As you went through these labeling experiments - that's an emotion; that is a thought; that is a movement… there might have been a moment in the exercise when you had the sensation that you could not identify that “something” that was observing the various ‘I’s and assigning them to the centers. If it can see these ‘I’s, it must be something outside them. That's your soul. That is the ‘you’ of you which can do that. It is more refined than your personality. The more you live in that aspect of yourself, the more it can grow. This exercise is at the core of what the Tradition means by allowing the essence (soul) to consume the personality.

See, too, that just as one cannot perceive the personality when one is personally involved in one of the many ‘I’s, one cannot perceive the soul unless the observer is outside of it as well – which, of course, would be the spirit, or spiritual aspect of oneself, which as we discussed earlier is universal to the human experience and not individuated.

I now wish to share another exercise that will help you make contact with your soul and spirit – to help you find your center of gravity in the higher aspects of yourself. But first, it must be noted that we often use many terms interchangeably which mean the same thing (though often at different levels). 

For example:

1.     The physical body is sometimes called the ‘carriage’ or the ‘human complex.’

2.     The false self is also known as the ‘ego,’ the ‘many I’s,’ or the ‘personality.’

3.     The soul is also known as the ‘essence,’ the ‘astral body,’ the ‘higher emotional body,’ or the ‘blood body.’

4.     The spirit is also known as the ‘solar embodiment’ or the ‘mental body.’

Now, on to the exercise, an extension of the introspection exercise. When a person thinks about themselves, and their existence, there is a general sense of “the self,” usually as a nebulous cloud somewhere around either the head or heart. For example, if asked, “Where do you think from?” you might get the sensation that you think from somewhere around your head. This is difficult to explain, but try to sense where in you, you reside, and you’ll see what I mean.

Now, when practicing the introspection exercise, I would like you to take that feeling of ‘self-ness’ and move it to a spot just above your solar plexus, focus it there, and try to ‘be’ from that spot instead of the nebulous region of the head or heart. Do this as often as you can remember to do so – especially when practicing the introspection exercise. This is the place in the human complex where the soul resides. It is very tiny but potent.

Pierce!