Book Review: “The Red Album of Asbury Park”
Posted on September, 15 at 6:51 pm
The Red Album of Asbury Park is a very entertaining book. It is a story of romance, crime and personal success. Involved in this story is a wide expanse of characters each with their own unique personalities. These varying personalities come to life and through the writer grips us in this wonderful narrative.
The thing I found most interesting about this book was that it is really not known at all till the end how this story was going to play out, there seemed to be little if any foreshadowing. The plot always kept you guessing. Another very interesting aspect of the book was how different characters each of such a completely different mix could be thrown together to form this complex plot. Oftentimes authors find themselves limited by their characters but in this book all contribute in unique ways whether it be gangsters, musicians or or the protagonists’ lovers.
One thing seems evident is that clearly these characters are drawn from the authors experience in life. It would seem very unusual to compile such a varied assortment of characters based on creative energy alone. The conversation seems natural in the book and all the characters individual quirks come out clearly and succinctly as they would in real life. When reading this book I get the feeling that a story such as this could certainly happen in real life so true are the characters to life.
If you are looking for an exciting story of coming of age for a rock musician among lovers and ne’er do wells this is the book for you.
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The Annotated “The Yoga Party: Philosophical Writings”
Posted on June, 30 at 5:39 am
I felt pressed to get the 3rd edition of The Yoga Party: Philosophical Writings (the present edition) out because I thought it was important to be put in circulation. Unfortunately to get the most out of this edition one would invariably need a philosophy background, both West and East (most importantly in the East Sri Aurobindo).
Since I’m aiming for a release date for the 4th edition by 2010 it’s time for me to get crackin. In this edition I will include a index, glossary, and footnotes with in some cases short excerpts of the relevant philosophers.
I also have unpublished political writings and poetry if the demand presents itself for the second and third volume of the Yoga Party. I imagine the present third edition will be difficult and frustrating for some reading it now. Once again I published this early because I think the ideas needed to be out there so I hope you will forgive me for releasing such a difficult text.
I’ve listed recommended reading on Goodreads which will give an introduction to the main ideas of Idealism, Materialism, Rationalism and Empiricism. I encourage you to join my discussion group on Goodreads (listed at the top) where I can answer questions. I truly believe that my book presents ideas which are important and relevant to todays discourse.
So until 2010 (and afterwards of course) I am available for any questions you may have so please don’t be afraid to ask. As is listed previously the Third Edition of The Yoga Party: Philosophical Writings is available on Google Book Search for those that don’t have the buck to drop and have iron clad eyes. I wish you well. Otherwise the bound edition is on Amazon.
So now the annotated version is underway…
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Philosophy and Action
Posted on June, 21 at 3:51 am
In the book “The Synthesis of Yoga” in Chapter XII titled The Realization of Sachchidananda by Sri Aurobindo it states
“It is at least a fundamental principle principle of the ancient wisdom, the wisdom of the East on which we are founding ourselves, that philosophy ought not to be merely a lofty intellectual pastime or a play of dialectical subtlety or even a pursuit of metaphysical truth for its own sake, but a discovery by all right means of the basic truths of all-existence which ought then to become the guiding principles of our own existence. ”
Philosophy should mean something. It should be for something and it should amount to something. Philosophy in the West has been neutered and any attempt to bring philosophy to earth is derided and is often considered to be subversive. This is why Philosophy is considered in the West to simply be a waste of time. On the rare occasion where philosophy has been substantial as in Sri Aurobindo’s work or the work of Karl Marx the attitude is taken either that with Aurobindo for example that his writings are cultist (and therefore suspect) or in Marx’s case that his writing are subversive and ultimately evil.
Philosophy should mean something and stand for something. It should not be an idle exercise practiced only by those in the “Ivory Towers” like the scholars in Hermann Hesse’s famous work “The Glass Bead Game.”
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I’m a Writer!
Posted on June, 7 at 3:50 am
Well I’ve sold my first book and I’ve had my first review. I’m now well on my way to success (or not). I’m looking forward to learning from the reader’s of my book. I need to keep an open mind to improve myself. As Aristotle said once something to the effect that learning is not pleasant. To improve myself I must gird myself and be resilient.
Philosophy is a hard sell in any case. Most often if the material is good the philosopher is not recognized in their lifetime. Those that are recognized are academics, something that I no longer am. This is assuming that in fact there is something of value in my book and I should not be so presumptuous to assume so.
Sometimes I think I’m just working out the contradictions in my mind when I write. I think there must be some logical pattern to explain existence but Einstein once said that using logic to understand the universe is a dead end. But then Einstein ran up against quantum mechanics.
Perhaps things in fact are not logical at all, or that my system is flawed.
I tried to create something that would be useful in the world, that would be something the world really needed. But naturally borrowing from a 20th century Indian Philosopher will probably not tickle many’s fancies. Perhaps I’m so silly to think that people would find it valuable based on it’s merits. It is so foreign to western tastes that I now think it is unlikely that it will ever catch on. As a friend told me perhaps in a hundred years (if at all).
I know it’s abysmally difficult to read and sometime I wonder if it makes any sense at all. It makes sense to me though but am I an apt judge? One of my pals (who swears by it BTW ) who went through the philosophy program with me asks me to explain it to him because for him too it is very difficult.
One thing in my book is that there is spiritual as well as physical evolution. Recently I’ve thought that perhaps there is both evolution and devolution and that the coming of enhanced consciousness is not guaranteed. One can consider the dinosaurs I suppose.
Well time will tell. I can’t predict the future. But I made the effort and it was a supreme effort.
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Carrying Out the Load
Posted on May, 13 at 5:42 am
The forest green is ne’er too far
To intercept the evening star
The valley grove is none to deep
To interrupt their placid sleep
The world turns as stars shine bright
The moon then glows with light this night
The stars are masked, the moon’s faint ray
Then, the sun, hearkens the coming day
A narrow stream goes flowing by
A wispy cloud floats in the sky
The grove of trees stands in the air
A possum scurries, a hopping hare
A morning fire, they rub their hands
And hold their blankets, tight, in their hands
And cereal and cinnamon spice
Seal away the long cold night
The beggars dress and down the road
With aplomb, carry out the load
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Introduction: “Dualism and Nondualism”
Posted on April, 19 at 8:04 pm
We exist. This we know for sure but the question that comes up often is why? A likely response would be “does there need to be a reason?” Perhaps we need to look at some sort of divine intelligence to explain our existence, for if we are here we must have a purpose. For what would our lives mean if we didn’t have a purpose?
But it would not seem prudent to posit a purpose in order to feel better. But it would surely seem to be a cold world without some sort of meaning. When feeling so alone one wants solace in their travail. When one is friendless it is comforting to have a friend that can listen. When one has reached the end in their life it would be nice if there were someone or something caring enough to greet them on the other side.
People find themselves so alone in western culture, especially American (US) culture. The world is foreign, their friends are competitors, their wives and husbands are potential philanderers. And of course to show any real emotion with someone of your own gender could make you an outsider, someone not man enough.
But God can be trusted. God loves you unconditionally. God hates the sin but loves “his” creation. God will never forsake you and God will never cross you. God is your perfect friend. And since God is not physical but is spirit you cannot be worried about having your relationship with God questioned as being swishy.
People live their lives largely alone. Some have fortunately been able to cultivate a lifelong relationship with a significant other (if they so choose). But life is not fair, even those you love and trust can be torn from you in an instant because of a mistake, or an accident, or because of some unnamable disease. Then where is one to turn?
One turns to God the creator. God loves you or so we are told. But can we know that God is there to hear us? Like our father who protected us this God in heaven protects us. Like our father who provided the semen which instigated our birth so our holy father created all and loves all his creation. Yet God is transcendent and the world is immanent and never the twain shall meet.
In the West we depend on dualism. In philosophy this is the idea where the mind (e.g., one’s spiritual nature) is separate from the body (e.g., our physical nature). This idea of dualism has been very effective in increasing our capital and subjugating our enemies. Dualism is a very effective way of manipulating the world. With dualism we have the subject (ourselves) and the object (everything else). We embody the mental sphere and the world and in some sense the uneducated masses composing physical inert matter. But this presentation does not adequately explain the genesis of dualism.
In the Judeo-Christian tradition God is worshipped. Some people take this God so seriously you can’t even spell the word “God” out, that this is some sort of sacrilege. It seems to some people at least to even try to understand God is sacrilege. After all it was the downfall of “man” from eating of the apple of knowledge that ended paradise.
So now we have to find our way out of the wilderness. How is one to do it? It is either through faith or reason. Speaking of reason it seems “reasonable” to use ones God given abilities to the extent they are possible. This seems to do this is a fitting tribute to God. Faith is satisfying for many or most but in fact how can we know that faith is the answer? We are often compelled to accept things without thinking about them which of course is what faith is all about. Yet it should be noted that the teaching of Jesus are very different from the story told about his life and especially his resurrection.
Jesus certainly was a thinker, perhaps the most profound of all time, but the thing that sets Jesus apart in Christian tradition is the redemption promised to “man” through Jesus for man’s sin of eating of the apple of knowledge. Jesus on the contrary was a teacher with wisdom to dispense although he has become through Holy tradition to be the sacrificial lamb.
To be human is to think. Everyone thinks differently. Everyone depends on a base of dogma from which their whole life radiates. Yet what we think or more importantly “the way we think” determines the way we understand the world. But for the ardent believers thinking becomes dogmatic constructions.
Fortunately or not the world does not need a world of thinkers. It doesn’t make sense in a society driven by profit to educate the masses. It is better that those that are driven don’t think at all. For if we were all to think we would probably not accomplish much of anything and society would most certainly fail. These non-thinkers can and are compelled do all the work and provide for those that don’t work.
Though it is not in society’s interest to have all people highly educated it is necessary to have an educated class. Like Odysseus bound to the ships mast so as not to have the ship and crew lured to destruction by the entrancing songs of the sirens, in society those that must follow orders are driven by one bound to the mast of knowledge. But now the ship may still founder with captain and crew if the sound of the sirens cannot be overcome. The echoing of the singing pervades the sinews of our bodies and reverberates in our soul. The distance between body and spirit has been compromised. This sound echoing in a cacophony of inspiration threatens the very foundation of our civilization. Now postmodernism and the death of capitalism is upon us. Maybe still it is not too late. Maybe still the myth of dualism can still be exposed.
Posted in dualism and nondualism, philosophy | 4 Comments »
New Book with provisional title “New Book”
Posted on April, 12 at 7:48 pm
Since I continue to post my work online free of charge (although copyrighted) I will be posting my new book here too, although it will probably involve revision before it goes on Google Book Search like my other books. I will list it in it’s own category on here in reverse order (descending instead of ascending as you read down) so you can read it in order at any time on this site. It should be posted here at least till I put it on Google Book Search.
In this book I’m more focused on the mechanism in western culture that results in social fragmentation. I’ll publish the introduction soon.
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Book: “Yoga Party: Philosophical Writings” now available
Posted on March, 4 at 9:45 pm
Please see under Pages “Links to Books Available”
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The Serene Life
Posted on February, 16 at 9:34 pm
Living in the present
One can see the age
Of salamanders swimming
or conversations with a sage
The manner of the multitude
Must never be forgot
a sacrifice of artifice
for a greater thing is sought
A crystal cave - a rebellion
is desirous for the all
that meander here and to and fro
toward a happiness enthralled
And a desire which wraps around the brain
Can never be forgotten much
the lights of the rainbows shines
or forest beauty to be sought
And relish all that God has brought
no matter where or how
for to leave without a kiss apart
endears you with us all
So grander days before you
Proclamations of a Lord
for peaceful plodding onward
Brings one peaceful in accord
So be true to that which guides you
and keeps you on your path
for to deny that which abides in you
denies for that which you hath
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A Justification For My Work
Posted on February, 5 at 8:41 am
Some may wonder why I have written this book.
When living ones life one wants to have a legacy. I have no children, no fortune. But I hope to leave something to the world that may be useful. It troubles me the things that are going on in the world. The USA exerts its influence throughout the world based on violence.
Sometimes I’m not sure whether this is the way things naturally are human nature based on violence or whether this is a particular American invention. I think to answer this one needs to look at history. There is ample evidence to demonstrate that some cultures have lived in peace but have been supplanted by the more violent cultures.
To put things another way is human behavior especially United State’s weltanschauung typical of the human species at large or is it just part of United States culture?
An even more important question is is violent behavior part of our genetic endowment or is it part of social conditioning? This is an important question. The world has reached a threshold where we find ourselves facing each other with ever more violent weapons. Was this outcome necessary that is is this outcome a part of our human nature? Or is this part of our teachings?
We find ourselves at every turn having this ideology of force and violence used against us. As children we are called sissies or even “fags” if we show any compassion for our fellow human beings.
But history is notable for relatively peaceful attitudes outlooks and behaviors toward the world. A good example are the Buddhists or some US Indigenous nations.
Yet in the US such an attitude is looked at as being soft and in some cases when violence is used against such peaceful inhabitants this is looked upon as being justified a sort of Darwinism where the conquering people are doing the human species a service. Of course such things were not what Darwin intended at all
Now the world is surrounded by saber rattling nations vowing “justice”. Certainly if this is the makeup of the human species then this must be part of our genetic endowment. But if one considers the matter one finds that those nations that do not pursue war and do not produce weapons fall easy prey to those that have these sinister weapons. With the attitude of pillage and plunder these peaceful people are overthrown and destroyed.
Yet the question is is this peaceful nature the “natural” outcome of human behavior. In other words is this behavior some part of our genetic endowment, or is it the case now that the former “peaceful” members of the world are eliminated perhaps eliminating this gene?
If one takes the twisted Darwinistic perspective promoted by the violent peoples of the world then one finds that while violent behavior may have been justified at some point in our history that is from an egoistic perspective that this is not the case now, as many nations possess weapons which we can use to annihilate each other.
So if the human species is determined by our genes then we are about to jump off the cliff like lemmings to perish from our own weapons as in science fiction where humans are overthrown by robots their own invention which comes to destroy them.
First of all we must decide if there is some sort of “violence” gene. Secondly the question is is there a corresponding “peace” gene. Thirdly has the peace gene been eliminated from the genome by the violence prone peoples of the world? Finally if the foregoing is not true then is human behavior not determined by our genetic endowment but is rather a learned behavior, then there is hope for humankind. Otherwise it seems all is lost.
It’s hard to know if this aspect of human behavior is genetic or learned. Nevertheless examining racism it is clear that the genetic endowment between humans varies little. There is no characteristic except for example skin color or our hair characteristics that makes us different intrinsically as human beings. In other words these differences are inconsequential and to assert that these characteristics are a significant difference amounts to bias and in some cases racism.
If one needs more evidence for this then one only needs to trace blood types through human groups to discover that there is no “genetic” characteristic that differentiates humans essentially according to this. So it seems unlikely that we are predetermined to exhibit violent behavior to other humans, or that this supposed peaceful “gene” has been wiped out in the act of Social Darwinism.
Or if it is in fact the case that there is a gene that determines human behavior especially violent behavior toward other humans then there is a gene for peaceful peoples in our past and that even peoples that are peaceful that exist today. So it is the case or at least it may be hoped that it is the case that the human species have the ability to coexist with other peoples of the world without the necessity of destroying them if this peaceful gene can be preserved.
So perhaps then we should rejoice there is hope!
But perhaps there is not any hope at all. That even if this behavior is not part of our essence but rather part of the learned experience that people can be brought to realize their own self interest. Certainly the human species must be saved!
But when one realizes that we are simply the result of the primordial chain of life, that as we came into existence as a specie, too we certainly will perish or at least become something uniquely different from today. Perhaps our influence will be felt for millions of years as the birds have in which many feel they are descendents of the dinosaurs.
But is it important for the human species to continue to exist? What if we were to become extinct as other species eventually do? Does nature care? Does God care if we exist?
If you take the religious perspective we are the creation of God in God’s image. Our existence is valuable as an extension of God’s creation and in a sense all are chosen by God. As with Aristotle where the planets made circles around the earth or Ptolemy where the planets too revolved around the earth or Copernicus where the solar system was heliocentric but our solar system still was at the center of all. And with Einstein we find that at every point in space that point is the center in reference to itself as all things are.
This vanity of the human species as being in some sense divine in nature is quickly being wiped out by science as it becomes clear that we are just another species in the primordial chain of being that began with the Big Bang and subsequently is acting out of dynamism of the hydrogen atom.
So does the universe or “God” care about us as a species? Are we favored in any way by the expanse of all in which we live? Or are we simply the unfolding of an infinite chain of being which continues on and on.
Not only is the question about whether or not we are simply a part of the cosmic order that cares nothing about us, but rather should we care whether the universe cares about us or even should we care about ourselves?
If we blow ourselves up does the earth care? If we irradiate the planet does the planet care? It seems not. Should we care? Are we important enough to preserve for anything at all? If not it doesn’t matter what kind of wholesale slaughter takes place what sort of genocide occurs? It seems that this ultimately is the decision of the primordial chain of being. Like a bouncing ball if one kicks it it moves in a certain direction determined by the physical properties of kinesis.
So as we are barreling down the path of life if we are determined by our “violent” genes the question is not only can we change it but is it worth changing?
The question becomes important that are we really free? If we are not free this question is important in many respects. If we are not free then we cannot change the path that humans are transversing and also if we are determined like an insane man cannot be found culpable of a crime we cannot talk about the ethical proscriptions about whether we are “worth” saving.
So if we have this violent gene or not, it matters not if we are not free. So should we find freedom? Or must we find it? It seems we must grasp at freedom out of the same egoistic desire which dooms us down this primordial chain of being. We should ask not why we should have freedom but rather does freedom exist? Otherwise what’s the point?
We should not decide this question out of a desire to justify our own existence, to do so would skew the question that is if we are matter following certain universal laws or that we are in fact free thinking beings.
But this brings us back to our original question. Are we determined and do we have a violent gene or not? Are we destined to bring about our own extinction or can the world be saved and also are we worth saving?
If we can in fact save ourselves we must be free to do so. And if we are free to do so then it seems we do have moral worth. So if we can save ourselves then we have moral worth.
It is my belief that the human specie is worth saving. It is also my belief that it is possible to save it. And if we are free then we are in fact able to act morally. If we are able to act morally then we can end violence against our brothers and sisters. In fact we must do that. Otherwise we cannot save ourselves and even more importantly we are not worth saving and therefore are not moral beings.
If we are free thinking this then makes us human endowed with this gift of creation by God or the infinite. If we are able to save ourselves it seems then we are worth saving otherwise it matters not our extinction and it seems nothing has been lost.
Following then in my work includes a justification for the positing of human freedom and an importance for our being in the world. A justification for our existence is in the infinite universe in this wide expanse where we would be easily lost in its enormity.
In order to change we must believe in something otherwise the outcome matters not. Whether this is science, or God, or the Infinite this belief enables us to fulfill what seems to be our destiny. That destiny is to survive and flourish, to reproduce and change to adapt as the world changes, to prevail throughout the mountains and fissures of the world as they present themselves.
To believe presupposes freedom and to be free justifies our existence and our importance. To be free enables us to join hands and face the future together not moving toward extinction or to be swept off the world by a divine hand but rather to find our place in the cosmos among the suns and planets and the other solar systems and stars and perhaps other species of distant worlds crying out for meaning. To be free implies our ability to survive. This ability to survive proves our moral integrity. This is human dignity.
Lets then stand firmly on the earth and affirm our existence for to do not is for naught.
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