Weekly Topic: Essence

Weekly Exercise

From my friend and fellow student, Astha of the Toronto Center

Weekly Topic: Essence

It must be understood that man consists of two parts: essence and personality. Essence in man is what is his own. Personality in man is what is ‘not his own’. ‘Not his own’ means what has come from outside, what he has learned, or reflects, all traces of exterior impressions left in the memory and in the sensations, all words and moments that have been learned, all feelings created by imitation, all this is ‘not his own’, all this is personality. —G.I. Gurdjieff

Essence is the truth in man; personality is the false. But in proportion as personality grows, essence manifests itself more and more rarely and more and more feebly. —Sergio Antonio, A Question of Presence

This week, work with refraining from drinking your usual morning beverage (if it is tea, refrain from drinking, coffee the same, or whatever you usually drink in the morning) until 12:00 noon for a week. Share your experience in the comments section.

Without school work, essence is unaware of itself. —The Teacher

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Hall of the Universal Sermon (1800, Rajasthan, Jaipur, India)