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| A tortoiseshell cat demonstrates how to stop in the midst of action |
D described his experience of life as paradoxical. He felt he had got nothing to say and at the same time he had got a lot to say. He described a lack of drive. He had been trying to find a theatre to stage his play but he hadn't got a passion to support the arts. He found it difficult to motivate himself. He was anxious about forgetfulness. He was younger than M but remembered M had had that difficulty. He reflected that apart from lack of drive, other things in his life were not bad. He was aware of observing more, stopping more and thinking and being where he was. He was aware of the paradoxical and contradictory nature of things.
"R" had decided to make a point of saying something appreciative or complementary to someone she didn't know or hardly knew. She was aware that her habit was to be inwardly critical. The first thing she noticed was how rare it was to have the opportunity to say something that was directly and sincerely appreciative. She gave the example of going into a shop. When shop assistants ask if they can help she usually says no. Her opinion was that it would be more valuable for the business if the assistant were to phrase it differently, for example, "Do let me know if you need any help?" However this time when she went to the dentist, she consciously thanked the nurse, whom she had never met before. From this experience she was aware that her gratitude was not to do with her ego.
Z wanted to talk about the list of words. She didn't observe the list but she felt that there was nothing in her that resonated with them. She asked the Meeting what the purpose was of them. She wondered if the words had an holistic meaning or if they stood for something. To her the words were "long, funny ones" and she couldn't get beyond that.
T described an experience of sitting still in nature for one minute and focusing on what was in her line of sight, which was a blade of grass that was moving in the breeze. She was aware that usually her eye would be naturally roaming to look at everything to try and take in all the beauty. She was aware of the pull to look elsewhere and the effort not to look. By continuing to focus she noticed that she was aware of the general broader landscape around her although she was not directly looking at any of it. Towards the end of the minute she became aware of a strand of her own hair moving in the breeze in front of her eyes and normally she would have pushed this out of the way. By remaining still and not reacting she saw at the same time both the blade of grass and the strand of hair moving in the breeze. She was aware of seeing both from an objective point of view and being detached from both, not having a sense of owning or possessing the strand of hair or the blade of grass but seeing both like a detached witness.As this completed the contributions, it was time to move on to the responses.
D followed up Z's remarks about the list of words. He thought that Gurdjieff used them to irritate and wake up the reader. Z replied that what she felt they did was block her absorption or understanding. L commented that he liked the sound of them, giving the example of heptaparaparshinokh. He had thought of using them in songs. They sounded rhythmic and melodic and he could set them into verses. He could envisage a musical version of Beelzebub's Tales along the lines of the hit musical, The Book of Mormon, currently showing in London and New York. This could help people remember the words. He thought the words were fun and could stick in the mind. GC experienced the words as having hints of meaning. He thought that experience of the words would be different for different people. For example if somebody knew Latin or Russian, then bits of the long words seemed to be a combination of different languages, roots of words or words that come from the past. "R" said that the words were inventions.
L commented that there was no way he could daydream through Beelzebub's Tales. In contrast he thought he could daydream during Shakespeare or the Bible. He thought the Bible was more complicated and that it had the effect of keeping people "asleep". GC asked how did Beelzebub's Tales wake people up? L thought that Gurdjieff's structure for the book, and the invented words were functional to jog people into waking. "R" remarked that the sentence structure was also to do with breath. The structure forced the reader to do something they were not used to doing. The easy or usual breath rhythm was not possible to maintain. GC believed that if Gurdjieff could have written better, he would have. "R" disagreed, citing the example of Gurdjieff's very well written book, "Meetings with Remarkable Men". She reminded the Meeting that Gurdjieff's father was a professional story teller.
D remarked how powerful it was to put something to music and recalled the video "We are part of the universe" which had impressed him by putting to music scientists speaking theoretically.
L added that he considered The Book of Mormon to be a very good book. During the Book of Mormon Show, the Latter Day Saints have been advertising within the programme for the show, which poked fun at their religion. The show has attracted great interest. In Beelzebub's Tales Gurdjieff did the opposite in the preface, dissuading people from reading the book, and in the structure he tried to get people not to be interested. "R" commented that she doesn't believe anything she reads. GC pointed out the irony that "R" reads Beelzebub's Tales which is indecipherable!
L said that each era brings new material. There was no classical music before medieval times, and likewise Gurdjieff has provided new material. GC said that he had tried to read Beelzebub's Tales and then asked in frustration "What's the point of reading this?" He thought that Gurdjieff had played with his audience with this book, but had not with Meetings with Remarkable Men.
L responded that some things are complex and gave the example of how playing the piano was not easy, how it forced people to grapple with the complexity of it. However he also remembered the old Russian proverb, "A man cannot grow taller than himself".
It being after 9:45, the Meeting then resumed reading Beelzebub’s Tales, Chapter 17, The Arch-absurd.
... in every cosmic formation, the said separated sources, both for the perception and for the further utilization of this property of the 'Omnipresent-Active-Element' for the purpose of the corresponding actualizing, exist and continue to have the possibility of functioning as long as the given cosmic unit exists.
And only after the said cosmic unit has been completely destroyed do these holy sources of the sacred Triamazikamno, localized in the 'Omnipresent-Active-Element-Okidanokh,' reblend and they are again transformed into 'Okidanokh,' but having now another quality of Vivifyingness of Vibrations.
Z commented that thus far she did not understand one word. GC said she was not meant to. "R" said this was not the case. GC asked what the phrase vivifyingness of vibrations meant. "R" said it was what we all need: more intensity. Z said she sometimes felt more alive, which relates to vivifyingness. GC asked if that was good. "R" said the purpose was to transform coarse into finer, in terms of vibrations.
... there proceeds within every arising large and small, when in direct touch with the emanations either of the Sun Absolute itself or of any other sun, what is called 'Remorse,' that is, a process when every part that has arisen from the results of any one Holy Source of the Sacred Triamazikamno, as it were, 'revolts' and 'criticizes' the former unbecoming perceptions and the manifestations at the moment of another part of its whole - a part obtained from the results of another Holy Source of the same fundamental sacred Cosmic Law of Triamazikamno.
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| Unholy Trinity Anonymous artist |
Z suggested Reconciliation as the third factor. D said that Despair was a sin according to the bible. L said that could really worry someone who was already in that state.The Reading continued:
And this sacred process Aieioiuoa or 'Remorse' always proceeds with the 'Omnipresent-Active-Element-Okidanokh' also.
The peculiarity of this latter during this sacred process is that while the direct action either of the sacred Theomertmalogos or the emanation of any ordinary sun is round about the whole of its presence, this Active-Element is dispersed into its three prime parts which then exist almost independently, and when the said direct action ceases, these parts blend again and then continue to exist as a whole.
There was some discussion on the function of remorse. It was to do with being reminded of behaviour, and learning from experience. L said that changing behaviour was more difficult than remorse.
The exercise suggested for May was to notice when you experience resistance and to be aware of it, to recognise it.
