Notes from Lost Coin Group August 14, 2007

Reviewing Assignment from Last Week

"How you See Your Life Story". The important point is to look at our "beliefs" about our lives vs. what is true.

This Week

We continued on this theme in a slightly different vein, i.e., what are told we should want or how we should be vs. who we really are. Daniel asked "what do people really want"? Each person was asked that question. Here are some of the responses:

Space between my thoughts

More time alone

Pay-off debts

Be outdoors more often

Work less or not at all

Feel at home  ome where

An electric car

A deep sense of security

Be more disciplined

Daniels noted that most of these responses were pretty lofty. He asked the group what sorts of things people on TV or even great novels are interested in? Usually, sex/intimacy, drama/excitement, money and power. He asked us why we are so different than most people?

Initially, most of the group are hesitant to mention sex, money and power because they don't seem "spiritual". Daniel made the point that we are "poisoned" with good intentions of how and what we should be. He asked us to examine if there is an internal taboo that says you don't want money. He is concerned that we separate our "spiritual life" from our daily life. He asserts that the being that wants things is the spiritual being - they are not separate. If we separate them, we run the risk of developing one at the expense of the other. We need to start with what we need, where we are right now. We don't need to be in denial. For example, if we "want more space between our thoughts", we need to notice whether the thoughts are about sex. If we don't address both, we  will develop in an unbalanced way.

Your spiritual life doesn't have to be separate from your day-to-day life.

Last year Daniel based most of his teaching on Gurdjieff's teachings. This year the teachings we be more based on Dave Daniel's (Daniel's teacher) interpretations of Gurdjieff's teachings. It is more modern. For example, Ouspensky  would say, in order to develop we must integrate all the centers/ "Is". Dave Daniels didn't use those terms. He only used contemporary terms like - many of the "Is" want sex, power, and money. They are all you. We must claim all of the Is - the one who puts them all together is the Master.

We need to own our vanity - we are all liars. While embarking on a journey of truth - it is a good idea not to lie. Who is going to accept you as you are - YOU! We each have to be honest in the group for it to function as a whole. There is nothing wrong with your wants or needs. The problem is that we are all mechanical. We need to challenge our auto-pilot like today's class.

You can't progress unless the REAL you gets involved. Part of us is what is on TV - don't divorce yourself from humanity.  You can't leave home without our "less desireable" wants. Otherwise you set up a perpetual conflict.

Next Week

Observe the things you 1) don't want to do; and, 2) the things you don't do but want to do.
