A Marsha Summers Blog

It has come up in conversation that the two words sound like the same thing, and it sure seems that way.  What can help is finding the definitions for the words.

The teaching speaks of wanting non-disturbance.  We do and say things to GET non-disturbance.

So we have from “Illustrations” on the web site the 4 dual basic urges which are stated, basically, as:

On a Physical level to gain comfort and pleasure and escape pain or discomfort.

On a Mental level to gain attention and escape being ignored and rejected.

On an Emotional level to gain approval and escape disapproval.

And sometimes called Spiritual, sometimes Transcendental and sometimes “urge to power”,  to gain being needed or a feeling importance and escaping a feeling of inferiority or insignificance.

In “The Place of Language” peace is defined as an absence of competition.  I’ve also heard it defined as “not wanting to change anything”.  So if I’m peaceful it seems it is a “state of being” rather than trying to GET something.

I AM peaceful, but sometimes I go to sleep to seek non-disturbance.

Sometime when you want to drive yourself up the wall, sit down and try to figure this out.  Who all did the thing. What was the product made out of—we’ll say steel.  So somebody had to mine iron.  Somebody had to mine coal or coke.  Somebody had to mine other things, and they had to put a big furnace together.  The people that ran the furnace had to eat as well as all those other people doing the other things.  Somebody had to produce food.  Somebody had to produce shelter; and so we look … it seems that everybody is involved in the simplest things we have from a loaf of bread to the watch on your wrist to a piece of furniture or anything else that we may have or use.

I sat down and thought about a Vladimir Horowitz cassette tape I had.  I thought about his mother and father, his lessons, his teacher, his piano, the recording studio and all those people who did the recording.  Then it came to the items to make the tape and the travel to the store.  The store that sold it and the clerks.  The tape player I bought so I could hear it.  And I paid next to nothing to have the enjoyment of his playing.  What an exercise!

After many years, the website has finally had a facelift.  With the suggestion of having a blog, I was faced with the challenge of what I could do with this opportunity.

Ah, the first question could be:  “What is my purpose?”

As I have been transcribing even more of the tapes I have been blessed with, I oftentimes feel that much of what I hear has been covered adequately on the website; but there have been short excerpts that I find interesting and worthy of more discussion.

Though the teachings are for self study and stand on their own, and I have kept most personal reflections out of the website as much as possible, I see this as an opportunity for discussion.  As has been said, it can be a lonely path, particularly when there are no fellow students nearby.

So my purpose is to share those little gems that pass from the teachings into my inner being.  I also enjoy hearing other students talk about their applications of the teaching and what occurred—the result.  We all have little parables we can relate from our daily experiences, and some of the events and applications of the teachings have been big parables bringing forth major changes in our lives.

I hope to keep the entries short as, now, being legally blind, it is difficult for me to read long narratives.  I look forward to this new opportunity for expression, discussion, and of keeping the teachings vital and alive.