School Talk 54 - Single Motive

Talk covers:
Motives
Living in what you radiate
Balancing within and without (exercise)
Dealing with criticism
The act of balancing being stolen from
The victim role
Being attracted to your environment without
(Audience participation in parenthesis)

We're going to talk about motives today. Now most generally speaking we have umpteen motives for about every thing we do; and none of them are we usually conscious of. So we're going to talk about some other motives that, maybe, we can all use.

The first set of motives that everybody has is, Number one, you're going to be totally non-disturbed if at all possible by gaining pleasure and comfort and escaping pain and all the rest of it-getting attention and so on down the line.

So we go out to see how many people we can impress; and they are usually not impressed adequately; but nevertheless, we work at it. Then, of course, we have the motive of sticking up for our rights, getting our way by complaining, and blaming to show that we weren't responsible for the situation. We also have a motive to try to be a really "goody, good" person by pleasing everybody. We don't want to; but it seems they're there, and we better do it or they will fuss at me. And we have the motive to believe and do as we are told by our proper authorities, and we try to improve ourselves.

Now if we were to draw a little picture of man here. We'll put it together just about the same as always. Here's the AWARENESS, and here is all this processing equipment that goes on of complaining, sticking up for rights, blaming, etc. All of this is, you might say, the mental apparatus. Here is X, the Life principle, and here is the physical body which is the sensory pick-up unit.

So there is something happens out here in the environment. Somebody talks. Somebody says something and we receive an impression. We get all kinds of impressions coming in. The impressions come from the physical body, the hearing, the taste, the touch, the smell, etc. and go to this processing area of the mind; and it's generally called sub-conscious. I don't like that word; but nevertheless, that's what it's often called. It's the subconscious area or it could be called the programmed area-whatever.

So now, a piece of information goes there and is processed through; and a concept is formed over it. A concept or a general idea of "that's the way it is"; and so we have a concept that we have experienced. Now that information goes to X, and X sends a neuro-endricin message to the body; and the appropriate action for the information it received takes place. Not necessarily does X do the appropriate action for whatever this stimuli was out here because it got processed through all of this stuff-all this programming from the past. Now sometimes one side of these is more powerful than the other one. This one [A-side] is always pretty powerful. So first off, we'll say something happened out here in the environment that you didn't like, or it didn't produce comfort at the moment or something like that. Then when this goes through the conditioned awareness here, there is the conception that it was "bad." Now, not necessarily is it bad at all. It may be the thing that would most get you along in the world.

Say you had a normal adaptation to fatigue. Say you got very tired out here-you did a lot of interesting things; and you got very tired. But you didn't want to hear that, so the normal adaptation may be a headache to try to get you to slow down a little bit; or rest a little bit. What would be your concept over that-BAD? But maybe it's the very thing that keeps you alive because it gets you to slow down a little bit or stop a few minutes and rest.

So the concept and "what X has to operate upon" is not at all adequate in most cases because this "processing or programming" was never consciously chosen. It's what's left over when we were little kids. Now "what's in there" possibly is very worthwhile for a child-a little child. It's possibly very, very accurate; but I notice by looking around in here today that none of us are little bambinos. We're not that cute and pretty anymore. We all grew up to adulthood. So obviously this old programming doesn't fit anymore.

So it's time that we, possibly could, choose a motive. Now another way of saying a motive would be a "reason for doing things". So if I had an idea of something that I could use as one purpose for everything I want to do or for every challenge that comes to me; it might be very handy if I would make that purpose real.

Now you don't make anything real by hearing about it. When we hear something, that is information; but information is of little value unless it's used in a real time, place, and circumstance-a real situation somewhere. When we exercise it or practice it-then it becomes real. If you read a recipe in a cookbook (and it may sound all sorts of good), but it doesn't nourish anybody until it's been cooked, is that right? It doesn't do a thing-sounds pretty--looks good and all that kind of stuff--may even have a pretty picture at the top of the page; but there's no nutrition until it's used. There is nothing valuable about information unless we use it. So we're going to talk about the information of having a single purpose; and then it is of absolutely no value unless we put that to work or apply it to real situations in every day living. Now if we apply it several times, it becomes spontaneous. If we only apply it once, we may still forget it fairly easy; but we can apply it a few times.

So it's not so difficult to remember something--if we want to. I read one time that the most valuable thing people do is forget to forget. You know, that sounds a little different. You often try to remember not to forget, but of course, that always fails. So if you just plain forget to forget, it might work out pretty good--can't ever tell.

Life adapts = Balancing

So we could possibly have that we could have one motive; and that we could apply it--and we could apply it a few times--there's no reason not to. Now somebody would ask, "What is the one motive that you can use under any and every circumstance". Well, let's kind of look and see that LIFE HANDLES ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT COMES ALONG. The major attribute-one of the first attributes of living things is that it is always adapting. It adapts to changes in temperature. It adapts to stresses of various kinds. It adapts to about anything that comes about. THAT IS ONE OF THE FIRST SIGNS OF LIFE IS ADAPTABILITY. That seem reasonable? If you stay out in the sun, you turn brown, is that right? You go inside and don't get out in the sun, the brown disappears. You do hard manual work; and you get calluses on your hands. You quit hard manual work, the calluses just go away. If you keep yourself stressed up real well; and in all sorts of turmoil, you can become very ill. If you quit stressing yourself, the illness goes away regardless of whether you work at it or not.

So whenever you "Work" at seeing that the whole purpose of Life, one of its major purposes-is adaptability-it is one of the first ones that comes along-X is always adapting. So if you looked and said that I would like to go along with this adapting-adapting is for one purpose; and that is to bring towards balance. In other words it's a balancing activity. ALL ADAPTATION IS A BALANCING ACTIVITY.

So you find yourself very chilly, you begin to get "ducky" bumps on you, you feel shivery, and you start shaking; and that's an adaptation to close up the pores in the skin--to quit losing heat; and the muscles shake to generate more and build up your heat level. So it's adapting or balancing at all times. So we can say that-"Well, the major thing that I can see as a "purpose" would be to be balancing "whatever is going on around me or within me". So if I'm working at balancing, I'M WORKING WITH LIFE; and if I'm not working at balancing

[from Marsha - not balancing would be reacting and letting the not I's tell us "what ought to be" and "what people should be doing"],

I'm working against Life a wee bit. Would that seem reasonable John?

(Yes it is.)

So if I'm continually working against balancing, I'm working opposed to Life; and that requires more adaptation. Most adaptation is pretty uncomfortable, I've noticed. I don't know whether you have or not, but when you're adapting to some good stressful situation, it's pretty uncomfortable, right?

(Generally.)

So let's say that somebody comes along and says insulting words to me, ok? Now what would be a balancing activity to that?

(Let 'em have it!)

Oh, I don't think so. I think maybe that it would be that I would say some very kind things to this person. Now I'm not interested in being a "goody good-two-shoes" or anything of the sort. I've read about all these great things that you're supposed to do. Do good to your enemies and so forth--most of which has been taken that it is a precept that it was something you "ought to do" to be a "goody-good-two-shoes". I'm not talking about it from that standpoint. I'M TALKING ABOUT IT FROM GOOD OLD "HORSE SENSE" THAT "WHAT'S THE BEST THING FOR ME TO DO UNDER THAT CIRCUMSTANCE", HUH? WHAT'S TO MY ADVANTAGE? I'M INTERESTED IN WHAT'S TO MY ADVANTAGE. HOW AM I GOING TO GET ALONG IN IT? [from Marsha - and I've found that what's to my advantage is to not be all torn up inside.] So if somebody comes along and says something insulting to me, what do I do? Insult them in return? I can think of some "beauts", can't you? I can think of some better ones than they ever dreamed up. "I can get even with them". "I can get revenge". "I can tell them off." 'I can write some of my "poison pen letters" or I can do any number of things; but is that balancing, or is that further unbalancing the whole situation, huh? That's further unbalancing it. And consequently I will have all sorts of discomforts because adaptation is balancing, and adaptation is going to take place from Life, so I'll be in for a whole bunch of some kind of adaptation-either unusual sensation or unusual behavior, huh? I don't want to do that.

So how about let's be nice to the person. Let's see how complimentary I can be to them for a while. I agree with him that I'm a "dirty dog". It doesn't matter-I know better. I know that if somebody doesn't like me, they have poor taste; so I can just go on about my business anyway, ok?--and I can do something to bring about a balancing.

Using the purpose of balancing quiets the not I's

Now, let's say that I took on as my only reason for doing anything was that I was working towards balancing-whatever. Now, I'm no longer trying to be non-disturbed. I'm no longer trying to stick up for my rights. I'm no longer complaining to get my way. I'm no longer trying to blame somebody. I'm not trying to please everybody because "I should be" or "I'm afraid not to". I'm no longer about quoting authority; and I'm not trying to improve myself. I'm merely looking out to roughly "what is to my advantage" and that is to be in the "act of balancing". Now I'm working with Life, X, Spirit, whatever word you want to call it. I'm working along in the same direction; and now I don't have to come up with so much adaptation, huh? Don't have near so much of it to do because I've already worked at balancing "while it was in the way of happening here". So we could be doing all sorts of things.

Stealing

So if I'm working towards balancing-we'll make us a little balance scale out here. They're cute little things I think. It has a little chain hanging down here with a little pan on this side, and a little chain with a pan hanging on this other side. So let's say somebody steals something from you--say I even know who it was sometimes, huh? He cheated from me or he stole from me. Now what would be the appropriate thing to do?--get even with him--steal from him-take him to court-make him pay up--threaten him or what-have-you? What do you think, John? What would be the appropriate thing to do--or would I say, "Well, that man must be in a horrible need, so I go over there and do some kindness for him. Would that bring this little scale back more in balance? By stealing, he pulled this pan down and that pan went up; and so it's down here; and if I go give him a hard way to go, this side goes further down here.

NOW ADAPTATION IS GOING TO TAKE PLACE SOMEWHERE'S ALONG THE WAY-THAT'S THE LAW OF THE UNIVERSE-BALANCING IS THE LAW OF THE UNIVERSE. What if we responded with a kindness over here? We kind of brought this pan back up towards the balancing. Did it cost me anything to be kind-not much? Would I have gotten something here or just saved an attorney's fee--more than likely something like that.

(If I just let it go, is that balancing?)

No, it would just stay where it was.

(Well, I mean if somebody takes something from you, just say in your own mind, "Well, he must have needed it worse than me.)

No, I would kind of balance it. Just leaving it where it was doesn't make it worse--like trying to get revenge would make it worse.

But let's say that you could compensate for it by doing something FOR SOMEBODY ELSE. It wouldn't make any difference. You dish out a little kindness somewhere. That would kind of pull the balance back up here on the scale; and it would get a balancing act going.

I read somewhere in a book one time that said "if a man stole your overcoat, why give him your suit coat"--In other words not because you want to get rid of the suit coat, necessarily, nor because you wanted to be a "goody good two shoes"; but because you are making an act of balancing. You balanced an act of violence with an act of kindness--we'll say, ok? Because I think thieving is an act of violence; and you are balancing. So now you're working in harmony with Life--which is always working to bring about balancing.

NOW I DON'T THINK BALANCE IS EVER ACHIEVED MORE THAN A FEW SECONDS. It's off a little bit; but balancing is a real pleasant thing. It's like if you were out in the ocean in a boat and you can have storm waves where you're tossed all over the place--or you could be in a dead calm--or you can be in the gentle waves out there; and that sure is nice when those nice long smooth swells come by. That feels so good-that feels nice; and you feel like you're doing something out in the boat. So if everything is waving around a wee bit, we could allow the waving to take place in these gentle waves instead of these violent upheavals.

So teaching stories were taught originally long ago to show man how things work. Well, over the ages people forgot how it worked and began to make these ideas into just something you "should do" or "ought to do".

Now if somebody tells you, "You should do so and so", with no information that will create a development in you whatsoever--It probably only sets up another conflict. You "should do it"; but what comes up in you is, "I'll be damned if I'm going to", is that right? You're not going to put up with that kind of behavior--with the way I've been treated. But this was set up to show how things really worked. So this area of the mind, you could say, is a processing area.

Just like you might have a computer sitting here, it does processing. It takes a bunch of information fed into it, it processes it into, shall we say, a result or a single concept. Is that what the thing is supposed to do when you get it working right? And that information is what you would operate upon--is the information that came from the computer. This was the concept that came about, and this would be much of what you based your activity on--if you trusted the thing, is that right?

Now ordinarily [in the mind] the information that we get is processed through an unconscious, conditioned pre-programmed processing unit that tells me I have been mistreated. "I'm in a bad shape" "I got things to worry about." There are all sorts of things that one "should be doing" to "get revenge" or "get even" or "get things out". We think of balance not as restoring a balance state, but as getting even. Is that somewhere close to right? We got to get even. We think of that as balance. That's not balance at all. That's just more violence--more violence and the pan on the end of this thing went way up there on the balance scale.

So when we see that we could establish ourselves a single purpose-a single motive for anything and everything we do-we might be surprised as to how marvelous it works. Not only from a standpoint of your psychological state or your physical state, but also your financial state, your personal state, your interpersonal state, you're intra personal state--how you feel about yourself--how you get along with everybody else-because you are now working with one conscious processing unit that says "what's going on here is balancing". I didn't say to get it in balance and hold it there, that's not going to stay, but you could go to a balancing state; and this would be altogether different from what most of us have worked with, is that right?

If somebody says something insulting or degrading to you, what's you're first impulse to do when it's running through this programmed thing here? What comes out? Tell 'em off, huh? Or grinch within?

(I just go along with them and let them leave smiling.)

Yes, and all that-well, that's after you thought about it for a while. But before you learned to "kind of look at what was going on", what would be the general thing?--to get angry and get upset--and try to get a little revenge--get even with 'em and so forth. That results in terrific horrendous adaptation syndromes going on which we don't like to live with; but which we can always say, "Well, those are things which just happen". These terrible ailments out here floating around here on the ceiling that say, "There's Bob, I'm going to bite him." "There's John, I'm going to bite him." "There's Mary, I'm going to bite her" and so on. It doesn't say, "LOOK-UNKNOWINGLY--I BROUGHT THIS STUFF ON MYSELF," AND SO WE JUST DON'T TAKE RESPONSIBILITY.

You know the other day the great journal of medicine of the New England Journal of Medicine put out a big article that said that you're inner state of being-(you're emotional state) has absolutely nothing to do with your state of illness--you're state of health--doesn't have anything to do with it. They found out that too many people are now beginning to think in that direction and that's ____couldn't hear________. They say that illness is something that just strikes people. You never know when you're going to be standing in the line of fire. Arthritis may strike you before the sun goes down. You may have some other "horrible disorder" attack you before morning; and it's purely like winning the lottery, only much better chances. You know it just hits-that's all. It's a drawing.

Now, God forbid, that humanity should wake up some day and say that we can have a considerable amount of control over our "states of health", and our "states of well-being", and our "psychological states of being"-that we can be responsible and have a decided affect on it--that would be a horrible blow to the healing art, is that right? And if there's anything we don't want to happen, it's to have a blow to the healing art because, you know, doctors are used to being a privileged set, and enjoying lovely incomes, and taking care of these horrible illnesses that just "some disease came and hit you like the chance of the lottery". So you can't do anything about it-you're not responsible for the illness--so just take of it.

But at any rate, we can, regardless of the New England Journal of medicine, have a decided affect upon our "states of well-being" and our "states of non-well being". Ever had both kinds? Which one do you like best?

(The "state of well-being".)

The "state of well-being". Now if you're working with one idea, one purpose, one reason for everything you do, you could have a decided "state of well-being".

Now there's still meteors can fall out of the sky and hit you on the head and lots of different significant things like that. They're not real thick--if you notice, is that right? You haven't been hit by meteors, have you? Know anybody that's been hit by one? No? Ok, the possibility is a little remote, but it's still possible. So we won't say that it's 100% that you can be totally in charge of it, but you can to a large degree of it.

So have you discovered by any chance that if you went around thinking worrisome, drab, dead, worry thoughts, that you don't feel so good; and have you found when "you're a little bundle of joy" running around, seeing that everything's nice--you feel very good.

I just talked to a lady back on the East Coast a few minutes ago, and it was moan, moan, and moan. She calls quite frequently; and each time it's flap, flap, flap, "I'm so pathetic", "I'm so bad", "I've had so many terrible things happen". So I told the lady that if she could listen to me for a minute, I'd tell her how to get out of all this stuff. I said. "You live in that what you radiate; and you're radiating sadness, sorrow, woe-be-gone." "You're car got wrecked and you got paid for it in full." Somebody ran into her and tore the old car up. She got a settlement worth far more than the car was worth. She had previously said, "I asked my boyfriend to sell me one of his cars, and he wanted too much for it." I told her, "Well, buy it from someone else, don't bother with your boyfriend."

We live in what we radiate

But you live in that what you radiate. That's your environment. Believe it or not, you live in what you radiate. Now if you want to radiate "pity poor me, sad, woe-be-gone, everything's terrible, I'm a victim of everything under the sun-I'm a victim of my kids-I'm a victim of my boyfriend-I'm a victim of somebody hitting my car-I'm a victim of the weather-I'm a victim of everything" that's what you're radiating, and that's what you'll live in. She told me all of that in a few minutes. "I'm a victim of some kind of diseases". She was a victim of all of this in a matter of minutes, ok?--every bit of it. Now what do you think her environment is like? Can you tell me? She's radiating this-what's her environment like?

(Sinful.)

Well, she didn't seem to be liking it very well anyway. Ok, so that's the environment she lives in.

Now you can change that over, and started being "a bundle of joy" and passing that out what you would like to live in. Now that can be a pure "put on" for a while; but what difference does it make. If you act a certain way, you begin to feel that way in a little bit anyway, right?

So if she began to act like everything was wonderful; and she was a lovely person and everything was going fine, she'd change what she's radiating, is that right? And what would her environment be like? What would her environment attract?

They tell me that even "in the whole creative scheme of things" that when the environment is right, the creature appears.

Parable of radiating the environment you want to live in

In other words, if you go out here in the desert somewhere (far from any frog ponds or anything else); and you dig a hole and you fill it full of water-(I'm talking about a great big hole, you know thirty, forty, fifty feet across)-before very long, there are salamanders in there. Now salamanders don't trot out across the desert. They dry out as soon as they get in the sunlight. They got wet skins. Did you ever see a salamander? "Water dogs" we called them when I was a kid. Well, those things are in the pond before long. Then in another little few months or a year, you get frogs in there. Then if you wait a little longer, it gets fish in there because you got the environment, right? But if you pour toxic substances in there and kill all those critters, and the environment is not right for them--they all disappear.

So maybe even in the creative world out here, everyday, when the environment is right, the creature appears.

Now let's say that you had an environment around you that was sad, woe-be-gone, terrible-what kind of creatures live in there

(_____Couldn't hear answer________)

Yeah, old ladies don't pay their bills and they get in trouble all the time. You worked for them. You get in with them, everybody mistreats you. Everything you try goes broke. You live in that which you radiate because you radiate your own environment. Every one of us does it because we're all radiating out a bit. You know you can't slip up behind somebody, but what he doesn't know you're there, is that right? He feels you're "friggin" environment get in there-no matter what you bring.

Now if you got a certain kind of environment, people like to get out of it, is that right? You ever had an environment where people want to get away from you? And you've had other environments where they swarm to you in all directions, is that correct? You've had times when you were radiating things that people couldn't stay out of your way, is that right? They filled your shop full and everything else. And when you get another "down" environment--you're radiating out there and they stay out in droves, is that right? They stay away in droves.

So it would kind of behoove us to be aware of what kind of environment we want to put out. If I'm putting out a balancing, I'm looking towards balancing. I'm putting out a pretty pleasant environment because I'm around a lot of things that are not very pleasant, you know. I go it a restaurant sometimes and you can carve the atmosphere with a knife-it's so heavy. Well, I don't like to "sit in there in that", so I generate "a little good feeling" and pretty soon even the waitress wakes up a little bit and knows I'm there and treats me like I'm a human being; and in a few minutes the front door opens, and people begin to pour in--and you can fill the place up in just a little bit.

Now people gravitate towards certain environments, is that right? Did you ever realize you create an environment every minute of your life? Or did you never think about that.

(Maybe I never did it.)

But you are. You are creating an environment every minute of your life. Now are you creating one that is befitting to the kind of environment you would like to live in, or are you creating an environment that you wouldn't even want (end of tape)

(Beginning of other side so there will be words missing.)

………on this set of motives that I'm going to improve myself; and when you want to improve yourself, it follows without question that you want to improve all those others around you too. They are the ones that really need it. They always need it much more than you do. You would be in such a good shape if you could get those "jerks" all straightened out.

So when we have any of these "preconceived ideas" here, John, that the whole purpose of living is to be non-disturbed; and the way to get it is to "complain, to get my way" or "stick up for my rights" or "blame" or "improve myself" and, of course, "improve others", and to "try to please everybody"; and obviously, they're too hard to please--and the other one is that you want to "believe and do by you're proper authorities", you know. We've all got a bunch of "authorities" out here. Well, we can "drop all the authorities'. We can "drop all the self-improvement". We can "drop all the pleasing people". We can stop trying to be non-disturbed" because it never works. IF YOU'RE PERFECTLY FREE TO BE DISTURBED--YOU'RE NOT DISTURBED.

Now I only have one motive, we'll say. Starting right now I only have one purpose--one motive for everything I do. I'M WORKING TO BE BALANCING, ok? So if somebody gives me dirty words, I do a little something nice. Somebody commits an act of violence, stealing or some other sort of thing; you would retaliate with an act of kindness, ok? So we're gentle. Pretty soon everything smoothes out-you got these nice little waves. You are working with Life, with Spirit [and then you could be called "a spiritual being" because you're working WITH Spirit] Where the other way around, you are a worldly creature--because you're working with the old concepts of the animal world--fang and claw,--an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and "let's get even with those "jerks" before they do something else to me", ok? Right?

(Right)

So you can change from being in turmoil within yourself to where you are creating an environment where "everything that is worthwhile" wants to live in"
Now do you think that very degraded uncouth people would like to live in a very "polite place"-a place of gentleness?

(Probably not.)

No, I know they don't. They go to the environment in which they radiate. They want to feel at home in it, huh? So they don't want to be around that.

I picked up two guys on the highway one time and both of them were alcoholics that were on a trip somewhere between drunks; and one of them said that no matter what city he went to-even if he'd never been there before in his life-he made a straight line to skid row. He didn't have to ask where it was. He didn't have to consider where it was. He could be let off in any city in the United States; and he would make the shortest possible line "between point A, where he was", to point B--the middle of skid row. He'd go there because he could sense where it was. That was his inner state; and he wouldn't be at all interested in being where there was a gentleness or quietness, and sanity. He would directly go to skid row. He said instinctively-but no, it's not instinctive, he sensed where it was; and he headed there. Anybody can sense it. He can sense it.

Now maybe some of us would go in any town and we'd head to get away from skid row, is that right? You wouldn't want to get down there in that stuff. But you might head in another direction. You'd do that by getting away from there because you want to go to that environment which is somewhat similar to the environment that you are radiating all the time. You'd want, at least, somewhere close to it, is that right? If you like to be around heavy drinkers, you'd head to the bar. If you don't like to be around heavy drinkers, you'd head in another direction because that's not what you're radiating. Different people go to different places because that's what they radiate.

Now there are people that are heavy into making money; and I think that's a wonderful idea. In fact you could say (if you want to have one purpose there), you could have that one if you want to. And you'd radiate towards people who are in the bucks a little bit, and are earning money.

Now if you get another kind of environment you're radiating, you'll wind up sitting having coffee with "losers" all the time. You know, you go around and hunt them up. You can hunt up those "losers", is that right? There's always plenty of them out in all the coffee shops drinking coffee all day. You can find them. And they'll drink coffee with you and tell you how they could make a million dollars if you'll lend them $20 to get a bus out of town-but that's about as far as it ever gets. And they won't do anything. They don't get started anywhere.

And then there's other people who accomplish things and do things. Now if you radiate that, you'll get with those. John you've tried both sides of the coin, haven't you? Did you find that one time all you're contacts had a lot of money. And did you find that at other times most of your contacts were moaning about being broke, huh?

Now, do we ever possibly think, "that's what I'm radiating?" But do you see that what you radiate is what attracts certain people. And it's what you're attracted to-you attract those people that go along with your environment. Your environment is about like the other guys environment--so you get together pretty well.

Exercise

Now let's take as an experiment for the next-oh you can do it as long as you want to. You can do this experiment for a day, or an hour, or the next 20 years, or 50 years if you want to. You're whole purpose in living, (the one in which you previously processed all things through or, shall we say, things would get unconsciously processed through when it came to you and you reacted within-every stimuli)-that you would be doing something that would be balancing what comes in.

If people get too high, sometimes it's well to kind of slow them down a little. As the old statement says, "this too shall pass away". And it didn't just refer to difficulties.

Have you ever been real high and thought you had the world by a downhill pull-ever had that? You thought you had the world by the tail with a downhill pull, is that right?

(That definitely passes too!)

And it went on by. Yes, it passes too. So you see, it's always well to go towards balancing because you'll get too high also. Now it's wonderful to talk about always being optimistic, but it's one thing to be optimistic and another to be foolhardy, is that right?

(Yes.)

And when we get too smart, we get foolhardy, is that correct? John would you agree to that idea? So sometimes it's possible to remember that the balancing act says, "Well, remember some of these days, you're going to be a skeleton."--that gets most people slowed down a little bit. But in most of the world, we live in today, we don't have too many times that we have to use the slowing down process. We're generally needing to lift, is that right? You have very many people come in your place that are too high?

(Yes.)

How about you Judy, you both get a lot of people in the door, huh? Most of them are ugggg, ugggg. The word is down, is that right? Do you do something that brings them up? Now there are times that I've met a few people that were pretty high at the time; and generally, I try to slow them down. I get those calls on the telephone too. Now we don't be brutal or anything like that, but we do try to say, "Well, let's take it a little step at a time," you know, get this thing back off, you're not going to rule the world this week--and who would want to.

But if you're whole motive is that you re working towards balancing, it is spontaneous. Now you don't have anything to stick up for your rights. You have no "defensive kicks to get into". You don't have any attacks. You don't have any "anxieties to fret with". You only spontaneously do some little something that kind of pulls these little pans toward each other on the level. So it gets these pans straight across from each other, ok. That's balancing. And when you're doing that, you're working with Life--with Spirit. And you could be said to be "a spiritual being", or if you wanted to use more holy words, you could say "a person of God"--the whole nature of all life, God is towards balancing. That keeps everything going--that's what is called-(the scientific name is) homeostasis. Now we don't want to get to the total balanced state because if you get there, nothing would be happening because something's going to push it one way or the other in a minute--so those are just nice comfortable waves. So we go along with that, but you're working toward balancing; and could you tell me of any other motive or purpose that you might need to have-anybody?

From now on it's your questions and your words. I'm just over here talking.

Yes.

(What if you don't know who stole from you?)

It doesn't matter. I would still go do something that was, shall we say, make a little gift somewhere. It doesn't matter whether you know who stole or not. You're still balancing violence with an act of kindness, we'll say--because all stealing is violence, isn't it? If somebody comes in here and steals our little recording equipment, that's an act of violence. So instead of threatening to go kill somebody, or go steal us some of that same stuff; say I could find some dealer that I could go steal it from; but, no, that would only be increasing the violence. So suppose we did an act of kindness. It will be quite all right; I don't have to know who stole it. I said maybe I would, and maybe I wouldn't--it wouldn't make any difference. Most often you don't know who steals things from you, in this world, thank goodness; or we'd have a lot more murders probably. So it's better, maybe, we didn't know.

But you can--for you're well being let's say--you do an act of kindness somewhere-or an act of gentleness somewhere; and that would kind of balance. Does that help out all right? It doesn't matter whether you know the person or not.

(That, then, is just choosing what your inner feeling is going to be, in any given moment?)

Well, I think I'd choose it over a long haul, so I didn't have to be looking at it any given moment. Let's say I just established a whole new purpose in living. My purpose in living is to be aiding balancing a world--rather than creating more unbalance-you've got one purpose. Now can you tell me anywhere it wouldn't fit?

(Well, no, I can't.)

Ok.

(But on the other hand then ……)

Ok, we cancelled that idea out.

(How does it work with the concept of opposites?)

What opposites?

(Well, the violence verses the kindness?)

Well, that's not opposites.

(Well, I realize that.)

They have no relation to each other except that they are acting out.

(But in terms of balance.)

Well, our terms is "in balance", and it's the balance of two forces which has nothing to do with opposites, ok?

(So there again you're talking about whatever your feeling "should be" at the moment)

I'm not talking about what "they should be" or "ought to be"-you're back into goody, goodies.

(What you want to do.)

I'm not talking from moment to moment-I'm talking about 'it's a purpose of living", so I don't have to think about it. It's purely spontaneous. It's just like you don't think about "being on the defensive" when somebody comes up and says something to you.

You know I see people every day that you could say "Good Morning" to them and they'd go into the defensive state. Now they're not conscious of that, and they're not choosing how they want to feel. They're totally unconscious-it's spontaneous. We're talking about having a purpose here. This process in here is just 'spontaneously going to be working toward balancing" without having to go through a lot of thinking. If you're going through a bunch of thinking, you'll never get there, ok? You chose a purpose and acted upon it, and now it's going to be spontaneous--you don't have to say, "Well, now wait a minute, what should I do in these circumstances." "Well, I should do this, but I'm going to get this done first." Then you're off on you're old tangent. So you never think because if it's truly replaced, you don't have to bother with it, ok? That's why we have computers, so we don't have to sit and figure out all these long lines of figures. Is that right?

(You're looking for the spontaneous.)

Spontaneous response--that I would respond to violence with kindness--that I'd respond to attack with consideration and so forth instead of having to go through-I'm a goody-good kid. If you did it the other way, all you'd wind up is going down the street patting yourself on the back as to what a good kid am I. I turned the other check and let that so and so hit me again, "Look what a good kid I am", but wait until the next time-it would be, "I'm going to get even with him"-and so on down the line.

(That sounds like what you're saying.)

No, I didn't say that. That only sounded that way because of the environment you were living in at that moment. You know when it goes in there, everything get's changed in that environment.

(I know, I'm thinking and that's probably…………)

That's been your downfall ever since I've known you. I've known John forty some odd years, and he's spent all that time……………Well so far, he hasn't gotten through the first thought yet. He thinks slowly. Ok, fire away?

(I had a car stolen from me a while back.)

Yes, I remember.

(And to go give my other car away to somebody is a balance?)

I didn't say go give another car away as a balance. I said you could do something kind instead of violence. I didn't say anything about giving a car away. You see, where I said he thinks slowly. He thinks there's only one way to return it, and that would be to give the other car away. No, in the fact of business, what did you do with the other car? That was your daughter's car that got stolen, wasn't it?

(When she was….)

And then, of course she went out and wrecked another one or something.

(I just signed it off. I didn't fuss about it.)

That's right. So why bother. But you see, we didn't say to go give the other car away. We said we'd do an act of kindness somewhere, not necessarily the guy who stole it because you don't know who stole it, is that right?

(Right.)

So just go do an act of kindness somewhere, spontaneously, without thinking this is what I "should do", "ought to do" because if you go do that, forget it. We're only trying to be "good kids".

(I'm not seeing the balance.)

I know that. I'm well aware you're not. I'll wait another 20 years and you'll catch on. Soon as you get that thought finished, why we'll start on another one, ok? It's balancing one type of behavior with another one, shall we say; and it's not a conscious thing. It's that you see that Life's whole thing-what Life does is balancing--all the time, ok? So to get as much done as possible, I will work with Life to establish balancing; and I'm not going to weigh it down and say, "Well, now that car was worth $3,000. so I've got to do $3,000 worth of balance. No, that's purely an "ideal". Somebody committed an act of violence on John's car; and so you can go do an act of kindness somewhere. I don't know who's going to weigh it. I'm not going to bother about it. I'm not into that detail. It's just that it's going in another direction. It's towards balancing violence with kindness or consideration. And don't sit and say, "Well, I got to get the calculator out and see if the "whatever I did" was worth as much as the car was, you know. And then who knows, you might get the car back; and then you'd have salvage, and you'd have to go take back some of it--so don't worry about it, ok?

(Clearly in this process, the ordinary person would feel with influences that came into his life-that to self--he wouldn't go out and seek them.)

You don't have to. They're sitting everywhere. So you don't go out and look for somebody to steal your car, ok? You don't really have to hunt them up because they're around all the time. If you leave it sitting out there with the keys in it and the door unlocked, they'll oblige you pretty well. And then you don't have to look somewhere to do an act of kindness. They're all over the place too, ok? They're everywhere. It's just a matter that you're going towards adaptation; and an adaptation is the way things are brought towards balancing. That's all, ok?

(Can I ask about re-evaluation here? I'm trying to distinguish two different things. As you've said, when something happens to us, we don't really know whether it was "a good thing" or a "bad thing".)

No, it's just a thing.

(We can't reach that conclusion, but we are aware "without any conflict" that "we may like it" or "we may not like it".)

That's absolutely that my taste is paramount for me.

(Well, according to my taste, that is the kind of adaptation or kind of movement I make to try to balance my world or adapt to the situation.)

Or to the situations around you, right?

(Now, can I ask one other question? You mentioned frequently that you think it is tremendously harmful to agree with someone that they are a victim. Now in the outer world in some way, if you look at someone in a Nazi concentration camp-(at a certain level), they were a victim to what you're saying. As I understand it, if that person psychologically becomes negative to the situation, that is if he caves in to it…..)

If he refuses to say that he has his own choice of how he will respond.

Now let's say that anything is liable to happen to any of us. You know, who knows we may all be in some kind of concentration camp sometime or other-God forbid--but we could be. Now we have a choice in front of us-not whether we'd be in the concentration camp or not, but as to HOW I WILL RESPOND TO THE SITUATION, right? Now I can respond by wanting to go out there and kill all the guards; and probably get myself blasted into pretty little bits. They'd make fertilizer out of me pretty quick. Or I can use my head and probably corrupt the guards-I'm pretty good at that-corrupt them. He might even do me gobs of favors, I don't know; but the point is that you have more than one option.

Our option in the world, and our freedom consists that we can choose if we're conscious-this thing here-which is probably called consciousness. WE HAVE A CHOICE AS TO HOW I WILL RESPOND TO A GIVEN SITUATION, is that right? You have a choice as to how you will respond-if you are reasonably conscious. Otherwise, you react mechanically. So what are we interested in doing?-will it be being conscious enough to know that I can choose a response--I will spontaneously respond to any situation with something that is much more to my advantage, or would it be to go out there and try to beat up the guards in a prison camp, ok?

So you're freedom consists in the freedom to choose a purpose in living. Now if you choose revenge, and you fight with the guy who's got the gun--tell me who's pretty apt to win? The guy with the gun, is that right? And especially if he's one of fifty, and you're only one-he's pretty apt to win. So it doesn't look like that having these automatic responses of "sticking up for your rights" and "complaining" is going to do you very much good.

But if you have chosen that you will work towards balancing--no matter what situation you would come into--you would probably find that spontaneously you'd do something that aids your survival, right? So you're freedom is not freedom to have whatever situation out here in the world that you want; but you have the freedom to choose your own responses; and you always have the freedom to generate a considerable amount of the environment around you-what you're going to live in-what you radiate. You can choose. Now you will be treated differently in this world by almost everyone according to what you radiate-had you noticed that?

If I radiate "worry" or "down" and "being angry" and etc., you know how people treat me? If I radiate "good will" and joy all the way around me and so forth, what will I have? So we always have that choice whether you're in a concentration camp or whether you're not.

Victim definition

So I will not agree with anybody that they are a victim because they always have the choice to choose they're own response; and then you're not a victim.

Now if somebody could take that away from you (where you couldn't choose your response), maybe I'll reconsider my position. But so far, I haven't had to do that. I still say I'm not going to agree with anybody that they're a victim. Now I have people plead with me on the phone almost every day to agree with them that they're a victim. Now why that would make them feel any better, I don't know. They're firmly convinced of it, why do they have to convince me? How would that help? Can you tell me? I don't know. If you felt you were victimized, would me agreeing with you make you feel better?

(Probably, you'd have an agreement.)

That would make you feel it's more real?

(There's a lot of people that are that way, yes.)

All right, I've noticed that, but I haven't agreed with them yet. That's one I won't agree with. I'll agree with about anything, but not that you're a victim.

Yes?

(What if it's a parent? My mother hangs around with my Aunt and she's complaining, and you can't stop calling your mother.)

Well no, I would call her; and every time she told you this miserable story, can you think of something joyful to tell her? But you don't have to agree with her that she's a victim.

(Is there any way to, like, wake them up?)

No, not unless they want to, Hon. You look after number one--you can't look after somebody else. You see you can no more get her up out of her "dumpies" than you can eat breakfast for her tomorrow, ok?

(It's contagious with my Aunt anyway.)

Oh well, they've agreed on it. It's a highly contagious condition--I'm aware of that; but only when we're conscious, will we not buy it. So just don't buy it. You can make cooing sounds and go along. Yes, call Mother and call Auntie, and make cooing sounds and go on your way. But you can't have a mood for them anymore than you can have breakfast for them or that you can drink a glass of water for them.

So don't feel that you're involved in it, ok? And really no matter what would happen, and what would change, they would still have the same attitude. So they like living in what they're radiating--but you don't have to live in it.

(Telling her wouldn't do any good with it either, would it?)

Oh no, they would be very angry.

(They'd defend their position.)

They'd be very angry if anybody should imply that they could enjoy living better. They'd say, "Wait until you get as old as I am."

(Laughter from the audience)

So you call and get the organ recital and go on about your business. But just be kind-replace it with kindness and that's all. You're not going to straighten them out; and don't accept any responsibility for it. But do call them and say "Hi"--naturally. Call Auntie too. Won't hurt you; and so you remember and know what your listening to. So you call up and get the organ recital--the liver did this--the heart did that--the colon did this and………..

(.And she's not very old.)

Oh well, that has nothing to do with it.

This lady that called me a few minutes ago (to tell me her horrors) is probably younger than anybody in this room-by far. We all look like we've been around a little while here, even you, John. Even you little one. We all look like we've been here for a while. She's probably 24 or 25. Is there anybody that young in here? I've known you longer than that John. He was an old man then.

(The thing that is so remarkable to me with "just trying to work with this" is to see that the ordinary person has a so-called ego which feels that it "should be fulfilled on it's own terms"; and if it doesn't get what it likes, then it is fully entitled to go through the whole not "I'" routine.)

Well, you're talking about decision #1 that says, "It's Important to have my way now; and the way to get it is to complain." "It's important to have my way now; and the way to get it is to stick up for my rights." Ok?

Ok folks, the time went off. We'll turn all the equipment off and you can sit here and talk for a few minutes.