48 Comments
Aug 5, 2022·edited May 24, 2023Liked by John Carter

Interesting article. There were a few typos in this one - like #24, I think you meant to say right then left, but you wrote right then right. But the technique reminds me of a combo physical therapy technique that we used for my son some time after a vax injury caused some neurological issues and subsequently a learning disability, because he was seeing, hearing and taking in information in an imbalanced way - and yes the correct way for the brain is from right to left. Anyway, the program is called SIRRI, a sensory integrative program, which involves visual, auditory and movement therapy combined, and it helps people with learning disabilities due to autism, nervous system disfunction and brain injuries. It worked wonders for him - it corrected his field of vision and auditory reception of information, and his sensory functions continued to improve for months after a 30 day treatment, such that by the next school year (4th grade), no one would have guessed he ever had a problem. The biggest issue we had during this transition was that the school principal and some of his disciples kept trying to pressure us into drugging him instead of taking the time to get to the root cause of the condition. It really is a religion with some of these folks.

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Aug 27, 2022Liked by John Carter

Thanks for sharing - this is very useful!

I've found it helpful to heavily integrate the predictive processing model of whole brain functionality into my meditative practice. The short version here is that your brain has a hierarchical network of concepts; at the top are very abstract meaningful things, and at the bottom are very specific, meaningless things. This process, and relaxation in general, seem to lower the activation of the top level concepts and pull our awareness towards the bottom layers of the hierarchical network. Which is exactly the transformation the world as a whole needs - less top-down control, more power coming from the bottom up, so that we have _leaders_, lifted up from the bottom by love and admiration, instead of top-down regulators.

The network that you describe, forming about the splinters of mass psychosis, - i think this network is a physical instantiation of the vagus nerve in global consciousness. The davos consortium itself is like the ego; a symbol of the body that mistakes itself _for_ the body, and in so doing, attempts to take so much control that it weakens and divides the body against itself. Our use of dank memes and humor relaxes the body as a whole and thus fortifies it against stress, just like the hydra prefers resilience over efficiency.

https://apxhard.substack.com/p/healing-the-wounded-western-mind

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One of my hobbies is astronomy, the pursuit of which (and real estate) led me to tour Lowell observatory in Flagstaff a few years ago. I found a t-shirt in the souvenir shop which seemed clever to me, though my wife does not agree. Adorned with sciencey images and a caption that says, "I am left brain. I am a scientist,. A mathmetitian. I am accurate. Linear. Analytical. Strategic. I am practical. Always in control. Realistic. I calculate equations and play with numbers. I am order. I am logic. I am awesome."

The only improvement I considered would be adding, "I am amused by right-brains."

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founding

Another extraordinary piece, John, and unexpected. There is no doubt that pre-modern traditions of the kind that Gurdjieff was interested in need to be evaluated from the perspective of physiology/neuroscience and, where suitable, utilised for enhanced wellbeing. A year or so ago a friend alerted me to the benefit of breathing techniques. I was sceptical/bemused but very quickly found that there was a lot of substance to it.

Your method (the preparation) brings to mind "autogenics", a system of auto-suggestion that is used by NASA to train astronauts.

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Those who haven't tried meditation should definitely try it. It produces many benefits, some anecdotal based on perceptions of the practitioners, some proven clinically. There are many styles, some associated with religions, all defended as "the best" by many, with religious zeal. Novices should ignore the arguments and try several styles to see which suits them personally.

Ultimately, all styles seek to induce stability in the brain, measurable as electrical signals emitted by brain activity. That stability produces chemical processes that improve health and longevity.

John's introduction is a good start, but we left-brain types like a bit more detail. The style John describes is mostly a sensation-based approach with a touch of concentration with a mantra thrown in for good measure. The trick for mixing styles is to avoid distraction by overloading your senses. But they all lead to the same place, eventually, with practice -- mental discipline. The simplest methods seem to work well for many.

Those who want a little more detail might enjoy a little book by Glickman, "Beyond the Breath." Glickman tailors Buddhist style mindfulness to suit his own style, showing the "best" way probably hasn't been discovered yet.

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Mar 10Liked by John Carter

Tai Chi involves focusing on ‘chi’ flows from right foot to left hand, simultaneously feeling a flow from right hand to left foot. Then reversing this, alternating with the movements. I did wonder if this was to harmonise the hemispheres.

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Any chance you might be able to record a guided audio version of this with pauses for the proper timing? There are many steps and it’d be nice to be able to hear it in the background rather than trying to memorize and time it. Thanks for considering!

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I once wondered openly what the difference was between a cult and a religion. The answer I received stays with me to this day; one has political authority.

I'm actually cautiously happy to see this article by an established and well read Substack writer. I was starting to believe that I had chosen poorly in attempting to bring my own modest mystical explorations to this platform. Perhaps there is some room after all.

Gurdjieff, especially as a choice for focus here is extremely interesting. There are very learned writers today who believe he was the most important mystic of our modern times, far more significant in contribution than the greatly celebrated Krishnamurti. Gurdjieff rubbed elbows with the most powerful in society, and enjoyed a level of devotion and trust amongst the regular people that was truly exceptional.

Now here we have one of his meditations.

Good work.

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Oct 25, 2023Liked by John Carter

Stoked to try this. And thanks for such an eclectic and interesting substack page!

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Aug 7, 2022Liked by John Carter

Very interesting. I first heard of G.I. Gurdjieff and Peter Ouspensky throught Celia Green's blog : https://celiagreen.blogspot.com/2021/10/gi-gurdjieff.html

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>The Preparation is essentially a somatic meditation that utilizes attention in order to rapidly and reliably produce a state of relaxed awareness in which all sensations – physical, auditory, visual, and so on – are simultaneously present in the conscious mind. When you get there it feels positively crystalline. It’s a great way to start the day, and from start to finish it only takes about 15 minutes.

Sounds like what Richard Haight calls his meditation system.

He basically focuses on sound, peripheral sight, breathing/scent, feeling and taste. You do this all at once and you enter Alpha state. Then you expand your consciousness somehow by visualizing your field of perception like an egg shell growing around you. It's a good meditation, I do it every day, but am far from proficient.

But the real magic starts in the deeper states.

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Aug 7, 2022Liked by John Carter

Gurdjieff!

he's super interesting. the only reference I've ever seen to causing psychedelic states in normals from watching dance performances rather than the subjects doing anything themselves.

nice to see the name again, and the technique

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Aug 5, 2022Liked by John Carter

Really great stuff. As someone who has played around with all kinds of practices, this seems like a good way to start. I have started playing around with 'Toms Park" . It is a book of imagination practices by Tom Campbell designed to stimulate out of body, point consciousness experiences.

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Aug 5, 2022Liked by John Carter

Quite interesting.

Does the fact that I'm very left-brained excuse/explain the other fact that I am not certain I have any earthly idea how to actually do what you've so clearly described?

That won't keep me from trying, however.

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Aug 5, 2022Liked by John Carter

Relaxed focus, focused relaxation. Many paths to a good place.

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Link to Winston's latest is a repeat of the link before it. Should be this one, I believe: https://escapingmasspsychosis.substack.com/p/the-master-betrayed-9

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