Hm. I really think you are asking two separate and distinct questions. I'll just type what comes to mind...
The superficial answer to all strong emotions is perspective. My deep and abiding, loving passion for person A could be the ultimate insult to person B; the scenarios around that are numerous. As a parent, my imagination can easily come up with one scenario on the baby example: determining in that moment to protect that child from all harm, and raising hir to be completely cut off from the rest of the world; that would be, from my POV, a huge injury to the child.
Actually, with a work issue looming in the next couple of minutes, I'll just tease you on the shamanic side: in my experience, ecstatic states are valuable precisely because they allow the person to see beyond the emotions (ego-loss) and accept the "messages" directly and without filters. Observers often get stuck on the state itself. The power behind the event is not inherent in the event, but in the requirement that I (the journeyer) reliquish the buffer and shield of emotion and ego in order to enter into the state. No filter means 100% vulnerable, at least to the observer.
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timeasmymeasure
Re: My personal experiences and choices
Date: 2007-07-18 01:26 pm (UTC)The superficial answer to all strong emotions is perspective. My deep and abiding, loving passion for person A could be the ultimate insult to person B; the scenarios around that are numerous. As a parent, my imagination can easily come up with one scenario on the baby example: determining in that moment to protect that child from all harm, and raising hir to be completely cut off from the rest of the world; that would be, from my POV, a huge injury to the child.
Actually, with a work issue looming in the next couple of minutes, I'll just tease you on the shamanic side: in my experience, ecstatic states are valuable precisely because they allow the person to see beyond the emotions (ego-loss) and accept the "messages" directly and without filters. Observers often get stuck on the state itself. The power behind the event is not inherent in the event, but in the requirement that I (the journeyer) reliquish the buffer and shield of emotion and ego in order to enter into the state. No filter means 100% vulnerable, at least to the observer.