“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

This is also the reason for his strong reaction concerning spiritualism. [...]

It is Ruburt’s nature you see to accept heartily or to disagree heartily, to plunge headlong into, or to run from, and the psychic developments made it impossible for him to do either; or rather his reactions made wholehearted acceptance or rejection impossible. [...]

In surface terms the sense of “I” that you possess is the result of constantly emerging probable identities, given continuity in time through the physical apparatus of the body with its built-in intervals of nerve reaction. [...] (With gestures, and forcefully.) This is the result of the focusing and yet limiting behavior of the physical brain, for effective survival behavior in your reality depends upon time reactions. [...]

[...] The future incident may then occur in its time sequence, and you recognize it through memory, in which case your reactions in that future present will be altered because of the seemingly past memory.

(Part of the session grew out of our recent reactions to the televised newscasts, as well as what we’ve been reading lately, concerning the mass suicide in Guyana, the shooting of the mayor of San Francisco, problems with inflation, the Middle East —any of what seemed to be an infinite number of ills the species has created for itself. I must remember that my own caustic reactions pass rather quickly—even if they do return—but that they have a considerable effect on Jane. [...] But I’m afraid some of my responses affect Jane more deeply, aside from her problems with her own reactions.

[...] In his case, however, much of this had to do with quite normal reactions—not voiced or expressed. [...]

[...] It is instead a reaction against the ways in which reincarnation is interpreted by others with less wisdom and understanding. [...]

[...] I had absolutely no reaction to the news at all — and at once remembered my total lack of reaction when our lawyer had told me that the insurance business was settled. [...]

Reactions will therefore appear to be intensified. Nevertheless this intensification is a pretense that one part of the self plays upon the other part, for the very intensity of the emotional reaction on the part of the ego to even small stimuli, allows the ego to say to itself “I feel deeply, therefore I know the depths of myself.” [...]

[...] So, though he would wish that we go quickly, we shall go slowly, for the nature of his own reactions causes in some degree the necessity for the illness.

In other words the apparent intensity of the egotistical reactions is a sham on the part of the ego, to hide the fact that it refuses to become involved with action as a whole, because it fears for its permanence. [...]

For in the very quiet and discipline required to follow the problem, those reactions on the part of the personality will set up actions which will of themselves solve the problem; and we will find that also there will be suggestions given, and very important suggestions, whereby a systematic effort will be made on the part of the personality to enlarge the scope of his action, in spite of the ego’s anxiety to limit them, and this itself will seem to work a miracle.

[...] I wanted to note Jane’s reaction, while in trance, to being told she had named the envelope object at least in a general way. There was none, and she told me later she felt no particular reaction. [...]

[...] I do not make such gestures lightly however, for there is something to be gained by understanding reactions. [...]

[...] It is his reactions rather than the delays which are important.

[...] She felt no particular reaction, she said, when I told her she had been correct in calling the object a card. [...]

[...] It is not a case of one portion of the personality inflicting difficulties on other portions so much as you have a pattern of reactions to various forces in the personality—which to some extent end up serving certain purposes. [...]

[...] (A one-minute pause.) We want to speak more of reactions between elements of the personality, so I do not want you to settle upon one portion as the villain. [...]

(“Only about that discussion we had yesterday, about the power of the Sinful Self to cause such physical reactions—”)

[...] I reminded her of my two questions from Monday’s session, plus the one about my reaction to the mail today. Seth didn’t go into the first two, but the following material did have to do with reactions to those who wrote us. [...]

(I also wanted Seth to comment upon my very discouraged reactions to the mail today; the letters were certainly not the kind we wanted in response to our efforts, I thought.

[...] Then in his way, with his reactions he tries to fire you with that enthusiasm, so hard won, and meets of course with your own kind of reaction.

Now it does no good to say that the other person should have more sense then to be affected, for usually the other person has their problem because of the same kind of reaction. [...]

[...] In dreams many females will have what you would call male reactions. Some males in dreams will have what you would call female reactions. [...]

[...] That the soreness and so forth —really wild—was a reaction as the swirling energy was stirred (very long pause at 12:13) and allowed to escape at least partially—probably only as much as you could allow at once. [...]

[...] I feel that my sleep with the pillow, and my later reactions of soreness, mean that I’ve touched upon, again, those areas I’d forsaken for some time, and shoved away or whatever, and that the release of tension itself was bound to be somewhat explosive, I suppose. [...]

The great versatility of the species in its reaction to events is highly dependent upon this kind of dreaming capacity. The species tries out its probable reactions to probable events in the dream state, and hence is better prepared for action “in the future.”

[...] Because of programming, many people refrain from natural reactions of a most harmless nature, and these are often given expression in the dream state. [...]

[...] This also encourages various kinds of hysterical reactions, as well as a larger frequency of “contagious diseases” than is experienced by the normal population.

[...] For it is possible for your ideas to cause chemical reactions that impede your body’s ability to accept nourishment. [...]

[...] The fears of time, the early fears that made him want to escape poverty, the feeling that all eggs must be put in one basket, and his reaction to you and your circumstances—these were all connected. [...]

[...] Then he will be able to feel completely free from that particular kind of long-term charged reaction.

[...] Naturally this is brought about by my own reactions to whatever the trigger happens to be, but still “Unknown,” and other creative endeavors have often been involved, when conflicts between what I think of as useful creative work run into doing things like shoveling snow, or other household items that I seem to think of as “chores.” None of this is new, although I have improved greatly in my reactions during the last year. [...]

[...] No one is endeavoring to tamper with his personality, however, and it is his natural reaction to turn aggression, when it arises, outward in some manner, while he is almost superstitiously careful that it not be directed at another individual.

This is with him a fairly healthy reaction, and less disruptive than he thinks. [...]

Without Ruburt’s now and then, really rather petty explosions, the stability of his working habits and the stability of emotional reactions would not be nearly as regular. [...]

[...] The irritability then is a healthy, nervous reaction. [...]

On the other hand, the decision to have the interview (for the Village Voice), to take up with Eleanor, and so forth—these events catapult old beliefs to the forefront of Ruburt’s mind—an excellent reaction, by the way—for when those beliefs are voiced and discussed then they can be understood and eventually dismissed.

I am not making judgments now, but showing reactions—so the two of you hid the sessions from the beginning, for example. [...]

Understanding your own reactions helps you understand the reactions of others. Otherwise you would find other people’s reactions far too alien, and not be able to relate to them personally or through your work. [...]

[...] Up to a certain point compromise can be a beneficial reaction. [...]

[...] You know when you are doing it that this reaction will result, and you do it, regardless, In that particular dilemma, your husband is between.

[...] I do not mean to watch yourself so closely that you cannot think, but observe your own reactions and your thoughts. [...]

[...] You will feel the richer for it, emotionally richer for it, regardless of your husband’s reaction.

[...] Since you yourself began these reactions and originated them, you yourself can change them. [...]