Comments for Tracy Cochran

Comment on The Angel and the Animal by artxulan

artxulan — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:20:22 +0000

always confronted?”
It is by way of Attention that it is possible to See our two natures. We can, maybe for a time in moments only, See the automatic functionings within our body. Thoughts happen, emotions happen, postures happen. These are not necessarily normal functionings of the body. They have come about not of our Doing but of our conditioning and environment. These mechanical manifestations are our animal nature, the involutionary forces at work in and through us. They are our own involutionary current as well as that of the lateral octave originating in the Sun which is itself within the involutionary current of the Ray of Creation pertaining to our solar system. To remember ourselves, in moments, in both directions or in both natures is to see the mechanical functions within the human body. Functions which are of a density of world 48, Earth.
And the other Nature, the other World…and inevitably there is a third factor, for the law of three prevails throughout the universe in everything that exists? The other nature is the higher level of Attention which sees the mechanical within us but also is aware of its self Seeing. When I See I am conscious of the fact that I am Seeing. This is a higher Nature. The materiality of this Attention is finer, quicker, more encompassing than attention which is imprisoned in one or the other of the forms of, emotion, thinking, physical, within the physical body. Here a question arises. The second nature Attention is a different density than the lower nature attention but both are necessary. Without the lower Nature there would be no possibility of evolution. But the question that arises is what is this second Nature Attention? Does it imply a second body or the beginning of a second body. Body always seems to be required. And what of the second nature and indeed the lower nature is born at our physical birth on Earth and what is born because we Work?

Oh, and by the way Man, completely Evolved Man we are told occupies a place above that of the Angels and Angels sometimes make rather horrendous mistakes when attempting to set something aright on Earth because they haven’t the experience of Being Human.

Comment on The Truth Behind The Truth by Sasha Tumbletree

Sasha Tumbletree — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 23:39:49 +0000

In reading through both the original blog and the conversation that followed, this statement stands out most to me, “…Creationists vs. Intelligent Design adherents. In fact they are both correct,…” It stands out, because it is so blatantly false; and seemingly reveals a world view that has little correlation to “reality,” since evolution is reality.

Comment on Woodenfish by PM

PM — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:37:03 +0000

Tracy,
I remember you read well some T S Eliot years ago , and said so. at the time. I forget what . He wrote of “the future”: (“The Dry Salvages”) And the way up is the way down, the way forward is the way back. You cannot face it steadily, but this thing is sure, That time is no healer: the patient is no longer here.

Steiner’s words in which he describes moments in one’s life when the spiritual world is able to penetrate us are more representative of his thought than the “Two Streams” selection in PARABOLA. I expect he was speaking to an audience not familiar with his ideas in the selected piece: terms like “humility” and “prayer” were more appropriate:

[page 15,Cosmic and Human Metamorphoses, GA# 44 Seven Lectures in Berlin in 1917] Each time we develop a thought in such a way that it springs from ourselves, when we take the initiative, when we are confronted with a decision to be made by ourselves even in quite small things, that again is a favorable moment for the approach of the Dead karmically connected with us. (Of course, if we simply yield ourselves up, allowing life to take its course, carrying us along with the stream, there is but little likelihood of the real, true, inwardly living Spiritual world working into us.)

PARABOLA includes the words of Gurdjieff where he says that the present is a time to repair the past and prepare the future ( resembling Aquinas’s dictum that the duration of human life is to be dedicated to earning grace and Madame’s speaking of the priority of higher energy .) In the suggestions he gave to his pupils Gurdjieff recommended saying as a prayer for one’s parents the “I am Thou, Thou art I.” This exercise for being present includes the past . I need to be open to help from the Silence, which includes the help of others, living or dead. We may repair the past in the present in our work to be. Madame often said in recommending we do the morning exercise , “You will know you are never alone.”

-PM

Comment on Inhaling and Exhaling by Observer

Observer — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 16:50:59 +0000

Hi Tracy, I discovered your blog this afternoon. Thanks

I have a question though. Apart from the brief mention made by Gurdjieff with regard to the importance of breathing and movements, is there a reliable detailed record anywhere of the breathing technique taught by Gurdjieff, since he taught orally?

If not, what breathing/movement technique in existence today would be the closest to what Gurdjieff taught?

Comment on Woodenfish by artxulan

artxulan — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:32:04 +0000

I think the pain comes before the Seeing. When Seeing there is no pain. There is wonder in having a completely different (a separation) view of myself. And a moment of joy comes when I see how my manifestations almost always take me..or rather take my energy, my attention. The joy comes, I suppose, because I see the traps within myself that imprison me. But I also become aware that I am more than that. I can See and the door of freedom is opened for a moment.

Then later I go on to think, maybe understand a little, how I, like the large celestial bodies, have centers of gravity within me. Dispersed in many locations. Not one center of gravity in its proper place which would attract, perhaps, what I need.

By Seeing I am changed. A moment of transformation of Being. How much affect will it have on my life?

These moments of Seeing seem to come after very difficult and painful experiences in life. Others annoy me. They seem insensitive, stupid. How am I to deal with that? I am in emotional upheaval but beneath or within that is Wish. Wish to understand. Wish for shared Work. I Sit. Am quiet. I am given what I need. From where? By whom?

Comment on Conscience Flowing Into the World by artxulan

artxulan — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 05:51:21 +0000

Even though I have experienced Conscience, still it remains a mystery, as does Love. Gurdjieff affirms that humans have concience but that it is covered and rarely if ever takes part in our life.

How sad that my concience and the concience of humanity is deeply buried and most often does not participate in our relations with one another. If concience were to take part in our life there would be no wars, no hatred, no violence.

How is concience uncovered?

Concience is not an emotion but when one thinks of humans who have little or no emotional function one is bound to feel compassion. What must it be like to go through life emotionless? A dead life.

Comment on The Truth Behind The Truth by tracycochran

tracycochran — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:34:26 +0000

Thank you for these responses, so wonderfully alive and full of “compassionate questioning.”

Comment on The Gifts of Madame de Salzmann and G.I. Gurdjieff by Kevin Ionno

Kevin Ionno — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:26:15 +0000

Where do the things in our life come from? But also, where do they go when they leave us?

Thank you, Tracy, for creating a space for a moment of awareness.

Comment on The Truth Behind The Truth by David Hykes

David Hykes — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:01:13 +0000

I’m always quietly moved whenever there’s the unmistakable sense of what I could call “compassionate questioning”– where the sense of wonder and mystery is active and shared, and we are quiet enough to receive impressions as a Gift. So, Tracy, thanks for writing this and I’m sure the latest Parabola issue will nourish much fruitful exchange.
Om Shanti,
David

Comment on The Truth Behind The Truth by bzeines

bzeines — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:39:20 +0000

Thank you for this wonderful post. We have been two ships in the night but have never had a proper conversation. This may be our opportunity.

This morning I felt the deep need to face the unknown, or as it has been put, ‘the state of not knowing’. Letting go of the known world is very difficult for us. We have not been educated to do so. It is not a process that is welcomed in the world we move through.

Madame de Salzmann was a living example of this. It is these giants who have persisted in searching, vibrating in a whole other way, that remain constant symbols for my own existence. One that remains in question every moment that I am attendant. Otherwise, we are lost to the dream.