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

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

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negative emotions as quite a separate subject; I want to know moreabout that.MR. O. Because different knowledge is necessary for that. The idea <strong>of</strong>not expressing negative emotions belongs to the first lecture. At thevery first moment <strong>of</strong> self-observation one is told to observe and trynot to express negative emotions, and for a long time one has to workon that, self-observation with certain demands not to express negativeemotions, then many other things <strong>com</strong>e, explanations and practices,and after a very long time you <strong>com</strong>e to the study <strong>of</strong> emotionsthemselves and study <strong>of</strong> methods <strong>of</strong> changing emotions, so you cannotput them together, they are quite different things. But you mustunderstand that after some time <strong>com</strong>ing to these talks, lectures and soon, you begin to forget chronology <strong>of</strong> the ideas, and it is very useful toremember the order in which ideas came.MR. E. I have been thinking about negative emotions and I find a lot<strong>of</strong> mine spring from imagination. When thinking which is my chiefdifficulty, under which heading should I class this?MR. O. I don't know. Facts are necessary first.MISS L. Is laughter connected with moving centre because I seem tolaugh all through some dreams?MR. O. Maybe, but maybe not; it may be different.MR. E. During the last few weeks I questioned the sincerity <strong>of</strong> anemotion which I have enjoyed for some time. I did not altogether likethis questioning. In having to give up an emotion I felt a sense <strong>of</strong>martyrdom; is this a form <strong>of</strong> negative emotion, and is this what I am tounderstand <strong>by</strong> giving up suffering? Even if it is based on identificationI should not have described it as a negative emotion.MR. O. No, giving up suffering is quite different. It may be giving upimagination, but again that is for you to decide—illusions you know.We have very much imagination and sometimes giving up certainimagination looks difficult.MR. M. Is it possible to have certain kinds <strong>of</strong> negative emotion withoutknowing it? I mean I have a picture <strong>of</strong> myself as a person who doesnot indulge in self-pity and is never envious, but I am beginning tothink that I may really suffer from self-pity, and I wondered if it waspossible for there to be such a <strong>com</strong>plete barrier that one cannot see abig thing like that?MR. O. Oh yes, it happens very <strong>of</strong>ten.

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