Month: June 2017

The Mysterious Cause of Division

Joseph Dewey

June 12, 2017

The Mysterious Cause of Division

Finding the Key Word

I generally stay away from partisan politics on this site and will delete political posts unless they deal with a metaphysical principle or will be of strong majority interest to the group.

I will definitely delete posts that focus on attacking and belittling the other side. Mindless name calling in particular is not welcome.

Once we take away the focus of emotional attack, bias and one-sided thinking we, as metaphysical thinkers, are left with looking at some of the spiritual principles that actually play out in the world of politics. This seems to be something that few have the mental capacity to be able to accomplish as the two sides are at each other’s throats with the greatest intensity since the American Civil War.

When I was younger the advice was to not discuss politics or religion at the dinner table or an otherwise friendly gathering. Now politics and religion seem grouped under one tent so most any discussion of religion doesn’t result in seeking to understand a religious view, but the politics of it.

For instance, if Islam is brought up then there will be no intelligent discussion of its doctrine, but will turn to the political implications of the religion.

If Christianity is brought up the discussion will lean toward whether this is a Christian nation, or abortion, or LGBT rights.

If Jesus is mentioned the discussion may tend toward whether he was a socialist and would have supported various social programs. Or would Jesus take in all the refugees and illegal immigrants?

Many listening to the sharp division of views and the very strong and immovable conclusions reached by each side wonder about a number of things.

First, how is it possible that intelligent people on both sides see things so differently? Why can’t they just reasonably discuss, understand each others views and reach some middle ground of agreement?

This question has even puzzled researchers and some have come up with differences ideologues have in their brains and genes that they think explain it.

It is almost amusing to look through the eyes of the two sides as to how they see each other. The idea of each as to what is right to them seems so obvious that the other side just seems to be irreparably stupid and bordering on insane to hold to the views they do.

The perplexing thing is that there are true believers on each side who are very accomplished, highly educated, have written books and created projects that demonstrate considerable intelligence.

It just seems very mysterious that two highly intelligent people can disagree so strongly on some very simple things, such as: “Should we reduce our deficit spending or not?” “Should we increase taxes or not?” “Should we increase public transportation or not?”

The answers to these and many other questions seem so obvious to various partisans who just cannot fathom why the other side sees things so differently than they do.

There has to be an answer to this illusive conundrum. What could it be?

Actually, the answer is quite simple and one word supplies the key. What is that word? Here it is:

POLARIZATION.

Polarization occurs when there is more focus, attention and energy on one side of an equation than the other side. This polarization may cause the person to not see what is right in front of him staring him in the face.

Example:

The teacher in a class has the right answer written straight ahead on the blackboard. Bob is looking out the window to the left and Bill is daydreaming, looking out the window to the right. When the teacher demands an answer all that is in the head of either are the scenes outdoors that have nothing to do with the real truth.

Bob and Bill may be the smartest kids in the class, but if they keep their focus only on the left or the right they will both find the real answer to be illusive. The answer is not outside among the flowers and the trees or the lakes and the streams, but by focusing in the middle between the two extremes. The answer was right in front of them written clearly on the blackboard, but they could not see it because they were not paying attention.

The natural question to be asked now is this: What is the difference in the political polarization of the left and the right that causes them to miss the truth that is to be found at the midway point?

 

The Big Difference

The answer as noted lies in the keyword of polarization. The question then becomes this: What is the difference in focus of the left and the right that causes opposition in polarization?

The answer lies in the fact that our brain is composed of two halves called the left and right brain. Each half of the brain is so complete in itself that a lobotomy can be performed where half the brain is removed and the person can still function.

The left side of the brain is normally associated with the calculating, analytical, male part of ourselves while the right side is associated with the feeling, emotional, female nature.

This accurately mirrors the internal makeup that we all know that we posses. All of us possess feelings and all possess analytical and calculating abilities.

Many of us miss the message that lies inherent in the construction of the brain itself. We have two halves of the brain that focus on two different aspects, yet work together to create a functional and mentally healthy individual. Anyway that seems to have been the plan.

Unfortunately, many go against the plan that would achieve balance and place most of their attention either on the analytical or the emotional part of themselves. They therefore become polarized on the right or the left and ignore much of the feedback they could be receiving from the other half of themselves.

So we now have the nature of the creation of the problem for when an emotionally polarized person encounters an analytically polarized one and begin a dialog it will not be long before the hairs on the back of their necks will bristle with irritation. The analytical one will think the emotional one makes no sense and the emotional one will think the other has no love or concern for his fellow men.

So which is which? It should be obvious. Those on the political right are centered more in analytical thinking and the political left are more centered in the emotional. To understand them we must realize that their polarization will determine the process by which they will make decisions and decide which beliefs they will incorporate.

I can hear the objections now. One says, “I am from the left and I do lots of analytical thinking.” The other says, “I am from the right and I love my fellow men and women.”

Anyone who makes this objection was not paying attention to the meaning of polarization. It merely means you lean more on one half of a duality than the other. If your makeup causes you to lean 60% in favor of the feeling side and 40% on the analytical side then you are emotionally polarized.

No one is 100% one or the other, but just a small difference will cause most of the decision making to favor one side over the other.

For instance, I would guess that the polarization of both the Democrats and Republicans is about 60/40 favoring their side of duality.

The question that now arises is which side is polarized in the feeling/female side and which the analytical/male?

The answer should be obvious to the impartial observer. The right is polarized in the analytical side and the left focuses more on the feeling.

This explains why those on the right put a lot of attention on the business world which requires analytical thinking and those on the left excel in the creative arts which requires one to be in touch with the feeling nature. Poetry, for instance requires a lot of sensitivity toward the feeling nature and how often do you hear of a Republican poet?

Interesting studies show that the feeling nature can boost dopamine levels, a brain chemical that inspires creativity while analytical thinking is promoted by testosterone.

The difference in the way we vote illustrates the division of the left and right into the analytical/male and feeling/female polarities.

As a whole, the majority of males support Republicans and the majority of females support Democrats.

For instance, in the 2000 election, where the votes were split down the middle, Bush received 53% of the male vote and only 43% of the female. Gore received 54% of the female vote and only 42% of the male.

In the 2012 election Obama won the female vote by 12 points, 56% to 44%, over Mitt Romney, while Romney won among men by an eight-point margin, 54% to 46%.

The 2016 election saw similar results: 54% of women voted for Clinton and 42% for Trump. On the other hand 53% of the men voted for Trump compared to 41% for Clinton.

This general trend repeats itself in elections at all levels and doesn’t change that much when a female runs for office. Voters are more attracted to the polarization of the party, as a whole, than to the gender of the person running.

The media preferences give us another example. Republicans dominate talk radio; the Democrats dominate just about everything else.

Both sides complain about the domination of the other in the media, but few seem to be asking why this is the case. Democrats say that Republicans dominate talk radio because they are angry and want to let off steam. Republicans often think the Democrats control the rest of the media because they lack any moral standard and are corrupt.

Both sides are in error. The fact that 61% of talk radio listeners are male tells us that talk radio appeals to the male analytical mind, and this is the reason it is dominated by the analytical/male-polarized Republicans.

Outside of Fox News, Democrats dominate the major TV and print media. This is because the major media appeals more to the feeling nature, as well as the creative side, which also draws emotional energy.

The proof of the Democrat domination here is indisputable, as many studies have been made.

One of the most notable studies was done by S. Robert Lichter of George Washington University, and Stanley Rothman of Smith College, surveying 240 journalists from the major print and broadcast media including ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Time, Newsweek, and US News and World Report. This study was presented in their book published in 1986, The Media Elite. It found that in the presidential elections of 1964, 1968, 1972 and 1976, a whopping 86% of responding journalists in the major media voted Democrat.

Then, in 2001, Rothman and Amy Black did an updated study and established that 76% of the established media voted for Michael Dukakis in 1988 and 91% for Bill Clinton in 1992.

A Freedom Forum Poll did a secondary study and found similar results in that 89% of the Washington reporters and bureau chiefs voted for Clinton in 1992 and a paltry 7% voted for George W. Bush.

So, why is it like going against a brick wall for a Democrat to succeed in talk radio or a Republican to shine in the rest of the major media? Does it have to do with bias on both sides? There is some, but that is only a small part of the answer.

The real answer is that the male-polarized Republican just enjoys talk radio and the feeling/female polarized Democrat is more attracted to the major media. Why is this?

The reason Republicans gravitate to talk radio is because they get to use the male-oriented analytical mind. The host and the callers are always mentally analyzing, arguing and debating. These are activities shunned by the female more than the male.

On the other hand, the major media offers more outlets for the female feeling and creative nature. Face-to-face emotional interviews are a huge draw for them. Is it any wonder that we hear “how does that make you feel?” over and over again on television, but not radio? The female polarization helps us understand why the feminine Barbara Walters excels, in that more often than not she brings out the female feelings in even the most hardened male figures. The big question is always, “Is she going to make him (or her) cry?”

Another big draw for the female feeling nature is that major media concentrates on creative work more than the mere analyzing of facts. Creativity appeals to the feeling nature and depends on expressing it to achieve success.

The female feeling nature uses the news and information toward creative ends and this is good in that it helps keep us entertained so we do not change the channel while absorbing otherwise dry news. It also has a negative aspect in that the media person can creatively assemble facts in a story to present a picture that runs contrary to such facts, but supports the agenda felt true by the reporter/journalist.

It matters not that males anchor most of the news programs; the overall polarization of the media is still female and oriented toward feeling, harmony and creative presentation.

It is interesting to note that Fox News is seen as Republican oriented, and this broadcast is more like talk radio than the other television media. The highest rated programs have lots of high testosterone arguments.

It is interesting to observe that Republicans attempt to explain their issues using logic. Democrats present theirs with feeling and emotionally charged words.

This is not true in every case, as members of both parties are influenced by both mind and emotion, but as a general rule it does apply.

As evidence of this, we need only look at how both sides attempt to sway the public.

Perhaps the most powerful tool of the Democrats in swaying public opinion by emotion is sound bites. By this I mean they use short catch phrases that appeal to the feelings of the people, and add little or nothing for the reasoning mind to digest. Here are some examples:

Tax breaks for the rich

On the backs of the poor

Right wing extremists

Give peace a chance

Working people (catch phrase referring to anyone on a salary that’s not a Republican)

Politics of personal destruction

Support the troops, not the war

Make love, not war

Hate radio

Hate speech

Star Wars

Trickle down effect (this phrase was created and used by Democrats – not a quote from the Reagan Administration as thought by the majority.)

Then the Democrats are adept at seeing catch phrases in Republican speeches and using them to their advantage:

Example: “Wither on the vine” (From Newt Gingrich concerning Medicare)

We can’t leave this list without including one of the most potent emotional catch phrases of all time. It was not for political effect, but spoken by a true Democrat (Johnny Cochran) and accepted by a large portion of the Democrats:

“If the glove does not fit you must acquit.”

Compared to the logic of a DNA match the reasoning in this phrase was very weak, but was more powerful because it had emotional punch.

Now, there are catch phrases that appeal to the mind, but these are generally non-political, such as “the grass is greener on the other side.” Members of both parties respect these type of truisms. Political catch phrases are different in that they appeal to the emotions and are used largely by Democrats.

The important point to realize here is that the Democrats are more successful with such catch phrases because they appeal to the emotions. It matters not that the phrase itself has little meaning.

The Republicans use catch phrases once in as while, but with little success. The distortion of the word “liberal” is their one great achievement, but this is one word, not a phrase. Because of their more mental polarization, they seek to explain things instead using sound bites.

This appeals to the reasoning person who has time to listen, but because so much more time is involved to make the point, the Republican is at a great disadvantage.

For instance, in an argument about spending on missile defense, the Democrat merely has to state something with “Star Wars” in it. This immediately conjures up war in space raining down upon the earth.

The Republican will counter with a long explanation as to why the missile defense is necessary – that it could lead to less war. Before he gets half his point made, the subject is changed and the emotional listener feels the point of the catch phrase, “Star Wars,” while the Republican explanation seems to be meaningless gobbledygook to him.

It may seem that the emotional catch phrase could dominate forever over the lengthy logical explanation, but talk radio and debate programs on cable TV have changed that somewhat. These programs give time for lengthy talk and reasoning, and often the person commuting in his car or doing mundane work has plenty of time to listen.

This shift in media, which gives time to see beyond the catch phrases, is one of the main reasons for some Republican domination in recent times.

Republicans generally choose their issues because they seem logical; Democrats choose theirs because they feel right. Both generally have good intentions, but often come to opposing conclusions. Because their conclusions are so different, neither can understand the thought process of the other.

As a result, Republicans see Democrats as downright stupid for supporting illogical beliefs and opinions. On the other hand, Democrats see the Republicans as mean-spirited, greedy and unfeeling for not jumping on their bandwagon.

At times, both parties see the other as power hungry in their motivations and sometimes they are right, but what else is new?

For Part 2 of this Series go HERE, Part 3 HERE

Copyright by J J Dewey

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Discernment

Joseph Dewey

June 21, 1999

The Qualities of the Disciple Continued

Discernment

Subject under discussion: The qualities of the disciple.

Here is what we have so far:

(1) Soul contact

(2) Holding the mind steady in the light

(3) Detachment when necessary.

(4) The ability to either send or receive

(5) Reflection – contemplation

(6) Talent.

(7) The power to initiate

(8) The ability to create and sense a point of tension.

(9) Willingness to sacrifice

(10) Discernment

We have covered sacrifice quite thoroughly. The only thing I might add at present is that when true sacrifice is understood it will be known by the disciple that sacrifice as understood by the masses is an illusion. Many see sacrifice as loss, but from the viewpoint of the disciple there is no such thing as loss when serving the greater good, even if you lose all you have in the material sense.

True sacrifice is a trade off. You are trading a lower good for a higher good, a lower enjoyment for one more exquisite and a temporary possession for one with more permanence.

Now we come to the tenth quality – discernment.

One of the main problems created through a lack of discernment is deception from false teachers, like Brother Philo in the Immortal.

One of the traps that happen to a well meaning seeker is that he will often be approached by one who is lesser evolved than himself and told that he must be humble and follow. Now to follow is a virtue if you are following someone who has something real to teach, but there are many mediocre minds with large egos who will do everything in their power to get greater minds to follow them. Often times through lack of discernment these greater minds, clouded with guilt and false humility, will follow the lesser causing an evolutionary delay and learning a hard lesson.

A good example of this was Malcome X. He was a much greater soul than his “beloved teacher” and if he would have realized this sooner he could have accomplished much more and developed a more beneficial philosophy for his brethren.

The greater problem is usually the reverse, however. A student with a qualified teacher will often think he has passed up his mentor in evolution and seeks to reverse roles that should stay in place.

Discerning the proper place upon the path and acting accordingly is invaluable part of discernment and a characteristic of true humility.

Another extremely important point is that without discernment there can be no reliable higher contacts. In this reality we are limited in the direction in which we can focus our attention. Attention, in its power, is like a magnifying glass concentrating the rays of the sun. The concentration of light is very powerful, but limited in the amount of space that can be ignited.

Unknown to many seekers there are many voices out there calling for your inner attention and those who draw our attention on the line of least resistance are never entities of the higher planes.

The higher lives speak the language of silence and silence does not clamor for attention; instead attention must find the silence. The disciple must discern and learn to ignore the lower noisy voices of glamour and, through the power of will, force his attention on the secret place of stillness and in that place enjoy the communion of the saints and the Brotherhood of Light. Only through the discernment and the ignoring of the lesser voices can this be obtained.

Soul contact and communion through the Oneness principle is essential for the working disciple, else he may wind up receiving illusionary teachings and leading others down a path from which retracing steps will be essential.

As we proceed here I can see that we will be naming more qualities than originally intended, but even with this longer list we will leave some items out that could be named.

(11) Perseverance – the ability to always bounce back and continue toward a goal even if things seem hopeless or bleak. It is partly obvious as to why this is needed by the disciple. Can you elaborate on either the obvious or the not-so-obvious?

(12) Inclusiveness. Discernment can lead to separations which are necessary, but how does the disciple use inclusiveness in harmony with discernment to avoid the negative aspect of discrimination? How inclusive should the disciple be?

To Persevere

He who has soul contact will have a sense that something is off (a disturbance in the force) when he is going the wrong direction but when going the right direction there will be a sense of fullness or completeness and a knowing that you are doing the right thing.

The growth of this list and group is a good example. When we hit 100 members we just seemed to hang there and some of us wondered if any more growth was going to happen. Then eventually we took off again. Now we have hit 175 and the hanging thing is happening again with a vengeance and we have even lost a few old timers. On a personality level Rick, me and others wonder if anything is happening out there.

But on a soul level here is what I know.

First: We are going the right direction

Two: The energy we put into the group is going to constructive purpose.

Three: A point of tension is mounting.

Four: Those who are suppose to be here are staying which is making the group more positive and is laying a correct foundation for things to come.

Therefore, it is just a matter of time before the next point of tension is reached and we grow again into something of even higher quality than we have had in the past.

I loved Rick’s visionary words:

“Two thousand years from now we may still be remembered for what we wrote here on this list. They will have a collective name for us and think of us as this name. The individuals in the group will not be as well known as the collective.”

I do not know if Rick realizes how prophetic he is here. I sense some soul contact here.

Indeed this is not just another group. This is a pioneering endeavor that is duplicated no where else that I know of. It is true that there are others teaching classes on the web, but as far as I know this is a first for the introduction of new teachings and principles through the intuitive principle which are virtually unrevealed to the world at large. We are also about to introduce the greatest revelation so far which is the Molecular Relationship. Everything I have written so far is to prepare your minds and hearts for this great principle.

When 144,000 membership is reached the group will possess a livingness that has hitherto been unrealized and will be a living duplicating organism that nothing can destroy. When that time comes you may rest assured that growth will continue for a thousand years and Rick’s statement will prove to be true. There will be many in the future age who will wish they could have been back here with us to help initiate a work with so great a cause and purpose.

We’ll talk more about inclusiveness soon, but in the meantime here is number thirteen in the qualities:

(13) Harmlessness

Questions: What does it mean to be harmless? Does it mean you will turn into a total wimp? What is the key to following the harmless path?

To Include or Not To Include

The Question:

Discernment can lead to separations which are necessary, but how does the disciple use inclusiveness in harmony with discernment to avoid the negative aspect of discrimination? How inclusive should the disciple be?

Those who have used discernment through illusionary eyes develop wrong discrimination and become harmfully exclusionary. This has been such a problem in the past that the word “discrimination” has become a terrible word in the eyes of most people.

While it is still a virtue to have a “discriminating palate” or to be a discriminating buyer one has to be very careful in the use of the word or he will be frowned upon as a politically incorrect bigot.

What has caused this problem in communication is that the politicians have popularized the wrong word. When one is accused of discrimination what is the accuser really saying? Is he saying that because you can see shades of meaning and color that you are evil?

Not really.

Instead he is saying: “You are judging what this person is inside because he looks different than you on the outside. You are therefore judging apples as they are related to oranges and you have no way of knowing if you are correct.”

What word correctly describes the above?

The problem is that no single word does. The shortest available would be something like “bad judgement,” but that is not simple enough. Therefore “discrimination” was pulled out of the hat and applied and such application has tainted the positive use of the word ever since.

The meaning of all words have a positive aspect. Exclusiveness normally has a bad meaning these days but this can also have a positive application:

For instance one might exclude a destructive belief system, a child molester or the taking of harmful drugs.

This positive exclusion harmonizes with the quality of discernment.

Nevertheless, all wise acts of discernment and exclusion must be balanced with an inclusive attitude that is essential in the attitude of the working disciple.

We will give some examples of negative exclusiveness balanced with the ideal inclusiveness:

Exclusive: The most obvious on the negative side is the excluding of some because of judgments based on the color of skin.

Inclusive: Include all races as if they were at an equal starting point and if judgment is necessary judge on performance and ability.

Exclusive: Excluding a person from the possibly that he may be as enlightened as you because he has a different belief system

Inclusive: The person may be farther along the path than you think. Some authoritarian thoughtforms are so powerful that it takes a much higher degree of soul contact to break away from them than it does for the New Ager to proclaim that: “All is love and oneness.” If you find common ground with a seemingly backward Bible thumper you may realize he seems pretty bright after all.

Exclusive: Seeing the other person as the bottom of the barrel because of differing political beliefs. For instance, both sides of the abortion issue see each other as pond scum that must be excluded at all costs.

Inclusive: Again, the disciple realizes that even a very intelligent person can be captivated by wrong thoughtforms and illusions and if we excluded all those in such a state there would be few if any to befriend.

A great example of political inclusiveness is the show on Fox called Hannity and Colmes. Hannity is on the far right and Colmes on the left. Many of their guests have a very exclusive attitude yet both Hannity and Colmes are very gracious and inclusive with some fairly obnoxious guests. They are also good friends with each other and often go to lunch together. They appear to be inclusive of each other and respect each other even though each believes the other to be very mislead.

Exclusive: Many people are exclusive because of the income, social standing, or the appearance of others.

Inclusive: Behind many people are many virtues that are not visible on the surface. We must start from point zero with all of them and include them within the realm of all possibilities.

An inclusive attitude was one reason that Jesus had such ability to heal. When He looked at a poor ragged cripple He did not allow himself to see a person excluded from the gifts of God. Instead He saw one who was equal to himself, deserving of all the fruits of the Spirit. When that vision in the mind of Jesus was glimpsed by the cripple, for an instant he became a Son of God himself and was healed.

If we expect the Brotherhood of Light to include us as co-workers we must learn to be inclusive with others who may be as far below us in evolution as we are to the Masters.

One of the best examples I can think of in inclusiveness (as well as discernment) is this discussion group.

When a person joins this list we do not have a clue of anything about him or her except for what he actually says. We do not know his race, background, financial status, political thought, dress code etc. Sometimes we do not even know the sex.

When a person joins this list he starts at point zero and is entirely judged by what comes forth from the inner self. When you think of it there has never been a time in history for such inclusive opportunities as the Internet offers.

I will give my comments on harmlessness next but in the meantime contemplate the next quality:

(14) Sensitivity.

Now we are not talking about the politically sensitive geek here that is ashamed of the Washington Redskins, but we are talking about one who is sensitive to many things that others are not.

Among them are:

(1) Ability to tune into the feelings and sometimes thoughts of others.

(2) Ability to sense higher contacts

(3) Ability to sense the direction of the Path.

If you can “sense” other areas of positive sensitivity name them and elaborate.

Why is sensitivity such an important quality for the disciple to possess?

Copyright by J J Dewey

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Initiation and the Point of Tension

Joseph Dewey

June 16, 1999

Initiation and the Point of Tension

Here are the qualities that a disciple should possess that we have presented so far:

(1) Soul contact

(2) Holding the mind steady in the light

(3) Detachment when necessary.

(4) The ability to either send or receive

(5) Reflection – contemplation

(6) Talent.

Here are two more

(7) The power, motivation and will to initiate and work in isolation and high resistance if necessary

(8) The ability to create a point of tension and use the tension creatively to bear fruit.

We have covered in some detail what an initiate is but the point of tension may be new to some of you in relation to spiritual work. Some of you may have heard it used in physics. Whatever the case, contemplate these two new abilities and some ideas should come. Why do the Masters look for these qualities in the working disciple?

Notice I use the phrase “working disciple?” By working disciple I mean one who is working directly under the influence of the Brotherhood.

There are many other levels. Other disciples work directly under the guidance of their souls or in conjunction with entities from the spiritual world who are not yet Masters.

Still others think they are the new Messiah but have not yet even mastered their physical appetites and maya essential to the first initiation.

The point of tension is a point of stress that precedes all creation and leaps forward in evolution.

If you take a model airplane and wind up its propeller, the rubber band will incur more and more stress or tension until it becomes taut. The hobbyist must use judgment and reach the right point of tension. If he winds too much the band will snap and disaster will occur. On the other hand, if he winds the right amount he can constructively harness the energy of the tension to fly the plane.

Another, but different example of the point of tension is the adding of sugar to a glass of water. If you add a small amount of sugar it seems to disappear because its particles go in the empty spaces between the water molecules. But if you keep adding sugar the space between the molecules fills up and a point of tension occurs in the water. When this point of tension is reached the sugar becomes visible and some of that which was hidden materializes along with the added sugar.

This corresponds to creation. As you put ATTENTION on the work to be done and send energy to it, it may seem that nothing is happening for a period of time. But when the point of tension is reached an almost miraculous materialization will occur.

Some have wondered why I put so much attention on this list at the sacrifice of delaying the Immortal books, but a large part of the reason is to create a point of tension with the group so higher creation can take place. The group has only had a couple winds of the propeller and there are many more to go, but if we do not release our attention and energy a miraculous creation awaits on the horizon.

An essential ingredient to the point of tension would be “the ability to keep your attention focused on a goal.”

This quality is different than keeping the mind steady in the light. Keeping the mind in the light gives one the power to select goals that bring spiritual progress. Creating the point of tension through focussed attention gives the disciple power to achieve a goal.

The disciple can have all the good intentions in the world, but until he develops a power to achieve, all his goodness is of little direct use to the Brotherhood of Light.

Nevertheless, keep in mind that basic good characteristics are never wasted, for we all go through a long period of being more of a liability to the Brotherhood than an asset and during this period many good acts of service can be performed in cooperation with other brothers and sisters on the physical plane, and sometimes discarnate entities.

The Brotherhood of Light are still subject to time and space as far as their work on the physical plane is concerned, and because of this, must be careful with whom they work for one premature choice can cost them work with other disciples who are prepared.

On the other hand, we are entering a period where the number who enter the ranks of Masters will greatly increase and thus the number of working disciples will also increase.

Many worry about a lack of opportunity, but to those who are prepared to work with the abilities they have (compared to those who want to work with imagined abilities) there is more opportunity than can be filled.

The trouble is that many seekers sit around and wait for some call to come which is worthy of their greatness. This is why the power to initiate is so important. No major call will come until the disciple first calls himself to step forward and do good works of service with or without recognition.

If there seems to be no great work to do, the disciple will create one and press forward with great attention even if he is ignored by the Brotherhood, friends, God and NATO. The one higher power that will never ignore the aspiring disciple is his own soul which is a Master on it’s own plane. When soul contact is established the disciple is able to move forward with the idea that contact with the Brotherhood of Light would be fine, but if it does not come that would be fine too.

The most important ability for the true disciple is the freedom to decide and carry out those decisions on the path of unselfish service. This freedom to serve according to one’s free will brings the disciple more reward than all the material things in the world and any recognition from the inhabitants of the Kingdom of God is seen as a bonus.

There are points of tension on the material level and the spiritual. Those who create such points in the material usually have material success, but the disciple shifts his attention to the spiritual so the tension can manifest revelation and spiritual knowledge which descends from the “raincloud of knowable things.”

There are points of tension created and directed by the disciple and there are also points of tension that exist in many spheres outside of ourselves. There are points of tension in time, for instance, which is created by cycles. The disciple must learn to recognize these points through the use of intuition. Thus, if he pays attention to cycles of time he will sense an approaching tension in time itself and work within that tension to assist in there creation of a work of service. If he senses a lack of tension in time he may use this period as preparation for a tension to come.

There are points of tension in space. The sacred sites of the earth are created by such tension producing an elevated energy.

There are also major points of tension in overlapping tensions of time and space and these produce powerful opportunities that draw attention from even the Masters.

There are also points of tension created through the focused contemplation of higher lives such as Christ and the Brotherhood of Light, and the Ancient of Days and His associates. Those mortals who are attuned to these points of tension are likely to receive some type of contact, provided they have adequately prepared themselves. Attunement to a point of tension from the aura of a Master shows a certain degree of readiness to serve.

The ability to both send and receive deserves some more comment. The basic point several made was that when you are teaching you are also doing some learning in that same period, and when you are learning you are also doing some teaching. This is true to a degree, but it is also true that we are always polarized in either the sending or receiving mode.

He who fails to reach discipleship will be too attached to his polarization. If he is too attached to the sending polarization then when learning, or receiving, opportunities come the seeker will be unable to adapt and may miss the receiving of knowledge important to success.

If he is too attached to receiving he will be captivated by unearned authority (the Beast) and miss sending opportunities because he is waiting for approval before he moves forward. The disciple does not need a “call,” approval or authority, but uses his ability to send when opportunity presents itself.

Very few disciples can switch back and forth between sending and receiving polarization with comfort. Remember, this is different than learning a few things while teaching. Switching actual polarization at will is very awkward at first, but eventually becomes joyful.

This quality goes hand in hand with detachment for it requires a certain degree of detachment to switch polarization

Here are two additional qualities needed by a disciple that goes beyond general love and goodness that most recognize as desirable qualities.

(9) A willingness to not only serve but to sacrifice when necessary, to the giving of time, talents, personal desires, possessions and even the physical life if the need is there.

We did point out earlier that sacrifice was the keynote of the Age of Pisces and service is that of Aquarius. Even so, the benefits of sacrifice are not left behind but will be used with wisdom. In the coming age service will be the top priority and sacrifice secondary. Nevertheless, there will always be times when service will reach a dead end without sacrifice and when this happens the right use of this quality comes into play. Sacrifice is indeed a quality that the disciple must be willing to produce if called upon.

Disciples need to avoid like the plague the sacrifice mode that creates the atmosphere of a victim. The disciple never sees himself as a victim no matter what the outward circumstances.

(10) Discernment.

Question: Why do you suppose this is an important quality for the working disciple? How could it spell disaster if he or she does not possess it?

June 17, 1999

The Two Initiates

I watched The Pirates of Silicon Valley last night on TNT. If you missed it the show will be repeated on Monday and Wednesday night.

The movie is the story of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. It is interesting in the light of the fact that we have mentioned both of these crusaders as initiates.

Remember that I wrote that Jobs was the higher initiate of the two even though Gates was much more financially successful? It is interesting that the story points out that Jobs was a seeker and interested in Eastern Philosophy.

Notice the different priorities of the two. Jobs main interest was in changing the world and making a better product.

Bill’s motive was success at any price.

The interesting thing is that from the soul level these two were one, working on one goal to bring the world into the computer age. Gates was just fortunate enough to reap the majority of the financial reward. Jobs had difficulty, as dreamers always do, of keeping his focus on the bottom line..

It is also interesting to note the faults of these two men and the growth they went through. This illustrates to us that initiates are often far from being goodie goodie two shoes but are often driven to get the job done at the expense of stepping on toes. As Jobs and Gates progress along the path, however, they will knock off the rough edges and develop more sensitivity to general humanity.

It is also interesting that even though Gates seems to have the advantage on a soul level, this success will be a handicap for him in his next life that he will have to surmount. Jobs will have a head start in his future life because of lessons he has learned from being number two in this one.

Copyright by J J Dewey

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The Three Levels of Mastery

Joseph Dewey

 

June 6, 2017

The Three Levels of Mastery

Every once in a while we ought to go back to our religious roots and reach out to our friends there and extend a life saving branch for them to grab to give them a chance to move on to higher ground.

One of the big problems there holding them back is the idea of salvation, for seeking it takes them a step forward and then just leaves them there when they have many more steps to go.

Evangelicals have a particularly easy salvation. All they have to do is accept the right version of Jesus and believe. Then they feel their salvation is secure.

The Mormons, Seventh Day Adventists, Jehovah witnesses and others believe that faith without works is dead and that you need to show both faith and works to achieve salvation.

But even the religions that require works miss out on seeing the big picture and how much we really need to attain in order to secure liberation from this material world that holds us bound.

Among standard Christian religions, perhaps the Mormons have the most hoops to jump through to achieve their end desire of, not only salvation, but exaltation and onwards to the path of becoming gods.

But even here the injunction is the same as many other religions which merely boils down to “obey all the commandments of God.”

For a Mormon this means the member is to obey the Ten Commandments, love your neighbor, obey all the injunctions in the scriptures, pay tithing, secure a temple recommend, and finally whatever the prophet and General Authorities tell you to do.

They go a few steps beyond the “believe and be saved” crowd, but the end result is the same. After they meet all the requirements for the highest heaven they can then relax, thinking their salvation is secure.

The true seeker may at this point ask – what is the real truth here? After I do all I can do to become a good person and obedient follower – am I done? Or is it possible that more will be required?

Indeed there is more and the scriptures highlight an important end result that must be achieved before we are liberated from this lower world so we have the liberty of going “no more out” of the heavenly realms unless we want to.

The end result that must be accomplished is the overcoming of all things. Here are several scriptures from the Bible on this:

“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” Rev 2:7

“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.” Rev 2:17

“He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.“ Rev 3:5

“Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: (does not have to reincarnate) and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.” Rev 3:12

“To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.” Rev 3:21

That last one gives an interesting wording telling us that we must overcome the same way that Christ did and in the one life of which we have a record we see that he accomplished what he did after making a great effort.

Now, the LDS scriptures are in harmony with the Bible here:

“And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son. Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God– Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s. And they shall overcome all things.” D&C 76:57-60

“And he who is faithful shall overcome all things” D&C 75:16

“He that is faithful and endureth shall overcome the world.” D&C 63:47

It is interesting that the scriptures place a great emphasis on overcoming, yet you never hear a sermon on the subject. Instead, we are just told to yield to Jesus who did all the overcoming for us.

BUT… that is not what the scriptures say. Instead of just taking the lazy man’s way and letting George or Jesus do it, we are told that we are to follow in the steps of Christ and overcome just as he did.

Now the LDS have a very enlighten scripture that points them in the right direction, yet largely ignored. It reads:

“For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.

“Verily, I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.

“But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned.” D&C 58:26-29

So here we are clearly told that just obeying commandments like a walking computer program is not enough. There is a power in us that must be accessed of our own free will to bring to pass much righteousness.

So what is it that we must overcome if we are to follow in the footsteps of the Master? To understand perhaps we should examine that which he overcame shortly before his Transfiguration on the Mount.

Let us take a look:

“Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred. And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

“But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

“Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

“Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

“Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.” Matt 4:1-11

These three temptations illustrate three levels of mastery, or overcoming, by Jesus to which each of us must also eventually attain. Few who think they have secured salvation for themselves are close to this necessary accomplishment.

 

The First Level

Let us take a look. The Devil, representing the lower nature of Jesus, first approached him during extreme hunger and suggested he turn stones into bread.

After 40 days without eating it seemed from one angle entirely appropriate to use his divine power to satisfy the physical appetite. Then he realized that more important than satisfying the physical appetite is to feast on the words of God, or the Spirit. The Spirit brings eternal satisfaction whereas that which feeds the physical appetite is temporary and must be fed regularly.

The overcoming represented in this first temptation is the mastery that we must obtain over the physical desires and appetites. Most of the commandments in the scriptures of all religions are centered around guiding the pilgrim toward this mastery.

Religions have a lot of commandments and regulations centered on the sex nature. The basic one is to be faithful to your companion and many seekers face great temptation here when placed in the right circumstances with a very attractive or exciting person.

On top of this many religions have additional restrictions that must be imposed on the sex urge that requires significant self control from the member.

Numerous religions impose additional restrictions on food and drink which are related to the most basic physical desire of all, hunger and thirst.

Mormons command their members to not drink alcohol, tea, coffee or smoke. Others require a vegetarian diet or Islam and the Jews require a restricted diet. Many have some type of fasting or partial fasting days.

These various commandments all guide the seeker towards mastery of the physical appetites, his first great overcoming. This mastery though is not achieved in full by merely obeying outward commandments, but the final overcoming of the appetites occur when the aspiring disciple takes control, through his own initiative, and tests himself until he knows where he is, related to this path.

 

The Second Level

The second level of overcoming is represented in the second temptation:

“Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

So, when the disciple overcomes the appetites and all that appeals to the senses what is next? In most religions that about covers it and the person is ready for salvation, but we see here that this is only the first step. In this account we see that Satan moved on to another category of temptation that places a barrier between the seeker and the real world of Spirit.

To what did the temptation appeal to in Jesus when he considered throwing himself off the pinnacle of the temple for all to see?

Right. His ego. If he jumped from the tallest part of the temple and landed safely for all to see then the people would recognize his greatness and immediately listen to him. Such a demonstration would make his work much easier and it would be uncomplicated to convince people he was the Messiah.

Also his ego would immediately get the praise and recognition that it seemed to deserve.

Note that in this temptation Satan tempted him with the scriptures and a literal interpretation thereof. He need not worry about falling from the temple for angels would protect the Messiah.

Jesus was thus tempted to feed and glorify the ego, the false part of himself rather than focusing on the glory of God. He overcame this deceptive use of scripture with pure reason and a counter scripture:

It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

How would such an act tempt God?

Jesus was promised protection until his mission was completed, but it is contrary to the will of heaven to use spiritual powers to glorify the ego. Therefore this act of self-glorification would put God in an awkward situation. If Jesus jumped from the temple and died it would seem that God could not have fulfilled his promise of protection. On the other hand, if Jesus was saved by the power God, then we have God glorifying the ego which runs contrary to his will.

Jesus jumping from the temple would have placed God in a situation where he would have been tempted to break his own promise. This was indeed a cunning temptation created by the Adversary.

Fortunately, Jesus saw through this deception and refused to place the promises of God in a no win situation.

In doing this he demonstrated mastery of the ego.

Many there are who have mastered the pull of the appetites and give of their money but still have not conquered the ego.

The ego tells us how important we are and that we must take steps to let friends, associates and the world know of our specialness.

Just as Jesus was tempted to let everyone know how special he was through a great miracle the ego of the typical spiritually minded person loves to glorify itself by letting others know how wonderful he is.

Making such an attempt is called a glamour.

These glamours are often very subtle. The seeker may even project a false humility so his ego can receive praise for humility from his peers.

Many glamours clamor for attention among the religious and spiritually minded people . Here are a few out of many:

  • He lets others know that he has been saved.
  • He broadcasts to all who will listen of a special relationship he has with God or Jesus.
  • He lets others know how righteous he is or how much he contributes to the church.
  • He projects the image of having the perfect marriage or family.
  • He broadcasts his spiritual experiences
  • He broadcasts his talents, seeking praise for them.

If you are a good or talented person people will find out about it naturally, but the one who is deceived by glamour will broadcast his virtues and abilities in such a way that the ego is fed which puts a cloud between the seeker and the Spirit of truth.

The true disciple must carefully examine his life and motives and one by one eliminate all the subtle ways that he has been feeding the ego,

His glamours may even be associated with a literal, but wrong interpretation of the scriptures as Jesus was tempted to accept.

It is a very natural thing to want to feel important. The key here is to make important contributions and let them speak for themselves. That will produce the greatest satisfaction. All attempts at self-glorification backfire in the end and the ego’s attempts to broadcast them must be put in its correct place.

The problem with these glamours is that those who are deceived the most by them see them the least and will generally feel they have the ego under control. It often takes a personal revelation before they are all seen and mastered.

 

The Third Level

Those disciples who have mastered the appetites as well as the ego still have a great hurdle to overcome as illustrated by the third temptation:

“Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

“Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.” Matt 4:1-11

Students do not understand what it was that supplied the real temptation to Jesus in this situation. Most figure that the obtaining of the kingdoms of the world appealed to his ego – that he was tempted to bask in the glory and praise of the world.

But, he mastered the ego in the second temptation. He who has mastered the ego would not be tempted to be a ruler like Caesar to merely satisfy a feeling of importance.

Once a disciple has mastered the appetites, the pull of matter and the ego his main goal will then be to concentrate on a labor that will be helpful for humanity to progress. What is the most frustrating thing for disciples who feel they have an important message or work to share?

The frustration is that many consider it a huge handicap that they do not have more power in the world to draw attention to their labor. Thoughts go through their minds, such as:

  • Wouldn’t it be great if I won the lottery? Then I would have the time and money to really accomplish something.
  • If I were president or an important leader then I could have the influence to cause people to see truth the way I do.
  • If I knew the right people or had friends in high places then I could really accomplish something.

The seeker who has advanced to this third level could be considered a very fine individual by regular moral standards. He has self-control, is faithful to his companions and beliefs, has overcome the ego and always has good intentions. He doesn’t want power for himself or his ego, but wants it so he can be a more powerful servant to others.

Even so, Jesus did not want to be a Caesar for the glory of the world, but as he contemplated his mission he also gave much thought as to how to go about convincing people he was the true Messiah. After all, there had been many before him who had made such claims. How was he going to succeed in convincing people when others had failed?

Just like many good seekers today want power so they can do good, this direction crossed through the mind of Jesus to the extent that he was tempted by it. And a real temptation it was because he knew he had the power of God with him and the ability to to obtain great power in the kingdoms of the world. He realized he could tread a path that would give him more power than Caesar. Then, of course, he imagined all the good things he could do with that power. With his abilities it would seem that he could manifest the kingdom of God on the earth.

The situation would be like you and me wishing we could be president and make some constructive changes, except in the case of Jesus he really had the ability to obtain great power in the world. This made his temptation much more vivid than the disciple with good intentions daydreaming about desirable circumstances.

What was the flaw that was at the root of this temptation? It was not immorality, the ego or glamour. It was something more subtle. It was caused by a trick that captivates the minds of all people now and then, called illusion.

The temptation came because the mind of Jesus considered that the most logical use of his abilities was to gain power in the world and then use that power for good.

Fortunately, after contemplating the options Jesus saw the truth behind this illusion.

He realized that a Caesar would not attract the true spiritually minded people that he would need. Secondly, he would establish a base of power that would eventually be taken over by others and corrupted. Thirdly Jesus would loose some of his focus on the power of the Spirit by pursuing earthly power.

He rejected the illusion and decided to place all his focus on the realm of Spirit and that if he did this his mission would be successful.

We as seekers of a higher way are also beset with many illusions. They are like blind spots to disciples and very difficult to see until the ego is mastered. When the ego is mastered the person will draw in additional light that is thrown upon all his thinking. Through contemplation he will unravel illusion after illusion until he can finally see truth as it is.

Two people who have overcome these three temptations will see eye to eye on all basic principles.

Is this the end of the journey then?

No. It is just the beginning of a greater one where the disciple finds there is still much more to overcome on many different levels. Remember that overcoming these three temptations was the beginning, not the end of the mission of Christ.

For more on this subject go HERE.

Copyright by J J Dewey

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Discipleship Revealed

Joseph Dewey

June 12, 1999

Discipleship Revealed

It is interesting that Jesus told his disciples that they loved Him because He loved them first. In other words, He did not pick a bunch that was brimming with love, but His own sharing caused the love within all but one to respond, even to the giving of their lives for their friend.

The qualities of a good and decent person with a loving heart are many and are reasonably easy to recognize, but the qualities looked for in a working disciple are not so obvious. The Christ, and the Masters with whom He works, look for a number of qualities that do not even occur to the idealistic devotee.

The general qualities of goodness is a mere first step to prepare the aspirant for the path of real learning and service on the Path.

Such preparatory qualities are

A Loving nature

Compassion

Faith

Honesty

Sincerity

Helpfulness

Diligence

Responsible

Humility

Reverence

Harmonious etc.

These and other qualities, as most people understand them, are a part of a large first step of preparation. On the other hand, the Masters do see some of these “simple” qualities on a deeper level than we do and they see that accepted disciples use them in a way that exceeds the beginner.

For example, an aspirant may have the faith to undertake a great feat of learning

But the disciple may have the faith to apply the things learned, which is a greater accomplishment.

The aspirant may be a big believer in love

The disciple manifests and stimulates love.

The aspirant believes and teaches helpfulness

The disciple is busy actively helping

So what is looked for in a working disciple – that is a person that a Master can assist and work through with a degree of success?

We have stated the first main quality which is:

Soul contact.

What is the second?

The phrase that best describes this second quality was used regularly by Alice A. Bailey as the ability to “keep the mind held steady in the light.”

The mind is the key that opens the door between the human kingdom and the kingdom of God. This is knowledge that needs to be registered by the seekers of the world who think that “all you need is love.”

Love is indeed a key, but it is the key to the correct use and influence of the mind. Thus love unlocks the correct use of mind and mind held steady in the light unlocks the door to the Kingdom of God and accepted discipleship.

We have all played with a magnifying glass. You can take the harmless rays of the sun and focus them through the glass on a piece of paper, and if you hold the glass steady at the right distance so focus is sustained then it will soon create fire.

The mind and the light of the Spirit are like this. The “universal Light” of the Spirit is always there like the sun at noonday and the mind is like a magnifying glass that captures this seemingly normal light and focuses it through purity and steadiness of intent until the spiritual fire is manifest.

The beginner seems to focus at random and creates a little fire from time to time. But slowly over a long period of trial and error the seeker learns to hold the mind steady so the light stays in focus at all times. Finally at this time the spiritual fire burns consistently, and this is what the higher lives look for. When they see your spiritual fire always there, always burning, always neutralizing negativity, illusion and high resistance of the lower worlds, then they realize that a new co-worker is in the making.

Holding your mind steady in the light creates a fire that burns a hole in the veil of the temple and thus “the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom” (Matt 27:51) thus allowing the disciple to enter into the Holy of Holies or the Kingdom of God.

By contrast the Dark Brothers enter the world of lower mind not through the door of love but through desire and glamour. Because they are then caught in illusion they use their magnifying glass of mind to focus the dark into a black hole of the mind that is so powerful in its gravity that no light can manifest.

This is part of the meaning of the comment of Jesus:

“But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” Matt 6:23

Alice A. Bailey has written quite a bit about this principle. Here are some quotes

“I would suggest that you concentrate upon “holding the mind steady in the light.” This will involve renewed work in alignment, and in the conscious refocusing of the mind towards reality. It is the activity of the inner, conscious man which ceaselessly turns its attention to the soul, seeking identification with that soul. The alignment usually carried forward is that of the personality with the soul.

Can I hold my mind “steady in the light” and see life truly and free from any blinding attachments?

“Can I hold my mind steady in the light which streams from the Observer? Can I hold it as the searchlight of the soul?”

“Receptiveness to spiritual impression. This entails the awakening of an intelligent use of the intuition, plus the capacity to hold the mind steady in the light whilst the brain is quiescently ready to record that “descending knowledge.”

“Through concentration and meditation he has achieved a large measure of mind control and learned how “to hold the mind steady in the light.” The consciousness then slips out of the lower self (out of the realm of awareness of the brain and the mind) and the mystic passes into the contemplative state, wherein he functions as the soul, and realizes himself as a Knower. The nature of the soul is knowledge and light, and its realm of existence is the kingdom of God. All the time that this identification with the soul continues, the mind is held steady and refuses all response to contacts emanating from other states of awareness, such as those coming from the emotional and physical worlds. Absorbed in union with God, transported into the “Third Heaven” (like St. Paul) and contemplating the beatific vision of Reality, he knows nothing, sees nothing, hears nothing except the phenomena which are appropriate to the world in which he is living. But in that world, he hears, and sees, and knows; he becomes aware of Truth, unveiled and freed from the glamour which the veil of matter casts upon it; he listens to the Wisdom which is stored up in his own unfathomable soul, and is that Wisdom itself, for subject and object no longer exist for him: he is both and knows it. He enters into the Mind of God – that universal storehouse of knowledge whose door stands ever open to those individual minds which can be sufficiently quieted and controlled to permit of their visioning the door and passing through it. And still, throughout all this transcendental process, the mind has been held steady in the Light.

“Thus we have the mind focussed and used to its utmost capacity, and then the cessation of its work. Next comes the use of the will to hold the mind steady in the light, and then – the Vision, Enlightenment, Illumination!

“Only as the disciple learns to hold his mind “steady in the light,” and as the rays of pure light stream forth from the soul, can the glamour be discovered, discerned, recognised for what it essentially is and thus be made to disappear, as the mists of earth dissolve in the rays of the rising sun. Therefore I would counsel you to pay more adequate attention to your meditation, cultivating ever the ability to reflect and to assume the attitude of reflection-held steady throughout the day.”

The third quality in order of importance has not been mentioned yet.

Let me repeat the hint:

“The closest someone came to the second characteristic is open mindedness. One also has to have a good handle on maya and glamour – without this characteristic the disciple will be reluctant to backtrack when he has made a mistake or take a wrong turn.”

We are looking for a key word here. What is it?

 

June 13, 1999

Detachment

Jay gave a hint to the third trait and answered it also.

The hint was: : “The ability to let go of outdated beliefs and thought patterns.”

Jay’s answer:

“Perhaps Non Attachment, the ability not to cling to thought patterns, to release old ways of thinking and behaving. Not to Attach to the ways of the ego.”

Close enough. The word was actually “detachment,” but non attachment means the same thing.

Detachment, like any other characteristic has a positive and negative side. It would be wrong to be so detached from your spouse and children that you could not feel love for them, for example.

On the other hand, if the disciple is so attached to his family that he is not willing to risk a little resistance to accomplish a work then he may not be a usable vessel.

Let us look at detachment in the positive aspect and tell us exactly what this quality is and why this it is so important in the eyes of the Masters.

A working disciple must be versatile through detachment for several reasons.

First he may receive a message that will completely change his direction and personal plans at any given moment. If he is attached to those plans and directions then he may reject or alter important higher instructions necessary to the work.

Secondly, he may make some personal mistakes that need to be corrected in order to complete the mission. If he is attached to being right or to his way of doing things then the mission may fail.

Thirdly, the disciple may receive knowledge that may contradict things he has believed all his life. If he is attached to his old beliefs then he may not be usable as a student or teacher.

Attachment is a very misunderstood concept and is often mistaken for virtue. For instance, an attachment of one person toward another is often called love, and this is the only version of love that many people understand. But it is not love, it is attachment, a desire to hold on to a thing or person. True love always involves a desire to serve and to help or enhance, not just a desire to hold on because of a desire to possess.

There will be many times that the working disciple will have to use the power of detachment. He must realize that he is not his body, not his feelings and not even his mind and stand back and watch these feelings and thoughts brood and move, yet make his decisions in the light of the soul without attachments to thoughts and feelings of his lower bodies.

Here are the three qualities we have named so far.

(1) Soul contact

(2) Holding the mind steady in the light

(3) Detachment when necessary.

Now let me name three more important qualities and the group can bring forth their wisdom and explain why the Masters need these qualities in a working disciple.

(4) The ability to either send or receive, to be either a teacher or a student as the situation demands. How are many people in illusion about this quality?

(5) The habit of reflecting daily, hourly, weekly on the results of the work and teachings and ways to make improvements.

(6) The possession of talents and abilities that will give him or her power to get the attention of the people and influence them in a positive direction.

Contemplating these additional three qualities should give some good food for thought.

Copyright by J J Dewey

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Three Qualities of a Disciple

Joseph Dewey

June 9, 1999

Three Qualities of a Disciple

I asked the group to name what they believe to be three qualities or characteristics that are looked for by the higher lives in an accepted disciple.

Rick brings up an interesting point. We are all motivated by benefits to self in one way or another. One of the main differences between the light and dark brotherhoods is that the Dark Brothers are deceived as to what is in the best interest of self in the long run. They believe that by ignoring the whole and concentrating on self only that the self will have maximum benefit. On the other hand, the Brotherhood of Light believe that the greatest long term benefit to self comes from losing sight of self for the good of the whole.

Contrary to popular belief even Jesus was motivated by self as illustrated in the scriptures:

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith: who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross…” Hebrews 12:2

Thus even the Master was motivated by joy, a great benefit to self.

I am enjoying your lists of qualities and characteristics of possible disciples. You have named some, but have missed several of the most important.

Hint: How about talent and ability? What do you suppose is looked for there?

The closest someone came to the second characteristic is open mindedness. One also has to have a good handle on maya and glamour as John pointed out. Without this characteristic the disciple will be reluctant to backtrack when he has made a mistake or take a wrong turn.

Then there is a third one I do not believe was mentioned. It is a trait that belongs to one who is amplifying his power of decision and is able to work without a lot of supervision.

Take a stab at these discovering these three and I will elaborate more fully soon.

June 11, 1999

Xavier mentioned a quality that is definitely in the top ten which is purity of intent.

Now most people believe their intent is pure, but in reality many have blind spots preventing them from seeing their wrong motive.

How can we acquire pure intent and how will we know when we have arrived there?

I’ve always liked the quote of Tennyson: “My strength is as the strength of ten because my heart is pure.”

Do you think there is some truth to the words of this poet?

I would have to say that all your answers about the qualities of a disciple are in the right direction, but there is one that really stands out in my mind:

Alex: “I discovered three new mysteries of the universe and found Madona’s naked body hidden in the arrangement all at the same time.”

I must admit that Brian went a step further:

“If you stare at Alex’s message long enough, you can see a perfect rendering of a disciple. Funny thing is, the disciple is dancing in a field of marshmallows, and is wearing pink fuzzy bunny slippers.”

Getting back to reality here, I have tabulated your answers and arranged them below. Even if you have read all the posts, I think it would be worthwhile to read these again.

Glenys complained that she could only answer three, but I didn’t say you couldn’t name more than three which some of you rebels went ahead and did.

Here are her answers:

(1) A strong commitment to serving humanity at the expense of fulfilling one’s own desires/needs ie a group rather than individual consciousness.

(2) A single-minded dedication to the Path of Light and the implementation of the Plan for mankind

(3) A certain level of Soul Contact and Christ Consciousness so that one can be considered to be reliable, intelligent and sensitive to the promptings of the Soul.

These are from Samu:

(1) The unwavering desire to always strive for the highest good perceived for all, willingness to face the possible ‘outer difference’ it may bring with it.

(2) Always trying to see the biggest picture perceivable, making the decision for oneself to grow in order for the whole to become more advanced.

(3) Fearlessness

Here are some other answers:

  • Steadfast and loyal, faithful no matter what to the Brotherhood of Light.
  • Willing, humble and wise enough to put Spirit in the driver’s seat of one’s life (rather than ego, the physical senses, the intellect, the emotions etc.)
  • The ability, desire and motivation to seek out answers where there seem to be none. Not resting until your soul tells you that you have found the truth.
  • Willingness to Accept the Truth when it is presented.
  • Willingness to Serve.
  • Ability to follow through – completion.
  • Willingness to extend beyond their ‘Comfort Zone’
  • Surrendering to the will of the Divine.
  • The ability to let go of outdated beliefs and thought patterns.
  • Faithful…..At least on a personal level, a disciple would never swerve from what he believes to be true, even when the “cock crows 3 times”
  • Free circulation of emotions and feelings
  • Freedom of thought and action
  • Happy friendly social life
  • Doing something that brings light and evolution to the whole.
  • An accepted disciple needs to be full of it!
  • By it, I mean….Love, Joy and Peace! Full of Love! Full of Joy! Full of Peace!
  • The ability to remain humble when faced with either success or disappointment.
  • Being both a student and a teacher.
  • A true desire to help others with selflessness.
  • A BURNING DESIRE to serve
  • Also, patience, kindliness, charity, sincerity, courage, tolerance, discrimination, love and all the noble traits are enhanced through soul contact.
  • Overcoming Maya and glamor.
  • GOOD KARMA or a reasonably balanced account is very important, because you can’t help to increase the system if you tend to need more help than you give.

That last one was especially good by Rick. Few would have thought of it.

Other responses brought up these qualities:

Balance

Being a living example.

Brilliance

Commitment

Compassion

Consistency of reasoning

Courage

Creative Expression

Creativity

Debate Skills

Diligence

Discernment

Endurance

Faith

Fearlessness

Helper

Honesty

Hope

Humility

Illusion

Intelligence

Intrepidity

Knowingness

Lack of Judgment

Love

Love and be loved

Loving

Non Conformity

Openness

Patience

People Skills

Pure Intent

Purity-of-heart

Responsibility

Right action

Right speech

Right thought

Self discipline

Sincerity

Soul Contact

Teaching ability

Trustworthy

Unconditional love

Vision

So have we left any out? If you think we have go ahead and post them and I’ll give my two cents worth in an upcoming post.

Question: What is THE first thing the Masters look for in a working disciple?

Why is the answer not Love?

 

June 12, 1999

The Response on Love

The first primary quality that is absolutely necessary in the working disciple is soul contact, and several of you have successfully named this.

The reason that love is not first on the list is that when one obtains this contact through the soul then we can be assured that the quality of love exists and is manifest in the person as more than an idealistic theory, but as a working principle.

We would say that love is the seed and soul contact is the plant. The plant is visible evidence that the seed was real and alive.

Unfortunately, there are many who teach love out the yin yang, (see Philo in the book) but the seed is dead and never sprouts up and grows into the plant of soul contact. True love is a living , moving, growing entity.

Almost everyone you talk to believes they love truly and understand the feelings of love. Indeed there is a universal sense of its direction. But the obstacles to its fullness becoming manifest are legion indeed.

There are many who describe love in numerous ways and definitions, but is there some criteria by which we can tell for sure that the power of love is really growing and manifesting in any one individual?

There is, and when I give it to you your soul will verify the truth of this principle which is this:

“He who truly loves will be loved in return.”

In other words, love gathers love to itself.

Have you ever known a person who uses love about every other word, yet is loveless in his own life and it seems as if everyone can’t wait to escape his presence?

On the other hand, have you known others who use the word sparingly, but you find yourself magnetically attracted to him (or her) because you “love” being with or near him?

The person in first example has a lack of love and talks about it more to fill the vacuum than to manifest it.

The second example is manifesting living love and has no vacuum to fill and does not have to present a sales pitch on the virtues of love.

Now the Dark Brothers can appear through illusion to be this second example, but it will be the power of glamour and not love as the attractive (but temporary) force.

Nevertheless, the fact that love sent forth is finding a response in others is physical evidence that love is truly present with the sender.

Copyright by J J Dewey

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