#Western Psychology Integration

[buddhistinsightsjourney]

Buddhist Philosophy and Western Psychology Integration, Both emphasize reducing suffering, promoting personal development, and fostering mindfulness and compassion.

Buddhist practices like meditation and the Eightfold Path parallel Western psychological techniques such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Integrating these approaches can enhance mental well-being, addressing issues like depression, stress, and anxiety by cultivating positive thoughts and behaviors.

[omegaphilosophia]

The Philosophy of Integral Philosophy

Integral Philosophy is a comprehensive and holistic approach to understanding reality that seeks to integrate knowledge, values, and experiences from multiple domains—science, spirituality, psychology, culture, and personal development—into a unified framework. It is not tied to any one tradition or discipline but aims to synthesize insights from many, offering a meta-perspective on human existence and the cosmos.

Core Principles of Integral Philosophy

Holism and Integration

Integral philosophy emphasizes wholeness—seeing the parts within the whole and the whole within the parts. It values synthesis over fragmentation, aiming to unite what has been divided by disciplines, cultures, and ideologies.

Multiple Perspectives

It respects and incorporates various ways of knowing, including rational, empirical, intuitive, artistic, and contemplative. This plurality reflects an understanding that no single perspective can fully capture the complexity of reality.

Developmental Stages

Influenced by developmental psychology and evolutionary theory, integral philosophy often sees individuals and societies as evolving through stages of consciousness or awareness—from ego-centric to ethno-centric to world-centric to cosmos-centric viewpoints.

The Four Quadrants (Wilber’s Model)

Philosopher Ken Wilber, a key figure in integral thought, outlines a framework of four interrelated dimensions:

Interior-Individual (thoughts, feelings, inner life)

Exterior-Individual (physical body, behavior)

Interior-Collective (culture, worldview)

Exterior-Collective (social systems, institutions) These quadrants aim to show how every phenomenon can be understood from multiple angles.

Transcend and Include

Integral philosophy encourages moving beyond previous perspectives without rejecting them. It honors the contributions of earlier stages while recognizing the need for evolution and transformation.

Spiritual Realism

While it embraces spiritual insights, integral philosophy avoids dogmatism. It seeks a "post-metaphysical spirituality" grounded in experience, consciousness, and global wisdom traditions.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Hierarchy of Needs

Abraham Maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of human needs has profoundly influenced the behavioral sciences, becoming a seminal concept in understanding human motivation.

The original pyramid comprises 5 levels:

Physiological needs: Basic requirements for survival, such as food, water, shelter, and sleep

Safety needs: Security of body, employment, resources, morality, the family, health, and property

Love and belonging needs: Friendship, family, intimacy, and a sense of connection

Esteem needs: Respect, self-esteem, status, recognition, strength, and freedom

Self-Actualization: The desire to become the best that one can be

Maslow posited that our motivations arise from inherent and universal human traits, a perspective that predated and anticipated evolutionary theories in biology and psychology (Crawford & Krebs, 2008; Dunbar & Barrett, 2007).

Maslow developed his theory during the Second World War, a time of global upheaval and change, when the world was grappling with immense loss, trauma, and transformation. This context influenced Maslow’s emphasis on the individual’s potential for growth, peace, and fulfillment beyond mere survival.

It is noteworthy that Maslow did not actually create the iconic pyramid that is frequently associated with his hierarchy of needs. Researchers believe it was popularized instead by psychologist Charles McDermid, who was inspired by step-shaped model designed by management theorist Keith Davis (Kaufman, 2019).

Over the years, Maslow (1970) made revisions to his initial theory, mentioning that 3 more levels could be added:

cognitive needs,

aesthetic needs, and

transcendence needs (e.g., mystical, aesthetic, sexual experiences, etc.).

Criticisms of the Hierarchy of Needs

Criticism of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has been a subject of ongoing discussion, with several key limitations identified by scholars and practitioners alike. Understanding these critiques and integrating responses to them is vital for therapists aiming to apply the hierarchy in a modernized way in their practice.

Needs are Dynamic

Critics argue that the original hierarchy does not offer an accurate depiction of human motivation as dynamic and continuously influenced by the interplay between our inner drives and the external world (Freund & Lous, 2012).

While Maslow’s early work suggested that one must fulfill lower levels in order to reach ultimate self-actualization, we now know human needs are not always clearly linear nor hierarchical.

People might experience and pursue multiple needs simultaneously or in a different order than the hierarchy suggests. After all, personal motives and environmental factors constantly interact, shaping how individuals respond to their surroundings based on their past experiences.

Cultural Bias

One of the primary criticisms is the cultural bias inherent in Maslow’s original model. While many human needs can be shared among cultures, different cultures may prioritize certain needs or goals over others (Tay & Diener, 2011).

It’s often argued that Maslow’s emphasis on self-actualization reflects a distinctly Western, individualistic perspective, which may not resonate with or accurately represent the motivational structures in more collectivist societies where community and social connectedness are prioritized.

Empirical Grounding

The hierarchy has also faced scrutiny for its lack of empirical grounding, with some suggesting that there isn’t sufficient research to support the strict ordering of needs (Kenrick et al., 2010).

In practice, this limitation can be addressed by viewing the hierarchy as a descriptive framework rather than a prescriptive one.

Source ⚜ More: Writing Notes & References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

[astraystayyh]

We recently learned in our media class about the four indicators that reveal a country's use of propaganda to justify its actions/build a national and international consensus over its stance. This is exactly what Israel is doing now. Please read this to learn more about the Israeli propaganda (with sources) :

i. Establishing a distinct "us" versus "them"/"the others" divide: The Israeli media has been actively engaged in crafting a narrative that portrays Palestinians as sub-humans and animals, that deserve to be killed, butchered, and deprived of essential resources such as water, electricity and fuel. This dehumanizing narrative serves to rationalize the grave atrocities committed against Palestinians, reducing them to mere statistics, rather than acknowledging them as fellow human beings who have the right to be protected as well.

A recent example of this dehumanization (that encompasses children as well) is Israel's Prime Minister's words in a now-deleted tweet, on Oct 16, stating: "This is a struggle between the children of light and the children of darkness, between humanity and the law of the jungle."

This is also a common practice in Western media as a whole. In the context of conflict, the choice of words plays a significant role: Israelis are often described as "killed," and Palestinians are referred to as having "died" (example of BBC). The distinction can be seen as a way to omit Israeli responsibility, portraying the deaths of nearly 10,000 Palestinians as a result of circumstances beyond its control, rather than the outcome of deliberate and targeted actions.

ii. Use of emotion instead of logic: a stark example would be the whole international outrage that was first sparked due to the false claim that Hamas had beheaded 40 babies. This fake news was confidently shared by U.S. President Joe Biden, who later admitted that he had never actually seen any pictures of such events, neither did anyone in the IDF because there was never any instance of 40 beheaded babies (source) (also trust me if Israel did have any pictures of killed children they would not hesitate to share it)

CNN journalist who first shared this fake news has later apologized for being "misled." (which isn't the case that was a conscious choice of the news agency but that's another conversation)

Israel knew what it was doing by sharing this particular false information, they knew that the simple imagery of such a horrifying notion, even without concrete proof, would be a strategic tool to garner international support through emotional manipulation.

They are still trying to use emotion when it comes to children particularly to sway the public opinion : Israeli government spokesman has shared images of "fallen teeth of burnt children." This post has been debunked by dentists, pointing out many contradictions in the pics that conclude that these are props and not the teeth of actual children found in rubbles. (source)

(Meanwhile, there are factual documented videos and pictures of dead Palestinian kids and babies, decapitated, injured beyond belief, tangible proof of the war crimes Israel commits and yet the public outrage isn't the same, because Israel has already established that Palestinians are lesser people)

iii. Attempting to Influence Both Elites and Ordinary Citizens: In addition to their efforts to secure international support from world leaders, Israel has employed a multifaceted approach by spreading advertisements that regular civilians view. These ads serve to rationalize their actions, and they are strategically placed ahead of unrelated programming, including children's shows or games.

This tactic aims to integrate their ideology into various aspects of our lives, in order to promote their agenda and inundate us with recurrent pro-Israel messages. This strategy capitalizes on the psychological principle that the mind tends to retain information it encounters most frequently. (a more detailed video explanation)

iv. media manipulation tactics : For example, the night before Israel bombed the Baptist hospital in Gaza killing more than 1000 people, BBC published an article with the headline "Does Hamas build tunnels under schools and hospitals?" giving way to a "justification" for the heinous, war crime act that is bombing a hospital, under the guise of targeting Hamas hidden bases.

The use of the Israel-Gaza war as a headline for the news leads us to believe that this is a war with two equal (or slightly disproportionate) parties who are both able to defend themselves. Whereas this is a genocide led by Israel (a powerful military with international backing by the world's most powerful nations- U.S, U.K, France, Germany.. to cite a few) and CIVILIANS. Because those are the people that Israel is targeting, by bombing hospitals, schools, mosques, churches, refugee camps.

It is a genocide, an ethnical cleansing, an attempt to eradicate entire families, then to relocate the survivors out of Gaza, making it impossible for them to reclaim their land, and resulting in a total takeover of Palestine by Israel.

Another manipulation example (because there are so many) is the first and most prominent question that many Western journalists ask their guests: "Do you condemn the attacks of Hamas on Oct 7?"

This question completely disregards the root of this entire conflict, which is the 75-year ongoing colonization of Palestine. By omitting all the previous crimes against Palestinians that led to the attack (the killings, the wrongful imprisonments, the torture, the stealing of land…) these 'journalists' actively manipulate the public opinion, portraying the Hamas attack as unprovoked, when you cannot possibly expect a colonization to have 0 resistance.

And an honorable mention to the zionists who are trying to morph the anti-Israel stance into an anti-Jew one. This isn't about religion, I've said this once and I will say it again, Jews around the world are condemning the actions of their government. Just recently, Jews were arrested in NYC for standing against Israel. (source)

This is a humanitarian cause. We're humans, this is the one denominator factor that unites all. We read about previous genocides in history. We wondered how people could support the killings of innocent people, men and women, and children and babies. It is happening right now again, and media propaganda plays a significant role in shaping public perceptions.

I couldn't include everything here but please, I urge you to use your critical thinking. Don't believe everything the media tells you, and this is coming from a graduated journalist. We learn about propaganda and how to counter it, which also means we learn about how to manufacture it.

So don't be gullible, boycott the companies who support Israel (mainly HP, Siemens, AXA, Puma, Israeli fruits and vegetables, Sodastream, Ahava, Sabra. check BDS for more information) and urge your governments to support the ceasefire. We have a voice and we should use it, even if we're uncomfortable, even if we're scared. Do it. By staying silent you become complicit in genocide.

[blackstarlineage]

Did Apartheid in South Africa Really End? A Deep Garveyite Analysis

When the world watched Nelson Mandela walk free in 1990 and saw the South African flag change in 1994, many proclaimed the end of apartheid. Statues were erected, awards were handed out, and the so-called “Rainbow Nation” was born. But from a Garveyite lens—rooted in Black self-determination, economic sovereignty, and African redemption—the question must be asked: Did apartheid truly end, or was it simply rebranded?

This blog will break down that question with no sentimentality, no romanticism—just truth rooted in the legacy of Marcus Garvey, and the demands of African liberation.

1. Political Inclusion vs. Power Transfer

Yes, apartheid as a legal system was dismantled. Black South Africans gained the right to vote. A Black president was elected. Yet Garvey warned: “Political power without economic power is a shadow.”

In post-1994 South Africa, the state allowed symbolic political inclusion while leaving economic power—land, banks, mines, media, and manufacturing—firmly in the hands of the white minority. The ruling class didn’t lose power; they merely adjusted their strategy. That is not liberation. That is managed containment.

2. Economic Apartheid: The Real Beast

Marcus Garvey emphasized ownership: of land, industry, and institutions. But nearly three decades post-apartheid, the numbers remain stark:

Over 70% of arable land is still white-owned.

The Johannesburg Stock Exchange remains white and foreign-dominated.

Entire Black townships remain economically dependent, underdeveloped, and over-policed—modern-day bantustans.

Apartheid was never just about laws—it was about wealth concentration. And that wealth never changed hands.

3. The Myth of the “Rainbow Nation”

Garvey never trusted the fantasy of racial integration under white terms. He believed in unity among Black people first, before any alliance with those who historically oppressed us.

The “Rainbow Nation” idea sold Black South Africans a myth: that justice could come without restitution. That forgiveness could substitute for land. That sharing space with white capitalists—while still being workers and renters—was freedom. It’s a false peace. A pacified people. That is not Garveyism.

4. The Role of the ANC: A Neo-Colonial Management Class

While Mandela is globally hailed, a Garveyite lens must critique the role of the African National Congress (ANC). They accepted the terms of the oppressor: no land reform, no nationalization of mines, no dismantling of white economic monopoly.

Instead, they were granted token power to manage the masses—while international capital and white South African elites maintained ownership. The ANC became a Black face guarding white interests. That is neo-colonialism.

Garvey would call it what it is: a betrayal of the revolutionary mission.

5. The Psychological Chains Remain

One of apartheid’s most vicious legacies is psychological: the devaluation of Blackness, the idolization of whiteness, the inferiority complex ingrained in media, education, and religious systems.

Garvey warned that no people could be free until they loved themselves and saw divinity in their Blackness. Today, skin bleaching, English accents, and Western consumerism dominate the youth, while African languages, history, and spirituality are treated as primitive or irrelevant.

Apartheid may have fallen on paper, but its mental scaffolding still grips the nation.

6. Resistance Never Died

But the spirit of Garvey lives in the youth movements rising. From the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) demanding land expropriation, to student protests like #FeesMustFall, there is a generation waking up to the unfinished business of revolution.

The question is not whether apartheid ended—but whether Black South Africans will finish what was never truly started: complete control of their land, labor, culture, and destiny.

Conclusion: Garvey Would Say It’s Not Over

From a Garveyite perspective, South Africa's transition was not a revolution—it was a handover of management duties. White supremacy adapted; it did not die. The only true end to apartheid will come when Black South Africans have full economic, cultural, political, and spiritual sovereignty—on their terms, in their image.

The struggle continues. The flag may have changed—but freedom still waits.

“Africa for the Africans, those at home and those abroad.” – Marcus Garvey

South Africa will be free when Africans own Africa.

[the-art-of-witnessing-the-cosmos]

MASTERLIST 🌱

🌼Introduction & Purpose of Vedic Astrology ✨

🌼 PAID READINGS

🌸Questions answered (part 1 )

🌼Planets in the chart & their significations ✨

🌼Houses in the chart & their significations ✨

🌼 Important distinctions in the chart psychologically.

🌼 Maturity of Planets

LUMINARIES - CORE MASCULINE & FEMININE ENERGIES

🌼 Sun SURYA - Atman in different signs 🌻

🌼 Moon CHANDRA - Manas in different signs 🌻

🌼 Moon Yogas

The essence of Planets

💌 Venus - The sensual and the transcendental.

🪐 Saturn - The misunderstood alchemist

Planets in houses

🤍Planets in 7th house

Ascendant - Lagna series

Virgo Rising ☘️

Mahadasha ( Planetary timeline )

⭐Rahu Mahadasha

⭐Moon Mahadasha

Psychology & astrology interlinked

🫂 The Importance of understanding seventh house & intimate relationships 🌻

🏳️ Rahu Ketu - The most mysterious & ancient Energies of the Chart.

🪷 Understanding the effects of retrograde planets

💠 Planets & Chakras

Integration of 7th house planets

Pisces stellium

NAKSHATRAS 🌻

☀️Glimpse into the 27 Nakshatras and their energies that deeply influence our inner psyche.

⭐Magha Nakshatra ✨

⭐Pushya ✨

⭐Ardra ✨

⭐Ashlesha ✨

⭐Poorva Bhadrapada ✨

⭐ Revati Nakshatra ✨

⭐ UttaraPhalguni Nakshatra ✨

⭐ Moola Nakshatra ✨

⭐ Rohini Nakshatra ✨

MISCONCEPTIONS OF UNIQUE CHALLENGING PLACEMENTS

☘️Manglik placements 🦋

☘️Kaal Sarpa Energies 🦋

WESTERN ASTROLOGY

🌊 Pluto in Third house 🏡 🪴

🌊 Understanding 8th house dynamics

💕 Understanding 4th house synastry

🪔 Vedic Remedies & a healing approach to balance energies.

🪔 Planetary Mantras

🌸 Sade Sati 🪐

🌻Astro observations

🌸 Astro observations part 1

🌸 Astro observations part 2

🌸 Astro observations part 3

🌸 Astro observations part 4

🌸 Astro observations part 5

🌸 Astro observations part 6

🌸 Astro observations part 7

🌸 Astro observations part 8

🌸 Astro observations part 9

🌸 Astro observations part 10

🌸Astro observations part 11

🌸Astro observations part 12

🌸Astro observations part 13

🌸Astro observations part 14

🌸Astro observations part 15

[writing-plurals]

Hello! I’m currently making a series thats supposed to be the “madoka magica” of 2000s/2010s western girl shows like winx. I want to make one of the main characters have a dark side, her own “dark bloom”, but with some psychological horror mixed in. Since me and my sister are both making the series, i once read to her an au of one of our fave shows that i wanted to take inspiration from for the character, so that we could both discuss about her. While i was reading it, she suggested that i’d make her plural, with her dark side as one of the alters.

I found it to be an interesting concept, so i went to go research about plurality. I was taking a look at Reddit threads from r/plural of singlets trying to get advice for how to write plural characters (i even made one myself), and i found that the evil alter/killer headmate trope is typically frowned upon among plurals, especially since it has ties to harmful stereotypes and pluralphobia etc.

While i do know where they’re coming from, i’m kinda bit lost on how to write a killer headmate without making it a harmful stereotype. I’ve come up with some ways to do so:

1. Have her accept her dark side being a part of her at some point, and have both of them reconcile, team up and become genuine friends. Putting this first because its something i though before i made her plural

2. Make the dark side be not necessarily evil, but is just more unapologetic badass and full of adrendaline and also is deep down just her tough girl part like janice from mean girls??? Sorry my autistic ass is really shit at explaining stuff sometimes

3. Related to the previous one, make it so like her pluralphobic mom tries to make her integrate and become fully evil, by trying to mind control the “killer” headmate to take over and do shitty stuff etc again sorry for shit explaination

4. Make another plural character without an evil alter to show that not all plurals are like this

In general, i really need some advice on how to handle this trope without appearing pluralphobic 😭😭😭 and please lmk about my methods and how i can improve.

Thank you!!!!

So, in general, the reason this trope is bad is because the system with the evil alter is usually the only plural or the evil alter is the only other alter! So you're already a step up by having it be more than just the two! And making another system or two is the best other way to avoid it, because it's less of a trope if it's not the plural token in the story. You're already on a great track to correcting course!

-Mod Tick Tock

[greens-spilled-tea]

I think a lot of people tend to forget that many of the things that people associate with specific mental health disorders are actually normal and commonly experienced by most people at least at some point in their life. Many people hallucinate when on a lack of sleep or under the influence of drugs and that doesn't necessarily mean they have schizophrenia, many people lack focus sometimes and that doesn't mean they have ADHD, many people experience dissociation every once in a while and that doesn't mean they have a dissociative disorder. It only becomes a disorder when these things are pervasive enough or otherwise interrupts someone's daily life enough to cause distress and/or impairment. And so in the same way, I think it also would stand that someone experiencing having "multiple selves" would also be within normal expectations.

Plus, why do we think that having only a singular sense of self and identity is the default, anyways? Is that really so true around the world, or is that more of a societal norm pushed on us based on the culture we grew up in? Even in modern western psychology do we often examine the human psyche through the lens of there being more than one actor at play: Freud's concepts of the id/ego/supergo, and Jung's exploration of archetypes including the shadow archetype, being just a few examples of such.

I dunno, it just feels like a lot of people take common assumptions as facts. Even the Theory of Structural Dissociation starts at the assumption that most people experience themselves as a singular integrated self. I think people actually often overlook that when they talk about the ToSD, as they believe that integration into a singular self is proven by the existence of the ToSD when in fact the ToSD does the opposite where it assumes the singular integrated self to be true. How, then, could you actually use the ToSD to prove that people integrated into a singular self when it starts with that as an assumption? That's what we call circular reasoning.

Anyways. Just some 1am ramblings from me.

[so-true-overdue]

Ah, the delicate art of deception, Russia’s enduring magnum opus. In a world awash with superficial ephemera and algorithm-driven hysteria, it has emerged as a master puppeteer, manipulating the strings of disinformation to sow discord in the vulnerable Western psyche. The battlefield of choice? Social media platforms, of course—those gloriously fertile grounds where any unverified tweet or video clip can blossom into the viral infection of modern civilization.

Through meticulously crafted disinformation campaigns, Russia has weaponized truth, distorting it beyond recognition and serving it on a platter to the unsuspecting masses who consume it with insatiable gullibility. The irony is, while most of the Western world fancies itself intellectually superior, the very same platforms they created to exchange cat memes have now become tools of psychological warfare. And why wouldn’t they? What better way to dismantle a society than by first unraveling its understanding of objective reality?

Enter the antidote: verifiable journalism. Yes, that relic of an era when facts were sacrosanct and not merely alternative options on a drop-down menu. Only through rigorous, investigative journalism can we fortify the crumbling ramparts of reason against the onslaught of misinformation. In an age where everyone with a smartphone fancies themselves a beacon of truth, the numinous—a word traditionally reserved for spiritual transcendence—takes on new significance. It is through the sacred, almost mystical reverence for truth that we might reconnect with an epistemological certainty. The numinous, in this case, isn’t found in the divine but in the sheer act of seeking verifiable, unadulterated information—an endeavor that feels increasingly like an act of faith itself.

Yet, the dissonance remains palpable. Instead of scrolling through rigorously researched articles, many remain transfixed by whatever ideological poison is peddled by the latest bot, leaving the defenses of reason to rot. Because, after all, who needs journalistic integrity when you have a meme to confirm your worldview?

In this grim theater of cognitive warfare, it is not weapons but narratives that determine the victor. And unless we are willing to hold up verifiable journalism as the last bastion of intellectual integrity, the West may find itself losing more than just a few online arguments. It could lose the very essence of reality itself.

[aeth-eris]

Astrology Study Guide

This study guide aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of astrology, its diverse applications, and its impact on various aspects of life, culture, and society. Basic Astrology Concepts:

Zodiac Signs and Meanings

Planetary Movements and Retrogrades

Elements and Modalities

book rec :

"The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need" by Joanna Martine Woolfolk

Natal Chart Interpretation:

Understanding the Houses

Significance of Planetary Placements

Importance of Aspects

book rec :

"Astrology for the Soul" by Jan Spiller

"The Inner Sky" by Steven Forrest

Astrological Techniques:

Transits and Progressions

Solar and Lunar Returns

Synastry and Composite Charts

book rec :

"Planets in Transit" by Robert Hand

"Predictive Astrology: The Eagle and the Lark" by Bernadette Brady

Advanced Astrological Concepts:

Asteroids and Chiron

Midpoints and Harmonics

Planetary Nodes and Part of Fortune

book rec :

"Chiron and the Healing Journey" by Melanie Reinhart

"The Combination of Stellar Influences" by Reinhold Ebertin

Astrological Practices:

Chart Calculation and Drawing

Interpretation and Analysis Techniques

Application in Personal and Professional Settings

book rec :

"The Professional Astrologer" by Oner Doser

"The Astrology Podcast" by Chris Brennan

Historical Astrology:

Evolution of Astrological Practices

Cultural and Historical Significance

Influence of Astrology on Society and Culture

book rec :

"A History of Western Astrology" by S. J. Tester

"Hellenistic Astrology: The Study of Fate and Fortune" by Chris Brennan

Ethics and Responsibility in Astrology:

Confidentiality and Trustworthiness

Maintaining Professionalism and Boundaries

Empowering Clients and Practitioners

book rec :

"The Ethics of Caring" by Kylea Taylor

"Astrology, Psychology, and the Four Elements" by Stephen Arroyo

Astrology and Psychology:

Psychological Astrology Principles

Use of Astrology in Counseling and Therapy

Integrating Astrological Insight into Self-Discovery

book rec :

"Astrology for the Soul" by Jan Spiller

"The Astrology of Fate" by Liz Greene

Astrology and Predictive Techniques:

Timing Events with Transits and Progressions

Forecasting Techniques and Tools

Preparing for Potential Challenges and Opportunities

book rec :

"The Art of Predictive Astrology" by Carol Rushman

"Solar Arcs" by Noel Tyl

Astrology in Modern Context:

Popularity and Relevance in Contemporary Culture

Astrology in Media and Entertainment

Social and Online Astrological Communities

book rec :

"Astrology, Karma & Transformation" by Stephen Arroyo

"The Astrology of You and Me" by Gary Goldschneider

Helpful sites/apps :

astro.com

astromatrix.org / astromatrix app

Pattern app

Co-star app

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

Published: Jul 13, 2023

As experienced professionals involved in direct care for the rapidly growing numbers of gender-diverse youth, the evaluation of medical evidence or both, we were surprised by the Endocrine Society’s claims about the state of evidence for gender-affirming care for youth (Letters, July 5). Stephen Hammes, president of the Endocrine Society, writes, “More than 2,000 studies published since 1975 form a clear picture: Gender-affirming care improves the well-being of transgender and gender-diverse people and reduces the risk of suicide.” This claim is not supported by the best available evidence.

Every systematic review of evidence to date, including one published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society, has found the evidence for mental-health benefits of hormonal interventions for minors to be of low or very low certainty. By contrast, the risks are significant and include sterility, lifelong dependence on medication and the anguish of regret. For this reason, more and more European countries and international professional organizations now recommend psychotherapy rather than hormones and surgeries as the first line of treatment for gender-dysphoric youth.

Dr. Hammes’s claim that gender transition reduces suicides is contradicted by every systematic review, including the review published by the Endocrine Society, which states, “We could not draw any conclusions about death by suicide.” There is no reliable evidence to suggest that hormonal transition is an effective suicide-prevention measure.

The politicization of transgender healthcare in the U.S. is unfortunate. The way to combat it is for medical societies to align their recommendations with the best available evidence—rather than exaggerating the benefits and minimizing the risks.

This letter is signed by 21 clinicians and researchers from nine countries.

FINLAND Prof. Riittakerttu Kaltiala, M.D., Ph.D. Tampere University Laura Takala, M.D., Ph.D. Chief Psychiatrist, Alkupsykiatria Clinic

UNITED KINGDOM Prof. Richard Byng, M.B.B.Ch., Ph.D. University of Plymouth Anna Hutchinson, D.Clin.Psych. Clinical psychologist, The Integrated Psychology Clinic Anastassis Spiliadis, Ph.D.(c) Director, ICF Consultations

SWEDEN Angela Sämfjord, M.D. Senior consultant, Sahlgrenska University Hospital Sven Román, M.D. Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist

NORWAY Anne Wæhre, M.D., Ph.D. Senior consultant, Oslo University Hospital

BELGIUM Em. Prof. Patrik Vankrunkelsven, M.D. Ph.D. Katholieke Universiteit Leuven Honorary senator Sophie Dechêne, M.R.C.Psych. Child and adolescent psychiatrist Beryl Koener, M.D., Ph.D. Child and adolescent psychiatrist

FRANCE Prof. Celine Masson, Ph.D. Picardy Jules Verne University Psychologist, Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants Co-director, Observatory La Petite Sirène Caroline Eliacheff, M.D. Child and adolescent psychiatrist Co-director, Observatory La Petite Sirène Em. Prof. Maurice Berger, M.D. Ph.D. Child psychiatrist

SWITZERLAND Daniel Halpérin, M.D. Pediatrician

SOUTH AFRICA Prof. Reitze Rodseth, Ph.D. University of Kwazulu-Natal Janet Giddy, M.B.Ch.B., M.P.H. Family physician and public-health expert Allan Donkin, M.B.Ch.B. Family physician

UNITED STATES Clin. Prof. Stephen B. Levine, M.D. Case Western Reserve University Clin. Prof. William Malone, M.D. Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine Director, Society for Evidence Based Gender Medicine Prof. Patrick K. Hunter, M.D. Florida State University Pediatrician and bioethicist

Transgenderism has been highly politicized—on both sides. There are those who will justify any hormonal-replacement intervention for any young person who may have been identified as possibly having gender dysphoria. This is dangerous, as probably only a minority of those so identified truly qualify for this diagnosis. On the other hand, there are those who wouldn’t accept any hormonal intervention, regardless of the specifics of the individual patients.

Endocrinologists aren’t psychiatrists. We aren’t the ones who can identify gender-dysphoric individuals. The point isn’t to open the floodgates and offer an often-irreversible treatment to all people who may have issues with their sexuality, but to determine who would truly benefit from it.

Jesus L. Penabad, M.D. Tarpon Springs, Fla.

[ Via: https://archive.today/IRShy ]

==

The gender lobotomists just got called out.

[exuberantocean]

I kept meaning to write a meta post about DID and the inherent trauma of late stage capitalism in Severance. But something keeps bothering me and I feel like I need to address it first.

And that's personhood.

Those of us (at least in Western culture) have a tendency of thinking of ourselves as a monolith. Funny word monolith: "mono" meaning single or one and "lithos" meaning stone. Single stones. One whole, complete unit. But let's say we had a monolith and we broke it. Are not the resulting stones still stones?

Neuroscience and psychology has been increasingly showing that the human mind is less of a single unit and more like communicating bundles of beingness. The idea is that our minds are a vast network, capable of subconscious reasoning along with conscious reasoning. That we are fully capable of seeing things from multiple perspectives and internal conflict because of this. Internal family systems, a therapeutic technique, takes for a give that trauma enhances these differences within the mind, assigning roles for different parts of us. But even those of us without trauma and hardship in our past probably do this in a less exaggerated way.

Neuroscience backs this up. Perhaps the most extreme examples of this can be found with a research named Roger Sperry. In the 60s and 70s he did research that showed split brain patients that showed the two hemispheres functioning independently of each other. (Split brain procedures limit or destroy communication between the right and left hemispheres of the brain.) For example:

In one experiment, a patient was shown the word “key” in the left visual field (processed by the right hemisphere) and the word “ring” in the right visual field (processed by the left hemisphere). When asked what they saw, the patient would say “ring” because the left hemisphere controls language. However, when asked to pick up the object corresponding to the image with their left hand (controlled by the right hemisphere), the patient would select the key. This experiment vividly demonstrated the independent processing capabilities of each hemisphere and the challenges posed by their inability to communicate.

In some split-brain patients, the hemispheres appear to act at cross purposes. For instance, one hand might attempt to button a shirt while the other simultaneously unbuttons it. This phenomenon, known as intermanual conflict, illustrates how the hemispheres can operate independently, each executing its own agenda. Although rare, these episodes provide a dramatic example of the “dual consciousness” that can arise in split-brain individuals.

X

Similarly, there's increasing understand that people with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) are not delusions but systems of alters - individuals that share the same headspace and the same body but are unique and different from each other. Rather than a split brain procedure, the trauma that causes DID isn't physiological but psychological, extreme, unrelenting trauma at a young age.

Trauma causes some level of disassociation - a fragmenting of our sense of self. As trauma passes, we return to ourselves (albeit worse for wear). We reform, but that integration requires safety and stability to happen. If it happens frequently enough when we are young enough and we never have the safety for that reforming, that reintegration, then the fragments of ourselves grow into their own, different, unique, beautiful wholeness of their own. The body and mind grow alters. "Alters" can have their own name, personality, memories, and functions with the community of the mind. They have their own unique wants and needs. They can be oblivious to the others, or not. Some alters might hold the memories of the past traumas their body and brain endured, others may not. Frequent when one alter fronts others may be unaware of their actions during and after. When one alter is in control of the body it is said to be "fronting." They frequently take on different roles within the brain they inhabit.

Neuroscience has been backing this up.

Alters real people and should be honored as such. A person can be a multitude. Treating one as more valuable or more real than the others is wrong, because they are all part of the wholeness of the person and taking that away more often than not can't be done by external forces in a safe way. Sometimes new alters emerge or alters can converge...I don't know too much about that personally, but from what I understand reintegration against the systems will is only another form of violence against the system. More trauma.

Severance is a world that lives in late stage capitalism, like us in the real world. We see corporate (Lumon) dominance over politics, culture, and everyday lives. It permeates mental, emotional, and relational life. It is inescapable. In late stage capitalism work is exploitative and alienating. Surveillance and lose of privacy are key factors. It is an inherently traumatic system to live in. And the trauma is pervasive and relentless.

And it fractures the characters that live in it, severed and unsevered.

All of the four main characters are severed. All are revealed to be traumatized by the world they inhabit. Mark's the most obvious. Lumon faked his wife's death and kidnapped her. Mark was given the job of informing his wife's students of her passing. Lumon is surveilled by Lumon, lives in what is likely Lumon housing, manipulated frequently. (It would not surprise me if we learn that Lumon had manipulated things to increase Mark's distress to force him into working as a severed employee.) But it isn't just Mark. We have Irving, the former soldier who likely saw battle and was scarred. We have Dylan, perhaps most relatable, can barely make ends, hold down a job, and keep his family afloat. And Helena, daughter of the company head, who's ever move is regimented and controlled. Yes, she's privileged compared to the others, but she's never had freedom. It is a system that hurts and cuts at every level.

But, even the unsevered employees...shall we look at Ms. Cobel the victim of child labor? Or how about Mr. Milchick who is forced to smile through one racist micro-aggression after another. Both are just cogs in the great Lumon machine. Their free will is suspect at best.

The truth is the unrelenting trauma of late stage capitalism makes the corporate issued DID make a certain kind of sense. The "innie" alters may share a body with their alters, but Burt's husband was right in arguing that the deserve love. That they are real. Much like real world alters. Like alters in the real world, each of the severed alters are their own, beautiful unique person. And just like in the real world, reintegration is a violent, brutal procedure. Lethal.

There's a lot of people (shippers largely) arguing for their ship based on who you think the real Mark is between the two. I feel like these people are missing the point of the show. One with a real fascination with reproduction, childbirth, children. Severance is reproduction too, the creation of new life. There is no single Mark anymore. Reintegration isn't viable; not without death (of both or at least one). The answer is in cooperation, coordination between the two. Not just for Mark, but for all, even Helly and Helena - especially with Helly and Helena.

[awellboiledicicle]

Think humans in Palia have emotional regulation issues for the first like year?

Because it's hard to know how to act when your whole everything suddenly doesn't have much to go on outside of vague impressions of feelings about things you don't remember.

Which, honestly, is probably why humans in Kilima just kinda do whatever. Majiri probably just assume humans are Like that until it occurs to some scholar that there's probably just as much psychological distress in a human as a Majiri having memory loss and displacement. Which I feel soon becomes the standard assumption for interacting with humans for people in the know-- assume you're talking to the most barely keeping it together person possible and go from there.

Which is also probably why humans integrating into Palian society are given so much leeway re: knowing customs etc. Because a lot of trauma and stress responses would quickly get wrapped into "that's just how humans are".

I imagine if memory came back, it'd be very disjointed in how it did so--if it ever does and it isn't your brain trying desperately to make shit up to feel normal.

Imagine being a human and having super strong aversions to things and not knowing why, but after like 3 years you get a super strong nightmare about some terrible thing that happened and you're faced with "am i remembering, or am i processing my current emotions?"

Like i know my character Mo would be deeply uncomfortable being called a fire kind and wouldn't know why being likened to a wildfire for their passion makes a pit form in their stomach-- until a campfire gets out of hand in the woods and they freeze for a second before flashing back to orange skies and raining ash. People crying as everything they've ever known is destroyed, huddling in a field and trying to keep children calm. Because they're heavily based on me and I get a very specific way about wildfires because the western half of the USA and Canada just kinda goes up in flames literally every year and its a gamble if you'll need to flee your home any given week in the summer.

But we also don't know if the missing memories are amnesia or just... you were 3d printed and imprinted with enough knowledge to be an adult that wouldn't starve to death instantly.

Which means our characters could be having wild flashbacks and weird sense memories creep up on them out of nowhere, or experience frustration that there's legitimately nothing to remember.

Thoughts.

[neotechnomagick]

The Intersection of NLP Eye Movement Integration and the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram: A Comparative Analysis

Introduction

Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) has long been associated with cognitive restructuring and psychotherapeutic interventions. One particularly compelling technique within NLP is Eye Movement Integration (EMI), which utilizes guided eye movements to access and integrate fragmented or traumatic memories. Simultaneously, the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (LBRP), a foundational ceremonial magick practice from the Western esoteric tradition, employs ritualized gestures and visualizations of pentagrams to clear and harmonize psychological and spiritual space. This essay explores the striking structural similarities between EMI and the LBRP and considers the possibility that both methods engage hemispheric synchronization and cognitive integration in analogous ways.

The Structure of EMI and LBRP

Eye Movement Integration (EMI) involves tracing figure-eight (∞) or infinity-loop movements with the eyes while engaging in conscious recall of emotionally charged experiences. According to NLP theories, this process activates both hemispheres of the brain, allowing for greater coherence in how memories are processed and reintegrated (Bandler & Grinder, 1982). EMI techniques suggest that deliberate movement across specific spatial axes stimulates neural pathways responsible for sensory and emotional integration (Ward, 2002).

Similarly, the LBRP involves a structured sequence of visualized pentagrams drawn in the cardinal directions, accompanied by divine names and ritual gestures. This sequence is designed to invoke protective forces and create a harmonized psychic field. According to the Golden Dawn tradition (Cicero, 1998), the act of tracing the pentagram is intended to engage multiple layers of cognition: visual-spatial processing, linguistic invocation, and kinesthetic anchoring.

Shared Cognitive and Psychological Mechanisms

Bilateral Stimulation and Neural Integration

Both EMI and LBRP involve movements across spatial dimensions that engage both brain hemispheres.

EMI’s horizontal and diagonal eye movements mimic the process of following the pentagram’s path in ritual, possibly facilitating left-right hemisphere synchronization (Bandler & Grinder, 1982).

Symbolic Encoding and Cognitive Anchoring

EMI often integrates positive resource states during the eye-tracing process, allowing new neurological connections to be formed. The LBRP similarly encodes protective and stabilizing forces into the practitioner’s consciousness through repeated use of divine names and pentagram tracings (Cicero, 1998).

The act of drawing a pentagram in ritual space may serve as an ‘anchor’ to a specific neurological or psychological state, much like NLP anchoring techniques (Hine, 1995).

Emotional and Energetic Reset

EMI is used to defragment and neutralize distressing memories, reducing their disruptive impact. The LBRP, in an esoteric context, serves to “banish” intrusive or unwanted energies, clearing space for more intentional psychological and spiritual work (Cicero, 1998).

Practitioners of both techniques report a sense of clarity, release, and heightened awareness following their use (Hine, 1995).

Implications for Technomagick and NLP Applications

The intersection of NLP and ceremonial magick suggests that structured, repetitive movement combined with intentional focus has profound cognitive and psychological effects. In a Neo-Technomagickal framework, this insight could lead to further experimentation with custom sigils designed for EMI-style integration, or AI-assisted visualization tools for ritual practice.

Future research could examine:

Whether specific geometries (e.g., pentagrams, hexagrams) in ritual movement impact cognitive processing similarly to NLP techniques.

The effectiveness of LBRP-derived rituals in clinical or self-development contexts, particularly for trauma resolution.

The potential for EEG and neurofeedback studies comparing EMI and ritualized eye-tracing methods.

Conclusion

While originating from vastly different paradigms, NLP’s EMI technique and the LBRP share fundamental principles of hemispheric integration, cognitive anchoring, and structured movement through symbolic space. Whether consciously designed or stumbled upon through esoteric practice, these methodologies hint at deep underlying mechanisms of the human mind’s capacity for self-regulation and transformation. Understanding their similarities provides an opportunity to bridge the domains of magick, psychology, and neuroscience, opening new avenues for exploration in both mystical and therapeutic contexts.

G/E/M (2025)

References

Bandler, R., & Grinder, J. (1982). Reframing: Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the Transformation of Meaning. Real People Press.

Cicero, C. & Cicero, S. T. (1998). Self-Initiation into the Golden Dawn Tradition. Llewellyn Publications.

Hine, P. (1995). Condensed Chaos: An Introduction to Chaos Magic. New Falcon Publications.

Ward, K. (2002). Mind Change Techniques to Keep the Change. NLP Resources.

[talonabraxas]

Science and the Rainbow Body

We have looked at some aspects of what modern biophysics, biophotonics, phonics (sound), and neurology can bring to our understanding of the Light Body. And the anatomical discovery of the microscopic primo vascular system and fascial tissue give us new perspectives on tsas, nadis, meridians, and the body’s energy channels in general. But at some point science is left in the dust. It cannot keep up with ancient esoteric knowledge, cooked for millennia in the crucible of direct inner experience, not intellectual theories. This particularly refers to the science of the Five Elements, and the loss and distortion of this knowledge in Western intellectual culture, medicine, and religion.

That massive misstep began long ago. While ancient Greece is taken to be the fount of our Western scientific tradition, it is also where materialism took hold fiercely, relegating scientists to the study of physical objects, functions, and ever smaller components. It’s only now, thousands of years later, that physics—and a good dose of Eastern spirituality—promise a revived view of a living, conscious universe. In nature, and in the realm of biology, it is grids of information-energy that rule supreme. Aristotle, Hippocrates, and Galen could not abide the idea of five intangible formative forces and downgraded the elements into gloppy fluids sloshing about in the spaces of the body. To be fair, this was in response to the Egyptian and Babylonian perspective, held for thousands of years, of the elements as deities. Empedocles famously called these deities “roots,” turning them into a proprietary system and establishing his place in history. But the notion of a space element, already an integral part of Pythagorean knowledge adopted from Egypt and Babylon a century before, was out in the cold. This left us with the fantasy of hydraulic fluids running the body (the humoral theory), which would pervade European and Middle Eastern thought right into the modern era—tainting astrology, alchemy, and reflected in the truncated four-part psychology of Jung, Keirsey, and Myers-Briggs. But while this artifact of materialistic thinking affected a hundred generations of beings, the true knowledge of elemental forces has remained intact, preserved in Tibetan Buddhism, Indian Shaivism, Sufic healing, and the Western gnostic lineages. That is a good thing, since they play a central role in the development of the Rainbow or Light Body. That is as it should be, since it is not myth that we are composed, mind and body, of five dynamic patterns of meaning and manifestation.

In the process of creation, of manifestation, the higher is separated from the lower: gravity and levity, roots and fruits, sky and earth. Now, we reverse the process, climbing back toward union. But a simple reversion to the primordial state, to a pure unity of warm consciousness incomprehensible to our dull intellect would miss the point. Our journey as an embodied five-elemental being is not just a movement within an illusion of time and space where “nothing actually happens.” The return is everything, and in many ways the fulfillment of creation itself. It is the ouroboros, the snake that devours its own tail, the completion of the circle, which is itself empty and contains everything.

This elemental transformation process is commonly portrayed in Tibetan thangkas and repeated in almost every ritual. Within a human skull cup we visualize five kinds of meat (forbidden foods, according to Brahmanical literature) and five kinds of bodily fluids. Their specific names are not important for this discussion, but they represent the Five Elements in their female and male aspects. This mishmash is the sum of our physical existence. Here is biology; here is embodiment; here is incarnation—being in the flesh. But here is the possibility of the birth of a new, non-material form as a vehicle for a renewed consciousness. These elements will be cooked and transformed into wisdom nectar, due to the magical addition of Om Ah Hung. In Tibetan, these three syllables represent form, energy, and consciousness, although I prefer G. I. Gurdjieff’s more colorful nomenclature of “Holy Denying, Holy Affirming, and Holy Reconciling.”

The reason for this transformative possibility in the first place is that the Five Elements exist within us in a multi-layered context. We contain the five material elements, but also the five original, pure Wisdom Elements, the cosmic spark as it were. The Hindu tradition describes five koshas or levels of existence, from gross to subtle, from bioenergetic to pure consciousness. The Buddhist world speaks of three bodies or kaya in a similar spectrum. The Kabbalah describes five worlds in a descending chain of existence. Whether we count in threes, fives, or beyond, the problem remains—how to unite the lower and the higher to create something altogether new. Traditionally, we perceive each of the Vajrayana chakras as the center of gravity of one of the elements—but containing an inner structure of five subelements. And so we have elements within elements waiting to be impregnated with divine radiance and to ascend to their true potential.

Cooking the elements

Down in the depths of our viscera, in the dark recess of the pelvic container, is a secret bindu, an energetic sphere, a “bubble” of immense import. The yogin or yogini will have long prepared, through visualization, mantra recitation, focused meditation, and the gathering of blessings, creative forces, and the richness of material, planetary, biological, and spiritual energies. Prolonged purifications have taken place, readying for this moment. Now, in this most secret of places, the alchemical process, the gestation of a new Light Body begins. Conception took place long ago, in different forms of initiations, meetings with the guru, or even a direct download from transcendent sources. Now the quickening begins, the “cooking” process. As in our visualized skull cup of animals and fluids, we ignite the fire in the belly and fan it with the reversed turbulence of our “downward descending wind.” The digestive and liver fire is harnessed, and winds are drawn down and held in the vase of the belly. The anus and lower doors are drawn up and sealed. As the sub-navel furnace blazes, the Earth mandala in the belly dissolves and is drawn upward by a natural osmosis, the force of levity, of ionic attraction, in the oldest dance in the universe.

Spiral dynamics

In this “mating” process, the flame rises up to melt the Wisdom Elements dwelling in the head. This inner heat or tummo process involves spiral energies. The heavenly father energies move clockwise, always. The earthly mother energies move in an anti-clockwise spiral, always. This is clearly seen in the way that a mantra circles within the heart, depending on whether one is self-visualized as a male or female yidam or deity form. The male mantra circles to the right and the female mantra always circles to the left (from the perspective of your own body’s orientation). Spiraling down, the flow moves through the chakras producing the “four joys.” But it spirally ascends to the head again, thrusting through the chakras with another more intense effulgence of innate bliss and the experience of pure awareness (or emptiness, as it is misleadingly called).

By this process, each element in its lower or biological state is transformed, united with and blended with its wisdom form. But what is very surprising here is that, in the Vajrayana tradition, the story somehow ends. We rest in this new state of unfabricated being-knowing, merging it with various aspects of mundane existence, including arising thoughts and feelings and experiences. All is painted with a new brush. The “doors of perception” are cleansed in a utopian brave new world of consciousness.

Beginning, not ending

But the journey is far from over. What has been described above in traditional terms involves a massive movement within the water-based electron grid of cells and interstitial tissue. It is a volcanic eruption and lava flow of the packets of massed biophotons from the cerebrospinal fluid and brain’s ventricles. We have every reason to understand that photons are the vehicles of consciousness—or that consciousness is an intrinsic quality of photons. And we have clear indications that the structured water in cells, tissues, and blood is the electron-source of prana or lūng itself. As a result of this co-mingling of side-to-side, front-to-back, and finally top-and-bottom, the Light Body begins to form in earnest. Each of the elemental chakras is now part of the Rainbow anatomy containing a mandala of subelements brimming with pristine Wisdom Element force. Channels, energy, and consciousness—tsa, lūng, and tiglé—are all benefactors of the primary template of all things: the Five Elements known as Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and Space.

Rainbow Body by Talon Abraxas

Rainbow Body by Talon Abraxas

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

by Ruth Wisse

Hamas recently beat the competition with a demonstration of savagery unlike the earlier improvised pogroms in Europe to which it has been compared. October’s slaughters were plotted with crucial input from Gazans employed in Israeli homes they had scouted and mapped for the purpose, making this the first military campaign designed to culminate in acts of beheading, torture, and rape of predetermined victims. As attempts to destroy Israel through conventional warfare had only made Israel militarily stronger, the new tactics aimed at destroying the Jews’ will to remain among antagonists sworn never to leave them in peace. More than to intimidate, these attacks were made to demoralize.

Survivor-witnesses describe new refinements of psychological warfare. Hamas murdered parents and children in each other’s presence so as to sharpen the survivors’ agony. They took hostages—not, as others do, for eventual exchange—but to taunt the country with images of prisoners’ suffering, and fear that many would never be returned. Every Jewish value—respect for women, honoring the human being who was made in the image of God—was gleefully defiled.

As for the Jews living in nearby Gaza, many of them self-described Jewish “peaceniks,” they had prided themselves on the medical help and hospitality they extended to their Gazan neighbors, persuaded that cooperation was obviously to everyone’s benefit. The terrorists exploited the Jews’ desire for peace as a means of entrapment and further opportunity for torment. By attacking on a Jewish holiday and a secular festival, they intended to destroy the Israelis’ joy in life. Anyone reading Dan Senor and Saul Singer’s exhilarating book about the collective strengths that constitute The Genius of Israel will recognize how Hamas turned precisely those virtues into weapons of torture to tear the Jewish people apart.

October’s slaughters were plotted with crucial input from Gazans employed in Israeli homes they had scouted and mapped for the purpose, making this the first military campaign designed to culminate in acts of beheading, torture, and rape of predetermined victims.

Nor does this exhaust their inventiveness. The Arabs’ strategy of martyring generations of their own people in the cause of eliminating Israel dates back to the 1947 refusal of Arab leaders to accept the partition of Palestine into two states—in order to keep Arabs perpetually homeless. Arabs were to remain permanently displaced as evidence of Israel’s “occupation” while Israel integrated the over 800,000 Jewish refugees from Arab lands and granted participatory citizenship to over 2 million Arabs who chose to remain in its boundaries.

Taking this tactic of martyring their fellow Arabs to a new level, Hamas turned Gaza into suicide central. Above ground, residents were allowed to conduct a quasi-normal life, knowing that, below ground, every school, every hospital, and many private homes were booby-trapped for the Israelis whom their leaders would lure into their cities. The IDF continues to uncover a tremendous amount of infrastructure built over years, confirming Hamas’ intention of invading and killing Israelis en masse. In the words of one of its soldiers “[It] is clear they expected us to arrive and laid plans to exact a cost in the form of IDF casualties.” The attack of Oct. 7 had to be monstrous enough to provoke Israel into full-scale war in the hope of rescuing the hostages and destroying the terrorists—a plan that would also ensure the collateral death of as many Gazans as possible to attract Western sympathy.