Peter E. Pflaum - Golden Globe - The Synergy Network http://www.wiredbrain.net/ RE: Character The principles of Education: Objective and "right" reason with a respect for the "divine" are the conditions for successful people and social systems. Since becoming human is a social event, correct social habits of child raising are clearly so important to human history. C. S. Lewis, in "God in the Dock" (page 116 1970 Eerdmans Publishing, Grand Rapids Michigan) put the idea this way. Each generation is taught by an earlier generation. "The moment we forget this we begin to talk nonsense about education. We talk of the views of contemporary adolescence as if some peculiarity in contemporary adolescence had produced them out of itself. In reality, they are usually a delayed result -- for the mental world also has its time-bombs -- of obsolete adolescence, now middle-aged and dominating its form room. Hence the futility of many schemes for education. None can give to another what he does not possess himself. No generation can bequeath to its successor what it has not got. You may frame the syllabus as you please. But when you have planned and reported ad nauseam, if we are skeptical we shall teach only skepticism to our pupils, if fools only folly, if vulgar only vulgarity, if saints sanctity, if heroes heroism. Education is only the most fully conscious of the channels whereby each generation influences the next. It is not a closed system. Nothing which was not in the teachers can flow from them into the pupils. We shall all admit that a man who knows no Greek himself cannot teach Greek to his form: but it is equally certain that a man whose mind was formed in a period of cynicism and disillusion, cannot teach hope or fortitude." The Story: The dawn of civilization started in the Hindu Kursh down from Samarkand up and away from Kabul, where India, China, Tibet, and Afghanistan meet. Hidden in the high Himalayas, there has been an order of monks who practice the "Higher Wisdom" . They believe their practice is the foundation of civilization and the basis of human beings become human. They believe we exist as people because of this tradition. A tale does not have to be untrue to be instructive. Knowledge which is clearly implausible requires a suspension of disbelief like all good stories. Can you choice your own set of illusions to live by or do you live by the dreams of others ? The wisdom is contained in the various interpretations of ancient traditional tales, myths and parables and a practice called the sufi path. When people prepare themselves to listen they may become qualified to learn. Preparation requires the practice of paying attention. Concen tration requires clearing out noise and confusion in the mind. The practice requires a guide who is sensitive to the needs of the follower. The path is difficult because we make it difficult by being human. We have learned bad habits and go to great lengths to protect ourselves from ourselves. It takes time to learn new habits. The process of civilization and becoming human can not be done all at once, it can not be done in equal part for all people. Every step creates it's own dangers. This is the story of half steps forward and back on a twisted path. Wisdom can not be set down in a theology or laws because rules can be misused and become a new form of oppression. As in everything else, judgement is needed to make choices in a complex and confusing world. It is not a step-by-step process. The savage animal that is part of man's nature must be tamed as culture humanizes them. People are tamed by illusions. The lion tamer is really small and weak but the lions believe he is great and terrible. If lions raised their level of conscience there would be fewer lion tamers. The world, Sufi believe, as we know it, is an illusion. We are inhabitants wandering in our sleep. What we see are phantoms. We forget who we are and why we have come. As if we are in a darken room and can't remember why we entered. We say to ourselves, "what is it I came in here for?" Socrates, the guide to the West and his student Plato told the tale of the cave of shadows. The Greeks had three words for reality. The physical thing we see and feel; second, the name or idea of things we use in language, and finally a true and perfect reality which can guide us in morals and values. We know something of the first and second levels of reality but little of the third the "really-real". We remember that Socrates was encouraged to kill himself because he questioned traditional rules and corrupted the youth. We need a guide, like Socrates, that dares to open our eyes and help us return to the realm of light, outside the cave of illusions. Most likely we will be angry at those who try to help us. We are as eagles in cages, or lions in pits, we can not use the our powers of sight and flight. It is dangerous to try to help the caged beast. They bite the hand that tries to set them free. They can't understand the reality of their situation. They are both afraid and enraged. Their passions control their thoughts. They have only opinions based on impressions and emotions. The teacher must first teach the techniques of learning. The first step is thinking free of passion and setting free the memories of the past. A free soul will remind us of our purpose. Why did we enter this darkened room full of shadows? The rational and religious elements in humans are often not in balance with the passions and material interests of individuals. "In the world" means the material and limited vision of the many, (social illusions) "not of the world" means to abstract yourself from the current noise and see things for what they are without illusions. Religion can be a guide to reality parallel with science. The union of faith and reason is clearly better than an excess of either The path must be made clear and people know where they are in their journey. The easy answers - just have faith - or the divided soul - mostly in the rational, business- like "real world" where only Sunday is in the traditional religious mode. Split personalities are not very useful to either secular society or churches. Once the churches realize they have a practice to teach that does not conflict with reason and technology but supports and shapes it - they can become a mighty force in the modern world. There are limits to knowledge of correct social behavior and how to create a better person and society. It is not a new question. It may not be possible to expand these limits to our knowledge. Science develops powerful ideas that explain reality. We are not far from a unified theory in physics - light, electricity, magnetism, mass and motion - explained by the strong and weak forces of the atom. The study of man has more and more "weak" ideas rather than fewer powerful theories. Most of the history of civilization was in cultures with fixed, unchanging church-state dogmas. The uncertainty of religion and the instability of the state (and other forms of official belief systems) can cause chaos or creativity. The dereliction of the Medieval church and Holy Roman Empire led to the renaissance and the industrial revolution. The collapse of communism in the Soviet Union may release energy and creative forces or increase chaos. The reformation, counter-reformation, and the rise of the national state were not easy or pleasant. It was violent and nasty. The failure of certainty is not easy. The natural order of church-state and official authority is comfortable for most times and peoples. We do not have the option of fixed systems today but still seek certitude in an uncertain world. Is This OK? Anyone not want to READ this? Do not flame! ************************************************************ Peter E. Pflaum Ph.D. GLOBAL_VILLAGE_SUFI_SCHOOL 225 Robinson Road, New Smyrna Beach * IN THE WORLD - FL 32169-2176 (904) 428-9609 * BUT NOT OF THE WORLD pflaump@wiredbrain.com * Getting in Touch with: GAEA, GODDESS OF A SUSTAINABLE EARTH Pflaump@wiredbrain.com ZEN IS THE ART OF GETTING YOURSELF OUT OF YOUR OWN WAY ************************************************************