World Wide Way

Conscious Perfection

Individual conscious perfection exists in potential as a spark within every human.

There is a pressure from within and without to develop this possibility. The forces maintaining the universe are complex and the reasons for many things in life unclear.

Why do some struggle to realise their inner potential while others dissipate it through a life of ignorance, weakness and neglect? For those who sadly allow this spark to fade there is little individual hope, though their life and death still contribute to the general evolution of humankind.

For those who actively choose inner growth there appears the question of the 'Path' or 'Way'.

Only a fool would feel capable of guiding others on this individual internal path. It is obligation to those beyond, not choice, which is behind what is offered here.

Birth and Choice

The purpose of birth and life is to create the possibility for growth of individual consciousness.

Most of life is just the outer process necessary to sustain life itself. The inner process goes on at a much deeper level than the ordinary mind can appreciate.

Spirit expresses itself through energy, which on its lowest level is perceived as matter. Being evolves within this created system. There is general evolution of Being through all life forms below the level of man (minerals, plants and animals).

There is individual evolution of Being for man and all levels above. Each life may spiral up, circle, or spiral down, run out of energy and fade away.

People come into life with their own triple-aspect Deep Essence, plus a genetic contribution from their parents and grand-parents. This Deep Essence is expanded at birth to form the Personal Energy Field and modified by the subsequent Earth life.

The overall quality of life, especially decisions made at crucial moments in life, determines whether that individual evolves, stagnates or spirals down. Knowledge of each persons triple essence is deeply buried in their Mind.

Spirit exists in the Ever Present Here and Eternal Now. Eternal Now includes past, present and future which exist equally and simultaneously. The Divine Presence is at all places, on all levels, at all times. Only the focus of expression changes from one world to another, either physically distant, internally distant or distant in time.

However, humans accept certain limits while on the Earth in order to provide conditions for development. We are restricted to the body. The inner levels are veiled. Past and present are obscured. All conscious memory of the pre-life condition is removed and it is not till a person begins to function freely within the Higher Energy levels that this memory is clearly regained - although vague and unreliable traces of it are sometimes discovered by those who are psychically sensitive in the Lower Energy levels.

Choice is created by this veiling of the Spirit from the superficial consciousness. Attachment to the senses is the result. These lead to identification of the self with the body, which is 'spiritual ignorance'. Consequently, Mind must then make the choice to respond either to internal influences from above, or to external influences from below.

Death Process

On physical death, the Deep Mind withdraws first from the Physical body, then, according to its state, progressively over time from the Lower Energies (Etheric, Astral and Celestial).

The Personality or Ego fades as the Personal Energy Field gradually dissolves. The essential experiences of that life, on each level, are condensed as Deep Essence and withdrawn within the Deep Mind.

People are divided at death into three general categories - those who remain on the Earth, those who return to the Earth and those who move on to a higher evolution.

Earth-bound

Those who remain after death have cut themselves of from their Spirit by their actions and attitudes during their life.

They continue to exist on the Earth for a time in their Shadow Bodies composed mainly of the most gross Lower Energies (Etheric). Their Deep Mind is de-energised by the withdrawal of the Spirit and Higher Energies. The Shadow Body, along with the accumulated triple essence from their past lives, gradually fades away over about 21 years and that person ceases to exist as an individual.

The life energies, along with accumulated patterns, dissolve back into their sources to be recycled. They contribute to the energy field of the Earth in an unconscious general sense, as do animals. This absorption of the particular characteristics created by the individual is done from compassion, avoiding the almost hopeless suffering the person would experience in future lives, and freeing the Spirit for a new attempt.

Rebirth

Those who return have lived a life where consciousness has not completely attached itself to the body.

That part of the Personal Energy Field that can be freed from involvement with the body is condensed in its essence back into the Deep Mind within which consciousness continues. The Shadow Body, un-constrained by any directing intelligence, dissolves, over 3 to 7 days, back into its constituent parts. The Deep Mind dies to the Earth but is simultaneously born to another existence.

Each of the planets has an intelligence and energy level relative to its position within the energy field of the Solar System and it is to their corresponding place that the person is drawn. This is the same existence the person experienced in deep sleep during their life on Earth. After a period of time within the energy field of some particular planet - exactly one lifetime in that new existence and generally between 3 years and 4 to 5 hundred years depending on the energy level to which they have withdrawn - people are attracted back by their Deep Essence to be reborn on the Earth in another body.

Each rebirth the Personal Energy Field is recreated by the Deep Mind based on a combination of the accumulated Deep Essence from past lives, parents genetic and energetic contributions, and surrounding life conditions. The 3 Minds must be newly regulated, strengthened and refined and a new Personality forms in the early life of the individual.

This is the ground conditions in which the seed of the Soul may grow. Past family ties are one important factor affecting the circumstances of rebirth, but also any strong energy connections such as love, hate, or dependence.

There is also a factor of choice from the Spirit as it seeks to repair damage its previous incarnations may have caused and repay those it may have treated badly, often by seeking the opposite role as the sufferer. Men may come back as women and women as men.

Africans, Europeans, Asians, etc, often change races and experience the other side of racial disharmony. Religious Jews, Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus etc, will change places if there has been religious persecution or hatred on their part.

The rich may return poor and the dominant classes may return as the subservient. People are given this chance to learn and change but often just repeat their mistakes and take revenge for what they perceive as a new mis-justice.

Moving On

Those who move on (resurrected in the higher worlds), have both tuned the Deep Mind predominantly to that of the Higher Energies and the Spirit, and worked through the accumulated obligations from their past.

The 3 Minds have evolved within the Personal Energy Field which has been gathered, refined and crystallised into the Sphere of the Deep Mind (Crystal Body). At death the individual consciousness is withdrawn completely into this Crystal Energy Body where it continues to function with will, consciousness and action, experiencing no further need to be reborn on the Earth.

These Beings are on various levels. A few who have only passed the second initiation and who would usually return to the Earth, may, under certain known conditions, be able to remain in the Astral (2nd energy level) and work on from there. Others past the 3rd initiation will remain on the Celestial (3rd) energy level. Only those passed the 4th initiation are truely free and may enter the spiritual higher energy levels (4th energy level and beyond).

Balance

Training simultaneously within the outer physical world through the 3 aspects of ourselves (physical, emotional and mental) will initiate balanced growth within the 3 levels of the Deep Mind - Etheric, Astral and Celestial (Deep Body, Deep Emotional, Deep Mental).

Not understanding that, systems of development may over-emphasise one aspect at the expense of the others, producing unbalanced inner growth, some progress on the path, but leading the person into a side path from which it may be difficult to return to the true way (as the ego will resist going back in order to go forward).

Ultimately, balance is rooted in the True Self. Then when external pressures appear the inevitable movement away from the centre in subtle response to these pressures, increases the elastic pull back towards the centre, maintaining a delicate balance throughout the system and ensuring the return to the centre when the pressures subside.

Pain is produced when the elastic pull is not strong enough and the system distorts too far. This pain provides a necessary opposing force to guide the system back towards balance.

Struggle, Acceptance and Separation

Struggle (will, effort, aspiration) produces change in the sense of evolution.
Acceptance (tolerance, equanimity, submission) partially removes the desire to change from the effort to change. Separation (awareness, consciousness, non-attachment) partially removes the sense of self from the effort to change.

However separation by itself (quietly watching), is not correct training. You should first make an effort to achieve something, then while in that intense process maintain a deeper part of yourself uninvolved in the action. Part of that uninvolvment requires acceptance of the resistance to change (inertia of parts of ourselves and those around us) which will inevitably oppose and frustrate the initial intention. Again however, simply acceptance of all that happens around us with no effort to change, is not correct training.

For balanced work, follow the example of a baby. It makes a tremendous effort to reach out for food, not concerned by its repeated failures but learning each time until it achieves its aim. Then makes a tremendous effort to crawl, then to walk, then to talk. This effort, with awareness of the result and acceptance of the repeated failures builds intelligence on a deep level. Gradually this intelligence takes over and the baby moves on to the next most immediate possibility for advancement - in a potentially never ending process.

Inner Growth

Abdullah and Gurdjieff talked of the growth of the Soul or Body Kesdjan.

Body Kesdjan means vessel of the spirit and so does soul. Also the term magnetic centre, used by both teachers is a type of receiving place for the spirit.

More specifically Abdullah called the 3 grades of vessel - magnetic centre, soul , body kesdjan. Then the next stage he called mental body. But Gurdjieff and Abdullah only described these things quite roughly, so inconsistences appeared - such as Human#1, #2, #3 being on the same horizontal level but Human#4, #5, #6, #7 ascending vertically through the levels.

More accurately, the vessel of the Spirit is always over 3 energy levels. Initially (past the first initiation or Human#2) it is centred on the etheric level(magnetic centre). This stage does not provide 3 levels in which the Spirit can function - it rests in a passive state within the astral and celestial. This level of development can persist barely changing for many lifetimes - like a seed which is not yet planted in the ground.

Then when past the 2nd initiation the vessel of the Spirit centres on the astral (soul). Only now Spirit takes root in the three energy levels and begins to develop - active in etheric/physical, conscious/unconscious in astral, source of being in celestial. Spiritual balance - balance between the 3 levels through which the Spirit is expressing itself - can begin to appear.

When past 3rd initiation (Human#4) the vessel of the Spirit centres on the celestial or deepmental (body kesdjan) - at this stage the astral is the field of action, celestial is field of consciousness, 4th energy level is source of being (intelligence). At this stage the physical/etheric serves little purpose except as an agent through which to act in the world. Physical rebirth is not necessary but the Being may be reborn into the astral after a period of withdrawal to the celestial following physical death.

When past 4th initiation (Human#5) the vessel of the Spirit centres on the 4th energy level (mental body) - at this stage the celestial is the field of action, 4th energy level is field of consciousness, 5th energy level is source of being (intelligence). When in a body some tenuous connection to the 3 levels of the Deep Mind are retained but after death these are severed forever. This is true realisation, liberation or enlightenment.

Overvaluing 'No Thought'

A recurring mistake of modern self appointed teachers, not themselves deeply trained by a true teacher, is to overvalue the quiet state that arises when thoughts are stopped.

Whole systems are then devised from the subconscious thoughts, feelings and actions that arise in this state. This mistake is signaled when people talk mainly of 'awareness', of 'witnessing' and of the 'now' and of 'being present'. This sense of over-viewing separation is a relatively passive brain state, hiding within it the ego itself.

The ego does not die and reappear when thought is stopped or resumed. Neither does the Deep Mind (Real Self) manifest or disappear with the cessation of thought or its resumption. Further, neither body stillness nor emotional inactivity nor the state of mental quietness, can cause the ego to fade and the Deep Mind to arise.

No old wise teacher I have ever met has seen the state of no thought, no movement or no emotion, as more than an elementary stage through which we must quickly pass. These are partial methods that have a place in a larger scheme of training, best directed by those who have themselves been transformed over many decades by this same deep process.

Ramana Maharshi

"You are the Self even now, but you confuse your present consciousness with the Absolute Consciousness or True Self. This false identification is due to ignorance and ignorance disappears together with the ego. Killing the ego is the only thing to be done. Realisation already exists."

Sri Yukteswar

Resurrection of Sri Yukteswar:

"The interpenetration of a person's three bodies is expressed in many ways through their threefold nature. In the wakeful state on earth a human being is conscious more or less of their three vehicles.

When they are sensuously intent on tasting, smelling, touching, listening, or seeing, they are working principally through their physical body. Visualizing or willing, they are working mainly through their astral body.

The causal medium finds expression when a person is diving deeply in thought, introspection or meditation. In this sense an individual may be classified broadly as 'a material human', 'an energetic human', or 'an intellectual human'.

A person identifies themselves about sixteen hours daily with their physical vehicle. Then they sleep; if they dream, they remain in their astral body, effortlessly creating any object even as do the astral beings. If a person's sleep be deep and dreamless, for several hours they are able to transfer their consciousness, or sense of I-ness, to the causal body." Resurrection of Sri Yukteswar EN Resurrection of Sri Yukteswar FR Resurrection of Sri Yukteswar DE

Omar Khayyam

'Tis all a chequer-board of nights and days,
Where destiny with men for pieces plays:
Hither and thither moves, and mates, and slays,
And one by one back in the closet lays.

The Ball no question makes of Ayes and Noes,
But Right or Left as strikes the Player goes;
And He that toss'd Thee down into the Field,
He knows about it all - HE knows - HE knows!

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