Reply to "The Plight of Tulpas" r/Tulpas Post

https://www.reddit.com/r/Tulpas/comments/kgg44g/the_plight_of_tulpas/

I had a nice debate about this entire post in a Discord server and I'm now ready to give my thoughts. I had to repaste this on Pastebin because Reddit's character limit is a lie and Pastebin ate the previous paste. Fuck both Pastebin and Reddit, I'm really fucking salty now:

"Forcing - This term is quite heavy and laden with oppressive and ironic implications. Spending time with your friend wouldn’t be called “Forcing”, because you aren’t forcing them or yourself to do anything. A much better term would simply be “Interaction”, and that goes for all varieties of the term."

"Forcing" means to force your tulpa to exist because they can't do that themself yet and self-forcing tulpas are forcing themselves to exist, you don't have to force your friends to exist because they already do. Interaction is very broad and easy mistake without direct context.

"Wonderland - A silly term. “Mindscape” would do better."

Agreed, hate "wonderland" with a passion because of the fantastical not-real vibe it gives.

"Host - A seemingly all important and “superior” term. Could be changed to “Original” instead."

"Original" can be worse because it gives a "first come, first serve" feel and host doesn't feel like that to a lot of people. If you go off of the general Plurality community, "host" simply means the primary fronter and has nothing to do with dominance.

"Possession - Archaic and mystical, a word with heavy negative implications that will continue to bewilder and confuse those coming into our community. “Piloting” would be a suitable replacement for this term as well as replacing “Switching”. "

I don't think "piloting" is any better and sounds more mechanical. At least people can understand what possession means through context. What people are confused by what "possession" means? Also, there is absolutely nothing with switching and that term has been used by the Plurality community for decades. There's no negative connotation to it. All it means is to switch places in the front; that's not hard to understand at all.

"Parroting & Deviation - These terms shouldn’t exist. Plain and simple. Parroting is unnecessary and should be discouraged. Deviation is simply the term for your tulpa growing and exercising freedom. No replacements are necessary."

Parroting is not a bad thing! In moderation, it gives some systems that much-needed boost. As long as people use it in moderation and not on already developed tulpas, it's not an issue. With deviation, that term exists because people want a way to describe how their tulpa deviates from how they were originally, which isn't a bad thing on its own.

"Tulpamancy - Silly, archaic, and mystical. “Tulpa creation” would do better."

It does have that connotation, but it's a well-established term that's being used in academic papers, good luck changing it now. I don't mind it because I personally like the sound of it.

"Tulpa - A term with a dizzying history. With roots in Tibetan Buddhism, the occult, horror pop culture, and 4chan, this term should be done away with. It is also quite dehumanizing, implying tulpas are somewhat “lesser” than their creators. People are often confused about the term tulpa, thinking it is a supernatural phenomena or some kind of Creepypasta. This has to constantly be explained away to newcomers with “Well, our tulpa is different.” This is wholly unnecessary and constitutes for a different term entirely. My only suggestions would be Idem (Latin word for “the same”) or Cognate (Cognition and mate, as well as meaning related or connected)."

One, tulpa is a word that is a "bastardization of a bastardization" that isn't directly a Tibetan word. Two, where does it say in the definition that tulpas are lesser??? Yes, it's frustrating that people still mistake it for the creepypasta, but that has gone down over the years. Third, tulpa *sounds* better than your suggested alternatives and also in definition.
"Idem" in Italian means "same" or "repeat" when said at someone, and tulpas *aren't* the same as their hosts in many ways. My tulpas aren't the same as me, as they are independent and different people. The other alternative also suggests tulpas being dependent on their hosts, which again, is a problem. How are these any better than "tulpa"?

"ACCOUNTABILITY"

"Tulpas are not lesser than us. Even if they were, they do not act lesser than us. They respond to pain, positive reinforcement, and many situations the exact same way we do. However, this is not something we say loud enough. Many believe tulpas are owned, are imaginary friends, facades, or simply lesser beings they can abuse, ignore, and torment. With the sour terminology of our community and the lack of reinforcement of this basic fact, this ignorant mindset becomes commonplace and is only cleared up if asked. Still, even when “cleared up”, heavy implications linger, and the lack of taking the topic seriously mixed with what I stated previously still makes for a terrible atmosphere for tulpas."

Didn't you say you are a tulpa at the start? Then why are you talking like you're not a tulpa? I don't get it. I don't know how many people think they "own" their tulpas, but I doubt it's a majority or as many as you say. Also, the sidebar literally says that tulpas =/= imaginary friends. Otherwise, I agree with the first paragraph.

"What I simply want are more dire warnings. I want tulpas to be expressed as what they are: people. People who hurt and love just like us. We should also heavily discourage those who are too young from interacting with the community, or at least the concept. Although quite low, saying those 14 or 15 and under should not practice would prevent lots of mishaps, as well as preventing those who don’t fully understand the concept and taking it on from regretting it later."

Why else do you think in my Tulpamancy guide, at the very start, that I put a disclaimer that Tulpamancy is a lifelong commitment? That a tulpa deserves love and care like any other person and that they are not disposable? I have a whole section dedicated to the ethics of Tulpamancy and many unethical reasons why to make a tulpa and why it's wrong.

I made Arcanus when I was fifteen, and mind you, I was pretty damn mature for my age, but I know I'm an outlier there. But that's my point: outliers exist and barring those outliers seems a little unfair? Though to be fair, you can always wait to make a tulpa, they're not going anywhere.  I think that's a point you should've included.

"Of course, you could simply retort “That isn’t going to stop someone who really wants to.” And you would be correct, in some sense. However, this is the problem with accountability. We do not act as a community that wants hosts and tulpas to function. We do not act as comrades who wish to help one another and further our knowledge of this phenomenon. We simply act as a wild west, one with no laws or regard for others. Even if it wouldn’t stop anyone, we, as a community, should simply have warnings in place because it is the right thing to do. Even if we only stop one person, we have done our jobs. As I see it, most don’t seem to care or sidestep the issue, making excuses but condemning these practices all the same. Hypocritical."

Buddy, I can tell you now that my own Tulpamancy server and other servers I'm on do give a damn about furthering knowledge, caring about others, and being constructive and productive. I agree with being more serious with warnings, but there are communities that already do that, you just have to find them.

"DISTINCTION"

"The tulpa community has ironically always had a problem with identity. From the old times of prudish, racist, and uninformative image boards to the sterilized uncaring splintered entity of today, we have never truly been able to distinguish ourselves or truly grasp or understand what we are. That, in part, is why many portions of the community hold wildly different beliefs about the practice. If you are paying attention, you might have noticed that some arguments from the terminology and accountability section seem to be also referring to this issue. They definitely contribute. The indecisive and odd terminology mixed with the lack of accountability and definition within this community has helped lead it to its wishy-washy and fractured nature."

2012 internet was naturally prudish and racist, nothing new there and I'm quite glad we've moved on from that. Unless you mean sterilized as in 4 page trigger lists and not even being able to talk about basic human functions like eating and sleeping, I don't get the sterilized part. Uncaring? Highly disagree there. Again, you need to find the right people. And splintered? Having a decentralized community isn't a bad thing since it promotes many different viewpoints and ideas and makes it harder to form a dictatorship over. Why do we have to be one thing?

"We have seen it time and time again. Community figureheads rising up and then spectacularly falling. Jade & Aury being a prominent example. Charismatic people with influence and knowledge will see our community and cannibalize it due to its weak, malleable state, taking advantage of us to further their own dubious goals. If we were simply distinct and put forth changes to terminology and accountability, we could avoid these types of low lives."

I only just started Tulpamancy right before Jade got outed for being a sh!thead, but like I said, it's harder to cannibalize a community with no center. I like the fact that this community has no leaders. Don't think terminology has anything to do with people like Jade becoming prominent.

"An ongoing example is the Youtube channel Tulpa Guides. The leader, Kopase, has made many racist and homophobic remarks on Discord, as well as spreading dogma and not helping any of the previously stated issues. If someone this vile can gain influence and traction within our community, something needs to change. Think of if someone wanting to bring us all down simply took screenshots of the things they said and attempted to spark outrage against us. What would we do? It would be a confusing mess."

Don't even get me started on him; I have a whole folder dedicated to showing how disgusting he is to warn people. I wish the community would hold him accountable for his absolutely abhorrent behavior and stop platforming him; you absolutely have a point about accountability there. People need to stop tolerating people like him no matter how useful or nice he seems in his videos.

"My solution for this problem is to have a larger focus on self improvement within the community. Updating guides and creating new ones could go a long way, as many of the guides present aren’t very recent and have a lot of their own issues. Tweaking the definition of tulpa as well as the term would make an astounding change. My proposal:"

There's nothing wrong with the definition of tulpa. I seriously don't get the issue with, "A tulpa is a mental companion created by focused thought and recurrent interaction, similar to an imaginary friend," or, "A sentient/sapient, typically intentionally created being that is conscious and autonomous, and can only be seen, heard, or felt by the host/system that can also think independently from the host/system" (from my own guide).

But the self-improvement part? Yes, absolutely. Modern guides? My guide is already a thing, as the most comprehensive Tulpamancy guide to currently exist and I still update it even three years later.  However, I'm one of the only people in modern day to make a guide (especially a general guide) and it makes me really sad. On Tulpa.info currently, only three guides have been submitted this entire year.

If we look back at 2012 and 2013, there were 68 submitted in 2012 and another 43 submitted in the year after that. Do you see the problem? That's literally the only thing I miss from the 2012 days: people actually tried things and wrote down their experiences.
I want people to write guides, I want people to put their experiences into a form that can teach others. We do need modern resources, 100%. That is absolutely something that needs to be encouraged. Personally, I review guides and have built a compilation on what my systemmates and I think is acceptable to share to newcomers, and I've had to dis a lot of guides because they're just too outdated.

"Idem/Cognate: An Idem/Cognate is a distinct sapient, sentient, and autonomous **personality** living alongside one in one's own mind. They are created through persistent mind exercises that hone mental skills such as concentration and meditation."

Wanna talk hypocrisy? Calling tulpas personalities; that term is already problematic from that alone. You say you're a tulpa, right? You of all people should know that tulpas are much more than personalities. Personalities are a set of characteristics in a being in order to reach to stimulus. Tulpas aren't just characteristics, they're people, they have thoughts, opinions, beliefs, dreams, memories, you name it. Personalities don't encompass what I just listed.

Second, you can absolutely create a tulpa through passive forcing with no meditation or dedicated concentration, so that's also
inaccurate. "Repeated interaction whether intentionally or unintentionally," would be much more accurate since it also includes that tulpas can be unintentionally made.

"FINAL STATEMENT:"

"A more serious, mature approach to the topic, combining warnings and affirmation about what tulpas really are, a focus on self improvement exercises and general positivity, and changing terms and definitions in the community will lead us to the right direction. We should be a kind, distinct, and serious community focusing on furthering knowledge of the tulpa phenomenon and preventing those with dubious intentions from infiltrating it, as well as promoting a mature, responsible mindset towards the phenomena."

I don't think the entire community has to be serious, why can't we just have casual spaces, then more academic spaces? Other than the terminology bit, I mostly agree.

Oh, and with the title? You don't speak on the behalf of every tulpa and it's not some group-funded "plight," it's *your* thoughts and opinions on the community, which is fine, but not when you make it sound like every tulpa says what you're saying... because they don't.

My final thoughts: your post is just yet another post about complaining about things the community has had issues with for years, and I can say this because I too have made a post like yours. It gets very tiring, y'know? If you want to see change, actually do something other than complain and offer solutions.

I think a good idea would to be for people to write their own guides and include a definitions section (a glossary should just be the standard for guides, to be honest) and use definitions that are more ideal/preferred. Or just don't use terms you don't want to see used and use alternatives instead.

You have good intentions, I can see that, but this just isn't the best way to go about it.