Yes- I've read a lot of Campbell and admire his efforts. In fact, I was going to put the Oriental Mythology of his Masks of God series aside to reread- Indian, Chinese and Japanese chapters. I wish I could keep certain studies on top of my thinking but maybe I have read so much there is a chute to forgetfulness or a pit of scrambled ideas! :-) Oh, dear!
However, back to your comment about looking back/within. I consider there is impossible split between the spiritual and material and yet that is our struggle to bridge- if possible. On Jan 27, 6:32 am, Molly <[email protected]> wrote: > Do myths disappear? Joseph Campbell mapped common human myth around > the word and through time to discover a mechanism something close to > common memory - the expression of the same archetypes in real time, > isolated incidents around the globe and at the same time. This > phenomena has occurred throughout human history. This may tell us > that it is not the looking back that is important, but as Vam says, > looking within. > > On Jan 26, 5:54 am, rigsy03 <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > What is original? I might argue that one is simply explicating what > > already exists. > > > Each generation assumes it has a distinct character- or needs to prove > > that it has. > > > Was thinking the reason myths disappear is because they were oral and > > native languages are usually suppressed by the conquerors. One also > > carries family myths- which interfere with deep communication. > > > Yes- there are terrible inequities- all the more scandalous because > > there really is plenty to go around so the root is greed and distain > > for others. Governments only pretend to care for all its citizens- it > > picks and chooses. > > > We passed the Gilded Age- I would call this the Tinsel Age. > > > On Jan 25, 9:45 am, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > I would say, Vam, that you often jump in the water with an 'entourage' > > > of assumptive baggage. I probably dislike citation more than you and > > > am not the first. Veblen would be a good start (to use some rough > > > citation). These days, you can at least Google the name. When I > > > started it meant a trip to the library. Anyone who has the chance to > > > read a lot of what's available (this is still remarkably few) should > > > discover most of what they thought their own ideas have been done > > > before. The idea is no doubt to try to 'stand on the shoulders of > > > giants' (itself a wisecrack by Newton on Hooke's dwarfish stature). > > > The 'giants' always turn out flawed. Moses is a war criminal in > > > Numbers 31, the Greeks, for all their argument, never produced a > > > decent one against slavery (the lunatic-religious John Brown being > > > better). Many, because they don't read enough, attribute 'relativity' > > > to Einstein, but it has a longer and wider history. The chattering > > > class reinvents the square wheel all over the place. > > > > What if the best of our system is fascist and we have grown in such > > > culture, or a caste system? By what processes do we get an > > > understanding for change from such? Western propaganda would have us > > > believe pouring resources into the gullets of the rich is sensible. > > > We all live in the gutter. Only some of us lift our eyes to the > > > stars. If only I was smart enough to have been first to that! (Oscar > > > Wilde) A common jibe by academics is that common sense is that which > > > allows us to believe the world is flat - yet flat-earth was an > > > academic construction - one can actually see the curvature of the > > > Earth. > > > > What we need is reliable collective memory. Given our capacity to > > > pervert, citation is usually used in a highly selective manner, > > > usually along with a core academic (religious etc.) narrative of > > > exclusion of competing argument. Control of what is reliable memory > > > is, of course, just what those in power want to maintain - perhaps > > > through principles of Home and Vanity. I will always prefer the > > > margins to this, remembering that to oppose tyranny can pervert into > > > its support. > > > > Deconstruction is only a beginning. I believe its spirit concerns a > > > defeat of madness that includes rationalist fantasy and animal > > > consensus (which I sense as grasping, selfish individualism easy to > > > rule). > > > > On Jan 25, 3:26 am, Vam <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > "Is this not an important part of the dynamic multidimensional mind > > > > Vam, can you find nothing of value with meeting this view at least as > > > > a challenge?" > > > > > James, starting with God is a bad idea. Perhaps, ending up at it is > > > > what needs to happen. Dawkins was in Jaipur here and I found his view > > > > a lot more balanced, less bigoted and militant. > > > > > And Neil is right : it must deal with morality. Where his discourse > > > > runs dry is when he is quoting other people ! That is also my > > > > compelling logic against intellectual property rights. What damned > > > > "rights" on knowledge of any kind ? Or, why must we have to give > > > > references, when all we wish to say is ours, with us ? If it's not > > > > ours, for us to say, we should STFU ! > > > > > The formal aspect of Truth or truths is onerous. There are libraries > > > > out there where it goes dry. It is the informal one that I wish to put > > > > across : it is mine... and for that reason should be everyone's, of > > > > everything. And that ( informal aspect ) is... HOME. The search for > > > > that place which is truly ours, where we can rest without fear, free > > > > and fulfilled, which nothing in the whole universe can take away from > > > > us. Truth is our Home. > > > > > This is no parable I've begun. People are spent for and on a " home " > > > > for themselves. They build, buy, rent one for the body... house or > > > > apartment, car or craft. But then the worst a-holes amongst us come to > > > > believe that home they are so invested on is also the " home " to > > > > their emotion, to their thought, their identity, and their happiness > > > > too ! Well, it is and it definitely isn't. > > > > > The better ( a-hols ) take on a wife, friend, progeny or pet, > > > > community or cause, to engage their emotion-thought-identity where, > > > > with whom or which, one then feels at home. Of that our thought is > > > > preoccupied... that same ' faculty ' that had been used to focus on > > > > money to buy the home, on the value of food and worth of delicacies, > > > > on the relevance of what is beneficial and serves our purposes and > > > > what does not. > > > > > That pitch of ' acquisition,' value, worth, relevance... is also there > > > > in our thought and eye, as in it pre-exists and is consciously or > > > > subconsciously applied, for the home-objects of our emotion as well. > > > > For a lifetime, we carry that pitch to manage, manipulate, decide and > > > > deal with what is outside us to acquire the material home-object in > > > > our aim ... a domain that, for all practical purposes, encompasses > > > > everything. For everything, external and internal, is outside the > > > > agency, the ego-person, we are through the pursuit after our aim. > > > > > What is concurrent within, inside of us - the "ego-person," is a build > > > > up and an intensification of VANITY... which expresses as : " I > > > > possess;" " I win;" " I will acquire;" " I am successful." It is all a > > > > matter of process that is normal to our drive and inevitable to our > > > > search. But, as surely as sure can be, it is Vanity that also blocks > > > > our evolution and progression into the true Home to our emotion - > > > > which is Love, to our thought - which is Silence, to our identity - > > > > which is Zero, and to our spirit - which is Bliss Infinite. Because it > > > > limits us to what we have, even as it automatically makes us pore over > > > > all that we does not have; and, it is limiting because while with it > > > > we can never give up that " pitch " we have internalised along the > > > > journey and can hence never view and see things with Love and Silence, > > > > and be Zero with Bliss Infinite. > > > > > These are the real aspects and issues to spirituality : Home and > > > > Vanity. It is these that I find more pertinent than God or whatever. > > > > It is these that will make us be better and excel, that will address > > > > the monstrous twists with which people reduce the best of systems and > > > > opportunities to gutter, that will redress the moral deficit in our > > > > public and personal lives.- Hide quoted text - > > > > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text -
