In Self-Remembering you must look in and look out at the same time. When a person is doing this you will have no doubt about it as it gives a certain expression to the eyes. To remember oneself it is necessary to look in and look out. One must see the outer and see oneself in relation to the outer. But actually no one can see in and see out at the same time any more than a person can breathe in and breathe out at the same time. A person’s attention must go in and then out alternately and if we compare this with breathing we can say that an act of Self-Remembering is an inward and outward movement, not either an inward, or an outward, movement.
An act of Self-Remembering is a double movement as is an act of breathing. And so Self-Remembering can be thought of as consisting in some to and fro motion, psychological in nature, that has to be carried out consciously—that is, with a certain pressure of the attention that is given by aim or by the feeling of the Work. For example, I look at the person, and then at my reaction in the light of my aim, then outward again at the person, then inward at my reaction, and so on. Identifying then becomes impossible.
Maurice Nicoll, “The Enneagram” in Psychological Commentaries on the Teaching of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky (Vol 2, p 410).
Working Note: For Today’s Inner Effort
Orientation: Keep attention moving between the outer event and yourself.
What to Notice:
Attention fixed only on the outer.
Your reaction beginning.
Identifying with another person.
Losing the feeling of the Work.
Work Effort for Today:
Alternate attention inward and outward.
See the event.
See your reaction.
Return to your aim.
Remember: See the event. See yourself. Do not identify.
For Your Reflection:
Can you look outward and inward at the same time?
In the middle of a conversation, our attention is usually pulled entirely toward the other person—or entirely into our own reactions. But there is another possibility. We can notice what is happening around us while quietly observing what is happening within us. This gentle movement of attention can loosen the grip of automatic reactions and bring a different quality of presence to an ordinary moment.
How does this show up in your own experience? Join the conversation in the comments below.
