Weekly readings and tasks are for members of the W.P.HC&IB study group and those who have no access to a live group engaged in self study. The weekly readings and tasks given here are given for the purpose of achieving higher consciousness and higher inner being.
Many who happen upon this blog have never heard of, or unfamiliar with the works of Gurdjieff, Ouspensky, and Nicol - commonly referred to as Fourth Way Work, or Eckhardt Tolle, the Dalai Lama, or their philosophies regarding inner work and their methods for helping others to learn how to increase higher consciousness and uplift the quality of being; yet each has been searching earnestly for meaning in their lives for a very long time. That search has led them here, to this blog or to our physical group or to groups around the globe engaged in the Work of finding true inner being and higher consciousness; just as our own search for truth about the meaning of our lives has brought each of us to wherever it was that we met the Work we are currently engaged in.
For these, for ourselves, for those around us, for the world, and for the work itself, we continue to practice our inner work - simply, quietly, mindfully, care-fully; each making efforts from exactly where we are - honestly and sincerely without analysis or judgment.
Share your experiences.
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HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THE WEEKLY WORK:
It is best to not practice tasks and exercises in such an obvious way as to attract attention to yourself. This detracts from sincere work and creates dishonesty with yourself. It also may make you appear to be a "nut" to others around you. Never discuss your inner work or share work ideas with others who are not working on themselves with these ideas. If you know anyone who is interested in these ideas direct them to this blog. Do not attempt to "explain" or "teach". You may ruin their chances of meeting the Work themselves and you will dissipate what you have earned for yourself through your own efforts and experiences in the Work thus far.
I can be contacted via comments on any page - do not include personal information - just say I would like to contact you and state why. All comments are monitored and approved before they are published. Requests for contact will not be seen or published.
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SITTING
Sitting every morning is essential for real inner work. You must sit every day to prepare yourself inwardly to meet your daily life with all it brings and to set your intentions for daily work with tasks. Ideally it is best to sit for 45 minutes after bathing and before breakfast.
At the very least, sit for 5 minutes before leaving the house on those days when you've gotten up late, but do not make a habit of it.
It is also best to sit for 15 to 30 minutes or more before going to bed after writing your daily observations in your journal.
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"the inner exercises are practiced while sitting, but differ inwardly from many traditional meditative techniques by often requiring a sustained active attention and a clear inner intention to actualize energy transformations in the body. With mindfulness, a practitioner (of the exercises) depending on the aim of the particular exercise, moves her attention into specific corporal areas, systems, parts, or organs. While keeping attention there, she "senses," "feels," and "knows" what is there—that is, she becomes present to the energy inside (the part of the body) as she accepts how she feels about it and "sees"or visualizes it. Then the practitioner changes, manipulates or influences what is there according to the intention of the particular exercise. Sounds complicated? Not really. These exercises are very systematic and are developed progressively over time with regular practice.
In short, the work of the inner exercises begins with what is present in the body, facilitates a possible return to a physiological state of natural being, and prepares us to go on to a creation, a distillation, or an emergence of something that is of our own making or doing and for which we can be responsible. For example, the impulses-of-relaxation exercises and the filling-with-sensation exercises, respectively, aim to enhance an instinctive "letting go" of tensions at the body-system level (to begin with) and to deepen and awaken awareness of one's own life at the feeling energy level."
~ bennettbooks.org
In short, the work of the inner exercises begins with what is present in the body, facilitates a possible return to a physiological state of natural being, and prepares us to go on to a creation, a distillation, or an emergence of something that is of our own making or doing and for which we can be responsible. For example, the impulses-of-relaxation exercises and the filling-with-sensation exercises, respectively, aim to enhance an instinctive "letting go" of tensions at the body-system level (to begin with) and to deepen and awaken awareness of one's own life at the feeling energy level."
~ bennettbooks.org
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Sitting every morning is essential for real inner work. You must sit every day to prepare yourself inwardly to meet your daily life with all it brings and to set your intentions for daily work with tasks.
Ideally it is best to sit after bathing and before breakfast, however, it is recommended that beginners start with 10-15 minutes. To learn to center themselves and become acquainted with the sitting practice. See the video below for how to position the body for sitting.
Later you will be instructed to increase the time you sit when you are ready and will be given additional inner work to practice while sitting. Most long time practitioners sit for up to one hour or more every morning.
Ideally it is best to sit after bathing and before breakfast, however, it is recommended that beginners start with 10-15 minutes. To learn to center themselves and become acquainted with the sitting practice. See the video below for how to position the body for sitting.
Later you will be instructed to increase the time you sit when you are ready and will be given additional inner work to practice while sitting. Most long time practitioners sit for up to one hour or more every morning.
At the very least, sit for 5 minutes before leaving the house on those days when you've gotten up late, but do not make a habit of it.
It is also best to sit for 15 to 30 minutes or more before going to bed after writing your daily observations in your work journal.
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I've posted the following video here solely as teaching aid for how to position the body when sitting.
Thank you to the Hazy Moon Zen Center for sharing this wonderful video on You Tube.
For further Work sitting exercises and practices, consult your group leaders or contact me.
Thank you to the Hazy Moon Zen Center for sharing this wonderful video on You Tube.
For further Work sitting exercises and practices, consult your group leaders or contact me.
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"Work with attention … work to open ... effort to simply be …
immobile … sustained by wish or at least by obedience …
sensing … feeling … breathing …returning, again and again ...
allowing ... remaining ...I work to Be.
immobile … sustained by wish or at least by obedience …
sensing … feeling … breathing …returning, again and again ...
allowing ... remaining ...I work to Be.
Alone or in the group,
directed or searching,
directed or searching,
Our sittings include exercises handed down in
the oral tradition from teacher to student back to Gurdjieff
and beyond"
the oral tradition from teacher to student back to Gurdjieff
and beyond"
I ask everyone who works with me to keep a work journal. This is a daily task.
Before sitting each evening note, with attention to sensation, the experiences you had with the daily task and clinical observations about your daily work in a journal reserved exclusively for this purpose. Do not use the journal for anything else.
Before sitting each evening note, with attention to sensation, the experiences you had with the daily task and clinical observations about your daily work in a journal reserved exclusively for this purpose. Do not use the journal for anything else.
While writing. Bring your attention to the sensation of your hand and fingers as you write. Do not allow yourself to:
analyze
speculate about
or judge
what you've observed and what you are writing about.
Journaling is essential to your inner work and instructions for journaling are to be treated as an important ongoing task.
Use this opportunity to practice not being "taken" by what you are writing. Write as clinically and as objectively as possible ~ as if you were a scientist. Practice being clinical (scientifically detached; unemotional) and objective (not influenced by personal feelings or prejudice; unbiased; not taken) while writing. Make it your daily intention to make note of what was experienced and any new questions that arise from those experiences simply and succinctly.
It is a good idea to keep the journal or small notepad with you during the day to jot down any notes while you practice the tasks.
Always bring your journal with you to our meetings. For those who do not attend meetings you may contact me by email to discuss.
The purpose of this blog:
analyze
speculate about
or judge
what you've observed and what you are writing about.
Journaling is essential to your inner work and instructions for journaling are to be treated as an important ongoing task.
Use this opportunity to practice not being "taken" by what you are writing. Write as clinically and as objectively as possible ~ as if you were a scientist. Practice being clinical (scientifically detached; unemotional) and objective (not influenced by personal feelings or prejudice; unbiased; not taken) while writing. Make it your daily intention to make note of what was experienced and any new questions that arise from those experiences simply and succinctly.
It is a good idea to keep the journal or small notepad with you during the day to jot down any notes while you practice the tasks.
Always bring your journal with you to our meetings. For those who do not attend meetings you may contact me by email to discuss.
The purpose of this blog:
I hope this blog is of service to you and helps you to keep the work alive in you and in your life, especially those of you who do not have access to a face to face group.
Warning about half hearted attempts:
Remember, deliberately leaving out any part of your weekly tasks is avoidance. Refusing any part of tasks given to you for any reason is also avoidance. Not speaking sincerely about habitual forgetting or asking the important questions you are "afraid" to ask is dishonesty; you are being insincere with yourself, with your group and with your teacher. This affects the work of everyone adversely - including your group, as well as the manager/ mentor/ teacher.
If you disagree with or question the work given to you personally or to the group and do not discuss this with me, or believe you know better what you need in your personal work, it is better to leave the group or stop reading the blog than to continue. The tasks and readings given here, individually and to the group are designed to help you to steadily move toward your aims.
If you do not try tasks the way they are given to the best of your ability, then it is better to leave and spend your life at the movies or watching television.
If you do not try tasks the way they are given to the best of your ability, then it is better to leave and spend your life at the movies or watching television.
Try, make efforts. Gurdjieff said: "No small effort goes unrewarded." It is true. If you have tried at all you have already verified this for yourself. The aim is to awaken, to be present to your life – to live it, not to dream you are living it - to Know Yourself and to BE
Please also see the suggested reading list.
I wish for you full realization of your awakened being consciousness and human potential,
Laura
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