WHAT AND WHY QUESTIONS
Dr. Bob Gibson
The human race has made themselves nervous wrecks and put themselves in bondage for countless ages by asking an endless series of “WHY?” questions. Why did it rain on the day I wanted to go on a picnic? Why did Uncle George get sick? Why is it people have wars? Why are people unhappy? (Looking for something or someone to blame.).
All WHY questions about living are, in effect, unanswerable, because when an attempted answer is given, the next question is “Why That?” The wise call it the Serial “WHY.” It makes infinite loops in the brain, which creates severe nervousness.
“WHAT?” questions ARE answerable. Such as: WHAT AM I? WHERE AM I? WHAT’S GOING ON HERE? WHAT CAN I DO? What I am? I think I am a privileged invited guest here on this planet Earth where Life is the Host. What’s going on here? It is obvious when you see many people playing games. We would ordinarily call that a party. People play the business game, the traffic game, the political games, the love games, the war game, etc.
What can I do? It is fairly obvious that I am at a party and Life is the Host. What I can do is to be what TO ME is a good guest. The bare essential of being a good guest is probably consideration for the Host, the Party, the estate and the other quests; be harmless as possible and make some little contribution to the Party. Not that that’s needed, but as my way of saying “Thank You” for having been invited to the Party.
WHAT IS THE PURPSE OF THE TEACHING?
Dr. Bob Gibson
We are frequently asked, “What is the purpose of the Teaching?” There are, of course, many purposes but we will assume for the moment that the question refers to the ultimate purpose. The ultimate purpose of the Teaching is to prepare the student to be capable of being aware of the many levels of consciousness or inner feeling and to be able to choose and generate or bring into being any level of consciousness so desired. Many areas if service can only be rendered when in a given state of consciousness or being. Healing, for instance, cannot be practiced while in the state of consciousness called fear, or in the state of anger, etc., etc.
Many of the ideas of the teaching are to make the student aware of the usual states of consciousness by the use of tools such as the “Picture of Man” or the “Tone Scale”, etc.
Much work on self-knowing is necessary before the potential student can remove the obstructions to higher states of consciousness, thus the reason for schools. Only by being at least somewhat familiar with the possibility of many states of consciousness can the student begin the work of actualizing these states of consciousness in his or her won being. This is the state wherein the potential student becomes a student.
Students have to learn first the most fundamental knowledge of how NOT to destroy the body and how NOT to disintegrate the whole Being.
WHAT’S WRONG WITH ME?
Dr. Bob Gibson
Several times this week we heard the following question: I don’t really see any progress in myself, despite the fact that I feel I am doing the work toward transformation. What’s wrong with me?
Answer: What’s wrong is not you, it is the idea of “progress” toward something “out there.” The Work entails ELIMINATION of emotional conditioning. What’s left is a transformed being. We work to remove obstructions – misconceptions, emotions, ideals, beliefs. We don’t want to work for elf-improvement. The question is based on a misconception that I am struggling TOWARD some ideal state I believe I should attain. When we remove these disintegrating factors, integration IS.
INFORMATION AND LEARNING
Dr. Bob Gibson
Information we can gather from many sources. Information is of great value when acted upon. We could say information plus action based on the information equals learning. It would appear that many believe that learning means accumulation information and committing it to memory. Such a belief is false and results in an obstruction to learning. Acting out a bit of information leads to experiencing. Experiencing is learning.
Let’s take some examples and act out a role. First, take a role one is more or less familiar with, say, being a victim. Act as though you are a victim of circumstances; that nothing in your life will work until circumstances are different. Observe carefully. You will see how you feel and what kind of thoughts race through awareness. NOW you are learning. Now act out the role of a happy person. Again you will experience a totally different type of feeling and a very different type of thought will be present. In the same manner, act out the role of a discouraged person, then the role of an enthusiastic person, then the role of a sad person, then the role of a blissful person. The contrast in the role, feeling, thought and ideas in the awareness are great learning tools.
What is written here is INFORMATION. ACTING OUT the roles is acting on the information and results in LEARNING. More exercises of these roles will result in more learning. The more roles acted out and experienced, the more proficient you will be. Then more roles can be taken on as exercises that will lead to higher and higher states of consciousness. This is REAL learning.
However, past unconscious mechanical learning will suggest to you that you already know this and therefore there is no need to practice these exercises or that this stuff is for kids or I’ll try that sometime when I have the time. Besides how will such stuff do any good now that I’m broke? Why try to kid myself?
Some way or other most individuals will justify not taking the opportunity to learn. Some will. They are real students. They are on their way.
IDEALS
Dr. Bob Gibson
We have all been conditioned to hold Ideals in high regard, thus we all believe that we know “what ought to be” for ourselves, others and all circumstances.
“What is” is reality and is usually much different than our idea of “What ought to be.” We then feel frustrated and have the need to struggle and to resist “what is.”
One can drop the Ideal by seeing that is merely a fantasy and that we could not know what ought to be unless we knew the future, knew the outcome of every situation a week from now, a month from now, a year from now and so on.
When we can concentrate on the idea of the Ideal for a little while, we can drop all belief in the Ideal. We then find self in the present and quite capable of dealing with the present moment. We will find we are free to experience “what is” from moment to moment and to respond instead of react because things are not as we fancied they “ought to be.”
Being free to experience whatever comes our way today is to be free of conflict, struggle and resistance. Resistance to “what is” is the only human problem.
One cannot believe in their Ideals and be free at the same time.
One starts with being free to experience whatever arises in one’s way today. Then one is free of conflict, struggle and resistance. Freedom is real being, now.
A STORY: “Man is that he may have joy,” Dr. Bob told me several years ago.
The Teaching material gives me all the tools I need to remove the blocks to joy. The blocks have to be removed, because JOY is our natural state of being. As I worked on this newsletter and read Dr. Bob’s article on role playing, I discovered this great tool that I had forgotten. Role playing! I decided to do this experiment and see what happened.
The idea that I could determine my inner state and be in charge is basic to the Teaching. Since my heart surgery over two years ago, I have felt joyless a lot of the time. Everything was an effort. Life was a hard place and the future looked even harder. But I heard the words in my head, “Man is that he may have joy.” Playing the victim role, acting it out, was an easy one. I have had a life-time of practice on that one. Playing the role of a happy or joyful person, took more attention. It took some effort because I had become almost crystallized in my sad role which was totally destructive to my entire existence.
I listened to Dr. Bob’s lecture on “Think, Act, Feel.” I have the potential of choosing how I want to feel, act out the role and within 30 minutes (or less), that’s how I will feel. I practiced with some of the other ideas, such as “Stay in the present moment!” That is where it ALL is. The past and future are illusions. If I am in either the past or present, I have a fragmented awareness. I will pay attention to the present moment. That is the only place where I experience joy. I worked with the idea of being a privileged invited guest at a fantastic party put on by Life, the Host.
The value of these experiments is that I have to be totally conscious to do them. That is what the practice is for. I’m not 100%, but I’m practicing. At the very least I am aware of when I’m NOT joyful.
MIND TICS
When I say nothing, I don’t necessarily mean nothing.
Inform all the troops that communications have completely broken down.
Please don’t put a strain on our relationship by asking me to do something for you.
If only I could get that wonderful feeling of accomplishment without having to accomplish anything.
