“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

There is a constant give and take between the probable self and the dreaming self, for much data is received, particularly by the dreaming personality from the probable self, or the self that experiences what the ego would term probable events.

In other words the ego is not familiar with the probable self, but certain portions of the subconscious are. For the subconscious, like the probable self, is aware of its existence in the inverted time system. The subconscious is aware of many realities which are not accepted by the ego as actual physical events, and it reacts to many stimuli of which the ego is completely unaware.

Again past, present and future are definite realities only to the ego. Memory to the ego presupposes the existence of a past that no longer exists within physical reality. When I say that the dreaming self has memory, therefore, of its dream experiences, I mean that it scans its present existence. It is a simultaneous self.

The same can be said for the probable self. Were it not for the experience of this probable self and for the information which it gives, via the dreaming self to the subconscious, then it would be most difficult for the ego to come to any kind of a decision within the physical universe.

The ego does not realize the data that is constantly feeding into it. It cannot afford to, generally, since all its focused energy must be used in the maintenance and manipulation of physical actuality.

Of itself however it does not make these judgments in those terms. The decision as to whether or not a particular probable event should be perceived as a physical one depends, of course, upon the nature of the ego which would then experience it. The probable self does not make the decision, but merely passes on the data which it has received through its own experience with the event.

The information is sifted often through the dreaming self to the subconscious, which has intimate knowledge of the ego with which it is closely connected. The subconscious makes its own value judgments here, and passes these on to the ego. But then the ego must come to its own decision.

In some cases the decision is made by the subconscious. However, for various reasons often the ego will simply refuse to make the decision. Occasionally when a decision has been made by the ego, the subconscious will change it, because the decision is obviously such an unwise one.

It must be recognized also that these portions of the self exist in each incarnation. In the materialization of personality through various incarnations, only the ego and the layers of the personal subconscious adopt new characteristics. The other layers of the self retain their past experiences, identity and knowledge.

The ego receives, in fact, much of its stability because of this subconscious retention. Were it not for past experiences in other lives on the part of deeper layers of the self, the ego would find it almost impossible to relate to other individuals, and the cohesiveness of society would not exist.