Cheltenham Group Meeting 30/09/10 Gratitude

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fiona
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Cheltenham Group Meeting 30/09/10 Gratitude

Postby fiona » Fri Oct 01, 2010 8:12 pm

Gratitude Paper.
‘…… the feeling of gratitude begins with the recognition of the presence of God (Param Atman).’ It was felt that in our attempts to cultivate Param Atman’s presence in our lives – the one pure consciousness/pure energy – we often fall into the trap of distorting that energy, and consequently it can lead to wrong actions.
A question arose about the problem of coming to terms with experiencing gratitude when confronted with a serious illness – ‘What about physical pain? That can be so difficult to deal with.’ A helpful response was that yes, the first shock of discovering that one has a serious illness can make this very hard, but later, if we are open, then there is potential to be released from our emotional attachments and so feel the presence of Param Atman in all circumstances. ‘This is the core of non-duality’.
Our thoughts and experiences were focussed on the attitude ‘I have nothing of my own.’ It is both humbling and elevating – someone felt that as one comes to understand it more, it has great power. One gets a glimpse that rather than nothing, we actually have it all – I am That. As H.H. reminds us in the paper (p.2):
‘……What He needs is the faithful mind and a loving heart. Otherwise He cannot manifest Himself for He is really the same as you.’

Someone else suggested that we are the instrument for Param Atman and that we have a responsibility. She referred to Nelson Mandela’s comment that we fear our own greatness:
‘Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.’ (These lines, quoted by Nelson Mandela in his inaugural address, are from “Our Deepest Fear”, a poem by Marianne Williamson.)

Referring to studying “The Master and his Emissary”, one of our group explained that it is clear to see how the ‘me’, finding it hard to accept or come to terms with the idea of having nothing of its own, is unable to realise that we are just the recipients of all the wonderful things in life. He gave an example of how, when listening to a distraught friend, he was moved to suggest that what she might regard as a ‘bad’ happening could actually be taken as an opportunity not to be unhappy. Her first response was around the notion that ‘But I’m meant to be unhappy with this’. (As someone suggested – that’s part of our social programming.) The conclusion of this example, he explained, was that the distraught person did actually come around to letting go of her unhappiness.
A question was raised ‘ Should the understanding of ‘I have nothing of my own’ release one from self-consciousness (i.e. awkwardness, inner considering)?’ It was felt that it would and would help develop a sense of invulnerability.
‘What is the emotional meaning of ‘debts’ and of ‘paying our debts’ and in what currency can they be paid?’ (Dr. Roles, p.4 of the paper). Some members of the group found difficulty with the word ‘debt’, but thought Dr. Roles’ reference to Ouspensky’s teaching on the transformation of negative emotions into positive ones helpful. Someone reminded us that Ouspensky recommended we give up our suffering:
‘In order to do the work, people must sacrifice only what they imagine they have and which in reality they do not have. They must sacrifice their fantasies. People must sacrifice their suffering. A man will renounce any pleasures you like but he will not give up his suffering.’ (‘In Search of the Miraculous’)
This reminded someone else of Eckhart Tolle’s description of the ‘pain body’ –
‘The pain body eagerly devours every negative thought’. (From ‘A New Earth’)

Finally, in relation to the story in St. Luke’s Gospel of the ten lepers (p.2), someone pointed out that while all the lepers were cured, only one, through giving his grateful thanks to God, was healed and made whole.
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