DOES "SPIRITUALITY" REALLY EXIST?

Demeter 2007

DOES “SPIRITUALITY” REALLY EXIST —

AND IF IT DOES, WHAT THE HECK IS IT?

From time immemorial there have been humans who have firmly believed in the existence of a supernatural or “spiritual” world that co-exists, runs parallel to, or in some other way is outside the boundaries of the physical, natural world.

The seed of this idea probably pre-dates the evolution of “homo sapiens” and may have been a vital psychic component in that evolution. [NOTE: We will be examining the many definitions of the word “psychic” later in this article.] Early humans were Animists—that is, they believed that certain animals and objects contained or were in some way possessed by unseen “spirits” or ghosts. The spirits could be good or evil—and perhaps even more importantly—the spirits could be invoked or placated by prayers, pleas, sacrifice and other gifts. Social behavior, though crude by modern standards (though, all things considered, that is open to debate) was evolving along with “primitive” technology.

[NOTE: It’s one of the ironies of human history that a highly developed culture such as that of ancient Egypt, while capable of such awesome technical feats as building The Great Pyramid, didn’t even have toilet paper. Maybe the benevolent “Star Teachers” who brought architectural knowledge to the poor, uneducated Egyptians didn’t use it themselves? Come to think of it, those Grays do look pretty anal-retentive. Just kidding, but the bit about toilet paper is true. Gosh, even Marie Antoinette had to squat in the gardens of Versailles with only her hoopskirt (and like a 100 lbs. of satin & lace) for privacy. If the Space People were going to bring us something really useful, you’d think it would have been toilet paper & good indoor plumbing.]

The awareness that two social groups could be safer and more productive than one also developed. Karl Marx & others have suggested that these early social experiments indicate the primordial origins of communism. It is a logical progression (from the ancestral point of view), that the newly constituted social group could be even more protected & more productive if tribe or clan members also participated in collective rituals involving the phantastic realm. Thus a cult was formed and the leaders eventually codified superstitions & desires (such as the desire for personal immortality)—and organized religion was born. By the time of the earliest historic records tribal religion in these societies had been transformed into State Religion. A few scholars have even suggested that the forms of the Egyptian gods, for example, were molded on tribal heraldic banners, e.g. the tribal whose banner depicting a falcon was the prototype for the god Horus, etc. This is interesting speculation, but no more than that.

[NOTE: We will be using the classical definition of “Cult” in this article, that is: A cult is a metaphysical system organized around a specific god/goddess associated with a certain city, shrine or group of divinities (triads in Egypt, the original idea of The Holy Trinity). However, when commenting on modern cults such as Mormonism (i.e. Cult of Moroni, a Latter Day daemon), we are also referring to that sect’s methods of mind control & suppression of independent thought.]

Obviously one can also see the development of a sophisticated paganism and/or polytheism in these early social experiments—that is, a supplication and veneration of nature, usually in the anthropocentric forms of superhuman deities. One can only wonder at how these first humans felt or perceived themselves and their environment. It is possible (even probable) that some individuals and groups ingested mind-altering substances. [NOTE: Traces of cocaine have been detected in Egyptian mummies. This raises a number of related questions that unfortunately we can’t address here.] Compared to our jaded consciousness today, the ancestors were probably tripping in some way with or without the use of natural awareness enhancing substances. Certainly their senses were more well honed & their environment more pristine (definitely more pristine) than ours. Psychedelic plants, herbs & frogs still exist in proliferation around the globe. In fact, it has been suggested that the whole idea of God was originally the product of hallucinogens.

[NOTE: Some historians have indicated that the story of European humanity has been one of virtual alcoholism extending to all ages & generations. The reason was that (in the major cities at least) the drinking water was too polluted & booze the only liquid that was drinkable. Perhaps most of the wars in European history can be chalked up to nasty drunks & lost weekends? Just kidding again—of course we know the source of war is class antagonism, exploitation, uneven development, blah, blah, blah. The same scenario applies to our Egyptian ancestors who chugged beer all day long because even the fertile Nile water was not particularly pleasant to drink either. The theme here seems to be: Better plastered than polluted.]

The term “Pagan” in the Western world was given its contemporary definition throughout the early-to-middle Christian era. The demeaning label applied to “country bumpkins” who lived outside the cities, and who still practiced elements of “the old religion,” i.e. witchcraft/ritual magic. The rituals and incantations associated with the Pagan Gods and Their specific function in daily life were in the process of being replaced by the growing multitude of “saints” associated with the Jesus Cult. Prior to Early Christianity “pagan” only meant country folk; certainly the Pagans or polytheists of antiquity did not refer to themselves as “Pagans.” They were followers of a certain cult, dedicated to various deities or even a Supreme Deity—but it was not considered a “Pagan” cult.

People today who subscribe to “Wicca” (in quotes because it is too eclectic to be considered a comprehensive metaphysical system—and that might be a good point in their favor), just as many self-described “neo-Pagans” (ibid) believe in the historic existence of a single interrelated “Old Religion.” There is virtually no evidence to support this claim. After the fall of the ancient polytheist empires, the various Pagan Cults fragmented into so many collective memories & had no cohesive “underground” existence. Is it really necessary to remind people in the 21° that the people tortured & murdered because they were accused of being “witches” were in fact, innocent?

All the highly structured & codified ancient religions tended to put the metaphysical cart before the dialectical horse, in that they defined man first by the “revelation” of a projected external agency, rather than defining her or him before looking to external intervention for answers & self-understanding. This is one reason why the Hermetic Axiom “Know Thy Self” was such a revelation. Humanity is so much more—or could be more—than “dust of the ground”. The ancient Egyptian tells of humanity being created from clay on the potting wheel of the god Ptah (left). This and other Pagan creation stories depicting an artisan-like God using earth in order to fashion humanity predates the Old Testament creation fable by thousands of years. Even more ancient myth identifies the name of the creator as Khnum (right). The crown also identifies Khnum as being an aspect of Osiris.

It would take such independent thinkers as Charles Darwin, Søren Kierkegaard & Friedrich Nietsche in the 19° and the philosophy of Existentialism as well as the insights of analytical psychology in the 20° to fully challenge the external monotheist God theory—a struggle also advanced by the great artists & playwrights. In fact, all the great written & artistic masterpieces through the ages can be seen as being just as relevant, just as divinely inspired, as anything found in The Bible. In 1966 the founding document of The Gnostic Pagan Project speculated that the Old Testament was at best a compilation of stories for developing, collective society—and that the Modern Testaments of Art & Science reflect emerging individuality—an individuality capable of merging into a new Collective Consciousness; a consciousness fully individual, not merely ego-centered, but focused on the well-being of the earth collective as well.

Metaphysics & Myth form the language of the Collective Unconscious

Unified Awareness is the process of attaining Collective Consciousness:

my Self balanced with Our SELF.

Reaching an apex of individuality, attaining a more unified awareness, is a far cry from blind faith. In fact, unified awareness stands in direct contrast to blinding faith. The Word of the 19°-20° was manifest in novels, music, plays and the scientific work that helped us to understand ourselves, society and the physical universe—beyond the circumscription of a projected, external God.

A valid argument could be made that “The Word” today

is most clearly revealed in Astro-Physics & Marine Biology…

…and, of course, Music.

Amazon.com Widgets

There is a very simple yet profound “secret” revealed in the culminating Initiation process of most serious Mystery Schools. It is prohibited in these Schools to reveal this secret to the uninitiated, and we’re not going to do so here. This is not to protect any “forbidden knowledge” that only our School can convey (for the right price, of course)—because we disbanded our School. In fact, one of the reasons we did disband external organizational form is because outside the parameters of a sect—or call it a cult, if you will—you don’t really know with whom you are dealing. Obviously this is multiplied a thousand fold on the Internet. A lot of Time is wasted & pointless battles fought. However, we were fortunate in meeting many kindred spirits & consequently learning a great deal over the course of our collective work. Another reason we closed the School was based on the insight that authoritarian religious/occult structure is contraindicated for Seekers of Truth in The New Aeon. The irony is that until people discover the answer for themselves, unscrupulous groups will continue to make a buck at the trusting students’ expense. This may or may not be conscious deceit on the part of the school. Nonetheless, we’re not going to even attempt to spill the "secret" because it would be incomprehensible or simply glossed over by people who are not actively involved an initiatory quest of their own.

SILENCE

is the first & last

Word of the Law

Nonetheless, this issue of Mystery Schools & The New Aeon

will be further explored near the conclusion of this article

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It has been said that the various Semitic tribes followed the monotheist Cult of Yahweh from time the time of Abraham. Also, it has been suggested (with little evidence), that the Exodus story is based on historic fact. Some theories argue that the monotheism of the Hebrews was a variant of the unpopular Solar Aten Cult that briefly served as the State Religion of ancient Egypt. While the name “Moses” does suggest a semantic link to Egypt, there is no record of his existence—or of any event remotely relating to the events described in Exodus. Ramesses II and his many wives produced over 50 sons—you can bet that an adopted cousin would have little chance of posing any serious threat to the status quo.

In Cecil B. DeMille’s potboiler THE TEN COMMANDMENTS the Pharaoh sends his men to pursue the fleeing Hebrews into the Red Sea without him saying, “This is a job for a butcher, not a Prince of Egypt.” This is at odds with Exodus that clearly states that Ramesses was drowned with all his men. So why the cinematic revision? A drowning Yul Brynner would have been more dramatic. There are several possibilities to consider. The popular director DeMille may have been aware that the Egyptians maintained a very careful record of all their pharaohs—and that record told that Ramesses had a very long & successful reign. In fact, his mummified body is on display. Maybe the revision was an attempt to reconcile a work of art based on colossal fiction with at least one historic fact. Probably not. When Ramesses returns alone to the palace, he goes to slay his wife (Anne Baxter who throws herself at a disapproving Moses throughout the film), she asks to see Moses’ blood. Yul Brynner tosses down the unstained sword. His frustrated wife taunts, “You couldn’t even kill him.” Not bad—yeah, it’s better than having Pharaoh drown.

Prior to the 1960’s Hollywood’s gloves on, eyes covered treatment of religious themes was…well, preposterous. Nowhere was this “reverential” treatment more egregious & downright hilarious than in the 1956 production Salome starring Rita Hayworth as Salome (of course), with Charles Laughton cast as a very portly & lecherous King Herod (of course), and the equally talented Judith Anderson playing a delightfully wicked Herodias, second wife & sister-in-law of the King. Like all the biblical film genre of the time (including The Ten Commandments), the plot was absurdly fictionalized, characters one dimensional (all good or totally evil), and the dialogue sounding like a page lifted straight from a Sunday School lesson.

In most films it was just kind of silly, but Salome was a different story. Everybody knows the basic scenario: Herodias wants John the Baptist assassinated because he’s been telling anyone who’ll listen that the Queen is a slut & living in incest with Herod. John wants Herodias stoned to death, she wants his head cut off. Finally during a big bash Herodias sees her chance. Herod is sloppy drunk & has been leering at Salome all night. Herodias urges Salome to dance for the King, knowing that this is by custom giving her consent to sleep with him. In return, Salome demands The Baptist’s head…and the rest we know is (religious) history. But wait…in the Hollyweird version Salome is just a poor misunderstood gal who thinks she is dancing to save John the Baptist! Well, the whole point of the movie is Salome’s erotic/exotic dance, there’s no way around that—and drop-dead gorgeous Rita Hayworth could really dance.

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Sorry kids, but we have to get back to Exodus.

If not Ramesses, perhaps the so-called “Heretic Pharaoh” Akhenaten “expelled” the Hebrews because he didn’t want competition to his own pet monotheistic project (that is, replacing the Old Gods of Egypt with the Solar Disc, a “reformed” religion with himself at its center.) As stated above, according to the religious interpretation of history, the Hebrew tribes were held en masse in bondage during the reign of Ramesses II. According to this belief it was this slave labor pool that was responsible for the physical labor supporting Ramesses’ epic building projects—but this notion has been repudiated. Recent archeological discoveries have proved beyond any doubt that Hebrew slaves did not supply the main labor force either for The Great Pyramid or for the colossal building projects of Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses The Great (supposedly Moses’ adoptive uncle.) These projects provided a source of sustenance for the Egyptians themselves who were “laid off” during the Nile’s flood season. Workers communities were created for the Egyptian laborers & their families who participated in these projects. By all accounts they were well fed & cared for. There were arts & crafts & entertainment & a seemingly endless flow of beer. Evidence unearthed clearly shows that workers also received state of the art healthcare, including complex surgery.

Skilled artisans received even higher compensation.

It’s surprising that Egypt’s advanced health care hasn’t been attributed to the Space Brothers too.

The downside to this worker’s Utopia was that the labor often resulted in serious injury, permanent disability, and in many cases early death. Nonetheless, even death had its perks as the deceased could have the honor of being buried relatively near the royal necropolis. This was no small matter to the religiously obsessed Egyptians.

1539

1075 BCE

New Kingdom
(18th - 20th dynasties)

-Reign of Hatshepsut, first female pharaoh.

-Hatshepsut builds stunning temple in Luxor.

-Reign of Akhenaten & Queen Nefertiti. Built a new capital called Akhetaten (Tel Armana).
-Formed new monotheistic religion based around the sun disk called the Aten.

Banned worship of old gods.

-Traditionalists shocked by official murals depicting Nefertiti driving her own chariot.

-Nefertiti was co-regent until strangely disappearing from all records.

-Reign of Horemheb, focused on re-establishing the Egypt that existed before Akhenaten.
-Valley of Queens created, though some wives were still buried with their husbands.

-Reign of Ramesses II, ruled for 67 years and had numerous temples built, such as Abu Simbel.
-1258 BC: World's earliest known peace treaty created.

NOTE 08/07: As of this date the mummies of Hatshepsut & Nefertiti may have been discovered. If proven, this would be a tremendous cultural event.

NOTE 09/07: The identification of Hatshepsut’s mummy has definitely been verified.

Whenever the Semitic tribes actually began the Cult of Yahweh, the record shows that it was by no means consistent or universally followed. In fact, the Old Testament illustrates the first labeling of Pagans as “idol worshippers.” Time and again the hapless & spiritually fickle Hebrews are warned against “foreign” gods, particularly feminine ones such as the Fertility Goddess, Ashera. The Golden Calf story suggests that the image probably refers to the Apis Bull. Interestingly, the Apis Bull was the product of a theological mutation that included the dark Lord Set, a goat like god of desert storms, who in turn was often derogatorily associated with the Semites. It’s also possible that the Calf represented the Egyptian goddess Hathor who symbolized love, music and pleasure. These three attributes were traditionally linked with Paganism and were constantly under attack by the oddly anti-social, racist (and in some cases, probably paranoid schizophrenic) Abrahamic Patriarchs. The Christian State Religion went on to perpetuate and even amplify this intolerance by threatening to label people as heretics who stepped beyond the narrowly defined spirituality as dictated by The Roman Church of Constantine.

Certain Protestant sects went so far as to ban all singing, music & dancing (for the exception of the doleful tunes permitted during Church Services.) There are indications that the Salem Witch Trials were initially ignited by the simple fact that a few young girls were “discovered” dancing in the woods where they were playfully fantasizing (invisible) male partners. The Salem Trials will be mentioned again further on in this article where the topic of “spectral evidence” will be presented in connection with the subject of “psychic” readers & detectives.

Islamic extremists & fundamentalist regimes bring this ultra-chauvinist attitude into glaring contemporary focus. Women are marginalized and non-Islamic religious artwork is both condemned & destroyed. There are many non-Islamic Abrahamic sects that are just as backward & dangerously deluded in Israel and the USA.

[NOTE: Islam does not allow for the artistic depiction of religious events or people, even that of The Prophet or Yahweh in mosques. This is why mosques are adorned only with beautiful, ornate calligraphy. It is tempting to see in this practice a sort of spiritual inheritance from ancient Egypt where hieroglyphics covered every inch of free space on temples & monuments. However, if that were the case, Islam would have architecturally incorporated idols as well, or at least paintings, sculpture, etc.]

It is noteworthy that only the Abrahamic religions have insisted that they and they alone worship the “One, True, God” and that followers are “The Chosen.” What’s even more amazing is that—even given the explosive propagation of humanity—the human race hasn’t been bumped off by organized religion a long time ago. Christianity and Islam in particular tie-in the “Salvation of the World” with the total conversion of humanity to their respective dogma. The partition of Palestine and the UN mandated creation of the State of Israel emboldened Zionists to become as aggressive & deadly as their Abrahamic neighbors. With such a violent bias at its propagandistic center, religious bloodshed, persecutions and wars were—and are—inevitable. There is nothing like this all-inclusive bigotry either in Western Paganism or the myriad (non-political) Asian Theologies & Philosophies.

[The I-Ching or “Book of Changes” is a collection of Confucian wisdom consulted as an oracle. It doesn’t need to be read as an oracle in order to understand the depth of wisdom found in Asian spiritual philosophy.]

It is also strange and revealing that the Old Testament is the only “sacred document” that codifies racism & ethnic bigotry. In contrast, Pagan cultures often encouraged multi-racial marital alignments. A good example is the marriage of Akhenaten & Nefertiti. Although the new art style they inaugurated is highly stylized, it seems clear that Akhenaten had typical African features while Nefertiti appears almost Eurasian. Pagans did not share the Abrahamic obsession of “racial purity.” Their emphasis was on dynastic rather than ethnic purity. Alexander the Great particularly encouraged inter-ethnic & racial marriage. The results of this policy can be seen today in the Caucasian (perhaps “Early Macedonian” would be more accurate) features of certain Arabic people & groups.

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It’s untrue that Pagans had no morals or code of ethics before the advent of Yahweh. In fact all of the Ten Commandments (and even more admonitions) were promoted by polytheist cultures way before they were “divinely inspired” by the perpetually cranky & demanding Yahweh in order to rein in his often naughty & unfaithful children.

Elisabeth Haich, 20° mystic, educator & author rather intriguingly suggested that the pictorial image of the Ten Commandments was based on the ancient Egyptian Feather of Maat representing Truth & Justice. This Egyptian pictorial link to the Ten Commandments is even more accentuated by the headdress of the creator god Amun-Ra & the ancient phallic god Min.

If Abrahamic religion is considered the source of spiritual truth in the world, then the tapestry of that truth is woven with thorny threads of violence, incest, rape, murder, racism, ethnic persecution, falsification of history, torture, sexual mutilation, mendacity, political manipulation, theft, genocide, deceit, etc. on & on & on…

Do any of these horrors have anything to do with the concept of spirituality?

Why not?

They simply represent the central beliefs of Judaism-Christianity-Islam put into practice.

But, the faithful may ask, “What about the beautiful poetry in the Old Testament, the lovely sayings attributed to Jesus? You can’t fault the spiritual truths of religion just because a few misinterpreted them.”

Misinterpreted what?

Stoning & genocide are basic to Abrahamic religion

and through the centuries its leaders & disciples

have followed the murderous Word with

both gusto & enthusiasm. This is not

misinterpretation—it is simply

being consistent with the

spirituality laid out by

the prophets.

And the prophets were

the quintessential role models of spirituality.

In more recent times, Christian Fundamentalism in the West is clothed in glitz & show biz, but underneath the saccharin smiles lurks the same anti-intellectual need for consensus approval, anti-cosmopolitanism (hence the Country & Western music fixation with nationalism) & ideological regimentation. Actually Abrahamic Fundamentalism might have more in common with polytheism than it cares to admit. It’s often been said that the polytheism of the ancient Egyptian religion & Hinduism are just incomprehensible with their dizzying array of gods, goddesses, lesser divinities, etc. In practice this translates to a deep devotion to every aspect of Life. This is the religion of Pantheism—and a central feature of Unified Awareness & The Theory of Everything (TOE). Abrahamic Fundamentalism (and, yes, we must include Gnosticism here) promotes a spiritual approach as well, but it negates rather than affirms Nature.

[NOTE: The orthodox Hindu caste system is as egregious a social practice as any promoted by Abrahamic religion. It is a prime example of religion promoting superstition & subservience to the ruling class & State authority. Perhaps the biggest of the many "spiritual" rip-offs in India is astrology. People who have very little to live on are indoctrinated from birth to trust in astrologers, then spend the rest of their lives being swindled by them.]