Theos-Talk Archives (May 1996 Message tl00899)

Jerry S. writes>
>	A "psychic" approach will only get you so far.  To
>go higher, beyond the human mind, you have to employ
>buddhi-manas techniques.

Richard Ihle writes>
You know how to get my attention perhaps better than anyone else.

The reason I was very interested by HPB's adding "Breath" to the Kabalistic
~stone, plant, animal, man, angel, god~ is that it completes a possible
"psychogenetic sequence" which has a curious parallel with my own "inner
observations" during meditation.  Very roughly, as one sits in meditation and
tries to hold the attention at the *ajna* chakra, for example [just for
illustration--could be the ~Sound Current~ or other], the competing "internal
attention-grabbers" seem to arise in this sequence:  1) the generalized
"tingling" or "energy" sensation [animating, *prana*] ; 2) physical
sensations--minor aches, itches, etc.[physical, *sthula*]; 3) inner pictures
of the "day-dream" variety [desire-feeling, *kama*]; 4) a sort of "talking to
oneself" is added to the pictures [desire-mental, *kama-manas*]; 5) the
pictures fall away and an ongoing dispassionate monolog continues [mental,
*manas*]; 6) the inner verbalization starts to dissolve into a strange sort
of "place-holding thought without words" [Spirit-mental, Buddhi-manas]; 7) .
. . .

Now, because these inner pictures appear so early in the "psychogenetic
sequence," it has always made me suspicious that they are naturally
more-often related to desire-feeling (*kama*) consciousness than something
higher.  In my own continued meditative practice, as my desires have faded
and I am more often stabilized in the mental and "Diffused" states of
consciousnesses, I have found that I have a greatly diminished aptitude and
inclination for forming inner images etc.  Thus, before I started reading
you, I was always quick to say that it would surprise me if further
development suddenly involved a sudden reverse back toward the same type of
inner experience it took so long to overcome.

In short, I have been lately "putting myself on hold" on this point, because
I was half-expecting you sooner or later to say that it was possible to
somehow create/experience clear inner-imagery at the Buddhi-mental level.
 Does the foregoing quoted statement of yours indicate that you, also, do not
think this is possible?  Are we in agreement even in this, after all?

If we are, perhaps we are ready to talk real "technique-turkey.". . .

P.S.:  I was the happiest of men the other day:  I actually found a place (in
COLLECTED WRITINGS, p.53) where HPB  puts *Buddhi* in parenthesis as a
synonym for *Spirit*.

Godspeed,

Richard Ihle