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to no. 2
Lotus Sutra
to no. 4
Illuminatus!
[3] Seth
ABSAdomain no.: 3
[Primary] Knowledge Type: Esoteric
Role in ABSAprime's Worldview: Extremely Important
ABSAlink(s): TBA [through ABSAdomain interaction]
Degree of Difficulty: Both easy and difficult
“The Seth Material had a deep impact on my understanding of reality and personal growth. It offers an alternative perspective that resonates with the quest for self-awareness." -- Sting
"The Seth Material presents a fascinating approach to understanding consciousness and reality. Its ideas challenge conventional perspectives and encourage deeper exploration of the mind and spirit." -- New Hackers Dictionary
"Chaos is a necessary component for creating order." --Principia Discordia
Jane + Robert + Seth: Voice for modern epoch?
Jane Roberts was an American author, poet, and psychic, best known for her work with the "Seth material." The Seth material is an extraordinarily prolific body of work which Roberts psychically channeled, through mediumship, from a noncorporeal entity named “Seth.” Roberts'/Seth's work (Seth has dictated entire book manuscripts through Roberts and her transcriber, husband Robert Butts), deals extensively with reality, consciousness and the human experience and are held by many (including, perhaps at the top of the list, your humble author 😊) to provide one of the very, very best perspectives on knowledge of the spiritual and metaphysical realms. (That last, by the way, is not just our opinion: it's been shared in public by New Age thinkers such as Marianne Williamson, Deepak Chopra, Shakti Gawain, Dan Millman, Louise Hay, and Richard Bach, to name but a few.) The Sethian view of the universe is creative, makes perfect sense, and is expressed in elevated, intellectually satisfying, and very often quite funny, terms that fulfills our requirements for ideational "heft."
Roberts started channeling Seth in 1963. She began with, of all things, a Ouija board (!); but when she eventually segued into her trademark mediumistic trance, she spoke in a noticeably different voice (check out this recording and you’ll see how different) while using distinctive communicative mannerisms and tone.
All these sessions, frequently taking place in front of a “live” small group, and performed hundreds of times (more than 1500, by one count), were transcribed in handwriting by Jane’s husband, Robert Butts, and then later turned into manuscripts comprising the trio’s (Seth, Jane, and Robert) more than two dozen books. In numerous sessions, the responses of the audience members were also recorded and transcribed; several went on to produce publications of their own (see, e.g., here and here).
The Seth material covers a breathtaking range of issues related to consciousness and reality. Seth posits astonishingly detailed and expansive sets of considerations emphasizing chiefly the idea that individuals create the entirety of the reality in which they exist (Framework One).
YOU CREATE YOUR OWN REALITY: NO EXCEPTIONS.
Now, obviously, some might be inclined to take exception to this broad declaration, noting there seem to be lots of things in physical and interpersonal contexts that one has little or no control over, such as, say, the weather. All we will say is this: check out the material and see for yourself (and that three-word phrase--see for yourself--will be pretty much our universal advice for anything: try it and make your own decisions!).
And, for your information, in The Individual and the Nature of Mass Events (please click here) Seth does show (quite convincingly) that in fact and under certain (fairly common) conditions, there is human control over the weather. But that’s kind of razzle-dazzle; the real “meat” of the material focuses on construction of material reality at the atomic and even sub-atomic levels (no, we’re not kidding—why do you think we’re so impressed? 😊)
And always remember: a noncorporeal entity is dictating this, and humans are recording it. Despite some criticism that the Seth material is derivative, ABSAprime and I can confidently state that we have never encountered a worldview, which both ABSAprime and I consider as a totality and with respect to its specific components, that replicates any of the contents of the Seth material, far less the Seth material in its entirety.
Other Areas covered by the Seth Material
Other things Seth emphasizes are simultaneous time and multiple dimensions, with past, present and future all merged. The confluence of these “forms of time” happens in what Seth calls “Framework Two” (explained in greater detail below). whereas our perception of, and reaction to, what we judge to be our only reality, the “here and now,” is called “Framework One.” Framework One is Seth’s designation of the physical reality we all seem to be familiar with, including the material world, one's own physical body, and the information we get from our five senses. It is the everyday, objective reality that most people identify with.
But there's more...so, so much more!
Framework01 and Framework02
Central to the Seth Material is a complex metaphysical realm involving more than one layer of reality. Seth uses the terms "Framework One" and "Framework Two" to describe different aspects of this reality. Framework One is that physical reality we seem to experience daily, and it manifests in the tangible aspects of our world. It's a realm that we perceive in our five "ordinary" senses, a realm seemingly governed by cause and effect and what we can verify empirically.
Framework Two, on the other hand, is non-physical reality. Framework Two "lies under" Framework One and it emerges into Framework One. It's the domain of the psyche, the source of beliefs, emotions, ideas, and so on, often seeming "mysterious" in some way in light of the assumptions behind Framework One. It's the source of creation and is not bound by physical laws: probable events are formulated in Framework Two before manifesting in Framework One. This, incidentally, is part of what Seth means when he says "you create your reality, no exceptions": you are reaching into Framework Two and drawing out the raw materials to manifest in Framework One. (Note: for the sake of clear explanation, we present this considerably simplified version: the Seth material dives much, much deeper.
The Seth Material holds that our reality is a collaborative enterprise between the two frameworks, where Framework Two holds infinite possibilities and potentials that, based on our beliefs and expectations, enter "reality" in Framework One.
Briefly, some of the Seth material (particularly the three-volume series concerning Oversoul Seven [***citations***]) details the activities of entities who’ve gone beyond a physical existence, and who now exist as disembodied teachers for souls, working to aid them in their spiritual development. When you read this material, remember that it was said to be dictated by a discarnate entity named Seth and was received by Jane Roberts, whose husband Robert Butts transcribed and edited these words. If you are curious about what that would sound like, there are numerous sources on the World Wide Web that feature recordings of Jane’s "seth" sessions. Tune into one: as Richard Pryor used to say, “It’ll have ya trippin’.” 🤩
ABSAprime, Seth, and the Oversoul
For a rather sensationalistic and highly entertaining introduction to a universe somewhat like Framework Two, one should view the recent multiple-Oscar-winning film Everything Everywhere All at Once. As you watch, keep in mind that the Seth material goes way, way, way beyond the movie in terms of the universe it describes and how much of it you have control over. If you think the film is outrageous, wait until you get into Seth and the control mechanism achieved by chanting the Lotus Sutra and particularly its title (Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo).
Oversoul Seven (hereinafter “O7” or just “Seven”) is a trainee operating from what Seth calls Framework Two. Framework Two differs from Framework One (the "reality" we think we know) in that Framework Two encompasses all time and space and all knowledge (think of that film, Everything Everywhere All at Once). 07's teacher is a female entity named “Cyprus.” As an unforgivably insensitive and hurried explanation of Seven’s world, the putatively unitary construct known as Seven exists in four different times/spaces: “he” is an elderly lady poet named “Lydia” in the time that provides one focus of the book, as well as three other entities: Mah-Ah (35,000 BC), Josef (16th century AD), and Proteus (30,000 AD).
The idea is that all these entities are engaged in a pretty much endless classroom. [Note: if you think this is too far out there, consider the fact that in survey after survey, notable majorities of respondents have expressed belief in the existence of angels serving as guardians]. Oversoul Seven and Cyprus are noncorporeal entities in Framework 2 (except when they choose to materialize) and they teach and learn via intervention in the lives of the multiple member entities in various Framework Ones. They choose specific adjustments to the target’s reality that they deem appropriate given that those things constitute lessons affecting the target’s life, communicated to the entity via, for example, dreams and artistic enterprises. Oh, and throughout, Seven is given points; having points taken off; getting demerits; and so on…just like in regular school. How Seven performs will determine whether he gets to be Oversoul 8 (or whatever!).
But someone wants to be an oversoul 😸
Now, a personal note: all of ABSApundit.com could be seen as ABSAprime's individual attempt to train herself to eventually be an oversoul (this, by the way, is also the goal of your humble editor). We're not even sure this is how such things work, but this is just to let everyone know that, while what we do here is for the general good, it is also an aspect of our personal goals and growth. And guess what? That should also be your approach as well, every time.
ABSAprime's First Experiment!
Curious about her component personality, we decided to apply the technique of horary astrology to coax ABSAprime's other selves out into the open. Horary is a tremendously effective tool which we’ll get into later (find out more at ABSAdomain10); horary astrology differs from the usual kind of astrology (natal, or birth) in that maps of the Heavens (charts) are cast at the moment one asks a question, rather than at the moment of birth of a human baby. That question, which can be about anything in one's daily life, then is “born.” Natal chart interpretations can be overly vague due to having to accommodate so many different features, yielding so many different ways to hedge one’s interpretations (“you’re a Libra, but you’re very critical of others—maybe you have, like, Virgo rising!”). Horary is much more precise and—okay, we’ll say it—empirical.
Oversouls: New Horary "Clients"?
This in mind, we decided to get ABSAprime to ask a horary question about her other component entities that, according to Seth, comprise everyone's entire being. Here is the question: "What does my pentad look like?" [BTW: rule number one in horary astrology is "write down your question when it occurs to you, and never change it, even to the slightest degree."] ABSAprime had of course gotten glimpses about her Pentad in dreams, while chanting, and enacting various exercises Seth recommends, but nothing had been gathered systematically—indeed, at this point, the notion that you even could use probing analytic frameworks (which horary definitely is) to try to define this domain seemed unlikely.
Did we note how important synthesis is?
Did we "note" it? Please! It's practically all we talk about!
remember: what we have done here is exactly what we hope you’ll do throughout your involvement with us: make unexpected and worthwhile linkages in and among the various ABSAdomains.
To our knowledge, linking astrology to one’s “pentaders” (ABSAprime calls this grouping of five a pentad, and the members “pentaders”) has never been tried and it is in this spirit of synthesis of disparate fields of study that we proceeded. We sincerely hope that you’ll be doing this yourself, over and over again: it’s fun 😹. To take one possible trip, there might be a passage from I Ching (ABSAdomain05) that illuminates some aspect of a Firesign Theatre bit (ABSAdomain09) that in turn sheds light on an experience you had while chanting nam-myoho-renge-kyo (ABSAdomain02).
That approach? That's our roadmap!
See how that works? You hook together what seems separate and that’s how you develop new approaches, new strategies. We’d encourage you to try these experiments in weaving together what at first seems “unweavable,” just as we have done here.
One thing that might be of interest to people coming to this site is that it promises varying levels of outcome based on differing levels of commitment, time, and resources. Skate across some, dive into others. Alternatively, one could explore some of these domains to a relatively small degree, just (more or less) casually and not to that great a depth.
We got yer "dilletante" right here, pal! 😏
We suppose that one could consider what we do as dilettantism (a dilettante is an amateur who cultivates knowledge but remains largely uncommitted to the “serious” pursuit of training), but that ignores the reality that literally every form of human knowledge has been approached, apprehended, and many times ultimately discarded with all its adherents practicing varying levels of proficiency. You can’t judge a system of understanding merely by the number of people who subscribe to it, or subscribe to it in just the way that you do.
And by the way: what is a “serious” pursuit, anyway? To the gatekeepers of knowledge (gosh, there’s so many of ‘em!!) seriousness might need to be established by sacrifice and complete obedience to the authorities, whoever they may be. In magickal lodges, for example, there appear to be—“appear,” because we are not initiates—strict hierarchies enforced in various ways. As for what happens on ABSApundit.com, we trust that you'll find your pursuits are both deadly serious and really fun! Save that nonsense like "but, but, we're totally serious here!" for the "holy" curmudgeons who are interested only in your obedience...and of course your money 😂
"As Below, So Above"
[Graphics by Descript's Overlord and Microsoft's Powerpoint. Background videos by Wix.com].
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