The 12-Sided Mountain

Meditation:

Picture a triangle. It is made of some sort of natural material such as wood, stone or metal. It is close enough to you that it takes up your whole field of view. As you gaze at it, you notice the fine textures on the surface of the shape. You see imperfections, cracks, grain or whatever the nature of the material may be. Nothing else is in your consciousness except the observation; the image has your full attention.

Then, the shape starts to rotate slowly. An edge comes into view. Now, another triangle. You realize the shape is a three-dimensional form. The next side - a triangle as well - is now facing you. Your consciousness pushes out the observations of the previous side, as you behold the current one. It is made of the same material, but looks different. This side has its own personal characteristics. The features on this side slightly alter your overall feelings about the form.  Maybe you don’t like the coloring as much. Maybe you like it more. Maybe this side is more perfect than the first side. Maybe it is less perfect.

The form continues to spin until you see the third side with the same new experience and observations. A this point, a certain amount of wonder has made its home in you. You understand that you do not have full knowledge of the form, but are experiencing it gradually. You wonder what will be revealed next.

Finally, your view is expanded instantly and you perceive the form in its entirety, along with its purpose. The form is not just a sense perception. It now has purpose and intent - independent from your sensory observations - which brings it into a new dimension altogether.

How should we deal with the plurality of human perspective?

To the uninitiated, the spectrum of human experience is of no concern except in so far as it supports or challenges his or her own views. They see the world from inside their own experience outward. Their consciousness is peering through a window pane dirtied by their own emotions and experiences. This modal creates a loop of confirmation bias, to the extent that they are not able to recognize what is true and what is not. When they encounter those with similar views, the ego is fed and they are physically stimulated with hormones. When they encounter those with challenging views, the fight or flight response is activated, their body flooded with adrenaline and the blood is diverted from the vital organs to the tissues. The autonomous nervous system is in control and the result is animal-like response and behavior.

The initiate endeavors to look at the world clearly and unobstructed. Their perspective resides outside of their own personal experiences.  Universal, archetypal impulses shape their worldview. This state is only possible when a symbolic death takes place - the death of the lower ego. It is even common historically for initiates to take new names after this happens. When the old self vacates the temple, the true king can take his throne.

The process of assuming an outward perspective presupposes a number of things:

1. That a wider outlook is a better outlook.

2. That one individuals truth is not objective.

3. That humanity is created to work together and individually simultaneously, but with common purpose.

4. That we can benefit from others to fine tune and adjust our own outlook.

A father looks at his children and sees different individuals with different strengths and weaknesses. He looks into the future and sees them in different vocations, but always fulfilled and contributing to humanity in a worthwhile manner. He doesn’t judge them on which strengths and which weaknesses they are endowed, but rather how well they use and integrate them in their personal development. Their deficiencies are not viewed as irredeemable, but rather as necessary friction to propel and fuel their journey. The process of coming into contact with other perspectives is not an exercise in judgement, but rather an exercise in enlightenment. The plurality of human experience does not exist for the purpose of driving wedges between people, but to show us living examples of what we could or should not be.

      In the Old Testament, the Israelites were divided into 12 tribes, each having their own professions and contributions to the nation as a whole. They were spread out in every direction, streaming from one central source. They may have had different strengths and weaknesses, but all worked for one common goal - the will and pleasure of the Lord.

In the gospels, the body of Christ is depicted as being made up of people of all backgrounds and cultures. They are likened to an actual human body where all members work for the good of the whole, each member contributing their own intrinsic gifts - without which the body would be incomplete. The deficiencies of one are complemented by the strengths of another.

To the initiate the materialist represents the most mundane of outlooks, but nevertheless still contributes to the evolution of consciousness. In this realm, the will and frontal lobe thinking are developed, which teaches us the strength of natural law and the karmic consequences thereof. We learn through painful trials that nature cannot be subverted or undermined. These forces are developed, but in an imbalanced way. Similarly, to many believers, the modern professing Satanist is the epitome of evil. But from the initiates perspective, they are also contributing to evolution by embodying the forces of will and individuality, although once again in an imbalanced manner.

Once our consciousness is able to rise above our own bubble, we start to behold “the big picture”. The perspectives of different people is well-illustrated by a mountain. People may climb it from “12” different sides, using different methods, but they are all on the same mountain. The mountain even looks completely different from the different vantage points. But once they reach the peak, they can look down at every side simultaneously. They realize they are not the only ones on the mountain. They realize their journey to the top is only one of many. They realize they may not have chosen the best paths, and have made some bad choices along the way. At the top of the mountain, their newfound freedom allows them to soar with the outstretched wings of an Eagle around the peak, gazing down upon the overcome challenges.

Even if we cannot fully comprehend the width, breadth and depth of the human experience, we can train ourselves to live in a way in which we are constantly open to learning new ways of climbing our mountains.