From: tyagi@houseofkaos.abyss.com (nagasiva) Newsgroups: alt.magick.tyagi,alt.pagan.magick,talk.religion.newage Subject: MKampe: Adept Signs Followup-To: alt.magick.tyagi,alt.magick,alt.pagan.magick,talk.religion.newage Date: 14 Sep 1997 12:28:04 -0700 Organization: Bay Junction Technology, Inc. Lines: 67 Sender: tyagi@news.bjt.net Message-ID: <5vhds4$s6j@bay1.bjt.net> References: <5umnnb$m3d$1@shell5.ba.best.com> <341845BB.205E@west.Sun.COM> Reply-To: markk@west.Sun.COM X-Newsreader: NN version 6.5.0 (NOV) NNTP-Posting-Host: bay1.bjt.net Path: bridge!not-for-mail Xref: bridge alt.magick.tyagi:14931 alt.pagan.magick:6463 talk.religion.newage:80042 [from alt.magick: Mark Kampe ] Ignoring, for a moment, the question of why it might be important to be able to recognize an adept ... my inclination when trying to answer any question about magick is to rephrase the question to be about something mundane, and look at the answer, and then ask why the answer should be any different for magick. So, how does one recognize an adept in a mundane art? I find it much easier to deal with specifics than to deal with questions in the abstract, so I am thinking about four people I know who are clearly "adepts" in very different mundane arts: a watch-maker (mechanical), a rock-climber (physical), a programmer (intellectual), and a therapist (emotional). What qualities do these people seem to share? (1) when faced with problems that seem to challenge neophytes, they seem to automatically and effortlessly deal with them in simple and effective ways. (2) when faced with complex problems, they seem to quickly (and with little thrashing) find their way to the heart of the matter. (3) they predictably achieve high quality results with seemingly little strain, and even their informal and spontaneous efforts care carried out with a high degree of skill and polish. (4) their discussion of a wide range of events and phenomenon is illuminated by non-trivial insights that derive from a mature and well integrated world view (obtained from their art). (5) they can successfully apply principles from their art to a wide range of situations, but very seldom try to apply them where they are not applicable. (6) wherever they go, they see craftsmanship and beauty all around them ... in places that you or I would never notice. If they can express themselves well, they can enable others to see and appreciate it as well. (7) they may take pride in their work, but they are under no delusions about the extent of their abilities. They are more interested in talking about the work than about themselves. They are more interested in accomplishment than recognition. (8) they take pride in their technique, but have little trouble admiring other techniques. They can find fault in even master performances, but they can also find beauty in what would seem to be totally inept performances. (9) their practice is a well integrated part of their whole life. Now, I ask myself how I would change these answers if the art in question was Magick. They all still look pretty good to me. EOF -- (emailed replies may be posted);join the AMT syncretism!!;call: 408/2-666-SLUG! see http://www.abyss.com/tokus; "Clement of Rome taught that God rules the world with a right and a left hand, the right being Christ, the left Satan." - CGJung