“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

The individual is, again, a stranger, almost an alien, in his or her own environment, in which he must struggle to survive, not only against the “uncaring” forces of the immediate environment, but against the genetic determinism. He must fight against his own body, overemphasize its susceptibility to built-in defects, diseases, and against a built-in time bomb, so to speak, when without warning extinction will arrive. Science does not stress the cooperative forces of nature. It glories in distinctions, specifications, and categories, and is quite blind, generally speaking, to the uniting forces that are of course every bit as real. Therefore, when I speak of the natural person being also the magical person, it is easy to transpose even that idea into more isolated terms than I intend.

When the intellect is improperly used, however, it is as if the intellect feels required to somehow know or personally direct all of those inner processes. When the erroneous belief systems and negativity connected with so-called rational reason apply, then it is as if our person sees the target, but instead of directing his attention to it he concentrates upon all of the different ways that his arrow could go wrong: It could fall to the left or the right, go too far or not far enough, break in the air, fall from his hand, or in multitudinous other ways betray his intent.

(9:52.) He has switched his attention from the target, of course, completely. He has projected upon the present event the picture of his fears, rather than the picture of his original intent. His body, responding to his mental images and his thoughts, brings out actions that mirror his confusion.

Tam³ made the decision several times, but early in the game he decided that the book (Sue’s “Conversations With Seth”) should feature illustrations. George [Rhoads] was passive in the arrangement. Elaboration does not seem necessary. You can have it if you want.

Tam wanted illustrations for a first book. When he read of George’s sketches he instantly thought of illustrations. Sue, of course, wanted to do George a favor, to make up for old issues. There were other probabilities according to George’s situation, so that the affair at least opened up the idea that George could do other work for Prentice if he needed money. This gave him a sense of reassurance.

3. Tam Mossman was the editor at Prentice-Hall for both Jane and Sue. Conversations With Seth is Sue’s fine two-volume account of the ESP classes Jane held from September 1967 to February 1975. Tam’s enthusiastic and intuitive help was always invaluable to Jane, ever since he encouraged her to publish her first book, The Seth Material, in 1970.

Obviously, some ESP class members met counterparts in class. But I know that I’ve also met a counterpart outside of class, and later in life: Laurel Lee Davies, the beautiful young lady from Iowa who’s been my loving companion for some years now, following Jane’s death in 1984. Laurel is helping greatly as we put The Magical Approach together. She is doing invaluable work as a research and editorial assistant; studying Jane’s notebooks, journals, and poetry, and putting together material from those sources to be included in this book. She has also been working with and choosing the published and unpublished Seth sessions for The Magical Approach. Laurel moved here in 1985 with us having that job for her in mind. I feel that Laurel’s and my relationship is a clear case in which a long-standing “unknown” counterpart connection came into our consciousnesses when we were ready for it to, and that eventually it led to our meeting. Laurel has been involved with Jane’s, Seth’s, and my work since November of 1979, when she was 24 years old. Her boyfriend recommended Seth Speaks to her. Although he did not believe in metaphysical realities, he had heard the book was the best of it’s kind, and they found it in a used-book store in Seattle, Washington. Laurel began writing to Jane and me in 1980 — while Seth was dictating The Individual and the Nature of Mass Events and Jane was writing her God of Jane. What interesting timing.…