AW: Soteriology of universals

[Alfred Collins]

The issue here seems related to the question of siddhis in the Yogasutra.  The perspective of the yogin capable of these extraordinary experiences approaches the universal and it is because of that universality that he is able to descend again into the specifics of life and "possess" (to use Frederick Smith's idea) any particular instance of the universal he happens to desire.  Perhaps the idea behind rasa is similar; the rasas are in a way like universals of sensory experience.  In both cases there is constructed a life on the margins, neither enlightened nor simply deluded, that I term "World Three" and identify with a view of culture (naham.blogspot.com).  Underlying this world of culture there is a constant concern with enlightenment which necessarily negates the former, as in Yogasutra 64 nasmi na me naham.  
Al

Al Collins, Ph.D.
Anchorage, Alaska
best email address: nasadasin at gmail.com