I had some other ideas I was going to bring up - the science of sin, and the possible evolutionary effects of masturbation fantasies, but first to Cal Roeker's comment on different areas of the self that are known and unknown, and the positive effects of uncovering them - which kind of fits in with my original topics.
In the hey-day of my hippiness some 40 years ago, I had much the same idea - let all be known about yourself to everyone - and indeed I did, and this did, either for that reason or for others, push the frontier of the unknown. However, when one simply tells others what one's thoughts are, there is inevitably a negative reaction. It is far from all good. There are expectations of how you are supposed to think, and if you expose taboo thoughts, it will not go well for you socially. And here's the truth behind it: not only are our thoughts not always "politically correct" as we say now, but also that "correct" thoughts are always balanced by the shadow opposite somewhere in our mind. This, simply, is how we perceive - as every esoteric tradition knows, the shadow exists, and the more one turns to the "good", the stronger the shadow gets. Thus the expected calamity of all on the road to enlightenment: that at one point the shadow will grow so large that it will hurt your social, and even physical, life. This is the material side of the "dark night of the soul." The point is, of course, not to give in to the morally heinous. But what if you're telling the world about your shadow thoughts? As you try to be saintly, the very opposite will appear within you, more clearly to the clear and honest mind than to the clouded. So you tell your friend, "you know, I understood the draw of the emotions that the rapist has." Pass that around a little and see what it does for your reputation. (it is why aspirants on the path often have special priest or guru confessors - people to whom this stuff CAN be told to, to help to get beyond. Most do NOT understand this process).
On a much more mundane level, we can take masturbation fantasies as a good example of what NOT to expose to the world. Sex for many is a very strong drive, with many, many ideas and emotions attached to it. We do not talk about our masturbation fantasies for good reason - they will necessarily not be confined to the socially acceptable norms, which even our "liberated" society has, in spades. Again, the concept of shadow opposites works in - they are not you in the actual world, but must be expressed somewhere in the mental (the point that I wished to make at first about sexual fantasies has to do with development of ESP, to be discussed at another time). Simply put, we are even squeamish mentioning this fact. Is it best to post your shadow fantasies to the world?
On the other hand, to have a wise confessor probably is the best thing for mental and spiritual growth. We can be deterred by our own sense of guilt or outrage at some of our thoughts - a perfectly satanical thing to emphasize, if one believes in Satan - (remember the movie "the Exorcist," where the demon exposed everyone's private thoughts of guilt or fear - as if the demon gave a damn, but it knew where to hurt). And so the model proposed by Cal may be sound, but only in a limited way. It does seem to me that our society is trying to get away from the detrimental aspects of guilt associate with sex, and I do believe that ultimately this is an attempt to clear the way for further spiritual growth. It is, however, failing, and for two reasons: one, the taboo against homosexuality (for instance) has only lifted for homosexuals - but its constant reportage has caused even greater homophobia for those who are not homosexuals, but who still experience the shadow side of their hetero selves. The younger people today, in my experience, seem more averse to being seen as homosexual than ever; and two, the shadow side has not decreased, but only shifted. For instance, the increased openness about sex has only shifted the big "no-no" to other areas. Publicly, "racism" comes to mind; whereas in Victorian days, even the exposure of a female ankle could cause a fit of excitement and outrage, now just about anything concerning race can and often does the same. We cover up the realities of what is really happening about certain things just as they did with sexual activity in another era. Although much of this new Victorianism on race has been pushed forward for political gain, it has become very real in our culture.
We cannot avoid the shadow, en mass, by opening up certain dark corners. And some of those corners will never be admissible to society.
Back out of the shadows, FK
In the hey-day of my hippiness some 40 years ago, I had much the same idea - let all be known about yourself to everyone - and indeed I did, and this did, either for that reason or for others, push the frontier of the unknown. However, when one simply tells others what one's thoughts are, there is inevitably a negative reaction. It is far from all good. There are expectations of how you are supposed to think, and if you expose taboo thoughts, it will not go well for you socially. And here's the truth behind it: not only are our thoughts not always "politically correct" as we say now, but also that "correct" thoughts are always balanced by the shadow opposite somewhere in our mind. This, simply, is how we perceive - as every esoteric tradition knows, the shadow exists, and the more one turns to the "good", the stronger the shadow gets. Thus the expected calamity of all on the road to enlightenment: that at one point the shadow will grow so large that it will hurt your social, and even physical, life. This is the material side of the "dark night of the soul." The point is, of course, not to give in to the morally heinous. But what if you're telling the world about your shadow thoughts? As you try to be saintly, the very opposite will appear within you, more clearly to the clear and honest mind than to the clouded. So you tell your friend, "you know, I understood the draw of the emotions that the rapist has." Pass that around a little and see what it does for your reputation. (it is why aspirants on the path often have special priest or guru confessors - people to whom this stuff CAN be told to, to help to get beyond. Most do NOT understand this process).
On a much more mundane level, we can take masturbation fantasies as a good example of what NOT to expose to the world. Sex for many is a very strong drive, with many, many ideas and emotions attached to it. We do not talk about our masturbation fantasies for good reason - they will necessarily not be confined to the socially acceptable norms, which even our "liberated" society has, in spades. Again, the concept of shadow opposites works in - they are not you in the actual world, but must be expressed somewhere in the mental (the point that I wished to make at first about sexual fantasies has to do with development of ESP, to be discussed at another time). Simply put, we are even squeamish mentioning this fact. Is it best to post your shadow fantasies to the world?
On the other hand, to have a wise confessor probably is the best thing for mental and spiritual growth. We can be deterred by our own sense of guilt or outrage at some of our thoughts - a perfectly satanical thing to emphasize, if one believes in Satan - (remember the movie "the Exorcist," where the demon exposed everyone's private thoughts of guilt or fear - as if the demon gave a damn, but it knew where to hurt). And so the model proposed by Cal may be sound, but only in a limited way. It does seem to me that our society is trying to get away from the detrimental aspects of guilt associate with sex, and I do believe that ultimately this is an attempt to clear the way for further spiritual growth. It is, however, failing, and for two reasons: one, the taboo against homosexuality (for instance) has only lifted for homosexuals - but its constant reportage has caused even greater homophobia for those who are not homosexuals, but who still experience the shadow side of their hetero selves. The younger people today, in my experience, seem more averse to being seen as homosexual than ever; and two, the shadow side has not decreased, but only shifted. For instance, the increased openness about sex has only shifted the big "no-no" to other areas. Publicly, "racism" comes to mind; whereas in Victorian days, even the exposure of a female ankle could cause a fit of excitement and outrage, now just about anything concerning race can and often does the same. We cover up the realities of what is really happening about certain things just as they did with sexual activity in another era. Although much of this new Victorianism on race has been pushed forward for political gain, it has become very real in our culture.
We cannot avoid the shadow, en mass, by opening up certain dark corners. And some of those corners will never be admissible to society.
Back out of the shadows, FK
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