Common origin and common destination

by Jean-Paul
(Paris, France)

Dear All,

Each story is specific to the human who lives it, even if it is obvious , it must be said.

This axiom,it is one to me, contains by itself the most important laws we have to discover, and apply. As I read in this forum, dare to think ! The matter is not to be rigth, or wrong, just dare to think and learn by yourself … then share and serve.

Of course, this will lead to many mistakes, these latter are very important. Without it, we cannot progress.

These few sentences could be an excellent summing up of my path.

I spent many year as a rosicrucian, free masson. I left both when I understood they tried to sell to the member I was something they did not discovered by themselves. Knowledge, and more specifically esoterics must be given for free. Of course, if you create an organization, there are costs. But they must be limited to a strict minimum. That being said, this is just my own opinion, and in these organisations, most of their members are honests.

My first contact with Laurency's work has been initiated by a free masson. It has been like travelling in a dark tunnel, and suddenly, the dawn … Something different, at he same time, obvious to me, and a 'foggy' feeling of 'I knew that'. Was it real remembrance or an intellectual construction ? Hard to say … I try to be sure that my reason is not too far from earth … So, I dare to think it was remembrance … Migth be just an illusion, skepticism is, in any case, a good tool ( at least, to me ! )

Now, I read, re-read, re-re-read … Lawrency's books. Meditate them, and try to find my way of applying them in my own life.

I think, that the major step, has been to focus on the law of Freedom. It led me to clearly distinguish individuality ( monad ) and personnality ( an instance of it in an incarnation ). Each time, I meet someone, I try to feel the presence of its individuality ( a monad, i.e. a divine being ). As a consequence, each time it is an honnor, in another words, I am facing a god. But I remember, that I am interacting with a personnality, which is in progress, … as me.

It is just my way on doing it, Lawrency's work affords me these steps. It has been a 'real revelation'.

Thanks for your time, and sorry for any mistakes, I am just french.

Comments for Common origin and common destination

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Aug 31, 2019
by: Sam

I want to extend a warm welcome to you JP
Aug 30, 2019
 A little encouragement
by: Fr. E.S.Q.S.

Hello there J.P.,

Welcome to the reality!

All kidding aside, I really do welcome you, most heartily, into the fold of "Seekers who had become finders." Welcome, welcome, fellow student of Esoterics (esp. Hylozoics).
I think that you will find that most people are a little shy and are likely unwilling to "Come out of the woodworks" to say, "Hello"; however, not all of us are so shy. Personally, I find any little exchange between students to be quite valuable – and, frankly speaking, I’m of the mind that they do not exchange words often enough! So here I am.

First and foremost, let me just say, "Thank you for sharing your story, J.P." Such stories as this really are valuable. Everyone comes to Esoterics (esp. Hylozoics) in a different way – and this, due to the very "Uniqueness", the very individuality, you had mentioned. We could unpack the thought a little (and it probably wouldn’t hurt to do so): "Common origin, common destiny." Indeed! Let’s go further still: even the "Way" is similar in many regards (i.e.: there is a certain kind of progress, a certain series of steps), but also the "Ways" we all walk are decidedly "Unique", individual. There is no paradox here. By, the "Way" and the "Ways" we mean two very different things: the "Way" is a matter of cosmic design (if you will) – it refers to what is general; the "Ways" are a matter of individual choices – it refers to what is particular. It is fair to say, "We are all on the way/our way." But everyone is "Unique", everyone is individual. Some go quick, some go slow; some go straight, some go crooked; some go forward, some go backward; some crane their necks to look at the earth, some crane their necks to look at the sky, etc. We are all on the way/our way, and we will all reach the goal, sometime.
In truth, it really is a fascinating sort of subject, isn’t it? I’ve no doubt we could spend quite some hours hashing out various relations between collectivity and individuality; between generals and specifics. There is a lot of important material there to be discovered.

On the matter of mistakes: indeed, mistakes are inevitable; more than this, mistakes are how we learn. That’s just common sense; after all, what do "Perfect" people learn?! Can they learn at all?! This, of course, also indicates the necessity of freedom: freedom is, not least of all, the freedom to make mistakes. Freedom is freedom to learn. Without freedom (esp. the freedom to make mistakes), there can be no conscious development. Thus, we also see why prohibitions are problematic: telling people what not to do, what to avoid, does not teach them the reason(s) why they ought to avoid it. If people are forced to choose what is right, then they do not really learn anything; after all, as it has been said, "He knows good who knows evil." Those who are forced to choose what is right know nothing. Then their "Goodness" is only an appearance, a façade.

On the matter of thinking: indeed, this is important. It might even be said that we do not think enough. And work at Esoterics (also Hylozoics) is thinking, involves thinking. It is not enough to read. It is not enough to memorize. You must think. True, mistakes in thinking are inevitable; we will not always think properly, but that cannot be avoided. We cannot let the fear of failure hold us back from even trying. If we do so, then we have already failed before we had even started. Thinking is like anything else in life: if you wish to get better at it, you must practice it. You must do it.
Intentional thinking is self-activation of mental consciousness – and that is, in and of itself, always a good thing. It frees us from mechanical activity. It is practice at sustained concentration. It is practice at keeping oneself in the highest molecular kinds for prolonged lengths of time. And all of this makes it easier to self-remember, which is the goal of all work at Esoterics (esp. Hylozoics). Going from intentional thinking, from self-directed attention in the intellectual center, to self-remembering is (relatively) easy due in part to the closeness of higher mental consciousness and causal consciousness. The keyword here, of course, is "Relatively." Success is dependent on a variety of factors.

On the matter of remembrance: I would not worry too much about that if I were you. The important thing is whether or not you think it makes sense. If you do, then you should apply yourself to the study and practice of Esoterics (esp. Hylozoics) as best you can. One thing we must always remember is that (generally speaking, of course) we really cannot tell where we are in terms of development; we really cannot tell where we have been (past) and where we are headed (future). All we know for sure is that we are human beings, first selves, on our way to becoming second selves. Was it remembrance? Was it belief – or more precisely, was it wishful thinking (i.e.: wanting to believe it was remembrance)? Who can say? If there is one thing I have learned it is this: we are experts at deceiving ourselves. There is no use in asking that question. Thus, again: I implore you to not worry too much about that. It isn’t the most important thing. The most important thing is what you do now that you have discovered Esoterics (Hylozoics).

On the matter of you way: that is very fascinating. I love hearing about it – and, so, again: thank you for sharing, J.P. Personally, what I find so fascinating is how, for you, it has been the law of freedom (with all that this law entails) that has provided you with the most forward drive. In my case, it has been the law of unity – hence, I say, "Unity is my lodestar, always and ever guiding me aright." It really has been my lodestar in life.

I also find your description of how you try to see people as the wonderfully unique "Individuals" (monads) they truly are, and how you try to (actively) distinguish between the "Individual" (monad) and the "Personality" (temporary envelopes of incarnation). That is certainly a good exercise; after all, only like can know like. Reflect on that.

It is a good idea to learn how to separate the two (the "Individual" from the "Personality"). You can learn many things about people (and about yourself) by this exercise. One thing I have noted is how certain kinds of thoughts/feelings, certain kinds of conscious expressions tend to make it easier or more difficult for the "Individual" to be present. Observe an angry person, for instance. Observe and remember, "He (the individual) is lost in that sea of activity", "He (the individual) is not that activity." So on and so forth. Observe and see how, in many cases, it is not the "Individual" that is living life, but the "Personality." Observe the difference between living intentionally and living mechanically. Another thing you will learn is that the "Personality" behaves very much like a robot. It is quite impressionable and its reactions are quite predictable. It can be programmed. It is programmed, in fact. You can push its buttons and make it do whatever. This explains why G.I. Gurdjieff could say something like, "I am living among dead people." What he means, of course, is that most people are hardly even alive (as individuals) to begin with! My good man, my fellow student, dig deeper! Go deeper! There is lot of material here for you to discover! I could write about this for days.

You are doing great. You are off to a great start, my good man. I encourage you: keep going.
On the matter of mistakes: you have no need to apologize for a handful of spelling/grammatical mistakes. You are using a different language. No worries. You were clear enough, and – if you keep at it – you will get better.

Thanks for your time,

Sincerely,

Fr. E.S.Q.S.

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