Apophenia: Thank you for your personal examples of "good practice". The building of the Astral Temple is a fascinating practice. I have also done something similar years ago, as part of an ongoing Malkuth working, at the time. Building that temple was quite a revelation for me. I think it helped me to do the intricate visualizations required in my Buddhist practices.
I feel kind of obliged to reply to this thread, as mine and others arguments elsewhere have inadvertently spun it off. Glad you found it interesting enough to start a thread, Justrix.
It sure is interesting enough! It is a very important issue, I think, as do many others here. I see there is a fair bit of misunderstanding about practicing, also. Where practice is seen as confining, rather than liberating. It reminds me of how children need boundaries and routines in order to grow up proper. (I am not refering to anyone as a child, BTW.) The mind or ego, is often refered to as being "like a child" in Buddhism and needs discipline, but also compassion in order to develop it's potential, and adjust it's focus (esp. in the case of ego).
I believe, and I could be very wrong, but IME, in Chaos Magick in particular and even sometimes in Atiyoga, some "practioners" (in quotes for obvious reasons) are misunderstanding the teachings as "anything goes". This is my observation, as well as my personal experience. It is as if there is a step being overlooked or passed over. Since these types of teachings refer to the "illusory nature of existence" and/or "disorder", this is misunderstood as an excuse to do away with the practical aspects of magick and spiritual training.
There's a whole conversation I'd like to have about why I don't like the "magic as perspective" argument and why I think more people don't approach magic like this, but that's enough for now.
Me too. I have, in the twenty or so years of my involvement with magickal and spiritual systems/traditions, gone through an overall cycle of, practice, then no practice and then practice, again. I am simplifying it a bit, but this cycle demonstrated to me, that just running on the "perspective of magick" doesn't really evolve my ability. It was more like I was coasting on previous work I had done. Which, had I not even done in the first place, I wonder if I would ever have seen the value of it. It is hard to speculate on that, but I believe that having had good training at the beginning of my involvement has been helpful in regaining my practices and thus, continuing to develop my skills.
Also, having had that period of non-practice, I can see the different reasons why people, especially in highly developed countries, feel bothered and flustered by daily practices. I don't see it as just laziness, although I bet that does come into play. But, there is an incredible amount of stress and non-conducive situations to practicing. There needs to be room in people's lives for practice, and that is not always available. Not to make excuses, of course. One has to make the room to practice. That is nearly a magickal feat in itself, for some. As a total irony though, one can use magickal practice to make room for magickal practice. :P
Stoatie's own post is a good example of what I mean. (Hope you don't mind, Stoats!): If, at some point in the future, ie when I feel I have the dedication and mental/emotional stability which I'm sadly lacking right now, that may change.
Which, is a very common feeling, I think, amongst would-be practioners. I have felt the same way myself. When I have a better space, or When I can get a better shrine set up, or if a number of other things were in place - THEN, maybe, I could practice daily. That was simply procrastination, on my part. But hey...live and learn.
brother george: I'm sorry, english is not my mother tongue.
I am sure that will be considered now. Thank you for letting us know, and for your contribution here.
I was trying to say in a metaphorical way that you don't find anything ready-made for you, but you create it via work.
Exactly. Even in well-laid traditions, only our own self can walk our individual path. No one else can do that for us.
And as for tips or comments: find something and stick to it, don't be hard on yourself but not be docile either (tough love I think its called) and finally, things probably are going to get worse before they get better.
Indeed, they may!
"Tough love" is a good way to describe a healthy attitude toward our ego, I believe. |
