“Sometimes the dim veil between sanity and insanity is perception.”

This is the first post (converted from a personal blog post) that is effective attempt at untangling my thoughts and contemplations on the aforementioned quote. As with pretty much all of my writings and posts, they are subject to being re-assessed, reviewed and changed by taking into consideration my own changing thoughts and the views of others where new perspectives are offered. I will likely do the same for more quotes as I find it to be a productive process. If other people find these words to be useful? Excellent.

Hysteria — a patriarchy-imposed blanket term used to describe a myriad of ‘symptoms’ that deviated from the norm’ of what was acceptable for those of a particular sex in history up to the near-present. Social deviances and a fixation on the womb resulted in the control of women who were either suffering from nought but not adhering to the behavioural standards of the time or who had genuine temporary or permanent mental distress to varying degrees. But while there were no doubt genuine cases of mental illness under the umbrella that the term denoted, there were also women who were at no fault and who had no malady in the slightest swept up and under the proverbial rug.

It is the social norms and culture of a particular setting that dictate what is regarded as ‘sane’ or ‘insane’. The modern definitions of it, for example, are the result of Western biomedicine which is seeped in the erasure of indigenous and traditional concepts of mental wellness.

Sanity is normalcy but what is normalcy at the individual level varies, as well as having the potential to vary at the cultural level as well.

What is regarded as being mentally sound and the associated health – and how to treat mental illness – differs. Those with foresight and the ability to heal fragmented spirits are regarded as among those that they are treating. The visionaries, the flag-bearers, the torch-lights among the ranks of those carving their own path.

To broach the metaphysical in this regard, one who stands as enlightened and with eyes open to more than just what is on the surface may well be regarded as mentally ill from the perspective of others. To feel the resonance of what is above, to draw on the threads of energy wrapping like a silken cocoon. To dance to an altogether more animistic rhythm.

I am a staunch advocate of mental illness being treated as seriously as physical ailments. But I am also of the mindset that practices and perspectives outside those of the dominant West have existed and flourished for centuries before they were crushed, controlled and cast aside, demonised and condemned. Not all that stands contrary needs to be seen of as a foe, to be strangled out of existence and discarded once drained of all purpose and place.

There are times when the defining line between sanity and insanity is distinct, in all cultures, cutting across the murky lines of norms, values and clustered definitions. The need to heal is universal. But then there are times when the definition wavers and blurs, and worse, when it can be wielded as a weapon to take to the fight against another – to set them aside, to cast doubts.

- This seemed to be the most appropriate section of the forum to post in as it is one of the Aset Ka's publications and it relates to the Order's philosophy and worldview.

This was a very nice read. Thanks for posting it here as well and I'm looking forward to further articles in the series based on other spiritual quotes.

Although I agree with everything you said I just wanted to add a small disclaimer that mental illness is a very serious issue especially to those working with the occult and that should always be approached with care and properly treated by specialists and experts in the field. Particularly to people embarking on this dangerous journey that is the Asetian path and current I would recommend to always keep their mental health in check and under close scrutiny because there is a broad history of corpses who have fallen along its sinuous path due to not taking those warnings seriously.

Jonathan wrote:This was a very nice read. Thanks for posting it here as well and I'm looking forward to further articles in the series based on other spiritual quotes.

Although I agree with everything you said I just wanted to add a small disclaimer that mental illness is a very serious issue especially to those working with the occult and that should always be approached with care and properly treated by specialists and experts in the field. Particularly to people embarking on this dangerous journey that is the Asetian path and current I would recommend to always keep their mental health in check and under close scrutiny because there is a broad history of corpses who have fallen along its sinuous path due to not taking those warnings seriously.

I definitely and completely agree. I think if I was writing it again, I would add that warning in as a point of serious consideration. As it stands, I'll edit my blog's post to add that in.

Excellent.  

May I ask you one question regarding your post?  

You mention sanity and insanity.  I think you included meaning more toward the female section but I would want to make it more inclusive, if I may?

What degree do you personally feel the topic of Rudolph Steiner presents as the 3rd epoch (the Egyptian influence) would play in this scenario?  Those lives that were spent in that area that included the higher frequency of magic and vibrational energy which many learned to walk within while in the incarnation could just as well be applied to what Jon has mentioned in the past, meaning that some may have been affected by the Asetian background in magic not being grounded properly as well as improper use of it and it reflected insanity.  I am speaking of this being carried forward in the lives lived from that time.  Do you have any reflections based on your intuition looking at it from hindsight?  Just as Mr. Marques mentioned the Asetian background is not for everyone as well as being one should be careful in the study of the magical workings, we see this in several places.  Does this play a part in your view of the insanity section you contemplate?

I must add it is my own personal view that every one of us on this forum, that has been here for any length of time, have a past life spent in more than one life in Egypt past.  Each cell in our body carries all the information about every one of our previous lives.  So I would imagine that insanity would carry forward as well as other parts of our knowledge base.

Maxx wrote:Excellent.  

May I ask you one question regarding your post?  

You mention sanity and insanity.  I think you included meaning more toward the female section but I would want to make it more inclusive, if I may?

What degree do you personally feel the topic of Rudolph Steiner presents as the 3rd epoch (the Egyptian influence) would play in this scenario?  Those lives that were spent in that area that included the higher frequency of magic and vibrational energy which many learned to walk within while in the incarnation could just as well be applied to what Jon has mentioned in the past, meaning that some may have been affected by the Asetian background in magic not being grounded properly as well as improper use of it and it reflected insanity.  I am speaking of this being carried forward in the lives lived from that time.  Do you have any reflections based on your intuition looking at it from hindsight?  Just as Mr. Marques mentioned the Asetian background is not for everyone as well as being one should be careful in the study of the magical workings, we see this in several places.  Does this play a part in your view of the insanity section you contemplate?

I must add it is my own personal view that every one of us on this forum, that has been here for any length of time, have a past life spent in more than one life in Egypt past.  Each cell in our body carries all the information about every one of our previous lives.  So I would imagine that insanity would carry forward as well as other parts of our knowledge base.

I definitely appreciate any and all inputs for improvement and suggestions for further consideration and points to ponder.

It is not something that I have come across previously in depth but considering it now, that does make quite a degree of sense to me. Flashes of past lives carried forward into a time when regarding such as truth is contrary to the norm, going on to be regarded poorly. I've seen warnings regarding past lives before here and there -- to treat the stirring of memories cautiously and to self-criticise them because it is better that than taking them at face value. I can certainly see how they can potentially be disruptive to ill-prepared psyches.

Past life regression, not in the manner done by the Asetians, seems to be a place of ego and hubris; shouting of once-importance to compensate for the now. Slight tangent of an observation there perhaps.

I have encountered articles detailing that certain emotions and powerful experiences have transgenerational attributes, so something of considerable magical vibration and poor management in the sense of the occult having a similar effect in another incarnation aligns well in terms of making sense, to me.

This was a nice post and well-written. I wish I had more feedback but for now I'll say, good read.