There are psychological reasons for this. Material possessions are vulnerable to the “hedonic treadmill”, says Montier, whereas experiences are not. In other words, we quickly get used to new things and they become part of our norm. “We might get a new fast car and at first be out washing it every weekend but six months later we have become accustomed to it, the kids have scuffed up the seats in the back and the boot is full of dog hairs, ” he says. “This is hedonic adaptation at work . . . material possessions are likely to be assimilated relatively fast.”

Experiences, on the other hand, become more valuable to us as time goes on. Their charm does not wear off but increases as experience is central to our identity. “Experiences seem to be open to positive review,” says Montier. “For instance, I have recently returned from diving in the Red Sea. The boat we were living on was an unmitigated disaster, from fires in the engine room to diesel fumes being pumped into the cabin. However, looking back, the things I remember most were a couple of stunning dives. We create our own revisionist histories with experiences. This isn’t available to a solid, hard material possession.”

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Freud was a reductionist, Jung an elevationist - the two sides of the pre/trans fallacy. And the point is that they are both half right and half wrong. A good deal of neurosis is indeed a fixation/regression to prerational states, states that are not to be glorified. On the other hand, mystical states do indeed exist, beyond (not beneath) rationality, and those states are not to be reduced. Ken Wilbur, Source

The Absolute Subjectivity is sizeless or spaceless, and therefore infinite; but with the rise of the Primary Dualism, the subject is illusorily separated from the object, and that separation, that "gap" between seer and seen, is nothing more than space itself.  Man, in identifying exclusively with his organism as separated from his environment, necessarily creates the vast and grand illusion of space, the gap between man and his world.  (Wilber, 1977, p. 120) Source

Wilbur is interesting but beware of the ego rearing its ugly, defensive head:

These two paths have been rather distinctively delineated a hundred years ago by William James (1899/1982) in terms of the spirituality of "healthy mindedness" and that of "the sick soul."  The point is that the one—the "healthy mindedness" or control spirituality—involves a kind of mental ego-actualization, ego-aggrandizement; and the other—the "sick soul" or surrender spirituality—involves an honest dealing with and processing of the unconscious and all that it is.  This second path, this true spirituality involves a going through hell on the way to heaven—which is a matter of surrender and letting go, as opposed to control and healthy-mindedness.  The one is a matter of surrendering to All That Is; whereas the delusional path is a matter of defending the ego, continuing ego defenses to keep out negative thoughts, and so on.  It is interesting that the one can always be distinguished from the other in the false one's emphasis on discipline, indicating it's militaristic attitude of defending against unwanted negative thoughts, and so on.  Elsewhere I have called this the "patriarchal mistake" (Adzema, 1972b).

The ego gets them every time.  Letting go and surrendering to God is the key.  You are not the doer, God is.  You are only the aware of the doing and for that you should be thankful for that is the essense of human life.  You can't improve on God's creation - THY will be done!

The ego does not surrender easily.  It sends out its emissaries of diversion and disruption, of fear and insecurity, to trip up the gullible and the arrogant.  Yet surrender is what is required; the tendency to try to control and to ritualize our native experience is what is to be resisted.  Therefore, banners such as "Homo noeticus" and "fully functioning ego" may bring temporary relief from the difficult task of ego resistance, dismantling of ego defenses, and confrontation with the painful aspects of the unconscious, the Shadow, in the ego-inflation inherent in such standards.  But it is as wise to align oneself with these tokens to fend off one's necessary insecurity (see Watts, 1951) as it is a good idea to join up with the KKK or the skinheads as a way of dealing with the same kind of insecurities of changing (and growing) events.  In fact the responses are much alike. Source

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Part 1: Quantum theory and consciousness
Part 2: The metaphysics of nonduality
Part 3: The end of suffering and the discovery of our true nature
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Out beyond the ideas of right-doing or wrong-doing there is a field- I'll meet you there. Jelaluddin Rumi

Love Said to Me

I worship the moon.
Tell me of the soft glow of a
candle light
and the sweetness of my moon.

Don't talk about sorrow,
tell me of that treasure,
hidden if it is to you,
then just remain silent.

Last night
I lost my grip on reality
and welcomed insanity.
Love
saw me and said,
I showed up.
Wipe you tears
and be silent.

I said, O Love
I am frightened,
but it's not you.
Love said to me,
there is nothing that is not me.
be silent.

I will whisper secrets in your ear
just nod yes
and be silent.

A soul moon
appeared in the path of my heart.
How precious is this journey.

I said, O Love
what kind of moon is this?
Love said to me,
this is not for you to question.
be silent.

I said, O Love
what kind of face is this,
angelic, or human?
Love said to me,
this is beyond anything that you know.
Be silent.

I said, please reveal this to me
I am dying in anticipation.
Love said to me,
that is where I want you:
Always on the edge,
be silent.
You dwell in this hall of
images and illusions,
leave this house now
and be silent.

I said, O Love,
tell me this:
Does the Lord know you are
treating me this way?
Love said to me,
yes He does,
just be totally…
totally… silent

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