CUCKED: The Priest vs The Wise Guy
CUCKED: The Priest vs The Wise Guy
this essay is anxiety and rage.
This essay is porn.
I’m writing this with rage and feeling anxious, and I hope it makes you anxious too. Anxiety is a fundamental aspect of our humanity—it’s your humanity shouting back at you. Your anxiety stems from your ideals, the very ideals that create the anxiety in the first place. The same can be said about rage.
Your anxiety is what your ideals deny because the ideals are the Thing that creates the anxiety. It’s the Thing that creates the voice of your anxiety—and rage.
Shelving that though…
PRIESTS
Before we explore the role of priests, let’s consider the broader landscape of religion. Religion, in its many forms, isn’t confined to ancient texts or traditional worship spaces. It extends into modern groups and internet communities, where it serves as a framework for collective belief and behavior. This phenomenon begs the question: Do we wish to adopt the prevalent modes of thinking? Well…the most widely known modes of thought will be simplified for mass consumption. Always.
Today, the average person informs themselves from tweets and Instagram info graphs; the average reader doesn’t go beyond the NYT bestsellers list. This habitual approach, while convenient, lacks depth and fails to challenge our understandings and modes of thought. If we limit ourselves to these widespread but shallow sources of knowledge, we risk stagnation. If you consume average you will stay average.
"That's so arrogant."
Yes, I’m an internet essayist who can’t help but share opinions, both informed and uninformed. So, you're so so right. But, where have you been? Feel free to exit the post then. I aim to capture at least one of the seven deadly sins. There's no hard feelings. I'm done writing for mass consumption. I will not be cucked into boring, predictable, and habitual thought. I do not wish to write for the average. I do not wish to maintain the mundane thought within the status quo. You want an exaggerated presentation of self. I'm giving you just that. I am arrogant, but hopefully, I can reveal it's not exaggerated to you—although it probably still is to me (and should be to you). If you find that your opinion of me is right, congrats! I'm proud of you. No, really...I am.
So, if you find out during this essay and in future essays that I'm wrong, that’s great. Do something about that.
Let me paraphrase a writer I've come to appreciate (No I'll not name them...it's part of the game. They'll understand. They also write porn.): If you think I'm wrong you better determine why or you'll just be a liar. And wise people aren’t liars. Priests are the liars—they always have been—that’s part of their game. So, what does that make you: the priest or a follower? Let's find out.
THE PRIEST VS THE WISE VS THE FOLLOWER
"Let me guess, you think you're wise."
No, where have you been?
What do I think I am? Well, I don't care for priests. I don’t want to follow priests. But I don’t think I’m wise either. Am I striving to be wise? Maybe. I hope. If I'm not striving to be wise, then I'm definitely following a priest. I might also be a fool. I also wish to destroy your wisdom and my wisdom. I want to destroy your priest. So, I am not wise; I am arrogant; I am an exaggeration.
I know you want me to talk about you; I'm talking about you...I promise. I can feel your narcissism activating. Mine is too.
Think of it this way, we're all actors in the game of life, playing our parts in a drama as old as the myths of Greece.
I’ve been pondering a symbolic way to categorize ourselves into three groups: Those striving to become wise, those attempting to be priests, and those who follow the priest. Often, those trying to be priests either think they're wise, have given up on becoming wise, or once merely followed a priest and now believe they can do the priest thing. Those trying to be wise... well, at some point they realize, "damn, this priest guy is a complete arrogant fool." So, they've become a bit wiser, you see. And so, they’ve gleaned a few pearls of wisdom, maybe enough to create a necklace, catch my meaning? So, sometimes their arrogance leads them towards becoming a priest.
But make no mistake—wisdom is not entirely benign. Remember, even Socrates, deemed the wisest of all, was executed by those who feared his influence, because the priests (oracles) didn’t want him making the youth wiser. Priests want you to stay naive because if you realize the priests are foolish and unwise, you might force the priests to confront the lies they've spun around themselves, realizing they are charlatans preying on the anxiety of others. They are wolves in sheep’s clothing.
CUCK VS FIRE
Prometheus stole fire from the gods to bring wisdom to us, mortals. He wanted us to recognize the structures, the false gods, the false images, the false ideals shaping our entire being. Prometheus was wise. He wanted humanity to be wise and affirm their own humanity. In the myth, this act of empowering humanity with knowledge (fire) directly threatens the existing power structure. What is the punishment for Prometheus? Well, he's a Titan, so he doesn’t get to die. Instead, Zeus chains him to a rock to suffer eternal torment, his liver eaten daily by an eagle.
Apollo is our mythical priest. He oversees the Delphic oracle, where individuals and states seek the gods’ will. Apollo is sanctioned; he is the keeper of order, a priest deemed worthy of higher power. He maintains control and rules over the dissemination of societal norms and ideals.
"We are in modern times, though!"
I know...
The internet has wrongfully validated many false conduits of knowledge. But remember, I might be the one lying here! You might also be wrong. There are many podcasters, talking heads, political commentators, cultural commentators, spiritual gurus, academics, politicians, and more who believe themselves to be supreme conduits of knowledge and wisdom. The problem with my Apollo vs. Prometheus example is that Apollo was probably right to be more certain about his messaging; he was a true priest who did not believe himself to be like Prometheus. Your favorite podcaster, though? They're very confused.
DADDY
This next part is inspired by an essay by
titled Dirtbag Atheism.Here’s an excerpt that connected a few dots for me:
“In different guises, I posed the parasocial dad question around the internet, because there’s really very little that you can extrapolate from your own family. The general response was that there are a lot of shitty or emotionally absent dads out there, and young guys feel so unmoored that they need someone to give them basic life guidance and a reason for it, whether it be mythic (Peterson) or scientific (Huberman). Such figures marry everyday behaviors with aspiration. Unlike parasocial friends, who might be aspirationally funny or clever, parasocial dads are aspirationally smart, virtuous, or strong. People who defend Peterson and Huberman say that they helped them get their lives together. This term is dirty and millennial, but these figures are essentially “adulting” influencers for zoomer boys—just slightly less blergh-y in their presentation. For millennials, adulting was semi-ironic and quickly became cringe, but now, it has become so normal that it doesn’t even register as what it is.”
“What about the priest?”
Right, sorry. Just wanted to provide some context. Well, the priests don’t know who they are. In many cases, they believe themselves to be Promethean figures providing you the objective and capital T truth; they don’t see themselves as the little subs that they are for the established structures.
The priest...is the media personalities, influencers, and content creators. I’ll probably name-drop and make fun of a few...and they might just be your daddy. Even your podcast daddy. I’ll refer to these personalities and influencers as podcast daddies for the rest of this essay. And if I make fun of your chosen daddy, your favorite priest, you should take it personally! I'm writing this personally for you, duh. Everything in this is personal. I’ll stand by everything I say about them, especially the exaggerated parts.
The podcast daddy has become your priest, giving you your weekly or sometimes even daily sermon. Who is your daddy? Your daddy is the podcaster. Perhaps the narcissism of the podcast daddy has become so unbridled that they now seek out the sky daddy! Their subconscious speaks to them by saying: "I'm a complete idiot; I must not be capable of wielding all this influence, sky daddy where are you?"
Well, your podcast daddy might be an idiot, but a chosen sky daddy will not do anything to change that fact.
Your priest podcast daddy does not seek out other priests because deep down, or in the case of the particularly malevolent ones, not so deep down, they realize they're full of nonsense. Oh, but do not worry, they seek out other podcast daddies that share in their perspectives and similar vibes in how they embrace the structures and ideals. They do not seek out a priest for themselves to follow. So, if a podcast daddy were to truly seek a daddy to guide them, they'd have to eliminate that daddy in the name of Freud. Just kidding (not really though). Instead, they aim to become that priest and capture their audience because they could not possibly follow another priest, knowing deep down they're spewing hollow certainties. Another priest would be like looking in a mirror, and that's no fun when you feel empty inside. So, instead of finding another priest or podcast daddy to follow, they must seek out a sky daddy because it's the only way they can validate their own lie and maintain certainty in their hollow existence.
This is why so many gurus and talking heads are shifting towards God. CC Joe Rogan.
Oh, and they also transform their fellow likeminded priest feeding brain rot to the masses by calling them: colleagues, peers, or gasp friends.
They feed you a sense of opposition, but this opposition is contained.
Remember they need you to see them as the great priest daddy to keep the illusion alive. If they lose you, they lose themselves, and if they lose themselves, they just might start becoming wise, but then they'd be Prometheus, and who wants to constantly be eaten by a bird?
MOMMY
"We should be fact-checking the people we listen to."
Well, that would be wise. But remember, we're not wise; we want to live. Wise guys get destroyed. We are also lazy. I'm lazy. That’s why I'm not providing you much for sources around this. But don’t worry, I'll call the decision an artistic preference, as though it is, but it isn't, and it kinda is, because the artistic preference is laziness. Just never call me daddy.
Now, moving on.
I did an examination of a particular priest a few essays back. This priest knows more than me about many things. This doesn't change the very true reality that he is, in fact—still a priest.
Andrew Huberman, the self-optimization podcast daddy who recently got in trouble with some lefty priests and priestesses for trying to be a more intimate type of Daddy to a few too many women at once.
"*gasp* What?! How could he?"
I know. I know. A rich, famous podcast guru obsessed with optimizing every aspect of his life down to an impenetrable structure of optimization, even using therapy speak in his relationships like an apathetic robot, all of which optimizes the sense of self into an all-consuming sense of self full of grandeur. Yeah, that guy was seeing multiple women and not really caring about them or recognizing them as unique individuals, and only really seeing them as his narcissistically created images that are intended to only feed his own self-image. Very surprising stuff.
Mommy? (No, no, no…a different essay…focus.)
The podcast daddy offers you a promise, a hope, a chance for some deeper meaning to keep you from those uncertain thoughts. But if you were to look into where said podcast daddy wants to limit you, knowingly and unknowingly, where they want you to question only up to the point before you question them, what do you stand to gain? You either have to become the priest or live with an uncertain existence, trying to chase wisdom that you can never really have enough of because you can never really stop becoming something, and becoming always requires more, it requires desire, and you are full of that, I promise you that. Having desire is certain. What that desire is is uncertain. You are uncertain. So, you are left always striving to affirm and become while being uncertain of what it is you're affirming and becoming.
Well, wait. I got ahead of myself. Most of us are reacting and becoming, and you should be working towards affirming and becoming. I like that better.
"But Brenden, you just need to learn more about Samsara." "Oh, but let me tell you about meditation." "I went on this Buddhist retreat just outside of LA and--"
I knew at least one of you would get caught up on how I’m using desire. I told you. I might be a liar.
But let me tell you something...I've chugged a lot of ayahuasca...I’ve been kicked out of a few of your cults…and consumed your favorite guru daddies. You know what? I didn't need a 30-day darkness retreat to realize the self is necessary. Desire is necessary. I wish to be active in our culture, not subservient to a doctrine, or have a need for a perceived sense of constant inner peace. Blah. I want an evolving middle way that is a reification of self, no-self, and desire. I want my peace and my rage.
Also, I think many of your idols are liars.
BASTARDIZED
Should I make this political?
“No.”
Makes me anxious.
“So don’t do it.”
I’m gonna do it.
The left and right both have their podcast daddies. The right...why do I feel like some of you far-out conspiracy theorists think that I'm speaking your language? I'm not writing about some hidden forbidden truth that is being protected by a secret council. I'm just writing. The podcast Daddy sings you a lullaby that touches and directs your anxiety and rage: contained opposition. You want a daddy to tell you what to believe. You didn't like the other side's daddy because it didn't create the correct narcissistic narrative to explain your anxiety and rage. Your daddy wants to tell you what to believe in order to avoid reminding themselves how little they actually know about what they believe.
You ask: "What is the meaning of life?"
They respond: "Shut up and buy my supplements."
You say: "Yes Daddy, I knew you'd have the answer."
The left has reduced much of their ideology, such as Marxism, into bastardized parts that leave them satisfied. They decided to weaponize the language of Marx by moving the discussion away from class and hyper-focusing it on race and gender. They've bastardized language into robotic foreplay masquerading as empathy (clever and dry (emphasis on the dry, when is anything ever good dry?) word-speak is the weapon of the academic narcissist).
Okay... I'm done with the political stuff. Not the point for this essay. I'll leave it in though. I want your rage and anxiety remember?
ORGY
We cannot only blame the priests.
We have to also blame ourselves.
We, as the followers of our chosen priest, provide them validation for their cowardice. So, it becomes a circle jerk of trying to make everyone feel knowledgeable, but you must keep the circle jerk, jerked and not step outside of said circle jerk because then it stops being a circle jerk and might become something a little more chaotic and uncertain: an orgy. And some of the priests I've been talking about do not like orgies...risk of too many aired differences. Am I right? Maybe...that's a question for your chosen Daddy, not me.
I told you this essay is porn.
WITCHES
Consider the witch trials. Witchcraft was a spiritual practice that didn't have a lot of rules; it wasn't "optimized." It was kind of vibes-based. It became people's outlet for spiritual connection for a variety of reasons that we can dive into another day...the point is it was people seeking out deeper meaning using knowledge that didn't have a central authority figure. They were practicing a practice without a universal practice! The horror!
The priest did not like that, often Catholic priests in this case, which is a bit ironic because Catholicism loves to light candles and use smoke to cleanse your dirty, dirty soul. But they're priests! They need your validation. They cannot have you becoming wise, empowered, and self-determined...that would be silly. No, not silly! Blasphemous! No, you must follow their will. Trust their knowledge, or believe that their lack of knowledge is better than your lack of knowledge. Basically, they are saying this in the most humble way: "Believe what you want...but I'm just saying...if you don't start believing me, there's a burning stake with your name on it."
Huh...well that feels very dirty and not very clean.
So, the wise guy is forced to drink poison, and the wise woman gets burned at the stake. I suppose the patriarchy is symbolized even while dying more wise.
ANARCHY
Many of us stop ourselves from realizing that the institutions we take everything from—our beliefs, our values, our understanding of right and wrong—they are all made by fools just like me and you. Flawed fools. Scared fools. Uncertain fools. And often those flawed fools are enshrined with the job and duty to create an ideal image for you to strive for, but it's always an ideal image that they themselves do not achieve. They, you, me, and we are not always aware that the ideal image is the great lie. Maybe it's a necessary lie? We need to lie to strive! Right!?
When the ideal becomes a made-up image, you begin to affirm the creation of something else, probably another made-up image, likely another false ideal, but the point is something else becomes created. Something else becomes affirmed; something else continues the becoming. This does not mean being a reactionary. This does not mean being a contrarian.
"But I'm just being objective."
No, you're not. I'm not either. You're being something...that is for sure. More objectively though...being objective is not one of them. Your priest? They want you to believe they're objective. They need followers.
"You're so pretentious."
I know. Is it making you rage? I told you though I'm not writing for mass consumption. If the masses became aware of the false image and ideals that are our structures and influencers—we'd have anarchy. No, not the good or bad kind of anarchy because all anarchy is the same: it's always held as an ideal by those who are lost on what it is they should affirm or deny, so they deny everything. They are the other side of the coin, the other side being the extreme follower and embracer of our structures and myths, they are so lost they only react to what has been fisted right into them, they only know how to react and reacting is not affirming or creating anything.
I'd tell you to stay curious like I usually do, the vibe is shifting on here though, and I'm not your Daddy.
