“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(Because of illness on my part this is our first session since March 22; thus we missed the regularly scheduled sessions of March 24, March 29 and March 31. This is the longest gap in the flow of the material since the sessions began on December 2, 1963. Both of us were eager to resume. Jane remarked last night that the enforced layoff was making her rather nervous. It was, she said, the same kind of nervousness she used to experience before each session, during the early months.

(Once again the session was held in our secluded back room. Jane spoke while sitting down, and with her eyes closed. She does not wear her glasses at all during sessions now. Her voice was quiet, her initial pace rather slow. Her delivery speeded up as the session progressed, and her voice became somewhat louder.)

I realize that such surface help at times could be most desirable. Basically however in your case the illness was not serious, and the advantage that you would derive from my help in a healing capacity would have been outweighed entirely by several disadvantages that are almost always present, in the case of healing that does not originate from inner comprehension.

I would have been removing the problem from you, and in this instance depriving you of the opportunity of solving it, and therefore of adding to your own energies and abilities. As it was, your illness was shorter by several times than it would have been had it occurred last year, and certainly much shorter than it would have been were it not for the understanding that you have derived from these sessions.

The basic source of your difficulty was not new. It did not even, except superficially, represent a dangerous lapse or relapse on your part, into those truly dangerous and quite disastrous negative battles of thoughts, which eventually in any individual can and often do lead the integrated self into annihilation.

The illness did represent, however, a needed warning, materialized into physical reality as illness. A warning that after all there had been a recent tendency on your part, though slight, to slide into negative thinking. The illness was meant to bring you up short, to make you think.

It was no coincidence, however, that you plunged into reading the New York papers during your stay in bed. Not that it is intended that you should close your eyes to world events, but that in your particular case there are times when, to you, such concentration upon world evils becomes extremely unwholesome.

(Break at 9:26. Jane was dissociated as usual; that is, she had achieved a good state. She smiled as she ended the monologue.

(I spent eight or nine days in bed, the victim of what is generally called a virus. At no time however did I blame a virus, feeling that the real cause was psychic, thus permitting the virus to come to the fore. I was somewhat embarrassed at having “goofed” psychically. As time passed, and while I pored over several daily New York City newspapers plus Elmira’s daily paper, I came to realize to a small extent that poor expectations on my part had much to do with my falling ill.

(I finally reached the point where I told Jane, the day before this session was due, that I had decided to stop reading the New York papers so thoroughly. I found it a sad experience to read about the race situation, Viet Nam, the conditions of life and crime in New York City, etc., although of course I realized that much of this news meant something was being done about some urgent problems.

Ruburt sensed one in particular, and did indeed react in a manner that you found annoying. Ruburt’s feelings and lack of action as far as the publishing house was concerned left much to be desired, and in time his lack of action would have caused an unpleasant reaction on his own part. However he correctly, if subconsciously, interpreted your attitude toward the publishing house as being basically dangerous to you. And so it was.

Note: The attitude was partially justified, but the portion that was not justified was a symptom of a new appearance of negative thought on your part. And because such negativism is a psychic problem to you, it was potentially dangerous.

Your attitude was, in some manner, more realistic than Ruburt’s, and yet his attitude was the healthier. Both of you went too far in opposite directions, as is characteristic of your own natures: you are sometimes inclined, and underline sometimes, to be overly pessimistic; and Ruburt is sometimes inclined to be not overly optimistic but overly docile, as far as his connections with the outside world are concerned.

His nature is independent, but the independence is blunted when he is not sure of what he is dealing with. You felt his reaction to your attitude strongly, and you should have questioned yourself at that point. Ruburt was able to counteract the temporary but overall negative storm by his own creative energies, and focus strongly to protect you both.

Basically this concern for human welfare is indeed virtuous, but overindulged in it becomes loaded with possibilities that could be most unfortunate. You knew I was going to light into you this evening, as Ruburt would say. What I want, here, is the balance. Neither plunge yourself into the ignorance, doubts and injustices, so that you can see nothing else, nor close your eyes to them. But there must be a place within you where these do not exist, or the freedom of the inner self will be hampered, as far as its connection with the ego is concerned. Your deep consideration for human problems has indeed helped lead you to these sessions.

(Break at 10:01. Jane was dissociated as usual. The pace of the dialogue had been quite fast, and Jane’s voice had acquired some volume. She resumed at the same fast rate, although in a quieter voice, at 10:12.)

There was a possibility at one time, for a particular period of time, when for various reasons your Miss Callahan was in danger of falling down the front flight of stairs. For several reasons the possibility was strongest when she went for the mail.

(Just before tonight’s session I told Jane I hoped Seth would clear this matter up. See the 133rd and the 135th sessions. The 133rd session also contains a list of previous sessions in which Seth has dealt with Miss Callahan to varying degrees. Miss Callahan, a retired schoolteacher, was also acquainted with Frank Watts. It was Jane’s initial contact with the Frank Watts personality, through the Ouija board, that led to these sessions. F. Watts has been dead perhaps twenty years, and is one of the personalities making up the Seth entity.

I am going to suggest also that Ruburt continue with the procedure as far as psychological time is concerned, that is, that he lets it go until I tell him otherwise. The experience, the subjective experience, of the last session, on Ruburt’s part, was meant as a practical demonstration of the limitless self. I am very pleased that we did so well with it, and various other such controlled experiments can be expected in the future.

A note I wanted to add: It was indeed no coincidence either that your house was so filled with guests when you became ill. Your Sonja was drawn by your own inner vehemence. It was very well that she did not spend more time with you.

The others did not come for the same reason, although your illness was the cause of their visits. John, your Philip, was definitely called as a reinforcement, and he responded. The other two visitors were neutral psychically. I will say more of this at a later date, when it will be pertinent to another discussion.

(Break at 10:36. Jane was well dissociated. Since we had missed three sessions, I thought we could continue a little longer.

(Our host of visitors during my illness was another subject we’d hoped Seth would discuss this evening. From March 24 to April 2, Jane and I received a total of 21 visits from 16 different individuals. Of these 16, 7 had witnessed sessions. Some of the visits lasted for hours and left Jane very tired.

(Since the visitors began to appear on the first day I was in bed and within a matter of hours, Jane and I soon thought it more than coincidence. We had 4 visitors the first day, 3 the second day, 5 the third day, 4 the fourth day, etc. Moreover two of our first four visitors, Sonja Carlson and Louis D’Andreano, were from out of town.

(Sonja bought a painting from me on November 18, 1964, and is mentioned by Seth in the 108th session of that date. Louis witnessed the 89th session, held in Rochester, NY, and was also discussed by Seth in the 90th session. Another visitor that first day was Jim Beckett, who witnessed the 47th and 49th sessions. Thus Jim and Louis were the two neutral visitors referred to by Seth.

(My younger brother, William Richard, also from Rochester, NY, was a visitor on March 28. He is custodian of the second carbon of these sessions, and witnessed the 89th session. Another visitor was Bill Macdonnel, entity name Mark, and several times a witness. On file I have a complete record of the 21 visits Jane and I received.

He did have some support from you, for you see you were far from powerless this time. The other assorted company during the week was most beneficial indeed. From this standpoint you were indeed not alone, and it was not a time for you to be alone, although you may have wished for privacy.

I could indeed continue now along other lines. However I think it best that you retire for the evening. I did not neglect you, either, while you were ill, but the circumstances did not warrant a direct action on my part. I was here. I kept an inquiring, sometimes severe, sometimes amused, sometimes concerned, but always watchful eye upon the household.

(End at 10:58. Jane was well dissociated. She said she retained an awareness of the gist of the material given during her first monologue, but that in successive monologues she lost all idea of what she had said.

(Jane had told me that during my illness she hadn’t felt Seth around. There were times during my illness when I had an actual feeling of disbelief at the steady parade of visitors. I did not see them all. I soon became aware that I felt better after talking to the ones I did see, and once I realized this I rather deliberately tried to capitalize upon this apparent exchange of energy. Sonja Carlson visited us twice; almost at once I understood the negative character of her thoughts, and decided not to let it bother me. I was concerned about Jane bearing the brunt of this, however.)