The Astronist Statement by Cometan

Official description: The Astronist Statement on the Situation of the Human Species, often simply referred to as The Astronist Statement, is a non-technical manifesto of the Astronist philosophy and religion, altogether referenced as the Astronist belief system. It provides a summary of the Astronist perspective on the human condition as this pertains to and is influenced by the ultimate goals of Astronism and the purposes it prescribes to human life through its doctrines on transcension, cosmocentrism, suronality and astrosis. The Astronist Statement is made equivalent to other kinds of theological or ideological manifestos in that it outlines the fundamental problems that Astronism sees effecting the human species and presents solutions to these problems identified. The underlying principle of The Astronist Statement and thereby, all Astronism, is that due to the pervading cosmic limitation, human beings both individually and collectively are limited in our capacities to do and be. This means that the human species is inherently though not hopelessly limited which is pinpointed as the underlying reason for all the suffering, evil and wrongdoing in the world. It is the goal of the Astronist religion to extinguish human limitation because in humanity, Astronism sees the potential for transcension meaning that humanity may one day, via our expansion into the astronomical world, transverse the boundaries of cosmic limitation to become unlimited beings possessing total freedom and thereby having also extinguished our woes of suffering and evil. The Astronist Statement conveys this message of humanity’s capacity to transverse limitation via the salvific process of transcension, an endeavour that has indeed become the central dogma of the Astronist religion and thereby the central goal and life purpose of all Astronists.

Official Cover of The Astronist Statement (2022) by Cometan

Publisher: Astronist Institution

Imprint: Astral Publishing

Author: Cometan

Date of publication: 14th July 2022

Official Emblem of the Astronist Institution

THE ASTRONIST STATEMENT ON THE SITUATION OF THE HUMAN SPECIES

Astral Publishing, a subsidiary of the Astronist Institution.

160 Cop Lane, Penwortham, Preston, PR1 9AD

First edition published 2022

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission granted by the Astronist Institution either in written or digital formal consent. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department of the Astronist Institution at the address above or by the following email: help@jessemillette.com.

Introduction

The cosmic destiny of humanity is clear no matter how hard forces try to steer us away and cloud our vision from our true purpose. The grand narrative of the Transcension has existed as the undercurrent of all human history. The Astronist Statement acts as the manifesto to the Astronist philosophy and religion for which the sole proprietor is the Astronist Institution founded by Cometan. It epitomises a view of the world and of the human condition from an Astronist perspective.

The Statement sets forth a particular conception of the human past, the human present and the human future in accordance with the joint central Astronist worldviews of cosmocentrism (centred on the astronomical world) and analipsocentrism (centred on analipsis, an alternative word for transcension). The Statement is swift yet authoritative. It touches on the very fundamentals of the meaning of human life and sets out a very true yet somewhat harsh reality for the human person individually and for humanity collectively. The Statement propounds the Astronist understanding of the limited nature of the human being and the consequences of this for the situation the entirety of humankind finds itself in.

Finally, the Statement tells of the Astronist vision to change human nature through the transformative and salvific endeavour of transcension, all of which is underpinned by the Astronist promise of humanity reaching the Ultimation (our optimum condition as a species). This is the Astronist Statement on the Situation of the Human Species.

To reiterate,

1. The Astronist Statement firstly outlines the problem of limitation as the cause of suffering and evil.
2. Secondly, the Statement explores the Astronist view of the human condition as a consequence of our inherent limitations.
3. Thirdly, the Statement explicates the Astronist vision of what humanity could be if its limited nature were to be overcome.
4. Fourthly, the Statement sets out the basis for how and why transcension can be found in the events and consequences of the prehistoric Scope of Man.
5. Fifthly, the Statement presents the Astronist plan for overcoming limitation via transcension and explores the justifications for transcension to answer why its embarkation is regarded to lead to the succession of limitation and subsequently, the attainment of salvation.
6. In the sixth and final chapter, the Statement explores why the Ultimation is the fundamental promise of the Astronist religion and how humanity’s attainment of the Ultimation will lead to the complete resolution of the problem of limitation by transforming human nature from limitedness to limitlessness and thus, bringing to fruition the destiny of the human species.

I. Human Struggle of Limitation

The original struggle of the human species has always been to defy our physical and intellectual limitations as set down by nature. This struggle is reflected in human religious belief, in our attempts to push the boundaries of our own mental and physical states, and in the human creation of technology as tools to overcome our limitations. One could commend humanity in having come so far to take the planet Earth as our own dominion but in this struggle for freedom from limitation, we have lost our way.

In our realisation of the finiteness of resources, we have turned on each other and we have even turned on Earth itself, taking all we can for our own tribes and becoming less and less rational as our resources dwindle. This is the future that awaits us if we continue with our Degradation. We are heading to disaster and the extinction of our species under the banners of disbelief, sectarianism, and power. I, Cometan, have observed this state of the human situation since I was born only a relatively short time ago and what I see is a need for change, a new plan; one that sets out an endeavour for humanity to alleviate its limitations as the central worthy purpose of our species. And so, Astronism was born.

It is the definitive struggle of the Astronist to end human limitation by planning and completing the process of transcension. It is the central Astronist conviction that, if executed as prescribed, transcension will extinguish all our limitations, and will thereby end our endurance of evil and suffering, once and for all. The Astronist person rightly sees limitation as the underlying cause of all suffering and evil among not just the human species but every other species in our limited, cosmic existence. However, the Astronist person also rightly sees that the human species holds a distinct quality that separates us from all other species on Earth. We hold the opportunity, by way of our sapience, to alleviate our limitations in ways that other species simply have not evolved to have the intelligence to do.

The Astronist person further rightly seeks to alleviate themselves and others from limitation by encouraging our collective proximation to the highest place physically accessible to us all — that is, of course, the astronomical world. The Astronist person then rightly selects outer space as the setting for the most sacred endeavour of all — that is, the enterprise of transcension. It is the myriad opportunities that emanate from the astronomical world for humans to alleviate our natural limitations that constitutes the equation of transcension with humanity’s salvation and thereby the gradual extinguishment of all suffering and evil. There are many stories in this world now and there have been many stories since humanity began but I prophesy that the greatest of all these stories is yet to be completely told; this is, of course, the grand story of transcension.

The story of transcension is the constant offensive between the natural world and human attempts to supersede its laws. It is nature that presses down its laws onto us and it is the human predisposition to want to release ourselves from such natural shackles. There have been many wars fought in this world but the greatest of all of these wars is the one fought between humanity and our own natural limitations. Nature adjudicates what humankind can and can’t do and humans attempt to defy these laws, creating, all the time, devices, concepts, fictional heroes and even gods of all kinds to remedy the human dissatisfaction with our natural limited reality. Astronism could itself be viewed as a kind of mechanism devised to treat human discontent with the natural situation in which we find ourselves. The Astronist way is specifically to establish the transcensional endeavour to overcome the problem of human limitation once and for all, in a way that no other religion or philosophy has managed to achieve.

The Christian sees the greatest battle as the one waged between God and Satan as metaphors for good and evil; the Marxist sees the greatest battle as the one waged between the oppressed and the oppressor; the Buddhist sees the greatest battle as the one waged between humanity and our suffering; but the Astronist sees not only the greatest but the original battle as the one waged by humanity against nature as signalled by our constant attempts to supersede our innate limitations, both physically and mentally; the Buddhist is half right and noble in their endeavour to see an end to suffering but the Astronist sees it wholly right that suffering is merely one symptom of the ultimate problem which is indeed limitation itself as the fundamental current of the natural world and of cosmic reality.

Now let me explain where this tendency of humanity to challenge our limitations arises; I will tell you that it holds root in our sapience. Look around, you do not see any other species on Earth attempt to supersede their limitations as humans do. Lions, tigers, elephants, sharks — whatever the species, it is not that they accept their natural limitations, it is that they do not possess the intelligence to question their limitations.

But indeed, humans do, don’t we? We all possess, albeit to widely varying degrees, an innate predisposition to question and there is no greater quandary as to why we have come to evolve on this planet the way we have, inherently bound by limitations from which we are still unable to escape. This points to the most fascinating and most crucial part of human nature from the Astronist perspective and indeed one of the principal topics explored in Astronist philosophy; both our human capacity to question our limitations and the potential we have as a species to cultivate ourselves so that we may one day surpass them.

In Astronism, it is taught that human sapience — namely our intelligent capacity to question and then to seek to surpass our natural limitations — is intertwined with the grand narrative of transcension and holds roots in the prehistoric event of the Scope of Man (addressed in Chapter III).

You may question this limited reality that I myself observe. Well, let me point out some limitations you have. You are sat reading this work — for which I am thankful — but why can’t you be reading this work and also doing five other jobs at the same time? That is because your brain, despite it being the most complex system in The Cosmos, has a finite capacity to take in and process information. But, for utility’s sake, wouldn’t it be a much more productive use of your limited time on this planet if you could do five things at once. In this, we come to one of the greatest cosmic limitations of all; time.

You have a finite amount of time on this Earth. You do not know how many years you may have here to do all you desire but you know for certain that your time alive will come to an end. Endings, whether this pertains to the ending of an event or the ending of an object or the ending of a person, are a product of the limited nature of The Cosmos established through the fact that time itself exists for if time did not exist then our nature would become unlimited for we would not be limited in how much time we had to achieve our objectives. But, of course, then we come to the peculiar question: would the removal of time fundamentally make redundant the objectives we hold dearest to us?

The fundamental point here is that the greatest war is the one waged between limitation and unlimitation. Nature and thereby humanity are simply just products of the dominance of limitedness. I have always found limitation to be a curious topic and it is one that has become central to the Astronist philosophy in these Astrodoxical times.

I have observed that limitation is the fundamental problem of the human world only because humanity possesses the sapient dissatisfaction with limitedness that makes limitation the ultimate problem in human reality. If the Scope of Man had not occurred and our rise to sapience had not taken place, then we would be as mindlessly accepting of limitation as all the sentient creatures with which we share this world.

Scope conflict, or scope struggle, is therefore the underlying conflict caused by limitation and is the principal struggle for the Astronist. It is the conflict that emerges as a result of the lack of resources and opportunity not simply in economic terms as Marx would focus on but in ways more existential too. I dare to say, then, that humanity is in a dire situation. We are in a situation on this planet — we have the capacity to understand that we are limited but we do not have at a easy grasp the capacity to alleviate our limitedness — and this situation is not so easily resolved.

But there is a hope for this dire situation that we as humans find ourselves in. This hope comes in the form of the fundamental promise at the basis of the Astronist religion. The singular hope for humanity in facing this ever-present problem of limitation is actually ultimation (discussed thoroughly in Chapter VI) as the transformation of human nature from limited to limitless. Of course, the plan devised in Astronism to achieve this objective is transcension itself. This is the most important message to the world that I will ever make; transcension is the one and only hope for humankind unless we surrender to limitation and let our extinction take place and what a shame, a waste and a bloodbath such an extinction would be. This process of extinction is what I call the Degradation and its most haunting part is what I call the Crepusculis.

The ultimate Astronist message, in fact the ultimate Cometanic message, is that transcension is the singular hope for humanity to attain ultimation so that we may transform our very nature. If the world listens to no other message of mine make it be this one: transcension is not only the singular hope for a good human future but is the one and only hope for humanity to have a long-term future at all. I, therefore, assert that for at least humanity’s long-term survival and at most humanity’s long-term flourishment, all is contingent upon at least our embarkation on the endeavour of transcension and of course, this entails following Astronist teachings on astronomical proximation. I place all of my worries and fears onto transcension; transcension will fix all woes; transcension can carry our heaviest burdens as if they were feathers; transcension will be the salvation of humanity through our own merit as a sapient species.

In thinking about transcension as salvation, the astronomical world plays an interesting role in this Economy of Transcension for it exists as both the setting and the mediator of humanity’s succession to the state of transcensia (the stage at which transcension is fully established). I will consider the in-depth mechanics of transcension elsewhere, but I thought it important to clarify the functionality of the astronomical world in transcension’s conveyance of salvation. Unlike in other religions, both the provision of salvation and the work of salvation must be conducted by humanity alone. Although the astronomical world does not capacitate salvation itself, it exists as the medium through which humanity may achieve salvation by the gradual reduction of humanity’s limitations, making outer space exploration indispensable to the works of salvation. To clarify, the astronomical world does not itself grant salvation as humanity does this ourselves through our analiptic works but the astronomical world necessitates salvation by acting as the medium through which the transcensional process must take place.

* * *

Human history on Earth has always been a struggle of limitation. All that exists around us and within us is limited by its very core nature. It is the purpose of Astronism to understand the limited nature of the external environment and the limited nature of both our external physical capacity and our internal conscious capacity as human beings. Because in Astronism the world’s problems are intertwined with limitation, the Astronist sees it as the most important philosophical endeavour to understand the human relationship with limitation and especially how we deal with this.

Despite significant variance among the human population in terms of our material, physical and mental limitations, the overall problem of limitation is a fact of our existence that nobody can hope to completely escape without the precise execution of the most grand of schemes which is indeed transcension as Astronism outlines it. People commit acts of evil not in the name of limitation but as a result of limitation. Indeed, all evil and all suffering in this world and in all others can be exposed as a consequence of the limited nature of cosmic reality and so human beings have always suffered from this limited reality.

Limitation pervades every aspect of our existence and so, to overcome the problem of limitation, as Astronism seeks to achieve, actually entails overcoming our own limited nature. The problem of limitation is the scarcity of resources; the problem of limitation is the scarcity of knowledge; the problem of limitation is the scarcity of our physical body; the problem of limitation is the entrapment of humanity upon this singular planet; the problem of limitation is the tendency of the human mind to taper and so, we are limited in ourselves because we do not think cosmocentrically; we think individually, we think ethnically, we think politically, and we think nationally, each of which is the epitome of limitation in the human mental state.

Being and thinking in a cosmocentric ways means to put aside all these differences that we have as humans, to allow us all to supersede them by focusing on our greatest commonality; the fact that we all reside together upon a single planet is itself our limitation but can actually be used as a message to unify us all under the banner of transcension; our vulnerability and our unity are both highlighted in this one fact about our cosmic, limited existence; how we deal with this fact now is crucial to the quality of lives of our children and their children; indeed, it is my dearly held belief that transcension is the long-term solution to the problem of limitation for the sake of the future of our descendants.

I don’t mean for these words to sound abstract; what I am writing about here is a very practical reality about our existence as human beings individually and as a whole humanity; transcension is the most down-to-earth statement that one could ever utter; certainly, a sense of unity is achieved when considering the world and the human experience cosmocentrically but also, a sense of duty emerges from within that unity that then informs how we act, as human beings, both individually and as a collective species; this, of course, manifests in the Astronist cosmic duty of transcension.

Regardless of what other religions and philosophies teach, the Astronist goal is to guide and ensure the potentialisation of humanity, not merely our survival. Human beings have sought to survive for millennia and we have killed one another and have suppressed other species to do so. Despite trivial arguments for space exploration being to ensure the survival or economic prosperity of humankind, what transcension embodies is the satisfaction of humankind in terms of bringing ourselves as a species as a whole to fruition; it is through transcension that humanity as a species will become the greatest, highest, grandest version of itself which is indeed a further justification as to why transcension is equated with salvation in Astronism.

Completing transcension is the objective and whole purpose of Astronism. It is for this reason that questions regarding how, why, when and who will prepare, conduct and benefit from the transcensional endeavour are of principal concern to Astronist philosophy. Astronism establishes its doctrines around transcension and this is what we as Astronists should put our faith and hope into. To reassert, the promise of transcension and by extension, the promise of ultimation will bring about the reward of the transformation of the human condition from limitedness to limitlessness which will in turn extinguish all evil and suffering and will thereby allow for humanity to achieve salvation as the foundation of the Astrosoteriology.

II. On the State of Humankind

In considering the state of humankind, the first item to reiterate is the innate limitation imposed upon all humanity no matter how rich you are, no matter how attractive, intelligent or any other measure of character and quality that one excels in. Every single human being in the present age is bound to Earth and even those aboard orbiting space stations rely upon communications and deliveries from Earth to sustain their existence. The fact of the matter of humanity is that we are essentially, though not hopelessly, physically limited. This is a fact of reality that no human being can yet overcome or debate as otherwise.

This physical limitation of humankind does impact, though does not entirely stagnate, the mental capacities of human beings. What I mean by this is that because we as humans are bound to Earth and more often than not, bound to specific locales within countries on Earth, it takes no genius to comprehend that our imagination and thereby our whole mental capabilities will be confined by these physical circumstances we find ourselves in. Physical limitation therefore causes to varying degrees mental limitation. However, we all, as human beings, do share one common quality and this is our sapient intelligence which bestows upon us our quality of scope for transcension that fundamentally distinguishes us from all other tellurian species; the quality of scope is the quality to think beyond the present physical environment; in essence, to imagine and to envision and to behold and harness opportunities to manifest such visions of what the future could be.

It is this key mental capacity for human beings that maintains our connection to the grand possibilities of the astronomical world and thereby maintains our hope for transcension. Despite, in all degrees the scale and difficulty of obstacles in our path to explore The Cosmos, we can, without even lifting a finger, attempt to imagine what distant world in The Milky Way might be like. For some with whom I have spoken, the physical distances of the astronomical world has caused a mental and emotional distance for them from the astronomical world that is equated with its irrelevance. This should not, however, be the case because we can learn so much about ourselves and the infinitesimal nature of our condition when we consider objects so far away from us. I attest that it is essential that we study the furthest things from us in order to understand ourselves as a species in The Cosmos more clearly and in turn, to achieve a greater comprehension of transcension as a holistic process.

What can be made a conclusion of is that the physical limitation and mental limitation of humanity are intertwined but the latter is far less limited and is actually key to alleviating the more drastic limitations imposed onto the former. We need the mind to direct the physical so that the limitations on both may be diminished over time to lead to our ultimation. To round out this point, humanity is inherently limited but what does it actually mean to possess a limited nature?

* * *

To be limited in one’s nature is more pervasive than words could describe. Cosmic limitation is the absolute principle of The Cosmos meaning that all that exists within or pertains to cosmic existence must obey the law of limitation. The pervasion of these limits throughout The Cosmos indeed imbue all humanity and has epitomised our existence since our inception in the evolutional process. These limits have not just effected us a species but every other species in The Cosmos and even the development of The Cosmos itself; limitation is the built-in code at the very basis of the existence of The Cosmos.

For humanity to possess a limited nature means that:

• We have a limited physical capacity.
• We have a limited mental capacity.
• We have a limited metaphysical capacity.
• We have limited knowledge, foresight, observability and discernibility.
• We have limited resources surrounding us for us to interact with the world and others in it.
• We have a natural tendency to commit transgressions because of the lack of knowledge and resources at our disposal meaning that we ourselves cause suffering and evil in the world because of our own limitations.
• We have a limited ability to see beyond the physical and the immediate.
• We have a limited ability to restrain ourselves from conducting acts that stimulate the chemicals in our brain to produce positive emotions.
• Our ability to perceive, empathise and comprehend is capped by our own experiences, our perception of the world, our temperament and our physical location.
• There is nothing about which we may be sure in this life except that our ability to perceive the world is fundamentally limited by the reality of our own body which necessarily houses, though also essentially entraps, our mind.

* * *

The attribution of suffering and evil to limitation and to incorporate this into the limitationist doctrine is curious. A lion mauling a deer to death is indeed due to the lion’s own incapacity due to its sentient level of intelligence altogether meaning its limited mental capabilities to think, do and be otherwise. The attribution of the feeling of suffering to this scene is a human experience that is projecting onto this very natural occurrence that stands as a product of cosmic limitedness.

It is also important to maintain that the doctrine of cosmic limitation must not be used as a justification for wrongful action i.e. I may murder someone because of my limited capacity to think and do otherwise. This kind of excuse for immoral acts of course does not suffice but in the event of such an act the attribution of limitation as a negative quality and underlying cause of the individual conducting the act is more than reasonable. Such an attribution, however, should not be interpreted or misused as a justification, instead as an objective fundamental cause of the act’s occurrence.

Astronism views humanity as unique, meaning that no other species in The Cosmos is regarded to have evolved in the exact same way as humans has but this certainly does not mean to imply that no other species in The Cosmos has reached sapient levels of intelligence, in fact the opposite is true in Astronist belief. However, beyond this, no special status is granted to humankind unlike in other religions such as Christianity in which humans were especially created by God as superior to all other species. In Astronism, humanity is regarded as important to humanity alone; this resistance to attaching any further significance to the human species is in part due to the cosmocentricity of Astronism as well as the analipsocentric (transcension-centric) character of its doctrines.

• Cosmocentrically, humans are just one species on a single planet in the vastness of The Cosmos which is regarded to harbour a relative abundance of life. Therefore, in a geographic sense, humanity is no more important than another sapient species in The Cosmos, a reality that began to cement itself in the human consciousness following the heliocentric revelation with various consequences.
• Analipsocentrically, humans, as a sapient species, are merely regarded as subjects of transcension, meaning that humanity’s relevance is determined by our progress in terms of transcension. Hence, humanity is gifted in so far that we possess sapient intelligence for the purpose of embarking upon transcension but this gift is not considered unique to humans as there is believed to be other sapient life in The Cosmos that have experienced their own Scopes and thereby hold the same potential to complete their own transcensional endeavours. Further still, any other species on Earth could rise to the same degree of intelligence as humanity if they evolve to do so and experience their own Scopes. Finally, both evolutionarily and intellectually, humans are considered gifted but not special in this regard.

Humankind is relevant unto itself but this principle of self-relevance identically applies for a sapient species on the other side of the Milky Way that is embarking upon its own transcensional endeavour. The point being made here is very cosmotarian — an Astronist ontological school of thought — that humanity is important to humanity alone and we must execute transcension for our own sake. Humanity holds the key quality to achieving the rewards of transcension and indeed this quality is precious scope; we have inherited opportunities from our forefathers to embark upon and complete the most sacred venture of transcension.

Simply put, identifying and grasping with both hands the opportunities presented to us for transcension are decisions entirely up to us and depend on what type of species we want to be and what we want to make of ourselves during the time we have in The Cosmos.

* * *

What we know about humanity:

• We know that humanity is the only sapient species on this planet.
• We know that humans possess a tendency to avert suffering and to embrace endorphin-releasing activities.
• We know that if humanity remains on Earth without any transcension then our survival is capped due to Earth’s finite resources.

What we do not know about humanity:

• We do not know how long humanity has left as the dominant species on Earth.

* * *

The moral degradation of society is intrinsic to humanity’s aversion to transcension, hence allowing for our limitations to fester into the somewhat ugly human world we see before us. I use the word “somewhat” here so as not to present the Astronist perspective as disastrous or pessimistic as far as the progress of humanity is concerned. For sure the human world boasts beauty but no doubt there are recesses of humanity that are far more repugnant than we perhaps care to dwell upon. Nevertheless, we must face these less than pleasant aspects of the world we have built and the species we have become.

* * *

We find ourself as a species in this condition, in this state of limitation which has caused depravity and sufferance to become widespread. And so, we must seek to change this but the most curious question is how? The Astronist answer is that firstly, we must change our nature and indeed this is based on the belief that our limited nature may be inherent and pervasive but is not absolute and does, by its own very inheritance, possess limitations itself. Therefore, it must be true that the limited nature of humankind must itself possess limitations, limitations that if identified, harnessed and overcome, will lead to humanity’s ability to change our nature for the better, to overcome the limitations entrapping us mentally and physically. The same can be said of The Cosmos itself; if we can find those dimensions or aspects or places in The Cosmos that exist at the boundary of cosmic limitation and if we harness and master these then we just might be able to transverse cosmic existence to the Universal infinite existence that exists beyond. Indeed, the process of which I speak here is of course transcension itself and transcosmisation.

Astronism therefore ultimately seeks to change the limited nature of humanity via its proposition of the process of transcension and that this process is to be executed through the medium that is most physically and non-physically superior to us — indeed this is the astronomical world. However, the astronomical world has not been chosen arbitrarily for this purpose or simply because it is aesthetic as some might misunderstand. If another such medium was considered to be the possessor of this kind of transformative (transcensional) ability then that would have been chosen medium itself but indeed this is not the reality. The reality is that the astronomical world is and has always remained our view to wider existence beyond the confines of a singular planet and it is out there, among the stars, that exists the opportunity for the true path to salvation to be found and essentially, for the transformation of humanity to occur in which I envision humanity transversing limited nature towards infinite nature; this is of course the Astronist vision of the most ideal human future in succeeding at the transcensional mission in the grandest proportions.

* * *

Humanity is lost in its united endeavour and it is the ultimate duty of all Astronists to rediscover and re-establish that purpose through the reconstructive procedure that transcension essentially is. The elimination of suffering and evil in the human world is absolutely contingent on humanity’s embarkation on the journey of transcension. As I see it, the astronomical world is absolutely the only medium through which this greatest of physical and metaphysical endeavours of the human species could take place.

In Astronism, a special attribution is made to the astronomical world; that it is the place where the secrets of existence will be revealed to humanity. This is why other religions are not cosmocentric; they do not possess this belief I call diapnetism, the belief that the astronomical world harbours presently undisclosed knowledge about the fate of both humankind, The Cosmos and even God itself. This is a belief that is itself based on the process of transpiration, namely how transcension possesses the exclusive capacity for revelation through the astronomical world and how revelation is manifested to those whom embark upon transcension. Thereby, transpiration is the form of divine and mundane revelation through transcension.

Based on this belief, we come to the reality of human experience during transcension which is a process I like to call the cosmocentric transfiguration. This essentially encompasses the set of progressive states of a species before the full acroscription (changing nature upwards) takes place. What I mean by this is that cosmocentric transfiguration is the sequential changes occurring to humanity during transcension though still while we remain a limited species. In essence, cosmocentric transfiguration acts as the predecessor to our full transition from limited to unlimited, a process I call acroscription.

Cosmocentric transfiguration is the physical and mental changes that come to effect humanity as a result of transcension being in motion. These changes will occur as a kind of evolutionary process based on the revelations that emerge from the execution of transcension in the manner prescribed in Astronism. In essence, cosmocentric transfiguration is therefore the necessary precursor to humanity’s attainment of its ultimation and will manifest in both physical, non-physical and metaphysical changes to either portions of humanity or all humankind. Cosmocentric transfiguration is transcension at work and signals gradual progress made by humanity in the analiptic endeavour. Cosmocentric transfiguration is essential because it marks the evolutionary stages that humanity will proceed through as a result of the correct execution of transcension. Cosmocentric transfiguration will certainly come with some material and immaterial rewards which are benefits of transcension but of course, one must not forget that the principal reward and purpose of transcension is reaching the Ultimation.

III. The Scope of Humanity

Both in my address of the problem of limitation and in my review of humanity’s present situation as it pertains to the endeavour of transcension, I made numerous references to the word scope which has multiple meanings in Astronism:

• scope: any opportunity to progress, in some way, the endeavour of transcension.
• scope: the quality of possessing the capacity to envision and embark upon astrosis (for individuals) and transcension (for a whole species).
• Scope of man: the event in the Upper Palaeolithic period of the Stone Age regarded as having marked the transition of the human species from a sentient to a sapient species and thus marking the bestowal of humanity’s quality of scope for transcension (so that human beings can then harness opportunities for transcension).
• a Scope: an event considered as marking the transition of a species from sentient intelligence to sapient intelligence, thus opening up the species to opportunities for transcension.

The prehistoric scope of man was the endowment of all humankind with the capacity for transcension in the form of us becoming perceptive and receptive to opportunities to achieve transcension as a result of our sapient intelligence. In this regard, it is restated that transcension’s embarkation and completion is dependent upon a species’ ascension to sapience from sentience. The urge for transcension must come from within and up to now, only sapient species seem to possess the capacity for transcension, thus scope for transcension is reserved for only those species classifiable as sapient. Scope is aptly called Astronism’s “governing concept” because the production of scope directly and definitively impacts the capacity for a species to strive for transcension. Without scope, the endeavour of transcension is futile which makes scope the governor of humanity’s course to transcension and in turn, the Ultimation.

The provision of scope is determined by the sapience of a species simply by my observation of the differences between humanity as a sapient species and all others on Earth which constitute sentience but not sapience. Scope is to Astronism what grace is to Christianity; without God’s grace, human beings would not possess the mechanism to be saved from depravity but without scope, human beings individually as well as humankind as a whole would not possess the means to first identify the necessity of transcension, to then embark upon transcension, to then properly execute transcension, and then to actually complete transcension.

An individual instance of scope is an opportunity present before a person to engage with their astronality (that innate part of the person that connects them to the astronomical world). Because the notion that transcension or astrosis are dependent upon a person or all humanity’s proximation to and immersion into the astronomical world, cultivation of astronality — the connection between the individual and the astronomical world — is considered integral to achieving either of these conditions. Therefore, because scope refers to opportunities to cultivate astronality, scope becomes of central and fundamental importance to the Astronist belief system and for the endeavour of transcension as it is presented in Astronism to function. In this sense, scope is the driving force underlying the transcensional process.

The scope of man occurred during the Upper Palaeolithic period of the Stone Age. The scope of man marked the commencement of humanity’s relationship with the astronomical world through the emotional and existential connection of individuals to the night sky via their naked-eye observation of astronomical phenomena. This event and those directly succeeding it caused the spark that lit the flame of human wonder and awe which projected onto the astronomical world and that then developed into the systems of astrolatry and astromancy in the Neolithic and ancient worlds that historians and archaeologists now study today. The scope of man should be regarded as the most important event in human history to all Astronists because transcension’s occurrence is dependent upon it.

It is for this reason that specifically, it is the capacity for a species to experience astronality that makes it sapient, hence why all species on Earth other than humankind ourselves are considered sentient though not sapient. The scope of man holds an important mechanism in the Economy of Transcension and still today constitutes an underlying function of the Astrosoteriology. The scope of man is important because if it had not occurred then humanity would have no opportunity to even identify transcension let alone embark upon or complete it. The scope of man actually initiated humanity’s transcension and so, by this assertion, transcension has been ‘in the works’ ever since humanity could observe but more importantly, relate to the astronomical world. Transcension is therefore a tens of thousands of years-long process that significantly precedes Astronism. The purpose of Astronism, however, is to bring this transcensional process to its fruition.

IV. The Astronist Vision

Astronism, like almost all other religions and philosophies, is aspirational. It expounds a set of ideals and objectives that it wills for its followers, and by extension, all humanity, to strive towards. Astronism therefore is a set of aspirational principles that relate to humanity’s interactions with the astronomical world. Some of these aspirations may be short-term and able to be conducted individually (e.g. thinking cosmocentrically) and by extension, some may even be personal (e.g. praying to the stars).

However, other Astronist aspirations are more long-term in their nature; they are not able to be conducted or otherwise completed by a single individual despite the necessity for individual contributions to realise those aspirations that are nonetheless ultimately collective. Of course, here I am referring to the endeavour of transcension and its orientation as a long-term aspiration for collective humanity that nevertheless requires individual action and will deposit residual benefits to individuals who contribute to it.

The spectre of our own limitation as the precursor to our extinction will forever haunt the human species until it can begin to be remedied by the application of the transcensional process. We must constantly be aware of this threat of limitation and extinction because it not only acts as a menace in terms of our survival but to the fulfilment of our cosmic destiny in outer space as a whole.

One person’s progress is another’s regression. In order to resolve this ongoing human reality, we need to definitively say what “progress” means. In doing so, I am not just outlining what progress means for Astronists, I am also outlining what progress objectively means for humanity as a whole which of course I feel transcension can achieve.

Now hedonists and possibly some humanists would say that whatever brings happiness should be the determiner of progress. The problem with that is that it seems that humans are naturally predisposed to be either indifferent or unhappy, a product, I see, of our sapient intelligence; oftentimes, we become unhappy because we have the capacity to imagine beyond our current state (in whatever context you wish to place this) which in turn makes us dissatisfied and ultimately, unhappy with our present means or condition. Ultimately, this derives from the cosmic, limited reality that there is markedly more suffering in the world than there is pleasure and so, it makes sense to seek out pleasure and to hold onto and to seek it out again whenever it runs its course from a particular external stimuli.

However, existing only for the purpose of seeking out pleasure seems defeatist to me; I see suffering as a problem, yes, but I also see it as part of the solution because it holds an immense utility; that is, the utility of endurance. The suffering state can be applied to almost any circumstance and be used to reinforce one’s passions, beliefs and objectives. The embracement of suffering in this way and using it to one’s advantage as a means of propelling further is the mechanism that Astronism hopes to achieve in the various stages of transcension. Although transcension will cause even greater suffering for humanity in the short-term, the long-term promise of transcension is that humankind will eventually be free of all suffering and evil as long as transcension is completed. In this regard, transcension is the epitome of the principle “suffer now for the betterment of those ahead”. This is why transcension is not hedonistic; it does not seek to reduce suffering by placating whims with pleasure but instead seeks to solve the problem of suffering by embracing and using to our collective advantage the suffering in the world as a means of eventually eliminating suffering altogether. Hedonism seeks the opposite; hedonism wishes to avoid actions that might induce suffering while gravitating only to those which are knowingly pleasurable. Astronism instead embraces the wonder of the unknown and insists that transcension, although itself as a process will be riddled with suffering, the cosmocentric transformation that humanity will undergo as a result of transcension will eliminate suffering altogether.

Transcension has been the process underlying humanity’s evolution. The scope of man heralded the beginning of modern humanity and the Astronist progress of transcension is indeed central to the next major stage of human evolution; in turn, transcension heralds the Astrocene. Astronist doctrine as it pertains to transcension asserts that humanity will gain the qualities required to achieve salvation through transcension. Transcension is an exclusive soteriology meaning that it is the Astronist conviction that transcension is the only way that humanity could hope to achieve its salvation in disregard or refutation of all other claims to salvation.

Astronism presents an aspirational version of the human condition, one idealised by elevating and transcending humankind through the medium of the astronomical world. This process that I call transcension may seem abstract and somewhat distant or perhaps even irrelevant to some but that is because one may be focusing too heavily on the collective futurism of transcension. There is also an individual presentism aspect to transcension that is practical, physical and perfect for engagement from the individual. Transcension is therefore broad enough as an ideal to be applied both individually and collectively as well as unified enough under the banner of the theme of the astronomical world to retain a clear identity with a definitive collective purpose.

The Astronist Vision is clear at its heart but complex at its execution. The complexity of the Astronist Vision is no issue for the plan of transcension is sophisticated enough to bring to fruition the Astronist Vision. The life of an Astronist is centred on proximation to the astronomical world in every way possible; the Astronist way is cosmocentric; there is an ever-present centrality on the astronomical.

I will now spend Chapter V of The Astronist Statement justifying why I consider this to be the case and how I see humanity’s ascent to transcension taking place.

V. Our Path to Transcension

We live in precarious times. A time in which the world is more full of information than ever before but much of this is noise, whether by intention or not, that distracts us from our primary purpose. We must be mindful of where we place our attention in these times for our mind’s focus is a scarce resource, the misplacement of which towards pursuits that regress transcension discount the abundance of scope that exists all around us. Indeed, one of my greatest nightmares is to contemplate the amount of scope for transcension that has already come and been lost forever due to humanity’s persistent disregard for the analiptic endeavour. But still, I have pondered myself and I have been asked by others about the necessity of transcension. Firstly, need transcension occur and secondly, what needs will transcension fulfil?

To clarify, transcension is a serial process that a sapient species may undergo. It involves becoming a spacefaring species and transcending both in mind and in body as a result of the knowledge, experiences, revelations and evolutionary changes that will take place. These are altogether holistically referred to as “immersion into the astronomical world”. Transcension is attributed with many rewards and benefits in Astronism, principal among which is the promise of salvation. Space exploration is of course central to the process of transcension but transcension itself is broader than space exploration alone; transcension may be understood as a religious space exploration rather than forms or ventures of space exploration that are devoid of religious or philosophical underpinnings. The ultimate purpose for executing transcension is so that humanity may achieve its ultimate state, to reach the fullest potential of our species.

* * *

The Economy of Transcension, or what I sometimes also call the Siderine Economy, is the Astronist presentation of a rational management of this process of humanity’s transcension. My role in Astronism is to bring about a justification for transcension’s salvific capacity in the form of its ability to alleviate and eventually eradicate humanity’s limitations and thereby end all evil and suffering.

Some may be confused over what transcension constitutes, perhaps partly due to the terminology and theoretical complexities that surround this central Astronist concept. To simplify, we can break down what transcension means into three categories: its orientation, its nature and its function.

The orientation of transcension is embodied not merely by an upward direction for this is only ascension. Transcension means to become and go beyond, to reach out into the unknown, to literally become part of that into which one ascends. Transcension is therefore not simply ascension but places an emphasis on transversing limitations through the medium of the astronomical world. Because the astronomical world is above and beyond us as human beings in every way, we can immerse ourselves into it both physically, non-physically and metaphysically so that we, in some senses, can become astral ourselves. Of course, this is the process of astrosis which literally means “unity with the astronomical world”. Through this, we can change our nature which means overcoming our limitations by transversing the physical and non-physical boundaries that our present natural condition has set down.

To digress shortly, this reality of the astronomical world touches on one curious aspect about the nature of human limitation. For all human history, the astronomical world has stared down at us as an incessant reminder of our physical limitations. All we may hope to presently interact with the astronomical world at our current stage of transcensional development is through observation, imagination, astral worship and astral ecstasy. This is because physical venturements into the astronomical world are still significantly bounded and experienced by very few.

Now returning to our principal discussion, the nature of transcension is that it is both a bodily process and a mental process. The body and the mind extend beyond knowability and capability when transcension is in effect. Transcension is therefore a process for the whole person, both the physical aspects of ourselves and the non-physical. However, one should be careful not to merely conflate transcension with enlightenment or other spiritual means of transcendence that other religions have spoken of for millennia. The key quality of transcension is its “astronomicality” — its astronomical theme. Transcension must take place through the medium of the astronomical world; if not, then you are speaking of something else, perhaps the Buddhist enlightenment or the Christian theosis. For a ‘claim to transcension’ to be true, it must be astral in source and theme.

Finally, the function of transcension is that part of transcension that I have spoken most commonly about. It is its salvific capacity. Transcension not only constitutes transcendence beyond the present condition but is asserted, through Astronism, to be the key instrument of salvation. It is through the correct execution of the transcensional endeavour that human beings will attain salvation. Indeed, this is the basis of all Astronism which, at its core, is a belief system that makes an exclusive claim over transcension, asserting the truth of its conception of its transcension and the plan it establishes to execute it. Transcension is therefore, to Astronists, both the path that leads to salvation as well as the embodiment of salvation itself.

* * *

Transcension is a transformative process, one that ultimately seeks to change the nature of humanity entirely, not merely to migrate us from one condition to another.

Now just because we as humans have the mental capability for overcoming limitation does not mean that we will use it; in fact, what I perceive as the reality is that the majority of people do not use their mental capabilities to their full potential.

Individualism, psychopathy, narcissism are all forms of this lack of use or misuse of mental capability for transcension.

These are defects of the human person all ultimately caused by limitation no matter the context and no matter the consequence.

* * *

There has always been something inside me; a feeling that the world is not as it should be; my dissatisfaction with the way humanity is has been the underlying motivator of my founding of Astronism.

It is a central quality of an Astronist to possess a feeling of discontentment with the present order of things; the Astronist is the person who comes along to institute a new order.

Or else I would not have founded Astronism at all; why else would I give so much of my time, energy and resources to Astronism if I did not know it were true? The scope that was afforded to me through Astronism I could not live with myself if I had ignored yet materialistically, I could have ignored this feeling.

I live in a Western power; I am relatively privileged; I was not brought up to believe these Astronist doctrines; I was brought up in a set order to find a job, to raise a family, to buy a house; I have all the material comforts at my fingertips that I could ever dream to possess; to some whom think materially, they may wonder how could I have such dissatisfaction with the status quo; I am young, fit, free, intelligent and skilled; why should I want to spend my youth founding something like Astronism, so abstract and futuristic and whose prophecies I will myself likely not ever seen come to fruition?

This is the question of scope; indeed, why do when you need not? This is something we should ask ourselves more often if we wish to understand the nature of scope. We do because we care and we do because we desire transcension. The transcension that Astronism describes is grand and astronomical and futuristic and in many ways, out of present reach but there are micro-transcensions (called micropses; formed from the Greek word “mikro” for small and the Greek word “anýpsosi” for elevation altogether meaning “small elevations”) that exist in all aspects of life and on a daily basis these can be harnessed for the progression of our own personal astroses and for the gradual progression of the astrosis of humanity (i.e. transcension); scope for transcension is all around us, it pervades the material and the immaterial worlds; although ultimately limited, we do have an abundance of scope and this is indeed one of the greatest parts of our human sapience; that we have the conferment of scope in abundance to our utility.

* * *

To go or not to go? That is the question.

The question of whether to embark upon the endeavour of transcension, which in turn equates to pioneering space exploration, is the ultimate question in Astronist philosophy. It is the question of whether to strive for salvation or not due to the intertwinement of salvation with transcension in Astronism.

* * *

What do I want you to do as an Astronist?

• I want you to think and act with the astronomical world (cosmocentric) and transcension (analipsocentric) at the forefront.
• I want you to centre your ideals on the astronomical world.
• I want you to realise the spirituality and existentiality that comes from the stars and apply this in your devotional and precatorial (prayer) practice.
• I want you to adhere to transcensional morals and ethics to reach the condition of astrosis.
• I want you to contribute to transcension in any way that you can in accordance with your means and skills.
• I want you to educate yourself or seek out education on matters pertaining to astronomy and space exploration.

What do I not want you to do as an Astronist?

• I do not want you to act in contrary to analiptic morals.
• I do not want you to engage in activities or follow ideological paths that might avert your attention and dedication away from the Transcension.

* * *

The notion of transcension as suffering has always been central to its discourses. I am a sufferationist; I pile upon myself expectations and goals that most would view as impossibilities but I, with just a spark of hope, continue to perceive as real and possible. However, part and parcel to my embarkation on fulfilling such objectives, I cause myself so much suffering; some would say this self-inflicted suffering is unnecessary but I see things differently for I see my mental suffering as absolutely essential to the development of my Astronist intellect.

Eperonism (from the Greek word ypoféro meaning to suffer) is the doctrine of the necessity of suffering and its position as the highest moral good. So, to use this new terminology, I am an eperonist. I see suffering as the essential ingredient to building strong character and endurance. Eperonism is also then one’s tendency to embrace suffering and is thereby the antithesis of hedonism.

Suffering will always remain an integral part of the human condition until we alleviate our limitations entirely. The elimination of suffering is futile within the limited cosmos which is why we must leave the cosmos in order to achieve this objective. Transcension is the embodiment of ultimate suffering as the necessary precursor to the elimination of suffering. We only suffer in this life because we are limited in all ways.

Transcension is the purification of humanity of our limited substance. We will no longer suffer when we are purified of our limited qualities. Why not just stay here? Why not just live with the hand that we’ve been dealt as a species? Is the suffering and death that is inevitable in the execution of transcension worth the rewards that transcension promises?

Why not simply live out our days as a species here on Earth settled and comfortable, thus confining the astronomical world to our observations and imaginations? Indeed the Hedonist would say why go and suffer when you can stay and seek out pittances of pleasure?

To live is to suffer, so when I speak of an existence without suffering, I speak of an existence beyond life itself. It is so true that we need not embark upon transcension.

I think there is more out there among the stars than we could ever possibly hope to imagine.

VI. The Promise of Ultimation

Every religion is based on promises and Astronism is no different. This is because religions and philosophies present objectives for humanity but it is because these objectives often involve arduous physical and mental journeys, that rewards that equate to those journeys must follow. Many rewards are associated with transcension. These rewards vary in their nature, some are material (e.g. resources extracted from comets or other planets), some are spiritual (e.g. infusion with prismatic energy), while others are existential (e.g. the fulfilment of human purpose). Analiptic rewards are explored in-depth as part of Astrodoxical discourses on the subject of transcension but the foremost of all of them is that of ultimation.

Ultimation is a state or condition in which a species has maximised its potential and has reached the optimum form of itself. This is meant in both the physical (material) and non-physical (spiritual and existential) dimensions and is the absolute principle of transcension; that transcension is the only method by which a species can hope to gain the opportunity to reach its ultimation. Here, a distinction must be made in Astronist terminology between ultimation and the Ultimation; if ultimation is the optimum condition particular to a species, then the Ultimation is the optimum condition that any species could reach. The Ultimation in Astronism is perceived to be embodied by the process of transcosmisation which entails the transformation of a species’ nature from limited to infinite by transversing the boundary of The Cosmos via technological and metaphysical advancements.

Transcension promises to propel humanity towards its ultimation but cannot account for human tendencies towards aversion to transcension; hence, although it is asserted that transcension holds the capacity to reach humanity its ultimate condition, the actual event of reaching such a condition hinges on human action. The second promise of transcension on the topic of ultimation is that transcension also holds the capacity to propel a species towards the Ultimation itself. Human cooperation with transcension is absolutely essential for these promises to be unlocked however.

Not only does ultimation embody the promise of transcension but also signals the culmination of the completion of transcension for a particular species. The ultimation of a species is the point at which that species may not maximise its capacities, whether mental or physical, any further. Hence, the ultimation of a species is the culmination of the existence of that species, after which it will become subject afterwards to decline and extinction.

In fact, the topic of ultimation actually highlights one very interesting aspect of the purpose of transcension as a whole. Transcension can in fact be interpreted as the journey to determine the human ultimation. This is true because transcension sets forth a certain vision of the human future leading, potentially, towards the Ultimation itself. Transcension is then the measure of human performance against the immense scale of the future presented. Where humanity eventually ends up along this scale will in turn reveal the ultimation of humankind. When viewing transcension in this regard, the process of transcension is actually the ultimate test of humankind, a kind of trial that will take place in the arena of the astronomical world.

Vendox, Official Symbol of Astronism

Visit the Official Website of the Astronist religion: www.astronism.com

Visit the Official Website of the Founder of Astronism: www.cometan.org

Visit the Official Online Encyclopaedia of Astronism: www.astronism.org