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One Love
Registered Member
Date Joined Jan 2003
Total Posts : 13888
| Posted 1/27/2012 6:48 PM (GMT -6) |   | | ...being awed at God everywhen and everywhere you see God working!
The article cited above goes HAND IN GLOVE with exactly what Loder talked about in Knight's Move following SK. Amazing!
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"Beyond vision, in the fourth and final phase of the journey of intensification, is the numinous, imageless passage into the absolute unity of all things. Here no-thingness (cf. Eckhart's Ohne bild) is experienced as more real that than the reality of the ordinary state, even after self-consciousness returns to phase 1. Although imageless, its impact most often leaves the after-image of radiant white light, so vivid it cannot be described except perhaps by a kind of via negativa. For this phase there is no language, only silence--favete linguis (hold your tongue), says Kierkegaard. For this phase there is still differentiated self-consciousness, but beyond that only a reaction of awe as before the Holy who both fascinates and overpowers at the same time. This corresponds to the vision of God in Augustine, Hildegaard, Teresa (of Avila), Eckhart, and several others.
The neurological foundation of this experience is the profoundly significant capacity of the brain to present to consciousness not only an ordered content but the very way in which that content is itself presented: i.e., the order itself. In this case, it is the whole or totality in itself that is communicated. Clearly this is not a reductive account, but only a claim that the human organism is made so as to support and entertain an encounter with an imageless sense of the Absolute Unity of Being. The numinous impact of this is, of course, like that of the encounter with the Holy in the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures. If mythic vision and cosmic consciousness were the consequences of the third phase, then here the consequence is that one may now see the cosmos from a standpoint beyond it, while still within it.
The benevolent detachment from the world which is the consequence of this experience has the effect of making the world becomes a matter of choice rather than one of defensive survival. All that is needed for ultimate survival has been given and far more, so engagement with the world are a matter of decision in what can only be called a state of blessedness."
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. Post Edited (One Love) : 1/27/2012 5:55:32 PM (GMT-6) | | Back to Top | | |
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One Love
Registered Member
Date Joined Jan 2003
Total Posts : 13888
| Posted 1/27/2012 6:57 PM (GMT -6) | | From the article...
It all has to do with time perception, these scientists believe. Modern life is plagued by what's been called "time famine" -- the sense that we have way too much to do and way too little time to do it. Everyone seems to feel this sometimes overwhelming sense of having too few minutes, hours and days--and it leads to all sorts of untoward consequences. Perceived time scarcity has been shown to disrupt sleep, to sap our self-discipline and ability to delay rewards. It undermines health, leading to more fast food consumption and skipped medical exams. Rationing out our precious time leads inevitably to self-centered disregard for others. The list goes on.
These scientists were wondering if there might be a way to shift this common misperception of time -- and counter these damaging consequences. The fact is, most of us do have enough time, but it's maddeningly difficult to keep perspective on this. These scientists suspected that stopping time -- somehow keeping people in the moment -- might alter overall perceptions of time scarcity. And how do we go about stopping or expanding time? With jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring experiences.
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And what were the downstream results of this new time perspective? There were several, which the scientists describe in a forthcoming issue of the journal Psychological Science: Those who felt they had more available time were less impatient; they were more willing to volunteer their time to help others; and they were less materialistic, preferring new experiences like a Broadway show over new goods, like a watch. Overall, the awe-inspired volunteers were much more satisfied with their lives.
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Awe-inspiring experiences do not need to be as cosmic as the northern lights. The birth of a child can stop time in its tracks, as any parent can attest, or a listening to a beautiful symphony. And even smaller things: As these studies demonstrate, even exposure to brief video images and stories and short walks down memory lane can help us right-size our sense of time and life. We can't order up awesome experiences on demand -- at least not the heavenly kind -- but we can stay mindful of such common opportunities for awe, which might alter the pervasive time-starved perspective that is distorting our modern sensibilities in so many unhealthy ways.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. | | Back to Top | | |
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