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"Life is visible, paradoxically, insofar as it is concealed." - Richard Doyle, "On Beyond Living" "We are in the process of recognizing that consciousness rather than raw materials or physical resources constitutes wealth." - Stephan A. Hoeller, Gnostic Society
Arrow Catcher is so far a collection of essays - all of which will be edited, updated, and/or removed as this project moves along. Here is a quick summary preview of Arrow Catcher proposals: + It may stand to reason that a person with the broadest, deepest possible mind/body package of knowledge and experience - a polymath or "Renaissance person" - may be best positioned to successfully achieve any form of spiritual enlightenment. The keyword phrase for all activity is "maximally inclusive". This is a central proposal in the essay series. + Arrow Catcher describes an "open mysticism" because it promotes the broadest possible open awareness as the key to understanding ostensibly esoteric ideas. In essence, the broad polymath is the model. Persons not disposed toward introspection and exploration may possibly not find Arrow Catcher so useful or meaningful as they might otherwise. + Ideally it is proposed that an "inclusive" educational background would include studies from both the arts and sciences. With the arts come skills for apprehending and appreciating fine details as well as acquiring non-verbal communication skills. Esoteric communications are most likely to be subtle and non-verbal, so arts experience ostensibly - if not just obviously - seems valuable in this light. The artist works with nuanced patterns to communicate and understand, often with non-verbal components – just as does the mystic. With technology and science studies come skills for focus, organization, classification, concentration, and communications. These latter "left brain" skills are proposed necessary to manage the mere personal "space case" amorphous scenario which might otherwise arise without organizational skills and sense. By analogy, the inclusive mind scenario is not unlike the multi-processor schemes of powerful modern computers. The inclusive mind would be most likened to "Asymmetric Multi-Processing" or ASMP where various aspects and details of an objective are simultaneously apprehended through as many specialized mind areas as possible. + The highest purpose of ordinary worldly knowledge is to describe recurrent patterns which when studied analogically will provide spiritual and esoteric insight. A “seeker” must have the broadest based mind and body knowledge set – largest possible temporal aperture – in order to successfully apprehend these insights. To invest in mere rote rituals is to invite self-delusion. + Many, if not most, spiritualities and religions revere variegated gods or deities which are described as omniscient, omnipresent, and inclusive. Obviously, the wisest observer might get a clue from these examples, and Arrow Catcher proposes just that - the rallying cry is "Semper Factotal" - "always doing everything" from Latin. Maximally inclusive behavior is the ideal. A "godlike" status could only be remotely approached asymptotically due to worldly and existential limitations, but that doesn't preclude an individual from making the effort. Again, a maximally inclusive "Renaissance person" (polymath) could be a prototype and candidate for spiritual enlightenment, whatever that might be. + The catch-all virtual vessel for a person's total mind/body knowledge and experience is the temporal aperture - an "opening in time". Ideally, the temporal aperture should expand and grow over a lifetime in order to become as inclusive as possible. This notion is described in more detail in the essay collection. + The everyday Universe continuously provides an endlessly variegated range of problems to all sentient beings. All mind and body traits of human beings have been shaped by constant interaction with problems and threats over time. A graced person can declare for themselves that problem solving behavior is to be the highest pleasure. "Hunting" for solutions to problems is archetypal behavior (without the bloodshed). This activity over time naturally grows the temporal aperture - overall awareness - with numerous regenerative benefits. A fulfilled, blissful life is guaranteed as a free, broad range supply of problems steadily gushes forth awaiting solutions! Declaration of problem solving as the highest pleasure is a ticket to paradise on Earth in effect. + A bona fide mystic is likely to be an excellent problem solver due to their experience with and knowledge of nuance. + Frequent recurrence of a given problem - a loop - is a strong hint of error. This situation is to be avoided to the greatest extent possible. The test for a valid solution is its durability. + Heavy reliance on extrapolation by analogy - as in Arrow Catcher - can be an intellectually shaky process, but widespread ostensible similarities in nominally disparate patterns are too compelling to be ignored. But in light of this caveat, it is reasonable to label most Arrow Catcher notions as propositions and not facts as such. Now for the long form foreword, followed by a series of essays that comprise Arrow Catcher in bulk: Scientists, spiritualists, philosophers through the ages have attempted to create models which unify disparate elements to the greatest conceivable extent. Yoga is an exercise series for unifying the mind and body. In the context of his major breakthrough insights, Albert Einstein spent considerable effort attempting to create a unified field theory that could encompass gravitational and electromagnetic field descriptions. And speaking of "electromagnetic" fields, James Clerk Maxwell brilliantly described mathematically the unification of electric and magnetic fields. See links for background information and qualitative references. The consciousness model proposals in Arrow Catcher are in the same light as all unification model efforts in the past, present, and future. While scientists have struggled to unify two or more fields in physics, Arrow Catcher unabashedly proposes herewith to unify absolutely everything. It helps if the Arrow Catcher visitor has both some arts and science in their background. Otherwise the descriptions cannot be fully understood nor - most importantly - felt. Arrow Catcher is a work in progress which will be continuously updated. Many of the earliest dated descriptions here need revision and in some cases deletion. Arrow Catcher is a "blossoming manuscript". Shortly, Arrow Catcher will include Podcast downloads so that the notions can be heard at the visitor's convenience and not simply read while glued to a back bedroom computer monitor. A new broad consciousness model is proposed to elegantly simplify discussion of consciousness, spirituality, and cosmology. The core inspiration is the observation that all worldly processes seem to share a number of specific patterns. Spiritualists advise that everything everywhere for all time shares one single pattern which is not directly discernable. Arrow Catcher proposes that by actively examining and exploring everyday normal life experiences it is possible for any person to seek and find patterns which seemingly disparate activities or material items share in common. The whole point of the "game" would be to find pattern similarities that cover the largest possible worldly instances. The fundamental powerful tool for this is the analogy. The winner of the "game" as it were would be that person who could correctly discern a one single pattern that imbues all worldly activity and process. That win is arguably impossible but is a good hunt. The central idea is to take an interest not foremost in objects themselves but rather in the patterns created by the interactions of objects in time. Analogies help to discern underlying patterns "painted" by objects in motion. Idolizing any object of whatever form only for itself is a snag. Analogies in the form of metaphor and parable appear in spiritually based literature throughout history. Even jokes - which typical comprise analogy and metaphor - such as in a recent book "Plato and Platypus Walk into a Bar: Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes" (Cathcart/Klein) can be used to study higher subjects. In Arrow Catcher it is proposed that analogies be rigorously considered and studied in the hunt for pattern commonalities. Why would anyone prefer to accept second hand interpretations of "spiritual" meta-structures from long past cultures and times when it is fully possible to make local time and place interpretations by analogical examination of patterns-in-common. A significant benefit of constructing models derived from the most rigorous possible analogies is that the effort becomes context independent. It is hypothetically possible at any time or place and under any circumstances and so is universal. Whether in Burkino Fasso or Silicon Valley it is equally possible to search for patterns-in-common. It is elegant to propose and consider that a spirituality can be locally derived by the careful study of patterns-in-common by analogy. The extreme granularity of contemporary knowledge, particularly as made available by the Internet, virtually begs for the study of patterns-in-common through the most rigorous possible use of analogy. Why the analogical search for patterns rather than direct study? Physicists, mathematicians, and others use intense academic tools such as particle accelerators, String Theory, quantum mechanics and so forth to discern deeply underlying patterns, but use of even the finest, most complex tools in this focus may lead to dead ends where meta-structures beyond worldly description begin. It is proposed that a search in breadth rather than depth may have equal or greater value. In particular it is proposed to be extremely useful that a student in this area have skill at handling information non-verbally. A scientists narrow intense focus with 3D tools of mathematics and physics may sidestep insights which may possibly only be gained non-verbally. It is proposed that a view derived singularly from only mathematics must be incomplete. Moreover, it will always be impossible to directly describe meta-patterns beyond the everyday anthropocentric three dimensional world. Using analogies to create increasingly granular meta-structural descriptions is akin to use of circumstantial evidence in crime solving. At this time at least and possibly for all time, it is the best available technique. Plus it is worthwhile to consider that many crimes have been successfully solved with circumstantial evidence. A relevant benefit here is that analogies enhance a sense of oneness as the entire basis of the analogical mentation is to show that one process, subject, or object is essentially the same as another. After numerous iterations of this exercise, the observer can likely begin to feel that all processes, subjects, and objects are ultimately connected to one another. A strongly proposed notion in Arrow Catcher is that the most accurate, granular, and meaningful interpretation of patterns-in-common by analogical reasoning is done by the broadest possible minds. The maximally inclusive polymath person arguably has the best positioned mindset for integrating inevitably diverse underlying patterns. Furthermore, much of that understanding may have a non-verbal basis - hence a value of arts training. Societies at all levels tend to foster specialization, and this is necessarily a strong factor in today's complex, highly developed societies. Specialization implies exclusivity, and this force is in opposition to all Arrow Catcher notions. It's a conundrum, irony, and/or paradox in that specialists provide a broad stream of subjects and objects of contemplation and use - such as the computer on which this page is being typed and uploaded to a webserver. It is a central point that a mindset of exclusivity may be forever ignorant of faint meta-structural traces which otherwise may have been cognized in a broader mind. A maximally inclusive mindset - as in "broad minded" or "Renaissance person" - is by practice less hindered by the insidious pervasive filters that naturally, if not necessarily, dwell in all human psyches. In this light, all societies may tend to foster additional specialists who understand this issue and who actively seek to integrate divergent skills into an open broadly inclusive mind and furthermore point out the advanced insight possibilities to others. See page 7. Arguably, Arrow Catcher falls into this category. The process of seeking pattern commonalities is a regenerative one that improves with practice. It may be an archetypal practice as it is a hunt, and in that sense such practice is entirely natural. In fact, it is a hunt that begins with childhood curiosity. The successful Arrow Catcher practitioner would most likely be an autodidact who did their best to maintain and expand upon their native born instinct of curiosity. It has been fashionable to explore consciousness in the context of quantum theory. In fact, every day reason as well as a review of the literature shows many analogies made to technical and scientific models. However, it is reasonable and even obvious that modern communication systems afford a rich core base for modeling consciousness. The model here is arguably elegant and started with a simple technical analog - the aperture of any common antenna. The rubric is rich with concepts begging to be shaped into a unified consciousness model. A simple point of departure would be the common broadcast transmitter/radio receiver model - not unlike unlike some parapsychological experiments in basic form. Communications systems concerned with the management and propagation of electromagnetic energy are a compelling source of inspiration and insight. Persons who are familiar at a practical and theoretical level with these concepts have found Arrow Catcher to be a fascinating proposal. The entire Arrow Catcher basis is drawn from technical analogies such as those in the Links page references. Any Arrow Catcher spiritual implications will obviously be compatible with science. Arrow Catcher is largely a restatement of ancient ideas to make them more meaningful to a modern audience. It makes sense to do this. There are no new core ideas here, just a new expression of old ones. But why use ancient world symbolism and metaphor when contemporary highly studied detail examples are conveniently available through analogy? After all, the underlying patterns are ubiquitous and forever. An essential point in Arrowcatcher is that consciousness forms and meta-forms all lie on a continuum: Many spiritual leaders as well as contemporary public persons such as Deepak Chopra have championed the notion of consciousness on a continuum. But here in a more modern rubric Arrow Catcher proposes to structure a new, more meaningful model than the precedents. While the antenna aperture notion first inspired Arrow Catcher, the temporal aperture meta-structure whose concept later grew from that initial inspiration can be analogized to an IQ (Intelligence Quotient) scale - a familiar psychometric tool - as in "My IQ is 145", etc... We can literally borrow the "IQ Test" schema and expand its scale past nominally anthropocentric measures as a metastructural continuum. When rationalized, it is apparent that the implications for psychology, spirituality, parapsychology, if not all knowledge structures, are important. It may be the case that the temporal aperture concept as used in this context is as significant as was Einstein's Theory of Relativity for physics. Note that the "IQ Scale" extended in a continuum to a "Temporal Aperture" meta-structure would no longer be merely a straight line but rather a multidimensional volume of a shape indefinable in everyday anthropomorphic terms. This volume is called a "surround" in the Arrow Catcher monograph. An analogy is made to the aperture surround of an ordinary radio antenna structure as proposed here, in page 3 and in page 13. Arguably the term "surround" may be interchangeable with "field". This latter term has been used by many consciousness study writers and is of course a core term in modern electronic communications - an antenna is an interface for electromagnetic fields for instance. Among many questions, Arrow Catcher asks: What would happen if the scope of the IQ scale were expanded from its nominal practical limits of "20 - 180" to a continuous range of zero to infinity? This is not a frivolous question. The everyday IQ test conveniently measures a half dozen or so consciousness parameters in a human's ordinary 3-dimensional awareness. Anyone with an interest in the Arrow Catcher website at least suspects that there are no hard limits and that "intelligence" could be productively expressed in a much broader scope. We will change the "IQ" expression to "TA" - temporal aperture. As well, instead of being a straight line chart of basic skills, the TA scale would necessarily be a - contiguous - complex form potentially encompassing multiple-dimensions. The fact that humans can't directly apprehend extended dimensions doesn't mean they don't exist. They simply can't be measured directly. The psychometrics of the "IQ Test" are too limited. It is proposed to borrow the continuum aspect of the commonly understood IQ scale and expand it far past math skills and 3-dimensional abilities. New labeling is required. See section 30. The expanded TA scale directly creates a unified consciousness model that is fully and absolutely inclusive. In that light, any meta-phenomena such as parapsychological events and even the nature of deities and gods become more clearly understandable. The most "intelligent" person is one who can successfully, inadvertently, and/or deliberately interact with those meta-structures on the continuum which extends beyond the commonly understood "IQ" scale. What would constitute a "genius" on the temporal aperture continuum? Idiot? Prodigy? See section 40. The Buddhist claim of universe and life as mere Illusion can be reasonably understood with a communications analogy in section 41 and section 17. The body of this website to date contains all beginning explorations and will have to be rewritten, but the core ideas stand to reason. It helps greatly if the visitor has a background in both the arts and technology since the exploration often relies on analogies. But there are millions of persons who meet this qualification, and they will gradually find this new paradigm to be fascinating and reasonable. A Sampling of more Arrow Catcher core notions: The rubric of "Temporal Aperture" is used to describe consciousness nodes. This is a meta-surround analogous to the engineering notion of common antenna aperture phenomenon as discussed beginning in section 1. Consciousness is a large concept best described on an infinite continuum. In a complex universe, that continuum would not be a neat straight line but rather a complex polydimensional meta-volume. But for the sake of discussion, we'll use a straight line as inspired in section 30 by the ordinary human IQ test. First thing to do is discard a limited anthropocentric view of consciousness. A summary is in section 25. A bonus in understanding a continuum model of consciousness is that it suddenly becomes easy to express a reasonable description of the "Gods" and "Deities" that have been so popular all through the Millennia in human society. Section 28 and others touch on this. To live a fulfilled, continuously happy life, there's only one thing necessary to do: Simply declare problem solving to be the highest pleasure. See section 35, and section 44 An underlying message for daily human living would be that the term "good life" implies being maximally inclusive. The Gods and Deities at the far end of our meta-continuum are Absolutely Inclusive and thus are inspiration. In the same way that science and the arts have advanced and deepened over the centuries, so should religious and spiritual constructs. Inertia, social conditioning, insecurities, and power structures prevent this. See section 4. What is an "Arrow Catcher"? See section 27. Mysticism Primer: Knowledgeable Arrow Catcher visitors will recognize that the temporal aperture model as proposed here has implications in mysticism. It differs from earlier - timeless - efforts in its reliance on modern structural analogs as its basis. Clues to mystical meta-structures everywhere surround the observant mind, and in the 21st century we are collectively better prepared to read those clues than the ancients. Arrow Catcher is all about elegant extraction of those clues inductively from modern technical structures... see section 33. Proposals for optimizing PSI Experience possibilities: A knowledgeable webmaster seeking to maximize the reach of his pages generally never bothers with the mere ritual of submitting web pages to search engines. Instead that person will practice "SEO" - Search Engine Optimization where the website is tuned to be found naturally ...see Section 34 Please continue on now to the content of Arrowcatcher.
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