The "Reading Guide" and "Key Points" for this chapter were summarized by an AI editor based on the main text below; they are not things Mike said during the lecture. The main text comes from Mike's commentary, and the block quotes are Seth's original words (the portions Mike read aloud).
Introduction
This chapter gathers together the translator's preface to The "Unknown" Reality, Rob's foreword, and Seth's own introduction. The translator's preface explains the difficulty of the translation and the theme of "probability"; Rob's foreword recounts how the book came to be, the annotation conventions, and the dates of the dictation, and also includes Jane's description of her trance state and Seth's letter to the reader; Seth's introduction points out that this book is meant to expand personal reality, to acquaint the reader with unknown reality and with ideas such as probabilities and parallel selves, rather than to offer complete answers.
Key Points of This Chapter
- The "Unknown" Reality was originally published in two volumes and is the most difficult of the Seth books to translate.
- This book does away with the chapter format and is divided into only six parts; any given passage requires the reader's participation on several levels of consciousness.
- Jane described the trance state as a "higher state of wakefulness"; after coming out of trance she had only a vague memory of what had been said, but she was not tired.
- No book can make the unknown reality fully known; this book merely points out the unseen regions and explores different facets of consciousness.
- The human being is multidimensional; unchosen possibilities are experienced by probable selves in another reality; individual consciousness is inviolable.
Main Text
Hello everyone, today we are going to interpret a new book by Seth, and this is also the seventh Seth book I have interpreted, namely The "Unknown" Reality. This book is divided into two volumes, and we will start with Volume One. In today's portion, we will mainly share with you Rob's preface and also Teacher Wang Jiqing's translator's preface. In the next session, we will discuss a preface written by Seth himself, and then he begins the main text of this book.
Translator's Preface by Teacher Wang Jiching
Let's first look at Teacher Wang Jiching's translator's preface, that is, a preface written as the translator.
The "Unknown" Reality is the last and most difficult to translate among the Seth books. The original two volumes total more than 800 pages, which is truly daunting. But if we left it untranslated, the Seth series would not only be incomplete, but would also lose much of its essential meaning. So during the Spring Festival of 1993, Xu Tiansheng and I set off a string of firecrackers to celebrate the start of the work, and began translating.1
The merits of this book can also be glimpsed in the prefaces by Seth and Rob. I myself was shaken by its discussion of "probabilities." This kind of probability pervades all time and space, meaning that when you choose one route out of free will, the probability that was not chosen will be experienced by your probable self in another time phase. This theory can be said to be beyond imagination; if you delve deeply into its implications, it will make your head swell and give rise to a sense of impermanence. But in another book, Beyond Quantum, physics has already confirmed this theory of the myriad worlds, proving that what Seth said—that every probability will be actualized—is indeed possible. In quantum mechanics, this is indeed how it is.
And in every instant of our present moment, that instant is not limited by the past and future of linear time; it truly emerges from our deepest source. Where is the source? It is not this physical world of our present moment; it is a probability placed between past and future. So this non-fated impermanence should not make you panic or feel lost; on the contrary, it provides you with the reason to seize the present moment, and it encourages spontaneous creativity. Because your life can be changed by you right now, and this present point can reach into the past and the future, and can also enter that space-time of all probabilities, or make contact with that probable self—and all of this can only be accomplished at this present point.
The following are a few passages that are especially thought-provoking; he excerpted them here first to share with readers. Let's just go through these briefly, because they will all be discussed later.
The consciousness within the cell knows its own indestructibility, only changing form. Although the cell physically dies, its inviolable essence is not betrayed; it simply ceases to be material.
That is to say, the cell has an attribute of its own self, and that attribute will not disappear with the death of the cell; its own sacred indestructibility is a key to the continuity of life.
All life is cooperative, and all life knows that its existence transcends its form.
This strong identification of human consciousness with the body is necessary in order to focus on the manipulation of the concrete—that is, our physical world. All natural things have spirits; they do have an energy reality, and they help convert energy into material form. You feel the wind and its effects, but you cannot see the wind, because the wind itself is invisible, but you can see the effects of the wind. Because these other forces are also invisible, you cannot see the other forces either, but you can feel them. They are no more good or evil than the wind, because you usually imagine that if something is good, then there must be something that is evil, but that is not so. In the larger sense, these forces are good; they are protective, and they nourish every living thing.
These are all original passages from the book, which Teacher Wang Jiching excerpted first.
Without understanding and training, you must lose your own consciousness in order to become aware of other consciousnesses.
That is, if you have not undergone training, you cannot gain those other consciousnesses that your consciousness could gain.
The data of your blueprint is encoded into the genes and chromosomes, but exists separately from them.
Now, this was discussed in the previous book, in The Individual and the Nature of Mass Events. But actually this book was written before The Individual and the Nature of Mass Events, so some of the viewpoints may not sound unfamiliar to you, but some viewpoints may be things you have never imagined.
Rob recorded that Jane spent less than 100 hours transmitting this book, but I roughly estimate that at my interpreting speed, it took an average of one hour to speak one page. That is to say, Xu Tiansheng and I buried ourselves in the work for 800 hours before completing the entire task. Of course, the original book also requires counting the time Rob spent writing the notes and appendices and so on. In any case, before the Spring Festival of 1994 we completed this book—a full year of hard labor. I hope readers will read it patiently and carefully, and feel as we do that it was worth it. Finally, special thanks to Chen Jianzhi for painstakingly proofreading this book and providing valuable suggestions.
That is a translator's preface. Now let's look at Rob's preface.
Rob's Preface
Rob starts right off by writing that this is a poem, a poem written by Jane, written by Jane before 1963. He says:
Today is tomorrow, and the present is the past. All things are empty, and all things endure. There is no beginning, and no end, No depth to fall into, and no height to climb, Only this instant. In this wavering light, shining through the void, Yet at times so bright, For we are the quivering sparks in space, Burning eternity in a moment's grace. For today is tomorrow, and the present is the past, All things are empty and all things endure.
He says this was in April of 1963, the second and final stanza of a poem Jane wrote when she was twenty-three.2 Even in this immature work, her mystical nature was already affirming its innate knowledge. He says that in April of 1963, Jane had not yet transmitted the Seth material — it was only in September that she wrote the first piece under automatic writing, "The Physical Universe as Idea Construction."3 Then in December, they first made contact with Seth through the Ouija board. At that time, the one they contacted was still Frank Watts4, not yet Seth. Only after four or five contacts did Seth come through. So this sonnet came before all that, which is to say Jane's mystical nature was there very early on. It was not something that only appeared after she contacted Seth; she had this mystical nature before that. So Rob says that her innate knowledge had been there all along.
All right, now let's look at the preface Rob wrote: Simultaneous Time, Infinite Probabilities. This is Rob's preface. This preface is fairly long, so I'll walk everyone through it. Since there's nothing difficult here, I'll just pass over the parts without difficulty. I'll give everyone a rough walk-through, without too much interpretation.
Rob's Preface: Simultaneous Time and Infinite Probabilities
When I began writing the first draft of these notes—April 6, 1975—this book, The "Unknown" Reality, is the one with more of Rob's notes than any other, neither before nor after. Before, there were not many because Rob did not think he needed to do much annotation. By this book, which was actually written right after The Nature of Personal Reality, he began writing extensive notes. But after he finished, when he was writing later books, he found that these extensive notes took up too much time and energy, so he stopped doing them afterward. And he found that this work should be done by readers themselves if they wanted; he did not need to do it for everyone, and it indeed consumed too much of his energy. His notes took far too long, and when we look at the later part we will also find this problem. Back then there were no computers; it was all done by hand, making cards and so on, very complicated.
He said:
I expected it to be another deeply interesting Seth book, a sequel to books like Seth Speaks and The Nature of Personal Reality. We thought the new work might be very long, but we hardly expected that it would need to be divided into two volumes. The firm decision to do so was made when Jane and Prentice Hall's editor Morsman and a colleague who came with him visited us. At that time it was clearly apparent that within a week or two Seth would finish what we had already begun calling The "Unknown" Reality. Everyone present could already see that if there were only one volume, the book's thickness would exceed the size we wanted.
Seth began dictating this book on February 4, 1974, in Session 679; and he completed it on April 23, 1975, in Session 744.5 Can you see whether there were many sessions in between? There were not many. By the session count of the Seth material, it was not many. Look, from 679 to 744 there are only 65 sessions, and it is divided into two volumes. In fact, books like Seth Speaks and others, if counted by sessions, are all around 70-something sessions, between 60 and 70-something. So this book is not long by session count, but its content is very rich, and its difficulty is very high; the difficulty suddenly rises. If I said earlier that you found Seth Speaks somewhat difficult, and as you go on it gradually becomes difficult—actually these books are much more difficult than that, as you will know later.
American books generally all have about the same thickness; you can make them a little thicker or thinner, but if it is too thick, it is not convenient to carry. American books mostly look like that, basically they can fit in a pocket. It is not 32mo; it is a size smaller than 32mo. That is the size; if it is too thick, the proportions are already out of balance. At that time, Jane and I were really happy to hear the formal announcement. The expanded format itself was not only different from the usual—because he had not published in two volumes before—but it also meant that by publishing in two volumes, I would have a place for notes and reference material. Excerpts from Jane's ESP class, from other regular sessions before and after the production of The "Unknown" Reality, Rob said I could put some other material in there. If there were only one volume, some of it might have to be cut, but two volumes were wonderful. Some of Jane's poems, and the space needed for appendices, he could include them. Because I felt all this could give the book more dimensions of consciousness. And of course with that decision, I could begin writing these notes—when the decision was made to publish two volumes, he had space to write them. So precisely because it was divided into two volumes, this book's notes were especially numerous.
Seth dictated this book session by session as usual, but he eliminated any chapter form. You remember that his previous books had chapters, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, and each chapter had about three to five or six sections. That was how he proceeded. But in this book Seth removed the chapters; there are no chapters, only sessions. However, he did group the material into six segments. He divided it into six large sections, or six parts, gave each part a title, and then did not subdivide within that part. As he told us in Session 743:
This book has no chapters, precisely in order to further break down your concept of what a book should be—to break down your traditional concept of a book. But there is still a different kind of organization.
Although there are no chapters, there is still organization. And any passage in this book—this sentence is very important—"any passage in this book simultaneously requires the participation of several levels of the reader's consciousness." Why am I reading this preface to everyone? Because if I do not read the preface, you will not know how to understand this book. This sentence is the key point of this preface. Seth said that every passage in this book requires the reader to use several levels of consciousness together in understanding. It is very hard to understand it with only one single level of consciousness; you need to use several levels of consciousness simultaneously to engage with the words. From this description you can already imagine its difficulty; it is no longer the difficulty of an ordinary book.
Seth did not give each session a title. Therefore, after each session listed in each volume's table of contents, Jane planned to write a few sentences, at least pointing out some of the topics discussed in that session. As to whether The "Unknown" Reality would be published in one volume, two volumes, or more, at the time of production Seth himself said nothing. Seth had nothing to say. Not until the last session, Session 744, did he mention it as a unit. At that time, while answering a question I asked, he said that the Seth material is endless. The Seth material can be endless; it cannot be exhausted. Because this universe, this world, is itself a multidimensional existence. If you unfold it just a little, it is endless; truly it cannot be exhausted. This is not exaggeration, not padding for length. Many words or many contents can be fully expanded; even one paragraph, sometimes even a few sentences, can be fully expanded into a book. But because there was no alternative, it could only stop after a brief taste.
The Seth material is actually endless. I organized it for your sake, turning it into something that seems organized and structured. If you want to divide it into two parts, into two volumes, that is fine; you will find several points where this can be done.
That is, Seth told Jane it could be divided into two volumes. But my final view was that the most obvious dividing point was also the best point, so each volume could be divided into three parts. Weren't there six parts total? Each volume would have three parts. In publishing the book, I elaborated somewhat on the natural dividing points, because the parts themselves were not of equal length. So for a while I wondered whether to try dividing it into four or two. But Jane said three parts per volume was already enough for readers; if one volume had four parts, everyone would find it stressful to grasp. We did think most people would find it convenient to have The "Unknown" Reality split into two volumes plus an index, regardless of whether the lengths were equal. The English second volume would be published about a year after the first printing of Volume 1. Once that initial waiting period passed, people would be able to read both volumes together. He said that after Volume 1 you would have to wait a year for Volume 2, but after that year, people would buy both volumes together.
I am sure that the energy personality essence Seth calls himself is playfully watching our various fumbling attempts to figure out the best way to publish his work.
Therefore, as session after session of material began to pile up, I think he basically did not care about concepts of length and time. Jane's and my willingness to continue transmitting and recording the content of the material was the real key to the book's length. He said Seth did not care at all how long he wrote or how long the book would be. How long this book could be, or how long the Seth material could be transmitted, depended on how long Jane and Rob were willing to transmit it. The facts proved this was not empty talk. Jane wrote until the very last moment of her life. A week before her death she was still writing. The final week she did not write, but a week later she died. So by this, the creative process of these two volumes was endless, at least until Jane and I called a stop purely for physical reasons. As long as they did not call a stop, this content could continue. Of course those processes still have no end, because everything is always in creation. He said even the stopping point is not an end; everything is in creation.
We now think The "Unknown" Reality might occupy the later half of two people's lives.
In other larger respects, it might last for centuries. Because we all know, as far as ordinary conscious mind is concerned, during this time this set of books might have had a third volume—Jane herself once speculated about this in Part Six, Session 730—and a fourth and fifth volume. They meant that if they had opened it up and kept writing, this book could have continued for the rest of their lives; they could have done nothing else and written this book all along. But that is not so. Seth knew very well to what extent to speak and when to stop; when it was time to stop, he would not say more.
Now I want to briefly discuss the handling of notes, excerpts, and matters of this kind. Shortly after Jane began transmitting this work, it became obvious that the notes I wrote for this book would be longer than the notes in Seth Speaks and The Nature of Personal Reality; the notes kept getting longer. This was because of the way Seth presented his material. Jane and I liked this idea, because it meant the book differed from the previous two books. The previous two books had brief notes, but at the same time I worried that the notes were too conspicuous, too numerous. Even though Seth said in a private session in June 1974 not to worry:
The notes will take care of themselves. Don't worry.
He told Rob that some of the notes he wrote would take care of themselves, and he did not need to worry about them too much. Too many meant the notes might overshadow the main text. If the body of the book took up two-thirds and the notes one-third, that might be somewhat overpowering. If the notes took up half, that would be somewhat inappropriate. Rob was a little worried about this, and Seth said, don't worry, they will take care of themselves. But I still had that kind of feeling, still a little.
As soon as we decided to publish in two volumes, Jane and I agreed that we did not want to move all the supplementary material to the end of the first volume—or in this case, to the end of each volume. He said he did not want to put this material at the end of each volume, the notes and so on. He said this is usually how it is handled, placed at the end. Not only would readers constantly have to look up related items, but we also felt that the shorter notes would be too far from their relevant positions. If the notes were all placed at the end of the second volume, they could not be consulted easily; too far. We wanted to use these notes to directly reinforce each session. He wanted to use the notes to directly reinforce each session, so you can see why this Seth book—this book—has so much content. Because each session has the main text, and then there is a note after it. Not every session, but many sessions have notes. But they would not interfere with reading.
So I came up with a compromise: a presentation that was orderly but not too rigid. In Seth Speaks and The Nature of Personal Reality, the general notes were placed during breaks. But in this book I used consecutive numbers in the text of each session, usually the origin point of a footnote, and then gathered the actual notes at the end of each session for quick reference. He was saying that when he usually did notes, it was in this way; we need not worry too much about it. That is, as in a normal book, he would write small note 1, note 2, note 3, note 4 in the margin, and then at the end of the chapter or session he would write what note 1 was, what note 2 was, what note 3 was. For consistency, these notes were printed in smaller type in both volumes; the note type was smaller than the normal type, but in the electronic edition they are the same size. Only when referring to a specific appendix in the same book were footnotes placed in their original positions. So for the most part, in this way the text of each session was not interrupted by breaks. He meant that the notes would not interrupt his original text.
Handling appendices in this way had also worked well in The Seth Material and Seth Speaks. Because Seth Speaks used about six appendices at the back; I remember it seemed to be six appendices as a supplement. I have not discussed The Seth Material; that is a compilation of early sessions with many appendices added. In The "Unknown" Reality, individual excerpts or individual sessions within an appendix, no matter what notes might be added, are usually quite complete in themselves. He meant that the notes themselves are also a fairly complete piece of writing, and these parts can be read at any time. You can read them separately, or together with the main text. For example, when he discusses Session 681, there is a note. You can also say I do not have to first read Session 681 and then read the note; you can take the note out separately and read it alone. It is also self-contained, and this part is readable at any time. But I prefer readers to read the note the first time the footnote is mentioned. He said he hoped that when you see a note, you would read that note first, just as you would look up all the other reference materials in the two volumes in order. When the main text mentions Note 1, he said you had better turn over and look at Note 1 then.
He said that to avoid digressing too far, I designed the notes and appendices in a way that reinforces each other to some degree, just like each book itself. In Volume 1, I repeatedly referred to several sessions, such as Session 681, because in those sessions Seth transmitted important ideas that should be emphasized. Indeed in some sessions his ideas were very important. As The "Unknown" Reality progressed into Volume 2, I naturally used notes more often to draw readers' attention to earlier sessions. Because Volume 2 would introduce some things from Volume 1, he would refer back. The above sessions appeared in Volume 1, so I thought of Volume 1 as a separate entity for reference. He said you can use Volume 1 as a reference book for Volume 2, in the same way as Seth Speaks and Adventures in Consciousness, or Jane's other books. At the same time, to build certain psychological bridges between the two parts of The "Unknown" Reality, I occasionally also deliberately took content from one volume and put it into the other, or at least added that kind of reference material. Rob said that in order to make the two volumes feel more like a whole, I would occasionally mention Volume 2 in Volume 1, or mention Volume 1 in Volume 2.
In the notes, I tried to say exactly what I meant, neither more nor less. He did not add embellishment, neither more nor less, and paid attention to unconscious implications, and wrote those implications out. But the situation could become very complicated. Sometimes while preparing these two volumes, I found myself unable to figure out how to clearly present certain references without confusing the reader with dates, various numbering, or other things. Although I think my method of presentation has some order, sometimes it still takes effort to read. I can only ask the reader to cooperate with patience; I believe such examples will not be too many. He meant that in his notes he would often jump back and forth between main text and notes; there was no alternative. He said sometimes you might get dizzy, because he would mention the content of Session such-and-such, but by then you might have long forgotten what that session was about. He said he hoped you could be a little patient; if you forgot, go back and check, and roughly know the content of that session he mentioned. This is helpful for your reading. Be a little patient; such examples are not many, so don't worry.
In each session, I occasionally had to add the time, to let readers know how long Jane took to transmit a certain passage. Soon I will further discuss the time elements involved in producing The "Unknown" Reality. For obvious reasons, I deleted Seth's instructions about punctuation in his material, leaving only a few examples at the beginning of his preface, or sometimes in a particular session. Seth not only transmitted material, he also gave punctuation; he would emphasize certain special punctuation, saying period, comma; he was afraid Rob could not distinguish them himself, and would say double quotation marks. It was very interesting; he was like a transcription machine, saying comma as he spoke, and then saying this is an exclamation mark. These were all deleted, and replaced directly with double quotation marks. He said Seth's behavior in giving these instructions was not at all excessive; Seth did it naturally. Every so often, Jane and I would readjust his sentence structure to avoid ambiguity, or delete repeated sentences. Because this whole thing was dictated work, as opposed to written work, which can be easily corrected on the spot. Apart from the above changes, these two volumes from beginning to end are the received material, presented exactly as it was received. Whenever something was deleted from a session, such as private material, it was marked, and occasionally such material was summarized. Sometimes I deleted things—Rob occasionally, or I deleted some things—I would note that this was private material, and sometimes I would give a simple explanation of what the deleted material was roughly about.
During the time we were producing this book, almost all of it was done privately, that is, carried out personally by them, meaning there were no witnesses. Many times there were no witnesses. With other books there were often witnesses. At this time Seth's speaking pace was relatively moderate, so I could use my own shorthand method to record his words verbatim. Although this method was often laborious, I found it more detailed and meaningful than passively using a tape recorder. Many people wonder why they did not use a tape recorder back then? Because tape recorders already existed by then. Rob explained again why he did not use a recorder: because when he was taking shorthand, when Jane was speaking for Seth, Rob could insert some of his own thoughts. But a tape recorder could not do that. With a recorder, when Jane was speaking for Seth, Rob could not insert some of his own thoughts. But when taking shorthand he could, because he was making notes; he could at any time insert some of his own thoughts.
Then I would type up the content of each session; typing from my notes was faster and more comfortable than typing from tape. He said typing from my own notes was faster than typing while listening to a recording. As I wrote in The Nature of Personal Reality, I believe that Jane's ability to transmit Seth's material with so few changes says something important about these sessions. He said see what I wrote at the end of Session 610 in that book.
That is, the Seth material was transmitted for a full 21 years, roughly 31 books6, and the logic in it is without problems. The logic is self-consistent, which is a very amazing thing. If it did not have a complete cognition of the whole system, it could not have spoken for 21 years without any self-contradiction. You might say, is that so hard? When I speak, I don't contradict myself either. But don't forget, what it speaks is not ordinary talk; it speaks about these universes, about these things in the world that are very difficult to explain, and it also often mentions them repeatedly. So later you will know: the Seth material has very few changes, basically the effect of producing polished prose extemporaneously.
He said about my objective observations of Seth himself—you see, Rob was also observing; he was watching Jane while she spoke, he was observing—I would let the notes added to each session gradually build up any composite picture I could construct. Rob said that when listening to Jane speak for Seth, I also recorded the scene, such as the mood at the time, the state, the environment. He said it was to give you a kind of direct feeling.
Like other Seth books, The "Unknown" Reality contains not only Seth's sessions, but also some of Jane's and my thoughts about him, and some notes about the circumstances of its production. The next four paragraphs contain information about our publication schedule—our timetable—and I will state it as simply as possible. At first I had not planned to deal with that material in these notes, but after Jane and I talked it over, I finally agreed that it should be placed here. There are several different book titles, session numbers, and dates to keep in mind, so it may be necessary to read it over again. We can just go through it, because it is not important; he is just talking about the production process of this book.
In publishing this volume—the sixth part of this volume brings us to the moment we moved to the hill house in Elmira, New York. That is, they moved at that time; they had moved out of the apartment to a house on a hillside; it was called the hill house, a house on the hill. The time was April 1975, one month before Seth finished that part—and the whole work of dictating The "Unknown" Reality came to an end. But in October 1974, long before we had moved to the two apartments in downtown Elmira, Jane had begun writing Psychic Politics, the sequel to Adventures in Consciousness, which the publisher would publish in 1976. The publication of Volume 1 of The "Unknown" Reality also mentioned this book, and in Volume 2 several session notes I added at the front also appeared. We planned to publish Volume 1 of The "Unknown" Reality first, then Psychic Politics. But I had not yet had time to finish the notes for these two Seth books—I felt the notes for the two volumes needed to be done simultaneously—so he still had not had time to finish the notes, and thus a book like Psychic Politics had to be inserted in between; Jane had already finished her book. So we changed our minds and decided to publish Psychic Politics first.
Moving to the hill house took up a considerable amount of my time in handling manuscript work. So in terms of an accurate publication chronology, at that time Psychic Politics apparently skipped over the second volume of The "Unknown" Reality and was published ahead of it. In Psychic Politics, Jane also mentioned several earlier passages that first appeared in The "Unknown" Reality, so I adjusted some related notes in the latter to explain their earlier discussion. But as far as the present book is concerned, Jane's newest book and Seth's newest book did not conflict; the two complemented each other. I just want to emphasize that from beginning to end our goal was to publish Jane's books, including those produced with Seth, and each work is a complete entity, but within it also contains necessary reference material from the other books in the series. We wanted to use that reference material to help readers arrange each book in chronological order, and not worry about which book could be published first, because the more time passes the less important publication dates become. For example, when I wrote that Psychic Politics would be published this fall—1976—I of course knew that by the time the first volume of Seth's work was printed in the spring of 1977, Psychic Politics would already have been on the market for several months. But in my view, this bit of information mentioned in this first volume is actually the most correct approach.
Some people may derive a great deal of pleasure from numbers, for example by using numbers to explore different viewpoints on the same theme. In this case the theme is time. Its characteristics are explored therein. The two volumes of The "Unknown" Reality contain 65 sessions in all, and the time it took Jane to deliver these 65 sessions for Seth was a little over 14 and a half months. This elapsed time of course includes the several weeks when he did no book dictation at all. But out of curiosity, I wanted to figure out roughly how much time he actually spent producing the entire book. I picked an average of 40 sessions from the book, using only the dictation portions -- that is, cutting out everything else and counting only the dictation -- based on two things: only the time Jane spent in trance, and the trance time plus the related rest breaks. Rob said I only counted the time he was in trance, and the rest breaks between trances. The figures I got were 1 hour 39 minutes and 2 hours 02 minutes respectively. That is, on average, for each session in this book The "Unknown" Reality, if you do not count the rest breaks, the actual time Jane spent speaking for Seth was only 1 hour 39 minutes; if you add the rest breaks in between, it was still only 2 hours 02 minutes. Then I multiplied by 65. These are averages, after all; he calculated 1 hour 40 minutes and 2 hours, both averages. If you multiply by 65, the result turns out to be a total so low it is hard to believe. These figures fully demonstrate how fast creativity can occur under certain circumstances -- at least in Jane's case. Because the total trance time for him to complete the two volumes of The "Unknown" Reality was 90 hours and 35 minutes in all, only 90 hours in total; if you add the rest breaks, it was still only a little over 130 hours. Think about it: three days is 72 hours, four days is 96 hours, so 96 hours is four days -- four full days, and in four full days he had delivered both books. Rob was startled at the time; once he calculated the time, he found that the whole book had been completed in such a short span. That is to say, if one did not sleep, in a full four days -- less than four days -- both books would have been completed.
Roughly converting these two figures, the two volumes took 45 hours and 65 hours respectively. The first volume took 45 hours, the second volume took 65 hours. But do not forget that these figures are averages -- these figures are averages -- and the results calculated for the remaining 25 sessions would be very similar, because they would be neither too short nor too long. So whatever the larger context in which those hours were actually spent, the two sets of total hours involved in completing the creative work of The "Unknown" Reality are both astonishing. It is worth noting that for comparison, you can think of a week as 168 hours; a week is 168 hours, yet the whole thing took only a little over 90 hours, and with rest breaks it was still only 130 hours -- less than a week. Every so often I would like to average in the same way the time Jane spent dictating Seth Speaks and The Nature of Personal Reality, but there has been no time to do it. However, I am somewhat puzzled, and it should be especially mentioned that the time he spent working on the Seth books was so short that no one could really overlook it or take it for granted. Perhaps it may also be impossible to understand those factors from the ordinary linear time perspective. It was too short. You will see from the content later on; the content of that session could certainly not have been delivered in about 1 hour and 40 minutes.
Perhaps only I am interested in this, because even Jane did not express more curiosity about the time she put into the Seth material; she simply delivered the material. But considering her abilities, I think her speed of production is a method of handling and translation closely tied to Seth's concepts. Her speed of production is related to the handling and translation of Seth's concepts. That concept is that basically everything is simultaneous, and in fact there is no time. For example, the final form of the Seth books was already there long ago, only waiting to be received. Part Two of this book, which is Session 692, in Note 2, contains material on one method. In Session 692 there is -- Note 2 will mention it -- a method by which we can move closer from physical reality to the concept of simultaneity that Seth speaks of. That is, from a certain angle the Seth material was already there long ago. But that method no longer applies to material not discussed here, so we will not involve material that has not been discussed.
Ever since Jane began publishing the Seth material in 1970, she has received hundreds of phone calls and letters directed at her work, including those we have not yet had time to answer. We are all very grateful, but I do not remember any single phone call or letter mentioning this curious element of time. No one noticed this matter. I think, could Jane really transmit an entire book manuscript in a mere 45 hours of trance? This is certainly a hypothetical question, but I am certain that as far as making the Seth material public is concerned, she could do it; she would only need to do the necessary physical work. Even now, when she speaks for Seth, she can easily stay hours ahead of my handwriting speed. She is very fast; the material from Seth is just there. The work produced would differ from work transmitted over a longer period; Jane's work is produced very quickly and transmitted very quickly, depending on how fast Rob can write. For example, Seth would not draw analogies from the daily activities right before my eyes, but in that case I think he would either call upon similar events from our own past, or shape his material in a different way, but the result would still be the same. So what he means is that Seth does not use things from his current life as material for his lectures; he might use things from his past, or from any time at all, it does not matter. Because for Seth, his time and their feelings are not the same; they feel these things in his life are very important, but Seth does not really care much about them.
I think it is important occasionally to remind readers in this book of certain basic concepts of Seth's. For example, I will continue to talk about time, about what time is. But when Seth talks about the question of time, he discusses it together with something Seth calls durability. Actually, it should not be translated as durability here -- Durability -- translating it as durability is not wrong, but translating it this way here will give people a misunderstanding. This durability is simultaneous, spontaneously simultaneous. He says that when you talk about time, he will talk about the question of durability. Seth explained to us more than once that this durability is achieved through the constant expansion of value fulfillment. That is, the durability of anything -- for example, a glass cup is far more durable than a paper cup. So how does this durability come about? That is what he means. Talking about time also involves durability. My later comments in Session 724 of Volume Two also apply here.
Then Seth, on January 8, 1964, in Session 14 -- this is from The Early Sessions7 -- said quite humorously:
You have no idea how difficult it is to explain time to someone who must take time to understand.
Again he is teasing everyone. He says, to explain what time is to a person who must take time to understand -- like someone who must take time to understand what time is -- to explain what time is to such a person, he says this is simply too difficult. Because I am telling you, even the process of explaining requires time, yet I have to tell you and explain clearly what time is, and that is just too difficult. However, Seth's simultaneous time is not absolute. Because as he also told us in that session:
Although we are not affected by the time of your plane, I am affected by something similar to time on my own plane. For me time can be manipulated, and can be used at leisure to explain. For me, your time is a tool, one of several avenues through which I can enter your awareness.
Remember, our human time is a tool for Seth; he uses this tool to enter our world. I can enter several avenues of your awareness -- that is, if he had no intersection with our time and space at all, then we would not be able to perceive his existence. So Seth says our time is a tool, and it can enter our world. Therefore, time still has a certain reality for Seth; you cannot say time does not exist. You can only say it is simultaneous, it has its own characteristics, it is not the same as the time we understand, but you cannot say there is no such thing. Even for Seth, who is outside this time-space range, time is still a tool he needs to use, and it is still a certain reality for Seth. Otherwise I would have no way to use it in any manner; if I could not treat time as a certain reality, then I could not use this time, and I would not be able to communicate with you.
I think that as long as we are physical creatures, we will never be able to grasp Seth's concept of simultaneous time; this is what Rob said. Yet he provides a clue to such an intangible mechanism, and we can better understand how Jane, in her view of Seth, turns concepts into words; as far as Jane is able, it helps us grasp what Seth says. Jane is good at turning Seth's material into words. We can make some intuitive, nonverbal contact with or realization of time that somewhat transcends our notions of submission to the quality or essence of what we call time. These notions of submission are so taken for granted in our Western society that even to question certain one-directional flows is sudden -- we are too submissive to our notions of time, and we take them for granted.
Below I will quote two passages from Seth, and then record a longer passage from Jane. Seth's first passage is excerpted from a bridge created between the two volumes of The "Unknown" Reality -- by taking something from one volume and placing it in the other -- once again, excerpted from Session 743 of Volume Two. Seth says:
No book called The "Unknown" Reality can make that reality completely known.
What he means is that no book can truly explain The "Unknown" Reality clearly, or truly make you know it. This is what Seth said; there is no such book. The meaning of his words is like the Buddha's final statement, "I have never spoken any dharma"; it is the same principle. Because you simply cannot explain it clearly. It remains nebula-like chaos -- the unknown reality is still like nebula-like chaos -- because it has not been realized in consciousness; it has not been realized. Can you understand what he means? That is, he is saying that this book of mine, written in the structure of human language and writing, cannot possibly describe the unknown reality. You have to understand this. The logic and structure of our single-line language itself is fundamentally incompatible with that unknown reality. If you use a structured language and this logical, single-threaded way of thinking to gradually unveil the veil of the unknown reality for you, you cannot truly realize it in consciousness, because it transcends what lies beyond human language and writing. That is what he means.
He says, then what can I do -- if that is the case, why write a book at all? Why write this book? Seth says:
All I can do is point out those areas that are relatively invisible.
I can only point out to you the areas you have not noticed. Then:
Help you explore the different facets of your own consciousness.
Your consciousness has many facets; I am letting you explore those different facets.
I fully realize that this book will raise more questions than it answers, but that is my intent.
Seth is very clever. He says he knows this book will raise more questions than it can answer, but he says that is exactly right; that is the goal he wants to achieve, to let it raise questions. If you finish reading it and have no questions, that would be strange.
There are also Jane's and my images. Jane's book is a record of her use of a certain ability -- this is still Seth speaking, I think -- abilities that we feel are very creative. The questions it raises let us see larger areas to investigate, and usually we would not think of those questions and challenges as coming from mystical sources, not from the viewpoint of our Western society. In Part One of this volume, which is Session 679, Seth discusses Jane's early religious background and its deep mystical nature. I added some material on mystical experiences in Part One; that material is related to these introductory notes, but should be kept separate. However, the work we do deals with viewpoints that were not consciously noticed in the first half of life. For example, Jane began producing the Seth material at the end of 1963, when Rob was 44 and Jane was 34.8 As I quoted in certain notes, Jane's early poems reflect a direct understanding of certain concepts that Seth later elaborated in detail.
So the time written for that earliest poem is wrong; it was not 1963, it should be 1953, to be more accurate. It was 1953, not 1963. In 1963 Jane was already 34; when that poem was written Jane was only 23. Even if she was not fully conscious of what she was doing, the situation was still the same. She was not aware of what she was doing, but that did not affect her understanding of these mystical concepts. See the beginning of this book; what she wrote in her early years was "Summer is Winter." In my view, the task she undertook with the Seth material --
Rob's Foreword and Its Weight
The previous passage was Seth talking in the foreword: Jane's early poems already reflected a direct understanding of the concepts Seth would later elaborate in detail. That poem was written in 1953, not 1963 -- by '63 Jane was already 34 years old; when the poem was written, Jane was only 23. Even if she was not fully connected on a conscious level to what she was doing, the situation was still the same.
Seth said that Jane's task with regard to the Seth material was to provide these basic artistic concepts for our conscious use, so that we could apply them in daily life and improve our personal and collective beliefs. And by "artistic concepts," he meant the deepest, most beautiful, most practical, and indeed mystical truths and questions that human beings are capable of expressing and debating.
Rob, for his part, actually wrote a great many notes within this book, and then he also wrote such a long foreword for it. He used a great deal of space in it to explain why he made these notes, as well as the process of this book and how it came to be. There is a very clear implication here -- I am only giving my own view -- which is that Jane wanted to push Rob forward. She felt that Rob, as a mere recording worker, did not sufficiently reflect Rob's actual ability. Rob should have more important things to do, such as writing prefaces and notes for these materials, doing some of the work of threading things together for them, even finding supporting materials for what Seth said, and even writing such a long foreword to demonstrate Rob's own capability.
To be perfectly honest, Rob's literary level and transmission level really are not as good as Seth's, nor as good as Jane's. In this respect -- of course, in note-taking he is truly unmatched, including his serious and responsible organizing of the materials, in that he is unmatched -- but his writing is really... I will just read this passage, and everyone can see where his literary level stands. A good literary work is not one that makes it very hard for you to read and understand.
The following is still Rob speaking:
In the Seth books, I have always deliberately avoided evaluating the similarities between Seth's concepts and the various religious, philosophical, and mystical theories of the Near East, the Middle East, and the Far East.
He says this approach suits our nature -- we often want to compare these ancient Eastern mystical religions and theories. Jane and I, for our part, know that these connections exist; it is not that we do not know, but we try as much as possible not to bring them up. Indeed, if they did not exist, we would find it strange. So many people ask why the Seth books are consistent with some of China's traditional classical Eastern religions or theories. Many people say the Seth books are very consistent with the School of Mind, very similar to the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch, very consistent with many ideas in Buddhism, and even not in conflict with much Confucian thought. He points out here: they are connected, certainly; it would be strange if they were not.
Others have often mentioned this to us, and we have read some of it as well.
They knew that the Seth material is very consistent with certain Eastern viewpoints, such as when it comes to Buddhism, Hinduism, Zen, and Taoist ideas -- they knew all of that. Do not think they did not know. And people kept reminding them that the Seth material had connections with these things -- not to mention things like Native American shamanism, voodoo, and some of the witchcraft of the West Indies, all of which certainly have connections. They believed one could obviously write a book comparing the Seth material with other systems of thought -- whether in relation to Buddhism, Taoism, voodoo, or some primitive religions -- regardless of whether they were religious in nature. But because Jane and I are both individualists, we chose not to focus on those areas. They only needed to focus on themselves.
And what I am saying here is not meant to belittle other basic views of reality.
He did not mean to belittle them. What he is saying is that Jane and Rob's personalities are those of individualists. What does it mean to be an individualist? He does not want to use other things to prove how right he is. When others told him that the Seth material was similar to many Eastern viewpoints and theories, he was not willing to go verify and compare them. This is also one of his good points.
Although there are similarities between Seth's philosophy and other organized systems of thought -- indeed there are -- in our view there are also significant differences. Jane and I both tend to think that what we have discovered in our world is a consistent inclusiveness -- one that encompasses religion.
What he means is that the universe is greater than religion, rather than religion explaining the universe. Seth also emphasized this point -- do not be limited by any religion or any theory, and do not even be limited by Seth's own theories. This is what Seth himself said: do not be limited by my material.
Western Views Contrasted with Eastern Ones
We just stubbornly keep moving forward like this. I don't consider anything else at all, I don't go and do textual research, we just move straight ahead. Understand that our viewpoint is rooted in the Western tradition of the world.
They knew their viewpoints were influenced by Western traditional culture, but they also knew that all around us there exist many, many other philosophies and systems, some of which have been around for centuries or even millennia, created by humanity to explain reality. Yet they did not feel it was necessary to delve into the details of, say, Sufism or Brahmanism.
But we don't like the Hindu and Buddhist idea of nirvana, which holds that usually after a series of lives, individual consciousness is extinguished.
That is, after a series of reincarnations one finally reaches nirvana, individual consciousness is extinguished, and one merges into a kind of supreme deity. And they opposed the idea that nature, within limited time, had made such an arrangement that an individual must in this life repay some kind of debt for actions in past lives. The two of them also did not accept this viewpoint -- this karma, past lives, and all that. As if, if nature doesn't punish anything, why would it punish people? Why not punish other things, why single out people to punish? That was their viewpoint.
The reality of nirvana and karmic retribution, the matter of cause and effect merging with karmic retribution, was not something Jane and I wanted to create.
The two of them didn't like this. Instead they preferred Seth's viewpoint, as well as their own:
As for the inviolability of individual consciousness, whether before, during, or after physical existence, and whether involving any kind of reincarnation theory.
Perhaps for those of us living in the West, we naturally would not like the idea of giving up our individuality at the time of physical death -- that is, having a strong sense of individuality. Even if rationally we can understand, for example, the Buddhist teaching that we can in ultimate bliss surrender ourselves to the supreme deity and find perfect joy. Although Rob humorously said:
Personally, I still don't know how the one who surrendered himself would know whether he had done so or not, if he had also been so thoroughly merged in.
This is a bit of nitpicking. What he meant was, if according to you Easterners, this person enters into supreme bliss, then who is it that perceives that they have merged into supreme bliss? Since they have already merged in, you have already merged into a larger supreme bliss, then you no longer exist, so who is perceiving that they have entered into a supreme joy? He was nitpicking.
Because the two of them were typical of this Western way of knowing -- with an extremely strong sense of individuality, emphasizing individualism, and particularly disliking all kinds of theories that place something above the individual. Some Buddha, some God -- they didn't like that. And this viewpoint was consistent with many of Seth's viewpoints, which was one of the reasons Seth found the two of them. They were not very worshipful of Seth either. If you read The Early Sessions, you'll know that he was also skeptical of Seth, half-believing and half-doubting, and he maintained a skeptical attitude throughout. He was not like what you might imagine, that upon meeting Seth he immediately knelt down. You see, even up to the very end, his relationship with Seth always remained a very equal, normal one. He was not like ordinary people who say, "Seth, you are my higher self, you are my god" -- that kind of worship. He saw the relationship between himself and Seth as very equal, like chatting between friends, and he did not treat Seth as some mysterious figure or some great personage. Actually, it was more like treating Seth as a professor or teacher, learning from him.
The Expansion of Consciousness and Cosmic Consciousness
In Seth Speaks, Seth tells us:
You are not fated to dissolve into All That Is, and the personality as you presently understand it will be preserved.
All That Is is the creator of individuality, not the means of its destruction.
When I read the traditional Eastern notions of a supreme deity, I am reminded of what Seth said in Seth Speaks:
Here I have used the term "expansion of consciousness" rather than the more frequently used "cosmic consciousness" or "cosmic universe," because the latter terms imply an experience of proportions that is not yet available to humanity at this time. Compared with your normal state, intense expansions of consciousness may indeed appear cosmic in nature, but they are merely a hint of the possibilities of consciousness available to you right now, let alone anything approaching a true cosmic awareness.
Seth's statement is very objective, but it may also be something many people do not like to hear. What he means is this: I use the term "expansion of consciousness" rather than "cosmic consciousness." Through practice or through study, you can achieve an expansion of consciousness, but I never say you can attain cosmic consciousness. Why? He explains at length. To put it simply: at your present stage, human cognition and capacity are fundamentally insufficient to understand a cosmic perception or a cosmic consciousness. At best, you can only receive a hint of the possibilities of consciousness—your consciousness has a possibility of attaining cosmic awareness or cosmic consciousness. It is only a possibility: if your consciousness progresses to a certain degree, develops to a certain extent, it can attain cosmic awareness. But it is only a possibility.
In other words, do you want to attain the consciousness of All That Is? Of course you do, but it is impossible. Although from many angles you are a part of All That Is and so forth, that does not mean you possess the consciousness of All That Is. This is Seth's explanation from his perspective, very objective, but perhaps not easy to accept.
Let me use a vivid analogy—though this analogy may not be entirely apt. It is as if we are a cell phone signal. This cell phone signal is extremely sensitive; you see, a phone can transmit all kinds of images, videos, and text without any error, very accurately. But the cell phone signal is very weak, only a few milliwatts or even a few microwatts. This is the state of our present human consciousness, like a cell phone signal. Is it energy? It is energy. Is it consciousness? It is consciousness. But compared with the immense energy and signal strength of the entire universe, your cell phone signal, set against that, I do not even know how to describe it.
To put it simply, this one little cell phone of yours cannot contain the knowledge of the entire universe, nor can it contain the consciousness of the entire universe. If your current phone uses a 5G network and can download one gigabyte per second, that is a fairly fast speed. Then how much information does the universe contain? You can imagine the universe's speed as reaching an information volume of two to the trillionth power per second—an unimaginable number. And your little phone downloading one gigabyte per second, against such an enormous volume of information, is beyond your ability to imagine.
In terms of signal strength, you can imagine the energy of cosmic consciousness or cosmic information as the sun—energy as vast as the sun. Whereas your cell phone signal's energy is only a few milliwatts or microwatts. Compared with the energy of the sun, the sun's energy would have to be calculated in how many trillions upon trillions upon trillions of megawatts. Do you understand what I mean? These two are not on the same level, nor within the same range. Although theoretically, your phone can take a picture of the sun, and can receive a portion of cosmic consciousness through your very slow 5G network, and can use the tiny CPU chip in the phone to roughly understand or comprehend some things about the universe. But compared with the true so-called cosmic consciousness, the gap is still far, far too great.
In essence, are they the same? They are the same; they are all one kind of thing, all electromagnetic signals. It is just that your energy is great and mine is small, your information volume is great and mine is small. But if you want me to understand, you can only come back to the 5G network to speak with me. If you speak of your trillion-G network, I cannot understand it, nor can I access it.
Rob dug up this passage, and what he really wanted to do was to argue a bit against that Eastern notion: you people with your so-called nirvana, your so-called things, you think you have understood the truth of the universe? You only think so yourselves. And then he pulled out this passage from Seth as evidence for himself. We will not delve into this question, because he will return to it in later content. This book is more difficult than the others, so be mentally prepared.
The Seth Material and Scientific Testing
I assume the four paragraphs above obviously stirred up a lot of controversy, but the material in them comes very close to how Jane and I these days view the relationship between the Seth material and other philosophies, and it suits the two of them very well. I am especially pleased that Jane's work, and his contribution to our thinking, came from his psyche, without relying on laboratories, statistics, and tests.
Jane's material all comes from his psyche. Our idea of a real test is to observe and see how the Seth material can be of help in actual daily life.
The other kinds of more formal tests we did in 1965 and 1966 are recorded in detail in Chapter 8 of the borderline information. We now easily forget how successful those early tests were, but they could be repeated at any time. When we were doing those tests, we wondered to ourselves: why, of all the life on earth, does this animal called man feel the need to build laboratories to prove what it actually is? What exactly are its abilities -- telepathy, metabolism, or whatever else? This subject is so vast in itself that Jane and I could go on writing about it endlessly, so I will only touch on it briefly here.
In the early sessions, Seth once set up an experiment with a psychologist. Jane went to visit a university and met with a psychologist. The psychologist said: how about we do an experiment? You stay in your city, I stay in mine, and then when Seth is in session, every night at exactly ten o'clock, you have Seth guess or perceive -- through his sixth sense, his telepathy, his clairvoyance -- what I am doing, and then you write it down. After a while, you compile it into letters and send them to me, and I will verify whether Seth actually possesses these paranormal abilities. They also did many of these blind tests, where they would put an object in an envelope without letting Seth know, and then ask Seth what was inside the envelope. They did this kind of experiment about 100 times or so9. For the specific process, you can look at the early sessions; it was actually quite boring, and toward the later stages it really did get a bit boring.
Because humans always want to run this kind of test, based on what it thinks it already knows, based on what it considers consistent, in its laboratories, there is therefore a great chance of obtaining predetermined answers. His externalized equipment can hardly produce any results other than the ones he expects.
The experiments that so-called scientists do all begin with a rough experimental procedure and a rough expectation, an anticipated value for the experimental results, and the final results they get always match that anticipated value very closely.
Scientists do not call an oxygen atom or any other element alive; they consider them all dead, let alone conscious. Yet those oxygen atoms that come together to form a human being call himself alive, while fiercely denying the same status to those identical clusters of atoms that unfortunately exist outside the human framework.
He is attacking science again. Scientists do not admit that an oxygen atom is alive, yet they admit that the oxygen atoms inside the human body are alive, while the oxygen atoms outside the body are not alive. How naive scientists are.
But in the material Seth has given over the past ten years, he has discussed some of the reasons for people's extreme lack of understanding of the general human condition, and I am sure he will talk about more in the future. I feel extremely gratified that Jane, using only his existing physical body and his invisible mind, can continually demonstrate this ability that humans are not supposed to have -- that is, the ability of channeling.
We are dissatisfied with the answers society has given us, whether in the East or the West. We are dissatisfied with questions such as the meaning of life, its depth and mystery, its endless possibilities. Each reader can find his own meaning in Seth's views.
Seth on the Motivation Behind The "Unknown" Reality
The following is taken from Seth's Session 750, held on June 25, 1975, two months after he had completed Volume Two. In it, he not only states the motivation behind producing The "Unknown" Reality, but also discusses the basic concepts he believes should be emphasized repeatedly, this time involving perception:
The "Unknown" Reality is written to give the individual a glimpse of other modes of reality. It is meant to serve as a map, leading a person not into another objective world, but into the inner pathways of consciousness. These inner pathways, or cords of consciousness, bring in elements that make it possible for a person to understand the content of any objectified universe. Reality can indeed be perceived in quite different ways.
You are part of what you perceive.
Can you understand this part? The things you perceive—such as tables, chairs, benches, your surrounding environment, including yourself—he says you are part of what you perceive. When you perceive nature, then you are also part of nature.
When you alter the focus of your perception, you automatically alter the objective world.
When you shift your focus, when you no longer perceive the tables, chairs, benches, flowers, plants, and trees around you, when you turn your point of perception inward toward your own inner self, then your world also changes. Your objective world changes. Wherever you place the focus of your perception, your world changes accordingly.
But it is not just that when you perceive it as something different, no matter what you experience it as, it still remains as it is.
No matter what you perceive it to be, it is still itself. There is no necessary connection between what you think it is and what it is.
The act of perception itself helps form what is perceived, and is part of it.
This is a very mysterious and philosophical topic. What does it mean? It means that the very act of your sensing this thing forms the thing that you sense. You want to sense the fragrance of a flower, and you think it is because the flower is there that you can see it. Actually, it is because you want to sense this flower, or you want to see this flower, that the flower is there. It is different from our cognition—we think the flower exists first, then we see it, then we sense it. Actually, that is not the case. You first want to see the flower, then you look, and then there is a flower. Not only is it a flower, you are also part of this flower, because you are a participant in this act of perception, you are a subject in this process. You are both the observer and the observed.
This is also explained very clearly in Buddhism. In the Consciousness-Only school, there is a very detailed discussion of this part—the one who thinks, what is thought, and what is being thought; the one who perceives, what is perceived, and what is being perceived. It has its own set of theories, explained in great detail, sometimes even more finely than Seth does. If you are interested, you can look into the Buddhist Consciousness-Only school. We usually lump them all together, or use our own understanding to cognize them, but in fact they are not like that at all.
Jane Describes Her Experience of Channeling
So how did Jane feel about her relationship with Seth? And what was the mechanism of her channeling like? At first the idea was to have her write the foreword herself, but in the end she decided it was not necessary to do so; she did not want to repeat most of the material she had already covered in her own books.
In March 1976, she wrote the following piece. The book itself had already been completed in April 1975, and in March of 1976 she wrote this article:
The "unknown" reality itself is, of course, a product derived from the unknown reality of the psyche, because it was entirely produced by me in a trance state as Seth.
This book itself was written through this kind of ability unknown to humankind. Seth was written through Jane by means of channeling, and this in itself is unknown to humanity. This book was written in an unknown state.
On the one hand, these two volumes can be said to be the product of an inner psychic combustion.
That is to say, it is as if Seth's reality ignited our reality, the spark that flared up in our world.
For me, this is an accelerated state, which I would compare to a higher state of wakefulness.
When she was transmitting, it was a higher state of wakefulness, rather than the sleep state usually associated with trance. It is not the same thing as hypnosis or sleep. It is a kind of wakefulness even more awake than ordinary wakefulness, but it is a different kind of wakefulness. In it, one feels that the ordinary world seems to be the world that is asleep.
My attention was not dulled, but placed elsewhere.
She says it was not that her attention was dulled, but that her attention was placed elsewhere.
As Jane, I was not displaced in this trance state, but I stepped out of myself in a way that cannot be conveyed in words.
That is, she used a way that cannot be described in words to step out from herself, transcending the limitations of Jane as a physical, material existence. And as soon as the channeling ended, she immediately returned.
So when I plunged into those other dimensions of experience and identity, there must have been another one left behind — the me waiting patiently on the shore as Jane.
What does this mean? When I entered the other, larger dimensions of my own existence — everyone has a higher nonphysical dimension and a physical dimension — when I went over there, there was certainly a physical me left here waiting, waiting for the spiritual me to come back. As soon as the channeling ended, that nonphysical me returned to the physical me, and we merged together again. She says that during channeling she became Seth, or from a certain angle, Seth became her at that time.
And in that state, the conditions of perception are those states, those conditions that are natural to other fields of consciousness distinct from our own.
In that trance state, the matter of channeling Seth seems unnatural to us, but to those other levels of consciousness, this is the most natural thing in the world.
These channeling sessions never tired me out; my spirits were often better afterward than before.
Many people say that channeling harms the body, drains energy, and is bad for one's health. Jane says no, never.
Usually I had little sense of time. As Seth, I might speak for an hour, but upon instantly returning and glancing at the clock, I would be surprised to find that at most only fifteen minutes had passed.
But trance is not fixed and unchanging; it has levels and characteristics.
Trance is not static and motionless; it has levels and characteristics. The state is not always the same, and each time is different, with peaks and valleys.
The characteristic of the trance state is a feeling of energy flowing endlessly, emotions intact and complete, and subjective freedom without obstruction.
In the trance state there is an energy that flows endlessly. Emotions are intact and complete, and subjectively one is free and unobstructed, completely free.
Sometimes Seth's voice was very resonant and full of power, and even in trance I was aware of it.
That is, even in trance, she could hear the resonant voice speaking for Seth, and she was swept away by his energy.
But in the first years when I served as the medium, Seth's voice and accent seemed very strange to me.
At first she found it very strange, because the voice changed, becoming a male voice, and an English with a strong European accent. Whether listening to herself speaking for him in class, or listening to recordings.
But in trance, what is known is simply known.
That is, in trance, she knew that speaking voice. When she returned to her ordinary state, the words she had just spoken as Seth vanished without a trace like a dream. Although she had read The "Unknown" Reality, because it was already completed, it still seemed exceedingly strange and unfamiliar to her. Because she simply did not remember what she had said at the time.
It seems that I was not merely generally unaware; it was as if a part of me refused to consciously consider the manuscript I created in trance, perhaps so as not to confuse myself. For example, I like to keep clear boundaries between my various subjective concepts, and this seems to be as natural and effortless a way as possible — an economical and practical method of handling unusual circumstances. The form of the Seth state was not violated, and neither was the Jane state.
Neither of their states was violated. I still maintained my state, and he maintained his. When I was Seth, I was only this small part of his reality — perhaps only the part I could grasp — and I bathed in that personalized energy.
When Seth turned his attention to people, spoke to them, or answered questions, at those times I felt an almost multidimensional appreciation of their value and individuality. He understood each person's value and paid tribute to it, seeing people in a way completely different from ours. I experienced Seth's response to others, which made me suspect that there exists a more vivid emotional experience than what we know.
When Seth spoke with others, Jane could clearly feel that Seth looked at that person, saw the value in every person, and paid tribute to them from the heart. Seth saw other people in a way completely different from how we ordinary people see others. So when she saw Seth's reactions, she wondered: is there a more vivid emotional experience that exists beyond our human one?
Yet I knew for certain that Seth represented something else, a different kind of humanity.
She knew that Seth represented something different from us humans, a multidimensional energy collection or something of the sort. He was a different kind of humanity; he saw everything as positive and optimistic, and he saw the value in every person.
In many ways, we are a lonely species, as if we forever follow within the fences of our own nature.
That is, we have always been struggling within our own fences, within the fences of our own nature.
Perhaps our concept of identity is like a magic circle we draw around our psyche.
Our sense of identity draws a boundary around our psyche, and within this boundary is "me." Within the scope of this "me," we actually limit ourselves, making anything outside appear both dark and strange, and not-me.
Perhaps there are other psychic fires far brighter than ours, illuminating that inner landscape. And there are other aspects of consciousness to which we are connected, as in a chain of being we barely understand. We are connected to the animals, but we cannot feel it either. We love to look back at our animal origins, assuming that so-called evolution has ended, and here we celebrate — haha, we are the crown of creation. But perhaps we are only in the middle; we have not yet reached the point of being the crown of creation.
Not fully sensing oneself as other distant versions of existence, that would be a future so far away that we cannot comprehend it.
We still have a more distant version in existence.
Perhaps in that sense, I am some ancestor of Seth.
From that angle, I am the Seth of a very, very long time ago. Seth is one of my futures, living within my own life, but only a marker within his life.
But Seth insists that within the past there is also fresh action, not something already finished, but still a living existence.
So if that is the case, then I am still seeking my own path, seeking the path of how to become Seth.
When I myself think this far, a strange acceleration seizes me. My body becomes very relaxed, but my psyche has a strange sense of motion.
The body is very relaxed, but the psyche has a strange sense of motion, of acceleration. As if something swept past me too quickly for me to follow. Yet I kept trying to spin myself faster, so as to catch up.
If one of my cells wanted to understand my own subjective reality, it might have the same feeling.
If a cell wanted to understand human consciousness, then its feeling would be the same as my thought right now of trying to understand Seth — too fast to catch up. A cell cannot understand our human thoughts; the gap between them is still very large.
I think I live within Seth's subjective body, just as one of my cells lives within my body. Except that I have been groping and sensing events that my own reality cannot truly understand.
This may simply be the reaction of the conscious mind when it tries to glimpse its own source.
It is nothing more than the normal reaction of the conscious mind glimpsing its own source.
Perhaps when we make such attempts, symbolically speaking, it is as if we are suspended on a platform of our consciousness, simultaneously looking upward and downward, like weightless astronauts. We know who we are, yet we are not quite sure of our position. Because psychologically, in inner space, it is constantly changing, we are momentarily dizzy, dazzled by an inner universe composed of ourselves and other versions of ourselves.
There is an inner universe composed of many selves, and one is dazzled by it.
And feeling that we are traveling through some vast psyche, which sows itself as space sows stars.
Look at Jane's poetic language here. Like a great psyche, constantly sowing itself, just as the great universe sows stars in space. She is describing her feelings at that moment.
About Reader Letters
Finally, how did we cope with the ever-increasing number of reader letters? Over the years, the letters and cards we received have all been archived. Our recent practice has been to send readers three things: a short note written by Jane and me, a letter that Seth dictated to us in April 197510, and a list of Jane's books.
However, for readers who would have liked Jane or Seth personally to respond to their letters, such form letters are not really a satisfactory answer. But considering our particular circumstances, these letters simply represent the best we could do within the time available. Lately Jane has been handling most of the correspondence herself, and she manages to add an extra line or two each time she replies. In this way, she answers more letters than before, but ironically the letters still never get fully answered — for the simple reason that more and more letters keep arriving.
In January 1973, Seth dictated a letter11 to those who had written in, and readers can find that letter in Chapter 8, Session 633, of The Nature of Personal Reality. We feel that these two letters from Seth reflect much of the essence of his material, as well as our circumstances and state of mind at the time the material was being produced. We also think that placing Seth's new letter here is an ideal way to bring these notes to a close. In the letter, as always, Seth refers to Jane as Ruburt and to me as Joseph.
A Letter from Seth to All Readers
Ruburt has seen your letters, and Joseph has as well. I am also aware of their contents.
Seth says he knows too. I still do not have any outer organization -- I have no organization, team, or company, I have no outer organization, and therefore no secretary to help reply to letters, and no intermediary to write fancy, prepackaged replies.
Ruburt and Joseph are private individuals, and they also have a one-to-one relationship with the universe.
They certainly have a one-to-one relationship with the universe. This trait means they resist forming any kind of organization. Jane grew up in Catholic church schools12, and from childhood she actually disliked that kind of church behavior, especially disliked all forms of organization. Even if such an organization would help with replying to letters, even if setting up an organization would make it easier for her to reply, she would not do it.
So I will dictate this letter, and although it will be sent to many of you, it is written to each one of you individually. And I only regret that I cannot individually delve deeply into your aspirations, challenges, and problems.
Because everyone has asked many questions, many aspirations, many challenges.
Some of you write in joy, and some write in sorrow. Some write to say they have found the answers, while others write to ask for answers. In any case, energy is sent out to you along with this letter.
The energy has been sent out.
That energy will awaken your own abilities, and will lead you to insights and solutions that only you can have.
It will put you in touch with the foundation of your own existence, put you in touch with yourself. Ultimately, all ecstasy and answers spring forth from that.
My purpose is not to solve your problems for you, but to put you in touch with your own power. My purpose is not to give you -- even the answer to the most tragic problem -- but through you and your own freedom.
I will not step in between you and your own freedom. My purpose is to strengthen your own power.
Because ultimately, the magic of your existence is enough to help you find fulfillment, understanding, richness, and peace.
You have this ability yourself.
Your problems are caused by your own doubts. These doubts arise because you have lost touch with the value of your own existence.
Why do you doubt? Because you have lost touch with the value of your own existence. Your existence itself is value.
Let me strengthen that value here, let me strengthen my confidence in your innate ability to be joyfully accepting and to transcend any of your present problems.
What confidence? You yourselves are innately endowed with joyful acceptance -- remember, this is his suggestion -- and also endowed with the ability to transcend any present problems. If I went and solved your problems for you, then I would be denying your own power, and further strengthening the sense of powerlessness you already have. When you come to me for help, you already have a sense of powerlessness. If I then step in and solve your problem, you would feel even more powerless -- because you could not solve the problem yourself and had to seek outside help.
But I know you may feel tired at times, and sometimes sending you a packet of energy can lift your spirits.
So once again, along with this letter, I send you my joyful recognition of your existence, and this energy that you can use to strengthen your own vitality and power.
Not all letters are delivered by the postman, so as far as the letters you send me are concerned, each of you should receive from me your own kind of inner response.
Your letter is not only delivered to you by the postman, it is also delivered by me, and I also give you an inner response. Do not only look at the outer letter the postman brings you; look within your heart to see whether I have already given you a response there.
In many ways, however, I act as a spokesman for your own psyche.
Much of the time I act as a spokesman for the spirituality within your own heart, so that inner message will come from a larger existence of your own.
From that multidimensional reality, I salute you.
To sum up Seth's words simply: I can give you energy. You may indeed be tired, and you may indeed have encountered many setbacks in your actual life. But I cannot solve your problems for you. I can give you methods, I can give you strength, I can give you energy, but the problem itself you must solve on your own. And you yourself possess the ability to solve these problems. The reason you are troubled and suffering is because you doubt whether you have this ability; you do not believe you have this ability, and that is why you suffer. What I give you is this confidence: I tell you that you have this ability, you fully possess the ability to solve your own difficulties, you have the ability to understand your own fulfillment, richness, and peace.
Summary
This preface section is especially long, so we will stop our interpretation here for now. Although much of the middle consists of Rob explaining issues about the notes, there are quite a few essential parts in it -- for example, when Jane describes her own feelings while channeling for Seth and speaking for Seth, that passage is extremely wonderful. That was the first time Jane gave a very complete summary of what state she was in while transmitting for Seth. And then Seth's letter at the end is written very well, and interspersed within it are four passages from Seth, which are also very valuable and very profound. Although one or two of those passages are quite deep, we should not be impatient; all of these things will be touched upon in the later interpretations.
Preface: There Is an Unknown Reality, of Which I Am a Part
Today I am going to introduce to everyone the preface of the Seth book The "Unknown" Reality. This preface was written by Seth himself. While he was in a trance state, in Session 685, on February 25, 197413, during a break after several sessions of transmitting this book had already begun, at 10:57 he turned the following portion into a preface.
Seth first said that this is a preface, which is:
There is an unknown reality, of which I am a part.
He gave the preface a title, because the book itself is called The "Unknown" Reality, so the title of the preface is also very interesting: there is an unknown reality, of which I am a part, and of which you are also a part.
Seth said that a long time ago, he suddenly appeared in our space and time. This "long time ago" was 1963. From that time onward, he has spoken with many people -- in the course of the Seth material, there have been many witnesses, not only Jane and Rob, but also their friends, experts in psychology, professors, and he also appeared on television, with television interviews and live broadcasts.
And this is Seth's third book. In terms of the order in which it was written, The "Unknown" Reality was written immediately after Seth Speaks and The Nature of Personal Reality. I placed it as the sixth book in my interpretation series, putting it further back. Because first, this book touches upon things that we almost never come into contact with in our ordinary lives, and second, its difficulty is higher than that of the other books.
Actually, it is the third book dictated by Seth himself. Seth said:
If I had been born into your world in the usual manner through a physical body, then none of this would seem strange to anyone.
It would be perfectly normal for me, an ordinary person, to write a book. But when I began speaking through Jane Roberts, there was a purpose in all of this, and part of that purpose is contained within this present book.
I speak through Jane, but I myself do not have a material body, or a physical existence. I am a multidimensional, multi-dimensional energy body, a conscious body. The very fact that I transmit this book through Jane contains within it a content -- namely, an unknown reality. Because we all think that dead people cannot write books; once a person dies, they turn to dust and vanish, so how could he come back and write books for us through Jane? So this matter itself is contained within this book.
Teacher Xiyu
From here on, I am going to introduce this Teacher Xiyu, who will interpret this book together with me. Some friends may be familiar with him, and some may not. He first appeared when I was interpreting Seth Speaks, where he left long, long comments, often several thousand words in a single comment. Many people compiled his comments into an article or a Word document, which came to nearly a hundred thousand words, quite substantial. So from that time on, I became very interested in him and paid close attention to him. Later we invited him to join our QQ group, where we communicated and shared together.
Teacher Xiyu and I do not see eye to eye on every issue, but that does not prevent us from working together to introduce this book to everyone. Because I have shortcomings in certain fields or certain aspects, and Teacher Xiyu's experience in these areas -- for example, in meditation, sitting practice, and even entering other dimensions of space and time -- his rich experience can serve as a very good supplement, and he has his own unique insights.
In the process of interpretation, there are my own viewpoints, and there are Teacher Xiyu's viewpoints. Everyone can judge for themselves which one suits your taste better. Most of our viewpoints are consistent, but where they are not, I will point that out.
Seth's Original Words
Next we turn to Teacher Xiyu's document and look at his interpretation. He skipped over the earlier part, and starting from the next paragraph he marked, the black text is Seth's original words.
Each individual is a part of the unknown reality, yet because of my position, I am obviously more a part of it than most people are.
You see, we are all this part, but Seth says, "I may be even more so than you." Why does he say "more"? Because he has no physical body, so he is closer to that unknown part.
My psychological awareness connects the world of your conscious awareness with other worlds that at least seem to escape your attention.
Through my psychological awareness, I can perceive your material world -- the world of your conscious awareness. He also notices those worlds that you have not noticed. He uses the phrase "seem to escape," but actually, as long as we pay attention, we can still observe them; however, we basically do not pay attention to those.
The woman through whom I speak finds herself in an unusual situation.
Because no theory -- formal, psychological, or otherwise -- can adequately explain her experience, this leads her to develop her own theories.
And this book is an extension of certain concepts already mentioned in The Adventure of Consciousness.
The Adventure of Consciousness14 is a book written by Jane herself. In order to write that book, Jane drew upon deep sources of energy.
The 5% Material World
Teacher Xiyu is very meticulous; he takes every sentence he considers important and explains it separately.
"Each individual is a part of the unknown reality" -- this is certain. Because our universe is composed of visible matter and dark matter, and also visible light and dark energy, also called dark energy. This forms the positive-wave universe that we can perceive and the one we cannot perceive but can glimpse. It stands to reason that there is also a negative-wave universe. To put it simply, this part of the universe can all be called the material world, or in Buddhism it is called the realm of form. Whatever it is called, it is the same; it represents matter -- whether dark matter, dark energy, or the matter we can see, they are all the material world.
The following diagram shows the current measurement results of scientists: the matter we can see accounts for only 4.9% of the total matter of our entire universe, less than 5%; dark matter accounts for 26.8%, and dark energy accounts for 68.3%15. This is the approximate proportion of the current material universe.
Our cognitive limitations are confined within this 5% material world. Although those two are also called the material world -- dark energy and dark matter -- they are outside the range of what we can measure and know. How big is this world of less than 5%? The detectable universe is approximately 93 billion light-years across, such a vast range.
At this point many people may say, that is not right; according to scientists, from the Big Bang until now it has only been 13.4 billion light-years16. Even if the farthest light in the universe traveled here, from the day the universe was born it would only be 13.4 billion light-years, so how do you get 93 billion light-years? You can look this up online; the universe that humans can detect is indeed 93 billion light-years17. Why? Because the universe is expanding. According to physicists and astronomers, the universe has a rate of expansion, so it is not as simple as the 13.4 billion light-years you imagine.
Within such a vast range, how big is the Milky Way? The Milky Way is only about a hundred thousand light-years across18. The solar system is less than one light-year19, not even on the same scale as the Milky Way. The solar system can only be described in terms of astronomical units -- what is an astronomical unit? It is the distance that sunlight travels from the sun to the earth, called one astronomical unit20.
The earth and the solar system are utterly insignificant within the vast Milky Way. You see, during the process of Voyager 1 flying away from the solar system, it generally looked outward, and then NASA sent it a command to turn around and take a photograph. In that photograph, the earth was like a tiny, almost impossible-to-find blue dot in the vast starry sky. And that was only standing at the edge of the solar system -- remember, that was only the edge of the solar system. How many solar systems are there in the Milky Way? So what humans can perceive and experience within several thousand years, or one thousand years, is less than one trillionth of one trillionth of this 5% material world.
We will not go further into this issue here. To put it simply, from the material level, even if we invent spacefaring tools, whether spaceships or spacecraft, this material thing cannot fly out of the solar system. Seth confirmed this matter a long time ago, and in actual exploration it is also the case; the probes we humans have launched basically get stuck when they approach the edge of the solar system.
The Unknown Reality
This book, concerning the unknown reality, is meant to lead us to understand and recognize the complete macrocosmic universe that our ancestors once glimpsed and that modern civilization has ignored. But our ancestors did glimpse it -- whether Laozi, these immortals, Peng Zu, our Buddha, or other enlightened masters, they could all glimpse the macrocosmic universe.
There are worlds there that you cannot even begin to imagine, things you could never think of. If you want to explore what this unknown world is like, I still recommend you read a book, the new one by Bashar, called The Master of Limitation21, which in English should be The Master of the Limitation22, with the subtitle "An Extraterrestrial's Observation of Earth." In chapters two and three, as I recall, he lists in detail five extraterrestrial worlds. I will not elaborate here; you can go take a look. Those descriptions of extraterrestrial worlds are simply mind-blowing, beyond what you can imagine, beyond what the wisdom of your brain can imagine.
Because it is very difficult for your brain even to find the basic materials to piece them together. For example, one of the extraterrestrial worlds is a large, membrane-like bubble kind of thing; another world contains living beings that are like earthworms, like snakes, but unlike snakes, they can freely combine, up to a maximum of eight, or combine into two, or exist as a single one. They can combine into various forms, because once combined into eight, there are countless possible transformations and abilities. They are also self-reproducing. It is too complex; you can go look at it there.
Regarding the exploration of this unknown world, it exceeds what we can imagine; even the materials for piecing it together are hard to find. Those worlds are just as real as this world you take for granted, or even more real. You know they exist, because you came from them; you cannot recall their appearance, because your cognition is bound behind the riddle of soundproofing.
What "bound behind" means is that our consciousness is actually limited by our physical senses. Our attention is drawn away by the perceptions of the physical senses, or by the so-called illusions that are dazzling and bewildering, so our consciousness does not focus on other aspects.
Then Seth continued:
Even if you are extremely small, you are still an indispensable and important component of this complete system of reality. Because any absence would cause the entire completeness to no longer be complete.
You are an indispensable part of this universe; no matter how vast this universe is, without you, it would be incomplete.
The Dimensions of Conscious Energy
Seth said:
Yet because of my position, imagine being more a part of it than most people are. My psychological awareness connects the world of your conscious awareness with other worlds that at least seem to escape your attention.
This is very simple. Seth is positioned between the 5% physical reality and the 95% conscious energy reality system, transmitting the world as he sees it across platforms and across dimensions. He is certainly not in our space and time. We might as well follow in the footsteps of this "travel broadcaster" and step together into the world of his conscious perception, to see the scenery and experiences beyond dimensions -- realms ignored by our logical perception and vehicle perception. Vehicle perception is our physical perception; our body is our vehicle.
There is something very interesting here, and let me briefly interject. When we speak of this unknown reality, it is not merely a reality of space and time. It is not to say that extraterrestrials are one kind -- extraterrestrials are certainly one kind, no doubt about that, but that is still another form of material reality. This reality is more a level of your consciousness, and those dimensions are also more an expansion of your consciousness. Do not imagine it all as exploring the universe, building a faster-than-light spaceship to fly at speeds exceeding light. But think about it, even if you could exceed light speed, how far could you go? According to the current understanding of the universe, the universe is measured in 93 billion light-years; even if you flew at light speed, it would still take 93 billion years to fly from one end of the universe to the other, yet the universe has only existed for 13.4 billion years. You say I will go twice light speed, three times light speed, ten thousand times light speed -- what difference would it make? Within the lifetime of your human existence, you cannot explore this universe.
So do not think that whenever we speak of exploration, it must be within matter or space and time. Besides this three-dimensional world, there are many, many other dimensions, and the exploration of those other dimensions is more about exploring within our conscious space. Seth is from another dimension -- within this 95% conscious energy dimension -- transmitting information through Jane to us, who live within the 5% material reality, so let us follow him and take a look.
Then he said, this matter of Seth speaking through Jane cannot be explained by any scientific theory at all, so Jane herself invented a method to explain it to herself. Jane began writing a book called The Adventure of Consciousness14, in which she gave a self-explanation and interpretation of her communication with Seth. In order to write that book, Jane also drew upon an even deeper source of energy. This is all very simple, no need to say more.
Seth said:
Yet in your terms, the unknown reality is more unknown than the flexible consciousness can reach.
That is, even if you open up all the flexibility of your consciousness, it still exceeds your imagination.
And it can only be approached by a personality such as myself, latent within it.
It can only be approached, not exhausted; one can only say one draws near to it.
Once expressed, however, it can be understood. One of my purposes, then, is to make this unknown reality consciously known to you.
If no one tells you, it is very difficult for you to understand what this unknown reality is, because you have never experienced it, never seen it, and the things in there are very different from your world in many ways, so it cannot even be described to you.
You see, in the Heart Sutra23, the Buddha kept saying, when describing what state it actually is to enter this anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, or prajna wisdom, he used nothing but negations: neither increasing nor decreasing, neither defiled nor pure; he said a whole string of "nots," but never said what it is. He could not say it, so he could only use a string of negations.
What is this principle particularly like? For example, suppose I want to explain to humans a color we have never seen -- but I have seen this color in meditation. How do I describe it to you? I can only say it is not red, but more vivid than red; it is not blue... I can only say it is not this, not that. Same principle. And at this time, if there is a person of higher wisdom who can use language and methods that we can understand in the three-dimensional world to give us a rough depiction, then we can have a rough awareness of that thing.
A person cannot imagine a taste they have never tasted, or a sight they have never seen; this is certain. It is like a foreigner -- Teacher Xiyu gave an example -- if you say to a foreigner "chestnut-flour steamed cornbread," from the ingredients to the form of the food, the other person has no memory materials at all. The foreigner has no idea what this is; his existing accumulated cognition has no imaginative space with which to piece it together. Overseas, if we want a foreigner to roughly understand the taste, shape, color, texture, and mouthfeel of this food, you need to have sufficient understanding of the foreigner's native culture, so that you know which cognitive materials he has feelings for, and use those materials to piece together the description closest to the facts. But even that is only close to the facts. Chestnut-flour steamed cornbread cannot be described to a foreigner unless you especially understand his life. The more you understand his culture, the easier it is for you to describe it.
And Seth is exactly such a person; he both understands that unknown world and has rich experience on earth, so he uses methods we can understand to explain it to us as much as possible.
One Self, Many Selves
Seth said that historically, people once believed there was only one world, and now they know that is not the case. Yet they still cling to the concepts of one god, one self, and one body through which to express that self. For most people, the present self is the only real existence -- just one self, because the future has not yet arrived, and the past is already gone, so only this present existence remains.
But when you can use a higher dimension of space and time to examine your entire life, every moment from birth to death is laid out there, each one a segment. Which one is you? Which one is not? None of them are, and all of them are. Is the you in elementary school you? Is the you in middle school you? They all are. You say yes, and yet no.
Every present moment in time is a cage of cognition, and also a salvation of awareness. Every present moment is a cage that limits your cognition, and at the same time it is a point of leverage for the salvation of your own awareness -- the point of power.
Seth said:
When your mind is not yet able to face the countless selves in the space-time continuum that exist simultaneously, operate together, and seek upward and downward in different directions, living in the most simplified version is a good choice.
When you are not yet able to face the multiple selves that exist simultaneously -- there are countless selves in parallel space-time -- when you cannot yet accept or understand this matter, recognizing only the present you is also a good approach. Because very few people are willing to face directly the fact that they are merely an incarnation of consciousness within a mirror image, an observer's perspective within a reflective surface. People are unwilling to regard themselves as merely an incarnation or a mirror image.
Just like in the following diagram, Teacher Xiyu found many images to help everyone understand what it would be like for a person to enter a room full of mirrors. A couple of days ago I happened to watch a YouTube video online; a person did this experiment, covering all six sides of a small room with mirrors, then went inside to see what it was like.
There is only one god, and within him there are many gods.
Outwardly, as a whole, there may be only one god, but within it there are many gods. What does this mean? There is only one self, and within him there are many selves. In one time there is only one body, but the self has other bodies in other times. All times exist simultaneously.
This exceeds the understanding of ordinary people; very few can understand it. This matter is very difficult to illustrate with imagery, so today we will not expand on it, because Teacher Xiyu has a great deal of material later on discussing this issue.
Nested Existence Layer by Layer
What does "there is only one god" mean? The macroscopic overall core is the unique existence of consciousness, but every branch and every leaf also has its own awareness and feelings.
Teacher Xiyu used a large tree as an example. Suppose this large tree is your overall entity or essence; every leaf and every branch is a part of this large tree. You can say it is part of the tree, but every leaf also has its own cognition; every leaf is born in spring and dies in winter, so the leaf itself has its own life. But thousands upon thousands of leaves connected together form the life of this tree, including its roots and every tiny part of it; it is all this concept. Within the leaves there are also cells and tissues, all the same.
The entire universe, or the entire reality -- all realities -- exist in a state of nested existence layer by layer. There are small existences, and when they overlap together there is a larger existence, and that larger existence combines into an even larger existence, and that even larger existence combines again into an even larger existence. But what is miraculous is that within this layering and nesting, at any level and at any rank, it contains all the information. It is a holographic universe; at any single point it can access all the information of the entire universe.
There is another miraculous aspect, which is that this existence itself, when added together, is greater than its existence. For example, the cells of your body make up you; every cell has its own consciousness, but the consciousness that makes up you, whether in terms of its complexity, its energy, or the realm and difficulty of the problems it contemplates, is not on the same level as the consciousness of those cells; it is higher by who knows how many dimensions. Yet such a high dimension as yours is composed of cells of such low dimensions. This is the concept that the sum of the collective is greater than the sum of the individuals.
Seth coined a word for this called Gestalt24; he had no choice, there was no good word, so he created an English word to explain it. The meaning is that one plus one is greater than two. One plus one is not a collection of two consciousnesses -- it is not a concept of collection, you must understand this -- it undergoes a qualitative change. When two are added together, a qualitative change occurs.
Just like the extraterrestrial beings mentioned earlier, when two combine, they are not two extraterrestrial beings connected together; they become a new being. When eight extraterrestrial beings connect together, they are no longer eight extraterrestrial beings; they become a new life form, and its energy and state are different again. It is the same for us ordinarily; many cells form organs, and the abilities of these organs are far stronger than those of a single cell.
Another interesting point is that these tiny cells are born and die continuously, yet this does not affect the existence of the whole. Within an organ, cells are born and die every minute and every second, and this does not affect existence. In each of our reincarnations there is also birth and death, but this does not affect the continuation of the larger life of your entire entity, just as the birth and death of the cells in your body do not affect your life; it is the same principle.
"There is only one self" still means this: there is one you, but there are many yous. Using the example of the body just now, you can understand: there is one you, but within your body there are many cells; are these cells you? They can also be said to be you. You say, how can a cell be me? Think again: if cloning technology were permitted for experiments on the human body, take any cell from your body -- even a bit of fingernail, hair, or a flake of skin that falls off -- could it not clone an identical you? Do you say this cell is you or is not you? So at this point you are a bit confused: is this cell me, or is it not me? So his meaning is that there is one you, and there are also many yous.
Mike in the Video
"He has only one body in one time, but the self has other bodies in other times" -- this is a bit convoluted. In one time there is only one body, but are there other bodies in other times? All times are simultaneous, so does that mean in all simultaneous times there is only one body? At this point many people become a bit confused.
The example Teacher Xiyu gave is very interesting; he used me as an example. He said, this Teacher Mike who is giving the lecture, in this video he is unique; that is me, no one else. But if there are a hundred viewers, then a hundred videos can be opened; if there are a thousand viewers, a thousand videos can be opened, even tens of thousands or millions of videos. So is the Mike in each of these videos the same Mike? Each video has a Mike lecturing, simultaneously experiencing the flow of time.
For me, this class was taught only once; but for each person, it was taught countless times. So the thing everyone sees on their phone or computer—this Mike giving a lecture—does it truly exist? It truly exists. Without the actual event of me teaching, there would be no video of me teaching on your phone, right? But if you ask again, of course it does not truly exist, because by the time I teach and then upload it to the website for you to watch, it may already be several days later. We are no longer in the same time—I recorded it a few days ago, and you are watching it a few days later.
So this is very interesting. He shares a synchronicity with the real Mike in life, but this synchronicity goes beyond our understanding. For example, when you are listening to me speak, or when you are reading a Seth book—the Seth books were published decades ago—whether you read it today or tomorrow, or whether you read it now with a question in mind, or whether you read it again three years later after having gone through certain experiences, it will all be different. But at the time you read it, you seem to have a certain connection with the author of the book, with Seth.
When you watch my video, you seem to have a kind of telepathic feeling with me, communicating and exchanging across time and space with a me who is not in your time and not in your space, and this actually gives you a psychological connection. For many people, this psychological connection produces a kind of joy, saying, this is exactly what I want to understand right now, and he just explained it to me in plain language. So there is a certain synchronicity in this.
Teacher Xiyu says, "Whichever Mike you focus on, that Mike is alive." That is what this means. Everyone may not understand this yet—do not worry, we will explain it bit by bit later in this book. Whichever Mike in whichever time and space you want to enter, the Mike in that time and space is right there; he is always there. He is only giving an example, so do not take it too literally.
Each of your own fragments is like this too. Each of you has countless time-spaces, and in countless time-spaces there are countless fragments. Whichever you in whichever parallel time-space you place the focus of your consciousness, or the focal point of your consciousness, you are experiencing that you, and that you becomes vivid and alive. The ones you do not focus on are not vivid to you, as if they do not exist. But from each of their own perspectives, they are all vivid. From your perspective, whoever you focus on is vivid.
Humanity's Choice
Seth says:
In historical terms, humanity chose a line of development in which its consciousness specialized.
From the perspective of human history, this brings up the question of time. Humanity chose a certain line of development—what does this prove? That there are other possibilities, right? If humanity could choose one line of development, could it also choose other lines of development? Yes. The line humanity has chosen in the present moment—is it one of many possibilities? Yes, it is one of them. The other ones, for us right now, temporarily do not exist and temporarily cannot be perceived.
We humans chose such a line of development, in which our consciousness specialized—our consciousness only fixes on this material world, concentrating its focus on extremely specific experiences, material experiences.
Seth says:
But psychologically and physiologically speaking, although the focus of our consciousness is concentrated on the material plane, psychologically and physiologically we always, inherently, possess the possibility of changing that pattern.
Did you hear that? We humans have now chosen a line of development that places the focus of consciousness on the material world, but psychologically and physiologically we all possess—and always possess—remember, always possess, inherently possess—the possibility of changing that pattern. Change what pattern? Change the pattern of focusing only on the material plane. We can focus on the spiritual plane, focus on our psychic plane, focus on the non-material plane, focus on the other nine inner senses beyond our five outer senses. All of this is possible.
This possibility of change always exists, and it is a change that can effectively raise humanity into another climate. Here, whether you use "climate," "atmosphere," or "ambience," any of them works. He did not use words like "higher" or "more advanced"; he used a very clever word—"another climate." What does he mean? This is only a difference of choice. You should not have this view of high or low; it is only a different climate. The word he used is very interesting.
Humanity has developed from focusing on material consciousness, from placing the focus of consciousness on the material plane, all the way to today. Having reached such a watershed, at the time when change is needed, we can make this change, or we can choose not to make this change and continue along the direction of focusing only on the material, or we can begin a great transformation at this juncture and bring about a tremendous change in human civilization.
Seth says:
Just as human history and the future are composed of different facets of possibility, combined in a multi-dimensional, multi-faceted, three-dimensional way.
Human beings have various possible existences, and the parallel time-space Earths are the same, and human history is the same—it is multi-dimensional and three-dimensionally combined. What does multi-dimensional, three-dimensional combination mean? Suppose there are ten parallel time-space Earths, and ten different directions of human civilization; they are combined together, and there are one hundred possibilities. That makes it easier to understand, right?
Earth, as an independent vehicle, also develops energy and shapes out various different versions.
Earth has different versions, and each version of Earth has existed, or exists, or will exist with a certain possibility of dominant differentiation. All possibilities will be fully explored—even if that possibility is one in a billion. Every possibility will be explored.
Frequency and Versions
Every version of Earth carries a frequency label like a three-dimensional code. You see, Teacher Xiyu uses the term "three-dimensional code" in a very strange way. We now scan two-dimensional codes, but he says Earth seems to have a three-dimensional code—its own specific frequency. Actually, there is no such three-dimensional code; he just made up a name we can understand, to tell you there is a different label, to make it easier for you to understand.
And it attracts consciousness bodies of different conscious frequencies into the era and version that best matches their own cognition. What he means is that everyone has free will to choose. Which parallel time-space you want to enter is entirely determined by the state of your consciousness. For example, if you like to base your life on material things, if you like this kind of luxurious and decadent life, then you are perfectly fine staying here. No one will stop you from pursuing your pleasure and money; these are all normal. But if your consciousness is already tired of these things, if you feel that your consciousness can no longer improve on this plane, if you have already played enough and had enough, and you want to taste a higher realm or a field you have never tried before, then you can try exploring what it feels like in the non-material world. Then this choice of your consciousness may lead you into a different parallel world of Earth.
Teacher Xiyu says:
When you are proceeding within this relatively closed tunnel, if you cannot and do not change your level of cognition and your conscious frequency, then you can only follow along, and cannot turn and enter into other frequency realities.
You cannot adjust your frequency. If you cannot change your level of cognition, cannot adjust your cognition or conscious frequency through other self-learning and self-improvement, then you can only stay where you are now.
The collective consciousness of all humans in the parallel time-space you are in determines the dominant frequency of the collective consciousness of this Earth. In other words, if the people in this parallel time-space of ours are mainly pursuing material things, and their frequencies are all like that, then the Earth of this parallel time-space of ours has a dominant frequency that is mainly material. And then it causes itself, according to this frequency, to enter into a historical drama that matches its frequency, and begins to match, according to this Earth's dominant frequency, the possibilities of its subsequent development.
He says:
The passengers on this vehicle, whether they want to or not, inevitably pay for their own inherent behavior and thoughts.
Whether you want to or not, you have to pay for your own thoughts and your own behavior, because it is determined by your conscious frequency. This is an absolute buyer-driven orientation—whatever you want is what you decide; your life is yours to direct.
No matter what this person says with their mouth, their own behavior causes them to be at this conscious frequency and become a passenger. What he means is, do not just say nice things with your mouth. What you actually do—your frequency—plays the key guiding role for you.
There is no judge and no sacred verdict; you live as you are, just as you yourself live as you truly are.
Truthfully express your own level of consciousness; you are truthfully expressing your own thoughts and the realm of your consciousness.
If you truly achieve a raising of cognition through the unity of knowledge and action, you will, according to your own conscious frequency, invisibly shuttle among various parallel worlds. If you can reach a higher level, that is, if you can broaden the spectrum of your consciousness—right now you are not a single conscious frequency? You either focus on the material or focus on the spiritual. If your consciousness can broaden, you can jump among different parallel time-spaces, guided by the focal point of your conscious attention into higher or lower storylines of other versions. You can enter whichever storyline of consciousness you want to enter.
A Necessary Development
Seth says:
However, such a development first requires an expansion of the concept of the self and a greater understanding of human potential. Human consciousness is now at such a stage, during which this development is not only feasible, but necessary.
You see, it is not only feasible, but necessary. The time for transformation has arrived. He adds a premise—if humanity wants to achieve its greatest accomplishments, then the transformation of our consciousness at this time has reached a necessary moment. Not feasible, but necessary. This must be understood.
Teacher Xiyu gives an example:
If you want to escape from a great ship that is about to sink, you need to have enough courage, the ability to act, knowledge of the direction and means of escape, and mastery of the necessary survival skills.
Death is not an effective means of escaping the inherent storyline. You will not be surprised to find yourself trapped in the same life, repeatedly going through different experiences, until you can discover the seemingly hidden clues and achieve cognitive growth, and only then, according to the raising of your own conscious frequency, can you break free from the current cycle.
What he means is, if you want to break free from the current parallel world and enter a higher parallel world, then you have to make changes. If you think, "If I die, will I automatically be raised, will I ascend to heaven, will that white light come and I will be taken up"—if you think that way, then you will be disappointed. Because there is no such taking up. Only by seriously raising and expanding your own level of consciousness can you possibly shuttle among different time-spaces, or leave your current cyclical state—that is, reincarnation—and break free from your cycle.
The Watershed of Eras
Just as our lives are formed by large story segments that rise and fall and connect with one another, Earth also has such story segments and threads that can be traced. These chapters are defined by later generations as different eras. Earth has different eras, and civilizations have different stages. And at the transition between eras lies the watershed of a civilization.
At the transition of eras, Earth at this moment will differentiate into different frequency versions. Each frequency version carries followers who complement or are close to its core frequency, gradually drifting apart and heading toward different unknown directions of time. What he means is that Earth, according to the different frequencies of the collective consciousness of the humans in the parallel world at that time, will differentiate into different versions, and each version has its own direction of development and its own possibilities, heading toward different unknown directions of time.
Many people will therefore "die," exiting the historical stage of this or that version. "Die" is in quotation marks; it is not real death.
For example, Earth has many versions, and one of them is called Version A. On Version A of Earth, B and C pass away in illness and disaster; while on Version B of Earth, it is A and C who pass away; and C, however, is living well on Version C of Earth, weeping over the deaths of A and B.
This example is for the convenience of people with linear thinking, for the convenience of our ordinary understanding. But the real situation is far more complex than this. Why? Because A, B, and C are actually all still in the same world, but they have become estranged from one another, disappearing into the crowd and no longer having close contact.
Among them, the one whose role does not match this version of Earth will continue to operate, but its inner core no longer has an observer. The observer is on another version of Earth, talking with those two soulless characters, completely unaware that they are merely puppet-like automatic roles.
Here he gives an example to illustrate the state of people in three different versions of Earth. Simply put, it is not as you imagine—that if three people separate, then they no longer exist in this parallel time-space and go to exist in another parallel time-space. That is not the case. Because for the soul, fragments are of no concern at all; any number of fragments is fine. The three of them exist simultaneously in three parallel time-spaces. So at this point, it becomes a very interesting situation.
The Soul Jumping Between Different Frequencies
You will find that some people in your life may gradually leave your life, while you get to know new people, new circles, new friends, new environments; these are all very subtle changes. When this kind of change happens, it means that between you and those who leave your life, your frequencies are actually no longer the same. We won't say higher or lower, only that your frequencies are different. Perhaps the connection between your worlds becomes less and less, and gradually he may become one of those WeChat friends who never says a word, slowly fading out of your life.
At this point, Teacher Xiyu means that each of them has its own primary observer, that is, wherever the focus of your consciousness is—the perceiver, the observer of that consciousness. You have so many split-off selves; whichever one you focus on, that one becomes centered on you. And the other two people who play opposite you, you cannot distinguish whether their main consciousness is here, or whether they are just playing a part for you, or whether they are only a presence. But actually we don't need to be so exacting in distinguishing this, because for you it is all the same.
Moreover, those split-off selves that you think have no main consciousness in them also have free awareness and autonomous awareness, and can also operate independently. It is not that this one is primary and that one is not; rather, relatively speaking, it depends on what angle you stand from and what observer you use to look. There is no obvious difference between them, because whenever you switch your focus, it changes.
However, this kind of division is not stable in the early stage. As cognition and beliefs waver, the soul will from time to time activate different frequencies, and the self on Earth becomes the main viewpoint and feels the storyline of that version. Because the surrounding background characters and plots are almost identical, plus the clever memory shielding from higher dimensions, the consciousness after jumping lines rarely discovers that it has made a frequency jump.
For example, we are now at a turning point in human civilization. Against the background of this great era, there may be several major branches and directions. Although before this process there were also many parallel worlds and parallel space-times, because these were not major branch points, those parallels all moved in roughly the same direction. But now we have reached a watershed where Earth parts ways.
In the early period it is still not very stable; you may jump back and forth among different time-spaces, because at the beginning the differences are not great. This divergence is not the way you imagine, as if with a snap it goes in opposite directions; it differentiates gradually. In the process of gradual differentiation, the differences among these several parallel worlds are still not that great. When you get up every morning, you actually don't know which parallel world you are in. Because you are also not familiar with this process, you think that you have been living in one parallel world all along; actually you have jumped without knowing it. Only sensitive people will know that this sort of thing really happens. Many people around me have this kind of feeling: for a few days they suddenly feel a little unfamiliar with this world, a little strange, and their whole state and feeling seem off; after a few days they may return to that familiar feeling again—sensitive people will feel it.
The Multidimensional Nature of the Psyche
Jane Roberts's experiences hint at the multidimensional nature of the human psyche, and give clues to abilities latent within each individual's personal inner being, all of which are part of your racial heritage, and they show the bridge of the psyche that connects the known and unknown realities in which you dwell.
What this means is that through the communication between Seth and Rob, including the very act of writing these books, it hints at something very important: the human psyche has a multidimensional nature, and we can transcend the limitations of the physical world. And this ability is something everyone has; it is part of our racial heritage. The fact that Jane could communicate with Seth implies that every person's inner being has that kind of ability, to communicate with beings from other dimensions. The appearance of this book hints at just such a possibility — that each of you can also connect with unknown realities through this bridge of the psyche.
He says that the physical bodies each person uses actually have no essential differences; almost all abilities are basically the same. It is not that Jane alone has this ability and we do not.
He gives an example: imagine forty monkeys, each given a 5G flagship phone. But when the phones were handed to them, they were all set to airplane mode by default. Some monkeys use it as a brick, smashing it against things; some use it as a tool to crack walnuts; some accidentally light it up and turn it into a glowing flashlight. A few happen to turn off airplane mode, switch it to normal mode, and connect to the network, hearing songs and seeing videos. The smarter monkeys will tell their offspring about this accidental discovery. After a few generations of monkeys, will the first monkey capable of using the phone to communicate with another monkey appear? Of course it will — it has that ability.
He uses the 5G phone set to airplane mode to suggest that each of us is a 5G phone, equipped with full-spectrum calling capability, the ability to communicate with unknown worlds, but right now we have not turned it on. Just turn it on.
Your vehicles have all the necessary functions.
Our bodies physiologically have all the necessary functions. Seth also said earlier that whether psychologically or physiologically, you are already prepared to accept this kind of elevation — not only does the physiology have this ability, but the psychology does too.
But we already have this ability — how many people actually use even 10% or 20% of the capacity of this vehicle (the physical body)? Instead of treating their bodies like a wolf's head or a brick, crudely using only the most primitive physical functions. If you have seen the movie Lucy25, you know that when a person's full potential is developed, there is no difference whatsoever between that person and a god.
As long as you still hold very limited concepts about your own nature, and if you have very restrictive concepts, you cannot begin to understand a multidimensional divinity, or a cosmic reality in which all consciousness is unique and inviolate, yet keen to form endless gestalts of organization and meaning.
Removing Limiting Beliefs
A core point here is that we must remove our limiting viewpoints. If you want to understand the unknown world or the nature of the universe, the first thing you have to do is remove all restrictive concepts. You see, in Buddhist practice, they definitely make you knock away all these things such as emptiness and attachment to self, including knocking away all the limitations of this world. The purpose is not only to make you realize that this world is empty, that it is an illusion, a bubble in a dream; it is actually to make you remove all your limiting beliefs.
We joke that the three questions of philosophy -- who am I, where do I come from, what am I here to do -- have been unanswerable since ancient times. But in Buddhism these questions do not even exist, because Buddhism tells you right from the start that you must be without self. Once you have gotten rid of the self altogether, there is no need to ask these three philosophical questions anymore. But its purpose is not to do this; its purpose is to make you see that even a question such as "who am I" is a limiting concept, and to remove it. Only in such a state of cognition or consciousness can you begin to accept a multidimensional divinity or the reality of the universe.
This is the first point. The second point is a progressive relationship -- you remove all your limiting beliefs, and you even get rid of the self altogether, so then who is it that understands this universal reality? This is the place where all those who study philosophy and Buddhism go around in circles and cannot get out; it is an interlocking endless loop. Here Seth quickly added a sentence:
Although you are told to remove "you," you still exist as a unique, inviolable consciousness.
He removes the "I," but your unique individuality is still sacred and inviolable within this universe. It is not that you disappear just because you remove the "I." Before this vast universe, every person is a unique, eternally existing being. He quickly offers reassurance, and that is what makes this interesting.
Endless Gestalts
Then he began to address the next question: how can this unique individual existence both maintain its own individualization and at the same time possess a universal, cosmic-level gestalt of overall consciousness?
What they form is not a chaotic organization, not a rabble, but a meaningful organization -- an endless gestalt. What is meant by an endless gestalt? It is layer upon layer, nested together from the smallest to the largest. For example, to put it simply, suppose your cells are already the smallest, then within the cells there are molecules, within the molecules there are atoms, and within the atoms there is no need to go further -- there are protons, neutrons, electrons, and so on. Does each of these things have its own consciousness? The Seth material has said before that molecules have molecular consciousness, and atoms have atomic consciousness. These tiny particles in turn form a small cell, and the small cell has cellular consciousness; the small cells in turn form organs and tissues, and then form a human body, and the human body also has human consciousness.
Each has its own consciousness, and each, according to a certain organization, becomes a meaningful structure. Then this structure has a larger consciousness, and this consciousness transcends its original consciousness: the consciousness of an organ is greater than the consciousness of a cell, and human consciousness is greater than the consciousness of an organ. And is the consciousness of your entity greater than the consciousness of you as an individual? Here, "greater" is not the kind of greater that comes from aggregation, but the kind of greater that comes from qualitative change, a change in different dimensions, a change in different levels of realization.
Then above the entity, is there something even greater? Of course there is. It goes up layer upon layer in this way, endlessly. So the essence of this universe exists in just such a state, nested together layer upon layer, you within me and I within you, the small within the large and the large within the small. It is not divided according to the normal sizes we understand. That is why Buddhism calls this state a realm of perfection -- so great that it has no outside, so small that it has no inside. With just this one short sentence, the entire formation of the universe, the relationship and role of us human beings within it, and the magnificent background of the whole universe are all made clear.
The Self-Awareness of the Consciousness Body
Seth went on to say:
In my other books, I have used many already accepted concepts as springboards, taking the reader to other levels of understanding. Here I want to say that this book will begin a journey in which what may seem familiar has been left far behind. But when I am finished, I hope you will find that the known reality becomes even more precious and more real, because you will discover that it is illuminated from within and without by the rich fabric of an unknown reality, and you will see that unknown reality emerge in the most intimate parts of daily life.
What this passage means is that in my other books I used concepts you could accept as springboards, taking you to a whole new level of understanding. But starting with this book, I am going to take you on a journey you have never experienced before, leaving far behind all those things you had just begun to get familiar with. Yet when I am finished, I hope you will not think that the unknown reality is more precious -- rather, through exploring the unknown reality, you will discover that this so-called known reality you now perceive, which is to say this present life, becomes even more precious and more real. Why? Because you will discover that this known reality you now perceive is in fact thoroughly illuminated from within and without by the rich fabric of an unknown reality that you did not know before but now do -- your known reality is born out of this unknown reality.
Teacher Xiyu gave an example: You cannot directly tell an uneducated country child that the air in front of him is transmitting millions of signal frequencies of all kinds to this world -- television, radio, military and police, internet, satellite, and so on. The child would open his eyes wide and look at you as if you were an idiot, watching you wave your arms around like a madman while you go on and on about communication theory and information theory, all the way to the latest 5G communication technology and satellite transmission, and then he would very sympathetically lead you to the most knowledgeable shaman in the village to have you looked at, because he would think you had surely gone insane.
The topics Seth unfolds in this book are already far too remote and unfamiliar to us. Those concepts, terms, and images are more complex than quantum mechanics, more bizarre than conscious photons, more uncertain of life and death than Schrodinger's cat. If you can follow this book through to the end of this feast of ideas, when you rise from the table belching with satisfaction and look back at the top scientists on Earth discussing the most profound contemporary cognitive thinking, what you will see is nothing more than a group of children in kindergarten competing over who can recite Tang poetry better.
Individually and collectively, your concepts of personhood limit you. Yet your religions, your metaphysics, your history, and even your science are all based on your concepts of who you are or what something is. Your psychology does not explain your own reality, nor can it encompass your experience. Your religion does not explain your greater reality either. And your science leaves you with a universe whose nature is just as material as you are.
There is no need to elaborate much on the meaning of this passage; it is all plain language. It is saying that we humans take ourselves far too seriously -- people place themselves, place this thing called humanity, or place their own consciousness above the universe. This way of thinking about things limits our ability to perceive what the true reality of this world really is. Because all your starting points, all the standpoints from which you consider problems, are built on the premise that "I am a human being," and you are always considering what is beneficial to this person, to society as a whole, to human civilization. You rarely have a larger cognitive perspective. Therefore, whether it is your science, your religion, or your various fields of learning, none of them has actually given a correct interpretation of the true reality of your world.
Hindsight Science
All the sciences and disciplines currently existing on Earth, without exception, are interpretations and analyses of phenomena that have already manifested. They are all working in a hindsight manner. It is like a meticulous screenwriter who wrote a science fiction script, which was made into a highly successful TV series, and then a group of experts, frame by frame, analyze the physical, chemical, humanistic, and psychological meanings and connections behind all the props and sets in the series, and on that basis establish theories and formulas, calling it empirical science. Every time the series is rebroadcast, these formulas and theories can be repeatedly verified as to how scientific they are. Although these are all very close to reality, they are not reality itself—they are merely creations made by the production team according to the needs of the script, and the script itself is also a product of imagination. We live in just such a TV series, doing our own science on various props and the spotlights of projections.
What this passage means is that this physical world of ours is a projection, or an image, or a manifestation, or a projection—different terms, but the meaning is the same—of things happening in a higher-dimensional world. Everything that happens in our world is a manifestation or projection of things happening in another world. Its root is not here; its cause is in another, higher-dimensional world. But if you stay in this world and use a magnifying glass to study why this happened and why that is the way it is, then you are like someone studying the truth within a TV series—it is meaningless.
These organizations and disciplines are composed of individuals, and each one is limited by his or her own limited conception of private reality. So we will begin with personal reality, and we will always return to it. The concepts in this book are intended to expand each reader's private reality. They may seem mysterious or complex, but anyone who is determined to understand the nature of the self and the unknown elements of the larger world is capable of reaching them.
This passage addresses two issues. The first is that the organizations in this world—scientific, psychological, philosophical, physical, biological, chemical, astronomical, geographical, and so on—these disciplines seem very impressive, but each one of them is composed of individual persons, and this is the greatest limitation. No matter how smart you are, you have to start learning from one plus one. The height of your understanding of this world depends on the degree of knowledge you can master within your lifetime.
Our knowledge can be accumulated, but wisdom cannot be accumulated. This is the most frightening thing. We can write knowledge down and accumulate it. Thanks to networks and computers, we can preserve all the knowledge learned in the past, but wisdom cannot be handled that way. A person must start from the beginning to learn his or her own wisdom. Each person's understanding of the world, this wisdom, must be personal. We cannot form a collective one.
For example, you study this, I study that, and in the end we piece it together to form a larger understanding of the whole world—with more than seven billion people on the planet, each person studying a small piece, like a supercomputer, we could quickly obtain the truth of this world. But that is not how it works. Our understanding of the truth of the world depends on a few extremely brilliant minds, people like Einstein. The height of their understanding of the world determines the height of all humanity's understanding of the world. If we do not produce a few more people like Einstein, then humanity's understanding of the world can only remain at a relatively limited stage. This is the sorrow of us humans. But there is no way around it, because after all, this world is made up of you—you determine what this world is like, because you create your own reality.
So Seth says, we begin with each person's reality, and ultimately we must return to it. When each person's understanding is raised, the understanding of all humanity is raised as well. The concepts in this book are meant to expand each reader's personal reality. Studying the Seth material does not require a very high degree of wisdom or specialized knowledge. Generally, a high school education is enough for a basic understanding. There are no formulas, no mathematical calculations, no very complex theoretical systems.
Personal Reality Is Always Personal
In this world, there is actually only you in it, and everything you see and hear is not at all the same as what others see and hear.
For example, when a group of people look at the sun together, each person seems to be looking at the same sun, but in reality, each person's visual understanding of roundness is different, their perception of brightness is different, and their feelings about the sunlight's color, intensity, and even temperature vary enormously. Every person's perception of color, perception of sound, perception of touch, perception of shape, perception of texture, and perception of taste all have clear differences.
Everyone reaches a consensus to call a certain shape a circle, to call a certain color yellow, to call a certain temperature hot, and then they chat happily together. In fact, the circle and the yellow that each person sees, and the heat that each person feels, are all different. Personal reality is always personal; although it is very cleverly hidden by collective cognition, it is indeed different.
It is like when you can go shopping for clothes with a friend, and after a whole afternoon, you still do not know that he is colorblind — the green in his eyes is named yellow, and the pink in your eyes is also named yellow. The two of you make comments about that yellow skirt, when in fact the green and pink on this skirt are very poorly matched. Both people live behind their own sensory filters, distorting a reality world that has already been distorted once. This leads to the inevitable conclusion that civilizations built upon the outer senses will all, without exception, necessarily move toward a distorted ending.
Seth hopes that his readers can begin to see the world with their hearts, to evaluate this world with the inner senses, and gradually become accustomed to freeing themselves from the disturbances of the outer five skandhas.
These five skandhas are a term from Buddhism: form, feeling, perception, mental formations, and consciousness. Buddhism holds that these five skandhas are internal, that they are inner things. That is to say, when you see something, it is not that you really see it with your eyes, but rather that the eye-consciousness portion within your form skandha sees it through the eye faculty. But when you close your eyes, you still have images in your mind — I say red apple, and you immediately picture that red apple, even though there is no red apple in front of you at that moment. That is your eye-consciousness emerging.
There is a very interesting explanation: you see a beautiful woman walking toward you. That is a "form" — the eye sees an image. This form skandha gives you this cognition: a beautiful woman is walking over. Then you have "feeling" — you feel whether this beauty is pretty or ugly. The feeling part is still within yourself; you feel she is very beautiful and very pleasant. Once you start "perceiving," once you start using your brain, you think: if I could get to know this beauty, maybe in the future she could develop into a girlfriend. Once this form-feeling-perception is done, then "mental formations" begin — you go up and strike up a conversation: "Hey beautiful, do you have WeChat? Can I add you?" The beauty takes one look and thinks, isn't this a hooligan? Who would pay attention to you? She turns and walks away. And at this point, on the final level of "consciousness," the man discovers that this act of rejection has given him a new feeling; he recognizes that this is an act of rejection, and this matter is hopeless. But this process begins a new cycle again, because the woman's act of rejection starts a new round of form-feeling-perception-mental formations-consciousness.
In our minds, these five skandhas are always churning and operating ceaselessly. So in the Heart Sutra23, it says: when you illuminate and see that the five skandhas are all empty, you can attain prajna wisdom. This is the same as what is said here: as long as you free yourself from the disturbances of the outer five skandhas, you can attain a higher level of wisdom.
The Origin of This Book
This book had a private beginning: the death of Jane Roberts's husband (Rob)'s mother, on November 19, 197326. Because after Rob's mother died, he wanted to understand more. In this session, February 4, 197427, he brought out some old photographs.
Descriptions of life after death are usually consistent with the old concepts of the self that are generally accepted, as well as with limited concepts of personality and individuality. However, I took that opportunity to begin such a book.
Seth said the origin of this book was that after Rob's mother died, he took out old photographs, and by looking at the old photographs and analyzing the possibilities of this life, he used that to discuss the question of the world after his mother's death.
While he lived in the flesh, his "self" was multidimensional; it was a triumph of spiritual and psychological essence, constantly selecting its own clear and unwavering focus from countless probable realities. When you do not recognize this point, you project all your old misunderstandings onto life after death. You expect the dead to be not much different from the living, if you truly believe in an afterlife, but perhaps calmer, more understanding, and possibly, if luck is on your side, wiser.
What this passage means is that while you are alive, this "self" of yours is itself multidimensional, and it is a triumph of its spiritual and psychic essence. It selects, from countless probable realities, the focus it wants to experience and feel.
But when you do not recognize this point, you project all your old misunderstandings onto life after death. While you are alive, all the experiences of your life are chosen by yourself. If you do not recognize this point, you will project all your so-called regrets, misunderstandings, dissatisfactions, and resentments from before death onto life after death, wanting to settle them after death—for example, in the next reincarnation, or in a final judgment where you are directly received into heaven by God. Then you feel that after death is not much different from being alive. If there really is life after death, it should be similar to being alive, perhaps a bit better—calmer, more understanding, wiser than being alive.
But is that really how it is? No. Because while you are alive, everything is chosen by yourself, and those regrets are also chosen by yourself.
Life is simply the continuous shifting of the focus point of consciousness, stringing together the experiences of the same role in different periods, which become your memories. These roles are not necessarily the same individual within the same continuous dimension of reality. It is like watching certain TV series where each season has an independent story: even if you do not connect them by their numbering, it does not affect your viewing experience in the least, and you may not even know how many episodes and how many different versions of this TV series are available to choose from. You simply picked the subject matter that interested you and watched it.
If you use linear, conventional concepts of life to imagine and understand the life process after death, then the life of the deceased will also be bound by the limitations of their own pre-death cognition. If you believe you have an afterlife, perhaps that can bring good fortune, allowing you to cleverly avoid lingering for a long time in the confusion after death.
Teacher Xiyu uses a multidimensional parallel spacetime approach to break through this confusion. You yourself exist in multiple parallel spacetimes; the different things you experience in different spacetimes, strung together, become the experiences and memories of your life. In fact, they are different events experienced by different selves in different spacetimes. Based on your own preferences and interests, you select and choose them, stringing them into your one life. After death it is the same: the world after your death is the same as the world of your life. If while alive you were restricted by this linear time, then your life after death is also restricted by this limitation. If while alive you can recognize—why are we studying The "Unknown" Reality? It is to expand our cognition, broaden the width of consciousness, and remove all limitations—then after death you will also give yourself liberation, knowing that after death you can also move through these parallel spacetimes and make choices.
The fact is that in life you are delicately yet perfectly suspended between realities, and after death you are the same.
In fact, the process of life is not a linear continuity, but a series of seamless switches between parallel worlds of different frequencies and different segments of stories. You are like a player constantly switching within a matrix of probabilities. It is like capital injected into the stock market, continuously entering and exiting, rising and falling under the names of different companies, yet never leaving this virtual financial system called the stock market. The deceased after death likewise have not truly left this operating system. It is only we humans who make the distinction between life and death, and the distinction between parallel worlds. But for one parallel world, that person may already be dead.
I therefore took that opportunity to explain the great freedom Rob's mother could attain after death, but also to explain those elements within her reality that, while she was still alive, were closed to her consciously, due to humanity's concepts of the nature of the psyche.
These parts, while she was alive, her consciousness could perceive them, but on her conscious level they were closed to her. Yet at her deeper level, she already knew them.
An individual who has departed from so-called life becomes a good target for our attention.
The experiences of Rob's mother in the state of the deceased, and the perceptions that were blocked from her consciousness during her life, will bring us tremendous inspiration.
I occasionally criticize those family photographs, including photographs of Jane. But any reader can look at their own old photographs and ask the same questions, and what is said here can be applied to private experience.
Seth means that while I am using Rob and Jane's old photographs to discuss the matters of their family, he is saying: do not just sit there listening to other people's family stories. Can you look through the old photographs in your own home, analyze them according to my method, try applying it to yourself, and use it in your private experience?
The unknown reality is the known equivalent of you.
The world we have already experienced and formed into memory, the world we have not experienced, and the part of past memory blocked by self-consciousness—these three parts together form the complete reality system. And the part of your memory that can still be read is the known part within it. The past world (the world formed into memory), the world not experienced, and the world blocked by self-consciousness—these three together form a complete reality system. And the others—the unexperienced future world and the past world blocked by self-consciousness—all belong to the unknown part for you.
Know yourself, then. As you become familiar with these concepts, your consciousness will expand. You yourself represent those already-realized portions of your existence. My voice rises from the level of the psyche in which you also share experience, so listen to your own knowing.
Expanding from the Known
Everyone has already put in efforts that, to some degree, have achieved a small portion of cognition regarding unknown reality. Each of our own personal explorations will amount to a new exploration and cognition of unknown reality. We will use these existing cognitions as a basis for discussion, and you will effectively expand the range of what you can cognize.
People always come to know a world by starting from the known parts, gradually enlarging the range of their cognition, and touching unfamiliar things bit by bit. You cannot bring it into a completely unfamiliar environment, because then it would have no connection at all with its previous cognitive system, and it would not be able to learn anything, since it would be difficult for it to establish a new cognitive system. So Seth will make use of some foundations already achieved within the listeners' inner selves, using the parts we already cognize as a foundation, to build a gateway to the boundless universe.
And your soul will sing along with it, awakening the hymn of your individual consciousness.
This passage is actually not too difficult to understand, but as the preface to the entire book, it provides a grand background, giving us a general expectation and understanding of the whole book.
注释与核实
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This claim could not be verified. ↩
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This claim could not be verified. ↩
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This claim could not be verified. ↩
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Source: Jane Roberts, The Early Sessions: Book 1 of The Seth Material, 2012 (https://www.nowdictation.com/q/book%3Ates1%2Bsession%3A1%2BFrank/) ↩
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Source: Robert F. Butts, The “Unknown” Reality: A Seth Book (https://www.crisrieder.org/thejourney/storage/2025/02/Seth_Jane_Roberts_The_Unknown_Reality_Vol.pdf) ↩
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Source: Seth Center, A Guide to the Seth Material (https://sethcenter.com/the-seth-book-guide/) ↩
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Source: Jane Roberts, The Early Sessions: Book 1 of The Seth Material (https://nowdictation.com/q/book%3Ates1%2Bsession/20/) ↩
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Source: Robert F. Butts, The “Unknown” Reality: Volume One (https://www.nowdictation.com/q/book%3Aur1%2Bheading%3A%27introductory%2Bnotes%2Bby%2Brobert%2Bf%2Bbutts%27%2Bletter/) ↩
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Source: Paul F. Cunningham, A Contribution to the Study of the Possession Trance Mediumship of Jane Roberts, 2019 (https://www.parapsychologypress.org/_files/ugd/82c4a8_52613509c02e4a05ae082ae97e48b99c.pdf) ↩
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Source: Robert F. Butts, The “Unknown” Reality: Volume One, Introduction (https://www.nowdictation.com/q/book%3Aur1%2Bheading%3A%27introductory%2Bnotes%2Bby%2Brobert%2Bf%2Bbutts%27%2Bletter/) ↩
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Source: Jane Roberts, The Nature of Personal Reality, 1974 (https://www.universeresearch.org/uploads/2/0/6/3/20639392/jane_roberts-the_nature_of_personal_reality.pdf) ↩
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According to Mike's original words, "Jane grew up attending Catholic church schools"; upon verification, it should be "Jane Roberts attended public schools; only for most of 1940 through the first half of 1941, because her mother was hospitalized, she stayed in a strictly managed Catholic orphanage in Troy, New York." (Source: Wikipedia, Jane Roberts, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Roberts) ↩
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Source: Jane Roberts, The “Unknown” Reality, Volume One (https://www.crisrieder.org/thejourney/storage/2025/02/Seth_Jane_Roberts_The_Unknown_Reality_Vol.pdf) ↩
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Source: Books.com.tw, Adventures in Consciousness, 2014 (https://www.books.com.tw/products/0010622230?loc=P_0003_057) ↩ ↩2
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Source: Planck Data Center, Refining the Ingredients of Our Universe, 2013 (https://planck.ipac.caltech.edu/image/planck13-001e) ↩
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According to Mike's original words, "13.4 billion light-years"; upon verification, it should be "The age of the universe is about 13.8 billion years, not 13.4 billion light-years; 'light-year' is a unit of distance." (Source: NASA, What Is the Big Bang?, 2021, https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/big-bang/en/) ↩
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Source: Wikipedia, Observable universe (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe) ↩
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Source: NASA, How Big is Space? We Asked a NASA Expert: Episode: 61, 2025 (https://www.nasa.gov/science-research/astrophysics/how-big-is-space-we-asked-a-nasa-expert-episode-61/) ↩
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According to Mike's original words, "the solar system is less than one light-year"; upon verification, it should be "If the outer edge of the Oort Cloud is taken as the boundary of the solar system, the solar system extends about 1.87 light-years from the Sun to the edge, with a diameter of about 3.74 light-years, exceeding one light-year." (Source: NASA, What is a light-year?, https://science.nasa.gov/exoplanets/what-is-a-light-year/) ↩
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Source: International Astronomical Union, Resolution B2: Re-definition of the Astronomical Unit of Length, 2012 (https://www.iau.org/static/resolutions/IAU2012_English.pdf) ↩
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Source: Google Books, The Masters of Limitation: An ET's Observations on Earth, 2020 (https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Masters_of_Limitation.html?id=Jc1izQEACAAJ) ↩
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This claim could not be verified. ↩
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Source: The Palace Museum, The Qianlong Emperor's Transcription of the Heart Sutra (https://www.dpm.org.cn/journal_detail/114992.html) ↩ ↩2
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According to Mike's original words, "Gestalt"; upon verification, it should be "The more accurate claim of Gestalt psychology is that 'the whole is different from the sum of its parts,' rather than 'the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.'" (Source: Johan Wagemans et al., A Century of Gestalt Psychology in Visual Perception II. Conceptual and Theoretical Foundations, 2012, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3728284/) ↩
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Source: Netflix, Watch Lucy (2014) (https://www.netflix.com/sg-zh/title/70307658) ↩
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According to Mike's original words, "November 19, 1973"; upon verification, it should be "Oral Roberts's mother, Claudia Priscilla Roberts, died in April 1974, not on November 19, 1973." (Source: The New York Times, Oral Roberts's Mother Dies, 1974, https://www.nytimes.com/1974/04/19/archives/oral-robertss-mother-dies.html) ↩
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Source: Jane Roberts and Robert F. Butts, The “Unknown” Reality, Volume One (https://www.crisrieder.org/thejourney/storage/2025/02/Seth_Jane_Roberts_The_Unknown_Reality_Vol.pdf) ↩