How are there so many occult know it alls/critics?

[DiLoco_DelEted]

I know virtually nothing it seems, when I make a post or reply to one, someone always comes along to be a know it all/critic? Is this normal adept behavior? Or is it some weird form of moralizing?

 

[killing raven sun]

maybe you are just playing the victim card, maybe you dont know wtf you are talking about, maybe those know it alls are trying to help you

 

[Omee]

People always say stuff! Don't worry about it

If people did know it all then they would have something good to say or improve, but online people feel more free to talk widely and loudly. La Bruyere said "I think we generally say things more delicately than we write them"

When someone criticizes you, train to immediately ask yourself: "Would I rather be him/her, or I'd rather be me?" before taking the remark at face value.

Nassim Taleb

 

[DiLoco_DelEted]

I will be one who honestly says my education on all things is lacking. This is the test of a know it all or critic. Critics generally know nothing.

 

[stalkinghyena]

I know virtually nothing it seems, when I make a post or reply to one, someone always comes along to be a know it all/critic?

I figure if is mainstream religionists can be compared by some to sheep, then occultists are like cats. Sheep have the commonality of the herd, though some have horns and like to butt heads. What do cats have in common other than pickiness, roaming and sleeping 23 hours a day? It is a Great Mystery.

Is this normal adept behavior?

Yes.

Or is it some weird form of moralizing?

Yes.

Critics generally know nothing.

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[Nobody]

 

[viciouscirce]

I know virtually nothing it seems, when I make a post or reply to one, someone always comes along to be a know it all/critic? Is this normal adept behavior? Or is it some weird form of moralizing?

My experience in the pagan/spiritual/magickal community is that a lottttt of us tend to have emotional wounds surrounding being seen as right, good, intelligent, and correct. Because these paths and practices are often about personal empowerment, people with any level of experience in them who also possess those wounds will use said empowerment as a cover for the wound, as opposed to a tool for healing it. So you end up with a lot of people running around with varying levels of knowledge, claiming some degree of holiness or some exalted quality so that they feel superior to you. Annoying? Very. Undeserved? Absolutely. But definitely common. I feel that those who are genuinely knowledgeable are aware that they became that way by being receptive to other's teachings, not closed off to them.
But yeah, people are dicks, generally. Not your fault.

 

[Nobody]

One of the first things I learned before I began my path to the occult was to become desensitized to the injunctions and ad hominem attacks of other individuals. Questioning is often a source of conflict for individuals because it leads to the creation of unpleasant and unsustainable cognitive dissonances in certain circumstances. Faced with this, a common posture adopted by some is to respond with a form of condescension, disdain or contempt towards divergent opinions. Bringing a simplistic answer to a complex problem.

 

[Vandheer]

I know virtually nothing it seems, when I make a post or reply to one, someone always comes along to be a know it all/critic? Is this normal adept behavior? Or is it some weird form of moralizing?

Just say that you have never seen a talking camel before and move on. (Best don't do that if you don't trust your magickal competence however)

 

[Jiggywiggy]

“Believe… I know it sounds like a cat poster but it’s true.”
Vitruvius from Lego Movie

 

[Calicifer]

The whole internet is like that. My colleagues at the work have less of it, but conversations are still dominated by half-knowledge, word of mouth, impressions. Basically, life experiences which you form from unreliable sources are being passed down as facts or something with great confidence in conversations. It is fun to listen to, they have a lot to talk about it, but everything they say are often as deep as you are presented with.

It is a trend among humans to have a very strong opinions over a subject which he/she never heard of. Never cared about, but God forbid if they are going to let it go. They will fight to the death, suddenly becoming experts over a random topic. Usually focusing on technicalities and arguing for the sake of arguing to the point of absurdity. I notice this in online spaces. Getting to know those people personally (well one person) only confirmed my suspicion. A person is a man-child. Undeveloped. Full of personal traumas. Have attitudes which you would expect a child to have. Like "It is my way or no way". All that rot is painted over by a thin layer of niceness, openness or whatever it is socially accepted as good.

I accept online space as more pure form of human expression. Here everyone can be themselves under a guise of anonymity and be emboldened by impersonal nature of the internet. What you are too timid to say face to face can freely be discussed online. Thus all the oppressed individuals come out with their feeling and their thoughts. Unsurprisingly, there isn't anything worthwhile in them vast majority of the time.
It is like alcohol in this regard. A very useful tool to probe someone. Booze will soften person's defenses and you might get glimpses into what he is hiding or what kind of person he really is.

When it comes to spiritual communities, the problem is that there is no go-to way to achieve gnosis. There is no manual for you to do X and achieve Y. That is the key problem as people can't gather necessary experience. Field is also deeply demanding (at least from me). In order to achieve something, I must spend my time, energy, make sacrifices. Getting results is never easy or straightforward and those results often are very subtle. A person can easily lack any concrete experiences and they will simply try to fake it.

This is where issues start. Our perspectives become inherently different with different expectations, values and experiences. For a person unable to achieve anything, he will read various stories and will get an idea how he should behave. He then would make various stories himself. His motivations often would be acceptance, feeling important, being special. A lot of sickly people get into this field, achieve nothing and then make up stories.

As for people being critical, well this is Dunning-Kruger effect in play. You tend to be the loudest when you know the least. The most harsh and aggressive critics of spiritualism are atheists. People who know the least tend to critique the most. People who get into spirituality tend to critique harshly everyone else who shares different perspective than their own.

As for your own experience, it is hard to say. Like a person suggested, you might be too sensitive. I for example love a good debate, but others crumble under the pressure. Other people tend to be unaware how they are perceived by others thus they tend to be generally toxic, but ultimately good willing people. Other times there is a clash of perspectives of what should be considered valuable. For example, if a person does drugs during rituals and I come criticizing this practice. The core foundation of this is that our values is different, because our goals and desires are aimed at different things. There is also a lot of incompetent people out there like you possibly implied with your comment. Wizard Forums before being hacked had a similar problem with jokers hijacking the site, posting rubbish and being a burden upon everyone else.

 

[DiLoco_DelEted]

Well, I generally hate criticism of a negative nature..yet I need to be responsible and accountable doing this. Constructive criticism such as @KjEno186 and @Lemongrass00 suggested I take on too much, get obcessed or sidetracked, and either get burnt out or spread too thin. Others such as @Vandheer have called me out when needed. I appreciate the chess game and side conversations. I know I need to master basics, but at the mercy of the books I go through. I appreciate all, but some answers or theories I could laugh at if I could laugh ATM.

Post automatically merged: Mar 25, 2023

In meditation I concentrated on the godform of Thoth, then Ptah came to mind, then Isis. A fire triangle of them, then the idea of the LRH using Egyptian deity names. Then the Middle Pillar appeared in my head - Ptah.. Horus..Isis..Geb.