Advice needed

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Rumpelteazer
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Advice needed

Postby Rumpelteazer » Fri Dec 11, 2009 5:52 pm

Terence129's post in the Meditation forum about how to avoid Meditation becoming mechanical led me to think about whether something similar applies to Group Meetings. Our group in Cheltenham is very small and seldom changes. It's a very happy, caring and supportive group. But I wonder if a group actually needs to be more than that. I always come home from meetings feeling calm and happy which is great, especially if it's been an annoying sort of day. But what it doesn't give me is that tiny element of dissatisfaction that would lead me to make more effort during the week. To some extent I can and do try to solve this for myself by finding suitable things to read privately during the week from the marvellous archive now available online. But I have an idea many people in our group feel the same way. (Anyone in Cheltenham Group reading this please feel free to contradict me.) We have discussed it in the past but haven't really got anywhere. We are (almost) all group takers and therefore we are all responsible. So here are my questions:

  1. What should groups be for - am I expecting/wanting the wrong thing?
  2. Have other groups had a similar problem - it would be particularly interesting to hear from some country groups and overseas groups
  3. If so, what have you done about it?
  4. Could it be a problem with the way we use the material? How do other groups use it? (We used a mixture of New York papers, standard Colet papers and C,E and Pewsey group papers last term and will probably do the same next term.)

I have come up with a few ideas that I plan to discuss with the group at the beginning of term but I'm not sure they will really address the issue.

billymole
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Re: Advice needed

Postby billymole » Sat Dec 12, 2009 9:39 am

Hello Rumpleteaser,

I am at present in a group of one, and perhaps therefore unqualified to reply. However, I have noticed on a lighter sphere, that our Welsh class is considerably galvanised by the occasional introduction of a visiting tutor. The value comes in the unfamiliar approach, which demands quickened attentiveness. At Colet the same applies in some of the speakers we have heard there, whose knowledge and experience runs parallel to the teachings of Colet, but expressed differently. I wondered whether, in the context of groups, it would be possible to have an occasional member exchange, an invitation to a visiting member/ group taker willing to accept overnight hospitality; and whether such an arrangement would serve to quicken satsang from time to time, with consequent rippling resonance.

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Rumpelteazer
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Re: Advice needed

Postby Rumpelteazer » Sat Dec 12, 2009 11:26 am

Hello Billymole.

This sounds like an excellent idea. Would you like to visit us? I will email you with some details.

Anyone else who would also like to visit would be very welcome and greatly appreciated. We can provide food and accommodation.

Are there any other ideas for weeks when we don't have visitors?

Cirrus

Re: Advice needed

Postby Cirrus » Mon Dec 14, 2009 5:00 pm

I think questions like this need to be asked at regular intervals! I sympathise with a lot of what you say. I am also aware of the differences in the group------our natures , histories, present "beliefs". I was going to raise a similar question two weeks ago but it wasn`t a suitable occasion. Here it is-
What do we take away from meetings?
We have discussed similar things in the past and I think our practice has changed somewhat. But we all want rather different things!
Is 10 a very small group?

Diogenes
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Re: Advice needed

Postby Diogenes » Mon Dec 14, 2009 9:28 pm

Cirrus wrote:Is 10 a very small group?


A group of about twelve people (in a private house) is ideal. So ten is not what I would call a small group.

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Rumpelteazer
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Re: Advice needed

Postby Rumpelteazer » Tue Dec 15, 2009 12:28 am

Hello Cirrus - great to see you using the forum.
Please don't take my questions as in any sense a criticism of Cheltenham Group - it may be just me, and something I need to deal with.

Cirrus wrote: I am also aware of the differences in the group------our natures , histories, present "beliefs".

I think this should be an advantage rather than a problem. But perhaps the consequence is that we each tend to be drawn towards different types of material. I know one or two people were not at all keen on the paper that I found most useful, so I'm a bit concerned about choosing another from that source next term. There is also the issue that some papers do seem to go in a sequence ...
Cirrus wrote:What do we take away from meetings?
We have discussed similar things in the past and I think our practice has changed somewhat. But we all want rather different things!

I think you should definitely ask this question at the beginning of term and also the parallel question "What do we want to take away from meetings" and try very hard to get an answer from everyone. I'm still trying to work out exactly what I want and how to get it while at the same time ensuring other people get what they want.

Billymole's suggestion is excellent. It's just a pity that Billymole's personal circumstances would currently prevent a visit. But maybe someone else will offer.

I am still hoping that we will get some more replies answering the original four questions as I think that might clarify things when we discuss it next term. Maybe some group takers from other groups could be persuaded to share their ideas about how a group should operate ...

Diogenes wrote:A group of about twelve people (in a private house) is ideal. So ten is not what I would call a small group.

No questions this time, Diogenes?

I was thinking of the average number at any one meeting which is more like eight and comparing that with the groups of around 15 - 20 that I used to go to at Colet very many years ago. But you are right, that's not practical for a country group in a private house.

excalibur
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Re: Advice needed

Postby excalibur » Tue Dec 15, 2009 2:25 am

I think if one went to a meeting without any expectations but with a WOW attitude of what is to come it helps. What more does one want from a meeting if one is calm amd happy, for if one is happy then one is conscious?
We are a small group of about 4 or 5 and we introduce a great deal on nondual type papers. from well known thinkers alongside with what Shankaraachraya says this is really helpful .
I have also noticed that because most papers have the same quotes time and again one gets blaze about them and that is why a diffent approach is needed. If you cannot let a live speaker then get some topic by that person or someone on the same wave lenght.

fiona
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Re: Advice needed

Postby fiona » Tue Dec 15, 2009 1:05 pm

I've thought about two questions posted here:
Q. 'What should a group be for?' (Rumpelteazer). - It was Stephen and Hilary Wood who established the group I belong to in 1975, setting it up initially to meet the needs of three of us who were just starting out in the Work. For me, it was like a 'coming home', a meeting of like minds and hearts, a time when we could meditate together, study the teachings and feel confident about sharing our experiences. Almost thirty-five years on, and that light of Satsang, of good company, still shines brightly. How grateful I feel for being able to experience the happiness and love that comes through the Work. It's so true: blessings are falling on our path constantly.
Q. 'What should we take away from a meeting?' (Cirrus). - Whatever we need! For me, it might be a feeling generated by the paper and/or people's experiences. It could be the sense of 'coming into the moment' and an awareness of expansion that can arise spontaneously, or it might be something indefinable, something that stays with me in between meetings and more often than not gives Buddhi a gentle nudge.
I suppose I'm trying to explain that, for me, the truth lies in the heart. I keep coming back to Dr. Roles' words: "It is only necessary to be quiet, and to keep things simple."

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Rumpelteazer
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Re: Advice needed

Postby Rumpelteazer » Fri Dec 18, 2009 6:11 pm

Hello excalibur. Thank you for your suggestions.
excalibur wrote: ... we introduce a great deal on nondual type papers from well known thinkers alongside with what Shankaraachraya says - this is really helpful.

I agree - and sometimes just a different style of writing can help. For me, the most important thing is to have material that is in some way challenging - a different way of looking at things, something practical to experiment with, a question to be answered.
excalibur wrote:I have also noticed that because most papers have the same quotes time and again one gets blaze about them and that is why a different approach is needed.

Thank you very much, excalibur, for pointing this out. I think it's something the Materials Committee needs to address. We'll see what can be done about it. The Record is so huge that there shouldn't be any need to use the same things over and over again. But perhaps it's a natural human instinct - all those famous quotations from Shakespeare that we know so well have become cliches and we don't think about the real meaning any more.


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