Gnosis

By: Fenwick Rysen

Originally posted on alt.magick.chaos

From: fenwick@sonic.net (Fenwick Rysen)
Date: Sat, Sep 26, 1998 23:24 EDT
Message-id: <6ukb4k$ilk$4@ultra.sonic.net>

lo eskis i

Quoth Polaris (notmyreal@ddress.com):

<< I was wondering if anyone could tell me a few ways to achieve gnosis that do not involove sex or drugs (yes, I know that those are the best). >>

Not necessarily the best, though probably some of the most common.

Others include:

• Hyperventilation
  
• Confronting a fear (snakes, heights, etc)
  
• Strong emotive force (love, hate, rage, confusion, etc)
  
• Meditation (to vacuity or other state)
  
• Pain
  
• Spinning (dizziness/confusion)
  
• Staring into a strobelight
  
• Running to complete physical exhaustion
  
• Holding it as long as you possibly can before going to the bathroom
  
• Adrenaline rush (bungee jumping, parachuting, holding up a 7-11, etc)
  
• Drumming
  
• Chanting
  
• Matras
  
• Singing
  
• Listening to music Really Really Really loudly (especially ambient music)
  
• Creating artwork
  
• Holding your breath (either with or without air in your lungs)
  
• Hunger and/or thirst (fasting)
  
• Sensory overload (For example, pain, sex, fear, hyperventilation, loud music, and strobe light all at once)
  
• Sensory deprivation
  
• Listening to white noise until it's no longer white noise
  
• Sitting on a powerpoint (most graveyards, incidentally, are powerpoints)
  
• Blood rush to head (standing on your head or hanging from your feet)
  
• Shamanic body postures (see the works of Belinda Gore and Felicitas Goodman)
  
• Killing something (go get your hunting license and kill bambi-- he's overpopulated, he tastes good, *and* he's healthy for you!)
  
• Sacraficing something you value
  
• Rollercoasters (works best if you keep your eyes shut)
  
• Gazing (crystal balls, pools, mirrors, a random spot on the wall)
  
• Sleep deprivation (aim for five days or more for best results)
  
• Lucid Dreaming (do *not* combine with sleep dep---
  
• insanity results, trust me, I know from personal experience. I'm better now... Honest!)
  
• Martial Arts (if you're willing to make a ten year investment)
  
• Jumping through a bonfire
  
• Dancing
  
• Lighting yourself on fire (WD40 or a rubbing alcohol and water mixture)
  
• Mosh Pits (actually just a combination of Loid Noise, Dancing, and Pain)
  

There are more. Use your imagination.

Of course, there's my personal favorite of just practicing magick *EVERY DAY* until you can summon up gnosis without special preparations. The *methods* of achieving gnosis should not be confused with the gnosis itself. With practice, the methods become unnecessary and the magician gains access to gnosis directly.

In Life, Love, and Laughter

--Fenwick Rysen

Chaos Matrix

[Modified for clarity. --Psyche]