) maar zekerheid’. Dat is heel juist. Zoals Marcel Van Dam zei: “Mensen verkiezen het ongemak van het status-quo dan de onzekerheid van de verandering.” Het duidt het conservatisme van mensen die in zekere zin angst hebben voor de vrijheid. In die zin is negatieve vrijheid voor heel wat mensen een schrikbeeld. Het is alsof je iemand in het midden van een woestijn zou zetten en zeggen: ‘Je bent vrij’. Daar sta je dan, zonder voedsel, zonder drank en zonder kompas. Absolute vrijheid is dan ook vals. Apologeten van de absolute vrijheid zoals Robert Nozick en Milton Friedman verdedigden de absolute vrijheid als een utopie. Maar ze vergaten dat dit ten koste ging van talloze mensen die om welke reden dan ook beperkt waren in hun keuzevrijheid. Onderwijs en opvoeding zijn cruciale factoren. We moeten onze kinderen leren om hun vrijheden effectief te gebruiken.
‘Het grote probleem van de negatieve vrijheid is haar morele onverschilligheid’, zo schrijft Gescinska, en ze heeft gelijk. Wat hebben analfabeten aan de vrijheid om te lezen wat ze willen, als ze zelf niet kunnen lezen? Waar het om gaat, is jongeren te onderwijzen zodat ze kunnen lezen. Wat ongelukkig bekritiseert ze John Stuart Mill omdat hij in zijn boek On Liberty (1859) zijn befaamde schadebeginsel niet voldoende had geëxpliciteerd. De vrijheid van de mens strekt zover zolang men de ander geen schade toebrengt. Gescinska wijst op de collateral damage die ermee gepaard gaat en waarmee Mill geen rekening zou gehouden hebben. Maar dat klopt niet. Mill was zich goed bewust van dergelijke negatieve aspecten van zijn vrijheidsbegrip. Juist daarom was hij geen voorstander van een loutere negatieve vrijheid, maar van overheidsinmenging om vrouwen stemrecht te geven, onderwijs voor arme kinderen te voorzien en de werkomstandigheden voor arbeiders te verbeteren. Daarmee wordt ook duidelijk dat klassiek liberale denkers, meer dan Gescinska beseft, opkwamen voor een vorm van positieve vrijheid als noodzakelijk tegengewicht voor het laisser-faire, denk aan Thomas Paine en John Stuart Mill die opkwamen voor de zwarten, de vrouwen en de zwakkeren in de samenleving. En dat is vandaag niet anders. Hedendaagse liberalen erkennen het belang van de overheid en regels die zorgen voor een meer rechtvaardige, vrije en veilige samenleving.
Enkele voorbeelden. In tegenstelling tot de adepten van de absolute vrije markt, erkennen liberalen de rol van de overheid op tal van domeinen. Zo moet iedereen rechts rijden en stoppen voor een rood licht, juist om onze vrijheid mogelijk te maken. Zo moet er een systeem van sociale zekerheid bestaan om onze zieken, senioren, gehandicapten en werklozen recht op zelfbeschikking te geven. Zo moet de overheid regels opleggen inzake milieu om ook het recht op zelfbeschikking van onze toekomstige generaties te waarborgen. En zo moet de overheid de banksector reguleren, monopolies voorkomen en machtsmisbruik bestrijden. In die zin is de vrijheid zoals Gescinska stelt altijd ‘een begrensde vrijheid’. Daarmee spoort ze met de Franse politicus uit de 19de-eeuw Henri Lacordaire: "Entre le fort et le faible, entre le riche et le pauvre, entre le maître et le serviteur, c'est la liberté qui opprime et la loi qui affranchit." Dat is een grote waarheid. Het blinde vertrouwen in de vrijheid leidt er meestal toe dat de vrijheid van de sterkeren in het nadeel van de zwakkeren uitvalt. Die ‘vrijheid’ leidt tot verdrukking en alleen het inperken ervan door wetten, kan de ware vrijheid voor veel meer mensen, zeker voor van de zwakkeren garanderen. In die zin zijn de leerplicht en zelfs de stemplicht geen belemmeringen voor de vrijheid, maar juist mogelijkheden.
Soms schiet Gescinska in haar pleidooi voor positieve vrijheid door. Zo geeft ze de indruk dat bijvoorbeeld ons eetgedrag door de overheid gereguleerd moet worden om onze gezondheid te maximaliseren. Het doet denken aan de vettaks die onlangs werd ingevoerd in Denemarken. Dat is echter een gevaarlijke gedachtegang. Mogen mensen nog vlees eten of moeten ze elk risico dat gepaard gaat met de opname van dierlijke vetstoffen vermijden? Er zijn mensen die heel gezond leven en toch ziek worden en anderen die overmatig eten en toch gezond blijven. Dat kan gemiddeld anders zijn, maar ingrepen op dit vlak leiden al snel tot een substantiële beperking van onze vrijheid. Elk leven is risicovol en geen enkele overheid kan ervoor zorgen dat die risico’s verdwijnen. Hier is de uitspraak van de Oostenrijks-Britse dilosoof Karl Popper relevant: "De poging om de hemel op aarde te verwezenlijken, brengt steeds de hel voort." Zo onderschat Gescinska ook het belang van de vrijheid van meningsuiting. Natuurlijk is die niet absoluut. Maar ingrijpen mag slechts als er een direct gevaar mee gepaard gaan. In die zin moet beledigen wél kunnen. Hoezeer zouden Galilei en Darwin geen mensen beledigd hebben met hun respectieve stellingen? Had men hen dan het zwijgen moeten opleggen?
Dat neemt niet weg dat Alicja Gescinska een knap boek heeft geschreven met sterke argumenten voor de positieve vrijheid en een overtuigende repliek op de adepten van de absolute vrijheid. Die bestaat immers niet of is gewoon immoreel. De vrijheid van de ooievaar is de dood van de kikker. Wie kwetsbare mensen niet weerbaar maakt, niet opvoedt, geen kansen biedt, niet verzorgt, geen bescherming biedt, zorgt voor een duale samenleving met een kleine groep ‘vrijen’ en een hele grote groep ‘onvrijen’. In dat geval zouden de vrijen een voorrecht genieten. En voorrechten kunnen nooit de basis zijn van een morele samenleving. In die zin zijn we inderdaad verplicht om onze vrijheid te veroveren op diegenen die hun macht misbruiken om anderen in onvrijheid te houden. Dit boek is een must voor filosofen, maar ook voor politici die steeds de mond vol hebben over vrijheid, maar tegelijk niet beseffen hoe ze dat voor zoveel mogelijk mensen kunnen realiseren. Intussen kijk ik uit naar een vervolg waarin Gescisnka vanuit haar theoretisch kader een meer concrete invulling geeft hoe die positieve vrijheid er moet uitzien en welke maatregelen nodig zijn om mensen in staat te stellen hun vrijheid daadwerkelijk te veroveren.
Alicja Gescinska, De verovering van de vrijheid, Lemniscaat, 2011
Recensie door Dirk Verhofstadt
The importance of a vegetarian diet.
Again, this realization will bring about three changes in the thought of the age:
(1) A readjustment of the medical knowledge of man, resulting in a truer understanding of the physical body, of its treatment, and of its protection, and thus producing a juster apprehension of the laws of health. The aim of the physician will then be to find out what it is in a man's life which is preventing egoic energy from flooding every part of his being; to find out what lines of thought are being indulged in which are causing that inertia of the will aspect which is so conducive to wrongdoing; to ascertain what it is in the emotional body which is affecting the nervous system, and thus obstructing the flow of energy from the love petals of the egoic lotus (via the astral permanent atom) to the astral body, and from thence to the nervous system; to discover what is the hindrance in the etheric body which is preventing the right flow of prana, or of solar vitality to every part of the body.
It is essential that in days to come medical men should realize that disease in the physical body is incidental to wrong internal conditions. This is already being somewhat considered but the whole question will remain but a beautiful theory (even though an incontrovertible one in view of the achievements of mental scientists and of the various faith healers) until the true nature of the ego, its constitution, its powers, and its field of influence are duly apprehended.
We are told by H. P. B. (S. D., III, 580.) that the sense of responsibility is one of the first indications of egoic control, and as more and more of the human family come under egoic influence, conditions will be bettered slowly and steadily in every department of life.
Written in the 1900's
http://www.light-weaver.com/LW-old/fire/fire1307.html
(1) A readjustment of the medical knowledge of man, resulting in a truer understanding of the physical body, of its treatment, and of its protection, and thus producing a juster apprehension of the laws of health. The aim of the physician will then be to find out what it is in a man's life which is preventing egoic energy from flooding every part of his being; to find out what lines of thought are being indulged in which are causing that inertia of the will aspect which is so conducive to wrongdoing; to ascertain what it is in the emotional body which is affecting the nervous system, and thus obstructing the flow of energy from the love petals of the egoic lotus (via the astral permanent atom) to the astral body, and from thence to the nervous system; to discover what is the hindrance in the etheric body which is preventing the right flow of prana, or of solar vitality to every part of the body.
It is essential that in days to come medical men should realize that disease in the physical body is incidental to wrong internal conditions. This is already being somewhat considered but the whole question will remain but a beautiful theory (even though an incontrovertible one in view of the achievements of mental scientists and of the various faith healers) until the true nature of the ego, its constitution, its powers, and its field of influence are duly apprehended.
This revelation will come when medical men accept this [812] teaching as a working hypothesis, and then begin to note, for instance, the powers of endurance shown by the great souls of the earth, and their capacity to work at high pressure, and to remain practically immune from disease until (at the close of a long life of usefulness) the Ego deliberately chooses to "die-out" of physical existence. It will come when the medical profession concentrates upon preventative action, substituting sunshine, a vegetarian diet, and the application of the laws of magnetic vibration and vitality for the present regimen of drugs and surgical operations. Then will come the time when finer and better human beings will manifest on earth. When also physicians learn the nature of the etheric body, and the work of the spleen as a focal point for pranic emanations, then sound principles and methods will be introduced which will do away with such diseases as tuberculosis, debility, malnutrition and the diseases of the blood and of the kidneys. When doctors comprehend the effect of the emotions upon the nervous system, they will turn their attention to the amelioration of environal conditions, and will study the effects of the emotional currents upon the fluids of the body, and primarily upon the great nerve centers, and the spinal column. When the connection between the dense physical and the subtler bodies is a fact established in medical circles, then will the right treatment of lunacy, of obsessions, and of wrong mental conditions be better comprehended, and the results more successful; finally, when the nature of egoic force, or of energy is studied, and the function of the physical brain as the transmitter of egoic intent is better comprehended, then the coordination of man's entire being will be studied, and illness, debility and disease, will be traced to their just cause, and will be treated through the cause and not just through the effect.
(2) The entire social world of thought will apply itself to the understanding of the emotional nature of [813] humanity, to the group relationships involved, and to the interaction between individuals and other individuals, between groups and other groups. These relationships will be interpreted wisely and broadly and a man will be taught his responsibility to the lesser lives which he ensouls. This will produce a just direction of individual force, and its utilization for the stabilization, the development, and the refining of the substance of the different vehicles. Men will also be taught their definite responsibility under law to their own individual families. This will bring about the protection of the family unit, and its scientific development; it will cause the elimination of marital troubles, and the abolition of abuses of different kinds, so prevalent now in many family circles.
Responsibility to the community in which a man is placed will likewise be emphasized. Men will be taught the true esoteric meaning of citizenship - a citizenship based upon egoic group relations, the law of rebirth, and the real meaning of the law of karma. They will be taught national responsibility, and the place of the community within the nation, and of the nation within the comity of nations. Men will finally be taught their responsibility to the animal kingdom. This will be brought about in three ways:- Man's truer understanding of his own animal nature.
- A comprehension of the laws of individualization, and the effect of the influence of the fourth, or human, kingdom upon the third, or animal, kingdom.
- The work of an Avatar of a lesser order Who will come in the beginning of the next century to reveal to man his relationship to the third kingdom. His way is being prepared by the many who in these days are developing public interest through the [814] various societies for the benefit and protection of animals, and through the many stories to be found in books and current periodicals.
We are told by H. P. B. (S. D., III, 580.) that the sense of responsibility is one of the first indications of egoic control, and as more and more of the human family come under egoic influence, conditions will be bettered slowly and steadily in every department of life.
Written in the 1900's
http://www.light-weaver.com/LW-old/fire/fire1307.html
Update from Gabriel Rios.
Dear friends,
Last Wednesday (September 20, 2017), Puerto Rico suffered a direct hit by one of the most dangerous and devastating category 4 hurricanes in history, leaving the entire population on the island without electricity, running water, or communication. Maria is the strongest hurricane that has hit Puerto Rico in 80 years. Many have lost everything. The road ahead will be long and hard, but I believe the winning combination of music and people can help Puerto Rico recover.
With a try-out solo tour (23 dates) coming up, I will offer an extra 30 minutes after each show consisting entirely of songs from back home, IF you can help me reach the goal of 1000 euros before the end of the concert. Look for the large jar with the Puerto Rican flag and make a contribution. It’s not just a donation – you will be participating in an exchange that will benefit a part of the world that desperately needs our help. Any contributions that exceed 1000 euros are welcome and appreciated. All proceeds will go to Fundación Comunitaria de Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico Community Foundation) and Fundación Hospital Pediátrico (Pediatric Hospital Foundation) offering medical aid and community services across the island.
I hope we can make this happen. We will be turning music into much needed relief and you will have my eternal gratitude.
🔥
👊🏽
🇵🇷
❤️#prstrong
https://hipgive.org/project/hurricane-relief-fund/
https://www.fcpr.org/ (en espanol)
http://www.hearttoheart.org/
Last Wednesday (September 20, 2017), Puerto Rico suffered a direct hit by one of the most dangerous and devastating category 4 hurricanes in history, leaving the entire population on the island without electricity, running water, or communication. Maria is the strongest hurricane that has hit Puerto Rico in 80 years. Many have lost everything. The road ahead will be long and hard, but I believe the winning combination of music and people can help Puerto Rico recover.
With a try-out solo tour (23 dates) coming up, I will offer an extra 30 minutes after each show consisting entirely of songs from back home, IF you can help me reach the goal of 1000 euros before the end of the concert. Look for the large jar with the Puerto Rican flag and make a contribution. It’s not just a donation – you will be participating in an exchange that will benefit a part of the world that desperately needs our help. Any contributions that exceed 1000 euros are welcome and appreciated. All proceeds will go to Fundación Comunitaria de Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico Community Foundation) and Fundación Hospital Pediátrico (Pediatric Hospital Foundation) offering medical aid and community services across the island.
I hope we can make this happen. We will be turning music into much needed relief and you will have my eternal gratitude.
🔥👊🏽🇵🇷❤️#prstronghttps://hipgive.org/project/hurricane-relief-fund/
https://www.fcpr.org/ (en espanol)
http://www.hearttoheart.org/
maandag 25 september 2017
Message from Gabriel Rios.
We seem to stand powerless in front of what Hurricane Maria has done in the Caribbean last week. My heart goes out to my people in Puerto Rico. It's taken me a couple of days to come up with a reaction to this disaster but I think I might have found something to help us contribute here in Belgium, my second home accross the sea. And of course it will involve music. Stay tuned for more, very soon. 🔥👊🏽🇵🇷#PRStrong
🔥👊🏽🇵🇷#PRStrong
zondag 24 september 2017
zaterdag 23 september 2017
vrijdag 22 september 2017
SB 7.13.7
nāsac-chāstreṣu sajjeta
nopajīveta jīvikām
vāda-vādāṁs tyajet tarkān
pakṣaṁ kaṁca na saṁśrayet
nopajīveta jīvikām
vāda-vādāṁs tyajet tarkān
pakṣaṁ kaṁca na saṁśrayet
Synonyms:
na — not; asat-śāstreṣu — literature like newspapers, novels, dramas and fiction; sajjeta — one should be attached or should indulge in reading; na — nor; upajīveta — one should try to live; jīvikām — upon some professional literary career; vāda-vādān — unnecessary arguments on different aspects of philosophy; tyajet — one should give up; tarkān — arguments and counterarguments; pakṣam — faction; kaṁca — any; na — not; saṁśrayet — should take shelter of.
Translation:
Literature that is a useless waste of time — in other words, literature without spiritual benefit — should be rejected. One should not become a professional teacher as a means of earning one’s livelihood, nor should one indulge in arguments and counterarguments. Nor should one take shelter of any cause or faction.
Purport:
A person desiring to advance in spiritual understanding should be extremely careful to avoid reading ordinary literature. The world is full of ordinary literature that creates unnecessary agitation in the mind. Such literature, including newspapers, dramas, novels and magazines, is factually not meant for advancement in spiritual knowledge. Indeed, it has been described as a place of enjoyment for crows (tad vāyasaṁ tīrtham). Anyone advancing in spiritual knowledge must reject such literature. Furthermore, one should not concern oneself with the conclusions of various logicians or philosophers. Of course, those who preach sometimes need to argue with the contentions of opponents, but as much as possible one should avoid an argumentative attitude. In this connection, Śrīla Madhvācārya says:
aprayojana-pakṣaṁ na saṁśrayet
nāprayojana-pakṣī syān
na vṛthā śiṣya-bandha-kṛt
na codāsīnaḥ śāstrāṇi
na viruddhāni cābhyaset
na vṛthā śiṣya-bandha-kṛt
na codāsīnaḥ śāstrāṇi
na viruddhāni cābhyaset
na vyākhyayopajīveta
na niṣiddhān samācaret
evam-bhūto yatir yāti
tad-eka-śaraṇo harim
na niṣiddhān samācaret
evam-bhūto yatir yāti
tad-eka-śaraṇo harim
“There is no need to take shelter of unnecessary literature or concern oneself with many so-called philosophers and thinkers who are useless for spiritual advancement. Nor should one accept a disciple for the sake of fashion or popularity. One should be callous to these so-called śāstras, neither opposing nor favoring them, and one should not earn one’s livelihood by taking money for explaining śāstra. A sannyāsī must always be neutral and seek the means to advance in spiritual life, taking full shelter under the lotus feet of the Lord.”
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