Still crazy after all these years.....

Hmmm a few years have passed, my thinking has deepened but not really changed. I've been prone to occasional rants on Facebook but FB is not the place for depth so I have returned here. Australia continues to wander rather aimlessly. There is more distrust in our institutions then ever before...name one that isn't embroiled in some form of controversy or corruption? This is a very dangerous place for a nation to be in. Suicide rates are not going down and they are rising dramatically amongst indigenous peoples. Depression is rising. Self harming, domestic violence, etc ...the list goes on and its a depressing list. We may get changes of government but this is wider and deeper. The issue is cultural and spiritual. It involves our worldview.  
So I plan to focus on the formation of our worldview, our cultural roots, the role that Cosmology, Alchemy and mainly Jungian Psychology can play in building a new worldview. My larger focus is the role Australia can play in the world and our identity. I hope others join the conversation. Ultimatly this will form the foundations of a book in progress   

More Revolutionary Raving

Have you ever left things to the last moment and then hit a threshold where you realize you now have to pull out all stops to finish whatever it is . Adrenaline or panic or some mixture often  kicks in and to you surprise you get more done in a hour or a day then you have in weeks months or years? I think the entire world is fast approaching one of those moments. There is a distinct possibility that mass panic will kick in when we awaken to the fact that we are on the verge of global collapse.I prefer to hold onto the view that when this moment occurs and it will occur then it will be Australia's time to walk onto the world stage and lead the world through this crisis. Before that happens we have some work and preperation to do first.
 At the heart of our looming crisis are two factors 1.Our absolute love affair with electricity. Electricity is our God, our unconscious God. We are so in love with this God and its power that we are prepared to destroy the earth. 2. The scientific attitude that seperates living from non-living. This facilitates the rape of vast areas of the earth our mother.

Any revolution that desires to bring about fundamental and radical change has to target these two attitudes, mindsets or worldviews. Not only target as in expose the fundamental lies at work but also offer living alternatives.
Revolutions have had a tendency to throw the baby out with the bathwater, creating change whilst and also creating a new set of problems.

The revolution must include a deep appreciation for what and who we find revolting ! Capitalism, Patriachy, war sexism, Mining, etc all have there own internal logic that needs to be understood before it can be effectively challenged. This involves deep listening to the aspirations, hopes and dreams of those we oppose. Easier said then done. I want to begin training people in this form of revolutionary listening . For me whats called essential counselling skills or rogerian listening coupled with Astrological/archetypal awareness is the key. I plan to begin training others in this process.

A experiential encounter with Astrology is one of the best ways to kick start an ongoing intiation to a more expanded worldview. To open oneself to the possibility that the cosmos is patterned and that the position of the planets at our birth has a deep and abiding significance shakes the foundation of the older scientific worldview that clings to a notion of a meaningless universe of which humanity is a mere accident of evolution.

The creation of social electricity as a nalternative to literal electricty. Small communitty based celebrations that include music, mask and mischief. A distinct focus upon experimentaion and inclusion...to be continued.

Religious ruminating pt 1

Walking down Boundary Street the other day I told my dear friend Gaby that I wanted to start my own religion. Thankfully she didn't fall on the ground laughing or look at my sideways as if I needed to be immediately medicated or posted off for a visit to the Pych ward. These are all my fears I guess that have stopped me from sharing whats in my heart.
Religion is currently a dirty word especially amongst intellectual and artistic circles. Even spiritual people want to distance themselves with the oft heard phrase, " I'm spiritual not religious." Well I love dirt, I love dirty words and I especially like the R word. Yes there is a childish contrary part of me that inwardly chuckles  at the thought of furrowed brows and perplexed looks from my non-religious friends. More importantly is that I am convinced  that the only solution to our global crisis will be at heart a religious solution. Someone has said that this century will be religious or not at all. I agree. The word religion religion has a host of meanings. One is careful as opposed to neglect. Another and the most often stated is to bind fast, to place an obligation on, the bond between humans and the Gods. For me the only way we are going to survive is if we voluntarily accept that we are bound fast to this planet, that we have to be careful with all of creation. That we realise that life places obligations on us.
Religion gives us a framework, a philosophy to join with others in order to be full of care, to accept our obligations as caretakers of this planet and it can facilitate the bond between humans and the Gods. This is what I want to build and create. Not my own private religion but one that carries on the work of many others including Marcilio Ficino Renaissance philosopher, William Blake Visionary Artist, Carl Jung Cultural Shaman, James Hillman Alchemical Psychologist and others...
All of them in their own way worked with the twin, intertwined and  twisted religious legacy of the Western World :Paganism and Christianity. Jung especially saw it as his mission to darken the image of Christ via alchemy and astrology. For me his 1939 vision of an Alchemical Christ is profound and offers a symbol of the future. It puts the snake of Paganism, Alchemy and Astrology first. In his vision the Snake has digested the fish of Christianity and extended its vision. In the Christian story God, the spirit, the life force, the fire from the heavenly places comes down to earth to incarnate in humans. In Jung's vision the Spirit, the divine life force has filled not only a human being but also the mineral and vegetable kingdoms. Everything is divine and sacred. There are no artificial scientific lines drawn between living and non-living, human and subject and object, human and world. Everything is in relationship with everything else.

Thats all for now. I will return soon. Theres a book here waiting to be written. Hmmmmn don't know if I am really saying what I want to say in a way that others can feel and  grasp. That's ok its begun. I am having a go. I am learning.

numbers

Last Thursday night, no it must of been Friday morning (2am) Simon and I took the streets of West end to find a spare shopping trolley to house the amps we use in performance. 2am bare feet, one glove apiece, and masks....its called exuberance. First me, then both of us were harassed by police. It must of looked bizarre and intensely suspicious from there world view. I talked them though what we were doing and it was all good. Later we reflected how two men doing that stuff is highly suspicious and strange but then if its say ten people its read as a bunch of people having fun. Big difference!! I dream of a group of people of all ages who can come together to do crazy, life affirming stuff. To stop the traffic for an hour with music and dance and serious conversations about where our culture is going. To do this in the foyer of mining company or a bank or any other number of destructive institutions. The goal being to temporarily disrupt but not in a destructive way, to raise questions and bring a sharp awareness to all involved. The earth is dying because of our actions. Its deadly serious and we all need to be reminded and start making sacrifices and changes now. Tomorrow is too late. No matter what he change is it has to begin now.

Mine, mining and raping.

The idea of anything being "mine". Of me owning anything seems to be at the heart of the issue in our relationship with the natural world. I call this act of ownership My-ning. Making something that is free "Mine". Its a form of rape. We see something we want; those minerals buried under the earth, that piece of land, that persons body and we take it. That the whole Western world is built so firmly upon this principle means we are all in it. Its like our collective primal taboo. Th e secret we dare not discuss. We have all built our lives on the rape of our mother earth and o n the rape of others. Its already been done and it continues to be done. We all turn a blind eye. It can only continue whilst we turn a blind eye.By rape I mean literally and metaphorically. We are all rapists! Male or female we are all complicit. Admitting the truth is the beginning of wisdom and healing. Imagine if nothing or at least a whole lot less things where mine and instead ours. Turn off the critics for a minute or two and just imagine.

The Mystic Guy in the Shed

At the beginning of the year I had a sort of volcanic eruption. A death-rebirth. I moved to Highgate Hill and begun creating the Alchemical Shed. Its a space that's been evolving since and is really only open for the business of cultural healing now. Its so exciting to have a space in which I can be always relate to the elements of nature. The shed has only 3 walls so is open too the natural world constantly.
I just cannot practice therapy indoors anymore and pretend that our cultural relationship with the natural world is not at the root of all, yes all, psychological issues. It is! Heal this and and our culture can begin to heal and the possibility of a new era of world healing ushers onto the stage.
In fact I have declared war on this old and out-dated attitude, worldview. philosophy to the natural world. The worldview or epistemology that can divide the world into living and non-living is a worldview that is crazy and will destroy us. I don't want to destroy people only the way of thinking. Destroy it with humour and creativity.

revolution pt 1

The revolution begins when we honour our experince. The reality of what our bodies experince. It sounds so simple yet the most basic, primal, universal experince of being alive is to be present as the Sun rises. Just do it. You can be blind deaf and dumb and your body will register the move from night today. Do it and be aware of what you experience at the beggining of a totally new day created by this great ball of fire rising up in the sky above. It is truly a magnificent, awe inspiring and mysterious experince to reflect upon. Our culture all but ignores this wondrous daily event? The revolution begins by honouring it.
Its no surprise that in many cultures the Sun is a God. Look into the face of the Sun long enough and you will be blinded. Stand in the presence of the Sun especially in Queensland and you will be burnt. The Sun gives light and life t oeverything. Not a bad defintion of a God! The big three montheistic religions Christianity, Judainm and Islam all dispute this and they are part of the problem. Science too disputes this and is as rigid as any religion in its own way. Science denies our primary experience of the Sun rising and will not accept any alternative. Science wont allow both and, so we have to take sides and split between the head and the body. I prefer to honour the experince of the Sun rising whilst also honouring science telling me that the Sun is indeed fixed and its the earth moving.
The enlightenment moved the source of light from the Sun out there to Reason inside our head. Its a man thing and thats caused us huge problems too this day. Honouring the Sun is the beggining of an Astrological perception. The revolution will be Astrological!