Be The Monet
Topics:
“Be The Monet”
“Being Careful: The Tyranny of the ‘Right Choice’”
Thursday, June 3, 2021 (Private/In Person)
Participants: Mary (Michael), Jean (Lyla), and Val (Atticus)
(Excerpt begins)
JEAN: Elias, I think something else we need to go into that you brought up – and when you brought it up I went, “Ah, this is significant” – is all the different ways I am being careful. Can you use me as a guinea pig, or even Val, if she wants – ?
VAL: Sure.
JEAN: And tell us how we insidiously are always being careful. Since you said that, I watch myself.
ELIAS: And what have you learned?
JEAN: (Laughs) I tend to be careful in a LOT of things! Like what you said, being careful in what you say, being careful in what you do, being careful with money. And I think you said something about being careful…did you say with my body or something? (Elias nods) Can you elaborate on that one, starting with that one? And does this pertain to her as well? Or is this just me?
VAL: (Humorously) I need to be more careful with my body! (Group erupts in laughter)
JEAN: I mean, speak to both of us, if it pertains to both of us. (Laughter continues)
ELIAS: I would say… (To Val) I would agree with you, (all laughing) but I would say for you, yes, you are careful with your body: how you pay attention to it, how you pay attention to your appearance, how you engage with your body. You are careful to… (slight pause) do actions to maintain a certain appearance – which is very different from regeneration. Regeneration is moving in the direction of genuinely knowing and recognizing that your body consciousness regenerates naturally, and catching yourself whenever you move in directions that are contrary to that.
But then there are many actions that you do in relation to yourself, to your appearance, that you are careful to maintain – [in order] to MAINTAIN an appearance. Therefore, you are careful about what you eat, what you do in your exercising, whether your exercising is also including some aspect of spirituality. I would say that there are a lot of manners in which you are careful.
(Slight pause) Being careful, for some people, such as yourself, is a state of being; it isn't simply something that you do. It's something that you've learned to such a degree that it’s become a state of being, and therefore you're careful with everything. You THINK in careful terms; you THINK carefully. And in that, that in itself is something that would require considerable paying attention to and catching yourself.
Let me express to you, when a person moves in the direction of creating a state of being, in being careful, the motivation behind that is always being on edge – always being in a state of checking yourself of whether you’re right or not. This type of being careful is verrrry much linked to rightness: “Being wrong is dangerous and can hurt you, and therefore, it's very important to be right.” And I don't mean being right necessarily in the sense of (pause) in general what's right and what's wrong. More so, what I am saying about THIS type of right is the type of right that… (pause) keeps you safe.
VAL: Would it be the type of right that limits choices, or…?
ELIAS: Oh, it definitely limits choices!
VAL: “Am I making the right choice?”
ELIAS: Yes, correct.
JEAN: The tyranny of the right choice.
ELIAS: Correct. It DEFINITELY is limiting! It is TREMENDOUSLY limiting, because you're ALWAYS being on edge, you're always considering, you're always questioning. You’re always wondering, “Is this the right direction? Is this the right choice? Is this the right expression? Is this the right action?” and never quite knowing what the right direction is, what the right choice is – because it's all based in outside sources. It's all based in other people, other situations, and what outside expectations are: What do other people expect of you, what do other people want from you, what do other people perceive about you? Everything is about these outside sources.
You wanted to experiment and move in the direction of modeling, and the reason that that is not necessarily materializing in the manner that you wanted is because there is a lot of carefulness in that too: “What does everyone want of me? What is the expectation?” It's not about you, it's not about what you want, it's not about your appreciation of yourself and sharing that – it's about “What does everyone else want?”
JEAN: Yes. Yes.
ELIAS: “How can I BE what they want me to be?”
VAL: Therefore be successful.
ELIAS: Yes. Yes. That's all being careful. Because you are MOLDING yourself – or trying to mold yourself – to outside expectations, or outside wants, or outside perceptions. It will NEVER be successful in that direction.
When you are tremendously successful is when you do for you because you WANT to, and because you LOVE to. (Pause)
VAL: It kind of comes full circle, doesn’t it?
ELIAS: Once again, I would use my example of painters. Monet was tremendously successful in his lifetime. He was a tremendously successful painter. He was successful in life, he was successful in his creativity, he was successful in his family. He definitely did not want for money. Why? Because he loved his own art. He loved his own painting. He expressed confidence in his own painting. He genuinely appreciated his own work! In that, he painted because he loved to paint, and because he loved what he painted. And in that, he became tremendously successful.
There are many artists – painters – that their paintings became very successful after they died. Why? Because they were NOT satisfied with them, because they didn't like what they did because they never quite allowed themselves to be confident in their own expression and genuinely appreciate their own creativity, their own expression; therefore, the “starving artist” and the reputation of painters to BE starving artists, or writers to be starving artists. Why? Because they're never satisfied with their own expression. And when they're not satisfied with their own expression, their own expression isn't recognized until after they die! That doesn't mean that their own expression wasn't valuable or wouldn't be appreciated, but not necessarily during their lifetime, because they couldn't appreciate it. What I would say to you, in that, is this is the key, is NOT being careful.
And some artists – Picasso, definitely very successful within his own lifetime. Also not what you would necessarily view to be, or in most of your beliefs, a nice individual (group laughter). Definitely a narcissist. (Chuckles) But also definitely successful in his own lifetime – tremendously successful. Why? Because he genuinely appreciated his own expression – his talent, his creativity – and therefore, so did the world.
Now; in this, this is the lesson, is that when you know you are good, when YOU know you have something to share, when YOU are satisfied and happy with you, other people will be also. They will all follow. THAT is the key. That is the base.
Let me express to you also, in relation to models: If you actually look at any of the models that are tremendously – or were tremendously – famous, without all of the makeup and without all of the attire and without all of the hairdressing, they actually appear to be somewhat ordinary.
JEAN: Absolutely.
ELIAS: They don't appear to be tremendously strikingly beautiful, more so than any other individual. They have a confidence in themself, and they believe that they have something to share. And they believe they're different. They MAKE themselves different, and they're not careful.
In that, I would say that it is a matter of paying attention, watching what you do, watching your behavior, looking at each time you're being careful – which may be many times a day – and then, in the same manner as I expressed earlier this day, stopping momentarily and questioning yourself, “What are you afraid of is going to happen to you? What do you think is going to happen to YOU if you're not careful? What awful, horrible thing will happen?”
And let me say to you, sometimes the things that you're careful about, you're careful for present reasons, not for past reasons – such as with your partner – but the more careful you are, the more you encourage the thing you're afraid of.
JEAN: Right, right.
ELIAS: Therefore, when you ask yourself “What am I afraid of that's going to happen to me if I'm not careful?”, remind yourself in those types of situations that the BEING careful is what makes that happen; it isn't the other way around. And then in situations that are reactive or responsive, and then you're being careful AFTER the fact, stop in those moments also and ask yourself that question, “What am I afraid of is going to happen? Obviously, I'm afraid that what already happened is going to continue to happen if I'm not careful.” No, if you are not careful, if you are not moving in the direction of shrinking, then the other individual (whispering) doesn't have control.
(Excerpt ends after 20 minutes 50 seconds)
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