A Record of Meetings held by P.D. Ouspensky - HolyBooks.com

MR. W. Can emotional centre be made to work better only by removingthe causes which take its energy?MR O. Yes, but these causes may be in other centres, so we have towork on all centres at the same time.MR W. Is no other direct effort possible, such as we try to make onintellectual centre, like trying to think in a line, for instance?MR. O. There are many things which have been said about work onemotional centre, such things as struggle with identification and considering,struggle with the expression of negative emotions and rightthinking about negative emotions. Four practices. If you really used allthat is given in that direction, then very soon you would acquire quiteperceptible control over emotional centre. Again it needs other things,self-remembering, new state of consciousness for real control parallelwith the control we can have over intellectual centre. Really control ofemotional centre belongs to the third state of consciousness, so it is along way off and we must use auxiliary methods. The most importantis to have the right attitude towards negative emotions.MISS F. Is there no relation between the system meaning of conscienceand the everyday meaning?MR. O. Yes, there is a relation, certainly, only in the everyday idea it ismade very small In the ordinary meaning, conscience is simply a kindof habit One is told to do things in a certain way and if, by laziness,neglect or something, one does not do them, one has a panic of'conscience', which in this case is really just a kind of negative feelingbecause one did something or did not do something against what onewas told. This is not really conscience.MR D . Is chief feature a food for false personality ?MR O. Chief feature is not food. Chief feature is false personality. Falsepersonality in most cases is based on one feature which enters intoeverything. Some day we will take some examples of chief feature andyou will see how it is really that which makes false personality.MR. T . I do not know how to think about the word 'neutralizing'.MR. O. Then do not think about it. The word means nothing. It issimply a label. Call it just third forceMR. H. I can understand the idea that man plays a small part in a large plan,but cannot believe that he has any possibility of playing any other part.MR. O. You think too much about man. He may play no role in anyplan. I do not know what you mean by plan. If you mean the plan for