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Post by Darth Draconis on Nov 2, 2022 2:21:07 GMT -7
Can you get things done without conflict or anger? While I think it's entirely possible and often advisable to get things done without (visible) anger, it may well be impossible to do so without conflict - I've long been a fan of Khaos' perspective on conflict as a practice in and of itself, and one that can be applied in any and all aspects of life at will because no living thing exists free or outside or beyond of conflict, ever. Not until it dies, and to think it ends there is just as much a supposition as to think it doesn't... *shrugs idk about after but, perhaps no thing in existence, living or otherwise, whether matter or energy, escapes conflict as I understand it. Much like power, it's less a matter of "is it there, or not" and more a matter of "will I exploit it, or not". From a lecture I wrote years ago... The only time I ever seem to hear people talk of power is when they’re talking about politics. Or when someone commits genocide. Or else something of the like. I find this hilarious, personally, and I’ll tell you why. The only time they talk about this is when it is a vulgar display of power. It’s almost a profane word in the way most people use it. Me? I happen to like power, in fact I am exercising my power in writing, at this very moment. And these words have an affect; whether you think I’m full of myself and reject every proposition of mine, or you completely agree with what I say. Furthermore, how you react to that power is within your power. It’s your choice on what you take and what you filter out, it's even your choice to continue reading or, alternatively, to ignore these words. In the simplest terms, power is influence. It’s hardly exclusive to the politicians and the business executives. It’s comical to me that anyone would believe themselves not to have it. You don’t think your choices have affected what talents you have, what college you’re attending, or what hobbies you pursue? And what about your relationships, do you really believe you have no impact on the thinking and emotional state of people you interact with on a daily basis? You don’t think you have an effect on what your best friend thinks of you? No, you have power. The question isn’t "do I have it?", but rather, "will I admit that I have power?" There are what I might call different intensities though, if someone were interested in a sort of classification system. The kind most commonly cited today is, as I said, vulgar. It’s heavy, in your face, and rarely seen in a 'positive' way. There may be varying intensities, much of it existing at frequencies to high or low for individuals to pick up on or perceive unless they train themselves to do. Learning the ways of the Sith demands developing the skill to see and perceive these 'dimensions' or elements (lol for lack of a better term) of our (objective) reality. This kind of outlook is what inspired me to make a "war room" space for an online workspace I put together for myself recently, which reads (as a reminder to myself) in the description: "C.C. - strategy formation and monitoring of current situations; records of past, ongoing and future conflicts, drafted statements and narratives, and battlefield oversight. Active practice and study of the art of conflict - lectures, insights, tactics, and chronicles. General Patton: " Nobody ever defended anything successfully, there is only attack and attack and attack some more." ..... Darth Malgus: "...the survivors of the conflict come to understand the Force more deeply. Their understanding evolves. That is purpose enough." I have no intentions of sharing anything about the space beyond this but, thought it relevant on two levels: to clearly convey what I mean when I say I view it as a practice and artform unto itself, much like Khaos, and to illustrate that more than just a years old, dusty and forgotten lecture, I speak on this from a place of active and present tense practice in conflict. Power, like passion, is a defining point of all life, from one-cell organisms to humans. Violence is blatant, and there’s power in it; legislative influence affects a lot of people, so it’s easy to see. But take a closer look, and you can see it’s a hell of a lot more than that. It’s only a matter of awareness. Right under your nose is all the power over your life, maybe more than you would believe. It’s not something you can attain, just something to recognize. The air you breath, it’s there to, even if you don’t acknowledge it. You use it even if your ignorant of its presence. One way I've suggested others look at it in the past, is that it's friction. Some of it generates enough heat and abrasion to become noticed easily, even by those not trained to perceive it beyond the "normal" range (wherein people can generally agree that what they are seeing before them is "conflict"), but as with passion, there's also a hell of a lot more to it than that. Just as the more vulgar displays of power are the more noticed so to are the more unpleasant, disruptive, and more destructive forms of conflict. There is that, but there's also much more. From another lecture I wrote years ago... Each and every life-form, from a single-celled organism to a human, is constantly vying for power, trying to exert influence. All life attempts to expand. This I see as a 'will to power' . Life itself has a will to power, but to look on a smaller more practical scope, each living creature has its own will to power; driven by this, conflict is an inherent quality of life, evidence of such a will. As living beings, change is an ever-present and ongoing occurrence on a cosmic scale, but also on an individual level. The transformation and conflict should be embraced, to become more, because every creature has power; the basis of survival is to have more. Also relevant, I think, from The Book of Conflict... At its lowest levels amongst groups, conflict is represented by the symbol of a club, with a caveman mentality to stroke ones own ego by defeating ones “enemy” and to prove oneself “right”. Or worse, as Temporus so aptly put it, it is only mentioned because it is the "Sith" thing to do. At this level conflict is often used as an escapist, or avoidance tactic to not have to face the deeper levels of conflict, the fear of being honest, and hence vulnerable, the possibility of being broken, or wrong. It becomes no more than a shallow exchange, in which nothing is gained, or learned. At this level the individual is doing nothing more than using an infants tactics in defense of oneself as opposed to confronting oneself. It is a stage of self deceit and fear, fear of self honesty, of laying oneself bare, especially to themselves. A fear of taking that first step and tearing down ones walls. Instead they dig in and try to reinforce there crumbling foundations. It is the beginning… I think your 'beginnings' took place mostly in my absence, but perhaps it's just as well(?). I might have given you hope of a friendly among foes in a time when lol, frankly, that may have been counter-productive. And besides, new beginnings abound. I disapprove of, or rather, confused by of how you were dealt with as a student, generally, and based on what I know (admittedly limited) I do not sympathize with the hang ups people have had with you, but struggling through all that seems to have been a trial and test of you over the span of at least a few years. The experiences, the rejection, the likely feeling of isolation and ostracization, got you to a place where you can reach beyond (to use the framework in the book) the stage of the club imo. Although I may be getting ahead of myself.... might worthwhile to reflect, briefly, on the conflicts that have marked your time in the force realist communities so far, through that lens. Food for thought, anyways. I'm not sure how much you participated at Luciana's site when it was still up but... This is where the individual is made to take a stand, through active challenge from the senior members of the Order. A line is drawn in the sand and the individual is forged stronger for as though it at first seems like they are confronting others, they are actively being made to confront themselves. This is a slightly manipulative stage as the senior members at first seem antagonistic, the goal is to truly form a connection, once the connection is made an adept of conflict uses the weapons of the middle levels to draw the entrenched individual out. Sometimes, through an individuals own volition and will accomplish this on there own. What happened with you is imo what happens if a student has this kind of approach in mind, and so to did the teachers once upon a time... but then the advocates of that approach faded out, ceded power and authority to those who (apparently) either forgot or never learned the lessons of conflict they themselves were operating under and, I had thought, openly espousing. They forgot that these challenges from the student, whether unrefined blusters or well executed, were INVITED and EXPECTED so some (not so small) extent, and that (again, apparently forgotten) was meant to lead to connection, the dynamic was to become less antagonistic (the guide/teacher presumably setting the example, setting the tone, influencing and pushing things that direction, being the more experienced) and draw the entrenched, less experienced individual "out" in what is rightly described as "a breakthrough level, in which the individual discovers self honesty, self worth and the ability to use vulnerability as a resource. The true nature of conflict is glimpsed, passion fed, the walls fall, and individual meaning is discovered! This individual meaning is further explored with the guidance of a master, or the will of the student alone." You're in an interesting place regarding this imo, a fork in the road so to speak; e.g. in your journal you wrote... I am deeply apologetic about the destruction and lack I had back then. In ways I still lack and working on it. And also, in a similar vein from a few days previous... Sometimes I've dropped the ball and messed up. Maybe it's too late to make amends so all I can do is move forward and do better. Passion, desire, and the way I express matters. [...] When I developed healthier relationship with myself I felt I had something some Sith don't. Love, inner peace, self respect, compassion, mixed with accounts ility, conducive pressure, letting go of illusions of backstabbing nature and endless betrayal. On the one hand it's good to see your perspective shifting and evolving, on the other there's the risk of losing sight of the very real elements of treachery this world and life confronts us with, and of the power of illusion, and the terrible things people can, have, and will always do to each other when enthralled in those, even (or maybe especially) to those who see past the facades... backstabbing, plotting, manipulating, deceiving, censoring, undermining, abusing, destroying.... lol even within the microcosm of the force realist communities, and enough of it goes on that it's probably wise, even for those who find such things distasteful, to be a) aware and ever mindful of it and b) capable of engaging in any, all, or none of those things as needed (e.g. if/when you're, with certainty, being subjected to them), as determined by your ambitions and aims. In that sense you can perhaps consider your early forays in the arts of manipulation and deceit to have been... a long and trying primer in the ways of the club, with some flirtations with and learning to some extent on the 'level' or 'frequency' of the sword, described in the book of conflict as follows: "At its middle levels conflict is wielded as a weapon to aquire knowledge, and gain experience. It is represented by the image of a sword. A rapier, or katana comes to mind. It is the level of the Warrior. Very often conflict at this level is used to cut through the bullshit in a conversation, to find the real, or deeper meaning of what is being discussed. To create student mind (for both parties), by strategically placing them in conflict. To test oneself against others, to find out, if, bluntly put, you’re walking what you’re talking. If it holds up under pressure, if you do for that matter, will you focus or fold?" Also, "The sword cuts, it is a weapon to gain experience and knowledge in your conflicts with others. If you’re going to bother entering into conflict, you may as well get something out of it. The sword differs greatly from the club because, while it is also a weapon, it allows you precision, to choose what, and more importantly, why you are cutting, it is all well and good to destroy, that’s easy, anyone can do that. We Sith, are not creatures of destruction, at least destruction without purpose, we destroy so we can create in its stead." And two other relevant passages I'll quote, worth contemplating, one on the Club... No one is above using the club, many times it is done without an individual even being aware they have used it. I use it often myself, and while it is the lowest level of exchange it is also an inescapable part of the evolution of conflict, and not without its uses. It is however, the hardest to use with any degree of maturity for many of its beneficial applications are double edged swords. This is a big reason conflicts, as opposed to debates have a tendency to degrade if we are not constantly mindful of our emotions. Very often when engaged in a conflict it is hard to see when our emotions have taken control, it is only when reviewed in hindsight it is most apparent to see the club used. It is good to review ones conflict after a… cooling off period, three days to a week after the conflict has reached its end re-read it. Follow the play of emotions inside you as you do and be aware of when they spike, more often then not, it will be at times directly before the use of the club. [...skpped content...] 1) To bash down walls. Either by the individual in search of self discovery, or by a teacher, attempting to bash down the walls of a prospective student to help them reach there potential. This is an attempt to discover self worth, meaning, and honesty. In discussions of conflict one is either made to take a stand, or does so themselves. This is an important point of development for anyone. To take a stand, to actively engage in conflict, even on the venue of a forum, takes a good deal of courage, especially for new members. This is usually where one starts making real discoveries in ones path as walls begin to come down, it also gives them a good understanding (if they’re honestly responding from and of themselves) in emotional awareness as stated above. A very good starting point in self recognition, of what one wants, doesn't want, ones strengths, weaknesses, etc. An overall good tool for discovery students in training of themselves, or for teachers and senior members to learn about the newcomers. However, there is the saying about the best of intentions and the road to hell. Whether it is the individual bashing away at there own walls, or the teacher attempting to reach the student, there is the very real danger of taking it too far, to fast, of over extending, the equivalent of stretching a rubber band to the point it snaps. This has the danger of a teacher alienating the student, not realizing the emotional state of the patient is on overload, and leaves, due to anger, discouragement, disgust, a general shut down of interest. [...skpped content...] 2) Defense/Offense. As crude a tool as it is, it is usually the first that we use in this manner. Not only as newcomers to the Sith path, but in our life as well. We wish to protect ourselves, and we do so viciously, and jealously. We do it instinctively and with ferocity, a lower, more subtle level of the fight or flight response. The club is good for this, as its only purpose is to harm, either so we can get away, or finish in terms of conflict. A good teacher can, with the club, for lack of a better term, put someone in there place. This bears a bit of explanation and I will use a personal experience to explain.. When I first joined this path, that is, the online Sith oriented venue, I was cocky as hell. Thought I was gonna wow the communities with my knowledge and seemed to think I had the Sith path all worked out. Then I met a man named Seti I Shadim, who I engaged in conflict, and though he was amused by my attitude, he used the method of the club to pretty much destroy any sense of self I possessed. Even though he used the club, he did so with tact and skill. It was a VERY public defeat, of which many more joined in, which was nothing more than adding insult to injury. I almost didn't come back to the communities… I realized two major lessons. One, I didn't know shit, and two, there's always someone with a bigger club. When I had pieced together the remnants of my shattered ego, I still did not post for several months (4, if my memory serves). I read, studied, listened, watched, simply observed. Practiced and applied what I could, and when I could no longer progress by myself, I asked questions. Cautiously at first, and then with more boldness, and if my questions were not answered to my satisfaction, I continued to question. A distinct change marked my before and after though. I was still at times using the offense/defense of the club, but now with awareness. I understood the importance and purpose of the fight or flight response it offers. It also became for me, the above mentioned beginning tool of true self discovery. To use the club as a weapon however, can become a crutch on which a student hobbles to avoid change, or self confrontation and honesty. In fact it is primarily a weapon only used in defense, for guarding oneself, from oneself. Defending ones walls against anyone and everyone that comes to question them. Most often these are the individuals who give answers or opinions carefully shrouded so as to be very generalized, or exceedingly obvious statements. When threatened, they swing there club wildly, looking to connect with anything so as not to have to actually discuss themselves. Or senior members, have used it to bully newer, younger members because, in all honesty, they can. It’s most often the case of a petty ego looking for a stroke. This is apparent in conflicts where it is obvious the senior student has been "defeated" or has given up, and is still barraged, and bashed with the issue under discussion. In fact, when I had first started really getting serious about conflict and its applications, I did this on more than several occasions. This was when I first gotten some real standing and respect in the communities, having reached the level of Sith knight. Again, I was reminded that there is always someone with a bigger club. Perhaps this is why I am constantly speaking of, and enforcing student mind, my own reminders were… memorable. And the other on the Sword...  |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2022 16:12:29 GMT -7
My main problem with most Sith is that they use conflict to evade like Darth Karen did when she lied/played the victim. David was my only true Sith mentor who brought me into my own individual path. I follow both materialistic and esoteric things. My ability to focus on the materialistic then psychological affects or esoterics helped me hone my own systems. I'm forging my own esoteric Sith system and will share it in future.
I agree that we need to get able to understand the nature of ourselves. I embrace conflict in my Kung Fu training. Someone is about to hit me and I remember pain from when I was hit. So I fear getting hit and would rather evade then hit them or use my qinna or do whatever drills we are doing. In a life or death situation I'd rather kill them before they kill me in a few moves. Also the intent isn't always to kill, it could be subdue without lethal intent.
I'm now an instructor and in training under a new combat martial art that uses light swords aka sabers. My influence as alpha does have an impact on others. So it's my responsibility to be mindful and get the points across. Today I felt some anxiety and feel pressured cause my Sifu is asking a lot of me. It's a battle in the inside and sometimes I don't see what he sees. Why me? What if I fail him? I want to do a great job, train hard, live by our code, work flow consult, be hid left hand but I don't in my current paradigm feel it yet cause I'm training doh.
This is why I'm training and while I feel excited I also let my emotion flow listening to the signals being in observer. Then I change the way I respond and do my best to avoid getting caught up in my conflict. Yes conflict is a part of this world and I'm using it because I'm noe competing against FA, JFED, other Jedi communities, getting my improved self out there, learning from my faulire, and more while acknowledging their conflict tendencies.
Most if the time in my conflict I feel down, unworthy, doubt, and I push past it. In response to this I now feel frustrated and a desire to move on. I'm an awesome person. I'm making my own business, working towards my goals, and more then once I feel more happy with myself. I feel other emotions when there's goals but my style is unblocking and I'm more conducive then before.
Yes conflict is a part of growth. You can learn from pain. Drop what isn't necessary to carry anymore. Live in present moment and be quiet and calm in my conflict storms or those of others. I will address more later and need to run back to another hour of class. *introvert self wants to stay in yet goes out for more learning* another 10 hours. Day 3 my muscles a bit sore lol. I feel happy though and enjoy it even when it's hard.
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Post by Darth Draconis on Nov 2, 2022 22:08:22 GMT -7
I've learned what not to do. Don't waste my time if you think it's a mistake. I don't waste yours. Thanks for letting me know and communicating with me. Oh I think you misunderstand I just mean the trials by fire forced you to explore the ways of the Sith on your own terms, much as one would have to do if there were no other Sith to learn from. Much like I, and many of what I consider my contemporaries, have had to do. I simply mean that had I been around then a) I may not have fully understood the dynamic you were being subjected to at the time, and b) you may not have learned what you did, or grown as you have, had I confused the experience. But don't mistake their child games or clown show antics (I'll go ahead and specify I'm thinking mostly of Satelle here, though it applies to others) for good or legitimate representations of Sith ideology as expressed from experienced guides to a less experienced seeker. What it struck me as, in digging through what little of the discussions and threads from back then are still around, is that you were confronted with rivals and members of what amounted (devolved into) private elitist (and shrinking) little clubs for the "in crowd" which in this case would be the "old guard" and those they favored. I have no respect for that approach and no inclination to engage in it. Luciana alluded to you being a poor example of Sith (to... newcomers, I suppose? idk) but, given the example she set and had YEARS of free reign and good will for wiggle room to adjust, improve, and evolve... that knife cuts both ways - and to boot, we're technically comparing what a Sith Lady to a Disciple she fails to reflect on the impression she gave of what the Sith are, has no self awareness about the impression she gave you. Her example, ultimately, regardless of whatever rationalizations or justification, left you with this impression: "Yeah I felt rejected, alone, isolated, etc since birth so nothing new there and looking for a different experience thanks^^. I'm done trying to connect with other Sith, they all fake lying backstabbers who don't get it and are just big bullies. I had to do everything alone and since you think it's a mistake then I'll just take my attention back to myself. My hope died a long time ago and isn't easy to spark in reguards to that." Perhaps she should reflect on that. Over time I think you'll find the practitioners you've been exposed to, though probably the rule rather than the exception, are not representative of the apex of our ideology. I told them before I faded away this last little while that imo Luciana and Satelle were fucking up and burning bridges, pissing people off, and not just me... in various ways, and they did nothing but scoff, attack, dismiss, and plod on. They were... unconvinced, I guess. You reap what you sow, as they say. As to learning what not to do... maybe you have but, what I mean by the risk of losing sight of the treacherous aspects, the manipulation, deceit, and all the rest is... those ARE part of the path but rather than guiding you to elevate your understanding of those things, those were seemingly cited as reasons to rag on, attack, and demean you... and I find it very strange that walkers of dark paths like ours, purporting to be "teachers" of any kind", would on the one hand claim to be adepts of darkness but on the other regard dark practices as anethema, as "toxic" or "disruptive" or whatever else. That's not to say I want to encourage a "backslide" or whatever, just that you weren't exactly "wrong" in what you were doing even with the "worst" of what you did, and I could make the same argument for many of those you clashed with EXCEPT they are allegedly the more experienced and competent, and so bear the burden of FAR higher expectations. Expectations they fell short of, and not just with you. So in terms of what not to do, if you're basing that on what people like them tried to get you to conform to, it may be worth taking a step back from what you learned and unlearning it. There are no rules here, I don't have an expectation or imagined outcome for you that I'll get pissy about when or if you don't meet up to it. I have, instead, a curiosity about who you are, what you believe, where you've been, where you're going, what you'll become, and that all of that and more is done on YOUR terms, not mine, a product of YOUR vision. Put another way... I don't want you to be the Sith I think you should be, I want you to form, solidify, and articulate your own idea of what that is, and then become it. If it eventually evolves to conflict with what I personally feel is "Sith" so be it but, even that is a good thing in my view, where and when it occurs. To a large extent you're already engaged in that process and have been for years but, this is in some respects a continuation, but also an entirely new chapter. Particularly if you're dedicated to the idea, and values, of the Sith apart and aside from any of its other known practitioners (ref. rule of one) and plan to become and remain one in the deepest sense, for your own reasons and purposes, regardless of communities. Something to maybe explore and dig into at greater length as we go, I think, in the context of apprenticeship. Anyways, AT the time it was ongoing with all the stuff in the past, I'd have been in the thick of it as much as anyone else, trying to make sense of it, struggling with it, arguing about it, and wouldn't necessarily have been able to put my finger on it or discourage/stop it; but there's also the flip side of course; s'pose if I had been around, maybe I could have been the difference. *shrugs* I don't know if the insights on this subject matter I've had in recent months and years would have necessarily been in play though. Really all in all, I just think it worked out well is all. That it's maybe just as well, or better, that we crossed paths now and not then. Didn't mean it in the sense that it is a mistake to work with you in the present (or even that it would have been to do so in the past, had I been active) just that, given how sideways everything went across the force realist communities these past few years and that you endured, I like where things sit, all things considered. |
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Post by theunbeholden on Dec 14, 2022 7:34:42 GMT -7
I'll suggest what Onus All Seeing Eye suggested on the reddit subgroup SithOrder: www.reddit.com/r/SithOrder/comments/mwit6u/the_sith_code_a_breakdown/It has the best rundown of the code I've seen online and it directly provides a suitable explanation of conflict for our purposes. The excerpt: "Peace is a lie, there is only Passion Peace is a lie, a lie that may come from any number of the forces in the universe which would act against us. When someone says “We are in a time of peace! There is no need to be so paranoid!”, peace is a lie they tell to lull their enemies and lessers into a false sense of security and complacency. When their victim’s guard is good and let down, they make easy prey of the weakened target. Do not mistake my meaning, one is allowed to revel in one’s own victories and enjoy a kind of calm before the next storm, but never celebrate so much that you lose sight of those that would still oppose you. Chances are, they will not forget you even in your moment of triumph. Assume they will always keep a watchful eye on you, waiting to see a crack in your armor to exploit. The fewer weak-points we allow ourselves to make known, the less chance we have to see these exploited against our will, and the more time we have to build up our defenses against that weakness in ourselves. When we say to ourselves, “No enemy has struck against me in so long, and I have bested every challenge sent to me. I have brought about peace!”, peace is a lie that begets willful ignorance of one’s ongoing, ever-present struggles and often leads to undue contentment and stagnation. Each moment you spend in this plane of existence is a struggle against every other force in the universe whose will acts counter to your own. Even if we manage to keep ourselves vigilant through every attempt by an outsider to sell us on this lie of peace, if we trick ourselves into believing it, we expose ourselves as badly, if not more completely, to our enemies as if they had pulled the wool over your eyes themselves. Do not save your enemies the work of putting you off balance in this way, you are only making yourself fodder for their wills over your own if you do. No matter the source trying to feed you the lie of peace, do not let your shield of awareness fail you in this way. Keep the upper hand however you can, and be prepared for even those close to you to bring about disappointments and betrayals. It is inevitable, as even those we trust one day, may fall prey to the fact that the universe hinges on conflict on the next. When we prepare ourselves for that which we know will, and that which may happen, then one will find themselves far less likely to be caught completely off-guard. If the life of every being on this planet is an unending war against the elements of life, then peace, as a matter of fact, is a delusion. By preparing ourselves for our battles to come by accepting and acting on this information, we may focus more entirely on bringing about what our passion drives us to." |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2023 17:07:49 GMT -7
How you use conflict matters. How you engage can either chance something or continue it. Seek to have the advantage to change vs. Continue those chains. -Sith Lady Kurai Kage Proverb How do you use conflict and your sword? Is it to stomp more on the dead bones or raise them up? No use repeatedly stomping on the dead. Maybe at first yet the real test of power comes from something alive clashing against something alive. What is the result? I leave it open. *Puts mic in holder and walks off* I've beaten plenty of dead horses, until I eventually stopped. Knowing when to withdraw from conflict is just as valuable as knowing when to initiate it. I've spent years, learning through conflict. However, I've also spent a long while, playing the victim card, which is the same card I've accused numerous others of holding in true hypocritical fashion. I'm not a victim, nor a victor. I'm just a human being, doing human things, seeking to make sense of myself like anyone else. Being able to recognize the above is a result of having imposed conflict in myself, including by means of resurrecting buried memories (bones as you say), and challenging myself on many levels. In summary, I use conflict as a means to challenge myself now, more than I use it to challenge others as I did before. That isn't to say I don't still challenge others, I'm just more selective and less hypocritical about it. |
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