Esotericism - a big deception under the guise of enlightenment

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

Esotericism is a false system of views on reality that tries to distort or replace real knowledge about natural processes. Esotericism tries to simplify a person, return him to the state of a "rational animal" …

What is the essence of esotericism and what is bad about it?

After the release of an article on how to distinguish esotericism from psychology, I was asked a logical question: "What's wrong with esotericism?"Esotericism as "secret knowledge" claims to have a system of views on human nature and the structure of the world, more complete than science and philosophy. Esotericism refers itself to the "spiritual" area, related to religion, and at the same time claims to be "scientific".

Modern esotericism promises people answers to "eternal questions" and guidance for the development of soul and personality, while solving all problems. But let's figure out what is the essence of esotericism, what do esoteric teachings actually offer us?

By esotericism, I mean the ideological basis of the teachings united in the New Age movement that arose in the 20th century. You can read about the history and philosophy of the New Age on Wikipedia. I will only talk about the essence of esotericism, highlighting its most general ideas, and you will see for yourself harm, which inflict numerous esoteric teachings on the psyche and souls of their adepts. Those who were expecting articles on personal development from me, do not leave - this information will also be useful to you. Esoteric ideas in our time "are in the air", and they must be recognized in order not to get infected.

Foundations of esoteric teachings

Lies about science and religion

For all the pretentious seriousness, esoteric teachings are distinguished by an extremely irresponsible attitude to what they say. When they need it, they justify their ideas with "science", mentioning non-existent scientific discoveries. People who are not related to science, which are the majority, trustfully take this at face value. In cases where the opinion of science is generally known, esotericists arrogantly disparage science, which "knows nothing."

Esoteric teachings do the same with religion. To lend weight to their ideas, they like to quote or simply refer to authoritative religious texts, more often the Bible and Vedas. At the same time, they either interpret the quotations in an extremely distorted way, sometimes to the direct opposite of the original meaning, or simply brazenly compose quotations (this applies more often to the Vedas, which no one will read). Naturally, when it comes to the obvious contradiction of their teachings to religious beliefs, they declare religions "lagging behind" and hiding true knowledge from believers.

Despite the seeming loyalty of esotericism to science and religion, this relationship is not mutual. Science does not recognize the "discoveries" of esotericism on the boring basis of their unsubstantiated … World religions also treat her sharply negatively, much worse than each other. Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Buddha unanimously consider magic (on which esotericism is based) extremely soulful, considering it the fruit of a person's communication with evil spirits. And it is possible that they are right …

Real sources of esotericism

There are only two real sources of esoteric knowledge. This is, firstly, a tradition of magic and occultism rooted in the depths of centuries, which has always existed in culture in parallel with philosophy and religion. In the West, these are such teachings as Pythagoreanism, Gnosticism, Hermeticism, alchemy, astrology, Kabbalah, spiritualism, as well as primitive folk practical magic, represented by witches, fortune-tellers, superstitions, rituals, etc., which Christianity could not supplant for 1000 years.

The second source of esoteric knowledge is the rich imagination of the authorsor what they themselves consider to be a direct "revelation" of certain "spiritual entities", "universal mind" or "heavenly teachers." If you remember that any religion also warns that spirits are different, and a person is often subject to seduction and illusions, then a very big question arises: who is the author of these revelations? Moreover, this question is not removed, even if we reason not in a religious context, but in a psychological one: what part of the content of an unconscious person produces visions and revelations and is it worth believing? Maybe this is just a banal delirium of a madman?

So, we see that esotericism rests, in addition to the mystical experience of the authors, on only one venerable spiritual tradition. But this second is credible, isn't it? Maybe ancient and modern magicians and occultists actually know what our young science has not yet matured to and what religion is criminally hiding from us, striving for undivided possession of our souls? Esotericists say that. Well, let's see what valuable truths they reveal to us, and what these truths can give us.

Esoteric immorality: good and evil do not exist or they are one

The dichotomy of good and evil has troubled humanity throughout its history. This duality is an inevitable consequence of free will, which distinguishes us from animals. But this is also our "curse", for the evil that a person sometimes does is simply monstrous. What is evil, where is it from and how to avoid it? The answers can be given in different ways, and now is not the place to go too deeply into them. Ultimately, it all boils down to the fact that a person must accept his freedom and learn how to dispose of it. He is responsible for his moral choice both to society and, most importantly, to himself.

Side selection of goodand educating oneself so that every time to make this choice correctly and habitually - and there is a path of human development, on which he can reach the heights of the spirit, and society will be good. And with evilstill have to one way or another fightbecause evil is destruction, suffering, degradation. Yes, it is difficult and requires constant effort. Sometimes it is difficult even to distinguish good from evil, and it is even more difficult to make a choice in the direction of good from evil, which takes seductive forms. By and large, the path of morality is a lifelong feat. And philosophy, and religion, and in many respects science, tries to help a person in this feat.

However, a person is lazy, and he does not really smile at living in a struggle, and evil sometimes looks so attractive … And therefore a second answer to the question of good and evil was found: why not take the side of evil? Then there is no need for feats and a lot of bonuses! But to admit it to myself is somehow scary … Because we better create a philosophical doctrinethat there is no difference between good and evil, everything is one. Any esotericist will tell you that good and evil are the essence of "manifestations of one nature" and the principle of the unity of opposites lies at the basis of the universe. And what the backward moralists call evil can even be useful …

Since this theory is in no way compatible with the actual human nature, doomed to free will, then human can also be abandoned by declaring that there is no fundamentally human nature - we are all the same part of Nature in general, like a roadside stone or a cockroach, and therefore let's return to our origins, clinging to the breast of Mother Nature. Let's be like animals and plants. So what if this is a rejection of development and dehumanization? - But no strains and feats! And so that pride does not suffer, you can call nature "the body of God", and yourself - a part of this God and amuse yourself with the consciousness of your divinity.

However, esotericists do not really succeed in completely abandoning ethics. Therefore, declaring good and evil "relative" and thereby drowning out conscience, they come up with their own ethics, in which the strangest things can become virtues and sins - to the extent of the Teacher's "depravity". The basics of esoteric ethics will be discussed later.

Esoteric Pride: Is It Easy to Be God?

It's boring to achieve your goals in the usual way: making money, getting an education, building your life, building relationships … If you could somehow wave your magic wand - and get everything on a blue plate! This childhood dream has haunted man since ancient times, and he was looking for ways to realize it. And I found it. More precisely - invented … I came up with a lot of things - a whole worldview system, otherwise called magical thinking. A person with such a view of the world thinks that he is omnipotent, that by the power of one thought, and even more so magical rituals, he can influence reality, doing something that is beyond the power of mere mortals.

At first glance, it seems that such a view is a person's hyper-responsibility for everything. However, things are not so simple. Our almighty magician really is stubbornly does not take responsibility … He waits for control and always looks back at the "forces" that lead him. At each step, he copes with the laws of the universe / horoscope / frame for dowsing, or listens to an inner voice (in advanced cases, the voice sounds like it sounds from the outside), which he thinks is the voice of God. He is never guided by his own considerations - for each movement he has a rationale for something greater and wiser than he, whose will he reads by signs. Considering himself "God - the creator of his world", he turns out to be a man, having no willconstantly looking for guidance from "above".

Esoteric Consciousness: Rejection of Reason

A person has one more purely human quality - consciousness or intelligence … And, if the mind is critical, then it can become an obstacle to the implementation of all of the above. Therefore, it is also better to get rid of reason. Absolutely all esoteric teachings speak of the need to expand consciousness, change consciousness and turn off consciousness. Others even directly say that the mind is a "devil" that prevents a person from being with God, that is, to merge in harmony with the universe. The main enemy, of course, is the critical mind. To criticize is very bad, it spoils karma, especially badly to be critical of the words of an esoteric guru.

Since it is not easy to fight with consciousness, various practices are offered for this - meditation, special breathing, taking substances, trainings where group influence is performed through psychotechnics. And who said that it would be easy to get rid of the hateful shackles of reason? And so that you are not afraid of insanity, esotericism says that, turning off the mind, we come to the source of "divine intelligence". It is amazing that a person who has found it difficult to feat of free will and is too lazy to go about his life is ready to make daily efforts to perform these practices and pay money for trainings in order to shirk responsibility and indulge yourself with the illusion of your divinity!

Esoteric Ethics: Sensations and Pleasures

If the mind interferes with being a god and communicating with the divine mind, then how to hear the voice of God inside oneself? The esoteric answer is simple: God speaks through emotions and sensations. Esotericism teaches you to be very attentive to your feelings, to trust them unconditionally, and without reasoning to follow where they lead. For greater importance, the divinity of intuition is instilled in the adepts. In esoteric ethics absolute evil and good substituted negative and positive, in terms of subjective feelings. Negativity is evil, from everything that causes unpleasant sensations, one must run without looking back, focusing on something that causes sensations pleasant and comfortable.

In this way, pleasure becomes the criterion of truth, and a person begins to simply chase after pleasures and becomes absolutely defenseless in front of his passions. Since not trusting yourself is a taboo (well, you are God!), Then if something causes negative feelings, it is declared the embodiment of evil. Typical speeches of an esotericist: "I feel that I do not need it", "I feel that it is mine."Yes, yes, not only a book or a dish, but also a life partner or profession, an esoterically "advanced" person chooses, in accordance with feelings, excuse me, divine instructions, sometimes modestly referred to as "subconsciousness."

Deity of esotericism - energy

Concept energy - central to any esoteric teaching. For them, the entire universe is energy, energy rules the world, this is the god who is worshiped by esotericism. The concept of energy is very convenient for rationalizing basic esoteric ideas - energy is impersonal, weak-willed, all-moral, it just is and flows where there is a place. Accordingly, if you see only energy flows everywhere and in everything, then you can not fill your head with such nonsense as personality, will, freedom, good and evil … And if you contrive, then energy can be used by connecting to the “flow”.

To rationalize the importance of sensations, the concept of energy is also perfect. This concept easily and simply explains everything in the world, and people are so fond of simple explanations! Typical examples: the myth of energy vampires - I feel bad next to someone, which means that he is a carrier of negativity and eats my energy; relationships in a couple are based on the interaction of male and female energy; I'm in a bad mood, which means I don't have enough energy. So what if there is no room for human relations and will? But everything is clear!

Esoteric Relationships: Nothing Personal

You probably guess what kind of person can be in a relationship, for whom any of his actions are the actions of God, and good and evil do not exist? Right - he is capable of any meanness, especially if his feelings of a higher power give a sign. But this is not so bad. Since he is always preoccupied with finding harmony with the universe, that is, with his state and his divinity, he does not see anyone around at all. That is, he sees, but not living people, but at best - karmic tasks, more often - just objects for energy exchange.

He can interact "energetically" by feeding on energy from his neighbor or, conversely, feeding him. But personal human relationships are not for the faceless part of nature, which he considers himself to be. Can you imagine a friend who communicates with you not because she is interested in you, but for the sake of accumulating female power? And if you are sad and you want moral support, then the esoteric will recoil from you as from a leper - after all, you radiate negativity and encroach on his precious energy. If he can endure you out of politeness, then he will run to the bathroom. "Wash away the negative".

Naturally, the ability to love in such a person is completely absent, although esotericists talk a lot about love. But by love they mean not personal relationships at all. In esotericism love - this is all the same energy, this is a state of harmony with the universe, causing pleasant sensations, in which the adept is immersed, and which he spreads around himself, as it seems to him. He pours streams of love over the entire Universe, and it doesn't matter to him at all what gets in the way - a pile of garbage or a neighbor. As the saying goes, "nothing personal"!

So what is the essence of esotericism and its harm?

I reflected only philosophical moments, the essence of esoteric knowledge in the most general terms. We see that a fan of esotericism receives truly unique knowledge that transforms him beyond recognition! But do we need such happiness?

- Assimilates false ideas about the world, man and spirituality, getting a distorted picture of the world.

- Perceives a distorted value system and stands on the path of degradation, and not the development of personality.

- Plunges into the illusion of his divinity and omnipotence, losing touch with reality.

- Loses critical thinking and trust in reason.

- Loses moral guidelines, and more simply - conscience, becoming a moral monster.

- Affirms in a passive life position and loses will, becoming a slave to his sensations.

- Depersonalizes, losing his human "I".

- Loses the ability to love and build human relationships.

- From a spiritual point of view, his soul is deeply damaged from communication with the spirits of evil, up to possession.

- From the point of view of health, he gets neuropsychiatric disorders of varying severity, sometimes physical illness.

I sincerely hope that you will not have a question, what's wrong with this? But the question is logical: why are esoteric ideas so popular, and why esoteric knowledge and practices "help" and "work" for people, in their words? Maybe there is still something good and useful? More on this next time. If you have any more questions regarding the essence of esotericism in general or some particular esoteric ideas and practices, ask!