Practical keys to self-knowledge

What is life, what does it taste like to be alive, what is the reason for existence? When we ask such questions, it is common for our minds to respond with ready-made answers. For example: 'Life is a great adventure!'. Or appealing to a more 'enlightened' form: 'Life is a school where only the wise learn'. Perhaps a more challenging response will emerge: 'Life is what you make it'. Or, with sad sobriety, simply reply: "Living is necessary". However, whatever our concepts, however sincere and well-intentioned they may be, they would be shallow and empty after all, if they lacked the use of the practical keys to the self-knowledge.

"An unexamined life is not worth living." - Socrates.

Appearances can be deceiving

The great Gnostic philosopher Samael Aun Weor states that "a person is what his life is". Now, everyone is free to think whatever they want. For example: that he is the master of his life, that he knows how to deal with crises, that he knows how to relate well, that he is a righteous person, that he is not afraid of anything, and so on. However, if this person does not become suspicious of these ready answers, certainties, convictions that are affirmed in his or her mind, perhaps the doors to authentic self-knowledge are definitively closed.

Concepts are one thing, reality is another. A person may think he is very authentic and courageous, because he has a bold personality. But perhaps he ignores his psychological bondage, the deep fear that drives him to be like that. Perhaps a person will pronounce that he is worthless, that he is insignificant, and thereby express that he has humility and righteousness. But it could be the case that this self-righteousness is nothing more than a false sobriety, a simple pose, concealing behind it all a great arrogance. Because, deep down, he knows that by making too little of himself, he magnifies himself in the eyes of others. 

Appearances can be deceiving... Often, what we think, perceive and show others about ourselves differs radically from what we really are.

The best guide for a person to know himself as he really is is to observe his own daily behaviour. Without the practical keys of Gnostic psychology, without the science of self-knowledge, a person does not come to know what lies behind the mask of his personality. He cannot see himself as he is in the mirror of practical life. Therefore, his concepts about himself and about life will never be more than empty words, speeches woven of half-truths. The result of ignorance is a tragic life of simulation, doomed to repeat itself over and over again. Therefore, the first step towards wisdom is to be willing, serious and didactic in recognising one's own ignorance.

"Tragic is the existence of those who die without knowing the reason for their existence."V M Samael Aun Weor.

The key to the self-observation

"Intimate Self-observation is a practical means to achieve radical transformation.". Samael Aun Weor.

But what exactly is self-observation? Self-observation is an act of dynamic, inward-focused attention. When we turn our attention inwards, we divide ourselves internally into two parts: observer - observed.

"Dynamic attention actually comes from the observing side, while emotions and thoughts belong to the observed side.". Samael Aun Weor.

Let's do the exercise: what is going on inside you right now? What are you thinking? Do you feel any desire? Any specific emotion? Joy, surprise, impatience, haste, annoyance? Is it a problem crying out for resolution? Any unresolved worry embittering your soul? Any memory of what happened haunting you and prompting you to "look back"? And how is this wonderful human machine positioned? Are you comfortable or tense? Are you reading carefully or following the thread of some distraction?

Knowing is not observing

Knowing how to divide ourselves into observer-observed in everyday life allows us to observe our life from a higher point of view, and more deeply within ourselves. However, in order for self-observation to fulfil its purpose, it is necessary to learn to do it actively, intentionally and voluntarily.

To observe is not to know. Knowing is also a form of attention, but expressed mechanically and passively. For example, a person may know that he is sitting in a chair. He may know what that chair looks like. But that does not mean that he is looking at the chair. 

In the same sense, a person may know that he or she is worried. However, this does not mean that he is aware of the motives, the content, the selfish, vain and harmful aspects of his inner concerns. To observe freely, we need to learn to observe without the mechanical influence of knowledge. That is, to learn to observe without thinking, in an attitude of alert novelty for the moment, for the living dynamism of what is happening here and now.

"Don't you like someone, don't you like a certain person, why? You will say you know her... Please! Observe them. Knowing is never observing, don't confuse knowing with observing". V M Samael Aun Weor.

Knowing is often wrong. So, anything can happen with the person who thinks they 'know things'. Greeting a stranger in the street thinking he is a neighbour, burning his lunch on the cooker, etc. And, this for lack of wakefulness, of active, living, conscious attention. The same applies to intimacy. He might think that he is aware of himself, without really observing what is going on inside himself. Thus, out of ignorance, he fulfils the popular phrase: "Look, but don't see; hear, but don't listen".

The light of Self-observation

"Evidently, any observation of oneself allows the light to penetrate into the person himself, into his innermost depths.". Samael Aun Weor

The light of self-observation enables us to discover those false feelings, secret intentions, desires, fears, embarrassments, complexes, etc. that lie behind what we think, feel and do. Only in this way can we get to know directly and factually those old patterns, habits and psychological factors that make us mechanical, predictable, routine people.

"Then we will see all these thoughts, emotions, desires, passions, private comedies, personal dramas, elaborate lies, speeches, morbidities, beds of pleasure, images of lust, etc.." Samael Aun Weor

Living in the moment

We would never be able to awaken consciousness if we were not capable of "living in the moment. This refers to a state of consciousness that is very different from the normal waking state in which we go about our routine tasks. When we live in the moment, we appropriate our senses and activate the maximum cognitive potential of our consciousness. Thus, we have a special lucidity, a deep wisdom that goes far beyond reason, to guide us clearly and definitively in the practical affairs of life.

"Consciousness gives us a full knowledge of what one IS, where one is, what one really knows, what one is certainly unaware of". V.M. Samael Aun Weor.

First of all, it is necessary to understand that the instant, the present moment, the here and now is radically different from time. Let us remember that knowing is a kind of passive mechanical attention, and we must learn to use attention in an intentional, active and conscious way. If we want to awaken our awareness to what is real, to what is happening in the present moment, we need to use the full potential of our consciousness. To do this, we need to learn to divide our attention into three parts.

Clave de sol: The practice of instant awakening

There is a technique that can lead to the awakening of consciousness: the treble clef. While in the practice of self-observation, we bring our attention inwards and produce an internal division between the observer and the observed, the practice of the treble clef expands the scope of our attention to other areas. The exercise of the treble clef leads to dividing our attention into three parts: subject, object and place.

Subject:

Wherever we are situated, we must always begin by reminding ourselves. That is, to draw attention to ourselves and realise how we feel. At this stage of the practice, our attention is focused on our thoughts, our emotions, our words, our attitudes and postures, and so on. Never forget yourself. That is, strive to maintain a state of alertness, an attitude of inner silence in the face of what is happening.

Object:

Having our attention on the subject, we must at the same time pay attention to the object. That is, pay attention to what we are doing, to our activity. If we are walking we walk, if we are cooking we cook, without the mind taking us to other places, other things and other moments.

Location:

The third thing is to pay attention to the environment in which we find ourselves. Carefully observing everything that surrounds us: people, objects, furniture, pictures, position, etc. This step will allow us to situate ourselves in relation to our place, the people and events around us, without being too caught up in our inner world, or in the details of our occupations. This translates into a broad, spatial, lively and dynamic perception of the precise moment in which we find ourselves.

When we do this exercise naturally, spontaneously, never forgetting ourselves, we achieve a state of full, united and deep consciousness. This is the awakening of consciousness. However, this state is often very short-lived, especially when we start the practice, because we easily identify ourselves with something. And we forget ourselves. Therefore, you should remind yourself again and divide your attention into three parts. Gradually you will achieve more continuity.

Life intensely lived

By living the moment intensely and clinically, observing all the processes of our psychology, we really begin to know who we are. We perceive the vanity of our self-image; the falsity of our concepts; we know our weaknesses; our inner contradictions; our ramblings; thousands of things that limit us, and so on. In order to free ourselves from all this.

We need to recognise the condition in which we find ourselves: the fragmentation of our psychology; the multiple contradictions of our psychological self and the mechanicity of our behaviour, if we really want to change. To this end, we awaken consciousness. Thus, we have a fundamental point of support that will allow us to leverage in a precise, concrete and practical way a deep inner change, which can take us out of the condition of man-machine and turn us into authentic Men and Women. The Gnosis Course teaches revolutionary techniques and practical keys that allow a person to produce in himself a revolution in his consciousness, and therefore in his life.