Eastern Religion, Eastern Mysticism, And Magic
Influence the Pop Culture in America
Eastern religion" - also alluded to in this paper as "Eastern Mysticism" and "mysticism" - and the occult, along with magic and its many off-shoots have had a considerable influence on American Pop Culture over the past few decades. Movies, books, music - all have been touched and enhanced by mysticism and its cousins. So, when referring to "Eastern religion," this paper is generally alluding to the ancient religions: Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, and other spiritual genres.
It is also important to be clear on what "occult" truly means; it is a word that comes from the Latin occultus, meaning, literally, "hidden" or "concealed" (Merriam-Webster defines occult as "to shut off from view or exposure"). "Occult" has been equated with Satan, witchcraft, vampires, and other unseemly topics related to death and blood-letting. For this paper's purpose, the occult will be aligned with magic and mystery, not death and demented views of the unknown. According to Eternal Ministries, Inc. (www.eternalministries.org),the occult refers to the "untapped powers within mankind that will allow one to discover that which is hidden in the material world," which fits the tone and intention of this paper quite well.
As to "mysticism," Merriam-Webster's online dictionary defines mysticism as "the belief that direct knowledge of God, spiritual truth, or ultimate reality can be attained through subjective experience (as intuition or insight)." It is important to remember that the normal experience of mysticism is not intellectual, but rather, that experience focuses on a kind of cosmic enlightenment, where deep thoughts about the reality of the world give way to mind-clearing moments in search of a higher consciousness, in pursuit of a loftier, less mental state where the possibility of magic and telepathy come into clearer perspective.
And when lining religion and theology up side-by-side with mysticism, in a very real way, "all theology is mystical, inasmuch as it shows forth the divine mystery: the date of revelation" (Lossky, 2004). But there is a flip side, according to Lossky, writing in the Orthodox Christian Information Center (www.orthodoxinfo.com)."On the other hand, mysticism is frequently opposed to theology as a realm inaccessible to understanding, as an unutterable mystery, a hidden depth, to be lived rather than known." But moreover, Lossky continues, "There is...no Christian mysticism without theology; but above all, there is no theology with mysticism." And, he asserts, "Far from being mutually opposed, theology and mysticism support and complete each other. One is impossible without the other."
The Beatles and Transcendental Meditation: Rock Superstars Dipping into an Ancient Mysticism to find Peace in a World Drenched in Chaos and Materialism
For many people who came of age and got into rock music in the 1960s and 1970s, and perhaps smoked some marijuana and even experimented with LSD, their interest in eastern religion and mysticism began with the Beatles' fascination with - and association with - the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It was John Lennon and George Harrison, in particular, who embraced the Maharishi in the late 1970s and early 1980s, in the town of Rishikesh, deep in the Himalayan foothills of northern India. The media clamored for photos of the Beatles hanging out and drinking in the good vibes of this holy man in white robes who preached peace through self-awareness and higher consciousness through meditation. But in addition to the media, tens of thousands of Beatles' followers arrived in northern India, swept up not only in curiosity about transcendental meditation and the Maharishi, but in fact, "most of them really made the trip to pay tribute to the Beatles" (Lacayo, 2001).
On any given day you found them trying to reconnect to the current that had passed through their lives in the days before the band broke up," Lacayo wrote, in Time magazine. "[The many fans] were the ones you saw crouching in the grass, reaching down to touch the concrete landing pad where the Beatles' helicopter had once lifted the magic boys into the sky.
All things Must Pass," George Harrison wrote, "with the resolute detachment he had learned from Eastern religion."
Martin Scorsese and Eastern Mysticism
The main idea of Eastern Mysticism is that all mankind is divine and possesses unlimited potential," according to Eternal Ministries, Inc. For high-profile film...
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