The Fourth Way and Esoteric Traditions
True earth arrests true lead;True lead controls true mercury.Lead and mercury return to true earth;Body and mind are tranquil and still.— Zhang Boduan, Four-Hundred Words on the Golden Elixir This little verse contains everything one needs to know to awaken. However, understanding the meaning is not an easy task and requires a conscious teacher. And […]
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Movement and Stillness, Balance and Harmony In the Book of Balance and Harmony, Li DaoChun writes, “The Absolute is movement and stillness without beginning, yin and yang without beginning.” Movement and rest manifest on all scales and take on different meanings. Movement and rest can be either mechanical or a more conscious movement and rest. […]
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Can We Stand to See Ourselves? Everybody stands before a mirror and, instead of himself, sees somebody else. — Ouspensky, The Fourth Way People live their lives in a state of sleep and have an imaginary idea of who they are. Working towards awakening requires a third force. If one only has the first force of […]
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Regeneration among the Six Processes The word ‘regeneration’ implies a re-engendering, a re-creation. It implies that something was first created naturally, and is now to be re-created a second time by will, intention and purpose. It implies a second birth. — Rodney Collin. The Law of Three refers to the concept that three forces–an active, passive […]
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This article describes how negative emotions manifest as an example of one of the six cosmic processes: the process of Crime, or Disease. The Law of Three is one of the treasures of Fourth Way knowledge. The more one becomes aware of oneself in daily life, the more this concept provides a way to understand […]
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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 […]
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What is the Aim of a School? The aim of a Fourth Way school is to help people to awaken from the state of sleep in which they spend their whole life. The first step is becoming more deeply aware of this sleep in one’s daily life. Ouspensky said, “Schools exist only for those who need […]
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How do we go about rekindling the light of awareness? In Taoist texts, the ‘light of awareness’ must return to its root. How can we recognize its loss and return to this light? The Magic of the Monkey King The Fourth Way teaching is clear in stating that man doesn’t have will, unity, or self-awareness. […]
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Editor’s Note: Studying objective symbols such as the four heavenly gods in Buddhism, one can better understand the concept of the four “kings” of centers in the Fourth Way today. The Four Kings of Centers and the Four Heavenly Kings One of the basic concepts of the Fourth Way is the idea that man has […]
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Forging the Sword – Quotations A sword is something to protect the body; here it means the tool of wisdom to become enlightened and immortal, the means to become a sage. This is what is called the restored elixir; there is no “sword” other than the restored elixir. This means restoration of the original innate […]
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