Step Seventy-Five

My Cosmic Ear

Step 75. Today I Will Listen To My Self.

Today listen to your self, not the small self in you which complains and worries and wonders and wants, but the Greater Self in you. Listen to the Greater Self in you, which is Knowledge, which is united with your Spiritual Teachers, which is united with your Spiritual Family and which contains your purpose and your calling in life. Do not listen to ask questions, but to learn to listen. And as your listening becomes deeper in time, your True Self will speak to you whenever it is necessary, and you will then be able to hear and to respond without confusion.

In your two practice periods today, practice listening to your Self. There are no questions to be asked. That is not necessary. There is listening to be developed. Listen to your True Self today so that you may learn of that which God knows and loves.

Practice 75: Two 30-minute practice periods.

Here you will find the entire book free for download http://stepstoknowledge.com/

Here you will find pointers for getting started if this is your first encounter with this practice: Taking the Steps to Knowledge.

February 16, 2013 Round One: I keep wanting to say things like “it’s amazing!” but really it is the most natural thing in the world, the most authentic, the most true – this listening to my self, and I recognize it. I am learning to recognize and distinguish between my Greater Self and small self, and Knowledge opens up.

A case in point – I have never had a lot of friends, people I truly feel to be on the same wavelength with, people with whom I can be myself without putting on masks, and there are times when I really wonder about this and consider it to be some flaw in my nature. Then just yesterday I came across the Discernment in Relationships text. And there it is, the answer I have been seeking. Just to quote one very pertinent passage for me

"At a deeper level, you need a more profound recognition. You need a true ally, not merely a friend. You need someone who recognizes your deeper nature and responds to this naturally. You do not have to perform for these people."

And this Step, this learning to listen to my True Self, will help me to find and, more important, recognize the people I can have this deeper relationship with.

September 26, 2014 Round Two: I did the first practice out in the woods this morning. There was a real fall nip in the air, and the morning was quite foggy, like milk or soup I told Ursula as she left for work, take your pick. The fog had pretty much dissipated by the time I went out, and the sun was sort of filtering through. It was lovely in the woods with the fall colors and the filmy, transparent light. I had a very potent practice, where I saw in my mind’s eye my cosmic ear opening up many miles above me, way up in the ethers, and moving back and forth like a submarine periscope, catching the vibes. I tried not to think too intently, or ask questions, or point my thoughts in a specific direction. I did not hear anything in particular, but I felt as though my Teachers were close by. I want to listen to them and hear what they say.

Happily I had finished my practice before Sasha called. He has an uncanny knack of interrupting what I am doing right in the middle, like he somehow knows I have transcended somewhere and is trying to pull me back down to earth. I find it more amusing than annoying though.

During the second practice I fell asleep, and slept for longer than usual. When I nap in the day, it is usually for no more than half an hour. I was dreaming too, but now I can’t remember what the dreaming was about. I tried to listen, but I have to admit feeling uncertain about how to distinguish between my Greater Self and my small self. When am I hearing my True Self? I don’t now recall what was so “amazing” the first time I did this Step, when I wrote that I recognized this listening to my self. I am also a bit puzzled about what it means at the end of the Step about listening to your True Self today so that you may learn of that which God knows and loves. Learning of that which God knows and loves seems like rather a tall order. I am not sure how I am supposed to do that.

I persevered with my practice later and it occurred to me that many of the things Steps asks me to practice are “tall orders.” They are not the things that most people practice or even think about on any given day. But there again, “I am not most people,” to steal a phrase from Douglas, my blogging partner at Mystery of Ascension and someone I take inspiration from on this journey.

September 10, 2018 Round Three: Again this is a perfect step for me today. I want to cultivate the practice of listening to my self, listening to Knowledge, listening for the presence of my Teachers and Spiritual Family, before I open my mouth and speak. I want to listen to the Greater Self within me and not listen to the small self that worries, wonders, complains and wants. I wish I could do this immediately when I am in conflict with Sasha. Just listen and not react, understand that he is coming from his small self and so am I when I respond emotionally. I wish to learn to stop and listen to my Greater Self, which is Knowledge, which is united with my Spiritual Family.