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Players at the Worldview Table: Eastern Mysticism - Mystics, Manipulation and Magik

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Meanings

In the popular movie from Ang Lee (no, not Brokeback Mountain) about love, warfare and spirituality, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, the opening scene strikes at a very core reality of the pagan mystical belief. Li Mu Bai comes back from a time of meditation to the home of his long-time friend, Yui Hsui Lien. In their conversation he recounts how, in the middle of his warrior training, he was meditating, trying to reach enlightenment. Then something odd happened — he entered a place of darkness and sorrow, and it frightened him. He said he reached a place, not of peace, but of chaos. You can tell from his countenance that the incident rocked his world.

This scene makes for more than a theatrical movie plot. It touches on the beliefs of Eastern mysticism — a worldview that has worked its way into Western culture. Doug Groothuis did an excellent job of giving an overview of this "New Age" idea right here at TrueU. I would like to dig into the roots of this worldview and discuss the subtle but disastrous impact it is having on our culture.

The Basics

Though the public face of mysticism is all about harmony and working toward a utopia (which sounds great to all of us), the truth behind the curtain is much different. Let's take a look at some of this worldview's basic beliefs:

What is God? God is something that is really defined as "the One." The One includes elements of both our own souls and the soul of the universe — and the ultimate goals is for us to connect with that universal soul.

What is real? Ironically, that which is most real is the least inanimate — an idea in diametric opposition to that held by the atheistic naturalists we talked about last time. The least real are basic elements of matter. Are the parts of a desk or chair real? To the New Age pagan mystic, not so much. Next in line comes animals and vegetation. As we progress toward that which is more real, humanity enters the picture. The most real thing of all is our connection to "the One."

What happens at death? Most (not all) Eastern mystical traditions believe there is an afterlife. However, there are many roads to that afterlife. In a recent conversation with an Eastern mystic I got really frustrated because as I laid out the Gospel message for her, she just kept nodding her head. At one point I finally said, "How can you agree with this? We differ on almost everything." She slowly responded that I just didn't understand that her spirituality and mine were just different paths up the same mountain. Our conversation stopped when I pointed out that Jesus takes Himself out of the mix when He says He is the only way to the Father. "Yes," she agreed, "that would be a problem." We both went back to our cold airplane food at that point.

How do you get to the One? To gain access to the One, we must put ourselves in a meditative state that allows us to transcend our own (less real) bodies and lift ourselves up to an enlightened state. Most writers agree that this process includes four different stages. The first stage is the "walking life" — or the consciousness of the here and now. Through meditation and emptying ourselves of or own thoughts we try to get to the next stage of "the dreaming life." We are conscious but aware that we are beginning to leave the trap of our body. From there (again, with more meditation) we reach a "deep sleep." Finally we arrive at "the awakened life of pure consciousness."

How about ethics? In pagan mysticism, when we make connection with the "One," we transcend concepts of good and bad, since the universe is always perfect. This is usually a frustrating concept to discuss: because we are stuck in the world of matter (which is bad), we (supposedly) aren't even able to understand this idea of transcendence. If we could only reach these higher levels, we'd understand.

OK, rational little me wants to ask (and I do), "But what do you do with life in the here and now? You have to make decisions about what is right and wrong each day. Where does that come from?"

Two Examples from the West

In trying to help us see how this is manifesting itself in our culture today allow me to unpack two examples that are hitting teens and young people at alarming rates.

Dangerous Conversations

One of the most popular graduation gifts a few years back (even among Christian families) was Conversations with God — for teens by Neale Donald Walsh. Walsh began this series back in the 1990s, and his first books were built upon the premise, "What might God say if we could talk to Him?" Through a series of three books, and then the one for teens, Walsh began to slip from the "what if" to sounding as if he were God.

His conversations with teens are filled with new age references and answers to questions that God never would, has or will say. These are things like "we are all just good souls trying to do our best, and there is no bad choice you can make" or, "just get in touch with the inner part of who you are and be it — no matter what anyone says — even if it includes going against the wishes of everyone around you." He even goes so far as to say (in answer to a 14-year-old who is wondering why her parents are freaking out about her having sex), "that sex is a gift of creation from the Creator and you should express it in any way you wish as long it is not harming anyone." What is this guy talking about?

His is the epitome of Eastern mystical thought in Western garb. Kids are eating it up at a quick rate because it looks kind of like church, it sounds kind of like Christianity, but it allows them to do what they want. Ah, there's the rub.

As Groothuis pointed out, and I will reinforce: A choice to follow this ideology is centered upon the concept of "me." They like what Walsh is saying because he gives them permission to make their own decisions and ignore any other authority (parents, teachers, God, etc.). Eastern mysticism takes root right here in America in "sheep's clothing." Don't be fooled.

From Druids to Modern-Day Witches

This Eastern mystical thought survived in Western spheres through various versions of nature worship and the use of ceremonial magic. Today, these traditions find themselves firmly planted in our culture. And one of the fastest growing New Age attractions (especially for young women) is Wicca (the study and practice of witchcraft).

Right now we are approaching Halloween, and you can walk into any bookstore and find a display of books about the holiday. Some are historical, about "All Hallows Eve." Others are light and fun — stories about Great Pumpkins and children's characters out trick-or-treating come to mind. Still, on the same table, you will find books on "how to become a witch" (literally, a copy of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Wicca and Witchcraft was at one store I visited).

Let's back up and talk about how this has happened. It enters our culture subtly and usually in pop culture corners. When we put a substantive issue (like religious practice) on a sit-com or the cover of a teen magazine, we make the issue trivial and it sneaks in under the radar. Mary-Kate and Ashley had a back-to-school issue of their teen girl magazine that was full of New Age, Eastern and Wiccan articles and hints on living a better life (decorating your locker for a good flow of energy; meditating in class; practicing simple magic, like levitation). That was four or five years ago.

Remember "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch"? It runs in syndication and is shown on a number of kid's networks. That show wasn't enough for the audience, so they demanded more, and along came "Charmed," which has also moved from the CW to syndication. Most recently, Disney has launched their book and animated TV series, most blatantly called, "W.I.T.C.H." (an acronym for the names of the show's five young female characters). When we make this a normal part of the entertainment we consume, pretty soon we forget its roots or its impacts.

So why is this sucking in so many young women? There are two main reasons: (1) in a culture where young women are feeling low self-worth and having trouble finding their identities, Wicca provides a place/community that offers them a feeling of value; (2) when women (especially teenage girls) feel powerless, Wicca gives them a way to be powerful.

And the Wiccan community shows them they can have power over their surroundings and perhaps even other people. They can dictate their fates with Magik (the Wiccan spelling and also the name of a popular role playing game). It starts so innocently, but can become overwhelming.

Spiritual Warfare

This worldview can be summed up in one premise. When we are called by God to meditate, He wants us to be emptied of ourselves and filled up with His word. When New Age pagan mystics meditate, they are taught to simply empty themselves entirely and open the door to the spirit world. Very simply, folks, when we do that, we open the door to the enemy.

C O F F E E  S H O P

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Have you seen examples of the pagan mystic worldview in popular culture today?

Join the discussion!

While you are enjoying the revelry of Halloween this year, listen very carefully to the interviews on the news, and look more carefully at the books on that table. You will be surprised to see that beneath all the fluff and fun is a very dark and very troubling worldview.