Friday 5 June 2020

Should we stop thinking, or think better?

The usual coping mechanism for spiritual people in these times is to try Not to think about things.

Clearly, this is at least partially right; because it is right Not to think about the continually unrolling politico-media agenda. But not-thinking is a primary aim of that Eastern-flavoured spirituality that has been a factor in The West since Theosophy and Jung; and it fits very well with the distractive immersion of the mass media, just as it fits with the common conception of meditation. It is also a goal of some kinds of drug-taking, including alcohol intoxication.

This is a primarily-therapeutic concept of spirituality, a tranquillizer or 'opiate' way of numbing our pain in this illusory and suffering mortal life (Maya); aiming at the blissful annihilation of thinking after death as we are absorbed into the All (Nirvana).

I suspect that this kind of Not Thinking spirituality has become (in a bastardized form, befitting our corrupt and evil culture) more common since the birdemic crisis; since it effectively addresses the consequences of Project Fear.

However, Not Thinking exacerbates, makes-worse, the follow-up phase of Project Despair - because Not Thinking is a covert embrace of death-as-annihilation. 


I would advocate almost the opposite; which is to think better: to think in a way which is infused-by and based-upon intuition (the heart-thinking I discussed recently). Ultimately, the goal is creative-thinking; thinking that participates in the primary creative work of God even during our mortal lives.

Since our God is a God of love; we can only participate in creation from a basis in love; and love is (in a sense) the opposite of fear - so we must cast-out fear as a first step.

We can see, therefore, that the treatment of acute and present fear is common to the 'stop thinking' and 'better thinking' strategies; but after fear has been cast-out the two paths move in almost-opposite directions.

Another commonality is that both strategies reject 'normal' everyday thinking; which is driven either by perceptions or by memories - and is therefore manipulated-thinking (and in this world of evil lies, such thinking is merely expressive of evil).

But the one hopes that thinking will end, fully and forever; the other that we will - by-means-of our primary thinking, our Final Participation - become co-workers with God (albeit, during mortal life, in a temporary and partial fashion).

1 comment:

Nathan said...

Fantastic, Bruce. I'm in complete agreement here.