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

MR. O. For many reasons. It is difficult to explain them, but in practicalwork you will see.MR. C. Is the building of cathedrals by mediaeval masons a parallelexample?MR. O. No. Historical examples are never parallel—people are different,circumstances are different, the relation to other lines of work isdifferent and so on.MISS S. Unless I have misunderstood it seems that men are dividedinto two classes: those who wish, however feebly, to attain consciousnessand those who do not. What determines this dividing line? Is itarbitrary and the result of the Law of Accident?MR. O. No, it is not quite Law of Accident. You can understand itfrom the point of view of what was said about influences A and B—that it depends on the amount of absorption of influences B thatcreates the desire to awake, or something like that.MISS S. Has the system anything to say about the theory of theprogress of humanity through reincarnation?MR. O. No, nothing.MR. H. What does it mean when people say that in order to go up onestep you must put somebody in your place on the ladder?MR. O. It is in relation to this staircase idea. You can understand itfrom this point of view: take a group starting to come to lectures here.After some time, when they have learnt a little, when they know whatthey are doing, they arrange the possibility of another group. Thisgroup starts, and in that way take their own place as beginners, and thefirst group can do more, work with the new group and so on, and thatgives them many advantages. But to put somebody in your place is notan individual demand. One person by himself cannot do that. It meansschool and school-work. The results are felt by the individual.MR. H. What kind of people are fit for this work?MR. O. That was explained in connection with influences B.MR. H. Is it right to think of a school as an instrument upon which wecan ascend?MR. O. I think that is rather a complicated conception. School, in thesense in which you are using the word, begins when one not only acquiresnew information but starts to work on one's being with the help of school.MR. H. What is the relationship between the work as it is now and theSociety?