Sacred Geometry

Did you know that the drummer from Tool, Danny Carey, uses principles of Sacred Geometry in his drumming? According to various internet sources, including the band's official website, he has been integrating geometric figures into his fills and rhythms for years. It's not discussed exactly how he does it, but I would imagine that the points of contact between the sticks and drums loosely correspond to some sort of pattern that he is imagining in his head.

Most sacred geometric shapes are an endless cycle. If one point is followed to another point in a certain pattern, the end will never be found. Carey gained insight into one of these shapes, the Unicursal Hexigram (above), while combining meditation and DMT. He used his new knowledge to set up his drum kit in a specific way that somehow enhances his playing.

Tool is known for giving their fans false information. What do you about this?

The Monomyth

I recently discoverd the theory of the 'Monomyth' by Joseph Campbell (1904-1987). I don't know how many of you have herd of this before, but its pretty fascinating. The basic idea is that the structure of all myths and religous beliefs, from any culture at any time, are essentially the same. Below is the criteria for the 'Hero's Journey,' one of the main myths seen throughout the world.


Act 1: Departure

Call to Adventure
Refusal of the Call
Supernatural Aid
Crossing the Threshold
Accepting the Call
'Belly of the Whale' (engulfed or dominated by opponent)


Act 2: Initiation

Road of Trials
Meeting with 'godess'
Meeting with temptress
Atonement with the Father
Apotheosis (ascending to a divine level)


Act 3: Return

Refusal to Return
Magic Flight
Rescue from Without
Crossing the Threshold (again)
Master of the Two Worlds
Freedom


This formula is used in almost all blockbuster successes. All of these terms are highly changeable; it is only the impact of each that matters. For example, Crossing the Threshold (in Act 1) for Lord of the Rings may be when the hobbits leave the Shire. In Alice in Wonderland it is when she falls down the rabbit hole. In The Hangover it is when they head out on the roadtrip.
I thought this was pretty cool, hope you do too!

Let me slap some prog on you.

BBQing Brain #4

I think that most people have the assumption that world peace is unattainable. That because humans are so bad and rotten this goal will never happen, there's always going to be SOMEONE out there that's going to ruin the cause for everyone else. Well, maybe this is true, but even if it is does that mean the end result should not be worked towards anyways? Wouldn't everyone want to live in a world CLOSER in similarity to one with world peace than the world we live in today? I think we have to work towards this goal, however futile it may be, through action. And we can't wait for someone else to solve the world's problems--we are all a part of the world, and it is the responsibility of each and every one of us to work towards putting a stop to things we believe are wrong.

Strange Vibrations

You know whats interested me lately? Vibes. I've noticed them, and I'm sure you have too—good ones, bad ones, strange ones. We're somehow unconsciously communicating with each other using senses beyond the ones you study in school.

Everything is somehow vibrating. As far as I know we do not have the methods and/or technology to scientifically detect these vibrations — perhaps because they are extremely fast or immeasurably miniscule. But this does not deter the idea. I won't take an argument from ignorance like 'ghosts don't exist because I've never seen one.' That's ridiculous.

Your chair, your pencil, your monitor — its all vibing. If you sit back and close your eyes, it shouldn't be hard to just 'feel' the sensation in the room. Isn't that remarkable? I think you are picking up the vibrations of the area. I've posted two songs with this post, try listening to both of them. It amazes me how drastic the change is. Certain things, like music or people, must have extremely strong vibrations that override inanimate objects.

Our Weapon

This message is a warning to the self-proclaimed Gods: we now have the means to violently rebel, and we will demonstrate this power if forced. Your domination of humanity has gone on for too long, and it is at this moment that this parasitic control ends. Peaceful protest has been conducted for two million years, and there comes a time when peaceful protest no longer has the power to advance justice.

The nature of the relationship between lower order beings and higher order beings is that the latter cannot even comprehend the former.

Humans and ants.

This relationship is what used to define us but is no longer the case. Our collective human consciousness proved your existence over two million years ago; the intellect required to do so should have granted us some respect. At that time, however, we had no means to challenge your authority. Your knowledge was infinitely greater than ours. You had the legitimate means to rule.

No longer is it the case that you are more knowledgeable. In our mind it is almost unarguable that we are now the more competent leaders. However, we do not wish to do to you what you have done to us for all of our existence. Slavery will be put to an end.

Loosen your hold on the universe—it can be shared. Your failure to back down will be taken as a sign of aggression. We will not hesitate in using our weapon if you deem this to be your fate.

The Greek Pantheon: How Zeus Won

Here's a subject to cognate while listening to some good Prog: The Greek gods and goddesses. Pretty interesting stuff. These characters were developed by a culture that would essentially become the foundation for Western civilization. They existed to explain questions to the Greeks that were unanswerable at the time. To this day, despite whether any of it is true, the myths that the Greeks developed make a pretty awesome mythos. Turn up the volume and imagine.

It all started with Chaos. From within or without of Chaos came into existence Gaea (female, Earth), Tartarus (male, 'beneath') and Eros (male, sexual attraction). These are the primordial (self-made) beings.

From Chaos also sprang Erebus (darkness, gloom) and Nyx (night). These two figures were actually born of Chaos and are not primordial.

From Gaea came Uranus (heaven, sky, male), Mountains and Pontus (sea). From the bonding of Uranus and Gaea came the twelve Titants, the Cyclopes and the Hecatonchires (hundred-handed).

These beings lived an incredibly long and uncomfortable existence within Gaea's womb. Uranus (with the spunk only a god posseses) refused to end intercourse and give his children the opportunity to be born. His logic was that if his children were born one of them may be powerful enough to overthrow his position as the masculine ruler of the universe. But, of course, the pieces don't always fall where you want them to. Cronus castrated his father with a sickle.

Cronus took his father's position as ruler of the universe, lord of the sky, and mate of Gaea. Their bonding produced the first generation of Olympian gods: Hestia, Hades, Demeter, Posiedon, Hera, and Zeus. Cronus, fearing one of his children would overtake him like he overtook his father, ate all of his children. He reasoned that he would have better control of them within his own body than within Gaea's.

Of course his logic, too, was flawed. The last of his children, Zeus, was switched at birth with a rock. Cronus, nothing more than an brutal ogre at this point, ate the rock thinking it was his son. When Zeus was grown he overtook Cronus and became the permanent and most successful sky god. Zeus marries Hera and they had a son: Ares, the god of war. From his six affairs spring six more children: Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Aphrodite and Dionysus.

Imagine #2

You discover an aspect of yourself that you are unable to cope with. An aspect that you previously understood and at some point forgot. A fact so shaking it makes you feel like you don't know yourself anymore. You think about what 'self' is and, for the first time in your life, attempt to be honest with yourself.

You spend a while rebuilding and integrating what you forgot. You do things in new ways; you socialize with different people, you develop new beliefs, you eat different foods, you go different places. Eventually you feel whole again.

You are you. How did the recent realization shake your belief so tremendously? It shouldn't have mattered; no matter what you do, YOU are YOU. Try as you may, you cannot release yourself from that prison.

This brings you back to distress. You don't know what you are, where you are, when you are. You don't know what a you is. You don't have the capacity to understand what anything is—no one does! People are out there making decisions on nothing but guess-guided hunches. Everything is a theory, and it is only 'theorized' that theories exist!