Every act of genius, Carl Jung said, is an act “contra naturam”: against
nature. Indeed, every effort to achieve psychological integration requires
a knack for breaking out of the trance of normal daily life — to do what
doesn’t come natural.
The eighteenth-century mystic Jacob Boehme had a similar perspective.
The great secret to becoming enlightened, he said, is “to walk in all things contrary to the world.”
Qabalist teacher Paul Foster Case agreed. He said that living an ethical and spiritually intelligent life demands that we reverse the usual ways of
thinking, speaking, and doing.
The way I see it, tending to my sanity and being in service to the world require me to be in a chronic state of rebellion.
But here’s an important caveat: While the rebellion can and should be
partially fueled by anger at the consensual mass hallucination that’s
mistakenly referred to as “reality,” it must be primarily motivated by love
and joy and the desire to bestow blessings. A healthy proportion, at least
for me, seems to be 15% rage, indignation, and complaint, and 85%
compassion, celebration, and lust for life.
Brainwash yourself before someone nasty beats you to it. Study the
difference between wise suffering and dumb suffering until you get it
right. Commit crimes that don’t break any laws. ….
Build illusions that make people feel so beautiful they
can’t stand to be near you.
Pretend to be crazy so you can get away with doing what’s right. Sing
anarchist lullabies to homosexual trees. Love your enemies in case your
friends turn out to be jerks. Review in detail the history of your life,
honoring every moment as if you were conducting a benevolent Judgment Day.
Eat money.
Drink the sun.
Dream like a stone.
Sing in the acid rain.
—Robert Breszny
