Theos-Talk Archives (May 1998 Message tt00358)

Pam Giese wrote:
>
> <SNIP>
> Are these points where we all agree?  Can we start addressing real issues
> that deal with " a grand philosophy to work with and use"? Are we prepared
> and willing to go that path?  I would think this would mean dealing with
> empirical knowledge outside the security of acknowledged adepts.  I would
> also think this would mean taking a real cross-cultural approach to
> interperating this knowledge and experience.

If you mean by that, opening up to a dialog with what the list members
honestly have to say, think and do, then I agree. Belief in "the
Masters" is not an official prerequisite, as far as I know, of the
Theosophical Society.

> Maybe I'm off-base here. Please correct me if I'm wrong.   I've only been
> on the list a few months and officially with the TSA a little over a year.
> Maybe the whole thrust is just an exercise in the archeology of Victorian
> occultism.

It is very much that, plus a whole lot more. Questioning the historicity
of the TS and its lore is a wise and prudent investigation, IMHO. The
past looms large to us through mythologizing lenses. We take the lot:
hook, line, sinker and pole, uncritically, at our own disadvantage. If
there is any truth to be found, it is certainly in us, now, where WE
ARE.

>  As I've been staring at my TSA renewal notice, I've been asking myself if
> the TS is still a vital organization where new thought and energy is
> being pumped through its veins.  I'm not sure.  Do the Masters talk to us
> through the TS more than to Bill Gates or members on this list?  I don't
> know.  Some on this list believe that the modern legacy of HPB lies with
> ECP and the I AM movement, I don't.  What I do believe is that we have
> established multi-dimensional connections via this list and have an
> opportunity to use the agreed upon philosophy of HPB for some real work.
> What is this real work?  Is it service?  Investigation?  Let's open for
> ideas.
>
> ..just a few thoughts..

I love this last part. If anything helps to build an internal
architecture enabling us to honestly express ourselves, then I'm all for
it. The energy you're seeking is with you. This is real life.
Connections are undeniable. I heartfully agree that it does not matter
who we were or what we've done or who we might have known in any past.
Not at all. What matters is who we ARE and what we do NOW. You can
dismiss the rest and rely on your real life today. It is important to
have historical context, I agree, but don't let that stop you from
finding your frontier in the here and now.

Spirit speaks to us in the impulse that lights our minds, beats our
heart and makes us bright. It is not necessarily a mystery. It is closer
than the silence between thoughts. It impels the ordinary. You are never
without. Abundance fuels opportunity.

People work in different ways, depending on disposition. Right now, for
instance, I beat the drum of PRESENCE and thus show you where I AM. As
far as work goes, I'm an artist by vocation. I'd love to collaborate.

Here's a line of poetry. Why don't you add to it and then send it round:

"I awoke in my same old self ..."

With hope,
Mark
--------
WITHOUT WALLS: An Internet Art Space
http://www.withoutwalls.com
E-mail: mark@withoutwalls.com