Path of Christian Mysticism

[durgaa]

Being, lt might be useful to read the 'Magus of Strovolos'. lt's about the famous greek Gnostic Daskalos. lf you haven't already, lt will amaze you. He was probably the greatest Christian Mystic of the last century and longer..
This is their website. They have circles around the world..

http://www.researchersoftruth.org

[Being]

Originally Posted by durgaa

Being, lt might be useful to read the 'Magus of Strovolos'. lt's about the famous greek Gnostic Daskalos. lf you haven't already, lt will amaze you. He was probably the greatest Christian Mystic of the last century and longer..
This is their website. They have circles around the world..

http://www.researchersoftruth.org

Thanks - i had a look at the web site - it's Not my cup of tea at all.

i've ordered a couple more books to read -

In the Fellowship of His Suffering: A Theological Interpretation of Mental Illness A Focus on Schizophrenia – by Elahe Hessamfar

Schizophrenia is often considered one of the most destructive forms of mental illness. Elahe Hessamfar's personal experience with her daughter's illness has led her to ask some pressing and significant questions about the cause and nature of schizophrenia and the Church's role in its treatment. With a candid and revealing look at the history of mental illness, In the Fellowship of His Suffering describes schizophrenia as a variation of human expression. Hessamfar uses a deeply theological rather than pathological approach to interpret the schizophrenic experience and the effect it has on both the patients and their families. Effectively drawing on the Bible as a source of knowledge for understanding mental illness, she offers a reflective yet innovative view of whether the Church could or should intervene in such encounters and what such an intervention might look like. Hessamfar's comprehensive work will provoke powerful responses from anyone interested in the prominent social issue of mental illness. Her portrayal of the raging debate between treating "insanity" either pastorally or medically will enthral readers, be they Christians, medical students or those in the field of psychiatry and social sciences.

Selected writings of Meister Eckhart -

Composed during a critical time in the evolution of European intellectual life, the works of Meister Eckhart (c. 1260-1327) are some of the most powerful medieval attempts to achieve a synthesis between ancient Greek thought and the Christian faith. Writing with great rhetorical brilliance, Eckhart combines the neoplatonic concept of oneness - the idea that the ultimate principle of the universe is single and undivided - with his Christian belief in the Trinity, and considers the struggle to describe a perfect God through the imperfect medium of language. Fusing philosophy and religion with vivid originality and metaphysical passion, these works have intrigued and inspired philosophers and theologians from Hegel to Heidegger and beyond.

[Miss Hepburn]

Hi Being!
Love when people quote Meister Eckhart!

I say, drop all labels...love God...be still and have mystical, Divine experiences...
be in love and connection always with the Divine Presence...let the
intellectuals that love labels and words and books do their own thing.

[Being]

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

Hi Being!
Love when people quote Meister Eckhart!

I say, drop all labels...love God...be still and have mystical, Divine experiences...
be in love and connection always with the Divine Presence...let the
intellectuals that love labels and words and books do their own thing.

Thanks - it's good advice. i do love books - have collected over 600 over the past 10 years & have over 1,000 on the Amazon wish list, mainly on psychology & spirituality.

i do in part like to exercise & focus the mind. i've also done a lot of on-line research/reading as well.

i also appreciate the need to go beyond the mind with all this.

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by Being

i also appreciate the need to go beyond the mind with all this.

Well, that is what changed the course of my entire life at 19!

I had books all over my kitchen table...open were Einstein,
Bertrand Russell and Carl Jung's...on the same day...the pages all said basically THIS:
Where ever Man is to acheive, either individually or as a Whole...he will not
get there with his mind.

What?
I sat stunned...collected myself after awhile ...returned all these books to the Key West library on Fleming...
and came home with extraordinary books!!!!

I can't remember them all...but, suffice it to say ...The Gita, the Upanishads, the Bible...the whole slew.


And so far so good!!

They were fingers pointing...remembering what Alan Watts said so astutely: The Menu is not the meal.

Being still...knowing....experiencing up close and personal...now
THAT is where you will be given mystical experiences that
will transcend anything the mind has to offer with it's limited range!
Exciting, isn't it!?

[Being]

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

Being still...knowing....experiencing up close and personal...now
THAT is where you will be given mystical experiences that
will transcend anything the mind has to offer with it's limited range!
Exciting, isn't it!?

It is yes. For me personally it's all areas i have caution around. i used to be in addiction & also went though a lot of psychosis, with a schizophrenia diagnosis - i've experienced some very extreme altered/non-ordinary states, certainly some it being beyond the mind.

There are certainly links between mysticism & psychosis. i wonder how much i need a focused & sober path on the mundane.

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by Being

There are certainly links between mysticism & psychosis.

Haha, exactly right.

The one man thinks he is George Washington and knocks on everyone's door so excited.
The other man knows he is George Washington... and so is everyone else.
One goes to the looney bin...the other is a saint.

Been there, know the fine line.

[Being]

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

Haha, exactly right.

The one man thinks he is George Washington and knocks on everyone's door so excited.
The other man knows he is George Washington... and so is everyone else.
One goes to the looney bin...the other is a saint.

Been there, know the fine line.

A line i certainly crossed in the past.

Am dependent on a neuroleptic medication, that i can't see i'll ever get off - & i feel it does block stuff. There are also underlying difficulties that are hard to more fully resolve.

i'm not looking for any profound states of Being/consciousness - am more interested in developing along certain principles of spiritual/Christian practice - But not really necessarily by following things in any orthodox/exoteric sense.

Feel i need a more specific path & practice. Hard to place it all into words.

[Deepsoul]

You can only experience the magic of Jesus Christ if you give yourself totally to him ,and you will be blown away ,many people just dance around him and dont commit ,if you dont believe with all your mind heart and soul ,you are not getting the true experience ,I have been in a tenious love affair for years with the man ,many will prob roll there eyes at this ,is it easy to die to him ,sometimes ,but often there is rebellion ,its gotta come from the heart its not an intellectual thing.............And Yes Being I empatise with the phychosis part and addiction that I feel is in me also ,I have had to pull back on my spirituality and focus on being grounded....

[Deepsoul]

Oh you must have posted before me but yeah the teachings of Christ are pretty incredible and as you follow them you will learn peace.......and be challenged