The Keys to Elegant Voyaging

The keys to elegant voyaging are those little, nagging, insignificant items which we would ordinarily dismiss as inconsequential; one such key is the rudder with which we steer ourselves through the labyrinth.

These chapters are very meaty. There is a great deal of material to work with and to digest. The reason is simple. We are truly walking into a new land. In the 1960’s Kathryn Hulme wrote “Undiscovered Country.” It was about her direct work with Gurdjieff. It has a lot to say about exercises of self-knowledge and certainly implies a great deal about the “spaces” they got into. But, we are here, attempting to uncover a sense of a truly undiscovered country. Yes, we are speaking of the inner life of the spiritual aspirant. But, we are opening a door where we become voyagers.

Consider any discovery expedition. Lewis and Clark, the Opening of the Japans for trade, Columbus’ voyage to the Americas, many others. These were skilled men and women but, they truly knew not where or how they would reach their goal.

In this volume E.J. Gold is assuming that we are “skilled” in our own right, about many things on the path. We start from there.

This chapter gives us some of the first “concrete” hints about how to voyage. We are told that we will find “combinations” commonly found, that we can use to recognize a direction. He indicates (page 26, paragraph 2) that Once we have intuited our clues to passing the boundaries from chamber to chamber, we may use them.

Okay, so what are those clues? We must discover them through our own trial and error and by discussing the results of those ventures with our fellow travelers. (See Chapter 3 – ending paragraph) We must take risks. How do we evaluate those risks? Can we remember our mistakes and move carefully forward?

Gradually, we develop a sixth sense, a semi-intuitional recall. We begin to sense what that might be for each of us, then, one builds upon that understanding.

Fear will be present in this form of voyaging. The question is what do we do with the fear. We can panic, a reactive response to the fear, or we can settle into the fear, understand it as a point of knowledge. One recognizes the fear as a pointer, and as a natural response by the machine –  a natural response to something different.

We are told that Mood can be used to help guide our voyage. Not the standard HBM moodiness, but a mood centered in a form of higher love. Then we have once again, a tool to move forward.

For, once we get to those spaces that we are meant to be in, something happens to open us yet more, we develop eyes to see. We stand in a place to give a gift. That gift, in part, is to illuminate the path for one more voyager. That voyager may be us.

Chapter 04 Part 1 – Held on March_07_2012

The log for the first part of the chapter can be found here.

Chapter 04 Held on 06_03_14_2012_Part 2

The log for the second part of the chapter can be found here.