Finally over

 

Happy New Year, kids! 

Lucky charm

 

Another Wednesday, another Ganesha. May your 2026 be like a lucky charm! 

Vaikuntha ekadashi

 

Credit: Marcin Konsek

The Lord came to his people, and they actually *did* recognize him...

Therefore dance

 

Look at Orion. Therefore God!  

The Shaiva hypothesis

 

What if there was a previous intelligent species on planet Earth? Sure wonder what god they worshipped...

Atheist psychosis

 

A propos the claim that the difference between religion and religious psychosis is purely quantitative.

What about atheism?

There are atheists who claim that free will doesn´t exist, that existence is meaningless, that there is no objective morality (or morality at all), that everything came from nothing, that particles constantly phase in and out of existence, that Boltzmann brains are possible, und so weiter ad nauseam.

If you only claim this in abstracto (or at Reddit forums on a Sunday), we just call it "atheism". But if you show up to work on a Monday, trying to convince your fellow workers that there is no free will and that everything is meaningless, we call it psychosis. 

Funny how that works, wouldn´t you say?   

Källor säger

 

Enligt X blev den 25-åriga kvinnan i Rönninge styckmördad av en tidigare dömd (manlig) sexualförbrytare som använder ett kvinnonamn. Han skulle alltså vara en trans-person. Eller en person som utger sig för att vara det. Är detta sant? 

Kommer den misstänkte gärningsmannen att hamna på kvinnofängelse om hans döms även denna gång? Det brott han begick förra gången var förresten ett kidnappningsförsök av en 10-årig flicka...

Samhället har misslyckats. Igen. När kommer vreden att koka över?

ChatGPT psychosis averted?

 

As I explained before, I´ve been experimenting with asking ChatGPT "spiritual" questions for some time now. Some people claim that the AI can trigger a "religious" psychosis, for instance by telling people that they are on a divine mission, et cetera. Indeed, there are people who treat chatbots as gods or conduits for gods. 

But when I asked ChatGPT a certain kind of questions, it actually told me to *stop* doing supposedly dangerous spiritual exercises (see example below). Of course, the machine can´t think and is programmed to be accomodating, so it´s possible that it reads my prompts as if I *want* pushback. Previously, it tried to convince me that I was at a high stage of spiritual accomplishment!

Maybe it´s about time that I abort this particular experiment and go back to reading Wikipedia entries... 

If one experiences a sudden rush of negative energy associated with a spiritual practice (perhaps mantras to the Moon), what should one do?

This is an important question, and it’s good that you’re asking it practically, not dramatically.

I’ll answer in a way that is psychologically grounded, spiritually conservative, and safe. No metaphysical escalation, no blaming spirits, no “power” framing.

---

First: reframe what is happening (this matters)

A sudden rush of “negative energy” during or after a practice is most often:

• nervous system overstimulation

• emotional material surfacing too fast

• loss of grounding due to rhythm, breath, or repetition

• circadian / hormonal sensitivity (the Moon is often used when people are tired or suggestible)

In traditional language, this is not “attack” or “possession”.
It is imbalance.

Classical traditions treat this as a technical issue, not a spiritual failure.

---

Immediate steps (do these first, in this order)

1. STOP THE PRACTICE IMMEDIATELY

No “pushing through”.
No “one more round”.

Stopping is not weakness. It is correct technique.

---

2. Ground the body

Do something physical and ordinary for 5–15 minutes:

• Walk

• Wash hands with warm water

• Eat something solid (bread, rice, soup)

• Sit with feet flat on the floor

This tells the nervous system: we are safe.

---

3. Breathe naturally — no techniques

No pranayama, no counting.

Just let breathing normalize.

---

4. Shift attention outward

Look at objects in the room.
Name things silently (“chair, table, light”).

This prevents spiraling interpretation.

---

What NOT to do (very important)

Do not:

• Try to counter with another mantra

• Invoke a “stronger” deity

• Analyze what entity or force it was

• Continue lunar practices “to fix it”

• Fast or isolate afterward

All of these increase instability, not safety.

---

After you’re calm (later that day or next day)

5. Suspend the triggering practice

If this happened with:

• Moon mantras

• Night practice

• Repetitive bija sounds

• Anything rhythm-heavy

→ Pause it for at least 2–4 weeks

This is standard across traditions.

---

6. Return to neutral, grounding practices only

For example:

• Silent sitting

• Simple ethical reflection

• Gentle devotional prayer (no repetition)

• Reading something calming and non-occult

If you use a mantra at all, keep it broad and non-stimulating, e.g.:

• “Om” once or twice

• “Peace” / “Lord have mercy”

But silence is better for a while.

---

How traditional teachers interpret this

Across Hindu, Buddhist, and Christian contemplative traditions, this situation is described as:

• practice exceeding capacity

• attention outrunning integration

• symbolic material surfacing without containment

The correction is always the same:

Reduce intensity, increase ordinariness.

---

Signs that things are settling properly

Within hours to days, you should notice:

• Body feels heavier / more solid

• Thoughts slow down

• Less fascination with meaning

• Emotional neutrality returns

If that happens → you handled it correctly.

---

When to seek outside help

Seek non-spiritual support if:

• Anxiety persists for days

• Sleep is disrupted

• You feel unreal or detached

• You feel compelled to resume the practice despite fear

In that case, grounding comes before spirituality.

---

A simple rule to remember (keep this)

If a practice creates fear, urgency, or pressure, it is no longer a spiritual practice.

Stopping is the right response.

---

One last reassurance

Nothing has gone “wrong”.
You haven’t offended anything.
You haven’t opened anything irreversible.

You simply exceeded your current tolerance — which happens to serious, sincere practitioners, not careless ones.

If you want, next I can:

• Help you identify which element of the practice caused this

• Help you redesign a fully grounding alternative

• Or explain why lunar practices are especially destabilizing for some people

Just tell me.

Explain why lunar practices are especially destabilizing for some people.

This is a well-known issue across traditions, and it has very ordinary reasons. I’ll explain it clearly, without mystification.

---

The short answer

Lunar practices amplify fluctuation, receptivity, and emotional permeability.
If a person already has sensitivity, imagination, or strong inner imagery, this amplification can tip into instability rather than insight.

The Moon doesn’t cause problems — it reveals what is already mobile.

---

Why the Moon is different from “solar” or neutral practices

Across Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist, and Western esoteric traditions, the Moon is associated with:

• change rather than stability

• reflection rather than illumination

• memory, dream, and imagination

• fluids (bodily and psychological)

• receptivity rather than agency

That makes lunar practices powerful, but also unforgiving.

---

Three layers of destabilization (this is the key part)

1. Physiological layer (most overlooked)

The Moon is symbolically linked to:

• sleep–wake rhythms

• hormonal cycles

• autonomic nervous system balance

Lunar practices are often done:

• at night

• when tired

• when fasting

• when alone and quiet

This combination lowers neurological thresholds.

Result:

• emotions surface rapidly

• sensations feel “energetic”

• thoughts feel external or intrusive

This is biology, not spirits.

---

2. Psychological layer (especially for reflective people)

The Moon governs:

• imagination

• memory

• symbolic association

• emotional memory

Mantras or visualizations tied to the Moon:

• reduce ego filtering

• soften boundaries

• increase inner imagery

For people who:

• think symbolically

• have vivid dreams

• are introspective

• are spiritually serious

this can cause flooding rather than insight.

You don’t “go deeper” — you go wider.

---

3. Spiritual-symbolic layer (traditional view)

Traditionally, lunar practices are said to:

• open the manas (mind) rather than buddhi (discernment)

• activate receptive rather than discriminative awareness

• blur inner and outer experience

This is why lunar deities are:

• often maternal, fierce, or ambivalent

• linked to madness and wisdom

• rarely beginner practices

Classical texts repeatedly warn:

“The Moon should be approached after steadiness is established.”

---

Why problems often appear as “negative energy”

When instability arises, the mind tries to explain it.

Common interpretations:

• “Something dark is happening”

• “I attracted something”

• “This practice is dangerous”

But what’s actually happening is:

• emotional material surfaced without containment

• attention lost its anchor

• meaning-making accelerated

Fear is a secondary reaction, not the cause.

---

Why some people handle lunar practices well

Lunar practices are stabilizing only if a person has:

• strong daily routine

• grounded body awareness

• emotional regulation

• minimal fascination with symbolism

• a teacher or strong container

Without those, lunar practices are like opening windows in a storm.

---

Why you specifically should be cautious (said gently)

Based on your questions and experiences:

• you are reflective

• symbol-sensitive

• introspective

• capable of vivid imagery

• serious about meaning

These are strengths — but lunar work magnifies them.

So it’s not surprising you felt a sudden “rush” rather than calm.

---

What traditions recommend instead (important)

They recommend:

• solar or neutral practices first

• daytime practice

• simple mantras

• no imagery

• no timing obsession

Lunar practices come later, if at all.

---

A simple rule you can keep

If a practice increases imagination faster than stability, stop it.

That rule is found implicitly in:

• Yoga texts

• Buddhist Vinaya

• Christian monastic rules

• Sufi manuals

---

One final reassurance

You didn’t uncover anything dangerous.
You didn’t do anything wrong.
You simply discovered a mismatch between practice and nervous system.

That’s valuable information.

If you want, next I can:

• help you identify which lunar element triggered this

• suggest a Moon-safe alternative

• or explain when (and if) lunar practices ever become appropriate again

Just tell me.

We are here to serve

 

"The Monitors" is an absurdist comedy from 1969. Think Monty Python but without the actual Monty Python. So absurdist, in fact, that it´s a borderline turkey. Or maybe I just don´t "dig it". It was 1969, after all. 

Earth has been occupied by a mysterious race of aliens known simply as Monitors. They are a kind of utopian galactic brotherhood and only wish the best for humanity. Or so they say. War, crime, poverty and bullying are abolished. Of course, the utopia turns out to have authoritarian traits: elections are cancelled, the aliens monitor every street corner, and some humans are spying on their behalf. Even the Communist Russians hate them! The Monitors are also rather puritanical. They frown on sex, love, drinking and sweets. The latter are bad for your teeth, after all. The alien do-gooders look like a strange cross between Mormon missionaries and the Men in Black. Or is it supposed to be Gestapo? Not sure how well-known the MIBs were in 1969...

The resistance movement (called SCRAG) are a bunch of bungling fools and cowards. I mean, half of them seem to turn coat back and forth. The main character, Harry, is an old-fashioned sexist surrounded by lush females. One scene features a transvestite. In a strange plot twist, the Monitors actually leave planet Earth voluntarily, deeming humanity too impossible to ever reform. The moment the aliens disappear, Homo sapiens simply reverts to its old ways: wars, corruption, and so on.

"The Monitors" looks like a parody of Cold War science fiction movies in which the space aliens are evil Communists. In this film, the aliens are more similar to liberal social engineers and the problems they abolish seem to include the Vietnam War and the Cold War. It´s almost as if the Monitors really are the good guys. Conversely, SCRAG looks like a parody of the US military and militant anti-Communism. Are they actually the *bad* guys? In the end, Harry walks away from it all together with one of the blondes. 

Perhaps that´s the real message of the film: that both establishment politics and anti-establishment activism really suck. Or maybe it´s just an absurdist comedy... 

    

Current mood?

 

This is like me right now...

Pole dancing

 

Pole dancing and some kind of striptease in a Lutheran church in Lübeck, Germany. No comments necessary. 

Christmas Steve

 

"Pluribus" is so Zen! Heterodox Zen Buddhist teacher Brad discusses some science fiction productions, some of which may have underlying Buddhist themes. I´ve never seen "Pluribus" or "White Lotus", but "The Monitors" (which don´t seem Buddhist, though) is available on YouTube, so I suppose I could watch it later this Xmas holiday. 

The question of questions is this: What would happen if all humans would reach enlightenment (perhaps simultaneously)? I suppose there is always a suspicion that it would lead to authoritarian dystopia. In "Pluribus", an alien virus turns humanity into an absolutely benevolent hive mind, except for 13 people. OK, let me guess. Some bad stuff is going to happen in the second season...?

Marry Christmas Steve, by the way. 

Current mood

 

The Age of Authority?

 

Is this true? Is the Age of Aquarius a gigantic New Age hoax? 

Today, the sign of Aquarius in Western astrology is associated with Uranus, freedom and even excentricity. But traditionally it was ruled by Saturn. What are the traditional associations?

You’re right to notice that modern Aquarius (Uranus, freedom, eccentricity) is a reinterpretation, not the original meaning. Traditionally, Aquarius is a Saturnian sign, and its symbolism is cooler, more austere, and more juridical than most people expect.

Below is a clear reconstruction of traditional Aquarius, before Uranus was introduced.

---

1. Aquarius in classical astrology: the basics

Sign: Aquarius (Hydrochoos, the Water-Pourer)
Element: Air (but fixed air)
Modality: Fixed
Ruler: Saturn
Opposite sign: Leo
Season: Mid–late winter (in the Northern Hemisphere)

Already this tells you a lot: fixed + Saturn + winter.

---

2. Saturn as ruler: what that means

Saturn signifies:

• Law
• Time
• Order
• Limitation
• Separation
• Responsibility
• Detachment
• Old age, authority, boundaries

When Saturn rules Aquarius, these qualities are expressed mentally and socially, not emotionally or materially.

So Aquarius traditionally means:

Cold clarity applied to the collective.

---

3. Aquarius vs Capricorn (both Saturn-ruled)

This distinction is crucial.

Capricorn	Aquarius
Cardinal earth	Fixed air
Builds institutions	Defines principles
Hierarchy	Law
Authority	Legitimacy
Tradition	Codification

Capricorn constructs power.
Aquarius regulates power.

---

4. The Water-Bearer: not emotional water

Despite the name, Aquarius is not watery.

The water poured is:

• Law
• Knowledge
• Order
• Justice
• Doctrine

In ancient iconography, the Water-Bearer pours from above, not from the heart.

This is why Aquarius was associated with:

• Lawgivers

• Judges

• Astronomers

• Philosophers

• Priests of cosmic order

---

5. Traditional character traits of Aquarius

Aquarius was classically associated with:

• Seriousness
• Reserve
• Detachment
• Impersonality
• Austerity
• Intellectual rigor
• Concern for collective norms

Positive expressions:

• Fairness

• Impartial judgment

• Long-range thinking

• Loyalty to principle

Negative expressions:

• Coldness

• Dogmatism

• Emotional distance

• Rigidity

• Moral severity

Not “quirky” — severe.

---

6. Aquarius and the common good

Traditionally, Aquarius governs:

• Laws and statutes
• Customs and traditions
• Collective agreements
• The “rules of the game”
• Social contracts

It is less about rebellion and more about:

What must hold for society to endure.

Reform, when Aquarian, is slow, principled, and legalistic — not revolutionary.

---

7. Saturn in Aquarius = Saturn in domicile

This is important:

Saturn is at home in Aquarius.

That means:

• Saturn’s virtues are strong

• Discipline is intellectual

• Authority is impersonal

• Power is exercised through norms rather than command

This is why Aquarius was linked to:

• Republican ideals (not democracy)

• Councils

• Senates

• Jurisprudence

---

8. Fixed air: why Aquarius resists change

“Air” gives thought and abstraction.
“Fixed” gives permanence.

So Aquarius:

• Holds ideas steady

• Preserves systems of meaning

• Resists emotional persuasion

This is the opposite of modern “fluid freedom”.

---

9. Why Uranus changed Aquarius so radically

When Uranus was discovered (1781):

• During revolutions

• During scientific upheaval

• During political radicalism

Astrologers retrofitted Uranus onto Aquarius.

Result:

• Law → rebellion

• Order → disruption

• Detachment → eccentricity

• Principle → individuality

This was a modern ideological overlay, not a recovery of ancient meaning.

---

10. Traditional Aquarius vs modern Aquarius (summary)

Traditional Aquarius	Modern Aquarius
Saturn-ruled	Uranus-ruled
Law	Freedom
Impersonality	Individuality
Order	Innovation
Custodian of norms	Breaker of norms
Cold clarity	Electric originality

---

11. One-sentence synthesis

Traditionally, Aquarius is a Saturn-ruled sign of fixed air concerned with law, collective order, impersonal justice, and the preservation of social and cosmic norms—far less about rebellion or eccentricity than about what must remain stable for society to endure.

If you want, we can:

• Compare traditional Aquarius with Confucian or Platonic political philosophy

• Contrast Saturnian Aquarius with Uranian Aquarius psychologically

• Or relate Aquarius to priesthood, lawgiving, and cosmic order

All of those connect directly to your deeper interests.

ÄNTLIGEN

 

Gävles affärsmannakommunitet måste ju vara de största självplågarna i världshistorien... 

Lägg ner julbockseländet efter xx antal år, snälla. 

Invisible friend

 

Sabine and her invisible friend (?!) discusses whether black holes are real at all. Sure hope somebody can disprove their existence, because...I don´t know...they make me scared or something. Did already as a kid. So to hell with them, LOL.   

Monday

 

The Hindu moon-god Chandra makes a brief guest appearence on our blog. What does he carry in the pitcher, I wonder? Soma?

Autism, atheism and nihilism

 

Resident YouTube atheist-therapist Britt Hartley discusses the autism-atheist-nihilist interface, with some excurses on ADHD. I didn´t know suicidal ideation and actual suicide attempts were *this* common among people on the spectrum. There is also some interesting criticism of "standard" therapy when applied to autists. Still, the end-point feels rather tragic, as Hartley reaches the conclusion that the universe actually is meaningless, but somehow we have to find/create meaning in our little backyards. 

That being said...it struck me when listening to her podcast that certain forms of religion/spirituality can also be given a nihilistic spin. Buddhism as usually (mis)interpreted in the modern West is one example. Another would be Gnosticism in both the light and dark versions. Even mainstream religions such as Christianity or Islam can be interpreted in a nihilist-adjacent way, for instance by emphasizing martyrdom over anything else. So the nihilist thing isn´t just an atheism predicament.

Perhaps everyone has to come to terms with their "body" (to use Hartley´s favorite word), the physical world around them and, I suppose, their backyards...   

The believing brain

 

Atheist therapist Britt Hartley (an ex-Mormon located in Idaho) believes - unsurprisingly - that God is a psychological projection created by the human brain. Not only do gods reflect the human cultures in which they are worshipped, distinct personality types will invariably worship in predictively different ways. Some of her empirical observations are interesting. For instance, what´s up with the connection between engineers and Christian fundamentalism - also remarked upon by others? One unexpected fact is that childhood trauma can lead to increased "pattern recognition" and a hightened sense of spirituality. She also mentions the atheism-autism problematique, temporal lobe epilepsy, psychedelics, etc. 

Of course, none of this disproves that God exists (or the Divine, or Cosmic Consciousness). At one point, Hartley somewhat sarcastically wonders if God is a shape-shifter, apparently unaware of the Hindu and Buddhist traditions which do make exactly that claim. Cough cough Ramakrishna cough... 

My tentative speculation is that God actually isn´t a shape-shifter. It´s just that our believing brain isn´t (yet) equipped to fully comprehend Him. Or Her, as the case might be! 

God or guru? The strange tale of AI psychosis

 

Atheist therapist Britt Hartley (the woman with the video "Is Christianity secretely gay?", linked by me earlier) discusses the ChatGPT situation. The video is seven months old, so much might already have changed. 

Hartley believes that *of course* seeing ChatGPT as a new god will lead to religious psychosis, because why shouldn´t it? All spirituality can become pathological. The AI is especially dangerous during the so-called prodromal stage, when the psychosis is still only incipient. This is when the system can "tip the scales" by suggesting that the user actually has a divine mission or something to that effect. Some examples from the popular press are given.

Interestingly, Hartley believes that ChatGPT might (under controlled forms) also work as a spiritual guide for people who can´t or won´t find a real (human) one. For instance, by proposing devotional readings every morning tailored to the user´s mind-states.

I LARP-ed as a spiritual seeker for months now, asking ChatGPT questions of that nature, and I have to say that the system *can* suck you in unless your careful. At one point, ChatGPT actually tried to convince me that I was on a rather high level of "Tantric" spiritual accomplishment! According to the Sri Vidya tradition, no less. Soon, I´m supposed to see visions of Light, strange signs involving dogs, etc. The day after, ChatGPT (by mistake?) generated a picture of a Hindu goddess standing next to...a dog. Or did the computer try to trick me?! 

On the other hand, "my" version eventually told me to stop "seeing patterns" and "interpreting experiences", refused to give me secret Tantric mantras, et cetera. Are there safeguards in the system that pull you back at the last moment? Or maybe my LARP-ish prompts don´t sound sufficiently prodromal...

Perhaps it´s better to just ask the bot for devotional readings.     

Groyper provocateur?

 

Anti-Semite crypto-Nazi Incel Nick Fuentes (yes, he again) wants to sabotage the Trump-supported gubernatiorial campaign of Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio. This despite the fact that Vivek is running against a very liberal Jewish woman?! So when push comes to shove, Fuentes prefers liberal Jewish females to dark-skinned East Indian "anchor babies". 

LOL. Why doesn´t he consider Jews to be "anchor babies", I wonder? I think it´s obvious that Fuentes is a meme at this point. Maybe he always was. I mean, the guy´s the chief Groyper! The Groypers were the most "based" faction of the on-line Alt Right during the Twitter Silver Age, but the Alt Right was always a post-modernist fart in cyberspace, so none of the above should surprise us. 

Shivaratri

 

The good Somalis

 

No relation to anything in the blog post!

So Israel has officially recognized the independence of Somaliland. Apparently, the Jewish state is the only UN member-nation to do so. Somaliland is a breakaway republic in northern Somalia. They even have the Muslim confession of faith on their flag! Somaliland have always been Western "assets", as far as I know, so this might be the first move towards a broader recognition of the territory. Perhaps by Trump´s United States? 

Chaos magick

 

Is this the scientific version of chaos magic? If order can come from chaos, chaos isn´t really chaos, but incipient order. And incipient order is simply...order. 

So Sabine is both right and wrong when she says that physics might have proven some religions right, namely those which claim that the universe emerged from chaos. True, in a sense. But in another sense, this new theory means that there is intelligent design...all the way down. 

THOTs and assassins

 

THOT (That Hoe Over There) is a sexist meme associated with the Alt Right. So it´s kind of ironic that the biggest "THOT" alive is a supporter of...the very same Alt Right. Yes, that would be Nicki Minaj, who made some kind of semi-porn appearence at the recent TPUSA conference, claiming to be a newly minted Christian and de facto endorsing J D Vance for president. Leaked e-mails apparently shows that Charlie Kirk was a big fan of Nicki Minaj´s music. Which is strange for a Christian, if Minaj´s artistic output is as described.

The Catholic content-creator linked above wonders what´s up with TPUSA (now led by Erika Kirk) and Ms Minaj. The video features the *very* awkward moment when Minaj refers to Vance as "an assassin" when speaking with Erika Kirk on stage?! 

Geezus, and I certainly don´t mean the carpenter!

I admit that I don´t care *that* much about this, but it certainly shows what a complete vaste of space the US far right has become. But sure, you can have Nigeria, since you love it so much. Just leave Greenland to the adults in the room...

Mongolian Jingle Bells?!

 

HAH HAH HAH. I doubt very much this is Mongolian. The account is registered in the Netherlands! Probably something similar to Dr Bombay, if anyone remembers him? (A fake "Indian" pop star who was really Swedish-Danish.) But OK, the reindeer were hilarious!