February 11, 1993

(We began with silent meditation and by sending love to J, who is in the hospital. Aaron spoke about where, precisely, to send that love, about the work J was doing.

Barbara gave a brief description of rebirth consciousness, explaining again just what it is that conditions that consciousness.

During today's session there was no main talk from Aaron. Most of the session was discussion led by Barbara. Aaron spoke only in answer to some of our questions.

In answer to some confusion, Aaron has been re-explaining wholesome and unwholesome karma. Transcripts of the study group are not taped but made as Aaron speaks. We did not start transcribing this explanation at the beginning.)

Aaron: … Wholesome adhering karma derives from that place where there is pure, loving aspiration to serve, and, simultaneously, the fearful aspect of self that wants to be someone serving. 'Wholesome" derives from the loving aspiration; 'adhering" derives from the fearful 'somebody." Even when the aspiration to serve is pure, if there is still that small desire to attain something, to be the good one, to be accepted or approved-even if only by God and not by humans-the karma grown out of that fear is adhering. What adheres is that small voice of fear which does not yet recognize the innate perfection of itself and all else. There is still grasping to be something, rather than simply resting in its own perfection. Here is your wholesome, but adhering karma, still planting that small seed of self, of fear, which then takes rebirth into the next moment or the next lifetime. Please note that both are present consecutively, wholesome adhering karma where fear has touched, and wholesome non-adhering karma where there has been no fearful self.

Let us use an example of a student taking a vocabulary test. It knows many words and defines them correctly. On other words its understanding is confused. Some words it does not know at all. When it is given a retest, only the confused and unknown words are included on the list it must study. The rest are already clear, and added to the useful vocabulary

Through many moments of mind there may be service with no sense of server or served, no self or other. No adhering karma is there, only wholesome, non-adhering karma. There is no self to which that karma might stick. Then a notion of self appears, and for several moments there is constriction of the energy and a question, 'Will my needs be met? Will I be okay?" Or perhaps there is only the small degree of self which asks, 'Am I doing this well enough?" Here are the places where karma sticks. Here are the places where the illusion of solid self is still owned, and more practice is needed to clarify that confusion. Here is adhering karma. As illusion of separate self dissolves again, the being's acts are once again free of adhering karma.

Remember that this is a mind stream containing many mind moments. When there is not presence in the moment, and if that moment is clouded by self, it shadows the next moment and the next. When there is mindfulness which sees the being moving toward fixation on self, and allows the being to return to pure mind, then there is less adhering karma, fewer unwholesome seeds planted.

In a sense, we could say that all adhering karma is unwholesome in that it derives from a place of fear. While this is accurate it is easily distorted. We will always suffer from some distortion when using verbal concept to represent experience. Since mind moments comprising a mind stream cannot easily be separated without distortion, I prefer the less severe distortion of employing the blanket term 'wholesome adhering karma." Let us define 'wholesome adhering karma" as that karma which is the summation of connected mind moments where there is real loving aspiration to serve, but also the occasional arising of fear that sticks into delusion of self. When these arise, so quickly one following another, as to be undiscernable where one moment's arising leaves off and the next starts, we may label that thought stream and the actions and words it prompts as wholesome adhering karma. When the thought stream continues long enough in clarity and absence of self that it may be seen as a whole unit of moment to moment continued emptiness, then it is non-adhering.

In the moments when you are clear of fear, when you recognize the perfection, not of the human, but of the Christ or Buddha mind-which is no different that the innate perfection of all phenomena as manifestation of Pure Mind or of God-and allow that divine perfection to simply channel through your human aspect, there cannot be unwholesome karma. The wholesome karma created in those moments of absolute clarity is non-adhering. It plants no seeds. There is no rebirth consciousness created. While there is nama-rupa, (mentality-materiality) it is only a hollow shell of physical and mental body through which the Great Energy flows, nothing there to create rebirth. There is no ownership of mind and body; they are seen as manifestations of the Absolute, of Pure Mind.

The more you allow this state of being by dealing lovingly with any movement toward self, toward any fear that arises, the more quiet space you create around you. Perhaps some of you have had the deep joy of knowing a being around whom everything seemed a bit more peaceful. This is a being who is allowing Divine Energy to move through. That peacefulness you experience is the absence of adhering karma. You feel the Source Energy move through that being, the 'Pure Mind."

I am happy to tell you that this peaceful experience manifests itself constantly in the upper densities. It is my experience always. It is something wonderful to look forward to, but nothing to grasp at. For now, you are exactly where you need to be. That is all.

A: When third density beings are practicing wholesome but adhering karma, and non-adhering karma, is it likely that there will be some shifting back and forth between the two?

Barbara: Always.

Discussion: (Of above. A talks about complimenting a neighbor boy who always seems unhappy. There was desire to offer him kindness, truth in what she said, yet also a self concocting this plan to compliment, not for personal gain, only to make the child feel good, but still felt as self.)

Aaron: There is a constant movement back and forth. Trying to get rid of that movement, ironically, also solidifies self. Can you accept that the joy you felt at that child's smile registered in two ways? One was the self that patted itself on the back and said, 'I did well. I helped." While there is deep love in that desire to help, side by side with that love is the fear, 'I'm not pure enough. I need to prove repeatedly that I am loved and loving." Here is the small seed of doubt of one's innate perfection. Until you believe that utterly, you can not purely and continually manifest that Divine Energy, cannot allow its unblocked passage through you. We will talk about ways of deepening the perception of ultimate reality-of the perfection of all that is. How do we learn increasingly to rest in that Pure Mind and know all that arises as manifestation of Pure Mind?

Can you see yourself as a pipe, a conduit, through which this Energy may flow? That bit of doubt is just the tiniest impurity, the tiniest fleck of dirt inside of this conduit, a subtle distortion to the energy flow. You are still channeling that high level of Energy. In your human form, you will never be rid of all the distortion. I have talked about fear with its projecting points and loving energy as concentric circles. When you see that grain of fear and touch it with compassion, instead of a sharp point projecting into this conduit, you have a rounded bump on the wall, far less distortion. To graduate from this plane the inner wall of the conduit need not be polished perfectly smooth. It can be filled with bumps, which you will polish in fourth and fifth density. That is the work of these densities. but there may not be any sharp points. You may be afraid but not afraid of your fear.

Discussion: (M has talked about her job interviews. She spoke of seeing her fear and moving through it, seeing the fear and tiredness of all the people there. She began to let go of 'Will I get the job" and just to ask, how can I bring love into this situation?)

Aaron: I am Aaron. We are talking here about where focus is placed, on a dialogue with fear or on the true self which is beyond fear. Using M's example of her job interview, as soon as there is focus on getting the job, there is also focus on that sense of unworthiness that fears it may be insufficient for this job. That sense of fear does express itself even in hidden ways.

There is a difference when there is deep trust. 'I make the effort to allow the job interview to happen by writing appropriate letters and so on. I expend the energy to come here for the interview. And then I fully trust, if this job and I are to connect, that will happen. I have done what I need to do." Then, as M so beautifully expressed it, her focus was on, 'What service can I do here? Perhaps my being here is not to get the job at all, but merely to bring some light into the situation. I trust the whole thing. I cannot make them offer me the job. That is beyond my control. I can only express my energy as lovingly, as non-aggressively, as purely as possible."

If, during that period, the fear arises, 'What if I don't get the job?" I can remind myself to speak to that fear with kindness, not to get caught in it. Then I am free to return to the clearer state of being service. Happily, when your energy expresses itself in that way, you enhance the likelihood of your getting the job. You are not doing it manipulatively to get the job, only because there is nothing else to do.

C, your recent situation with this trial is a perfect illustration. I would ask you to share this if such sharing is comfortable. No pressure here. That is all.

Discussion: (Sharing from C about the woman who had sued her.

Discussion of last week's homework and our practice with this aperture between the breath and the ways it allows us to rest in Pure Mind. Aaron asks us to continue the same homework this week.)

Aaron: I am Aaron. I bow deeply to you all for the effort you are making. Will you continue this work, simply watching the planting of the seed and the ways it shifts: wholesome, unwholesome … wholesome, but adhering … non-adhering. Just that. Is there anybody that is not clear on this work now? That is all.