“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(Personal session, not included in the record.)

(“Your comments on the personal matters.”)

Now there are several, and they are being bypassed and to some extent unrecognized because of this other emphasis. Some of this also applies to you. For example, Ruburt is doing very well in his classes, enjoys it, and closes his eyes, relatively speaking, to the improvement he has worked in the lives of his students, and to the freedoms he has allowed himself in class in using his abilities. The class before last is a case in point. Both of you do not realize the exceptional impact you have on others in personal relationships.

(Pause.) The achievements therefore must be kept in mind; not only are they not focused upon, but they are often forgotten. To some extent this also applies to you in your own endeavors. Reminding Ruburt of these achievements, of the things he does right, will put some weight on him. For when he concentrates upon his failings, for whatever reason, he sees himself as a person of no substance.

Now, some of these problems are simply those of the creative personality emerging, in Ruburt’s individual case, in their own way. They should not be overemphasized however, for the creative personality, by the very standards of creativity that it adopts, becomes a focal point for varying conflicts that in many other kinds of personalities are never allowed to emerge. Therefore they are not resolved.

They are however conflicts that are deeply a part of the human condition, and that must be faced in one life or another, both for the sake of the individual and for the sake of humanity at large. The creative personality does indeed have the potential use of greater amounts of energy, the latent capability for emerging psychic insights. The creative personality is striving to be born in new dimensions, to release entirely original concepts, regardless of the field of activity chosen.

In an attempt to discover the reason for the persistence of the symptoms, he began to concentrate upon those in quotes “negative “ aspects of his personality. The overconcentration continued the symptoms, and the symptoms themselves became exaggerated in his mind. Do you follow me?

I suggest that you take your break, and we shall continue. Some of the material tonight on the creative personality should help you understand other points that we have not discussed. The determination to attempt so much, the responsibility to use potential, helped make our sessions possible. It is two-edged therefore. It helps bring about Ruburt’s greatest accomplishments, and yet at the same time, overemphasized, it can become a source of failures.

This is all to the good. In any creativity there must be a magnification. Underline the statement. An intense focus, even an exaggeration of normal tendencies. Without this there is no creativity. You draw the most out of yourself, or out of an event. The same event could be quite flat by contrast, to others. Certain personality characteristics are exaggerated quite purposefully by the creative personality, to act as a lens to intensify experience.

This in itself puts a strain on the personality that is not felt by other kinds of personalities, though they also have their own kind of behavior. The desire for perfection is meant to lead you onward, and to make you discontent enough so that you will attempt new creations. There must be a gap between the desire for perfection and the physical result. Now and then the desire for perfection gets out of hand.

Now, in your good intentions you told Ruburt lately that he was using only a tenth of his abilities, meaning that most people only used a portion of their capabilities. (I also explained this meaning to Jane at the time.) He took this as an accusation, however, and further concentrated upon his lacks. Neither of you should expect perfect performance in your work, and I say this to you as well as to Ruburt. To some extent there has been a weaving in and out, so that at times Ruburt’s symptoms were personal, and at times they were symbols for both of your attitudes.

(If Jane cares to, she can excerpt Seth’s book from these sessions, typing up her own copy for personal use; but I think also that the book should be included in the body of the regular sessions, whenever it pops up—part of the regular record, as always.)