Seth 415
Belief vs. Faith and Seeking to be the “Perfect Teacher”
October 6, 2009
8:47 PM
Seth…Good evening, a pleasure to have all of you here with me again this evening. A little bit of housekeeping after the excitement of Kaetorina’s tooth. In speaking of
Kaetorina and in consultation with some of her teachers and spirit guides we have determined that she will gladly have her name placed in Frank’s newsletter.
We are starting to deal with belief and faith. One may consider the idea of contrasting value systems which of course is not factual. There are numerous positive belief systems as well as numerous negative belief systems, the same of course may be said about faith systems. Each system has value in its own way. It always depends upon the creative nature of individuals and how they choose to interpret those systems. One may ask a question what is a perfect teacher? The obvious answer of course is that nothing is perfect but that deviates from the spirit of the question itself. A perfect teacher allows the student to succeed even when mistakes are made. That same teacher will of course allow the student to fail even when success is at hand. Every teacher knows that doing the work for the student only prevents that student from ultimate success. If one is given the answers, how much learning can truly occur? This idea in and of itself has great ramifications for student and teacher. While it is difficult to allow anyone to fail it is more difficult to foster success on any student who is not ready for the following step.
Questions always arise, and I have stated this before, why didn’t you give us that information a long time ago? One must understand that the answer you were not ready for, it simply means that you could not fully incorporate those ideas into your current system of beliefs. The inability to function on that level dilutes the effectiveness of the learning itself. While many individuals tend to believe that they were ready most individuals cannot absorb the basic foundation of knowledge until the proper cornerstones have been laid. From a larger viewpoint it is far more profitable to deal with faith systems than it is with belief systems. Any belief system, even extremely positive ones, have limitations. Those limitations inhibit full growth and absorption of material in a proper manner. It is the readiness to function on higher levels that allows your experience on the physical plane to be translated into knowledge that you will then be able to carry with you from lifetime to lifetime.
To accomplish this idea, one must be open to all situations whether those situations are positive or negative. The belief in self is the first steppingstone to knowledge. Questions are always asked, do you like yourself, and it is not surprising that a vast majority of individuals have great difficulty with that answer. Their belief system about self lacks the internal drive to force themselves to accept that which they do not like about themselves so that they can find the wherewithal to make changes in their own personality. When this belief system is finally mastered the difficulty here lies in the translation from a closed system to an open one, i.e.: faith system of belief.
One of the ways to accomplish this task is to learn to be open! Most individuals close themselves off since they feel that their own agenda is more important than their eventual growth. In simplistic terms it is the, I want it now syndrome. When confronted with this difficulty many individuals believe that the teacher is withholding information or preventing proper learning by not allowing a free exchange between the two. If you are open your faith system of belief guarantees that you will instinctively know that your questions will be answered either through life experience or by direct question and answer. One of the difficulties that individuals have is the fact that they make judgments usually based on incomplete and improper information. One cannot learn if your system of judgment operates in a closed area. This simply means that all information has not been gathered. You base your opinion on your desires and not upon fact. The large component of this type of belief system is fear. Fear itself while profitable in some systems is detrimental here due to the fact that it prevents one from viewing situations in an open manner. Fear may be expressed by the desire that I must know everything about something. Fear is expressed by increasing your wants and decreasing your needs. An example here, I want this so badly. Fear is expressed in this system of beliefs by involving yourself with someone else and their play. This occurs since you do not permit or will not allow the other person to fail. Fear in this system of beliefs is the refusal to let go of past problems. It is the morbid necessity to live and relive ideas and events at numerous points of reference that cause pain and anguish to self.
One must then move away from this repeatable situation first by opening your heart. It should be noted that I am not saying that one should never care for another. I am stating clearly that it is necessary for all individuals to be properly involved with others but not to the detriment of self or anyone else. The idea of opening your heart to yourself will allow love to reside within you. One of the ideas that one must ask is does it really matter? When dealing with others you will find that you become so involved that you do not function so the question does it really matter is stated so that you may move away and allow the other soul to create and function at their own level. This again leads us back to the idea that you are the perfect teacher. You must use your own life experiences to master situations that cause you problems. It is obvious that if you open your heart you will find within yourself great strength. This strength will allow you to function even in the most difficult of situations.
When another has hurt you and you seek revenge your sense of judgment of what is correct or incorrect must be called into question. It is far simpler to detach oneself from that individual than it is to seek revenge. In this way you are opening your heart to another. You have chosen to move away and detach yourself from their influence. If someone has no power over you the question is how can they hurt you? It is obvious that this type of “revenge” is more devastating to another since they cannot influence you at all. One must be aware that you cannot be perfect. Of course, you will make errors in judgment and with those errors cause pain to someone else. When these situations arise, one should find the courage to apologize and ask for forgiveness whether the other soul forgives you or not matters not. You yourself have found the ability for growth and development.
Belief vs. Faith is always a difficult situation. Where is the profit when faith fails? How should I judge success or failure? Am I open or closed? Do I accept all situations and try to learn from them? Is my heart open first to myself and then to others? When these questions can successfully be answered you will find that you yourself are the perfect teacher.
I believe at this point we shall take a break. (9:30 PM)
Seth… Let us continue. Are there any questions?
Isabella… It was brought to my attention that my belief system in regards to relationships is negative in terms of that all men are evil and that relationships are doomed to fail and now I’m transferring that belief system into my new relationship and looking for things which are “proving” that my belief system is correct when I’m not really sure that it is. How does one move past a belief system that’s failing?
Seth… Any belief system that is no longer profitable requires work. First to understand where that belief system has failed you, and second in the larger sense, do you find it necessary to change your point of view? The idea that one must examine themselves first is paramount to the success that change is necessary. The examination of self will give you a sense of direction on that which you can accept and upon that which you must disregard. Therefore, the question arises; from past experience you might say that all men are evil. If you believe that statement is factual you do not need to change. If you do not believe that statement is factual then one must look internally for the solution to that question. In other words, since my past experiences with men have led me to that belief system what is it about me that causes me to choose those types of individuals? From our series of lectures on Change it is obvious that the first change must be self. When one decides that I matter I will therefore promote within me my best features, and in doing so I will learn to love and enjoy that which I am.
Are there any other questions?
Isabella… So, what you are saying is that I’ve still chosen that type of individual.
Seth… We are dealing with past relationships, not current.
Isabella… So, if that’s the case how do you move past it? How do I not use past experiences in the present relationship?
Seth… I would ask the following question. Let us assume that you like strawberry ice cream and have only eaten strawberry ice cream for as long as you can remember but now you find you are allergic to strawberry ice cream, does that mean that one should never have ice cream again? It is obvious that one changes by making the decision that I am going to find a profitable solution to my difficulty. I may try chocolate, rum raisin, vanilla before settling on my new favorite of rocky road. It is the trying to change that is profitable when you find something that does not work as you are obviously doing at this point of reference one should then as you have done is to try a new flavor.
Isabella… What does that mean?
Stephanie… It does not mean to get a new man it just means to change your ways to make it more profitable for you.
Seth… Are there any other questions?
Frank… The idea of cornerstones, is that a generalized concept or specific to the student or actually both?
Seth… What do you believe it means?
Frank… When I was asking the question then I thought, both.
Seth… Correct.
Jasmine… You used an expression that confused me. You said faith system of belief I thought faith systems and belief systems are different things?
Seth… The idea of a belief system and the idea of a faith system are two different entities. The word belief in terms of a faith system of belief is the operating system of faith. A belief system of belief is the operating system of belief. The word belief here has two different meanings depending upon where it is used. Do you understand?
Jasmine… I understood they were two different things. Belief is something you can change.
Seth… The word belief is meant to imply the functionality of the system. What comprises it?
Jasmine… Can you give a concrete example?
Seth… Notice by the way that when you speak it is difficult for Kaetorina to type, yet if one found it necessary one could transcribe that which is necessary. The concepts are not meant to be fully understood by just listening. A faith system. Do you believe in God? The answer there is yes. The why you believe in God and the answers you would give are your beliefs in that faith system of God. Do you understand?
Jasmine… Yes.
Seth… Are there any other questions?
Stephanie… How can I use the idea of faith in my problems of trusting?
Seth… Trust in itself has two components, first in self and then in others. But there are two more components, belief in self and trust in self combined with faith in self and faith in others. Trusting is allowing oneself the luxury of being correct without judging others or inflicting your influence upon another. The question here is how do I know? The answer is simple if you have faith you don’t have to know. Belief always requires an answer. It is never necessary if one has faith in yourself than the actions of another while painful at times will not affect you in the long run. This is true since you will be capable in trusting yourself to extricate yourself from whatever difficulty you find yourself in. Think of trust as a complete circle when the circle is fully closed, your belief in self and others is equal to your faith in self and your faith in others. When this circle is open you allow opportunities to escape. An example here may be seen in a very old story and that story is of course Pandora’s Box, all that remained was hope and that is enough to restore that which you require for success.
Trusting is a relationship issue in and of itself. One must learn that the idea of giving someone else the ability to hurt you is the essence of trust. If you are consumed with the idea that you are the only one capable of protecting yourself then of course you cannot trust. You will then look for every opportunity to open your trust circle and allow precious opportunities to escape. Of course, trust must be earned, and it is true that others will disappoint you but the greatest horror that you face is not trusting yourself since the circle then has allowed even hope to escape. Which is better having only yourself to fall back upon or to develop relationships where others may assist you in your times of need? These are the issues where trust needs to be earned. Start with self and allow others to assist.
Did that answer your question?
Stephanie… Why would I want to give someone the opportunity to hurt me?
Seth… When you give someone the ability to hurt you, you are saying that I know you have my best interest at heart. An example here is the relationship between a loving couple. Is it not true that there are numerous times when one or the other partner does something that devastates the other? If there was no trust or no love, then the actions of the other are inconsequential.
Let me leave you with this. The perfect teacher allows for success and failure. Use your life and the experiences within to increase your needs and lessen your wants. A most hearty good evening to all.
(Session ended at 10:28 PM)
