Grail Memes
Ultimately, every individual life is at the same time the eternal life of the species.
As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light
in the darkness of mere being. —C. G. Jung
As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light
in the darkness of mere being. —C. G. Jung
TODAY IS THE AGE OF THE GRAIL
Grail, Gods, Genes & Memes
A Transdisciplinary Approach to Sangreal Culture & Subcultures
by Iona Miller
There are several types of pathologic memes:
Grail, Gods, Genes & Memes
A Transdisciplinary Approach to Sangreal Culture & Subcultures
by Iona Miller
- The ineffable Grail contains hidden knowledge - our own true nature.
- The synergy of the Grail family is a human potential school.
- The ancient Tree of Life is its meme in graphic and artistic form.
- Gnosis is hidden because it must be experienced to be known.
- It is the ecology of the soul and spirit.
- Archetypes are organs of our essential nature; blueprints of cosmic dynamics.
- The individuation process leads to the fulfillment of the archetypes of the soul.
- The SangREAL is a genetic line and a memeplex.
- Complexes of memes tend to travel together and co-evolve.
- Culture as a meme pool consists of many different memes and memeplexes.
- Cultural memes reside in various niches – subcultures.
- Consciousness evolved with the complexity of memes.
- Transcendence is possible only with the help of the memes.
- Memes are transcendental entities.
- They transcend brains by migrating from and infecting one another.
- Through cooperating memes, genes experience transcendence.
- There are protective and pathological memes:
- A meme is "an idea, belief, behavior or style that spreads from person to person within a culture." A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural ideas, symbols or practices, which can be transmitted from one mind to another through writing, speech, gestures, rituals or other imitable phenomena.
- Memes are cultural analogues to genes since they self-replicate, mutate and respond to selective pressures.
- Placebo memes represent the cultural expectation of relief.
There are several types of pathologic memes:
- Memes that inhibit or attenuate the brain’s executive (ego) function, making
- Devious memes enter under false pretenses then cause disease or destruction.
- Memes that replicate virulently often bypass the executive function.
- Virulent memes that arouse passion bypass executive function.
- Memes that cause an indolent infection become virulent later.
Approaching the Grail
The holy grail of archaeology is to discover the earliest evidence of symbolic thought in humans. Our ancient lore links the rise of symbolic thought to the antic tribes of our Sangreal heritage. Symbolic and interpretive anthropology is the study of cultural symbols and interpreting those symbols to better understand a particular society, ancient or modern.
Sangreal lore involves a huge catalog of most of the world's cultures. Each grail carrier assumes the task of integrating this material as best they can. Syncretism is an eclectic approach, involving the combining of different (often seemingly contradictory) beliefs, often while melding practices of various schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merger and analogizing the symbols, mythology and theology of several originally discrete traditions.
Give Me a Sign
Semiotics studies society and human behavior through signs and sign processes, indication, designation, likeness, analogy, metaphor, symbolism, signification, and communication. Closely related to the field of linguistics, semiotics studies the structure and meaning of language and non-linguistic sign systems. Semiotics has important anthropological dimensions since every cultural phenomenon can be studied as communication. Social semiotics expands the interpretable semiotic landscape to include all cultural codes and social connotations, including meanings related to ideology and power structures.
In semiotics, a sign is something that can be interpreted as having a meaning, which is something other than itself, and which is therefore able to communicate information to the one interpreting or decoding the sign. Signs can work through any of the senses: visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory or taste. Their meaning can be intentional such as a word uttered with a specific meaning, or unintentional such as a symptom being a sign of a particular psychophysical condition. Signs are classified by the way they are transmitted. This process of carrying meaning depends on the use of codes that may be the individual sounds or letters, body language to show attitude or emotion, or even something as general as the clothing. Cultural codes represent the values of the culture, shading every aspect of life.
Symbolic Anthropology
Symbolic anthropology studies the way people understand their surroundings, as well as the actions and utterances of the other members of their society. These interpretations form a shared cultural system of meaning and understanding, shared among members of the same society, to varying degrees.
Symbolic anthropology studies symbols and the processes, such as myth and ritual, by which we assign meanings to these symbols. It addresses fundamental questions about human social life. We are in need of symbolic "sources of illumination" that orient us to the system of meaning of any culture, particularly past and current Sangreal culture. Symbols initiate social action and are determinable influences inclining individuals and groups to action. We can use both an interpretive and symbolic approach.
Symbolic anthropology views culture as an independent system of meaning deciphered by interpreting key symbols and rituals. Two major premises govern symbolic anthropology.
1) beliefs, however unintelligible, become comprehensible when understood as part of a cultural system of meaning. 2) actions are guided by interpretation, allowing symbolism to aid in interpreting ideal as well as material activities, such as religion, cosmology, ritual activity, and expressive customs such as mythology and performing arts. Symbolic anthropology also relates to other forms of social organization such as kinship and political organization. It helps define the role of symbols in the everyday life of a group of people.
There Will Be Drama
Social Drama is a concept devised by Victor Turner to study the dialectic of social transformation and continuity. A social drama is "a spontaneous unit of social process and a fact of everyone's experience in every human society". Social dramas occur within a group that shares values and interests and has a shared common history (Turner 1980).
This drama can be broken into four acts. 1) a rupture in social relations, or breach. 2) is a crisis that cannot be handled by normal strategies. 3) is a remedy to the initial problem, or redress and the re-establishment of social relations. 4) the final act can occur in two ways: reintegration, the return to the status quo, or recognition of schism, and alteration in the social arrangements. In both of the resolutions there are symbolic displays in which the actors show their unity in the form of rituals. In Turner's theory, ritual is a kind of plot that has a set sequence which is linear, not circular.
Interpretation & Analysis
Hermeneutics is the art and science of interpreting symbolic material and archetypal dynamics. Interpretation theories help our analysis of texts for coherent explanation. The modern use of the term is a "combination of empirical investigation and subsequent subjective understanding of human phenomena" (Woodward 1996). We use hermeneutics in our studies of symbol systems to try to understand the ways that people "understand and act in social, religious, and economic contexts".
As the experience of pleasure is genetic, but appraisal of value and meaning is memetic, different endeavors have acquired different valuations. At the fundamental level, memes are in charge of the valuations. Whatever served the memes was good; whatever served the genes more than memes was somewhat bad; whatever served only genes and not memes were very bad. Thus, spirituality, a purely meme-oriented activity, acquired the most value.
Memes & Genes
Individuals that adapted to the spirituality meme–gene coevolution may have spiritual needs that are beyond the understanding of those without the DRD4 or VMAT2 genes ("genospirituality polymorphisms") . The so-called "God gene" is a DRD4 dopamine receptor, and VMAT2 is a dopamine vesicular transporter. These genes are consistently associated with high scores on religiousness and suggestibility scales, altruism, and receptivity to spiritual experiences.
The same genes provide a blueprint for intrinsic states of happiness and ecstasy. “Vector influences” link genes, the brain, nutrition, and social behavior into a desireable, but potentially fragile experience known as “happiness.” Furthermore, it seems spirituality is also important for well-being. So far only these two dopamine genes have been identified as correlates to spirituality and self-transcendence. Inconclusive research tried to correlate a specific phenotype concerning paranormal belief with a dopaminergic gene (COMT) known for its involvement in prefrontal executive cognition and correlated with suggestibility.
http://www.brainm.com/software/pubs/brain/Genes,%20Memes,%20Culture%20&%20MI.pdf
The holy grail of archaeology is to discover the earliest evidence of symbolic thought in humans. Our ancient lore links the rise of symbolic thought to the antic tribes of our Sangreal heritage. Symbolic and interpretive anthropology is the study of cultural symbols and interpreting those symbols to better understand a particular society, ancient or modern.
Sangreal lore involves a huge catalog of most of the world's cultures. Each grail carrier assumes the task of integrating this material as best they can. Syncretism is an eclectic approach, involving the combining of different (often seemingly contradictory) beliefs, often while melding practices of various schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merger and analogizing the symbols, mythology and theology of several originally discrete traditions.
Give Me a Sign
Semiotics studies society and human behavior through signs and sign processes, indication, designation, likeness, analogy, metaphor, symbolism, signification, and communication. Closely related to the field of linguistics, semiotics studies the structure and meaning of language and non-linguistic sign systems. Semiotics has important anthropological dimensions since every cultural phenomenon can be studied as communication. Social semiotics expands the interpretable semiotic landscape to include all cultural codes and social connotations, including meanings related to ideology and power structures.
In semiotics, a sign is something that can be interpreted as having a meaning, which is something other than itself, and which is therefore able to communicate information to the one interpreting or decoding the sign. Signs can work through any of the senses: visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory or taste. Their meaning can be intentional such as a word uttered with a specific meaning, or unintentional such as a symptom being a sign of a particular psychophysical condition. Signs are classified by the way they are transmitted. This process of carrying meaning depends on the use of codes that may be the individual sounds or letters, body language to show attitude or emotion, or even something as general as the clothing. Cultural codes represent the values of the culture, shading every aspect of life.
Symbolic Anthropology
Symbolic anthropology studies the way people understand their surroundings, as well as the actions and utterances of the other members of their society. These interpretations form a shared cultural system of meaning and understanding, shared among members of the same society, to varying degrees.
Symbolic anthropology studies symbols and the processes, such as myth and ritual, by which we assign meanings to these symbols. It addresses fundamental questions about human social life. We are in need of symbolic "sources of illumination" that orient us to the system of meaning of any culture, particularly past and current Sangreal culture. Symbols initiate social action and are determinable influences inclining individuals and groups to action. We can use both an interpretive and symbolic approach.
Symbolic anthropology views culture as an independent system of meaning deciphered by interpreting key symbols and rituals. Two major premises govern symbolic anthropology.
1) beliefs, however unintelligible, become comprehensible when understood as part of a cultural system of meaning. 2) actions are guided by interpretation, allowing symbolism to aid in interpreting ideal as well as material activities, such as religion, cosmology, ritual activity, and expressive customs such as mythology and performing arts. Symbolic anthropology also relates to other forms of social organization such as kinship and political organization. It helps define the role of symbols in the everyday life of a group of people.
There Will Be Drama
Social Drama is a concept devised by Victor Turner to study the dialectic of social transformation and continuity. A social drama is "a spontaneous unit of social process and a fact of everyone's experience in every human society". Social dramas occur within a group that shares values and interests and has a shared common history (Turner 1980).
This drama can be broken into four acts. 1) a rupture in social relations, or breach. 2) is a crisis that cannot be handled by normal strategies. 3) is a remedy to the initial problem, or redress and the re-establishment of social relations. 4) the final act can occur in two ways: reintegration, the return to the status quo, or recognition of schism, and alteration in the social arrangements. In both of the resolutions there are symbolic displays in which the actors show their unity in the form of rituals. In Turner's theory, ritual is a kind of plot that has a set sequence which is linear, not circular.
Interpretation & Analysis
Hermeneutics is the art and science of interpreting symbolic material and archetypal dynamics. Interpretation theories help our analysis of texts for coherent explanation. The modern use of the term is a "combination of empirical investigation and subsequent subjective understanding of human phenomena" (Woodward 1996). We use hermeneutics in our studies of symbol systems to try to understand the ways that people "understand and act in social, religious, and economic contexts".
As the experience of pleasure is genetic, but appraisal of value and meaning is memetic, different endeavors have acquired different valuations. At the fundamental level, memes are in charge of the valuations. Whatever served the memes was good; whatever served the genes more than memes was somewhat bad; whatever served only genes and not memes were very bad. Thus, spirituality, a purely meme-oriented activity, acquired the most value.
Memes & Genes
Individuals that adapted to the spirituality meme–gene coevolution may have spiritual needs that are beyond the understanding of those without the DRD4 or VMAT2 genes ("genospirituality polymorphisms") . The so-called "God gene" is a DRD4 dopamine receptor, and VMAT2 is a dopamine vesicular transporter. These genes are consistently associated with high scores on religiousness and suggestibility scales, altruism, and receptivity to spiritual experiences.
The same genes provide a blueprint for intrinsic states of happiness and ecstasy. “Vector influences” link genes, the brain, nutrition, and social behavior into a desireable, but potentially fragile experience known as “happiness.” Furthermore, it seems spirituality is also important for well-being. So far only these two dopamine genes have been identified as correlates to spirituality and self-transcendence. Inconclusive research tried to correlate a specific phenotype concerning paranormal belief with a dopaminergic gene (COMT) known for its involvement in prefrontal executive cognition and correlated with suggestibility.
http://www.brainm.com/software/pubs/brain/Genes,%20Memes,%20Culture%20&%20MI.pdf
McLuhan proposed the tetrad as an alternate means for discussing the effect of technology on society. Instead of using a model based on causality, the tetrad organizes an artifact as a "resonating interval": an object which transcends time; and is affected by both its own attributes and the environment which surrounds it. As McLuhan and Powers explain: ...the tetrad performs the function of myth in that it compresses past, present, and future into one through the power of simultaneity.
The tetrad illuminates the borderline between acoustic and visual space as an arena of spiraling repetition and replay, both of input and feedback, interlace and interface in the area of imploded circle of rebirth and metamorphosis. (p.9) The main thrust of the tetrad is to create a "comprehensive awareness" of both the artifact and its surroundings. Creation of tetrads requires the user to strive for a mental balance between acoustic and visual space, requiring the cognitive power of both left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The Process of Tetrad Creation
The tetrad is arrived at through a process of asking questions, based on historical, social, and technological knowledge of the subject:
The tetrad illuminates the borderline between acoustic and visual space as an arena of spiraling repetition and replay, both of input and feedback, interlace and interface in the area of imploded circle of rebirth and metamorphosis. (p.9) The main thrust of the tetrad is to create a "comprehensive awareness" of both the artifact and its surroundings. Creation of tetrads requires the user to strive for a mental balance between acoustic and visual space, requiring the cognitive power of both left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The Process of Tetrad Creation
The tetrad is arrived at through a process of asking questions, based on historical, social, and technological knowledge of the subject:
- What does any artifact enlarge or enhance?
- What does it erode or obsolesce?
- What does it retrieve that had been earlier obsolesced?
- What does it reverse or flip into when pushed to the limits of its potential?
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[email protected]
Fair Use Notice
This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.