Chapter 23
SAL lowerarchy
Compared to the SAL Hierarchy, discussion of the SAL lowerarchy is a dark and depressing topic.
Nevertheless, the lowerarchy is just as real as the hierarchy; therefore, it must be addressed and self-action leaders everywhere must understand what it is and be duly warned about the reality of its insidious clutches, lest they be taken therein on a downward spiral toward darkness, depression, and despair.
A great truth about life and reality in this world and universe is that opposition exists in everything. Thus, if Existential Growth is possible, then existential atrophy and/or regression is an equal and opposite possibility. Existential atrophy refers to a weakening or deterioration of your Existential Standing. Existential regression refers to the regression from a higher to a lower stage of Existential Growth.
While you may not lose all knowledge and skills once acquired, your ability and recall will get rusty over time through disuse or misuse. Thus, the risk of atrophy, digression, and regression in this life is frustratingly omnipresent—much like the physical ENTROPY we must continually battle throughout our mortal lives in this world.
The dark shadow refers to a metaphysical force that is perhaps best described as an anti-conscience. Whereas your conscience prompts you toward productivity, honesty, and kindness, the dark shadow seeks to seduce you into embracing indolence, deceit, vice, and violence.
Simply stated: if YOU and I really do have a conscience, then an opposing metaphysical force must likewise exist.
At Freedom Focused, we identify FIVE (5) specific components of evil, as follows: Deception, Discouragement, Debasement, Damage, and Destruction. We refer to these components as the "Five D's of the dark shadow."
The first "D"—deception—is where evil usually begins. Evil continually begets lies, corruption, and deception—especially self-deception—which is characterized not merely by doing wrong, but by a person's "refusal to acknowledge" his or actions as being wrong. (3)
The fourth and fifth "D's" of the dark shadow are damage and destruction, which is what deception, discouragement, and debasement lead to over time. Simply stated, deception is the gateway drug of evil; and VIOLENCE is its endgame. Left unchecked, evil in all of its lighter hues eventually brings about damage to and/or destruction of people and things through the vicious vehicle of violence.
Throughout the annals of human history, a host of demonic fiends and diabolical devils have done their dirtiest during their days and nights spent on Earth. He who typically receives the dishonorable label of chief among them all is Adolf Hitler. In a national and global community that can't seem to agree on anything in the 2020s, it is still almost universally acquiesced that the fiendish fürher of Germany's Third Reich was the worst of the worst—and we at Freedom Focused agree!
Long before he rose to a position of power and influence, Hitler was deeply mired in discouragement himself. He was bitter about everything: his father's abuse, his mother's death, his own academic and personal failures, his country's loss of the Great War and its subsequent treatment under the Treaty of Versailles, etc.
Instead of taking personal responsibility for his own problems and reorienting himself toward REALITY, Hitler chose to continually regress existentially by deceiving himself that his problems—and the troubles of Germany—were the fault of the victorious Allied Powers in World War I, the Communists, and most perfidiously: the JEWS.
The Deception and Debasement Stage is inversely analogous to the Education Stage in the SAL Hierarchy.
This trickery of the dark shadow takes Self-Deception (7) to a new low in the Deconstruction Stage—a stage marked by CONFUSION and a perpetual lack of clarity about things as they really are.
This is also the stage where an individual begins to confuse correct paradigms and other True Principles rooted in Universal Laws with false notions and hurtful practices—and vice versa. It is where a person uses contemporary sophistries culturally en vogue to justify one's new value system, which is based on satisfying short-term urges and proclivities rather than delaying gratification for long-term gains. As a result, simple truths and the moral behavioral standards that accompany them become convoluted and/or out-of-style.
In my own experience, there are at least two ways to avoid getting sucked into the intellectual black holes of the Deconstruction Stage.
This is a stage of regression where a self-leader's newly deconstructed "truths" are applied and put into actual practice. It's here that false ideas and dangerous philosophies begin overtly manifesting themselves in speech and behavior.
Such is the flawed logic and risky mentality of someone ensnared in the Mischief Stage.
Here, a self-leader's newly embraced negative and destructive paradigms, philosophy, behavior, and lifestyle collectively deliver the first round of severe negative consequences, leading to violence and damage of one kind and degree or another.
At this point in the regressive process, a self-leader has a serious decision to make.
The Corruption & Perversion Stage is inversely analogous to the Polishing Stage in the SAL Herarchy.
Suffice it to say, the farther a self-leader descends down through the SAL lowerarchy, the more difficult it becomes to change course.
Just as a true and virtuous self-action leader clearly knows oneself and one's purpose by the time they enter the SAL Actualization Stage, so an evil self-leader has clearly defined one's nefarious purposes and aims by the time they have regressed to the Propaganda Stage.
It's one thing to spout propaganda. It's quite another to succeed in getting large numbers of other people to listen to your lies and support you in pursuing evil ends through evil means.
Self-Descendence in the SAL lowerarchy is inversely analogous to Self-Transcendence in the SAL Hierarchy. Whereas the latter stage is a place of ultimate FREEDOM, the former stage is a place of ultimate BONDAGE, which is why we refer to it as the Bondage Zone.
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Another famous example is Judas Iscariot hanging himself after selling out his former Master to the Jewish and Roman executioners.
Corollary 10.5 states that: existential regression can occur after rising to any of the first seven levels of Existential Growth.
COROLLARY 10.5
Existential regression can occur after rising to
any of the first seven levels of Existential Growth.
Existential Regression
The regression from a higher to a lower stage of
Existential Growth.
Rising to a higher level of Existential Growth doesn't guarantee you will always abide on that level. Without proper maintenance, your Existential Standing will—much like an unused muscle—atrophy, decline, and eventually regress to lower stages.
Existential regression applies to the first seven (7) levels of Existential Growth. Upon reaching Self-Transcendence, Existential Gravity no longer wields a sufficient impact upon a self-action leader to derail his or her upward progression.
As a self-action leader, YOU must continually maintain your Existential Standing in the same way that you must continually care for and nurture your physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual health. This requires that you continually uphold those positive and productive habits that enabled and empowered your Existential Growth in the first place.
In other words: Use it or Lose it!
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| Self-action leaders avoid resting on past laurels. |
To accomplish this maintenance, YOU, as a self-action leader, should avoid "Resting on Your Laurels," no matter how high you may have risen up the SAL Hierarchy. Getting too comfortable or complacent leaves you vulnerable to arrogance, entropy, existential crabs, indolence, and the disregard of True Principles and Universal Laws.
For all those who fall into this trap, the results can be damaging, destructive, despairing, and even disastrous.
Remember the old sayings: The bigger you are, the harder you fall, and PRIDE goeth before the fall.
Be ever conscious that progress will not maintain its momentum without concerted, consistent, and constant effort on YOUR part. Maintenance requires continual care and cultivation. Moreover, you must balance your production (work output) with your production capability (ability to work) so as to avoid burnout.
Stephen R. Covey effectively taught this principle of equilibrium between "Production" and "Production Capability" and referred to it as the "P/PC Balance." (1) We at Freedom Focused commend this principle of balance to all self-action leaders.
To illustrate this principle, Covey used an illuminating illustration of a WOOD SAW, emphasizing the importance of "Sharpening the Saw" at regular intervals, rather than spending all day "Sawing" with an increasingly dull blade. (2)
It does no good to go-go-go in the short-run only to burn out and fail in the long-run. Remember the wisdom of Aesop: Slow and Steady Wins the Race.
The dark shadow
Conscience was previously defined as: an inner metaphysical light and compass that viscerally prompts you to think, say, and do what is right and good, and to eschew what is wrong and bad.
The dark shadow serves an equally opposite and opposing force. It is defined as: Metaphysical darkness that corrodes and corrupts your mind, heart, and soul, leading you to think, say, and do that which is wrong, evil, negative, and destructive while eschewing what is right, good, positive, and constructive.
dark shadow
Metaphysical darkness that corrodes and corrupts your mind, heart,
and soul, leading you to think, say, and do that which is wrong, evil, negative,
and destructive while eschewing what is right, good, positive, and constructive.
If you are religious, you may refer to the dark shadow as: Satan, Lucifer, the devil, Beelzebub, Mephistopheles, etc. If you are a secularist, you may refer to it as: abuse, mental illness, or just plain "evil."
Whatever you may personally believe about the dark shadow's ontology, there is ample evidence that it influences human beings. At Freedom Focused, we believe that this shadow is, in part, to blame for all who lie, cheat, steal, manipulate, abuse, rape, pillage, burn, murder, and destroy.
Obviously, there are a variety of motives and variables that contribute to the aforementioned evil thoughts, speech, and actions. It is a cop-out to blame it all on the dark shadow. It is also a cop-out to employ that famous excuse—"The devil made me do it"—for behavior that is deceitful, destructive, or otherwise evil or wrong.
Nevertheless, these additional variables and motives do not negate the reality of the dark shadow any more than commensurate positive variables and motives negate the reality of your CONSCIENCE.
Why?
Because opposition is what creates distinctions about truth and reality. Without an opposition in all things, all things would lose their meaning.
For example, we understand what COLD is because we have experienced HEAT. Dryness holds meaning for us because we have experienced wetness. Likewise, LOVE is a relatable topic because we have tasted hate. Goodness is good because evil also exists to compare it against. And RIGHT is a viable option because wrong is an equally possible alternative.
The SAL lowerarchy
Just as your conscience grows sharper or duller through use, the dark shadow becomes more or less influential based on the heed (or lack thereof) you pay it. Thus, we find ourselves returning to the same age-old truisms once again; namely: As ye sow, so shall ye reap, and, what goes around comes around.
Just as your conscience will lead you upward toward Existential Growth, the dark shadow will lead you downward toward existential atrophy, decline, and regression.
Five D's of the dark shadow
- Deception
- Discouragement
- Debasement
- Damage
- Destruction
The dark shadow leads people to "resist the awareness of their own condition." (4) They therefore deny their own faults, flaws, and failings—even, and perhaps especially, in the face of clear and damning evidence.
True evil is unwilling to see and acknowledge imperfection in itself. This is why evil, which has been referred to as "the ultimate disease" is so difficult to remedy or treat, because "despite their pretense of sanity, the evil are the most insane of all." (5)
You can't help someone who doesn't sincerely and authentically want to be helped. Nor can you assist someone who believes he or she doesn't need to be helped. Thus, evil is always feeding on lies, slander, and subterfuge.
Deception also plays a key role in the second "D"—discouragement. After all, the quickest pathway to discouragement is to be deceived about your true potential for achievement, growth, happiness, problem solving, success, and inner peace. Discouragement is an effective tool of the dark shadow because the corrosive effects upon your self-discipline, impulse control, virtuous living, and willpower can prove stifling.
The third "D" is debasement. Like discouragement, debasement brings mankind down from the clouds of refinement, possibility, and achievement and into the gutters of crassness, frivolity, and failure—or worse—the sewers of darkness and debauchery. Its mortal enemies include cleanliness, goodness, honesty, kindness, light, and virtue. The debasement of character is part of what turns a potential self-action leader into an existential crab.
History's Most Salient Personification of the dark shadow
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| Adolf Hilter 1889-1945 |
In SAL SPEAK, Hitler was the worst of them all because he so thoroughly personified the FIVE D's of the DARK SHADOW and then spread the evil malaise to thoroughly infect millions of others with the same insidious ideology.
As it usually does, the evil of the Third Reich began with deception—also known as propaganda—followed by the widespread discouragement of anyone and everyone who stood in its way and the gradual debasement of everything that was good, kind, right, and true.
As a young man who refused to work for his living, Hitler found himself in poverty contemplating suicide. In his mind, everything negative in his life was the fault of someone else, and to the very end of his days, he utterly refused to ever take any real personal responsibility for his own flawed and evil actions.
Right up to the bitter end—April 30, 1945—with a pistol pointed ignominiously into his own temple, he died cursing the unworthy German people he believed let him down and therefore deserved to lose the war and die themselves. It was an epically sad and pathetic ending to a very dark and evil existence.
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| Ruins of Kaiser Wilhelm Church in Berlin. Left as a reminder of the Destruction of the Nazi Regime. |
Over time, Hitler was able to use his gifts for oratory and persuasion to deceive legions of people in Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Italy, and beyond in his growing web of lies. In doing so, he diabolically preyed on their own economic and other discouragements by promising them a better life under his rule. He then debased the very democratic principles that facilitated his rise to power by casting them aside in favor of tyrannical rule via his own iron fist.
Where did this steady diet of deceit, discouragement, and debasement lead?
To a global onslaught of damage and destruction the likes of which our planet has never seen, before or since!
Hitler—and others like him—are proof positive that evil exists and plays its nefarious hand in the affairs of mankind in our world over-and-over again. Thus, analogous to the SAL Hierarchy exists a SAL lowerarchy, whose nine (9) levels of existential regression serve as an evil inverse corresponding to the nine (9) levels of Existential Growth.
COROLLARY 10.6
A SAL lowerarchy of existential atrophy and regression exists as an evil inverse of the SAL Hierarchy. Self-leaders who intentionally choose to think, say, and do things that are nefariously deceitful, discouraging, debasing, damaging, or destructive
(evil) regress downward through its nine negative stages.
Nine Regressive Levels of the SAL lowerarchy
LEVEL -1. Deception and Debasement Stage
LEVEL -2. Deconstruction Stage
LEVEL -3. Mischief Stage
LEVEL -4. Violence and Damage Stage
LEVEL -5. Corruption and Perversion Stage
LEVEL -6. Propaganda Stage
LEVEL -7. Pied Piper Stage
LEVEL -8. Self-Descendence
LEVEL -9. Destruction Stage
LEVEL -1: Deception and Debasement Stage
Evil always begins with either deceptions and distortions of the truth or debasements of that which is virtuous and good.
Initially, these deceptions and debasements are almost always small and relatively minor. The pathway that leads down the SAL lowerarchy usually doesn't begin with strokes of strident darkness, but rather with light hues of seemingly harmless gray in the form of half-truths or mis-truths, and a mild disrespect that debases people, fauna, flora, and/or possessions or property.
In C.S. Lewis's famous novel, The Screwtape Letters, a senior devil (Screwtape) coaches a junior demon (Wormwood) on how to win a man's soul and drag him down to join them in Hell. Screwtape accomplishes his mentoring through a series of letters, which comprise the book's chapters.
According to Screwtape:
"It does not matter how small the sins are, provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into the Nothing. Murder is no better than cards if cards can do the trick. Indeed, the safest road to Hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts." (6)
Whether or not YOU believe in a real devil and his legions of demonic understudies who seek the downfall of mankind, The Screwtape Letters remains a richly relevant read for the simple reason that it provides so many incisive insights into human rationalization—an adversary of SAL.
This literary, philosophical, and theological gem paints a lucid picture of how anyone—including YOU or ME—can find oneself sliding down a "slippery slope" of temptation and moral entropy over time, which can lead to words and actions that harm ourselves and others and a gradual regression downward into the SAL lowerarchy.
LEVEL -2: Deconstruction Stage
The Deconstruction Stage is inversely analogous to the Beginner's Stage in the SAL Hierarchy.
This level is less a behavioral stage, and more of a mental exercise. Here, the dark shadow influences a self-leader to "DECONSTRUCT" truth and goodness in a way that clouds a self-leader's judgment about reality. The result is that a person learns to cleverly justify certain behaviors as right and good, when they are in fact wrong and bad.
In the Deconstruction Stage, individuals give up what they once knew to be true, right, or good in exchange for ideas that may be "new," "exciting," and often "popular," but that ultimately deviate in the direction of falsity, error, and badness.
This "selling of one's birthright for a mess of pottage" (8) often occurs through sophisticated arguments that the "old values" are irrelevant, obsolete, overly restrictive, or unnecessary in today's ultra-modern, progressive environment and global society.
Many are attracted to this philosophy for the simple reason that it appears to augment their agency in the short-run. In reality, all it does is mask the potentially devastating and inevitable negative consequences of breaking Universal Laws, which always truncates one's agency in the long-run.
The Deconstruction Stage is arguably the most insidious level in the SAL lowerarchy, not because it is where the real damage and destruction take place, but because it is where the seeds of future violence are sown. And despite its function as an etiology and incubator of evil, its authentic blackness is often cleverly camouflaged to appear not only sophisticated and serviceable in a practical sense, but also good, right, true, and fashionable in a philosophical sense.
The FIRST is to diligently seek after truth by studying sources that unapologetically contain, elucidate, promote, and champion it.
The SECOND is to cultivate YOUR conscience by listening carefully to its nudges, promptings, and premonitions and then faithfully following its directives.
As your understanding of truth is augmented and clarified, you'll become increasingly capable of identifying falsehoods when you hear or see them—no matter how elegant, erudite, or avant-garde they may seem or sound. You'll then find yourself increasingly capable of averting erroneous ideas that might otherwise hijack your growing curiosity and intellect.
LEVEL -3: Mischief Stage
The Mischief Stage is inversely analogous to the Practitioner's Stage in the SAL Hierarchy.
At this level of the SAL lowerarchy, self-leaders are typically not involved in extreme corruption and debauchery. Abuse, felonies, and other "high crimes and misdemeanors" come later, and sometimes much later.
In the Mischief Stage, the self-deceived are merely tapping into and "trying out" new actions, habits, or lifestyles with a high degree of curiosity mixed with caution. Thus, crimes and other evil acts committed in the Mischief Stage are usually minor and relatively innocuous. Similarly, external consequences are typically minor and superficial compared to what comes later if left unchecked.
Nevertheless, the relatively small consequences of this stage are, ironically, what make it so potentially treacherous. Because the external feedback from others is typically either minimal or missing, self-leaders on this level are often emboldened and empowered to begin gradually taking ever-darker steps over time.
And why wouldn't they?
After all, the immediate consequences for engaging in momentarily exciting, pleasurable, and often addictive behavior don't appear or seem to be particularly damaging, destructive, or dire in this stage. So why not continue downward a little further to see just how far one can go without getting really burned?
It is the beginning of the "Slippery Slope" of the SAL lowerarchy.
The good news is that a self-leader's conscience can be, and often still is, relatively active and operative in the Mischief Stage. If a person chooses to respond to these nudges and promptings from their own, SAL-oriented "Jiminy Cricket," then there is still great hope for "righting the ship" and progressing back upward toward and into the SAL Hierarchy.
The bad news is that the temporary "highs" produced by devious or dangerous experimentations in the Mischief Stage steadily dull one's conscience so that it becomes increasingly inactive and silent.
Thus, the Mischief Stage becomes a vital hinge point of decision for a self-leader wandering and wayfaring therein. This is because a self-leader has not yet crossed a "point of no return," and therefore may still return to safety before it is too late, or before serious and long-lasting consequences begin to be unleashed.
LEVEL -4: Damage and Violence Stage
The Damage & Violence Stage is inversely analogous to the Refining Stage in the SAL Hierarchy.
This is the level where Adolf Hitler and Nelson Mandela landed in prison for their respective participation in, and leadership of, political violence. They were also both apprehended and indicted for the violence they incited and the damage they caused, which landed them both in prison.
Unlike the Mischief Stage, where self-leaders often enjoy short-term rewards in the form of adulation, money, and/or popularity for their incorrect ideas and poor choices, those in the Damage & Destruction Stage are often checked (rudely awakened) by social mores and legal strictures.
Do they continue to pursue their flawed course and risk the long-term, negative consequences on the altar of short-term benefits by adding fuel to their growing bitterness and rage?
Or, do they, like the Prodigal Son, finally come to themselves (9) and realize they must check themselves and begin to reorient their journey back upwards toward correct and virtuous principles and practices?
Whatever a self-leader decides at this juncture typically becomes a defining moment moving forward.
For those who decide to reform their thoughts, speech, behavior, ideology, and lifestyle—like Nelson Mandela—great hope still exists for a bright future and a positive, lasting legacy up the SAL Hierarchy.
But for those who opt to continue down the slippery slope of deception and violence—like Adolf Hitler—the consequences of this stage serve to further fuel a self-leader to dig in their heels and take things to ever-darker levels in the future.
LEVEL -5: Corruption and Perversion Stage
This is the level where an increasingly evil self-leader begins cementing his or her status as someone who has consciously and legitimately chosen the "dark side," to employ Star Wars vernacular.
It is rare for someone who has fallen this far to right their ship and return to the light.
By this stage, a self-leader has become so invested in an evil agenda marked by deception and violence that the hope and prospect of turning back, even if he or she wanted to do so, has dimmed considerably.
That's not to say it is everlastingly "too late" to change. As long as a spark of desire for change exists, then there is still HOPE—although this desire to change will, for most, be extinguished by the time a person reaches the depths of Self-Descendence (Level -8). We'll expand on this potential "Point of no Return" a little later in this chapter.
Hitler entered the Corruption & Perversion Stage when he determined to write Mein Kampf. It's one thing to consider an incorrect idea in an effort to vet it out in your own heart and mind. It's quite another to confidently and proactively pursue a project intentionally aimed at corrupting others minds and hearts with a perverted ideology that calls for violent ends through deceptive means.
In the process, Hitler's nefarious goals and strategies became increasingly clever and sophisticated in an effort to win over the masses while simultaneously blinding them to his real intentions.
Along the way, his conscience became virtually inaudible as he further habituated himself in the corruption of truth and the perversion of goodness. If left unchecked, a self-leader's conscience will, like Hitler's, continue to atrophy until it eventually dies.
It is still possible to reverse course while ensnared in Level -5; but it is more difficult than on preceding levels of darkness.
LEVEL -6: Propaganda Stage
The Propaganda Stage of the SAL lowerarchy is inversely analogous to the SAL Actualization Stage in the SAL Hierarchy.
More specifically and tellingly, evil self-leaders in this stage are prepared and eager to promote their devious message with anyone who will listen. Persons on this level of the SAL lowerarchy become a deadly virus with growing resources and capacity to infect others with their insidious message—always cloaked in shades of deceit—and always aimed at wreaking confusion, damage, destruction, violence, and other mayhem.
With the help of his smart and motivated, but thoroughly devilish Minister of Propaganda—Joseph Goebbels—Hitler and his growing masses of minions were incredibly effective at poisoning the German nation (and beyond) by promulgating their propaganda through radio, print media, and any other way possible.
In the process, they were able to persuade millions of people—many of whom were not inherently bad or corrupt persons themselves—to propel them into positions of increasing influence, power, and authority. Utilizing this hold and sway over the people, they initiated programs (and pogroms) that led to the death of tens of millions of soldiers and civilians throughout over the world.
LEVEL -7: Pied Piper Stage
The Pied Piper Stage is inversely analogous to the Leadership Stage in the SAL Hierarchy, and follows directly on the heels of the Propaganda Stage.
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| The Pied Piper of Hamelin leading the children down to destruction. |
Unusually talented and visionary self-leaders—like Adolf Hitler and his military and political lieutenants—sometimes succeed in getting multitudes of other people to follow them down to destruction.
Those who regress downward to the Pied Piper Stage are more than just evil themselves. They have become evil leaders who have established power, authority, and influence over the thoughts, speech, and actions of others.
Such leaders will often start out by focusing on how their ideology will serve the practical needs of their followers. For example, Hitler's economic policies were actually quite beneficial in turning around a failing German economy in the short-run. The problem, of course, was that such benefits were only temporary, and were ultimately a ruse aimed at obfuscating their ultimate aims of conquering other countries and then exterminating those they labeled untermensch, or "undesirables" (i.e. Jews, homosexuals, the disabled, captured military enemies, etc.).
The deeper entrenched Hitler's power became, the more Nazi propaganda became filled with half-truths and untruths. By the time a majority of the people had discovered what was really happening, it was too late. The consequences of this slippery slide were so deep and so disastrous, that the only way to reverse course was for external powers (nations) more powerful than the Nazis to invade German-held countries by force, win a world war, and then exercise righteous retribution and rehabilitation on the entire nation.
While the story of the Nazis is certainly not the only illustration of the phenomenon of evil in action, it is human history's most salient example thereof. It therefore serves as a clarion call of warning to all of us today of what to watch for and do in an effort to prevent future disasters of this nature and on this scale.
LEVEL -8: Self-Descendence (The BONDAGE ZONE)
Having descended to this awful and lowly place and stage, a self-leader no longer has any desire to be good or seek after the light. Such individuals have willingly given their souls over to the dark shadow or the "dark side" as our STAR WARS' fans would say.
People who regress to Self-Descendence fully embrace darkness and evil and utterly eschew light and the right. At this point of devolution, a fully-deceived self-leader lies in complete and utter bondage, bound by unbreakable metaphysical chains of their own making, assisted all along the way by the evil influences of the dark shadow.
Fortunately, very few people ever descend to this lowly level of the SAL lowerarchy. But for those who do, it is usually a point of no return, not because a person couldn't theoretically make a turn-around, but because by the time someone sinks to this level, they no longer have any desire to change.
As long as there is an authentic and genuine desire to change, the HOPE of CHANGE always exists.
LEVEL -9: Destruction Stage
Once an individual has regressed to Self-Descendence, there is only one piece of the pernicious puzzle left—the complete destruction of the person and/or whatever he or she diabolically built, represented, and/or stood for.
Adolf Hitler reached this stage when he pulled the trigger on a pistol pointed at his own temple, consummating his own cowardly suicide as his Third Reich literally and ignominiously crumbled all around him.
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The Destruction Stage is the ultimate end game of all evil. Pursued to it absolute terminus, evil always ends in ashes.
That's just the way things are.
It's also why self-action leaders continually eschew evil and strive relentlessly to avoid deception and violence, both of which serve as slippery slopes that ultimately lead to death and destruction.
The dark shadow and the SAL lowerarchy Discussed
In reviewing this theory of human regression, it's vital to point out that most people in this world are not "evil." Very few people will ever find themselves in league with the likes of Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, or Pol Pot. Indeed, most people—regardless of their struggles with addiction, dishonesty, temptation, and other vices—will never stoop as low, nor will they have the power, authority, or opportunity to bring about the scale of destruction engendered by these infamous dictators.
For this reason, relatively few people will ever find themselves descending below the Corruption and Perversion Stage. And only a minority of people will spend significant time below the Mischief Stage.
It is important to emphasize this point to underscore an important Freedom Focused paradigm, as follows: While all human beings are flawed and capable of evil, most are ultimately good people who strive to do the best they can most of the time.
We don't introduce the SAL lowerarchy to frighten people.
We introduce it because it contains points and principles that are real and true.
We therefore present it as a WARNING to the human race regarding what is possible and what we should both individually and collectively strive with all our minds, hearts, and souls to avoid, because according to M. Scott Peck, that effort always begins in the hearts, minds, and souls of INDIVIDUALS.
At Freedom Focused, we hail M. Scott Peck as a psychiatric expert on the subject of EVIL. To reiterate his words precisely:
"It is in the solitary mind and soul of the individual that the battle between good and evil is waged and ultimately won or lost. The effort to prevent group evil—including war—must therefore be directed toward the individual. It is, of course, a process of education. And that education can be conducted most easily within the traditional framework of our schools. ... In my vision ... children will be taught that laziness and narcissism are at the very root of all human evil, and why this is so. They will learn that each individual is of sacred importance. ... And they will finally see it as each individual's responsibility to continually examine himself or herself for laziness and narcissism and then to purify themselves accordingly. They will do this in the knowledge that such personal purification is required not only for the salvation of their individual souls but also for the salvation of their world." (10)
Thus, the takeaway from this unpleasant and unsavory—but oh, so necessary subject and section—is not to fear evil, ignore evil, or stick our heads in the sand and pretend evil does not exist. The takeaway should be to better understand—and therefore recognize and confront—evil when we see, hear, or detect its insidious influence.
After all, life really is a battle between GOOD and evil, and if we fail to recognize, confront, and defeat it when faced therewith, evil will win. Adding this knowledge and wisdom to your existential repertoire will empower you to better discern and defeat evil influences in your life and the lives of those you care about and love.
There are no perfect men or women in this world. That means every single one of us has fallen prey to the influence of the dark shadow at one time or another.
This includes YOU.
It also includes ME!
It also means that all of us have had our moments—or perhaps even spent extended amounts of time— regressing downward through various descending levels the SAL lowerarchy. It is, in fact, quite possible to spend time progressing up the SAL Hierarchy and regressing down the SAL lowerarchy all in the same day!
While you cannot be progressing and regressing at the exact same moment in time, imperfect journeys always include mixtures of forward and backward steps. As such, there will be both moments and times in your life when you will find yourself bouncing between the two theoretical frameworks.
When that happens, and it often will, don't despair!
Instead of investing your effort and energy on feeling frustrated or discouraged, be intentional and proactive in doing something about it. Take personal responsibility and do whatever it takes to get yourself out of the lowerarchy and back into the Hierarchy.
All of us will experience moments and times when we are making excellent progress up the Hierarchy only to be suddenly yanked back down to ground zero or into the lowerarchy by the clutches of the crabs or your own propensity for addiction, deception, greed, lust, temptation, etc.
When that happens to YOU, don't despair and don't give up!
Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again... and again... and again... and again... and again... no matter how many times it takes, don't ever give up trying until you succeed.
In the process, surround yourself with people who can help you start over with renewed determination to do things right the next time around. Then build your metaphysical walls and other literal and metaphorical fortresses of defense tall and strong so that you are protected from future falls, failings, or attacks from the dark shadow and those over whom the dark shadow exercises power.
Most importantly, don't be discouraged if it takes you several, many, dozens, scores, or even hundreds of times to get something right.
Just don't ever give up trying to succeed, and eventually, with the help of SAL and Serendipity, you will succeed.
I know this great truth from personal experience with many different personal and professional challenges, struggles, and weaknesses of my own.
Once you have constructed your walls of protection, further erect watch towers and station persons (literal and/or figurative) who can help you keep a round-the-clock lookout for further danger and then warn and protect you when they see danger approaching.
As you strive to keep yourself in good mental, physical, and metaphysical shape, you will perpetuate your power to avoid, resist, and ward off the evil influences of the dark shadow and its retinue of existential crabs and minions.
Knowledge is POWER.
At Freedom Focused, it is our sincere hope that a growing conception of your own conscience in connection to an understanding of the SAL Hierarchy, lowerarchy, and dark shadow will provide you with the insight and tools needed to positively and productively navigate your life, come what may.
Because, after all, it's not if you will face adversity, challenges, existential crabs, and temptations. It's when, how often, and to what extent? So, the better prepared you are to face your crucibles when they come, the more successful you'll be in transcending them and come out on the other side refined and polished like a PEARL inside of an oyster.
It is worth noting here that in our world, some artists, athletes, businessmen and women, entertainers, entrepreneurs, journalists, leaders, philosophers, politicians, and pundits achieve great power, popularity, and influence by defying their conscience and disregarding principles and practices of honesty, integrity, and morality.
This worldly ascendence is not existentially or morally commensurate to authentic Existential Growth up the SAL Hierarchy.
While it may appear that someone is gaining more Existential Growth because of their acquisition of education, position, power, prestige, status, and wealth, it's entirely possible that such seeming progress may in fact be camouflaging a parallel regression down the SAL lowerarchy.
From the outside looking in, one's regression down the lowerarchy can seem strikingly similar to one's progression up the Hierarchy, at least for a while. But in the end, the proverbial "hens" always come home to roost. People really do reap what they sow over time, and natural consequences based on True Principles rooted in Universal Laws are ultimately sovereign in their interplay in the results we each get in our lives and careers, both individually and collectively speaking.
As you seek to identify when YOU and/or others are sliding down that slippery slope of the SAL lowerarchy, the most important sign to watch for is DECEPTION.
Frequenters of the SAL lowerarchy come in many colors, shapes, and sizes, but they always have ONE thing in common: they don't deal in the TRUTH—at least not consistently.
Nevertheless, because they're often intelligent and charismatic, their messages may appear trustworthy on the surface. But if you do your homework and listen to your conscience and heart, you will come to see that their words and action are, in fact, quite distorted by half-truths and subtle distortions.
Such persons are bright enough to know that outright lies are too easily identified and exposed. Rather than communicate in clear-cut blacks and whites, they are always communicating and dealing in hues and shades of gray—not for the sake of nuance, but for the sake of stealthy deception.
Self-action leaders would thus do well to always remember the words of Benjamin Franklin: Half the truth is often a great lie.
"Half the truth is often a great lie."
—Benjamin Franklin
Take heed always and beware of these wolves in sheep's clothing; these vipers disguised as purveyors of wisdom. Such demons have no interest in your long-term health, happiness, or well-being, and will do virtually everything to aggrandize their own power, position, and pocketbook at the expense of YOU, ME, and anyone else they can sleazily, slimily, sedatively, or seductively hoodwink.
Such "People of the Lie" are truly infected with "the ultimate disease" for "despite their pretense of sanity, the evil are the most insane of all." Avoid such persons and influences like you would a deadly plague. And whenever possible, expose, indict, and expunge their evil actions and influences—to the benefit of yourself and the rest of the world.
In Your Journal
Are both of your feet presently planted on ladder rungs up the SAL Hierarchy, or are you currently rappelling down into the raunchy recesses of the SAL lowerarchy? With the help of your SAL mentor and/or other trusted friends or relatives, conduct a "Location Assessment" whereby you can discern where you currently stand.
Are you content and/or happy with where you currently stand? Why or why not?
If you are currently caught in a web down the slippery slope of the SAL lowerarchy, what is your plan for getting your feet firmly planted back onto the SAL Hierarchy?
What level of Existential Growth would you like to ultimately summit before you pass away from this world?
What kind of commitment to SAL do you think is required to obtain the highest levels of the SAL Hierarchy?
In what ways are you presently susceptible to the dark shadow?
What is something you could do right now to construct a wall, fortress, or watchtower of warning and defense against the influences and power of the dark shadow?
Who is someone new that you could realistically bring into your Inner Circle of friends, colleagues, or associates that could serve as a "Watchman on the Tower" to encourage your Existential Growth while warning you of negative influences and otherwise protecting you and helping you to avoid the clutches of the dark shadow?
Further Reading on the Subject of Human EVIL
- Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone.
- Speer, A. (1997). Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs of Albert Speer. New York, NY: Touchstone.
- Toland, J. (1976). Adolf Hitler. New York, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
- Zimbardo, P. (2008). The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil. New York, NY: Random House Trade Paperbacks.
—Dr. JJ
Wednesday, November 13, 2024
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
Author's Note: This is the 416th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013 and the 225th consecutive weekly blog published since August 31, 2020.
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Chapter 23 Notes
1. Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change. New York, NY: Fireside. Pages 52- 62.
2. Ibid. Page 287.
3. Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page 69.
4. Peck, M.S. (1978). The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page 280.
5. Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page 264.
6. Lewis, C. S. (1995). The Screwtape Letters. New York, NY: Bantam Books. Page 36.
7. For more information on the subject of Self-Deception, review the following books:
a. The Arbinger Institute (2000). Leadership and Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box. San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.
b. Warner, C. T. (2001). Bonds that Make Us Free: Healing Our Relationships, Coming to Ourselves. Salt Lake City, UT: Shadow Mountain Publishing.
8. A reference to the biblical story of Jacob and Esau found in Genesis Chapter 25 in the Old Testament.
9. Luke 15:17 (New Testament)
10. Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone. Pages 252-253.
11. Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page 264.
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