July 2019 - Fourth Way Today

Quotes on Sleep and Awakening

from Fourth Way writers and other mystical authors P.D.Ouspensky: For us, meditation is imagination. Enough imagination is in us as it is, without adding meditation. We must try to awaken first. P.D.Ouspensky: Symbolism in ordinary art… is the product of a man’s dreams. In much of modern art, it is is the product of his nightmares. […]

by Walther Sell

Darkness and Light–Yin and Yang

The author describes how the ancient I Ching, the book of changes, uses the symbols of darkness and light, yin and yang, to describe awakening. Symbols of Enlightenment The sun, responsible for the light in our solar system is, simply put, a huge ball of fire. Fire creates light in the world, while the absence of fire results […]

by William Page

Choosing to Believe One Can Awaken

Remembering to Remember Oneself This may seem strange, but when I wake up in the morning and sit up in bed and begin to remember myself, I find that the best attitude I can take is to believe that I can do it. Choosing to believe I can remember myself, without long lapses, for the […]

by Natassa Cavalli

Awakening with the Help of a School

The author describes how, in a school of awakening, one uses methods to develop a steward to empower ‘Real I.’ We may wonder each moment, where are we going? When this question touches on our need for divine guidance, it can be a moment of awakening. Gurdjieff writes that all phenomena in life arise from […]

by Gilbert Moore

What is the Difference between Being Asleep and Awake?

Imagine you know nothing about third or fourth states of consciousness. Only about the first and second states. Someone asks you: “What is the difference between being asleep and being awake?” How would you answer them? What’s Different about Being Awake? Truthfully, the main difference between being asleep in first state and being awake in second […]

by David Tuttle

Recognizing Our Sleep

Part of self-observation is coming to recognize sleep, first of all in ourselves. Sleep means living in our imagination and our day dreams – a subjective world. However, when we remember ourselves for a moment, we temporarily step out of sleep. “Man is a machine, everything with him happens: he cannot stop the flow of […]

by Benjamin B

Growth – from Darkness to Light

The author describes how the tools of scale and relativity help us awaken from sleep, to reach an awareness that is more in touch with reality. Our Changing Connection with Reality Our inner lives comprise moments of varying profundity or depth. Depending on the activity at hand, the mood we are in, or the influence […]

by Girard Haven

The Color of Nothing

How can we describe a higher state of existence? The author describes how the third state of consciousness serves as a bridge to higher awareness. Expressing the Inexpressible Picture in your mind the most beautiful sunrise you have ever seen. Now imagine trying to explain that experience to someone who not only has been blind since birth […]