first aim should surely be self realisation through the practice of discrimination; we must learn to think clearly for ourselves, to formulate our own thoughts and to manipulate our own mental processes; we must learn to know what we think and why we think it, to find out the nature of our life, and to experiment. We find ourselves, and know ourselves, through the method of discrimination and of selection and rejection.
When this is the practice of our lives, and the habit of our thought, we can then endeavour to find out the meaning of group consciousness through the study of the law of sacrifice. Not only must we find ourselves through the primary childhood stage of selfishness (and surely that should lie behind us), not only should we learn to distinguish between the real and the unreal, through the practice of discrimination, but we should endeavour to pass on from that to something very much better. For us the immediate goal should be to find the group to which we may belong. We do not belong to all groups, nor can we consciously realise our place in the one great Body, but we can find some group in which we have our place, some body of people with whom we can co-operate and work, some brother or brothers whom we can succour and assist. It really involves the conscious contacting of the ideal of brotherhood, and—until we have evolved to the stage where our concept is universal—it means finding the particular set of brothers whom we can love and help by means of the law of sacrifice, and by the transmutation of selfishness into loving service. Thus we can co-operate in the general purpose, and participate in the mission of the group.
Next week we will follow out some of these ideas in connection with the evolution of substance, and the part it plays in the general scheme.
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.
