Join My Cult - Original Falcon Press

ment, or perhaps a result of, scientific thinking. Now another
point…which you should remind me to return to…is that most of the
Traditions we will speak of emphasize one of these over the other in one
way or another. For instance Christianity places emphases on the objective
world, and it is out there, on the other side you might say, that we
will find our redemption. Thus we are forever estranged from ourselves…
From our meaning in here.”
Alexi nodded. “And this is the… ideological basis of our culture.”
“Yes. This absence is a product of ontological uncertainty that arises
from how we relate to the world, thinking of ourselves as things born
into an alien environment, rather than beings born out of it and nurtured
by it. This schism shows itself in our religious and cultural beliefs, but its
roots reach into our psychology, even our biology. Many have looked out
in the world for God, when they should have turned around and looked
into themselves. If we find the heart of our own mystery, then we find
the heart of the universal mystery as well. As something other than me,
nature becomes something that must be subverted. In America, the body
is an enemy that must be starved and beaten into a mold. Yet paradoxically
obesity is most prevalent here… Now in some, this absence and
ontological uncertainty reaches such a level that they begin questioning
not only the established order but also the ground of their own being.
You see this happening in your little group, and I see it happening all
over the country. More and more people drop out of the adcult daily.”
“Okay…” Alexi said, digesting what had just been said to him, “how
do you relate this back to what you were saying earlier about the apparent
world and the world as idea?”
“Well, when we experience something, we are focused not on its
ultimate nature, on its nature as idea, but simply how it is known to us
through our modes of apprehension. Our concern lies in how this relation
effects us. In other words, we are subjectively concerned, yes?” Gabrael
tilted his head as he always seemed to when asking semi-rhetorical questions.
“Well… yeah. It’s a given with direct experience. But even if I am
abstractly reasoning with a problem, like say how to build something or
what to make of test results, the only motive for doing that reasoning is
its ultimate effect on me.” Alexi paused. “I had assumed this kind of
thinking would push you into solipsism but you’re talking about concern,
not existence…”
184