Day 755 (Tidbits)

Were you born in or after the late 1960's? Do you have an extreme aversion to violence and war - even the concepts of fighting and warfare, much less movies and books about these, cause you extreme emotional and mental discomfort? Do you feel as if something is constantly drawing you out from urban centres and to rural, natural environments? Are you attracted to ancient symbols? Do you have an aversion to sex jokes, racial slurs and joke, as well as foul language? Do you think of people and living generally as a collective effort rather than with individualistic self-serving agendas? Are you "blasted" and brought totally off-kilter by chaos, disharmony, etc while things in harmony with fair order replenish your energy? (* hint: not all people are energized by harmony...some people thrive on bits (not too much, mind you) of discord, energy from minor disharmony...in fact, many things in this world would not be prompted to happen without SOME disharmony and those who actually thrive on it, react to it, challenge it).

It might be nothing if you answered YES to all of the above - and these are just a few questions among many you might answer in the affirmative - if you think you might be a Starseed...

The Day 755 entry on Blake Hall's THE 800 DAYS blog begins with an amazing graphic depicting two Starseeds peering out from the reaches of the universe in a peaceful and inviting way...

Now, I'm not going to detract or distract away from Blake's article over on the 800 Days blog because my knowledge of Starseeds is just beginning and I'm just coming out of treating the Starseed "accounts/stories/testimonies" as something more than "witnessing" and legend-sharing. I am getting the chance to learn more about the Starseeds because of this 800 Day Countdown Project right here, right now. For that I am grateful and have to say that although I never had the chance to take an in-depth look at Starseeds 'til now, I did brush up against the topic in the past and have always had an interest in these beings. I have studied myth-building, mythology, narratives, religions, beginning paleography and bibliography studies, etc at the University level and always felt that I would return to the Starseed topic once I learned better study/examination skills... so here I am, out of classes and with time now to focus on the Starseed - and other 800 Days-related topics.

How cool is this?

I must be workin' with one of the most interesting guys out there doing Chaotic-Independent-Authoring (CIA? lol) today. I say "chaotic" because Blake segues between topics, selecting unusual connectors between things (from UFOs to the Philosophy of Discordianism, from Conspiracy Theories to love-child PEACE, man, Blake makes interesting observations and connections). I say "independent" because it's obvious that Blake isn't cowed by authorities...heck, you can even disagree with Blake - just DO NOT attempt to over-censor this man... I say "authoring" because Blake uses electronic media and the internet to do what many people would love to do... have their voice be heard. Luckily, Blake's voice is backed up with reasonable, plausible argument and data - occassionally with compelling self-testimony JUST to show that he walks the talk...

Okay, so this post was supposed to introduce the topic of Starseed and does so...it wasn't supposed to turn into a B.Hall fan/groupie post, however, I have to remind myself that many topics would hardly be up for discussion at all if it weren't for the sheer STICK-TO-IT-NESS that Blake has shown in creating and proceeding with this 800 Days Project. The in-depth attention to each topic and the diversity of the range of topics thus far in about two months' worth of posting is, in itself, an accomplishment - AND - a huge responsibility. I'm glad I am in a position to learn here, to review and comment...rather than to guide this project!

This is what I would look like if I were trying to map out this project, hone and sort the content down to reasoned bytes and connect all these diverse topics:

NOT a pretty sight!

Now let me see... I was born in the late 1960's...I absolutely dislike violence and war, I live in the city but am entirely homesick all the time for just some plain DIRT with nobody around for miles (I don't even ASK for a flower - maybe just a few blades or patches of grass...but no flowers necessary), I am attracted to homemade and handmade jewelry with arcane symbols (books with strange symbols, posters, you name it - if it has strange, ancient symbols on it, it's supposed to be near me), I feel that people living collectively, having cleansed themselves of "ego motivations" will ultimately result in a more beneficial living situation than any individualistic living principles I've seen in practice thus far, I am extremely uncomfortable around people who use racial slurs...but in all of this, I don't think I am a Starseed. I think a few sex jokes are funny - and I cuss sometimes...

Phukk! I'm not a Starseed!

Oh yes - and I also sometimes do use chaos to energize myself... in fact, it seems that I live in the midst of chaos most of the time. I feel that I get drawn to it much of the time so that I can alter very tiny bits of chaos in the world. ie: I write on social justice topics and do public speaking on poverty and oppression... those bits of wrong and chaos motivate me and so long as I am able to ground and re-ground myself in appropriate intervals, these bits of chaos give me endless energy to speak out against injustice...

Newp... not a Starseed here - but if you read the article, you might find that you identify stronly with the Starseed identity. Were you born since 1967 or so? Go find out if you share attributes of those who believe they are Starseeds...

Article: Starseeds, Who Are You, and Why Are We Here Together Again?

Then again...I've only listed about a pinpoint of attributes that go together with the Starseed identity... I'm close because I am a very empathetic person - but I still don't think I'm a Starseed... I'd be interested, however, if anyone who reads the said article ends up identifying as a Starseed. If so, come back and definitely post in comments here! This might give you a chance to discuss a few things with other Starseeds!

I have rambled far too much now...

The Day 755 post on the 800 Days blog is associated with Friday November 25 2010 in the 800 Days Countdown.

[EDIT: GIANT OOPS - Please note: I failed to properly attribute the article mentioned here in the proper way. In my haste to catch up with a furiously typing Blake, I forgot proper due mention of Cricket Rockastellar as a collaborative partner with Blake on this particular topic and article]. 

... Blake updated in comments to bring this error to my attention. Thanks Blake!! Sorry Cricket Rockastellar! My bad! Is this enough exclamations?!!

Day 768 (Tidbits)

Crash course happenin' now on THE 800 DAYS blog for a wonderful Day 768 post!

Wait a sec' - let me announce this in a more official way so people sit up and NOTICE!

HEY!!! It's the Official Pagan Mini-Crash Course Happening RIGHT NOW on THE 800 DAYS BLOG!

Okay but seriously...

There's some decent information for people who want to know just a smidgen about Paganism and it's on the Day 768 post of The 800 Days blog...

What you'll find:

• touch of historial background (and not enough to even get boring...)
• four broad classifications of Pagan "traditions"
• tidbits on Classic Paganism
• tidbits on Neo-Paganism/New Age tradition
• tidbits on Technopaganism
• tidbits on Discordianism/Nihilism
• totally cool quote from Aleister Crowley
• fantastic photo of what could be a 2012 crowd

I became interested IMMEDIATELY in the picture of the natural elements plus crowd on this post. There's something mystical about that picture, with its visible electrical activity in the sky. People crowded around a body of water...the colours of purple, browns, salmon and - of course - darkness and blackness interspersed throughout the whole piece. Interesting. I can't tell what all these people are really doing here but I can imagine this is how many people envision December 21, 2012.

Perhaps people who believe the world is going to go through a transition in December 2012 will gather together in open spaces and around significant bodies of water...and wait for the whole darn transition to unfold. If those electrical bits of nature touch down - MAN, I would get the heck away from that water!

As you can probably tell, my knowledge of visual art is pretty sketchy and my ability to put visual aspects into similarly effective words is lacking flair... I don't know what it is about that picture that catches my eye so much but - IT ROCKS!

Obviously, in reviewing the post, I should just stick to words and leave off the commentary about visual stuff. The main content of the post is about Modern Pagan Movements and Blake has done a nice job of outlining what four main movements/traditions can be considered as such today. I like the brief explanation of Discordianism/Nihilism but admit these terms/the traditions are something I need to look more closely at. The only thing I understand well about discordianism is the concept of dissent...but I hope (I know) Blake will be offering more details on Discordianism in the days to come so that I can have a more rounded picture of this Pagan tradition.

The Day 768 material coincides with Saturday November 13 2010 in the 800 Days Countdown.

Day 775 (Tidbits)

There is a wealth of information being made available at the 800 Days blog in the Day 775 post. There is the suggestion, of course and as always, for readers to become more informed about "things." More specifically, readers are invited to become more informed about a certain uncommon text that is available but possibly not widely enough read or discussed.

Now, Blake Hall has described this book as being related to esoteric Christian works, New Age philosophies as well as an Occult item, so for those three associations, I'll buy in to the idea that it's an important piece of literature.

The book: OAHSPE - Seven Books of Spiritual Wisdom by John Ballou Newbrough and David A. Cardone. Blake gives a bit of history behind this literature, so I won't go too far in explaining but would just like to mention alternate titles this book has been published under - just in case an alternate title jogs someone's memory.

OAHSPE - A True Channeled Book, OAHSPE: A New Bible (wikipedia article), OAHSPE; A New Bible, in the Words of Jehovih and his Angel Ambassadors, and also OAHSPE; A Kosmon Bible, in the Words of Jehovih and his Angel Ambassadors.

The most recent title is the first given in this post, OAHSPE - Seven Books of Spiritual Wisdom.

Admittedly, this is not a book I have read in full. I have seen large portions of excerpts to date, but this book is one that I am suddenly compelled to read. I have found the book in Google Books and am currently reading it, starting from page 583, where G-Books allows me to see the text. This Chapter has the heading, "Book of Cosmogony and Prophecy.

Once you choose to start reading this book, the format will likely remind you of the Christian Bible/Scriptures ie: chapters and verses. Let me just offer a few interesting quotes:

Verse 19: If an iron wire extend from city to city, and vortexya be charged at one end, it will manifest at the other pole, and at times even escape in a flame of fire (electric flash). Verse 21: When vortexya is manifested in flames of fire it is called electricity. But when it lieth dormant, as in iron, it is called magnetism.

Here are numerous verses pertaining to the topic of "energy" or as close as I can describe what is meant by "vortexya" at the moment. If you're bored by scientific terminology, this section ought to interest you just for the difference in terminology from what you are accustomed to hearing/reading in current science journals and articles. You'll have to spend a few seconds, here and there, figuring out an "equivalent term" for just a few words but the stretching of vocabulary will prove useful for texts you'll read in the future and, obviously, for further chapters in the OAHSPE book.

And that's about as wrapped up as I should get as far as blogging about the OAHSPE text because Blake provides another esoteric-related piece of wisdom literature...

Another/the Other Title: The Secret Teachings of Manly Palmer Hall  and this is definitely off the esoteric shelves and has content related to Masons, Hermetic literature, arcane sources and information.

Definitely, some extra reading is in order here!

I'll be getting back to the OAHSPE Literature now.

Day 775 in the 800 Day countdown was Saturday November 6 2010.