Sphere of Sensation

Having established rhythmic breathing and the Middle Pillar as before, circulate the light from Kether to Malkuth, down and up the sides of your sphere of sensation, for at least six full cycles. Next, circulate the energy from Kether to Malkuth, down the front and up the back of your sphere of sensation, for at least six full cycles. These circulations of energy define the perimeters of the alchemical vessel, the aura. 

I then had a sensation where I could see around the edge of "existence," and saw an opposite, or negative image, of everything in this sphere of existence. As this occurred I began repeating some words. I m not positive of exactly what I said, but it was something on the order of "We are the reverse side of your existence." As this happened the whole concept of my existence as a particular person seemed quite ludicrous and artificial. 

Once mindful awareness is established, the meditator widens that sphere of awareness to include thought, emotion, bodily sensation and sound. Here again, the goal is to simply observe phenomena, our mind and bodies response to that stimuli without identifying with that response. 

We have Intellectualized their processes. The decomposition of the model they realize (because we have been influenced, not by their literature, if they have anything resembling literature, but by their pictures), we have carried into what we believe to be the proper sphere of that decomposition - not things, but our sensation of things. ... 

An unspeakable horror seized me. There was a darkness then a dizzy, sickening sensation of sight that was not like seeing I saw a Line that was no Line Space that was not Space I was myself, and not myself When I could find voice, I shrieked aloud in agony, Either this is madness or it is Hell. It is neither, calmly replied the voice of the Sphere, it is Knowledge it is Three Dimensions Open your eye once again and try to look steadily. ... 

On the right-hand side, we can see that the mechanism of addiction to cigarette smoking combines two chemical events (i) nicotine enhances dopanune release, and (ii) another molecule in the cigarette smoke, presumably ammonia (NH3 see blue spheres in Figure 1.4) intensifies the release of dopamine, while other additives block the enzyme MAOb- These events enhance the action of dopamine, which leads to the sensation of pleasure, alertness, and satisfaction, and eventually to addiction (recall the movie The Insider with Russell Crowe). Indeed, in the basis of human behavior, there lies an enticing simplicity of chemical origins. 

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