“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

First, we will begin with Nebene. He was a man of the strongest purpose, high dedication, a severe perfectionist who drove himself and his students. He was a mystic, but a mystic given to great discipline, denial, restraint. He inhibited many of his strongest drives in order to focus them upon his search and the work to which he was committed.

(My five-minute sketch of Nebene as I behan proofreading the session of July 17, 1972 for publication 31 years later.)

(I studied this session to better grasp my Nebene characteristics then [and now] by painting his image, and then drawing him again, but now I’m appalled by my behavior in first-century Rome. Yet Seth’s Nebene rings true—even including my relationship with Jane way back then.)

(And, of course, recording the thousands of pages of the Seth material in my meticulous way for over 20 years surely reflects a large portion of the Nebene psyche: keeping his own “purified” translations of ancient records.)

Now when you met Ruburt, and I will give you connecting points here, you recognized the strong creative abilities, and appreciated them, encouraged them. But within you also through association the remnants of Nebene roused themselves into action. The abilities were to be used. You knew that.

The Nebene within you however was quite certain that they must also be disciplined, kept within bounds and watched carefully. The same applied to your own creative abilities, where for some time a divergence from a literal pictorial illustration was felt to be wrong, or off. Some other personal information that I gave you concerning your relationship with your father this time also fits in here.

Now Nebene was aroused whenever the abilities showed themselves most spontaneously in Ruburt. Ruburt recognized the Nebene within you when first you met. Jane was dancing quite spontaneously, incidentally, and to boot somewhat tipsy. She felt you aloof and disapproving of the waste of energy, watching but not swept along as the other males were. A part of you enjoying the performance but a part, Nebene, critically wondering about the undisciplined use of such energy.

In this life Ruburt feared a laxness within himself because of his mother’s remarks about his father. He knew his own abilities. He feared he did not have the wisdom to use them wisely. They must be appreciated but not spent foolishly. You appreciated them. The Nebene in you could be counted upon to see that they were not squandered.

You did know Ruburt in the past as Nebene, and she was then a dancing girl.

This is in your life as Nebene. Let us get to the details in our time. You died, I believe, shortly after the time of Christ—that is, somewhere between 35 and 50 AD.

You had a relationship of which Nebene did not approve, a sexual one. There were countless cults, and Ruburt as a woman was a prostitute priestess—the term is not a good one—of a particularly sensuous cult that had a connection with the land of Constantinople. (Turkey.)

Ruburt was 9 when this began, usual in those days incidentally. (I was surprised at the age, etc.) For some time in your relationship in this life, Nebene provided you with a framework to contain your own early emotions with your parents.

Here Nebene within you rushed to your aid. He was appalled that your ability, while disciplined, lacked the intent and purpose, the search for truth and meaning, he felt being adulterated. Ruburt, with high youthful ideals, a strong sense of purpose, then came into the picture. He was accepted by you and by Nebene. Nebene felt the purpose would save your abilities.

He had already spoken within you, rousing you to dissatisfaction. Ruburt, who had led him astray in the past, would now lead you into high purpose and dedication. The two of you, Ruburt and Joseph, had already made agreements, as you know. Nebene however carried a grudge as Ruburt does, or rather now as Jane does. Ruburt does not carry grudges.

Nebene, while thankful to Jane, quickly let other aspects enter in once you had safely decided upon painting rather than comics, which were to him degrading. He was then afraid that Ruburt’s spontaneity would divert you from the course that it had set you upon, so he began to take a stronger hand.

Part of the stronger hand also had to do with his attempts to help you with your family, to shut you off from too much distracting emotion, when for example you moved back to Sayre after New York. Ruburt however reacted most vehemently against this shutdown of emotional reaction. He felt then the force that was Nebene. Now at times his own overly-conscientious portions would agree quite heartily with Nebene’s dictates. Because of his psychic abilities he picked up these qualities quite accurately. They would often seem so different from your own actions at a given time that he became highly confused, and distrusted his own reactions.

At a completely different level of course Nebene and Sharabena—do not ask for spelling now—understood each other quite well, and she would taunt him. Now regardless of what interpretations Ruburt wants to put upon what I am saying, whether or not he wants to accept the reincarnation influence, the fact is that what I am saying has a psychological reality that neither of you can deny, and one that acts constantly in your lives.

His fear of the truth of the material, you see, fit in very well with Nebene’s tendencies, and so in certain ways they also joined in alliance. Take your break.

(9:44. I told Jane that I had been considering the role Nebene might play in our relationship in this life, for the last couple of days. I hadn’t mentioned this to Jane though in any of our recent long talks. Resume at 9:56.)

The Nebene characteristics came particularly to the fore in the transcription of my book of course, and with the encounter with your friend Sue. Nebene was furious that Ruburt would not speak for him. Nebene wanted to speak through Ruburt, knowing his abilities, and Ruburt refused.

With you, Nebene checked the details of the book. This put Ruburt under additional pressure, and he began to rebel more. You made some remark that the book was marred because of the great gaps in sessions, Ruburt’s attitude, and so forth. Ruburt therefore felt that you were accusing him again of a poor performance, and for other reasons also felt that in your eyes these faults took precedence over the book’s obvious merit. Because of the strain, and because he felt his spontaneity so hampered, he came up with (Oversoul)Seven, defiantly, where Nebene could not follow; pure creativity, he felt, with no factual details that he could be called upon.

A slap in the face to Nebene, saying “Aha, I am using my abilities as frivolously as I dare to, and you will get little more from me.” At the same time he also felt guilty and the book, Seven, is filled with purpose regardless.

Nebene is quite jealous of Tam’s influence, such as it is, but again, Nebene let it be known he disapproved. Now this had charge behind it later when you assured Ruburt you were delighted with the project. You had no such charge. The charge registered. A quick aside: your friend Sue’s behavior: she was kicking her heels up at Nebene also.

Now Ruburt’s own background this time, with ideas of truth and falsehood, tied in beautifully with Nebene. Nebene was as determined to get the correct reincarnational details because they were in his terms true, as Ruburt was determined to avoid them because in his terms they were not true.

Both of them have some qualities in common, therefore. Ruburt does not like to be held down by details. Nebene insists upon them. Ruburt feels that details often get in the way of intuition. Nebene feels that they are sturdy steps upon which intuition must climb steadily forward.

He felt much time wasted, but held off, seeing if an absence from sessions would help his health. He had also resented the coercion that Nebene implied. Nebene was upset because of this own sense of purpose. Ruburt knew this but would no longer give sessions because he felt forced to.

Nebene has learned a thing or two. He was certain that given the chance Ruburt would throw the sessions over gladly. He did not trust Ruburt’s overall consistency, you see. Part of the symptoms these last months have arisen and continued because of these ambiguities.

He also felt that you had already disapproved of Seth Speaks, not understanding the Nebene connection. Take your break. Incidentally, it is also Nebene who cannot understand why Ruburt’s emotional nature cannot be reached intellectually.

When you think of yourself simply as Robert Butts you limit your reality. Nebene characteristics represent a portion of your reality. It is up to you to use those characteristics as best you can, and they can be very handy in what is a present life existence.

The lives are simultaneous. In quite other terms Nebene wonders why he is bothered or hampered in his life situation, so devoted to detail and literal interpretation, by his strong leanings—temptations to him—toward creativity and spontaneity.

In whatever situation you find yourself, in whatever “life,” (in quotes) there will be different focuses of abilities, conflicts of ability that are all challenges. You, as you are, have helped Nebene understand the importance of creativity, and so has Ruburt. And while there have been severe conflicts, understandings on all levels have occurred, and development.

Understanding then, you can use the abilities as you want. Before, they seemed to have an energy of their own, almost at times not a part of you, and Nebene experienced his own creativity as equally apart from him at times.

The Nebene characteristics were also of help in the early days of the sessions in several ways, but I do not want to get off the subject. When you are using them well you think of them as quite your own.