Dr Michel Conge The role of emotion

Mail by Ken Salls

"Real feeling is impersonal. It comes from very high in the

> scale and it connects everything together. " (p.246, John
> Pentland, "Exchanges Within") Our ordinary feelings, thoughts,
> and sensations are not real. Real impressions, that we had
> in childhood, are blocked by our education and adaptation
> to ordinary life. Ouspensky is not advocating our ordinary
> emotionality, which is emblematic of our egoism or sleep.
> A pupil of Gurdjieff writes,"...it is necessary to withdraw from
> the body that which does not naturally belong to it - a certain
> initiative energy - which, when it blends unnaturally with the
> impulses of the body becomes what is called passion or
> emotion. This passion becomes rooted in human nature through
> the system of egoism. Egoism is the systematic affirmation of
> emotional reaction. This system is fueled by the energy of
> attention. Therefore as long as a man has no control over his
> attention his possibilities remain imprisoned in the ego no
> matter what ideals he espouses and no matter what efforts
> he expends."

>"The center of gravity is neither in the head nor in the emotions.

> It is in that place where I recognize a feeling of being that allows
> me to search. This is a place where I become interested in beginning
> the work of understanding my situation and everything that is within
> my capacity. Otherwise, I will be lost, following the game of emotions
> and functions. If the master is absent, the functions take over....
>
> ....When a sensation or a feeling appears, it is important to remain
> still, as motionless, as possible. This way, other parts of myself,
> my other centers, can learn about what is taking place, and more
> than one center can participate. Otherwise, one center says 'I,' the
> other centers say nothing or resist, and I am lost...
>
> ....We are able to recognize two types of emotion, those that take away and lead to
nothing objective, and those that show me a possibility, predisposing me in a certain
way to search."
>
> Dr. Michel Conge
>