Found This Insightful

KNOWING THE UNKNOWABLE


by
Reb Yakov Leib HaKohain, Founder & Spiritual Director
DONMEH WEST


"[God] is known and grasped to the degree that one opens the gates of imagination! The capacity to connect with the Spirit of Wisdom, to imagine in one's heart-mind -- this is how God becomes known." (Zohar 1:103a-b)

There is Mind and there are the thoughts of the Mind. And whereas my mind is God's Mind, my thoughts are not always His thoughts, and furthermore my mind is the lesser mind that His Mind also is. As Jung says:

"The Self is a quantity that is supraordinate to the conscious ego. It embraces not only the conscious but the unconscious Psyche and is therefore, so to speak, a personality which we also are." (Two Essays on Analytical Psychology, CW 7, par. 274)

The Greater is surrounded by the lesser -- the "Spark" by the "shell" -- the Nitzot by the Kelipah -- and so it says, "Open for me the Gates of Righteousness that I may enter and praise the Lord" (Psalm 118). This is the relationship between Sefirah Tiferet and Sefirah Keter in Kabbalah -- Ze'ir Anpin ("Smaller Face") and Arikh Anpin ("Larger Face") as they are also known, respectively -- or as the Zohar calls them, the "Mirror that Does Not Shine" and the "Mirror that Shines."

For this reason we are told, "Be still and know that I am God," and elsewhere, "I am listening; what is Yahweh saying?" (Ps. 85:8) Which means that by the act of mind observing Mind -- "thought" observing "Thought" -- and in that moment asking, as Sri Ramana Maharshi asks, "Who am I" -- the Greater of the two (the "Mirror that Shines") is apprehended by the lesser (the "Mirror that Does Not Shine") and "this" knows "That," as we are told by the Vedanta, because what had once been the same and then became different now sees and recognizes itself in the reflection of the other. If we observe our thoughts in meditation, we discover a hall of mirrors in which there is the thought, the thinker-of-the-thought and the Observer of the thinker-of-the-thought. But beyond even that, there is the Unknowable Knower to which Edinger alludes:

"The experience of being the knowing subject . . . . is only one half of the process of knowledge. The other half is the experience of being the known object. The ego as knower conquers the outer or inner 'other' by relegating it to the status of known object. But this is not consciousness in the full sense of 'knowing-with,' it is only science or simple knowing. To achieve authentic consciousness the ego must also go through the experience of being the object of knowledge with the function of the knowing subject residing in the 'other.'" (Edward F. Edinger, The Creation of Consciousness: Jung's Myth for Modern Man, p. 41)

We see this graphically represented in the 16th century, Kabbalistic diagram of the Ten Sefirot as conceived of by R. Isaac Luria:

Here, the smaller circle at the bottom (the personal "ego") emanates out of but remains connected to the larger circle at the top (the transpersonal "Self"), the essence of which it only partially contains -- and even then, only at its periphery. But, like the relationship between Yaldeboath ("Yahweh") and the Monad ("Ayn Sof") in primitive Gnosticism, the smaller gradually comes to believe itself to be the Larger -- the "thought" mistakes itself to be the "Mind" -- and the latter is "entangled" with the former.

Thus, the act of Knowing begins with the process of untangling this from That before one can realize, as in the Hindu formula, Om Tat Sat -- "That is this." The "thinker" must separate himself from the "thought" in order to intuit the common origin of both, the Unknowable Knower which C. G. Jung describes as "the One who dwells within [us], whose form has no knowable boundaries, who encompasses [us] on all sides, fathomless as the abysms of the earth and vast as the sky." (Answer to Job, par. 758)

Now let me develop this idea just a bit further: If, in meditation for example, I am observing my thoughts then there must be a separation between them -- a separation between object (the thought) and subject (the thinker). That is, in the act of the latter observing the former I have untangled one from the other, "ego" from "mind."

But the greater question arises: Who is this Third participant, this Other, whom I gradually become aware is observing me, as if from a great distance, observing this separation between "me" and my "thought, and within whom the entire process seems to be contained and taking place?

In other words, if I pay close attention (with my eyes either shut or open) I discover that there are three personalities at work in this process: the thought, the thinker, and the Observer-of-the-Thinker-of-the-Thought -- the latter of which, although elusive and ephemeral, can be apprehended and identified as the Unknown-Knower, the "Self," or as our good friend Alice Howell calls Him in her own writings, the "Divine Guest."

Thus, the "Unknowable Knower" becomes known by that which it knows. But how can that be if it is, as we say, "unknowable"? The Zohar replies:

"He is known and grasped to the degree that one opens the gates of imagination! The capacity to connect with the Spirit of Wisdom, to imagine in one's heart-mind -- this is how God becomes known." (Zohar 1:103a-b)


Source: Donmeh-West Website

The Reunion

I have changed my mind. I will not attend the reunion. Many reasons are at stake. I wanted to see my classmates after many years now that we're of age but it's unfortunate that I can't go at this time. Some other time maybe. The clock is ticking still I will find the right time. There is a time for everything.

I know they will greatly enjoy that rare moment of being together again even for a brief moment.

May YHWH bless them.

PICTURES OF OPON

Opon is the old name of Lapu-Lapu City before it became a city. I am proud to be called an Oponganon. I love this place with it's simple beauty. It was invaded in the year 1521 more or less by Magellan but failed to capture it at the first try because of the strong resistance of Datu Lapu-Lapu. His heroism had earned him the city which is named after him. Here are some pictures to view the beauty of this rustic place. It is rightly called Pearl of the Orient as it is located in the heart of the Philippine Archipelago.

RAINY DAY

I woke up early and prepared for work. I waited for the rain to stop so I can go but it never stopped. So I am still stuck here in front of my laptop at home still wearing my uniform. I was supposed to be at the office at 8 am but it's already 12:39 pm. The rain that was only light earlier became a full pledged rainfall. So I remain surfing the net at these wee hours of noon.

I heard on the news that we are under storm signal number one. But on the net it is only a low pressure that's why it's been raining for days in a row. Storm or no storm, it is an ugly day for me because it made me absent from work, the pathway is becoming soft and full of mud, there's water everywhere plus the mud and water is invading my little dwelling place.

I don't know what my co-workers say that I am absent from work. The bad part is that my umbrella was lost that's why I wasn't able to walk from here to get a ride at the road.

TRIBUTE TO CORY AQUINO

The death of the most beloved and respected of all presidents of the Philippines, Corazon Aquino has deeply saddened the Filipino people. She was a great loss for us.

Her presidency was a series of example of sincere dedication, unpretentious and self-sacrificing hard work. She was one of a kind. Once she has tasted power and influence and yet it never tainted her motivation in serving the people. She never entertained thoughts remaining in power.She is admirable in a sense that she never used her position to shamefacedly make members of her family become government officials for it would tantamount to a sort of nepotism. She invested no self-interests that would be self-profiting while in power. She is the only president I know who never had dubious transactions aimed at gaining wealth personal wealth. She and the people working with her, worked in unison to restore the lost democracy under Marcos regime. They never attempted to plunder our country and to corrupt the position they hold in an effort to show real service.

Yes, her life was a life of dedication to true service. She is the epitome of purity, dedication and integrity. No one can ever point a finger at her, for if they would, they would only be putting in light their own hidden evil motives.

We the people of the Philippines, may never witness another human being, another leader as pure as she is. We all are grief-stricken. We cry our hearts out. For we not only lost a president but democracy as well.

I take-off my hat to her in honor. I lament her departure. Who is like unto her? The hearts of all Filipino people go out to her and to her family.

ACCIDENTS HAPPEN

Accidents happen. My co-worker recently had an accident with his motorcycle. I automatically said "That is what will happen when driving drunk".

But I learned later that he was not drunk but overloaded. He had three back riders and the last of which was a very huge man and was unhurt. He reported for work the next day with scarcely a bruise. Unfortunately for the owner of the motorcycle, his bruises were far serious. His face swelled horribly. He sustained other bruises on other parts of his body. And what's worst he has difficulty breathing.

A pity for him. This is our lesson: don't let yourself be goaded into your own accident by sweet talking passenger. Let not anyone manipulate you in giving anyone a ride when the capacity doesn't. And of course, don't drive drunk. Be careful on the road. Obey traffic signal. Follow all this and you will drive on to your ripe old age.

MY COMPAQ ARMADA M700

I bought a COMPAQ ARMADA M700 laptop from a Korean. Although it is already obsolete. I opted to buy it since it's very afford. I like its Compaqness as the name suggests. I like its look, very simple yet durable. When I started using it, I found that it is efficient albeit slower than the latest models of course. I just learned that it is HP brand which I already admire previously.

That's why for me HP is a symbol of durability. It is the kind we use at the office which until now still performing efficiently for many years. See? We still haven't bought new ones. It is still performing healthily that's why. So when I next decide to buy the new model, I would buy the HP brand because it is tried and tested at home and at work.