"'These things are archaic, yes, they speak of pagan cults and witchcraft, but that is because they come from primeval sources, from the beast that lived before mind was kindled in it.'" (p. 301)
Paganism and witchcraft themselves are ancient but surely their sources are not even more ancient, literally animal?
Ydwyr says that neither Djana nor he should tread what he calls the Old Way:
"'We have the real world to cope with, and we will not do so by abandonment of reason." (p. 302)
There are different uses of the word, "real." We can contrast mere feelings with reality or can talk about how we really feel. Any Way, Tao, should be toward reality and should integrate and transcend, not abandon, reason.
I would welcome a discussion with Ydwyr.
3 comments:
From observation, I detect elements of 'magical thinking' in animals. The attitude that a place associated with good feelings will protect them from threats, for example. (Cats are prone to that.)
I'd say overt superstition is the product of reason (which evolved for quite different reasons) experiencing a universe in which there weren't any obvious explanations for many phenomenon.
Given the inherent human tendency to 'personalize' things (to attribute actions to a conscious person causing them) this accounts for the almost universal animism of primitive peoples.
Humans have to develop explanations and reasons for phenomena, even when it's impossible to do so really rationally.
Apparently, a cat that my family had given to someone else kept bringing small offerings to our doorstep in the hope that we would take him back.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
That makes sense to me, superstitions arising from people trying to make sense of what they saw or experienced but did not understand.
Ad astra! Sean
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