allogenese

[allogenese]

The Problem of Projection

The Problem of Projection

As my readers can probably tell, I’ve lately been pondering on how our spiritual experiences bear on our earthly lives in practical terms. Sri Ramana Maharshi has become a helpful model for me in this regard because he was very clear in teaching people that we should trust in the basically spiritual nature of things (God) and that we should therefore avoid interference into the affairs of others…

[allogenese]

Duty In the Dream

Duty In the Dream

Duty is a tough nut. Most of us are not such big fans of responsibility. As a result, there’s a common discussion in contemporary spiritual and occult circles about so-called “spiritual bypassing”. The conversation is a useful one, and everyone should at various points do a bit of introspection in relation to it. But it is not a brand new topic! The mystics of every age have had to wrestle with…

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Universal Love & Compassion

A man works and can only work for himself. When he feels he is working for someone else he is either immature or foolish. ~ Sri Swami Rudrananda

Much-touted in modern spiritual circles is the notion of universal love. Yogis in particular — whether we or others call us Hindus, Buddhists, Taoists, or anything else — are supposed to cultivate compassion (or loving-kindness, depending on your…

[allogenese]

Living in Kali Yuga: Part 5 — Staying Positive

Living in Kali Yuga: Part 5 — Staying Positive

image from https://www.facebook.com/RamanaMaharshi

There seems ever to be a war playing out between those who take themselves too seriously and those who do not take themselves seriously; the latter better understand the gravity of life while the former are merely subject to it. Though many depictions of the War in Heaven have made it seem as if Heaven itself is of unsmiling countenance,…

[allogenese]

Living in Kali Yuga: Part 4 — The Astrology of Politics & The Politics of Astrology

Living in Kali Yuga: Part 4 — The Astrology of Politics & The Politics of Astrology

I have lately been putting my astrology studies to a very hard test: a thorough analysis of how my own personality has developed and how it will develop in the future. This includes, of course, the extraction of workable information for my own development and daily Tantra practice. But on the front of introspection, it’s been a process of seeing how much of who we are is determined. I know a lot…

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Living in Kali Yuga — Part 3: Karma Yoga

Living in Kali Yuga — Part 3: Karma Yoga

“We must play our part on the stage of life, but without identifying with those parts.” ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi

I was recently called a fascist for sharing the above quotation. It was pretty puzzling to me at first, but on consideration, I can understand why the person misunderstood my intent. They had asked for insight from others as to how one could live a spiritual life with anger. This issue…

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New Post on Patreon!

In case you’re wondering, I’ve been putting some posts up on Patreon one to two weeks early for my patrons. The third part of the “Living in Kali Yuga” series is there right now, while it won’t be available here for another week! So if you’re interested in early access to content and some other perks, check out my Patreon.

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Living in Kali Yuga — Part 2: Big Trouble

Living in Kali Yuga — Part 2: Big Trouble

Some years ago, when I was deep in my investigation of the literature of Traditionalism, I happened upon a book in a used book store entitled Yuga: An Anatomy of our Fate by Marty Glass. Like Julius Evola’s Ride the Tigerbefore it, it bills itself as a “clarion call” to the aristocratic soul caught in this age of suffering. I read it with interest because, at that time, there wasn’t a lot of…

[allogenese]

Living in Kali Yuga — Part 1: World of Darkness

Living in Kali Yuga — Part 1: World of Darkness

Growing up, my friends and I were pretty big into role playing games. As with most people who play these games, we mostly stuck to the fantasy and sword & sorcery genres. When we wanted to branch out, though, we mostly went to modern horror. Modern horror as a genre, whether of literature, film, or games, has a very different mood from fantasy, but the core conceits are pretty similar: what if…

[allogenese]

When Nonduality Meets Reality

When Nonduality Meets Reality

Clouded Moon over Beechview Boulevard

As I walked beneath the Moon tonight We seemed to draw nearer one another. The Lord’s great ropey knotted tresses Revealed themselves a net of light Trawling vast universes for those souls Jarred loose Unmoored By the cruelty of petty gods & pettier men.

Normally, I avoid current events in this blog — not because I have no thoughts on matters of worldly…

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Verse Clipped by Tiger's Maw

Verse Clipped by Tiger’s Maw

Beauty even of a ravaged world made all the more cruel by suppression of the One Needful Thing is heartrending for its shades and values Watching the Sun rise over Thames, Nile, Ganges, Amazon, Mississippi — you catch glimpses through the mist and storm of mountains upon the air And you wonder Which peak is Meru? Upon which do Sambhu and Parvati sport among the goblins? In what foothills do the…

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Cultism in Occultism

You’ve seen me write in the past of my experiences with the so-called occult community — and you’ve likely gotten the impression that I am not especially dazzled by what I’ve seen. I do not intend to be overly negative, but frank discussion and honest conversation is how we grow.

Despite my underwhelming experiences with these groups, every few years I feel the urge to poke my head back in out…

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"Power Corrupts"

“Power Corrupts”

“The Shakti will meet you halfway but the impetus to transform comes from you.” ~ Sri Dhruvanath

There’s truth in the saying that “power corrupts”, but it is a misunderstood truth. Power can’t corrupt in a vacuum. Rather, it allows us to bring what it is within us out, with the type of power determining precisely how it can show itself. Money is a type of power, as are political authority,…

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Book Review: "Psychic Witch" by Mat Auryn

Book Review: “Psychic Witch” by Mat Auryn

Psychic Witch: A Metaphysical Guide to Meditation, Magick & Manifestation by Mat Auryn (2020, Llewellyn Publications)

I’ll be honest: I pre-ordered this one because I like the cover art. It evokes for me the experience of browsing the Metaphysics shelves at Borders or the New Age shelves at Barnes & Noble back in the ’90s. It’s got the sort of “soft spookiness” of a lot of books on Wicca and…

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Mere Feelings

With an uptick in general stress levels, I’m seeing an increase both in the idea that emotions are uniformly to be despised and, on the flip side, that every emotion is worth sinking into in the name of self-care. Even here we find our society polarizing; ever was it thus! And, as ever, the truth — by which I mean the most helpful, actionable position — lies somewhere in the excluded middle.

A…

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Becoming Untouchable

Not long after the last articlewent public, I received an unrelated text message from a close friend asking me about day-to-day methods for managing anger. Working a public-facing job as I do, I’ve become somewhat expert at that, though that’s not to say I always do it perfectly. But this does return to our previous topic: calming the mind is a gradual process. Certain activities (or substances)…

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The Mind's Undisturbed Flow

The state of restraint is when there is a disappearance of outgoing samskaras and the appearance of restraining samskaras. These emerge in the mind at the moment of restraint. The mind’s undisturbed flow occurs due to samskaras.

Patanjali, Yoga Sutras III.10

We often speak of “enlightenment” as if it were a sudden, once-and-done event that arises as if from nowhere. We all know that there’s…