The following poem was composed by Tolkien in response to his friend C.S. Lewis’s remark that myths were valueless. It’s worth noting that, as a devout Christian, Tolkien could not conceive of a mortal creation that might equal that of an omnipotent deity, and so refers to myths as “sub-creations”. Somewhat ironically, the immense popularity … Read more“Mythopoeia” (J.R.R. Tolkien, 1931)
We are Cultpunks. We affirm that belief systems, rituals, symbols, pilgrimages, tenets, holy days, shrines, festivals, taboos, mythologies and pantheons can and should be created as works of art. If so, then surely any sufficiently advanced magic is likewise indistinguishable from technology, and religions may usefully be considered as psychological technologies. Just like any other tech, … Read moreRead this first: “A Cultpunk Manifesto”
Veteran Burning Man philosopher Caveat Magister wrote this memoir/manifesto/manual for would-be psychomagicians, most especially those inspired (more or less directly) by the often clandestine workings of San Francisco’s underground experiential arts scene between the late ’70s and circa 2015. If you’re intrigued by Gary Warne’s Suicide Club, the Cacophony Society, the origins of Burning Man, … Read more“Turn Your Life into Art: Lessons in Psychomagic from the San Francisco Underground”
An excerpt from Christel Manning’s excellent essay for the Harvard Divinity Bulletin on how nontheists/atheists, freethinkers et al face their own mortality: We often think of science as cold and hard and value neutral. Max Weber famously wrote of how the ascendancy of science over religion in the modern world has led to “disenchantment.” Yet I found that science-based … Read more“Facing Death Without Religion”
Tom Robbins is the author of numerous counterculture classics including Another Roadside Attraction (1971), Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1976) and Jitterbug Perfume (1984). The search for meaning is not a whole lot different than the yearning for certainty, which is to say, an unsuitable pursuit for any who might aspire to nimbleness of mind, … Read moreThe Meaning of Life According to Tom Robbins
The School of Life offers insight into the history, meaning and value of ceremonialism, concluding that a sane and kind future will require the creation of new rituals.
The world is a midway; cities are its sideshows. The only difference between children and adults is that there is no one to take care of us. When we left home it meant we were lost on the midway and, unlike God, the carny boss will only let us ride as long as we pay. … Read more“Carnival Cosmology” by Gary Warne (1977)
Wendy Syfret writes for Psyche on the positive nihilist perspective: Key points – How to be a happy nihilist The rise of meaningless meaning. The search for meaning used to be a noble pursuit, but it’s become commercialised and now inspires more angst than awe. Nihilism as a solution. This is the philosophy that says life is meaningless. Handled with care, it … Read more“How to be a happy nihilist”
Existential wisdom from Jamie Wheal, the author of Recapture the Rapture: Rethinking God, Sex and Death In a World That’s Lost Its Mind.
Ed Simon writes for Aeon on the subject of Paganism: