from The Meaning of Life: Ascending Jacob’s Ladder by Hazy Notion
Many sensitive, meditative people living within modern cultures have the ability to temporarily stand above Self identity on the level of Survival of Mind through Superstition. They can stand, so to speak, at the gateway to the temple of Mind. However, a successful passage through the gateway requires some prior development of the emotional polarities of Love and Courage. Without this higher emotional development it is not possible to withstand the trauma involved in discarding the old Survival of Self identity.
There is a plethora of philosophical traditions, mystical schools and yoga systems that teach various methods to prepare for Self transcendence. The methods that are most effective all follow the same basic formula. The formula combines both an internal and an external approach. The internal approach is one of meditation. This involves the progressive development of Mind identity by cultivating a habit of observing the flow of thoughts generated by Self identity. The part of a person’s mind that engages in observing the mental activity of the Self is, of necessity, differentiated from the Self by being its observer. The more this meditation is practiced, and the more dominant the observer becomes, the greater is the shift into Mind identity.
The external approach, complementing meditation, involves a re-ordering of the person’s lifestyle in ways that frustrate the expression of Self identity. When this is done successfully the frustration brings the lower emotions of the Self into the forefront of the Self’s thinking patterns. This provides opportunities to replace these lower emotions with the Love and Courage of Mind identity.
It is not difficult to figure out ways by which Self identity can be frustrated, but it is not always easy to put them into practice. Essentially, the re-ordering involves living a humble life with minimal Status; practicing celibacy or sexual disciplines to frustrate Fertility identity; and utilising disciplines like fasting or risk-taking, that raise Survival of Self emotions without seriously threatening life. Pilgrimage/wandering is a popular traditional approach that provides opportunities for aspirants to detach from the prevailing culture and combine all three.