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- The Ascension Proposal -

- Section I: Statement of Problem -

 

              This is a preliminary listing of conditions and suggested circumstances that are presumed, based on the personal experiences of Alan Schneider, the Principal Investigator, to be effective in activating an altered state of consciousness consistent with the definition of Ascension, as follows:

 

                        Ascension is a heightened state of awareness characterized by

             the presence of symbolic spiritually significant visions, auditory or other

             perceptions, verbal manifestations, and marked shifts in overall perception,

             all of which tend to emerge in more or less distinct stages of manifestation,

             cognitive significance and psychological intensity.

 

            The operant term in use here is spiritually significant.  The Ascension experience is markedly more focused and intensive than the spectrum of differential perceptions consistent with normal waking consciousness. These include so-called day dreams or casual waking fantasies, open or focused cognition (i.e. thought-oriented perception), emotional states (e.g. love, fear, anger, confusion, joy, etc.), and general mood states (e.g. curiosity, boredom, apathy, etc.).  The content of Ascension-oriented experiences and perceptions is characterized by archetypal religious symbolism that is customarily accessed through the practice of well-known and documented techniques of attaining altered states of consciousness under controlled conditions, most notably Yoga postures, allied meditation systems from Eastern and Western traditions, the practice of certain lifestyle adaptations, and courses of study conducted in depth in appropriate spiritual traditions, such as Buddhism, Cabala, Native American Shamanism, Sufism, Gnosticism, and Daoism. It is both understood and presumed that the registrant will have some extent of experience in at least some the above specified areas before participating in this experiment, and will demonstrate a willingness to follow the advice and suggestions of the Principal Investigator and experimental group for further experimental involvement. 

            I tend to accept the theory that full Ascension – entry into the Seventh Chakra – can only be granted by the Logos. We can, if we wish, Ascend to the perceptual level of Ajna on the merits of our personal dedication, sacrifice, and austerity, but at Sahasrara, only the pure, clean, and, most importantly, detached Soul presence can enter. Obviously, what is meant by detached here is detachment from worldly, materialistic expectations of any kind, since they represent ego residue in our consciousness, and thus obstruct the vibration of Soul from resonating in the Divine Precept of the Logos. In this same vein, clean means free of any lesser states of conscious manifestation, such as fear, anger, confusion, desire, etc. 

            Naturally, the austerities and sacrifices involved in the pursuit of Ascension are very intimidating to the generic human awareness, driven as it is by need state gratification and hedonism as intrinsic motives. I understand this, and have no wish to compel anyone to go any further with the Ascension process than they are voluntarily inclined to, This experiment is something that I am offering to others, not requiring of them in any sense.

            I conceive of this process as being something that I understand particularly well, based on my intelligence and experience with my own, and the historically recorded, Ascensions of others. Minimal intervention and supervision by the facilitator, and maximal group participation and involvement will be the caveats of this experiment. The less of my personal ego involvement, the better. This includes the question of austerities. If a given participant wants to undergo an austerity, or group of related austerities, the entire experimental group will discuss the matter, using my inputs as the Principal Investigator, and will arrive at a group consensus prior to recommending this course of action. Such will also be the case with any personal sacrifices contemplated by any participant - informed voluntary consent under collective advisement will be the model to be employed.  

            As participants are accepted for The Ascension Experiment, a registration roster will be created and maintained for purposes of providing ongoing notification of experimental developments, meetings, clarification, and other relevant topics. 

            The world today is more challenged than it has ever been in history – challenged by global violence and terrorism, challenged by poverty and economic reversals, challenged by racial and ethnic communication barriers, challenged by climactic shifts, challenged by spiritual turmoil and conflict, and challenged by a profound spiritual vacuum of unprecedented pervasiveness – one which reaches into every phase of life, and into almost every human heart and mind. If this spiritual void is not recognized for the menace that it is, and corrective measures are not taken, we must fear for the very existence of this planet, and particularly for the future generations to come – the children of today and tomorrow.  

            In fact, it is the spiritual arena that is the subject of the Ascension Experiment. Of all the arenas of involvement noted above, this one is involved with all the others to some extent. The involvement of spiritual posturing in the area of terrorism, the primary forum of global violence, is so well documented that any further commentary could well be seen as redundant. Suffice it to say that three of the world’s major religions have come into conflict in the same small region of the Earth – the Middle East – Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Although there are complex and long standing motives for this struggle, the primary one is a more or less comprehensive lack of communication and understanding among the antagonists regarding their spiritual belief systems.  The world economy is still reeling at this time from a series of crises in the global stock exchanges brought on by unsound lending practices – ones specifically proscribed by the spiritual literature of most of the major belief systems for good reason – they promote an illusory security concealing a profound moral and financial insolvency.  The racial and ethnic barriers so prevalent today are at least partially the result of additional spiritual communication deficits, those which permit the paranoid perception of the sociocultural other to flourish in an atmosphere of distrust and suspicion, rather than promote intercultural interchange and understanding. Even the climactic shifts that are becoming so problematic are the result of population demography, itself significantly aggravated by the world atmosphere of alienation and fear due in large part to a world wide spiritual void existing among us all.

            A new consciousness and mindset are emerging at this time in the world, a consciousness of some higher purpose beyond the obsessive collection of objects, and a mind set encompassing the whole race of humanity, and, indeed the world and the universe, as One Being expressed in many forms – in a United Condition of existence. You are invited to participate in this awakening through involvement in the Ascension Experiment and proposal!

 - Alan Schneider, Principal Investigator -

            

(CR2008, Alan Schneider)