Let me explain myself...

... you don't have to obviously.  But I hope you will.

I have read the holy works of several religions.  I have spoken to those whom see our future in the stars.  I have spoken to those whom see themselves in the stars.  I have looked upon ceremonies, traditions, celebrations, and rituals with an inquisitive eye.  I have always been concerned that I would give the wrong impression.

Although I don't want to be overly simplistic, I am a seeker of truth.  I am a devotee of logic.  I see magick everywhere but in my world, magick is not distinct from physics, biology, or mathematics.  I find it inadvisable to ignore any idea just as I feel it is inadvisable to simply accept an idea on its face.

I often find new information in really unexpected places.  I put together seemingly random pieces of data.  I cannot say I arrive at new insights.  I cannot say that the result is profound.  I do look at different perspectives and find more similarities than differences.

The midwife of 700 years ago, the shaman of centuries innumerable, the alchemist of the 17th century, the medical doctor current practicing... all would have similar recommendations in some cases.  Very many concepts and ideas have not stood the test of time.  But, if we look, there are practices and beliefs that endure.  For in truth, what has been true in all human endeavor is that it involved humans.

Whether a human believed that no higher power existed, believed that only one higher power existed, believed that only one higher power should be worshiped, believed that high powers existed but that they did not desire worship, believed in many higher powers, there is human belief.  Even if there is nothing else, there is belief.  We need not agree.  It doesn't matter.  Belief is a beautiful and powerful thing.  What we know has been disputed for centuries.  What we believe cannot be disputed.

For the past few centuries, many have strove to turn form the mysticism of the past.  There was an inherent danger in it.  It had in some cases become dogmatic.  But I believe that in steering away from dogma, we may have ignored things that at their root were based on empirical evidence.  It is difficult to be certain now, because human belief is so powerful.   One need only look to the placebo effect to see some small part of what that power is capable of.  The healer and the charlatan often wore similar guises, but the fact that many patent medicines contained opiates in no way meant that the opiates should not continued to be used.

I do believe we have gained insight.  I believe that written language has had a huge effect on our capabilities.  The shaman would have gained much from the work of other shamans if that knowledge was saved.  The alchemist would have been the chemist if fear had not led him to destroy his notes.  Those that destroyed a Books of Shadows doomed themselves to have to learn again what had been gained.  I do not believe that knowledge has been lost.  I do however believe that we have spent many years retracing steps taken long ago.

And so, I look to Stonehenge and see an observatory.  I look to the Mayan calendar as an amazing lesson in many respects.  I look to the Great Pyramid of Giza as an amazing and horrifying endeavor.  I look to the design of ancient temples and marvel knowing their intrinsic properties from calculation rather than experiment.  All in all, I marvel at humans.  They have learned and forgotten many things.  They have arrived at the same result from dozens of different directions.  It is in these results that I find truth.  Sometimes, I simply choose to follow multiple directions myself.

The unstoppable force meets the immovable object...

... and destroys it in an explosion of reality.  Like many cliches, the root question is both deeper and more simple than it appears.   And like most cliches, the deeper question has already been answered.   There is no immovable object.   There is status quo.  There are things that are "solid".  There are things which are gigantic, enormous, etc.  But everything moves.

Anything that is truly static does not exist in our universe or at least not in a form we could recognize.  Matter can not defy the forces that act upon it.  The towers of the ancients are old and crumbled.  The great families have been born and died.  Greece fell.  Rome fell.  The great empires of Europe rose and fell.  Our own empire will one day fall.  Safety is an illusion.  Permanence is an illusion.  Anything that stops moving, dies.

Now as for the unstoppable force, show me one that can be stopped.  Degraded perhaps.  Deflected perhaps.  But the light that was present at the dawn of the universe is still going out.  The first mover, whatever it be, set off a chain reaction that has never stopped.  Passion, drive, love, these things go on.   They may lessen, but they are not stopped.  Their original source may be destroyed but their force is still felt.

So, simply look around the world.  You are an unstoppable force.  People have told you that there are immovable objects out there.   They have misled you.  All obstacles can be surmounted.  All that is static is destined for destruction.  As I have said many times... all things change.

Group dynamics

I have let my mind wander a bit of late.  Synchronicity often seems to punctuate ideas.  And so, 6 days before the start of a another festival in the Nevada desert, I am contacted by an organization dedicated to clean water.  The day before I was reminded of the simple joy of dealing with competence.  These events usher in the end of summer in the United States.  Although the sun will face the northern hemisphere for another month, the start of the school year effectively ends it for a large section of the population.

All of these thoughts congealed this morning.  I have often spoke of the power of individuals.  However, humans are social creatures and their potential is not lessened by the presence of their fellows.  I have often found myself in the presence of a group that negatively effects its members.  Metaphors involving sheep often come to mind.  Labor unions, focus groups, and Congress often cater to the "lowest common denominator".  As these groups become large, their expressed opinions can cause us to think poorly of their members.  Group members can become so concerned with agreement or "unity" that they lose focus.  A critical part of group dynamics is exclusion.  "Splinter groups" need to be exactly that.  They need to be separated out from the other members.  They can then be considered allied groups. but this separation allows for actual unity or purpose.

In addition, a group needs a goal.  Forming groups simply to form groups or to reach agreement is a pointless activity.  I will not get into a discussion regarding the psychology of groups, "group think", or "brainstorming".   Individuals can ask others for ideas and have done so for millenia.  This process has not been improved upon by having less organized meetings.

Working smaller groups are well known to many.  Organized sports would not exist without them.  A "herd" of baseball players would be useless.  There is no omnipresent coach.  A quarterback may call a play but all planning ends when the ball is snapped.   Yes, I just used a football metaphor.

Although I personally believe all groups benefit from a leader, all an effective group needs is someone to point in a direction.  Every year thousands of individuals gather in festivals throughout the country successfully and do amazing things.  Groups reroute rivers for irrigation.  Groups raise walls.  Groups build roads.  All of these things happened countless times without definitive leadership.  Families may adopt leadership structures but many work effectively without one.

In truth, a successful group is easy to create.  I have done it many times.  I ask others for aid with a task.  They either agree or refuse.  If they agree, we are a group.   If that task is living together, that group is referred to as a community and the task is ongoing.  People leave the group or join.  If the task is completed (whether successful or not), the group dissolves.

And so, although I believe humans are amazing creatures individually, we are also amazing in groups.  I would not live apart from my fellow humans.  I do not need to control them to interact with them.  I am a member of several communities.  I have watched dozens of groups perform what the individuals involved could not.

The next time you help someone move you have already solved dozens of problems that plague large corporations.  You have already proven that we can live together and work together.  You have proven that there is hope for us; that we can band together and make things better.  Congratulations!