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How the Whole World is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings
Frog, Ltd. 2005 ISBN #1-58394-123-1 Sometimes life has a wonderful synchronicity to it. Within a few short weeks I received, unannounced, a mind expanding divination deck (AngeLynx Divination Cards), which is based on language, rather than pictures; and Paranoia. Both of these wonderful tools of empowerment ask us to move from our safe zones and expand our view of ourselves, and the world around us. In the beginning of the book, Brezsny sneaks in a bit of the Trickster. He wrote a page of instructions, that read something like this: (1) read the book straight through, from beginning to end; or, start in the middle, and read according to your instincts; or, ignore his suggestions and do what comes natural; (2) hear the music in the words, and allow the musical theme to guide you; (3) allow yourself to be Brezsny's coauthor - annotate the book as you will; (4) begin your collaboration on this page (the page of instructions)! There are several major themes that run through this book. One of them is the definition of Pronoia: that it is the antidote to paranoia, based on the belief that the universe is fundamentally friendly. A specific event that is referred to throughout the book is the"Burning Man Festival", which is an annual event that takes place in the Nevada desert. The desert sets the stage for acting out the joy, peace, and love that life really is. It was at this festival that the "Beauty and Truth Laboratory" was birthed. In a manner of speaking, this is a "think tank" revolving around the concepts of beauty, joy, peace, and bliss. It was also a loose network of people involved in spreading the concepts that beauty, joy, peace and bliss are all around us. At times, this would also become an experimental laboratory. To provide some sort of framework, I am listing the chapter titles for this book:
Chapter 1: Bravo, Viva, Kudos, Whoopee, Eureka, Hallelujah, Abracadabra There are recurring elements throughout the chapters. One of these is the "Sacred Advertisement", which makes use of people, events, and works that are already available to the public. One example would be: "The healthy chaos of the heart has been brought to you by Rigel 3200 pro Night Vision Goggles and Sharon Doubiago's "The Book of Seeing With One's Own Eye's". Another example would be "Free Pronoia Therapy", where the reader is asked to do some kind of exercise, such as: Do one of the following assignments: 1. Talk about the time a force beyond your understanding reached down and altered your course in one tricky, manic swoop. 2. Make up a dream in which you violate a big taboo without hurting anyone. 3. Describe the difference, if any, between what your ego needs and what your soul needs. The "Guerrilla Oracle" is indeed the rant that it sounds like. Here is one version:
"I used to have super powers," the bumper sticker says, "but my therapist took them away." Does that describe you? Have you been overly normalized by the bland conventions of what constitutes psychological health? Has your spunk been sapped by the pressure to behave yourself in a civilized manner? If so, I'll offer you three pieces of advice. They may have a sickening effect if you apply them too liberally, but they'll be a tonic if you use them in small doses. Here's the first, courtesy of Henry David Thoreau: "Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself out of much life. Aim above morality. Be not simply good, be good for something." Here's the second, from Isaac Asimov: "Never let your sense of morals get in the way of doing what's right." Here's another, formulated by William Irwin Thompson: "An overdose of an antidote becomes a poison in itself." And then there is the blank page that has the simple logo on top: "This page has been liberated for your personal use." Then we have "Mirabelia"- those mysterious revelations and stunning breakthroughs that happen in life! There are wonderful sections from the "Pronoia News Network", where all kinds of good, healthy news is reported. For instance:
Scientists have confirmed what we all knew: You do indeed have a little voice in your head that warns you when you're about to do something dumb. It's called the anterior cingulate cortex, according to white-coated authorities at Carnegie-Melon University, If you're receptive to it, it's as good as having a guardian angel. "Don't do it," the voice whispers when you're on the verge of locking your keys in your car or leaving the bar with the cute drunk you just met. "Go back," it murmurs as you start to walk away from a huge, though initially inconvenient, opportunity. My favorite recurring episode is the "Homeopathic Medicine Spell". These "spells" are written in the middle of the page, in the format of a circle, and in the tiniest type the printer could find to work with! Around the edge of the circle are astrological and other esoteric symbols. On the outer edge of the symbols we find individual words. Brezsny attempts to catapult us (ever so gently) from our safe places into a space where we examine our world with new eyes. We look for the good, and find it less interesting to accept the word of another than to investigate something ourselves. We free ourselves to be whoever we are! Throughout the book are many small (and some large!) graphics. Their relation to the text is for the reader to ascertain. Most of them are highly esoteric in nature. Some of them are Egyptian in origin. They are circles, snakes, pentacles, labyrinths ... and much more. Enjoy them - they are free! The entire 16th chapter is comprised of blank pages, in which the reader is to place their thoughts, so that they become a true "coauthor" of this work. (There are also other pages throughout the book where room is left explicitly for the reader to write in their thoughts.) Rob Brezsny is author of the (self admitted) "rowdy" astrology column "Free Will Astrology". His column, some of his music, and the entire text of his last book, "The Televisionary Oracle", can be found on his site: www.freewillastrology.com. Pronoia, if it does nothing else, will open your mind to how you may be limiting yourself. Taken in small to moderate doses, it acts as a cure for boredom and general stagnation in life.
Bonnie Cehovet
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