Notes from Explorers (2) – the magic and mystery of identity

October 19, 2023 / Leave a Comment

On the third Sunday of every month, the Silent Eye hosts a Zoom-based discussion to explore one of the core topics of modern mysticism.

This series of ongoing posts features a summary of each monthly discussion; of which this is the second.

The talks are open to all, and we welcome new visitors to the group – whether you drop in to take a look, or decide to stay and join our work.

There is link at the end of the post to enable you to join one of our sessions.

No-one wants a dry set of ‘minutes’ of such meetings. We’ll tell the story of these special events as informally as possible.

The SE-Exploration talk for Sunday 15 October 2023 was : The Magic and Mystery of Identity

One of our number regaled us with a journey through comic books! He used it to illustrate how children literally ‘bind’ their attention to a character in an illustrated story, living it in so-called fantasy, but with powerful and very real emotions – a precursor to a later fondness for formal fiction works?

For him, his journey to adulthood was paralleled with a journal of adopted characters that his young self would ‘be’. Being (in contrast to Doing) is important in our work, as its unquestioning and unresisting nature is a key aspect of our own inner selves – and their eventual effect on our world of the personality.

Understanding the difference between being and doing is at the heart of a special relationship with the universe that understands we can – and need to – do both

We felt there was much to discuss in this shared subject and will return to it in future talks.

(Above: the reproduction of a mental diagram we constructed at the end of the previous meeting. The world of ‘the spirit’ – boundless being and creativity – underpins creation. Above that, the Self (Spirit) creates the Soul, whose role is to shape a bridge as the *Organ of Experience*; which is present throughout the levels, spanning egoic personality to Self and Being. The aspects of the Self include Love, Compassion, Strength and Brilliance of mind and heart. There are many more.

We had explored the actual foundations of the soul the previous month, resulting in a schematic reproduced above:

Now, we were keen to extend this, to pinpoint the origins of the power of identity in our lives – and its shifting focus.

One of the group remarked that that identity appeared to be an inner hunger for something that had been lost… We all agreed that there was a deeper story, here.

A summary of subsequent discussions led us to an inner journey of the soul

We talked about how identity brings us alive in a certain way – empowering us to act with purpose and direction. A comment was made that such action ‘in the world’ was an attribute of ‘doing rather than being’, but nonetheless essential. The view of the group is that our path is one of a twinned being-doing axis, where the presence of individualised Being as the Self was the ultimate identity, and the state to which all the formative experiences lead us.

Much discussion followed, prompted by one of the group who was experiencing a challenging and very real ascent of his own consciousness, and wondering at his capacity to ‘hold it all’.

Some guiding comments were made by the most experienced members, one of whom said that the ‘Christ nature’ or Self was the creative ‘blueprint’ for the individual human being, so we need not fear its power, because it had always acted in our best interests, respecting our true capacities, and would therefore not unfold within us in a way that was threatening to the stability of our being.

(Above: the modified schematic of the Soul and Self with a faint clock-face laid beneath it, representing the irrepressible and active presence of Self in our world and it’s inevitable emergence; as time and experience turn the ‘fingers of our attention’ from the outer to the inner worlds)

We returned to our core diagram of function of Self, soul and personality, derived after the last SE-Explore meeting. We agreed that an extension to this was only needed in the sense of a universal process that gradually turned our attention from the outer to the inner dimensions of our lives.

The antique pocket watch, laid faintly as a foundation layer of the diagram, reminds us of the (eventua)l inevitability of the correct realisation of our identities with the ever-renewing Self.

Why not join us for our November chat? The details are below:

**Our forthcoming meeting for November 2023**

The SE-Exploration talk for Sunday 19 November 2023 will be : The Power of Self-Inquiry.

Our regular closing text from the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas urges us to Inquire within:

“Knock upon yourself as upon a door and walk upon yourself as a straight road. For if you walk on that path, you cannot go astray; and when you knock on that door, what you open for yourself shall open.

Let the one who seeks not stop seeking until he finds. When he finds, he shall be troubled. When he becomes troubled, he will be amazed, and shall come to transcend all things.”

Gnostic Gospel of Thomas.

We will examine the practical techniques whereby we may ‘knock upon ourselves as a door…’

Join us for 90 mins of friendship and amicable sharing of views and experiences … not forgetting fun. Bringing a glass of your favourite beverage with you is encouraged.

If you’re not on our contact list and would like a Zoom invitation to join us at the next SE-Explore meeting (see above), send an email to rivingtide@gmail.com.

Stephen Tanham is a writer, mystical teacher and Director of the Silent Eye, a correspondence-based journey through the forest of personality to the dawn of Being.

http://www.thesilenteye.co.uk and http://www.suningemini.blog