Outside Help

Outside Help

From our friend Lindsey V. of the New York Center.

Without recognizing the influence of higher worlds, it is impossible to be a sage. ─ Confucius

Many years ago, at my first introductory meeting to the Fourth Way, the meeting leader stressed that the ideas which would be shared during the meeting were not his ideas, they were the not even the ideas of Peter Ouspensky or George Gurdjieff, they were objective knowledge, coming from a higher level, that of C (Conscious) Influence, and this was why they were so valuable. Without help from this higher level, through the guidance of a teacher connected with Influence C, it was not possible for a man or woman to deeply change their mechanical, habitual life and to awaken to their birthright, a true connection with higher centers.

Although we may have a magnetic center that, in the beginning, orients us in the direction of awakening, or perhaps we have had glimpses of higher states, it is my experience that we need to have the subtle worlds pointed out repeatedly, by a teacher connected with Influence C, and to work with fellow spiritual friends to stabilize the connection. If we substitute presence for beauty, Rumi sums it up well.

Beauty surrounds us, but usually we need to be walking in a garden to know it. ─ Rumi

And what of the mechanical habits that we all have, those that lead us around and around, draining our energy and obstructing awakening? The words of the Italian poet Petrarch ring true:

My own thoughts are struggling against me. Why am I drawn to the bait?─ Petrarch

The study of why we are repeatedly drawn to the ‘bait’ is a fundamental part of the process of awakening that requires precise spiritual tools, higher knowledge, and sincere self-observation. Committing to taking up any of the posted weekly exercises is guaranteed to point this out and create moments of presence.

All philosophy lies in two words, sustain and abstain. ─ Epictetus

Much work can be done by oneself, but at a certain point, a teacher connected with Influence C and a group of like-minded spiritual friends become essential to lift the veil of our habitual mechanicality and to realize our highest possibilities.

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Release from Deception (marble), Francesco Queirolo