tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8009563.post111339470347171858..comments2023-12-22T03:49:21.303-05:00Comments on Reflections of a Happy Old Man: Let it beLarry Claytonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11571190213288384302noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8009563.post-1113492527998250782005-04-14T11:28:00.000-04:002005-04-14T11:28:00.000-04:00Thanks for the comments, friends.Jon: mysticism se...Thanks for the comments, friends.<BR/><BR/>Jon: mysticism seems to be primarily a solitary activity, and it seems to me that high school 101 frowns on solitude.<BR/><BR/>Liz, what you say has a lot of truth. However I don't think that's the norm for many westerm white men that I know. IMO tribalism is so rampant in our culture that individualists are an endangered species. Giving youself to a group makes it all too easy to leave your brains in their care.Larry Claytonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11571190213288384302noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8009563.post-1113449279753635032005-04-13T23:27:00.000-04:002005-04-13T23:27:00.000-04:00I wonder if there are any mystics who didn't fail ...I wonder if there are any mystics who didn't fail high school 101? I know I did!Jonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05772474227432165970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8009563.post-1113437447575669002005-04-13T20:10:00.000-04:002005-04-13T20:10:00.000-04:00Nietzsche wrote:The individual has always had to s...<I>Nietzsche wrote:<BR/>The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.</I><BR/><BR/>The problem I have with Nietzsche's words is that they imply that being an individual should be held in higher regard than being part of a tribe, a community. Those sound like a (Western white) man's words to me, where the norm is to individuate and be independent; and being interdependent or relying on extended family or being attached to a community is seen as immature or unhealthy.<BR/><BR/>But among <A HREF="http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Speech/rccs/theory84d.htm" REL="nofollow">women sociologists</A> and <A HREF="http://www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/women/femther.html" REL="nofollow">feminist psychologists</A>, health is defined in relation to our connections with one another, not with our degree of individuation.<BR/><BR/>I personally prefer the "BOTH/AND" approach to development: we must <B>both</B> individuate to discover our true Self <B>and</B> connect authentically within a larger group to know ourselves fully. Paying too much attention to one without the other may find us either in a cult (we've compromised ourselves away for the sake of community) or clinically depressed, spiritually isolated, or socially disconnected (we've insisted on remaining independent above all else).<BR/><BR/>In befriending and getting to know my 4-year-old niece, I am often seeking the balance of supporting her individuality ("Well, Madison, what do <B>you</B> want to do?") and encouraging her to participate in a small group ("Hey, Madison, we're all working on this puzzle. Wanna help?").<BR/><BR/>Life is seldom easy, huh?<BR/><BR/>Blessings,<BR/><A HREF="http://thegoodraisedup.blogspot.com" REL="nofollow">Liz</A>Liz Opphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09802348848085930901noreply@blogger.com