From: bear@tigger.cs.Colorado.EDU (Bear Giles)
Subject: Re: occult secrets (dream)
Organization: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Adminstration / Boulder Labs
Date: Thu, 13 Aug 1992 00:54:47 GMT

In article <1992Aug3.220227.7614@cs.mcgill.ca> jeffjc@cs.mcgill.ca (Jeffrey CHANCE) writes:
>Let me also offer an occult "secret" of sorts (of course, all IMO).
>Astral projection, along with things like past-life recollection,
>fortune-telling, etc. are like flowers along a road. We are walking
>along the road towards our destination. We see flowers and other
>nice scenery along the way. Some people stop to admire the flowers
>and to experience their fragrance, their essence. In some cases
>they become engrossed in the activity of this appreciation, and
>forget that it is but passing scenery on the way to the goal.
>The goal is truth and fulfillment, and the road is spiritual
>aspiration.

That sounds a lot like a recurrent dream I had over several years.

I had to face a series of 8 "challenges," none of which were identified
as such.  Some were quite simple:  take the correct branch of the trail,
have a running start to get up a slippery corridor (an escalator ran
half-way, but if I didn't run up the stairs I always got stopped at the
end of the escalators.  Oddly reminiscent of my undergrad college
where the janitors spent all summer waxing the corridors in the
engineering building -- the floor was slippery even wearing running 
shoes!)

Two of the challenges where what I termed (when awake) "passive distraction"
and "active distraction."  In the first, I get absorbed in looking at the
merchandise for sale in a "sidewalk sale" in the corridor.  Fascinating
stuff, but I always wake up without achieving anything.

In the second, a person tries to convince me to enter a theater to watch
a fascinating movie.  The movie is interesting, but I never leave the room
to continue my journey.

BTW, for those who are interested the challenges (in order) were:

1. misdirection.  (Taking the left branch I climb a steep mountain trail
   but never reach my destination (although I _do_ meet up with the people
   I left behind after the 8th challenge).

2. passive distraction.  (Items for sale in a sidewalk sale).  BTW, in
   later dreams other join me and talk to me as I walk past the merchandise;
   I believe one is my anima.

3. passive resistance.  (The slippery inclined corridor).

4. active distraction.  (The movie theater).

5. active resistance.  Men come out of side door and try to physically
   prevent me from proceeding.

6. surreal 1.  I leave the building I have been in since #2 and walk down
   a dirt road.  Rocks are on the left, a field to the right.  If I walk
   down the road, the men from the previous challenge catch up with me.
   If I walk in the field they can't see me for some unknown reason.

7. surreal 2.  The men follow me into the field and find a downed antenna.
   They erect it and the "eye of God" on the top of the tower finds/kills
   me.  (I remember getting just inside as the eye glows red and the paint
   peels from the wall).  I'm not sure I ever really solved this problem....

8. animal nature.  A large dog senses my fear and keeps me from entering
   a house.  After I accept the dog it lets me pass without hassle.

In the house I join up with others left in the first challenge.  We go
into the house and descend, seeing tv monitors on the wall.  (Standard
subconsious imagery).

If I passed the 'latest' challenge I did not face the later challenges.
(E.g., the first time I made it past the mall (#2) I walked a while and
reached the house without problem).  However, while the other people in
my dreams remembered what I had done previous times, I never did (until 
I awoke).

Recurrent dreams like this are interesting because they're obviously
important, but the precise meaning is extremely elusive.  I leave it
to your imagination how much symbolizes Christianity.

>Im not passing judgement on these things. Im just trying to put
>things in perspective.

I'll pass judgement.  You're either working towards your goal or
you're wasting your life.

Of course, you may spend quite a few years identifying your goal....
so I don't criticize people because _I_ think they are wasting their
time.  I just think there is more to life than wandering aimlessly.


Bear Giles
bear@fsl.noaa.gov
Xref: sparky talk.religion.newage:3751 alt.alien.visitors:5692 sci.skeptic:14339