Re: [BardonPraxis] first mental exercises

["Rawn Clark" <rawnclark@...>]

Dear Patrik,

>> Many systems do suggest beginning first with concentration on
breathing or focusing on an external single point, candle etc. If I do
(have practised) this, it's quite easy for me to concentrate right a way
anytime quite quickly. Bardon does first begin with observing thoughts,
and concentration (although internally) is just the third step - are
there specific reasons why Bardon did not begin with concentration? <<

Focusing your attention on an external point, candle, etc., and focusing
it upon your breathing only serve to distract and divert the surface
mind. This does not lead to self-knowledge. It teaches you nothing
about how your surface mind functions and it does nothing to increase
your ability to directly discipline your surface mind. All it does is
teach you how to distract your surface mind, thus leaving an untamed
beast always lurking just out of your control.

"Know Thyself" is the most important tenet of Hermetic initiation and is
an absolute necessity for true magical practice. If you do not know
yourself then those parts of yourself that are unknown will always
affect you and affect your magical practice in ways that you cannot
control. Therefore, Bardon's system is designed to *directly* confront
every aspect of self, including the surface mind.

The surface mind is *directly* confronted in the first mental exercise.
The student focuses upon what is happening *within the surface mind*,
instead of distracting the surface mind by focusing upon something else.
Thus the surface mind becomes a known aspect of self that the student
can then master fully.

>From an initiatory perspective, directly confronting the mind in this
way is no different than directly confronting the personal character
through introspection. Both are practices in which the student
confronts *self* and both are practices that lead to self-knowledge and
self-mastery.

>> a) Would you suggest (without any external focus exercises) that
*intensifying the amount of times* practising only the first mental
exercise, if possible even three times a day (at least twice 10 minutes
as Bardon requires, of course) is enough breaking through that blockade
of the Ajna Chakra? <<

It's worth a try.

>> b) And provided that I will successful with (1), the concentration
part afterwards, is it important then, only to focus on daily concerns
(2) first and *not* doing any specific exercise of observing thoughts
(1) anymore or internal focus exercise (3) *meanwhile*, till there is a
well mastered all daily time focus? <<

I suggest that you re-read exactly what Bardon wrote regarding the first
part of the second mental exercise, especially the sentence that reads:
"Having obtained a certain skill in this exercise, you may turn to the
following one." In other words, it is not required that you be able to
focus exclusively upon what you're doing *all* the time, before moving
on to the second part of the exercise. As soon as you have attained a
"certain skill" with the practice and feel that you understand it
sufficiently that you can do it whenever it seems appropriate, you may
then move on to the second part. It does not require months and months
of practice to attain that degree of skill.

>> Just the *crossing or transition* from 1 to 3 is not yet clear to me,
because I am anxious losing the intensity of (1) when doing only (2) for
months, not practising any "specific" mental exercise else in the
meantime. <<

All of the subsequent mental exercises employ the ability to distance
yourself from involvement with the busy surface mind and all are rooted
in the self-knowledge gained from the first exercise, so there is no
reason to continue the first exercise in its original form.

My best to you,
:) Rawn Clark
20 Apr 2005
rawnclark@...
rawn@...
http://www.ABardonCompanion.com
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