Re: [BardonPraxis] Going mental??

["Rawn Clark" <rawnclark@...>]

Dear Eric,

>> My first question is about thoughts and ideas. Bardon mentions that
ideas are from the Akashic plane. <<

By 'ideas' here, Bardon means the causal or primal ideas. These are
Akashic and exist beyond the human definition of 'ideas'. On the other
hand, when I refer to the Air region of the mental body and its direct
perception of thoughts and ideas, I am not referring to the Akashic
ideas, but rather to that level of human mentation that works with
thinking and the manipulation of mundane thought structures (i.e.,
"ideas"). This is the level that frames every perception in words that
express thoughts and ideas.

>> Does this correspond with essential meaning in the Archeous , and
the Fire region of the mental body ? <<

Bardon's 'Akashic ideas' does correspond to my 'essential meaning'. But
essential meaning doesn't *exist in* the Fire region. My point in the
Archaeous, is that it is *with the Fire region* of our temporal mental
bodies, that we *directly perceive* the Akashic essential meaning.

>> My next level of quandary has to do with confusion over what is the
Self, what is the Spirit, and what is the mental body. These terms seem
to overlap from what I can tell, but I'm hoping for more clarity. In
the IIH, it sounds as if the Self is the 'spiritual EGO' and is
Akashic. Is this the true self, and if so where is this found on the
Tree of Return? (Kether, Ain Soph)? Bardon does relate the Akasha to
Binah in KTQ, as I recall. <<

In Bardon's system, 'spirit' always equals 'mental body' but there are
two distinct levels of spirit/mental body; the temporal and the eternal.
Instead of writing an essay in response, I refer you to
http://www.ABardonCompanion.com/Structure.html which I think will
answer these specific questions. Another place to look in this regard
is http://www.ABardonCompanion.com/Sowantha.html

>> For example in the 4th card fragment in Frabato, Bardon mentions the
personality as being the combination of Will, Intellect and Feeling. Is
this the same as the combination called personality if the 8TM
(which is Lunar), or the consciousness in the IIH (Malkuth in 8TM)?
<<

'Will' in this case is the Tiphareth level of Individual Self. In terms
of its decent toward corporeal existence, 'feeling' is Netzach (the
level of instinctual emotion) and 'intellect' is Hod (the level of the
rational intellect). Hod and Netzach provide the astral clothing for
the Tipharet mental Individual Self which produces the personal self or
Yesod self. In the Archaeous, Yesod is the astra-mental body -- also
known as the conjoined Fire, Air and Water regions of the mental body.
The Earth region of the mental body is Malkuth (the mundane
consciousness as a whole).

>> Then there is the sub-conscious, which is the polar opposite of
consciousness in the IIH? It sounds from the 8TM as if this were Lunar.
<<

The subconscious is generally attributed to Yesod because it is lunar in
nature (i.e., rhythmic, changeable, reflective, magnetic, etc.), but in
truth it cannot be associated firmly with just a single sephirot. It is
a *process*, a *dynamic relationship* of various factors of *human*
consciousness, better ascribed to a sequence of Paths than to a single
sephirot.

The *sub*conscious is NOT the polar opposite of the conscious*ness* --
it is the polar opposite of the conscious *awareness*. In other words,
it's every part of our conscious*ness* that we are not immediately
applying at this specific moment of time. The *sub*conscious is a *part
of* our whole conscious*ness*. It is *part of* what Bardon attributes
to the Earth Element as "the consciousness with all its aspects
establishing the connection of all the three Elements", and which I
attribute to the Earth region of the mental body in the Archaeous.

>> Lastly, where is the Will or Intellect of the IIH found in the
Tree? <<

There is no single answer that fits with every time that Bardon mentions
intellect and will! ;-) In relation to the personality 'will' is
usually Tiphareth and 'intellect' is Hod. In relation to the Individual
Self, 'will' is Gebruah and 'intellect' is Chesed. In relation to The
One Self, 'will' is the Atziluthic and 'intellect' is the Briatic. But
still these are just sort of convenient but only half accurate
responses. The problem is that the four Hermetic Elements, upon which
Bardon's "will, intellect, feeling and consciousness" attributions were
based, do not mesh perfectly with Kabbalist Tree of Life which is based
upon only *three* overt Elements. In many ways, it's as problematic as
trying to mesh the Hermetic four Elements with the five Chinese
Elements.

>> My last confusion relates to perception. Given the answers to the
above questions, where does perception fit into the planetary scheme of
things, and into the levels of self? And how does this connect to the
'feeling' from the IIH which is mental/ spiritual, and the 'reflective
mental matrix'? <<

Perception is a function of the mental body or conscious awareness. On
the Tree of Life, this is the Middle Pillar. Malkuth is the Earth
region of the mental body and represents the direct perception of
physical sensation. Yesod corresponds to the Water region of the mental
body and the direct perception of emotional significance. Tiphareth
corresponds to both the Air and Fire regions of the mental body. The
Air region to the direct perception of thoughts/ideas which is focused
downward and projecting toward the personal levels of self, and the Fire
region to the upward focused and receptive direct perception of
essential meaning. Kether represents the Akashic region of The Mental
Body of The One Self. In more personal terms, Binah represents the
Akashic region of the temporal mental body and is, in fact, our own
eternal mental body or Greater Self.

>> I hope my questions don't drive anyone into a mental institution. <<

The little white men in the little white truck are coming to take me
away! Ah ha! ;-)

My best to you,
:) Rawn Clark
06 Feb 2003
rawnclark@...
rawn@...
http://www.ABardonCompanion.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BardonPraxis