Understand
UNDERSTAND = to grasp the meaning of; to comprehend; to regard as plausible without utter certainty
QUESTION: What don’t you understand?
STORY: I’m reading a most interesting book titled: In Search of the Miraculous, written by P.D. Ouspensky - a student of Gurdjieff. Chapter 4 is about the two lines of development along which our human consciousness proceeds: the line of KNOWLEDGE and the line of BEING (existence). Knowledge and being must evolve simultaneously - they must grow parallel to one another or there will be a problem. For example, a man may possess great knowledge (he may be an able scientist, doctor or tech expert) and at the same time he may be a petty, egotistic, mean, vain, absent-minded man. If knowledge gets too far ahead of being it becomes theoretical and instead of serving life and helping people - it begins to complicate life and bring new troubles. (Artificial Intelligence is able to know but is not able to feel or sense). Here is where understanding comes in. Understanding depends upon the relation of Knowledge to Being - and is the function of 3 centers (Intellect, emotion and the senses). Every human being has to do a lot of WORK to understand (know, feel and sense) our INNATE SELF and the True ONENESS that we all are. Now is the time for us all to WAKE UP!
QUOTES
“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” ~ Carl Jung
“Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.” ~ Albert Einstein
“It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it.” ~ Upton Sinclair
“I am just a human being trying to make it in a world that is rapidly losing its understanding of being human.” ~ John Trudell
“The noblest pleasure is the joy of understanding.” ~ Leonardo da Vinci
EXERCISE
STOP.
Sit quietly.
Assume an erect posture. Sense the breath.
Relax and sit calmly knowing you are BEING here now.
Get your pen and paper and write words or draw lines expressing your three centers (intellect, emotion, senses).
Move forward into your day open to a new understanding.