Zigzag Idiot

A talk Almaas gave over 30 years ago. “MOST SPIRITUAL PATHS, including the Diamond Approach, involve a certain paradox of realization. We practice, we do exercises, we become responsible for our own liberation, and, at the same time, we know from our experience that realization often happens without being directly connected to the practices that we engage. By exploring this paradox, we can come to understand the relationship between our own intention to wake up and the action of grace. We can come to appreciate the relationship between our own responsibility for our experience and the view that God or Being or true nature makes freedom happen." - A. H. Almaas, Runaway Realization, ch. 1

Maurice Nicoll was the first to be given permission from both Gurdjieff and Ouspensky to become a Teacher of “The Work”.He passed up the opportunity to study with Carl Jung and instead went to France and spent a year with Gurdjieff. Nicoll was a Scottish physician. I get amused at his describing how prevalent self deception is,,,, I well know as a medical psychologist the awkward point where I had to say to the patient: ‘Yes—I can see you have been badly treated, never appreciated, never properly understood. You have told me all that very clearly. But do you think that it is possible that you are not quite the ideal person that you seem to imagine yourself to be, and that there may be some quite serious faults in yourself?’ Now you can all imagine the haughty look, the frozen smile, the magnificent rising from the chair—and the slamming of the door—without, of course, the fee being paid. Yes—but what has happened. . . What has been touched? What would you call it? Whatever you call it, it is this factor that prevents self-change...If he sees for himself something of this factor in him, which is so formidable and the source of so much violence, then it is not aroused antagonistically. He sees himself: he begins to accept what he would never have accepted from another. It is in this way that the Work deals with this otherwise intractable factor in Man.” V. 3, pp. 1165-1166 Another excerpt from Nicoll,,,, COMPASSION II “It is impossible to endure one another’s unpleasant manifestations in the right sense of the meaning of the word unless we see our own unpleasant manifestations and know them and accept them...(We) begin to realize our own helplessness, so we can endure the helpless- ness of others.” V. 3, p. 832 From Psychological Commentaries On the Teaching of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky by Maurice Nicoll

Mental health one-liners Neurosis- It's when you apologize too much for being horrible. It's almost like humility. Innocence feels almost like when you have no conscience. Stupidity can be experienced as constipated reason. Exhaustion is a wonderful help for not reacting passionately about anything. Stupidity and exhaustion can merge minus anger and the experience can be similar to peace of mind. Understanding is the prime ingredient for any state of consciousness that feels royal, supreme and common.

We're all somewhere on the scale of crazy We all have different masks that we wear. Don't we? Consider the small muscles of the face,,, Sometimes you might notice a certain tension in your face. Maybe your concentrating on a detail oriented task. Or perhaps you're in a restaurant and happen to notice a baby being fed one spoon after another by her mother but the child is resistant. This produces that phenomena where by watching you start opening your mouth as the mother opens her mouth while putting the spoon closer the child's face. In both instances, you are in a state of identification. In how many ways can we be identified? I would wager that it would be limited and not endless but none the less a very high number. I may be wrong ,,, I don't know for sure. Throw in intensity of identification which would indicate a deeper state of "attachment" or more shallow state of being identified. I'm not a very expressive person outwardly and by nature, I'm more introverted than extroverted. But the sometimes exaggerated or hyperbolic way I express the attitude of my inner world, often with a degree of irreverence. This makes for a problem for some people who have known me all my life but really don't know me. In the last 20 years I've experienced an inward transformation of sorts but there are still many character flaws that crop up. In actualizing one's potential there are many possibilities in both vertical growth and horizontal growth. As far as I can tell, there is no perfect person achievement award to be had, but there can be an inner quiet that formerly was rarely felt. This inner quiet has a quality of Self remembrance connected with it. But not always,,,, Everyone of us has to move out of the condition of being an unguided Gollum, of sorts. Gollum was very identified with the ring. with "precious", in Lord of the Rings. "Conscious suffering is the medicine to make the automaton surrender to the permanent witness," -Ocke de Boer From there one must self initiate and bring the mind into the heart.

Eschatology is the study of the end of the world, the end of human history, or the end of the current age. It is a branch of theology that deals with beliefs about death, judgment, and the final fate of humankind. The term eschatology comes from the Greek words eschato(s), which means "last", and -logy. It was first recorded between 1835 and 1845. Eschatology is a topic of interest in many religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. In Christianity, eschatology is concerned with the Second Coming of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, and the Last Judgment. For example, Christians believe that Jesus' sacrifice and resurrection will lead to the resurrection of believers on the Last Day. The concept of eschatology has also been applied to the religions of nonliterate peoples, ancient Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cultures, and Eastern civilizations.

Dave Chapelle is extremely intelligent .His willingness to say anything combined with a capacity for mimicry that,,,,, what is it? His mimicry is an act of embodiment. No? Makes him hilarious anyway.

There are so many lines of development that can be worked on in Actualizing one's potential that I decided in the past to not pay much attention to some of them. For instance, I'm a terrible speaker for the most part. Especially in front of an audience. Having to speak in front of an audience is a common phobia. I'd say especially so for those who are more introverted. If you try to be everything to everybody, there's a chance you'll just get overwhelmed and end up disappointed with yourself. These people who always say that you need to push out of your comfort zone to make yourself grow. Well, how about me increasing my ability to confront those who say this? Why not? I've always rooted for the underdog. So, I'm going to make arguments in favor of those who would rather not speak and be in opposition to those extroverted brash attention whores who are in love with the sound of their own voice. I do come off as a little too harsh and cynical sometimes. One characteristic of an enneatype 6 is overcompensating. I try to at least observe that tendency. As well as the appearance of cynicalness. In the past I've noticed how a cynical attitude will produce a near constant low-grade guilt. Wishing people well, especially those who you might find offensive is a good counter balance for cynicism. It lifts a burden and changes my inner world when I can honestly have this frame of mind towards everyone. Then again, if I get angry and bitch at someone,,, well it just happens. It means I reacted instead of responded. We're all human. So don't beat yourself up when you miss the mark and behave in a way that you regret. Observing one's mistakes instead of justifying why you did it, makes you grow. That's a Fourth Way concept.

@Wisebaxter That's impressive! Congratulations brother!

@Fountainbleu Just my 2 cents worth,, How about the idea of balancing the intellect with feelings? The system I've been involved with mostly is based on Fourth Way or Gurdjieff. Their are varying lineages. But they are basically the same. The idea is also put forward that the instinctive center needs to be balanced with the intellectual and the heart center.

Update My friend showed up the other day and said he'd been sickly. He also said he'd pulled a dead decaying rat out of the well. The well we had drank out of on July 4th. I said, " damn".

Obvatyl=householder - A somewhat balanced human being who can interact and get things done in the world. When they become disillusioned with life and the trappings of materialism. That is the possible entrance into the “Work”, with a head start. A teacher once said to me, “the Work is for Losers”.

That's it. I agree. The imagination is more of a curse than potential capacity for creativity for a good deal of the human race. Having it as an avenue for escapism enables the needed dissociation to not face uncomfortable aspects of oneself. Unconstrained imagination keeps people asleep in different forms of identification. I don't want to be overly negative here though. Self deception is a major hurtle for people who are interested in actualizing their potentials. By it's very nature, we can see others psychological blind spot better than we can see our own.

Thanks @LastThursday

Personality Style Test Your personality style is: Schizoid Your test scores suggest that your personality style entails: A defect in your ability to form social relationships and an under-responsiveness to all sorts of stimuli. You exhibit an intrinsic emotional "flatness" where the highs don't get too high and the lows don't get too low. Emotions like joy, anger, and sadness do not move you as much as they move other people. Your natural state appears to be one where you have "retired" a bit into yourself, which is one source of the calmness that characterizes your normal state. Unlike what might be expected, your passivity and lack of vitality is not a form of self-protection, but simply seems to be your natural state. I was too retarded to copy the results like everyone else has . I don't think the result was very accurate for me. How do you copy and share the results like y'all have?

Pretty wild,,, 9 minutes

When I understand someone. I'm able to forgive any transgression or overlook a possible grievance. Understanding comes from seeing an aspect in them that l have also witnessed in myself. An aspect that might be considered a character flaw. In having experienced remorse over the 'shared experience', a feeling of empathy arises in myself for their possible uncomfortableness. Understanding becomes a treasure that brings a form of inner peace and makes patience more possible. That may sound a bit self righteous the way I worded it. Beginners mind fits well at this point.

These are my take-aways,,, True wisdom is understanding. Understanding comes about from a combination of knowledge and Being. Beingness and presence are lacking in the contemporary civilization. Time is taking precedence over space where knowledge and information are dominant juxtaposed to Being. Thinking is more often dominating over feeling. Open up to your feelings by becoming empty-headed. Get out of your head by putting attention on the physical sensation of your feet. It can also help to role play a very stupid person. Allow feelings to surface from a place of innocence. A relaxed body is an honest body. Short attention span theatre is eroding the character quality of patience in a fast paced world. Technology is increasing the prevalence of depression in humans. Before you become big hearted in a practical way, you have to experience indulgence and actually observe yourself being a selfish, impatient asshole. It’s not so much the experience of gluttony and satiation but observing it in real time which can aid the healing of addictions in a more enduring way opposed to current culture’s strategy of subtle or blatant shaming. Don’t let other people divide you against yourself. Aloha,,,

A very enjoyable YouTube combining Gurdjieff, Sheldrake, Nicoll, Jung, Lazlow, and others, rendering a thoughtful, meandering description of a whole pile things sitting next to, and within, a stack of holons. May everyone reading this be cursed with some kind of problem or inconvenience today which results in an unexpected growth or insight which broadens your perspective and adds a degree of understanding which correlates in a certain proportion to the suffering experienced from said curse. So that the sensation of time being warped results without the effect of memory loss which is usually a side effect of time warp growth phenomena. A blessing/curse of a certain kind must be long winded. Don’t axe me why results are often shattering. Have a good bad day in a heyoka kind of way.

From the teachings of A.H. Almaas What is Ontology? Diamond Approach Teachings About: Ontology Activities Don't Have an Ontological Presence This is a very important difference. It means that emotions don't really exist except in the sense that activities exist. They are activities, and activities don't have an ontological presence. Essence, on the other hand, is not an activity. As we saw in chapter 1, essence is a presence, and its basic quality is its existence as an ontological actuality, as a “suchness.” An emotion is an activity that starts and ends, whereas essence is a presence. An emotion is like the movement of water, the activity that is the motion. The motion of water is not the water. Water can be still, without motion. Essence, on the other hand, is like the water. It exists whether there is motion or not. Essence with the Elixir of Enlightenment, pg. 26 Ego is a Structure or a Structured Process Whereas the Pearl is an Ontological Presence The pearl is the real, complete, balanced, and rounded personality that psychologists believe they are talking about when they are discussing the ego. We must remember that the ego is a structure, or a structured process, whereas the pearl is essence, which means the pearl is an ontological presence. We call it the personal essence because among all the essential aspects it alone is personal. It is experienced as having a personal flavor to it, in contradistinction to impersonal. All aspects of essence, even love and kindness, are impersonal. But the pearl is personal. And this is its miraculous quality, totally unexpected and unfathomable. Some people interested in inner development try to become objective and impersonal, to move away from identifying with the personality. The personality is personal, and so the personal feeling is mistrusted and avoided. However, the pearl beyond price feels personal without being the personality. It has the capacity to make a personal contact with another human being and still be free, totally unconditioned, free from the past and its influences. Essence with the Elixir of Enlightenment, pg. 162 Essence is an Embodied Presence, an Ontological Actuality There are other classes of mental experience that are customarily regarded as the experience of essence when in fact they are not, such as the experiences of insight and intuition. In psychotherapy, for instance, one might have an insight about oneself, about others, or about the nature of reality. It often occurs as a flash of illumination and is accompanied by a sense of expansion and certainty. Such insights can provide valuable information and affective satisfaction. Still, the experience of insight is not itself essence, not yet. An insight is an event, and essence is a presence. An insight is an experience of understanding a specific truth, whereas essence is an embodied presence, an ontological actuality Essence with the Elixir of Enlightenment, pg. 21 Essence Reveals Itself as the Ontological Nature of All Existence This essentialization can include all aspects. So the soul’s action can be intelligent, compassionate, clear, steadfast, etc., in a total and full way. And this action can be physical, expressive, or mental. She is presence of essence, but also a dynamic living presence whose morphogenic transformations express the pure perfections of true nature. In this transformation the soul has progressed from the stage of the human soul, the attainment of the second journey, to the stage of the angelic soul, or the essential soul. The second side of the development of nonduality in the journey in presence has to do with essential presence manifesting its ground of true nature. Essence here reveals itself not only as the ontological nature of the soul but as the ontological nature of all existence, all manifestation. True nature begins to reveal its omnipresence, disclosing that it is the ground and nature of everything. This appears as true nature revealing its boundless and formless dimensions that transcend the limited boundaries of the ego-self, even the individuality or personhood of the soul. The soul does not experience herself here as an individual soul, but as a boundless and nonlocal presence that transcends all spatial extensions, as eternal nowness that transcends all time, and as a mystery that transcends all determinations. She is all and everything, she is Reality. The Inner Journey Home, pg. 225 It is Possible to Experience Ourselves as the Actual Ontological Presence that We Are Our experience of ourselves can be transformed from identifying with our mental self-images to having awareness of less contingent, more fundamentally real aspects of the self. It is possible to arrive at a place where we can experience ourselves as the actual phenomenon, the actual ontological presence that we are, rather than as ideas and feelings about ourselves. The more we are able to contact the actual presence that we are, the less we are alienated in a superficial or externally defined identity. The more we know the truth of who we are, the more we can be authentic and spontaneous, rather than merely living through concepts of ourselves. Among the many methods that shift the quality and depth of experience, those used by religious and spiritual traditions are more effective in contacting deeper dimensions of the self, with a more thoroughly developed understanding of these dimensions and their significance for living life than those used by the newer science of psychology. However, psychology has contributed powerful new knowledge about the human being that allows us to systematically work through the barriers to these deeper levels of self, especially the barriers to integrating these levels into one’s identity. In particular, the current understanding of narcissism is very useful for the process of inner realization, the process of learning to contact and appreciate the deeper levels of our nature and allowing these dimensions to actually affect our identity The Point of Existence, pg. 7 Ontological Presence It is possible to arrive at a place where we can experience ourselves as the actual phenomenon, the actual ontological presence that we are, rather than as ideas and feelings about ourselves. The Point of Existence, pg. 7 There are 8 or 9 more excerpts here https://www.diamondapproach.org/glossary/refinery_phrases/ontology

Ted Neugent through the Ages. Ted playing guitar with Amboy Dukes and go go dancers. The galloping rhythm of the song is somehow both humorous and cringeworthy when hearing the lyrics. Ted is also an accomplished bow hunter. He’s a real bad ass. Being an advocate of hunter education and gun ownership reveals his down to earth practicality.

Actualizing our potential brings us together Birds of a feather who flock together Sometimes I'm a crow in peacock feathers I enjoy lightheartedness and sometimes I enjoy arguing Thank you for allowing me some space here @Leo Gura@Keryo Koffa and everyone here,,, "We have to bless the living crap out of everyone." - Matt Kahn