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We thus find ourselves facing a conundrum: how can we take unconscious elements
of a situation into account when, by definition, we do not know about them? The
answer is that we must employ a device which enables us to tap into the unconscious.
A skilled practitioner will require no more than a bag of bones, a heap of tea leaves
(or indeed a freshly-eviscerated goat) to do this. However, for those of us without
this particular expertise, things are made easier by the existence of systematic
decoders, of which the two best known are the I Ching from ancient China, and the
Tarot from mediaeval Europe. Rainring is intended to fulfil a similar function.
For access to the unconscious, there are several routes available. The personal
unconscious can be reached through a fortuitous trigger such as an odour which takes
us back to a long-forgotten childhood scene, whilst many psychotherapists aim to
use triggers deliberately. More collective elements, however, (see below) are typically
accessed by dreams, synchronous
events (omens), altered states of consciousness (for example, as practiced by shamans),
certain works of art, and decoders.
In the latter case, a particular state of mind
is definitely needed for a successful outcome, but this does not have to be some
esoteric condition obtainable only through powerful drugs or arcane training,
initiation or ritual. Nor does it necessitate clairvoyant abilities such as are
typically found highly developed only in a few gifted individuals. The modest intuitive ability required to produce good results with cards is as socially acceptable as intuition used for a flutter on the stock market.
To get a somewhat greater insight into the workings of a decoder such as Rainring,
we need to look briefly at the collective unconscious. The unconscious has two constituents
– personal and collective. Some of its contents are specific to me – aspects of
my own psychic history which continue to affect my behaviour, relations, attitudes,
movements etc, without my being aware of them. Note, however, that for those who
believe that the soul reincarnates, this psychic history extends far back – it did
not begin at birth, or in the womb, in my present life. Yet whatever its precise
constitution, its contents are specific, individual.
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The Crossing-Keeper: precursor of things to come
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