The Fourth Way and Esoteric Traditions
THE METAPHOR of the FORGE – Man as he is has no will or unity. His name is legion. His being is a multiplicity. His essence hardens under the governance of false personality and social constraints. To develop, he must be softened, strengthened, and made more pliable. A school is a forge for softening false personality, strengthening essence, and creating unity.
Biblical Quotations What does it mean to possess unity or will? In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus speaks: Father, if it be thy will, take this cup from me. Yet not my will but thine be done. – Luke 22:42 And in Matthew 7:21: Not everyone who calls me Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom […]
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Will, unity and the many I’s In the Fourth Way, a student learns to understand the difference between will and mechanicality. What is the unifying principle to overrule the many parts of our being? The work is upside down and backwards to life. To life, “freedom” means being able to follow the many ‘I’s the […]
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– What do we have of human knowledge and divine knowledge? “Chickens cackle and dogs bark — This is what men know. Although they may have great knowledge, They cannot explain whence they have evolved. Nor can they surmise with ideas what they will become.” – Chuang Tzu Such is human knowledge. For awakening, we need […]
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How do we create being, and what is will? P. D. Ouspensky said, Only when one is conscious does one have unity, will, and the ability to love. In my own experience, working with the Fourth Way for half a lifetime, moments of will come from outside of our normal sense of self. They come […]
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The Story of Pinocchio The tale of the puppet Pinocchio who becomes a real boy begins in Tuscany. A carpenter named Master Antonio has found a block of pinewood to carve into a leg for his table. When he begins, however, the log shouts out. Frightened by the talking log, he gives it to his […]
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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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Recently on a visit to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York I wandered into a room full of Katanas. Katana are Japanese samurai swords, exquisite objects that seamlessly integrate lethal utility and beautiful design. I read a little about the labor-intensive process used for forging these blades. It occurred as an obvious analogy […]
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Rumi on the Transformation of a Soul through the Story of the Chickpea In the collected sayings of Rumi from the Mathnawi III, 4159-421, he describes how a chickpea is consumed by fire to become another kind of food altogether. Look at a chickpea boiling in the pot, leaping up when it feels the fire. […]
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The Fourth Way is very clear in expressing the idea that man is, psychologically speaking, not one but many; he doesn’t have unity. How can unity be forged? “Man has no permanent and unchangeable I. Every thought, every mood, every desire, every sensation, says ‘I.’ And in each case, it seems to be taken for […]
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How to deal with contradictions on the path to awakening? The Fourth Way describes the lack of unity of man, and his many contradictions. What challenge does this fact pose on the path to awakening? “Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself.” – Walt Whitman These words from Walt Whitman have long […]
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