--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "seventhray27" wrote: > > > This is great Barry. His books always had a deep influence on me, and > this is one of the reasons why. The subsequent revelations about who he > was etc., really didn't diminish that effect.
Me, too. As I say often about Rama, the fact that Carlos was a charlatan does NOT negate the value of some of the things he taught. :-) As you probably remember, I met him once, and he was as fast on his feet verbally in person as he was in his writing -- *very* bright man. His value for me was that he invented (or stole...the jury is still out on that one) a vocabulary with which to discuss working with energy in the relative worlds, and how conserving energy and utilizing it wisely can help one to access the non- relative worlds. His stuff on petty tyrants I always liked, because it was about 1) viewing them as an opportunity rather than a curse, 2) learning detachment (or non-attachment if you prefer) from them, by not allowing their taunts or worse to trigger your own sense of self-importance, and 3) defeating them by allowing them to defeat them- selves -- effectively hoisting themselves on the petard of their *own* self-importance. > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, turquoiseb wrote: > > > > Just in case anyone finds his words relevant to life on Fairfield > Life: > > > > Self-importance is our greatest enemy. Think about it--what weakens us > > is feeling offended by the deeds and misdeeds of our fellow men. Our > > self-importance requires that we spend most of our lives offended by > > someone. > > > > Every effort should be made to eradicate self-importance from the > lives > > of warriors. Without self-importance we are invulnerable. > > > > Self-importance can't be fought with niceties. > > > > Seers are divided into two categories. Those who are willing to > exercise > > self-restraint and can channel their activities toward pragmatic > goals, > > which would benefit other seers and man in general, and those who > don't > > care about self-restraint or about any pragmatic goals. The latter > have > > failed to resolve the problem of self-importance. > > > > Self-importance is not something simple and naive. On the one hand, it > > is the core of everything that is good in us, and on the other hand, > the > > core of everything that is rotten. To get rid of the self-importance > > that is rotten requires a masterpiece of strategy. > > > > In order to follow the path of knowledge one has to be very > imaginative. > > In the path of knowledge nothing is as clear as we'd like it to be. > > Warriors fight self-importance as a matter of strategy, not principle. > > > > Impeccability is nothing else but the proper use of energy. My > > statements have no inkling of morality. I've saved energy and that > makes > > me impeccable. To understand this, you have to save enough energy > > yourself. > > > > Warriors take strategic inventories. They list everything they do. > Then > > they decide which of those things can be changed in order to allow > > themselves a respite, in terms of expending their energy. > > > > The strategic inventory covers only behavioral patterns that are not > > essential to our survival and well-being. > > > > In the strategic inventories of warriors, self-importance figures as > the > > activity that consumes the greatest amount of energy, hence, their > > effort to eradicate it. > > > > One of the first concerns of warriors is to free that energy in order > to > > face the unknown with it. The action of rechanneling that energy is > > impeccability. > > > > The most effective strategy for rechanneling that energy consists of > six > > elements that interplay with one another. Five of them are called the > > attributes of warriorship: control, discipline, forbearance, timing, > and > > will . They pertain to the world of the warrior who is fighting to > lose > > self-importance. The sixth element, which is perhaps the most > important > > of all, pertains to the outside world and is called the petty tyrant. > > > > A petty tyrant is a tormentor. Someone who either holds the power of > > life and death over warriors or simply annoys them to distraction. > > > > Petty tyrants teach us detachment. The ingredients of the new seers' > > strategy shows how efficient and clever is the device of using a petty > > tyrant. The strategy not only gets rid of self-importance; it also > > prepares warriors for the final realization that impeccability is the > > only thing that counts in the path of knowledge. > > > > Usually, only four attributes are played. The fifth, will , is always > > saved for an ultimate confrontation, when warriors are facing the > firing > > squad, so to speak. > > > > Will belongs to another sphere, the unknown. The other four belong to > > the known, exactly where the petty tyrants are lodged. In fact, what > > turns human beings into petty tyrants is precisely the obsessive > > manipulation of the known. > > > > The interplay of all the five attributes of warriorship is done only > by > > seers who are also impeccable warriors and have mastery over will . > Such > > an interplay is a supreme maneuver that cannot be performed on the > daily > > human stage. > > > > Four attributes are all that is needed to deal with the worst of petty > > tyrants, provided, of course, that a petty tyrant has been found. The > > petty tyrant is the outside element, the one we cannot control and the > > element that is perhaps the most important of them all. The warrior > who > > stumbles on a petty tyrant is a lucky one. You're fortunate if you > come > > upon one in your path, because if you don't you have to go out and > look > > for one. > > > > If seers can hold their own in facing petty tyrants, they can > certainly > > face the unknown with impunity, and then they can even stand the > > presence of the unknowable. > > > > Nothing can temper the spirit of a warrior as much as the challenge of > > dealing with impossible people in positions of power. Only under those > > conditions can warriors acquire the sobriety and serenity to stand the > > pressure of the unknowable. > > > > The perfect ingredient for the making of a superb seer is a petty > tyrant > > with unlimited prerogatives. Seers have to go to extremes to find a > > worthy one. Most of the time they have to be satisfied with very small > > fry. Then warriors develop a strategy using the four attributes of > > warriorship: control, discipline, forbearance, and timing. > > > > On the path of knowledge there are four steps. The first step is the > > decision to become apprentices. After the apprentices change their > views > > about themselves and the world they take the second step and become > > warriors, which is to say, beings capable of the utmost discipline and > > control over themselves. The third step, after acquiring forbearance > and > > timing, is to become men of knowledge. When men of knowledge learn to > > see they have taken the fourth step and have become seers. > > > > Control and discipline refer to an inner state. A warrior is > > self-oriented, not in a selfish way but in the sense of a total > > examination of the self. > > > > Forbearance and timing are not quite an inner state. They are in the > > domain of the man of knowledge. > > > > The idea of using a petty tyrant is not only for perfecting the > > warrior's spirit, but also for enjoyment and happiness. Even the worst > > tyrants can bring delight, provided, of course, that one is a warrior. > > > > The mistake average men make in confronting petty tyrants is not to > have > > a strategy to fall back on; the fatal flaw is that average men take > > themselves too seriously; their actions and feelings, as well as those > > of the petty tyrants, are all-important. Warriors, on the other hand, > > not only have a well-thought-out strategy, but are free from > > self-importance. What restrains their self-importance is that they > have > > understood that reality is an interpretation we make. > > > > Petty tyrants take themselves with deadly seriousness while warriors > > do not. What usually exhausts us is the wear and tear on our > > self-importance. Any man who has an iota of pride is ripped apart by > > being made to feel worthless. > > > > To tune the spirit when someone is trampling on you is called control. > > Instead of feeling sorry for himself a warrior immediately goes to > work > > mapping the petty tyrant's strong points, his weaknesses, his quirks > of > > behavior. > > > > To gather all this information while they are beating you up is called > > discipline. A perfect petty tyrant has no redeeming feature. > > > > Forbearance is to wait patiently--no rush, no anxiety--a simple, > joyful > > holding back of what is due. > > > > A warrior knows that he is waiting and what he is waiting for. Right > > there is the great joy of warriorship. > > > > Timing is the quality that governs the release of all that is held > back. > > Control, discipline, and forbearance are like a dam behind which > > everything is pooled. Timing is the gate in the dam. > > > > Forbearance means holding back with the spirit something that the > > warrior knows is rightfully due. It doesn't mean that a warrior goes > > around plotting to do anybody mischief, or planning to settle past > > scores. Forbearance is something independent. As long as the warrior > has > > control, discipline, and timing, forbearance assures giving whatever > is > > due to whoever deserves it. > > > > To be defeated by a small-fry petty tyrant is not deadly, but > > devastating. Warriors who succumb to a small-fry petty tyrant are > > obliterated by their own sense of failure and unworthiness. > > > > Anyone who joins the petty tyrant is defeated. To act in anger, > without > > control and discipline, to have no forbearance, is to be defeated. > > > > - from "The Fire From Within" > > >
