This is particularly interesting as a person that studies clinical psychology. Rumination, the mental act of continually focusing on something that one perceives as a threat or distresful, is similar close to something that can plague the mind. More over being overly attentive to our emotions and thoughts can be distressing. It seems as though these ancient ascetic practices were fully aware of this.
Gregory of Nazianzus has a few interesting remarks about phantasia (Or 30.18; 38.7) which stand out against the general suspicion of phantasia that you discuss. Namely, the beginning of theology is that God cannot be named as he is above all human concepts. Instead, for Gregory, the best we can do is to gather together phantasiai into some kind of image or outline of the truth, which disappears like lightning as soon as we try to grasp it. What's particularly interesting, imo, is that Gregory, as an orator, will try to create an image of Christ in the mind of his audience (ekphrasis). A good example of this is Or. 38.13 where Gregory layers epithets of Christ to create an image of him as fully God and fully man (against the Eunomians).
dont orthodox theologians condemn the ignatian exercises on these grounds, the directions for meditation of st teresa of avila on these grounds? do you know? if so do you have sources? it is a topic that interests me. great post!
I'll have to look that up. I don't know if it's as forbidden as just not practiced as our spiritual tradition of hesychastic has had less evolution into different schools and pretty much retained it's pre-modern, even pre-medieval structure.
Helpful reflections (though Lao Tzu did not say that—sorry, my pet peeve is misattribution of things to Chinese philosophers).
I was wondering about attribution. Didn’t see that in Lao Tzu, but the quote was right and it’s traditional. Have to find right attribution.
This is particularly interesting as a person that studies clinical psychology. Rumination, the mental act of continually focusing on something that one perceives as a threat or distresful, is similar close to something that can plague the mind. More over being overly attentive to our emotions and thoughts can be distressing. It seems as though these ancient ascetic practices were fully aware of this.
I’d say that’s.a good assessment.
Gregory of Nazianzus has a few interesting remarks about phantasia (Or 30.18; 38.7) which stand out against the general suspicion of phantasia that you discuss. Namely, the beginning of theology is that God cannot be named as he is above all human concepts. Instead, for Gregory, the best we can do is to gather together phantasiai into some kind of image or outline of the truth, which disappears like lightning as soon as we try to grasp it. What's particularly interesting, imo, is that Gregory, as an orator, will try to create an image of Christ in the mind of his audience (ekphrasis). A good example of this is Or. 38.13 where Gregory layers epithets of Christ to create an image of him as fully God and fully man (against the Eunomians).
Sounds like an interesting dissertation. I’ll check those out.
It would be interesting to investigate his rhetoric in this way. Nice insight. I’m just going through some of his orations now.
This was the topic of my dissertation, so I spent a little bit of time on it. :)
You are so systematic. A virtue.
dont orthodox theologians condemn the ignatian exercises on these grounds, the directions for meditation of st teresa of avila on these grounds? do you know? if so do you have sources? it is a topic that interests me. great post!
I'll have to look that up. I don't know if it's as forbidden as just not practiced as our spiritual tradition of hesychastic has had less evolution into different schools and pretty much retained it's pre-modern, even pre-medieval structure.