TAT Forum
November 2022
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Convictions & Concerns
TAT members share their personal convictions and/or concerns
Special—Just Like Everyone Else
In my work as a therapist, there is a kind of psychological illusion that I see frequently, and that I’ve then tried to look out for in myself as well. It has to do with a false idea around the sense of specialness, and the ways we tend to ask ourselves if we are unique or special, or if we are “normal” (i.e. just like everyone else).
I believe this is a false dichotomy, and that we are kind of both at the same time. We are special, just like everyone else.
Here’s how it seems like the illusion works....
See the complete article.
~ Thanks to Ben Rainey.
The image of European bee-eaters (Merops apiaster) with dragonflies, near Kondor Tanya, Kecskemét, Hungary, is from Wikimedia Commons.
Q: Do you feel special?
Q: Do you feel normal?
Comments or questions? Please email reader commentary to the .
TAT Foundation News
It's all about "ladder work" – helping and being helped
Richard Rose, the founder of the TAT Foundation, spent his life searching for the Truth, finding it, and helping others to find their Way. Although not well known to the public, he touched the lives of thousands of spiritual seekers through his books and lectures and through personal contacts with local study groups that continue to work with his teachings today. He felt strongly that helping others generates help for ourselves as well in our climb up the ladder to the golden find beyond the mind.
Call To Action For TAT Forum Readers
You can help! A volunteer is producing shareable text-quote and video content of Richard Rose and TAT-adjacent teachers. We need your suggestions for short, provocative 1-3 sentence quotes or 1 minute or less video clips of people like Rose, Art Ticknor, Bob Fergeson, Tess Hughes, Bob Cergol, Bart Marshall, Shawn Nevins, Anima Pundeer, Norio Kushi, Paul Rezendes, Paul Constant, & other favorites. (An example here is selected by the TAT member who volunteers to oversee the Instagram account.) Please send favorite inspiring/irritating quotes—from books you have by those authors, from the TAT Forum, or any other place—to . If you have favorite parts of longer videos (ex: from a talk at a past TAT meeting), please email a link to the video and a timestamp. Thank you!
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With the intention of increasing awareness of TAT's meetings, books, and Forum among younger serious seekers, the TAT Foundation is now on
Project: Beyond Mind, Beyond Death II
We've had 14 additional years of monthly TAT Forum issues since then. And we're getting ready to launch a project to solicit recommendations from all readers for a 2nd volume of BMBD from the seven years of monthly issues spanning January 2008 to December 2014. Our approach will be to have a brief, interactive survey each week for participants to rate the items in one issue of the Forum for inclusion in volume II. That will take about 20 months, during which time volunteer co-editors Abhay D. and Michael R. will arrange the selections into chapters and organize the book's contents. Within 2 years BMBD II should be available in paperback and e-book formats.
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TAT Press's
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TAT Foundation Press's latest publication Passages: An Introduction and Commentary on Richard Rose’s Albigen System The latest book from the TAT Foundation Press, Passages: An Introduction and Commentary on Richard Rose’s Albigen System, is now available in print and Kindle versions on Amazon.com. Mike Gegenheimer and Shawn Nevins combined their experience with Rose's teachings to create this introduction to Rose's work. Passages highlights the tools and techniques for self-realization that Rose recommended. It is a concise yet deep plunge into these valuable spiritual teachings.
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Random rotation of |
2022 TAT Meeting Calendar
February Virtual Gathering: Saturday, February 5, 2022
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See TAT's Facebook page. |
TAT's YouTube ChannelHave you seen the TAT Foundation's YouTube channel? Subscribe now for spiritual inspiration (and irritation)! Volunteers have been updating the channel with hours of new content! They've also curated some great playlists of talks by Richard Rose, teacher talks from recent & not so recent TAT meetings, episodes of the Journals of Spiritual Discovery podcast, and other great TAT related videos from around the internet. Featuring: Richard Rose, Bob Cergol, Shawn Nevins, Bob Fergeson, Mike Conners, Anima Pundeer, Norio Kushi, Bart Marshall, Paul Rezendes, Tess Hughes, Art Ticknor, Howdie Mickoski, Shawn Pethel and other speakers. This month's video is a session with Bob Fergeson at the April 2011 TAT weekend, the theme of which was "The Heart of the Matter."
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Local Group News
Groups with new updates are featured below. Link here for a complete listing of local groups.
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Email selfinquirer (link below) to receive invitation to monthly in-person meetings in Pittsburgh. - Wed, Nov 2: "What is your Spiritual Roadmap?" - Wed, Nov 9: Michael R. will host. - Wed, Nov 16: Liora N. will monitor. - Sun, Nov 20: John Kent's Dissertation, Ch 15: Richard Rose's "Jacobs Ladder" (can be downloaded here: https://www.searchwithin.org/johnkent/Chapter_15.html). Dan G. hosts, monthly 3:15pm EST. Link to join the meeting. - Wed, Nov 23: Thanksgiving Party Meeting. - Sun, Nov 27: Joint Dublin, Ireland Confrontation Meeting 2-4pm EST. Colm will host. - Wed, Nov 30: Host tbd. |
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Members-Only Area
A password-protected section of the website is available for TAT members. (Note that there's an occasional glitch that, when you try to link to the members-only area or a sections within it, you'll get a page-not-found error. If you try the link a second time, it should work.) Contents include:
- How you can help TAT and fellow seekers,
- Audio recordings of selected sessions from 2008–2019 in-person meetings and from February and November 2021 Zoom meetings,
- Resources and ideas for those planning a group spiritual retreat,
- Photographs of TAT meeting facilities, the Richard Rose gravesite, a rare 1979 photo, and aerial photos of the Rose farm,
- Presenters' talk notes from April TAT meetings in 2005–2007, and
- TAT News Letters from 1996–2013 and Annual Retrospectives from 1973 thru 2011. The Retrospectives from 1973–1985 were written by Richard Rose and are replete with ideas on the workings of a spiritual group—rich historical content.
- TAT policies, TAT business meeting notes, and other information.
Latest recordings:
TAT's Novemeber 2021 online gathering, titled What Do You Really, Really Want From Life?: 3.5 hours of selected sessions.
TAT's February 2021 online gathering, titled In Thought, Word and Deed : 2.5 hours of selected sessions.
TAT's August 2019 Workshop was titled Beyond Mindfulness: Meditation and the Path Within and included three guest speakers who each led separate workshops. The following audio recordings are now available in the members-only website area:
- "Mindfulness. Is it just another spiritual buzzword?" with Bob Cergol,
- "The Path of Direct Sensory Perception" with Bob Harwood, and
- "The Art of Mindfulness is the Passion for Truth" with Paul Rezendes.
TAT's June 2019 Spiritual Retreat Weekend was titled Between You and the Infinite. The following audio recordings are now available in the members-only website area:
- "Coming Home (aka The End of Seeking)" by Don Oakley, and
- "What's in the Way?" by Eshwar Segobind.
TAT's April 2019 Spiritual Retreat Weekend was titled Once in a Lifetime is Now. The following audio recordings are now available in the members-only website area:
- "Recognizing the Human Dilemma" by Norio Kushi,
- "Strategies for Self-Realization" by Bart Marshall,
- Untitled session by Paul Hedderman, and
- "A Session in the Now" by Paul Rezendes.
Please us if you have questions. (Look here for info on TAT membership.)
Amazon and eBay
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As an Amazon Associate TAT earns from qualifying purchases made through links on our website. TAT has registered with the eBay Giving Works program. You can list an item there and select TAT to receive a portion of your sale. Or if you use the link and donate 100% of the proceeds to TAT, you won't pay any seller fees when an item sells and eBay will transfer all the funds to TAT for you. Check out our Giving Works page on eBay. Click on the "For sellers" link on the left side of that page for details. |
Your Contributions to TAT News
TAT founder Richard Rose believed that working with others accelerates our retreat from untruth. He also felt that such efforts were most effective when applied with discernment, meaning working with others on the rungs of the ladder closest to our own. The TAT News section is for TAT members to communicate about work they've been doing with or for other members and friends. Please your "ladder work" news.
Humor {(h)yo͞omər}
"One thing you must be able to do in the midst
of any experience is laugh. And experience
should show you that it isn't real, that it's a
movie. Life doesn't take you seriously, so why
take it seriously." ~ Richard Rose, Carillon
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Zen Pencils
See the Zen Pencils illustration of Bill Watterson's advice on a life that reflects your values and satisfies your soul.
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In a cemetery in Hartscombe England:
On the 22nd of June,
Anna Hopewell's grave in Enosburg Falls, Vermont:
Here lies the body of our Anna,
On a grave from the 1880s in Nantucket, Massachusetts:
Under the sod and under the trees,
In a cemetery in England:
Remember man, as you walk by,
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~ Thanks to BH, who found the image on Twitter. Original source unknown.
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We enjoy presenting humor here from TAT members and friends. Please
your written or graphic creations. Exact sources are necessary for other submissions, since we need to make sure they're either in the public domain or that we have permission to use them.
Inspiration & Irritation
Irritation moves us; inspiration provides a direction
Reading Ourselves Stupid?
“When we read, another person thinks for us: we merely repeat his mental process. In learning to write, the pupil goes
over with his pen what the teacher has outlined in pencil: so in reading; the greater part of the work of thought is
already done for us. This is why it relieves us to take up a book after being occupied with our own thoughts. And in
reading, the mind is, in fact, only the playground of another’s thoughts. So it comes about that if anyone spends
almost the whole day in reading, and by way of relaxation devotes the intervals to some thoughtless pastime, he
gradually loses the capacity for thinking; just as the man who always rides, at last forgets how to walk. This is the case
with many learned persons: they have read themselves stupid.” - Arthur Schopenhauer
~ Thanks to Sergio F. for the quote. Cartoon image of Schopenhauer from Wikimedia Commons.
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~ Thanks to Dan McLaughlin. Picasso quote image thanks to Gail at HowToPastel.com. |
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I thought this an excellent example of the principles of success in life, which apply equally well whether we're talking about success in education, business, or the spiritual search. First, we have the trap that some spiritual teachers fall into—of only looking at the end result and the hope that only talking about the end result will somehow get people to the end result: "'I think that sometimes people just look at the end product of somebody's hard work,' he said, reflecting back on his own journey. 'But you know, [by doing that] you kind of miss the part where people are doing all the work that it takes to become a success.'" Then we hear echoes of Richard Rose talking about the need for "ways and means," the concentration and transmutation of energy, commitment, and the need for a group: "Being successful at just about any task requires a three pronged approach, he said. First, you need to devise a plan. Next, you have to make sacrifices to truly dedicate yourself to an area of study. And, finally, you have to find the conviction to stay the course, even when things become difficult. "'There's going to be times when you feel like giving up, but those are the times to really push forward and to rely on the people who surround you,' Allamby said." Drawing more connections, Rose's "Threefold Path" is evident as well: the Way, the Life, and the Truth. The Way: set the house in order ("devise a plan"), learn to conserve and direct the energies ("make sacrifices"). The Life: value brotherhood ("rely on the people who surround you"), understand the Law of the Ladder, become a vector ("stay the course"). The Truth: not spoken about in the article, but reading about the person, he seems like one who would not rationalize ("push forward"), who would tell the truth ("somebody who they can rely on"), and become the truth ("I felt that, you know, almost all of my entire adult life").
~ Thanks to Shawn Nevins. |
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Beliefs vs. Truth
~ Thanks to Michael R. Quote from The Art of Philosophizing: And Other Essays by Bertrand Russell. Image source unknown; appears on many websites. |
Please
your thoughts on the above items.
Reader Commentary
Encouraging interactive readership among TAT members and friends
A reader wrote that what would make the Forum more interesting would be:
Hearing from people who are searching—and have questions instead of those providing endless advice and "answers." What challenges they are facing. What their doubts and questions are. How they perceive their path is going. What they are doing in their lives. Where they think they will end up. Etc., etc.
Can you help make the Forum more interesting?
Thanks to Mike M. for the pair of Reader Commentary questions for the November TAT Forum:
What is it you are dedicated to? What is your intention around it?
Responses follow.
From Colm H:
I am dedicated to finding the Truth about my real identity. My intention is to keep working at it as sincerely as I can, till I get the answers I seek.
From Patrick K:
I am dedicated to Richard Rose. Ever since I heard him on YouTube and read his books, I felt that this is it for me. This guy speaks in the way I want to but cannot. Everything I read from him proved true, and that kept bringing me back around to reading him again and again. I then discovered TAT and found some more teachers and seekers, and the integrity holds true. I guess my fuel is gratitude, which is a synonym for love, which is how I feel about it. Rose outlines a pretty nifty threefold path to follow, and that is what I work on, what makes the most sense for me, and I love that type of life.
My intention around it is to find the most conducive way to work regarding self inquiry—finding the most direct, effective, progressive ways of looking at myself. I feel so lucky and appreciative for finding Rose and TAT, and therefore I try to advertise this work and TAT to others so they can also benefit from that. My life is morphing into a direction toward supporting my esoteric interests and away from distractions—becoming the truth by backing away from the untruth, the foolish.
From Anima Pundeer:
Dedicated to Truth. Finding a permanent end to my suffering was the motivation. From what I had heard, finding Truth, Enlightenment is the only permanent solution to end all suffering. The root of my suffering was the pain of feeling a separate self. And no matter what I did or what I acquired, the underlying feeling of incompletion did not go away. It was a completely selfish motive to dedicate this life in the pursuit of Truth. I had no idea what Truth meant. With time all the reasons why I wanted to find Truth got resolved or fell away. And in the end, finding Truth for the sake of Truth is what remained. Love for Truth became stronger than love for self.
When we have the highest possible goal in mind, even if we have no idea what it would take to get there, the whole path starts to unfold itself for us. The whole universe aligns itself to help us to get to our goal.
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TAT Press publishes Anima's and Art's book Always Right Behind You: Parables & Poems of Love & Completion.
From Mark W:
I’m dedicated to becoming my True Self. That dedication, however, all too frequently appears to wax and wane, not only from year to year but even hour to hour. Such instability does feel frustrating though, on the other hand, there doesn’t seem to be any real alternative worth pursuing—at least I’ve been around long enough to come to that conclusion. My intuition does tell me, moreover, this search is my highest ideal and the only path worth pursuing.
Consequently, my intention is to make becoming my True Self my highest priority, especially while working with like-minded seekers.
From Mike Gegenheimer:
I am dedicated to working with fellow TAT members and friends. My intent is simply to 'pay forward' and help others, as I was helped in the past.
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TAT Press publishes Mike's Passages: An Introduction and Commentary on Richard Rose’s Albigen System co-authored with Shawn Nevins.
From Dan G:
My sense is the dedication to a vector could be measured by accelerating effort in that direction. So someone dedicated to becoming a professional athlete finds ways to keep getting better and to expand the limits of their mind and body. Someone dedicated to becoming a multi-millionaire finds ways to improve their business and investment decisions and to expand their mental and available cash limits. Likewise, someone dedicated to seeking the Truth/God finds ways to reduce their untrue attachments and beliefs and to expand the limits of their system for honesty and clear inner-directed vision.
In that measure, my dedication level to seeking the Truth feels like someone on track to play college or maybe minors for a year or gather a half million. With this level of dedication, maybe enlightened teachings will resonate more with my intuition, and I’ll be more able to help early seekers, but I don’t feel I have the dedicated vector to be confident I’ll get there. Not to the level of confidence to apply ultimate betweenness per Bart Marshall https://tatfoundation.org/forum2008-08.htm#1.
My intention around my goal for Truth is thus conflicted. And a step towards honesty, away from untrue attachments, could be to sort that conflicted intent out. Do I want to Know the Truth/God? How can I ask for that?
From Art Ticknor:
Having found that my real identity is an absolute point of reference for the relative dualistic mind, which eliminated existential
angst, I'm rather devoted to working with others who are searching for the golden find beyond the mind.
From Bill K:
It is so easy to simply state what I am committed to, that is without someone pointing a gun in my face. Dedication feels so much less demanding and more like having exclusive purpose, but not demanding any level of thought, word and deed. I have no exclusivity in any part of my life, yet. Maybe retirement is an opportunity for that. As householder, there is a hierarchy of priorities, that exhibit as bursts of commitment even by the hour. But my intentions are focused short term within the time it takes to complete a task, a responsibility, or calling by whatever any one of my multiple commitments demand of me. Multi-task as being multi-committal keeps the boat level and afloat without tangents of any one great endeavor. I would be afraid that great things could happen as the result of placing the same level of energies in thought, word and deed in an exclusive or dedicated direction.
From Brett S:
I don't know where my alivenes comes from. I don't know if I'm fooling myself, or how much, or where my thoughts come from, or what my feelings "mean" or if they mean anything. I'm dedicated to finding answers to those questions. I'm dedicated to learning and growing. My intention is to always make the decision that I pray sets that up in whatever ways might be possible.
From RS:
I mulled over it but I couldn't come up with an answer. It seemed that I'm not dedicated to anything at all. But now while typing this, it occurs to me that it could be the pursuit of happiness.
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Next Month
Thanks to Bob Cergol for a pair of Reader Commentary questions for the December TAT Forum: What challenges are you facing? What are your doubts? Please your responses by the 25th of November and indicate your preferred identification (the default is your first name and the initial letter of your last name). "Anonymous" and pennames are fine, too.
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Other Reader Feedback
From MT:
I wanted to let Forum readers know about a website that, for the moment and where I am at, the readings are like a lifeline to God for me. It's called Contemplative Day Book with material by Pat Masters, who was a close friend of Bernadette Roberts and has continued her legacy through this website. I could spend all day reading and contemplating these little quotes.
Q:
What are your thoughts on this month's reader commentary? Please
your feedback.
Richard Rose described a spiritual path as living one's life
aimed at finding the meaning of that life.
Did you find anything relevant to your life or search in this month's TAT Forum?
We like hearing from you! Please
your comments, suggestions, inquiries, and submissions.
Sign up for notices of TAT's four annual events and free
monthly Forums by email on our .
Founder's Wisdom
Richard Rose (1917-2005) established the TAT Foundation
in 1973 to encourage people to work together on what
he considered to be the "grand project" of spiritual work.
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* Peace of Mind in Spite of Success – Oakland, PA *
~ Thanks to Shawn Nevins, who commented: "Notes I took from several Rose audiotapes. This must date to 1994-95. Direct quotes are in quotation marks, but the rest I assume is paraphrasing." There are quotes and notes from 20 audiotapes. The first set appeared in the July Forum, the second set in the August Forum, and so on.
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Definition of Terms
Index of many of the key terms and principles in Rose's work, with brief definitions, from Richard Rose's Psychology of the Observer: The Path to Reality Through the Self by John Kent. |
Jacob's Ladder © 2001 Richard Rose. See this transcript of a talk on the topic by Rose.
Homing Ground Update… A spot on earth where people can do retreats and hold
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Did you enjoy the Forum? Then buy the book!
Readers' favorite selections from seven years of issues.
Beyond Mind, Beyond Death is available at Amazon.com.
