We live in a CAVE? (Plato's allegory)

(Bluntgard) "Standup Philosopher" or "Bullsh*t Artist" (Mel Brooks' History of the World, Pt. 1

(After Skool) The profound meaning of Plato's allegory of the cave

The Allegory of the Cave

The unexamined life is not worth living.

The allegory of the cave is presented by the Greek philosopher Plato in his work Republic (514a–520a, Book VII) to compare "the effect of education (παιδεία) and the lack of it on our nature."

It is written as a dialogue between Plato's brother Glaucon and his mentor Socrates. It is narrated by Socrates. The allegory is presented after the analogy of the Sun (508b–509c) and the analogy of the divided line (509d–511e).

In the allegory, Plato describes people who have spent their whole lives chained by their necks and ankles in front of an inner wall [a screen] with a view of the empty outer wall of the cave.

(T&H) Shut up, Buddhist Caveman Jim Carrey, or we will replace you

Allegory of Fortune

They observe the shadows [images] projected onto the outer wall by objects carried behind the inner wall by people who are invisible to the chained "prisoners" and who walk along the inner wall with a fire behind them, creating the shadows on the outer wall in front of the shackled prisoners.

The "sign bearers" pronounce the names of the objects, the sounds of which are reflected near the shadows and are understood by the prisoners as if they were coming from the shadows themselves.

Allegory of Queen Elizabeth

The only reality for the prisoners of the cave are those shadows and sounds, which are of course only inaccurate representations of the real world. The shadows represent distorted and blurred copies of reality we perceive through our senses, while the objects under the Sun represent the true forms of objects that we can only perceive through reason [or directly through refined intuition].

Three higher levels exist: (1) natural science; (2) deductive mathematics, geometry, and logic; and (3) the theory of forms.

(T&H) Shut up, Caveman Beatle George Harrison, or we will erase you.

Allegory of the Recognition

Socrates explains how a "philosopher" is like a prisoner now freed from the cave who comes to understand that the shadows on the wall are not the direct source of the images seen.

A philosopher aims to understand and perceive the higher levels of reality. However, the other inmates of the cave do not even want to escape their chains or leave their prison, for they know no better life [1].

Socrates remarks that this allegory can be paired with previous writings, namely the analogy of the Sun and the analogy of the divided line. More

Is being awake hard, Jimbo?

Jim Carrey: Why spiritually awake people won't have many friends

The "Comic Philosopher" (Mel Brooks' History of the World, Pt. 1)

• After Skool; Jim Carrey, George Harrison (T&H Inspiration and Motivation); Philosopher Mel Brooks; CC Liu, Pfc. Sandoval, Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Mandy Kahn: Peace not opposite of war

(Sum of Some Books) Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace explained in 7 minutes (War and Peace)

Peace is not the opposite of war

Mandy Kahn (edited by Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly)

Inner peace begins when... (Tiny Buddha)

Peace is not the opposite of war. When true peace is present, war does not begin. When people who live in a war-ravaged society arrive at a place of true peace, they first tend to notice the absence of war. They are surprised to see that war is not there, so they say: "This state is the opposite of war."

But peace is not the opposite of war. —What they are noticing when they enter the state of peace, the peace state, is the absence of war. We use this shorthand until we are hamstrung by it, defining peace as absence. But to define peace by what is not there is to fail to understand what IS there.

What is there? In the peace state, what is there is the experience of honoring all beings.

Let's bury them alive? War gives IDF meaning

What is there is an experience of deep and sustained compassion—a caring for all others as well as self.

What is there is an awareness that one’s true nature is loving and peaceful with a conscious, vibrant experience of one’s loving and peaceful nature.

What is there is a deep remembering of the interconnectedness (intermeshed oneness) of all beings.

When genocide is caught on film (NYT)

What is there is a natural honoring of our earth.

In this loving experience of compassion-without-end, war simply does not begin.

It is not that war is not allowed in the peace state—it’s that no one in the peace state ever chooses it. War not beginning is a result of what is present in the peace state. It is not that the "absence of war" is present, it’s that compassion-for-all-beings is present. And when compassion-for-all-beings is present, war is never present.

Definition

War Force  Gives Us Meaning

Defining peace as the opposite of war is like saying, "What’s notable about Los Angeles is that it’s not San Francisco." It’s like saying, "What we know about Los Angeles is that it is the place where the Golden Gate Bridge is not; therefore, Los Angeles is the opposite of the place where the Golden Gate Bridge is." This is nonsense.

This would be like teaching our children, "There is the Golden Gate Bridge, and there is Los Angeles, which is where the Golden Gate Bridge is not." Then our children would grow up to say, "Yes, Los Angeles, that’s the place where the Golden Gate Bridge is not!"

To associate peace with one thing that is not present in the peace state is to be distracted from what is there.

What is inherently present in the peace state is compassion-without-end, the honoring of all beings, the honoring of earth, a sense of the connectedness of all human beings, the knowledge of one’s inherent true nature, and the feeling of love-without-limits and without-end, unconditional love (Buddhist metta).

These presences are all inherent aspects of peace. When we begin to think of peace in terms of its presences, we begin to understand what peace is, how to build it, how to sustain it, and how to share it.

An experience of peace

Then a wave of bliss came over me: metta

How do we know that we are having an experience of peace? We know we are in the peace state when we feel peace’s presences—love-without-end, compassion-without-end, a connection to all others, an awareness of our own loving and peaceful true nature, and an inherent honoring of the earth.

As a result of these presences, we act in ways that are respectful of self and others concurrently. These actions are a result of what we know when we are in the peace state, what we remember we are when we are in the peace state.

Misdefined peace

"Let that sh*t go," the Awakened One might say

When we make the mistake of defining peace as "the opposite of war," what is really happening is that we are confusing peace, a state in which war does not begin, and a ceasefire.

A ceasefire is an action taken as a step to end a war. Peace and ceasefire are two very different things. The fact that we have used one word to mean both indicates our fundamental confusion about the true nature of peace.

A "ceasefire" can only exist in a place where fighting is a possibility. In the peace state, fighting never begins. Therefore, a ceasefire cannot exist in the peace state. Conflating peace and ceasefire has created profound confusion—one of the greatest of our time.

That’s what makes this moment so powerful. We can begin, right NOW, to learn what peace is—to learn what is present when peace is. We can begin to understand the difference between peace and ceasefire, and to separate them as distinct. Once they are separated, we can begin to learn about peace free of confusion.

See you Wednesday for a guided meditation

Once we have begun to separate peace and ceasefire, we can begin to engage with true peace, as it is, without its power being dampened by the idea that it is a dance in-and-out of war.

A ceasefire is simply a part of the cycle of belligerence. The peace state is infinitely more powerful than any ceasefire. To equate peace with a ceasefire is to reduce peace’s power. To separate the concept of peace from the concept of a ceasefire is to return peace’s power to us.

• Mandy Kahn (mandykahn.com)

Mandy Kahn's Peace Class goes live every Wednesday evening at 6:00 pm (Pacific Time) on Zoom. It is free to attend. To sign up, visit: eventbrite.com/e/peace-class-with-mandy-kahn. To get Mandy Kahn's free weekly peace emails, visit: mandykahn.com.

• Mandy Kahn (text); Sum of Some Books (War and Peace summary); Dhr. Seven (ed.), Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Wisdom Quarterly

Bruce Lee: True meaning of martial arts

Bruce Lee (R), Van Williams, The Green Hornet

• I will kill you: Viking vs. Bruce Lee, East/West
• VIDEO: My kick ass American ZEN practice

Don't fight like fire; dance like water

Bruce Lee, what are the martial arts? Are they combat for war, a lack of peace, or something more?

Poet philosopher Bruce Lee was born Lee Jun-fan on Nov. 27, 1940, passing away at 32 on July 20, 1973. He was an American and Hong Kong mixed martial artist, teacher, actor, Hollywood superstar, and filmmaker.

He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy ["Lee-ism"?], which was formed from his experiences in unarmed fighting and self-defense—as well as eclectic, Zen Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian philosophies—as a new school of martial arts thought [2, 3].

Standing on the shoulders of giants (symbol)

With a career spanning the United States and Hong Kong [4, 5, 6], Lee is regarded as the first global Chinese film star and one of the most influential martial artists in the history of cinema [7].

Known for his roles in five feature-length martial arts films, he is credited with helping to popularize martial arts films in the 1970s and promoting Hong Kong action cinema [8, 9].

I will kill you, Lee! - No, you won't, Tough Guy, because you didn't see this coming. Hah!

沙田 Shatin 香港文化博物館 (HK Heritage Museum 2021)

 

Smile. It's good for body and chi.

Born in San Francisco and raised in Hong Kong, Lee was introduced to the Hong Kong film industry as a child actor by his father, Mr. Lee Hoi-chuen [10].

Lee's early martial arts experience included Wing Chun (trained under Ip Man), tai chi, boxing (winning a Hong Kong boxing tournament), and frequent street fighting (neighborhood and rooftop fights).

He moved to Seattle in 1959, enrolling at the University of Washington in 1961 [11]. More

• T&H Inspiration & Motivation (video); Pfc. Sandoval, Doggone, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wiki edit

Colonialism rewrote Hinduism

(Neo Dharmism) Colonialism rewrote Hinduism [all of the traditions found along the Indus balled up and turned into a "religion" by the British, having also been systematized and more or less unified by Adi Shankara-acharya]: Here's what European scholars erased

• "Hinduism" (which calls itself the Sanātana Dharma or "Eternal Truth") traces its roots back thousands of years to Brahmanism (the tradition of the educated Brahmin priestly caste) and the Old Vedic Religion derived from the Vedas.

Kuladevata at Beluru Chennakeshava

Kuladevata (Sanskrit कुलदेवता, Romanized Kuladevatā, lit. "clan deity," a minor god or goddess) [1], also known as a kuladaivaṃ (Malayalam കുലദൈവം, Telugu కులదైవం) [2], an ancestral "tutelary deity" in Hinduism and Jainism [3].

Such a deity (devi, deva, devata) is often the object of one's spiritual devotion (bhakti) and is coaxed to watch over one's clan (kula), lineage (gotra), family, and children to protect them from misfortune.

Hinduism in America: A Convergence

This is distinct from an ishta-devata ("personal tutelar") and a grāma-devatā ("village deities") [4].

A male deity is called a kula-deva and female deity kula-devi (sometimes spelled kuldev or kuldevi respectively, particularly since Hindi drops many of the a's overly used in Sanskrit) [5].

ETYMOLOGY: The word kuladevata is derived from two words, kula, meaning "clan," and devata, meaning "deity," referring to the ancestral deities that are worshipped by particular clans [6]. More

Different masters, the same truths?

(The Lost Gospel) The one truth the Christ, the Buddha, and Taoism' Lao Tzu shared

• Neo Dharmism; The Lost Gospel; Amber Larson and Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wiki edit

I don't want to drown in American society

(After Skool) Alan Watts on the MYTHS [social conventions] that keep us trapped

(LA's Wasted Youth) "We Were On Heroin" [or what we now call mega-dopamine]

(Eddie and the Subtitles)

Yeah, sure, Eddie, but what is "American" society? At least with LA punkers Wasted Youth, they get right to the point, claiming to be as addicted to all-American stuff (junk food, junk TV, junk relationships, etc.) as "heroin" addicts are to heroin. Pretty sure they didn't mean actual opioid, morphine, poppy plant extract from Afghanistan. - You know, "American" society, it's like "whatever." - Okay, well, then, in that case, let's ask Dr. Robert Lustig.

The Hacking of American Mind: Science Behind Corporate Takeover of Our Bodies and Brains

Author and narrator Dr. Robert H. Lustig, MD, has 4.6 out of 5 stars (with 1,159 ratings). This unabridged audiobook "explores how industry has manipulated our most deep-seated survival instincts," says Dr. David Perlmutter, MD, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Grain Brain and Brain Maker.

Dr. Lustig, the New York Times-bestselling author of Fat Chance, reveals the corporate scheme to sell pleasure, driving the international epidemic of

• addiction,
• depression,
• chronic disease.

Metabolical: Lure and Lies of Processed Food

While researching the toxic and addictive properties of white sugar for his New York Times bestseller Fat Chance, Dr. Lustig made an alarming discovery: Our pursuit of happiness is being subverted by a culture of addiction and depression from which we may never recover.

Dopamine is the “reward” neurotransmitter that tells our brains we want more; yet, every substance or behavior that releases dopamine in the extreme leads to addiction.

Serotonin is the “contentment” neurotransmitter that tells our brains we don’t need any more; yet, its deficiency leads to depression.

(Retired Frank) The [positive] Psychology of Gen X Metalheads

Fat Chance; Sugar, Processed Food, Obesity

Ideally, both are in optimal supply in our bodies.

But dopamine evolved to overwhelm serotonin—because our ancestors were more likely to survive if they were constantly motivated. The result has been that constant desire can chemically destroy our ability to feel happiness, while sending us down the slippery slope to addiction.

In the last 40 years, government legislation and subsidies have promoted ever-available temptation (porn, sugar, illegal drugs, social media) combined with constant stress (work, home, money, internet).

The end result is an unprecedented epidemic of mental addiction, anxiety, depression, and chronic physical diseases.

We can hack this cave, build fires, project images

With the advent of neuromarketing, corporate America has successfully imprisoned us in an endless loop of desire and consumption from which there is no obvious escape.

With his customary wit and incisiveness, Dr. Lustig not only reveals the science that drives these states of mind, he points his finger directly at the corporations that created this mess and the government actors who facilitated it.

And he offers solutions we can all use in the pursuit of happiness, even in the face of overwhelming opposition.

Always fearless and provocative, Dr. Lustig marshals a call to action, with seminal implications for our health, our well-being, and our culture. More

Female enlightened masters went 'insane'?

Four female enlightened masters who went completely “insane”

Taoist Master Sun Bu'er

(Asangoham) May 28, 2026: #egodeath #consciousness #nonduality Four women throughout history were called "insane," possessed, and heretical. But each one had broken through to a level of awakening most people never touch.

This is the story of mystics who looked mad on the outside but were actually living proof of the deepest spiritual truths ever discovered.

1. Sun Bu'er destroyed her own beauty to escape the prison of the ego and became the only woman among the Seven Immortals of Taoism.

• 

  Young Sri Anandamayi Ma

  QUESTION: Gurudev, what does Asangoham [the name of this channel] mean? Gurudev, kindly explain the meaning of Asangoham (a phrase often chanted by Gurudev in the Advanced Meditation or Silence Course).
• ANSWER (by Gurudev @SriSriRaviShankar ji): "I am not this," that is what Asangoham means. For example, I am wearing the cloth, but I am not the cloth...I am not the body. I am not the thoughts, I am not the mind. Like this you go on to negate one by one all the layers of identity. And finally when you ask, "Who am I?" You will find nothing. "I am nothing..." That is what Asangoham is. Sangoham means "being one with it." If I think I am my clothes, then that is a problem. I am beyond all these layers of existence. If I think that I am my thoughts, my emotions, my sensations then I lose track of my vast nature. Therefore, to reach the realization of our vastness we say, "I am not this and I am not th[at]," repeatedly.

Atma-shatakam (with lyrics) by Rishi Nityapragya | Rejoicing Rishi-ji

• Gurudev sings: Mano Budhyahankaar Chittani Naaham, Na Cha Shrotra Jihve Na Cha Ghraana netre Na Cha Vyoma Bhumir Na Tejo Na Vayuh, Chidananda Rupah Shivoham Shivoham (from the Atma-shatkam by Adi Shankara-Acharya): "I am not the mind, intellect, memory, or ego. I am not this, not this, not this. This is the way of negating and going into that hollow and empty space. This shiva tattva is what I really am. This realization is what meditation is, that is samadhi.
• [EDITOR'S NOTE: Buddhism goes further to the realization that ANY identification is in error, and because there is no-self (no-atman, anatta, no soul, no self, no ego to cling to, in the ultimate sense, one lets go, ceases to cling, as is liberated to Truth, to enlightenment, to nirvana). But because the Old Vedic Religion and later Hinduism are not aware of this, they call Atma-shatkam Nirvana-shatkam as this level of "self realization" is the highest attainable for them. Were they to practice in line with what "Lord Buddha" taught, they might well make an end of all further rebirth and suffering, but ordinary worldlings, even the spiritual kind, are not interested in that. They long for rebirth in the heaven they deem supreme, the World of Brahma, and fail to grasp what Brahman is. No one should ever mistakenly think Vedic Hinduism and Buddhism teach the same thing. They are worlds apart for all their shared language and history.]

2. Anandamayi Ma surrendered her freewill so completely that she became a living puppet of the divine.

• [NOTE: Wisdom Quarterly loves Sri Anandamayi Ma (Anandamayi Ma Indian saint) not only because of her spectacular beauty and realization but because she was a favorite of Swami Paramananda, the founder of our local Ananda Ashram. (Yelp).]

Valenciennes. Marguerite Porete, une héroïne médiévale méconnue

.

3. Marguerite Porete [French Christian mystic] smiled as she burned at the stake for teaching that the awakened soul outgrows religion itself.

Bernadette Roberts (Enlightened People)

 

4. Bernadette Roberts [Carmelite Catholic nun] lost God, lost her self, and walked straight into the void to discover the raw truth of pure consciousness.

“Only God is love, and for this love to be fully realized self must step aside. And not only do we not need a self to love God, but for the same reason we do not need a mind to know [God], for that in us which knows God, is God.”

— Bernadette Roberts

How sweet to glimpse the Truth

This deep dive explores non-duality, ego death, enlightenment, and the terrifying spiritual awakenings that the world mistook for insanity.

Drawn to Advaita Vedanta (nondualism), Taoist internal alchemy, Christian mysticism, consciousness, and the [true] nature of the self? This journey into the minds of history's (herstory's) most misunderstood mystics will stay with you.

Subscribe to Asangoham for more on consciousness, spirituality, enlightenment, and the hidden masters who saw through the illusion.

⏱️ CHAPTERS

• The woman who burned her own beautiful face
• The puppet of the divine
• The smiling heretic
• The nun who lost God
• HOME | ANANDAMAYI MA INDIAN SAINT

Women, just like men, can do this.

#egodeath #spirituality #nonduality #enlightenment #consciousnes Script: Sid. Edit: Joana Cruz. Voiceover: Rohit Dave. Original score: @asangvani.

DISCLAIMER 01: All ideas expressed on this channel are for entertainment and general information purposes only. There is no advice on what an individual should or should not do. Any response made by anyone after hearing this communication is their interpretation and is their responsibility. Ideas expressed by this channel should not be treated as a substitute for medical advice or professional help. If expert assistance or counselling is needed, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

DISCLAIMER 02: All materials in these videos are used for entertainment purposes and fall within the guidelines of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. If anyone is, or represents, the copyright owner of materials used in this video and have an issue with the use of said material, please send an email to: doseofquotes02@gmail.com. Copyright © 2025 Asangoham. All rights reserved.

• Archaeologists found an ancient Maya map of the universe carved into bedrock (Popular Mechanics)

Mad for Marilyn Monroe: Happy Birthday

• VIDEO: Marilyn Monroe's lasting impact on Hollywood

Norma-Jean as Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe (born Norma Jeane Mortenson on June 1, 1926) lived until August 4, 1962. She was a sex symbol, comedic American actress, and model.

Known for playing comic "Blonde Bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as well as an emblem of the era's sexual revolution. She was a top-billed actress for a decade, and her films grossed $200 million (equivalent to $2 billion in 2025) by her tragic death in 1962 [2].

I was born Norma-Jean Mortensen

Born in Los Angeles, Monroe spent most of her childhood in foster homes and an orphanage before marrying James Dougherty at the age of 16.

She was working in a factory during World War II when she met a photographer from the First Motion Picture Unit and began a successful pin-up modeling career, which led to short-lived film contracts with 20th Century Fox and Columbia Pictures.

After roles as a freelancer, she began a longer contract with Fox in 1951, becoming a popular actress with roles in several comedies... More

VIDEO: Marilyn Monroe's grave: This is her final resting place

Marilyn Monroe was assassinated due to Pres. JFK affair

Marilyn Monroe is a like a blonde female Buddha loved and worshipped worldwide

(The Katie Halper Show) JFK assassination by Israel files shock: hidden link exposed

• Moon-eyed people lived in America first with the Cherokees - then vanished (The Why Files)
• Proposal to ban hunting, fishing in Oregon met with backlash
• Archaeologists found an ancient Maya map of the universe carved into bedrock