Practical Gnosis: A Beginner’s Guide To Awareness As a humble author and stand up philosopher, I try to avoid any controversies or deep academic endeavors. But a few people have asked me, if actual enlightenment is anything like it is portrayed in my novel, Corpus Gnostica. My answer is essentially yes and no. There are several enlightenment experiences portrayed in Corpus Gnostica, but these are essentially personal transformations. These personal transformations, such as when the demon Samuel finally realizes the error of his ways, or when the hero of the novel, Dyson Teal discovers that Christ and Sophia are real, were essentially plot devices. But there are also some true enlightenment experiences in the story. When the patriarch Job discusses the differences between the gods and mortals, he is clearly demonstrating that he has experienced gnosis. Job is without illusions, he sees existence as it really is and has ascended to a level above the gods. We often think about gnosis as being a mystical and spontaneous event, a special moment, brought about after years of meditation, rituals, or scriptural study, in which the veil of illusion is lifted, and the fortunate person experiences an overpowering revelation of the Platonic One, and is thereby permanently changed. But this notion is a conflation of gnosis with satori, the Buddhist enlightenment experience. Instead, I like to think of gnosis as a process, not an event. The first experience of gnosis is similar to satori, but it does not create a permanent transformation in the individual’s consciousness, as allegedly happens in eastern enlightenment. Instead it ignites an ongoing catharsis that I prefer to call the quickening. Although the term quickening is used in many ways, here I mean the direct experience of awakening to reality, as it actually exists, as a pure state of timeless and dimensionless light. Unfortunately, this quickening or awakening experience does not produce a permanent change in consciousness. For any consciousness to function it must measure and experience changes through time. Therefore, the inevitable change from perfection is a sliding back into a state of non-perfection. Fortunately, after the quickening, the individual’s mind is permanently altered by the memory of perfection. The effects of the quickening cannot be canceled out. The memory of perfection acts as a shining light, illuminating the darkest shadows of the mind, exposing its cobwebs and prejudices. Thus begins the internal mental alchemy, the cleansing of the soul after its exposure to the light. The mind recalls this wonderful state of awe, a state of knowing that it re-experiences from time to time, just as all memories are re-visited. But these memories are more than recollections; they are moments of profound insight. These insights allow us to dispel any residual illusions as the mind experiences longer periods within the awakened state. At a certain point, we learn to watch the mind as it slips through multiple levels of awareness, remaining awake even within our dreams. Well, this is all quite interesting, but how does gnosis change a person’s life? If your experience of gnosis has not changed anything for you, then you may not have experienced the quickening. Perhaps you have experienced a useful insight, an emotional euphoria, or some other warm and fuzzy moment, but it was not gnosis. If you have experienced illumination, then you have already noticed the practical advantages of gnosis. First, gnosis is the ultimate bullshit detector. The awakened mind is more alert, being able to quickly deconstruct false paradigms while superstitious and illogical beliefs are readily pared away. Although the person who has experience the quickening still makes mistakes, over time these errors become more rare and benign. The awakened individual’s consciousness becomes more rarified and clearly defined. They are more sensitive to their surroundings, and the feelings of others. Does gnosis make someone uptight and serious; does it require them to sit Buddha style and eat veggies? Are the illuminated more radiant and serene? Does the Easter Bunny lay golden eggs? Get over the silly and superstitious elements of Gnosticism and Buddhism that have accreted onto the truth over the centuries. Illumination is practical, and therefore bound to reality. It is a tool that separates the higher logos mind from the myth based emotional mind. Freedom from irrationality is the greatest gift of illumination. It allows the enlightened individual to make clear and rational decisions, not impulsive emotional mistakes. All minds that persist in a state of unconsciousness are irrational, suffering from varying degrees of cognitive dissonance. Cognitive resonance is the byproduct of gnosis or illumination. The practical implications for clearer thinking, controlling your emotions, and reducing the harm that you do is difficult to measure. But the avoidance of reality is surely the cause of the world’s suffering. We cannot afford to avoid gnosis, or to pretend that it is just some religious profundity. The world is in crisis mode, torn between the forces of religious extremism verses a rational, secular world order. The practical demand for a general awakening of consciousness is overwhelming. It is about the survival and evolution of our civilization, or its descent into a new dark age of religiosity.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Jan 2014 02:34:43 +0000
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