I have no problem with most anything if it is a self-chosen mystical path. But when something is foisted upon the young & told it is "holy" to "mortify the flesh" or be celibate until marriage that just squicks me out.

I do wonder if the huge amount of BDSM I see these days will diminish if children are raised more in love & respect & caring than they are now. I would not attempt to answer that question, but I would like to see a comparison of two cultures with very different levels of sensitivity in child rearing.

> the archontic hegemony mistrusts
> direct mystical experience

hehe -- whereas I distrust any & all groups (and persons) which (or who) distrust direct mystical experience