Are new age religions respectable in any fashion?
>>392151
Absolutely not. Pseudoscientific bullshit with a heavy helping of DUDE WEED LMAO
The Catholic Church hit the nail on the head with their analysis:
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/interelg/documents/rc_pc_interelg_doc_20030203_new-age_en.html
It's a long read, so tl;dr: it's the sacralisation of psychology.
If you like the concepts of New Age read Joseph Campbell and Carl Jung. They accidentally created New Age. Basically they started teaching that all religion can be interpreted symbolically and that they actually share a ton of themes. These themes are supposed to be ancient that we have been subconsciously passing down through myths, dreams, and we are subconsciously programmed to respond to them.
Unlike the hippies that run the religion they actually approach the ideas an intelligent way. The Hippies ran with their idea to say that not only are all religiously symbolically true but they are also all literally true.
>>392151
The only valid excuse for believing in any religion is that you were brought up with those beliefs. Only a complete loon would sincerely embrace a religion too distinct from the one they were raised with. Relatively sensible and normal people tend to either realize that all religion is kaput, or never give enough of a damn to shake off the beliefs they were indoctrinated with.
>>392328
Kek, you have no idea what you're talking about. No one in this thread does.
>>392226
You may be right in some respect but they most assuredly did not start the new age movement. At best they made things better because they've allowed people that would think about these things factually to understand them metaphorically which is far more healthy and productive.
>>392151
Define "new age".
Define "respectable".
>>392214
Though most new age shit uses the psychological model, if we're using it as a time division rather than a meaningless epithet, then some new age groups or religions use the old spiritualist model.
>>392226
Yeah, because Gardner didn't found Wicca in the 40's or anything.
>>392328
>loon
Wow, that's a lot of converts who are actually nuts. Thanks for the diagnosis.
>>393133
^Mostly.
>>393221
Yeah, if anything Campbell and Jung are responsible for the psychological model used by the new age, which is funny because Jung has said that the spiritual model explains his wild conjecture better than the psych model ever could.
What is the scientific explanation for seeing sacred geometry when hallucinating? I've been having a look since I saw the flower of life when tripping, but all I seem to find is hippie nonsense.
Just as respectable as the early days of any religion, so no, they aren't respectable.
>>393270
Just off the top of my head, probably because sacred geometry is based on spiritual experiences, i.e. hallucinations.
>>393270
I don't think there is a definitive answer yet, but I think it has something to do with how the brain processes and arrages information, it creates fractal imagery in the visual centers.
>>393270
>What is the scientific explanation for seeing sacred geometry when hallucinating? I've been having a look since I saw the flower of life when tripping, but all I seem to find is hippie nonsense.
This is one of my favorite offerings on the topic. Heavy on the neuroscience. The really short answer is that it's because you're seeing the structure of your own cells combined with already existing "flaws" in vision which cause optical illusions combined with culture. What this guy, >>393287 says but with some pictures and big words.
http://psychedelic-information-theory.com/pdf/PIT-Print-Web.pdf
>ensalve
Top three favorite "New Age Religions"
Capping at 1850
3.Universal Sufism, self explanatory
2. Rastafari, I don't think anyone should ever worship a long but Rastafari has had a global impact on anti-colonial struggle and I gotta appreciate what Jamaicans did to us
1. Santa Daime, a very ecological and very Amazonian Brazilian faith. They seem to just be a mix of evangelicals and psychedelic taking environmentalists dedicated to the Rainforest.
>>393324
>1. Santa Daime, a very ecological and very Amazonian Brazilian faith. They seem to just be a mix of evangelicals and psychedelic taking environmentalists dedicated to the Rainforest.
They Aleluia influenced/related?
>>393332
>Aleluia
Uh, it was folk Catholicism made by a black rubber tapper that mixed it with native and umbanda beliefs and practices.
>>393342
>umbanda
Oh fuck, neat. I didn't know much about those cats but I do have a decent bit of Quimbanda.
Frisvold's book if you're interested:
https://mega.nz/#!BABjkA6D!SDiahn0jbKy0tCUyIE2R9QIN7rZJ7bqetH6jSg2Pn20
>>393240
I think it's self-evident that there is a huge amount of trash in the New Age movement. New Age being defined as any spiritual belief with no central authority (official dogma, official priesthood, official cannon etc) that incompatibles many elements from a large variety of myths, mysticism, and religions. Usually with an emphasis on eastern stuff and 'nice' things, no demons.
If you want a good look at it in a hedious form look at a youtube channel called spirt science.
That out of the way is a good question. What's the "respectable" or good aspects of New Age or it's close sister the Occult.
>>393360
>I think it's self-evident that there is a huge amount of trash in the New Age movement. New Age being defined as any spiritual belief with no central authority (official dogma, official priesthood, official cannon etc) that incompatibles many elements from a large variety of myths, mysticism, and religions. Usually with an emphasis on eastern stuff and 'nice' things, no demons.
By that metric Gardner's Wicca isn't new age.
Yeah, no I know Spirit Science, they're trash.
>What's the "respectable" or good aspects of New Age or it's close sister the Occult.
I dunno man, you tell me. Everyone brings their own baggage to the table with questions like that.
If we wanna go by not the first thing you described, Wicca only barely passes but there are tons of fringe groups that actually have strong backbones in any of the above, um, 'problem areas'.
>>392151
My girlfriend's mother believes in that shit. Like in vibrations, pyramids built by ancient civilizations who mastered electricity, pop-psychology stuff and general shit about like how your thoughts actually affect the world. If you call her out on this stuff, she says quantum mechanics prove it. It's literally dumbed-down secular versions of christianity mixed with utilitarian principles and backed up by scientism. The scum of the earth.
>>393270
see>>393286
This is a basic misunderstanding of cause and effect.
>>392151
>religion
>respectable
Anyway my uncle turned to some weird shit called the Bahari Faith after his wife divorced him like a year ago so you could look into that weird shit
>>392151
Taking ideas from other religions is fine, just because your one thing doesn't mean that other religions don't have wisdom and using some parts is fine so long as they don't contradict your beliefs. Now new age "religions" are bullshit. It's a theosophist mess. You could take a universalist approach to religions sure, but you still need a path, you can't do this half hindu half catholic shit.
>>393417
>theosophist
Theosophy's a mess even by modern new age standards, man.
>>393442
My point is, if you want to be a catholic and do zazen, all the power too you. But if you want to "open your chakra's" by going to some thirty something hippie named moon-feather and reading books, then you're retarded. Chakras and psychic centers are tied to dharmic religions and without a good understand of dharmic religions you're half assing any form of religious practice.
>>393458
I don't argue that in the slightest, my point is that theosophy's a wreck on the tier of Urantia text and sort of an extreme example of bad when it comes to the shades of new age I see everywhere.
>>393479
Do new agers have "sects". The only reason I mentioned theosophists is because that's really the only near-new-age sect that I know of. I mean I've dabbled in the occult and shit, but I don't know any denominations.
>>393495
>Do new agers have "sects". The only reason I mentioned theosophists is because that's really the only near-new-age sect that I know of. I mean I've dabbled in the occult and shit, but I don't know any denominations.
I'm a full blown occultists, I host the thread on the topic on the board.
It depends on your limit use for the word 'sect'. That implies some Eastern Orthodox background...and I'd say in that usage there are tons.
When I think of 'new age' I don't think of things like initiatory British Traditional Wicca. I think of the dudes hanging out on any given clickbait site with zero foundation in anything rambling about everything.
A lot of the modern occult functions around fraternal organizations which tend less toward religious cult/sect like behavior and more toward Freemasonic behavior.
>>393515
>i'm a full blown occultist
>>393515
I know occultists have organizations very masonic in structure. I wouldn't consider wicca new age despite incorporating some thelema, it very much is it's own thing, be it an amalgamation or not. New age to me isn't really it's own entity since it takes from everywhere and thus it seems like creating a sect that isn't a cult(all religions are cults but I mean a cult as in a small following of a leader not a following of a ideology).
>>393533
I was a full blown occultist for a while too. I've made more progress with buddhism so I kinda do more of those practices, which are still magic, but not necessarily western. Occultism has it's merit. Some occultists take a universal approach like new age, but it's more refined and less hippie shit.
>>393515
>occulist
Just why?
>>393539
Wicca's so hard to talk about because you got the initiatory order and then the mass market books giving people a really off the mark picture of what's up.
Not saying Gardner's Book of Shadows is GREAT but the rituals are fairly decent.
I try not to use the word cult but it's hard not to; again it depends on your limit...
In what ways are you approaching Buddhism, through which paths? I really dig Kashmiri Saivism, Kaula, etc., and have thought about trying to contact various modern inheritors of the tradition but it's such a pain in the ass finding those guys without going to India.
>>393567
I got into buddhism through zen, didn't like it, it was too nothing, I mean I can stay home and do nothing I don't need a master for that. Then I got into Tibetan Buddhism, tantra, visualization practices. I found a zen teacher who knew a tibetan teacher who was was trained by the same teacher as the dalai lama (that was a terrible sentence) and he moved over to america. Old as fuck, but he was cool. Mostly visualization and tantric practice with deities is the main esoteric aspect of buddhism that occultist might be interested in. Zazen and other forms of meditation are preliminaries and other occult exercises would be sufficient to take their place. As far as getting a good teacher. I got lucky, Most teachers are shit. But if you do attempt to find a guru, hindu, or buddhist, always ask to see their lineage papers. If they don't have them they aren't a real teacher.
>>393539
>not wanting to give your life for the God-Emperor
YOU WILL BE PURGED BY FIRE REEEEEEEE
>>393611
I never said I didn't believe in god. Of course our views of god may differ. Most occultist believe in god even if only deism.
>>393609
>Tibetan Buddhism, tantra, visualization practices
I just can't get on board with Vajrayana when the Saivist reformations are so more interesting (to me) and almost tribal. I like the idea of Abhinavagupta giving Buddha the finger and going back to the gods in a less symbolic way.
>>393626
There is a hindu temple near me, but I haven't been able to get into it as much as buddhism. It's more of a standard church then like a place to learn. Where have you been studying. Books or something.
>>393641
Long story, books as a kid, then as I got older I've contacted more and more people. Have a few solid instructors. Established contact with OTO and A.'.A.'. Kind of in limbo between them and my own researches.
>>393677
I'd love to actually integrate into the OTO. There's a Rosicrucian lodge thing near me but nothing else. I'll look into it. My guru's are fine with my occult practice but they just disagree with the whole god-soul concept, because you know, they're buddhists.
isn't a lot of american new age religions shit, just a mix of Christianity with some Eastern religious elements our a complete mix like Buddhism.
