Hinduism

Woebot

Well-known member
i'll kick this off with some cartoony images of ganesh.

very fascinated by the connection between comics, computer games and spirituality.

that nexus of devotion - the idea of higher-order beings.
 

Woebot

Well-known member
Super Mario games have a definite nod to Shinto and animism with Koopa, the main villain being a yokai ( Kappa, river demon ). There is also a psychedelic element with Yoshi gaining special powers when eating mushrooms..and I can best describe my "breakthrough" DMT experiences as being launched into Super Mario World...
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yup you nailed it here.

and such a benign universe.
 

william_kent

Well-known member
One of the fastest ways to win at Super Mario World can also be interpreted as an allegory for spiritual attainment:


Mario starts by choosing the Right Hand Path, and while on the earthly plane ( the foundation, Malkuth in Western esoteric tradition ) he firstly liberates Yoshi, achieving "Natsukashii" ( Japanese for "freeing oneself from nostalgia for the past" as represented by Yoshi the dinosaur or "reptilian brain"). Yoshi unleashes the element of fire clearing the level of enemies, allowing Mario to progress on his spiritual quest. Our hero rushes past "Chargin' Chuck", a demon warning of the dangers of materialism, individualism, and competition ( signified by the American Football outfit). He progresses to the next level by passing through the "goal post", which is actually a Torii gate, a Shinto symbol of "the transition from the mundane to the sacred".

Now Mario takes his first tentative steps to gain mastery of the element of Wind ( air in the western tradition ) by jumping from platform to platform, avoiding the obstacles presented by the Koopa Troopas ("a tribe of turtles famous for their black magic" ). Mario must proceed on the path of wisdom ( Wind / Air ), avoiding the dangers of the dark arts.

The next stage sees Mario embarking on mastery of Water ( representing the ability to adapt to change and control emotions ). He must avoid the fish creatures, "cheep cheeps" - possibly a form of Yōkai called "ningyo" ( a fish demon ) which can cause storms and misfortune.

Mario enters the evil fortress of the Koopa castle and leaps over the pits of Fire ( passion, desire ) and finds the door where he gains knowledge of 4 of the 5 pillars of Ikigai ( loosely translated as ‘your purpose in life’, from the Japanese iki - 'to live', and gai - 'reason '). The four pillars represent 'starting small' ( Mario is a humble plumber by trade ), 'releasing yourself', 'harmony and sustainability', and 'the joy of little things'. Mario has yet to gain knowledge and understanding of the fifth pillar because he has to face an encounter with Iggy Koopa, a lesser demon who he banishes by casting into the pit of fire. Mario has conquered desire.

He now enters Donut Plains ( a blatant reference to quantum physics ) where he becomes adept with the control of the element of Wind demonstrated by his gaining a magic cape allowing him to fly high and find the hidden key that opens the door to a secret underwater level. Mario is utilising his knowledge of 'harmony and sustainability' gained from the third pillar of Ikigai by balancing his skills with the Wind and Water elements in a move reminiscent of Gurdjieff's princples of "Harmonious Development" and "Conscious Evolution". It is here that he finds a way to the Secret Ghost House where he overcomes fear of death ( "ego loss" ) by defeating the Giant Boo ( Big Boss Ghost ).

Mario exits the Ghost House with new found ability to access the astral plane ( the "Star World" ). Mario now visits realms of Earth, Water, Wind and Fire before his final encounter with the demon Koopa. Entering the Void ( the fifth element in Shinto - the source of human spirit, everything, nothing, absence, and death ) Mario jumps onto a white cloud ( just like the Monkey King and Hanuman ) and defeats the demon, freeing
the princess Daisy, an act which represents the union of feminine and masculine principles ( Yin Yang ) thus gaining knowledge of the final pillar of Ikigai, 'being in the here and now'.
 
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Woebot

Well-known member
One of the fastest ways to win at Super Mario World can also be interpreted as an allegory for spiritual attainment:


Mario starts by choosing the Right Hand Path, and while on the earthly plane ( the foundation, Malkuth in Western esoteric tradition ) he firstly liberates Yoshi, achieving "Natsukashii" ( Japanese for "freeing oneself from nostalgia for the past" as represented by Yoshi the dinosaur or "reptilian brain"). Yoshi unleashes the element of fire clearing the level of enemies, allowing Mario to progress on his spiritual quest. Our hero rushes past "Chargin' Chuck", a demon warning of the dangers of materialism, individualism, and competition ( signified by the American Football outfit). He progresses to the next level by passing through the "goal post", which is actually a Torii gate, a Shinto symbol of "the transition from the mundane to the sacred".

Now Mario takes his first tentative steps to gain mastery of the element of Wind ( air in the western tradition ) by jumping from platform to platform, avoiding the obstacles presented by the Koopa Troopas ("a tribe of turtles famous for their black magic" ). Mario must proceed on the path of wisdom ( Wind / Air ), avoiding the dangers of the dark arts.

The next stage sees Mario embarking on mastery of Water ( representing the ability to adapt to change and control emotions ). He must avoid the fish creatures, "cheep cheeps" - possibly a form of Yōkai called "ningyo" ( a fish demon ) which can cause storms and misfortune.

Mario enters the evil fortress of the Koopa castle and leaps over the pits of Fire ( passion, desire ) and finds the door where he gains knowledge of 4 of the 5 pillars of Ikigai ( loosely translated as ‘your purpose in life’, from the Japanese iki - 'to live', and gai - 'reason '). The four pillars represent 'starting small' ( Mario is a humble plumber by trade ), 'releasing yourself', 'harmony and sustainability', and 'the joy of little things'. Mario has yet to gain knowledge and understanding of the fifth pillar because he has to face an encounter with Iggy Koopa, a lesser demon who he banishes by casting into the pit of fire. Mario has conquered desire.

He now enters Donut Plains ( a blatant reference to quantum physics ) where he becomes adept with the control of the element of Wind demonstrated by his gaining a magic cape allowing him to fly high and find the hidden key that opens the door to a secret underwater level. Mario is utilising his knowledge of 'harmony and sustainability' gained from the third pillar of Ikigai by balancing his skills with the Wind and Water elements in a move reminiscent of Gurdjieff's princples of "Harmonious Development" and "Conscious Evolution". It is here that he finds a way to the Secret Ghost House where he overcomes fear of death ( "ego loss" ) by defeating the Giant Boo ( Big Boss Ghost ).

Mario exits the Ghost House with new found ability to access the astral plane ( the "Star World" ). Mario now visits realms of Earth, Water, Wind and Fire before his final encounter with the demon Koopa. Entering the Void ( the fifth element in Shinto - the source of human spirit, everything, nothing, absence, and death ) Mario jumps onto a white cloud ( just like the Monkey King and Hanuman ) and defeats the demon, freeing
the princess Daisy, an act which represents the union of feminine and masculine principles ( Yin Yang ) thus gaining knowledge of the final pillar of Ikigai, 'being in the here and now'.
favourite dissensus post ever
 
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Woebot

Well-known member
in my book i compare the tibetan book of the dead with a computer game

The Tibetan Book of the Dead takes the form of a recitation of instructions to a recently deceased person — a corpse. “O, Child of Buddha Nature, (call the name of the dying person), the time has come for you to seek a path.” Then, almost exactly like a computer game, the guide describes a series of levels, of obstacles, that the soul must guide itself past. The goal is at all costs to avoid reincarnation in this samsara — our world of suffering. In all the various scenarios we encounter the injunction to seek “the bright and dazzling radiances of pure pristine cognition” and to avoid the “bewildering” or “dull” lights. Focusing on the most negative outcome, however, the recently deceased keeps roaming downwards stumbling over each hurdle. Facepalm.

There are many glorious descriptions of these encounters amid the mandala, but the following is particularly awesome: “Encircling these awareness holders, there will be inestimable crowds of dakinis [sacred female spirits]: the dakinis of the eight charnel grounds, dakinis of the four enlightened families, dakinis of the three abodes, dakinis of the ten directions, dakinis of the twenty-four powerplaces, spiritual heroes and heroines, faithful retainers, and protectors of the sacred teachings — all wearing six kinds of bone ornaments, playing drums, thigh-bone trumpets, and skull drums and waving banners made of the hide of ‘ritually liberated’ beings, canopies and streamers of human hide, the entire display pervaded by an incense cloud of burning human flesh, reverberating with the sound of countless and diverse musical instruments, the sound permeating all world systems, causing them to vibrate, tremble and quake.” To the trippers of the counterculture this imagery was manna from heaven.

A warning comes at “Obstruction of the Womb Entrances”: “O, Child of Buddha Nature, if you have not taken to heart the introduction which has gone before, from now on, the body of your past life will grow more faint and the body of your next life will grow more vivid.” Before finally we have the equivalent of “Game Over”: “Previously having been a human being, you will now have become a dog. So consequently, you will suffer in a dog-kennel, or similarly in a pigsty… There is no way back. You will experience all manner of sufferings in a state of great obscurity and delusion… There is nothing more awesome or frightening than this! Oh dear!” Oh dear, indeed.
 

william_kent

Well-known member
in my book i compare the tibetan book of the dead with a computer game

The Tibetan Book of the Dead takes the form of a recitation of instructions to a recently deceased person — a corpse. “O, Child of Buddha Nature, (call the name of the dying person), the time has come for you to seek a path.” Then, almost exactly like a computer game, the guide describes a series of levels, of obstacles, that the soul must guide itself past. The goal is at all costs to avoid reincarnation in this samsara — our world of suffering. In all the various scenarios we encounter the injunction to seek “the bright and dazzling radiances of pure pristine cognition” and to avoid the “bewildering” or “dull” lights. Focusing on the most negative outcome, however, the recently deceased keeps roaming downwards stumbling over each hurdle. Facepalm.

There are many glorious descriptions of these encounters amid the mandala, but the following is particularly awesome: “Encircling these awareness holders, there will be inestimable crowds of dakinis [sacred female spirits]: the dakinis of the eight charnel grounds, dakinis of the four enlightened families, dakinis of the three abodes, dakinis of the ten directions, dakinis of the twenty-four powerplaces, spiritual heroes and heroines, faithful retainers, and protectors of the sacred teachings — all wearing six kinds of bone ornaments, playing drums, thigh-bone trumpets, and skull drums and waving banners made of the hide of ‘ritually liberated’ beings, canopies and streamers of human hide, the entire display pervaded by an incense cloud of burning human flesh, reverberating with the sound of countless and diverse musical instruments, the sound permeating all world systems, causing them to vibrate, tremble and quake.” To the trippers of the counterculture this imagery was manna from heaven.

A warning comes at “Obstruction of the Womb Entrances”: “O, Child of Buddha Nature, if you have not taken to heart the introduction which has gone before, from now on, the body of your past life will grow more faint and the body of your next life will grow more vivid.” Before finally we have the equivalent of “Game Over”: “Previously having been a human being, you will now have become a dog. So consequently, you will suffer in a dog-kennel, or similarly in a pigsty… There is no way back. You will experience all manner of sufferings in a state of great obscurity and delusion… There is nothing more awesome or frightening than this! Oh dear!” Oh dear, indeed.
I'd play that game!
 

william_kent

Well-known member
In all the various scenarios we encounter the injunction to seek “the bright and dazzling radiances of pure pristine cognition” and to avoid the “bewildering” or “dull” lights. Focusing on the most negative outcome, however, the recently deceased keeps roaming downwards stumbling over each hurdle. Facepalm.

This reminds me of the time when me and some friends boiled up 1000+ psilocybin in a big pot..everything was going fine until my field of vision became a wall of coloured bricks and then each brick dropped away revealing nothing but white light, until that was all there was, just white light..

which would have been great except I was supposed to be the one putting the records on.. I panicked and pulled out of the "dazzling radiance" ...ended up shivering on some stairs "focusing on the most negative outcome" that I would be the local "casualty", never returning to consensus reality...

Those Tibetans really knew what they were talking about...
 
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