…and we’re back with part 3 of my annotated reading list.
We left off with Carlos Castaneda and spiritual philosophies. Related to concepts of spiritual philosophy are concepts of “mental health”, i.e., people who adhere to radical philosophies tend to be considered “deviant”. So a study of deviancy might be appropriate – but, of course, not in the conventional psychological manner.
Here we have another interesting work by the same author or “The Immortalist” discussed above.
Psychopaths, Alan Harrington - https://www.amazon.com/Psychopaths-Alan-Harrington/dp/0671211927/
Harrington suggested that psychopaths are in essence a “new man” forced by the evolutionary pressures of modern life.
And even better fictional discussion of this concept is this spy novel:
The Gemini Man, by Richard Steinberg (https://www.amazon.com/Gemini-Man-Novel-Richard-Steinberg-ebook/dp/B004J4XGKE/)
The novel posits the US government recruiting psychopathic individuals as spies. One has been captured by the Russians and is now being released. Fearful of releasing this highly trained individual, the US subjects him to a penetrating psychological analysis – with bad outcomes. Note: This has nothing to do with the recent Will Smith movie.) The book even refers to this individual and those like him as a “new man” in an echo of Harrington’s work.
Other works on the nature and applicability of “psychopathy” to the real world, as opposed to the social world of “normals” includes the following:
I Wear The Black Hat, by Chuck Klosterman
The Wisdom of Psychopaths, by Kevin Dutton
The Psychopath's Bible, and The Psychopath's Notebook, Christopher Hyatt (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Hyatt)
Hyatt is an interesting psychologist and occultist who has written quite a few books. The two above are good starters.
The Joker Psychology, Travis Langley - https://www.amazon.com/Joker-Psychology-Clowns-Popular-Culture/dp/1454935421/
An interesting psychological analysis of a fictional character from the DC Comics “Batman” comics, and of course quite a few movies. In particular, the version of the character represented in “The Dark Knight (2008)” is almost explicitly an anarchist and exponent of “anti-morality” as represented in these dialogues from the movie:
“You see, their morals, their code, it's a bad joke. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. They're only as good as the world allows them to be. I'll show you. When the chips are down, these... these civilized people, they'll eat each other. See, I'm not a monster. I'm just ahead of the curve.“
“You see, their morals, their code, it's a bad joke. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. They're only as good as the world allows them to be. I'll show you. When the chips are down, these... these civilized people, they'll eat each other. See, I'm not a monster. I'm just ahead of the curve.“
“You know what I've noticed? Nobody panics when things go "according to plan." Even if the plan is horrifying! If, tomorrow, I tell the press that, like, a gang banger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will be blown up, nobody panics, because it's all "part of the plan". But when I say that one little old mayor will die, well then everyone loses their minds! Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos. I'm an agent of chaos. Oh, and you know the thing about chaos? It's fair!“
Stepping away from that, we have to address the issue of human sexuality – a subject about which, well, the better left unsaid in terms of the level of rationality on the issue. These books are a good introduction that there is something more to the subject than what popular music, romantic novels, movies and TV “rom-coms” tell you.
Erotism - Death and Sensuality, by Georges Bataille (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georges_Bataille)
Bataille covers a lot of ground here, but the main concepts of interest are “taboo” and “transgression” and their relation to the ordering of society.
The Metaphysics of Sex, by Julius Evola (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_Evola)
Evola was, not to put too fine a point on it, an Italian fascist. However, he was also an occultist. While I do not subscribe particularly to his views on what sexual attraction actually is – a question of “magnetism” – his descriptions of the various spiritual views of sex in various societies and ages shows that the modern Western view is singularly limited in imagination.
Anatomy of Love, by Helen Fisher (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Fisher_(anthropologist))
Fisher’s book discusses sex from an anthropology and biochemical point of view. It basically destroys most common popular notions of sex, marriage, and related topics.
Beyond these books, there are probably tons of others I don’t remember. Personally to get a realistic view of human sexual behavior, forget the rom-coms and spend a lot of time watching pornography – especially foreign pornography – and even more especially, Japanese pornography.
In other words, realize that the notions of sexual morality touted in America are simply considered bizarre in the rest of the world and over most of human history.
Another subject we’ll get into in a future installment.
I mentioned earlier an interest in martial arts. I’ve read a number of books on various martial arts as well as the philosophy of martial arts in general and how that philosophy can be applied to everyday life. Some of the books that have influenced me follow.
The Book of Five Rings, Miyamoto Musashi (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miyamoto_Musashi)
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Book_of_Five_Rings)
Musashi was a Japanese samurai and “ronin” (a masterless samurai) who is considered by the Japanese to be a “sword saint.” He wrote what many people believe is one of the, if not the, seminal texts on strategy and combat. It can be very difficult to decipher the short and simple instructions given in this book. Studying it for a long time is likely to pay off in being able to deal with life in general and conflict in particular.
Fighting To Win, David J. Rogers
This book is a self-help book of sorts, mostly oriented to business readers. It is based on various Japamese concepts developed by the samurai of Japan’s feudal period. I guess it’s written for business readers because modern corporate America is essentially a feudal society with corporate CEOs taking the place of feudal lords. Not a bad description. Whatever. The advice is still excellent.
Tao of Jeet Kune Do, Bruce Lee (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Lee) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tao_of_Jeet_Kune_Do)
Everyone knows this guy! As his Wikipedia entry states:
Since his death, Lee has continued to be a prominent influence on modern combat sports, including judo, karate, mixed martial arts, and boxing, as well as modern popular culture, including film, television, comics, animation and video games. Time named Lee one of the 100 most important people of the 20th century.
The book’s discussion of the philosophy of combat is a must read. And if you haven’t yet, watch his movies!
Continuing with martial arts as part of my philosophy, the Japanese cultural phenomenon – it’s much more than a martial art! – of ninjutsu is up next. Like a lot of things, everyone thinks they know all about this stuff because they’ve seen the movies. Like most things in movies, and most things in life, as you’ll find as we go through the Five Essentials, everything you know is wrong1
The Complete Ninja Collection, Stephen K Hayes (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_K._Hayes)
If there is anyone outside of the movie industry who is responsible for bringing Japanese ninjutsu to the attention of the US (if not the West, there were other foreign nationals involved), it’s Hayes. He was one of the first to actually go to Japan, find a mentor in the art and achieve success at it. He has written a number of books. This collection volume is a useful start at getting an idea of the real meaning of the historical phenomena.
Ninjutsu - Tactics, Principles, and Philosophy, D. Holmes https://www.amazon.com/Ninjutsu-Tactics-Principles-Philosophy-Commoners-ebook/dp/B01ECWL7WQ/
Modern Ninjutsu, J. Alaric Justice https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Ninjutsu-Definitive-Concepts-Unconventional/dp/1504349350/
The Spiritual Practices of the Ninja, Ross Heaven https://www.amazon.com/Spiritual-Practices-Ninja-Mastering-Freedom/dp/1594771073/
The above three books discuss aspects of ninjutsu that go beyond the martial art conception. Ninjutsu is not only a martial art, it is a spiritual discipline and an organized method of espionage and unconventional warfare and survivalism. The principles involved in all 3 aspects should be a critical component of your Five Essentials.
OK, I’m going to halt part 3 here. The final part, part 4 is coming up!