May 10, 2023·edited May 10, 2023Liked by Vaishali Iyer
The approach you lay out here is lucid and powerful. What do we *really* desire, and how does clarifying the deep nature of each separate desire, and also the nature of our chief, deep, core desire, the One Desire to Rule Them All, contribute to fulfilling both the karmic "outgoing" motion that manifests as our experience of unique individual identity and the awakening "incoming" motion that is our return to home base in the unity of self-realization? A sustained focus on answering this question, or rather on simply feeling the resonant, magnetic depth and importance of the question itself, uncovers the whole purpose and meaning of our lives.
I have approached this myself through exploring and sharpening the ancient Western metaphor of the daimon or inner genius, the gods-given spirit that accompanies each of us from birth and serves as our intermediary to the divine, standing as the source of and blueprint for our welter of individual temperament, character, interests, and talents, and that also attracts or constellates different outer conditions and experiences to help elicit and manifest this core orientation. Homing in on the daimon clarifies the core desire in each of us, the individual craving, drive, and purpose that is embodied in and uniquely represented by each of us. (See my A Course in Demonic Creativity for a book-length reflection on this matter.)
In recent years my thoughts and experiences on the whole thing have become increasingly bound up with my rising apprehension of (or by) nonduality. Your lovely essay on desire came along at an opportune time to intersect with this phenomenon. So, in short, thank you.
I love the idea of dropping down into desire to find out what the desire is truly for. When I was studying non-violent communication it was enlightening to understand that behind each judgement was a feeling and need that could be met in thousands of ways. This is the same with desire.... longing... what do we really long for?
I love this Vaishali. You have such a lovely way of writing and there is so much to unpack and learn. Thank you x p.s. I love the needs practice from Non Violent Communication too.
The approach you lay out here is lucid and powerful. What do we *really* desire, and how does clarifying the deep nature of each separate desire, and also the nature of our chief, deep, core desire, the One Desire to Rule Them All, contribute to fulfilling both the karmic "outgoing" motion that manifests as our experience of unique individual identity and the awakening "incoming" motion that is our return to home base in the unity of self-realization? A sustained focus on answering this question, or rather on simply feeling the resonant, magnetic depth and importance of the question itself, uncovers the whole purpose and meaning of our lives.
I have approached this myself through exploring and sharpening the ancient Western metaphor of the daimon or inner genius, the gods-given spirit that accompanies each of us from birth and serves as our intermediary to the divine, standing as the source of and blueprint for our welter of individual temperament, character, interests, and talents, and that also attracts or constellates different outer conditions and experiences to help elicit and manifest this core orientation. Homing in on the daimon clarifies the core desire in each of us, the individual craving, drive, and purpose that is embodied in and uniquely represented by each of us. (See my A Course in Demonic Creativity for a book-length reflection on this matter.)
In recent years my thoughts and experiences on the whole thing have become increasingly bound up with my rising apprehension of (or by) nonduality. Your lovely essay on desire came along at an opportune time to intersect with this phenomenon. So, in short, thank you.
I love the idea of dropping down into desire to find out what the desire is truly for. When I was studying non-violent communication it was enlightening to understand that behind each judgement was a feeling and need that could be met in thousands of ways. This is the same with desire.... longing... what do we really long for?
I love this Vaishali. You have such a lovely way of writing and there is so much to unpack and learn. Thank you x p.s. I love the needs practice from Non Violent Communication too.