Ignorance is Our Only Enemy

Nations go to war for greed, fear, ‘protection of assets’ and sovereignty. Neighbors argue and feud over domestic issues and friends sever over misunderstandings. Confrontation seems an essential part of human nature. Evolutionist would say conflicts and aggression has been necessary to the survive as a species, and creationist would say the conflicts is how God sometimes tests and teaches us.

Regardless of belief, faith or scientific method our real enemy is ignorance. No matter how foul our nemesis, whether terrorist, communist, imperialist and no matter what tactic “they” choose nothing will defeat “us” like our own ignorance.

Wisdom favors untainted facts. But too often a nation, a man, a woman, an organization, an establishment chooses to build up their wisdom on myths, half-truths and bias; a house of matches in the middle of a forest fire. The real enemy is our own ignorance. Any perceived enemies are only the puppets and pawns of ones own master, ignorance.

Even forces of nature and states of human suffering are not the enemy. Famine, poverty, sickness can all be defeated with the proper knowledge of “how”. What defeats us is lack of knowledge, ignorance.

The human species is capable of knowing but we project our enemies outside of our selves. The real enemy is within… it is ignorance. There is not a single person, place or thing, no force of nature more cruel and unforgiving as our own unchecked ignorance.

Why do we continue to serve this callous master? Sufferings seems limitless and our ignorance is no excuse. Above all hypothesis, and bias, and prejudging assumptions and long held beliefs, factual information is the greatest ally of humanity.

Integral Hacking: Developing Jedi Mind Tricks at DEFCON

“To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men that I may by all means save some.” 1 Corinthians 9:22

How does a 60 year old former Episcopal priest manage to captivate a packed audience of tech savvy red teens, ambitiously orange “20-something” hackers, amber security professionals, and green information freedom hacktivists while speaking about nothing technical at DEFCON, the world largest hacker convention?  Richard Thieme, author of Islands in the Click Stream, has been able to do this since DEFCON 4, 1996 (1). 

There is a body of knowledge growing like a fungus in the cracks of the burgeoning technological super fortress that is the information age.  Hacking is that fungi and the DEFCON hacker convention is the petri dish where this new organism is cultivated.  Like penicillin, this mold can be used for good.  This culture is growing tendrils beyond cyberspace and into the human mind.   Complex systems and technologies are synergizing toward an integral hacking solution now pushing humanity into new levels of communication by slipping passed the psychological firewalls to communicate on a deeper level with kick ass Jedi mind tricks.  Prepare for psychological nudity!

At DEFCON 14, Richard Thieme’s subject was “Beyond Social Engineering: Tools for Reinventing Yourself” in which he discussed how to “manage multiple modular identities” then link them into a seamless life by leveraging them with an intimate knowing of the true inner self (2).  The auditorium was crammed with wide-eyed technophiliacs at the edge of their seats.

Even though Thieme freely admits to not having any discernable technical hacking skills he is able to successfully “hack” (a.k.a socially engineer) his way into a very elitist, and young and mostly apathetic counter-culture.  He is an Integral Hacker.

The same skills used naturally by Mr. Thieme are used by integral leaders like Brett Thomas, co-founder of the Stagen Leadership Institute, to recognize a person’s worldview, determine what stage of development they are likely to identify with and then communicated with them on that level (4).  An integralist would call this “skillful means” but hackers call it a subtle form of social engineering.  Social engineering has a slightly negative connotation as it is usually associated with manipulation rather than enhanced communication. 

As a complete method of hacking people, integral hacking goes way beyond mere social engineering and into Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) techniques.  This subject was also discussed at DEFCON 14.  Brad Smith of Computer Institute of the Rockies discussed how law enforcement, FBI and other three letter agencies use NLP during interviews and interrogations (2).  Full spectrum people hacking would include all of the NLP “physiological lock picking” techniques to get full access the root of ego.

Past DEFCON speakers touching on the outer reaches of wetware and integral hacking have included Thieme’s, “Hacking a Trans-Planetary Net” which touched on the need for hacking to include “an artist’s imagination, an obsessive hunger for knowledge, and a deep understanding of cyborg humanity” (1).  Former hacker Susan Thunder spoke on “Social Engineering and Psychological Subversion of Trusted Systems” which was about infiltrating a company without physical or digital access (3).  People are the weakest part of any secure network.

Hackers are the gun slingers of the Wild, Wild Web, living in a world of 20 year old millionaires who have already change the world and actual evil genius’ who are drifting ghosts pilfering the pockets of the ignorant weak.  Whether their intentions are holistic or selfish all hackers view ignorance as the greatest sin.  The DEFCON prides itself on a borderline dangerous freedom that is fertile ground of both immeasurable brilliance and debauchery of the filthiest sort.  It’s the frothiest edge of technological mayhem and creativity.  It is on the fringes of every digital-civilizations’ decomposing structures that you will find a culture of complex integral hackers of hardware, software or wetware growing and sending out spores.   

 

 

References

 

1. DEFCON. (July 28, 1999). DEFCON 4 Archive. Retrieved November 18, 2006, from http://defcon.org

2. DEFCON. (August 6, 2006). DEFCON 14. Retrieved November 18 2006,
from http://defcon.org

3. DEFCON. (July 28, 1999). DEFCON 3 Archive. Retrieved November 18, 2006, from http://defcon.org

4. Integral Leadership Review. Biography of Brett Thomas. Retrieved November 18, 2006,

http://www.integralleadershipreview.com

Thieme Works. (2001). Keynotes, Workshops and Retreats. Retrieved November 18 2006,
from http://www.thiemeworks.com

Setting Personal Goals: Integral Goals

Big Heart speaks: Dharmic Body

The greatest way to pray, wish, dream and ask God/higer self/source/universe for anything is to ask by becoming that which you desire.  Don’t just see it, be it! 

Asking with words in a prayer or by writing down goals are powerful techniques, but sometimes the things we desire are just lower parts of our selve’s wants and needs activated by feelings of emptiness.  This can be painful if we don’t know the true self.  Settling for the lower impulses is shallow and many times disappointing (the resultant equivalent of habitually looking in the refrigerator for something when bored).  By looking within and looking fearlessly into that which we really desire we can attain all of our dreams with effortless ease.  For our deepest, peerless desire is no different from who/what we are: formless without begining and without end, “the dreamer” as Aboriginal shamans say.    From that all accepting, painfully joyous emptiness arises all forms “dreams”.  But we should not become attatched to those forms and lose our selves. 

“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” KJV Mat 26

“..in the Aboriginal Dreamtime, there is a Dream in which everyone and everything is being Dreamed. Given the Dream, there is also a Dreamer, and the connection between the Dream and the Dreamer is the process of Dreaming. We all have the power of the Dream within us; it is our likeness to the Dreamer.”  — Nigel Taylor, Dreaming our Way Back to the Dreamer 

Never allow the dreamer to get lost in the objects of the dream.

We sometimes get fixated on the external objects and forms of life.  We think material things will make us happy.  We create for ourselves an ironic paradox as strange as the ego with which we interface with the outside world.  The very “desire” of the object can many times become the biggest obstacle because we unknowingly become fixated on the gap (not having) between us and the object which makes an even bigger gap between us and our happiness.  

We can have happiness instantly by simply living from our dharmic selves or dharmic body.  This means living toward our ultimate dream without comprimise and with our every action.

Having objects is not an intrinsically bad thing.  But don’t get fixated on the “wanting gap”.  Instead feel the objects and situations you wish as if they are already in the NOW.  Replace the gap of time/space with the wholness of feeling it NOW.  Allow that feeling to consumne all your fears.  That is the way of the dharmic self. 

“We are the music makers, We are the dreamers of dreams” – Arthur O’Shaughnessy

“the Secret” part2 on Larry King Live!

Beyond Positive Thinking part II on Larry King Live!

On 4 Nov. 06, Larry King featured Bob Proctor, Micheal Beckwith, John Assaraf, JZ Knight and Dr. De Martini. Now as promised, Larry King is bringing more people from “the Secret” on the 16th of Nov. 06.

Also featuring Jayne Payne of the intensive program
Details of part 2. of the Secret on Larry King Live! on the Secret.tv

Part 2, Airing Thursday, November 16
6:00 p.m. (PDT) on CNN
(for additional information, check your local CNN listings)

• James Arthur Ray
• Jack Canfield
• Joe Vitale
• George Pratt, PhD
• Jayne Payne

See Larry King Live the Secret part 1 here.

Larry King Live the Secret part 2 here.

Extra Special thanks to http://whatanicewebsite.com/ (visit their site and say thanks for posting this) 

Mr. Fire on Larry King Live

More on the Secret.tv

special thanks to Steve Pavlina Forum.

Big Mind with Zen Master Genpo Roshi (dharmapalooza ’06)

Yesterday I attended Dharmapalooza hosted by Stuart Davis and featuring Zen Master Genpo Roshi.

Genpo discussed his Big Mind technique. Although “Big Mind” it is not Zen, I found it very useful in exploring all the dimesions of the self. As well as a very good compliment for Eastern enlightenment as a Western therapeutic perspective.

Here is what I got from it:

A person is a jumble of many different emotions, repressed desires and fears. There is seemingly no order in this soup of conditioned responses and (worse) no release for those we hide from the outside world.

Genpo Roshi’s Big Mind technique gives each of these feelings, fears, and passions a first person voice. Why is this powerful? It is self therapy that allows some repressed emotional mechanisms within us to have a place without conflicting or resurfacing as stress or (worse) cancer. The best way to understand how powerful this technique is is to allow some of those pent up emotions, such as Anger to speak freely in the first person. Repressing Anger (or any other emotion) is not health.

The real power is in giving each of these parts of you a title and a role. The Big Mind Technique works because it allows you to not only fully own them (instead of disassociating them or displacing them as someone else’s fault), but also organize them into efficient manageble states of shades of your self and realize that you are NOT your anger although you may have anger at times.

more details about Big Mind.

I would strongly recommend sitting in on a live Big Mind session or buying the DVD on Big Mind.

Ego, Inc: Genpo Roshi’s Big Mind

A person is a jumble of many different emotions, repressed desires and fears. There is seemingly no order in this soup of conditioned responses and (worse) no release for those we hide from the outside world.

Genpo Roshi’s Big Mind technique gives each of these feelings, fears, and passions a first person voice. Why is this powerful? It is self therapy that allows some repressed emotional mechanisms within us to have a place without conflicting or resuracing as stress or (worse) cancer. The best way to understand how powerful this technique is is to allow some of those pent up emotions, such as Anger to speak freely in the first person. Repressing Anger (or any other emotion) is not health.

The real power is in giving each of these parts of you a title and a role. The Big Mind Technique works because it allows you to not only fully own them (instead of disassociating them or displacing them as someone else’s fault), but also organize them into efficient manageble states of shades of your self.

EGO, INC

Imagine that you are not just one personality, but hundreds of personalities. You are in fact a whole corporation full of personalities each with an important task necessary to help the company stay afloat. Lets call this company Ego Incorporated. The mission is to preserve the precious “self”.

On the staff of Ego, Inc there is a security team assigned to protecting the self from the rest of the world and from itself. Security also ensures the self does not hurt others. The security teams is composed of individuals like: the Protector, the Skeptic, the Controller and Fear. Security knows that Ego, Inc has been hurt before (even by those close to the company… especially, by those close to it) so it has built WALLs and ceiling around EVERYtHING. The precious self in the middle of Ego, Inc (the precious asset) is not fond of being lock behind a wall. It conspires from the inside with staff members like Desire and Love who want to risk everything Ego, Inc has built. The self doesn’t like being locked inside with depressing employees like Loneliness and Sadness.
Other members of the Ego, Inc staff include Anger, the Victim (who does some PR work for the company every now and then), and Doubt.

Some of the sometimes neglected members include: the Inocent Child (the heart of the self), and the Damaged Self.

After taking a real hit from the outside world the Ego Inc Security team starts making not only 100 foot walls but moats and hot oil on the sides of the walls. The self with no way for genuine interaction with even the closest people in her life is left with only Dispair to talk to.

The CEO of this company is balanced with rational thought and emotional drive decides to hold a board meeting and allow each of the employees to talk. The CEO also highers consultants on to that company, Big Mind & Big Heart. They are a team who have all the answers. Big Mind and Big Heart don’t answer to anyone they are completely self sufficient. Ego Inc is actually a wholly owned subsidiary of the company Big Mind & Big Heart, who are global, beyond successful and rich beyond imagination. They have allowed Ego, Inc to run on its own to gather information for the expansion of Big Mind & Big Heart. They suggest that the company use one of its most valuable assets which they have hidden away, the Damaged Self. The Damaged Self takes on all the pain and damage that each of the employees incur. It does so openly and with total incomprehinsible compassion. It is the sum total of what some would call an unsung hero. Since the Damaged Self takes on all the hurt and all the hits and disappointment, the security team can relax some of their controls. And the self can take Joy out for a spin.

Integral Naked: Integral Ken Wilber

Integral means complete, inclusive, and comprehensive.  My life has taken on an integral value.  For a few years now, I have been flirting with improving every aspect of myself: my body, my mind, my spirit.  I have always kept my eyes open for the best method of self improvement and enlightenment.  Lately, I’ve been improving all aspects of myself:  I weight train, I’m always reading and learning and I also meditate (“meditate on Gods word day and night” – is my latest experiment).  

For those who believe in total self improvement there is nothing quite as amazing (as far as systems go) as Integral Life Training.

I actually stumble across Integral Naked on Myspace.  I was surfing through my friends list.  One of my favorite pass times on the ‘Net is to look at my friends’ friends.  I don’t even recall which friends page I went to but this person had a man named Ken Wilber on their friends list.  I knew Ken was some kind of respected American philosopher but I wasn’t really familiar with his work (at least not directly).  

I have always been into hardcore spiritual individuals.  You know: rejected, rogue shaman types like Fred Allen Wolf, Carlos Castaneda and not particularly skeptical, bean counting, BORING scientist who don’t believe in ANYTHING they can’t put next to a ruler.  Don’t get me wrong, I love science but it has always come off as arrogant, one sided and elitist against anything it doesn’t see as worthy.  Sometimes scientist don’t even look into a phenomenon before they completely dismiss and marginalize it and anyone who even researches some subjects (i.e. ufos, out of body experience).  Most times I would rather read a mad man’s book before I buy anything from some of the most respect “scientists”.  I had stereotyped Ken Wilber as the latter.  Since he has been so respected and (from my perspective) accepted by the core scientists of this age I figured he was a cynical, elitist, skeptic like the rest.    

Boy was I wrong.  Ken Wilber is… fuck.. I don’t know…  Something completely different than I have ever read.  Ken Wilber is like some kind of super scientist, guru master, monk, genius.  Something the world rarely notices let alone respects.  Charles Tart/Sri Auribindo/J. Krisnamurti types are the only persons I know of that are even remotely scientifically/otherworldly bad ass enough to compare to Ken Wilber.  And I must say Ken has surpassed all of them (IMHO) by embellishing, capstoning and co-creating this integral approach to spirituality, religion and science. The more I read this mans work, or hear him speak the more I respect and love him.  He has opened my eyes to a method connecting the Bhagavad-gita to the bible to the Clare Grave’s Spiral Dynamics to Freud to Robert Monroe’s Journey’s Out of the Body to the Tibetan Book of the Dead.  It is all starting to make sense and come together as I understand Ken’s Integral Methodical Pluralism vision of spirituality.Ken Wilber is the only man that I have ever wanted to make sweet, sweet love too.  Does that make me gay?!  If so give me some rainbow stickers and some leather chaps because I’m comin out like Lance Bass.  Then I’ll be Ken Wilber’s Diva Bitch.

Written by elamb · Filed Under Integral Naked, life hacking, spiritual hacking