Phase 1 - March 5th

Session 9

Links to the Webex recording of the session are available to logged in participants here.

Purpose:
These last four sessions will not be introducing much new material.  Instead we will focus on coming to a deeper understanding of the material presented so far. In particular we want to get a clear picture and experience of being able to live beyond the prison of like and dislike. We've called this deeper level of selfhood the "divided self" which is Bennett's term for that part of our nature that connects us to our essence or being in World 24. Currently, I prefer to call it the "bridging self" because it does create a bridge to a more substantial way of having presence.

At first, this way of being present may not give us the same vivid experience that comes from overdriving the centers.  It's only through maturity and actually observing the consequences this addiction to the reactional self that we can see the need to liberate ourselves from it. This is made more difficult by the necessity for the continued functioning of the reactional self. We can't just once and for all throw it overboard.  So we have to begin to see its right functioning and move it in that direction.

Approach:
Sharing questions, observations, discussion, exercises.

Preparation:
Struggle and self observation.  Really trying to see how these various levels, energies, laws and worlds fit together.

I would strongly recommend reading chapter 8 in Deeper Man, the chapter called Above and Below.  You all have enough exposure to the language of triads now to follow the line of enquiry that Bennett presents here.  It will be a struggle, of course.  After 40 years of trying to penetrate the meaning of this presentation I still have to struggle with it.  And I'm sure Bennett had to struggle with it in the process of writing.

Persist!