WATERTOWN, N.Y. — Have you ever watched yourself as you suffered? Perhaps hurting through jealousy, anger, fear, boredom, insecurity, stress or worry. If you had done so, and watched yourself impartially without judgment, criticism or comment, something very interesting would have happened. The suffering would start to diminish. In an instant, you would have discovered a miracle: that escape from the Mechanical Mind, the Conditioned Mind, the suffering that millions unconsciously and needlessly subject themselves to every day, is possible and within your grasp. Robert Egby’s book “Cracking the Glass Darkly” (ISBN: 978-1-4343-4901-9) shows a way out.
The secret has been around since Plato, Socrates, Buddha, St. Paul and other ancient teachers. “It should be taught in schools,” says the author. “It would reduce conflict in homes, relationships, careers and the world in general.”
The problem is we are trained to identify with our suffering. The secret is to impartially observe it and watch what happens.
Egby, a long time metaphysical and spiritual teacher, fills the book with practical exercises for the beginner. Most people live in the past, re-running negative memories and scripts to hurt themselves, loved ones and others. Many live in the future, struggling with fears originating in the past. “It’s totally unnecessary and the way out is easy, but it must be practiced,” says Egby.
“The human ego, the false self within us, is made up of a multiplicity of faces such as anger, bitterness, revenge, fear, impatience, jealousy, insecurity, ignorance, discontent, despair and many, many more,” says the author. “You can actually watch faces changing minute by minute. People believe these faces, these personalities, yet they are total illusions. They are seen through a Glass Darkly.”
“Glass Darkly” is a phrase coined almost 2,000 years ago by St. Paul: “…but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass darkly.” (KJV 1 Corinthians 13) The glass darkly is the negative ego, otherwise known as the False Self or the Mechanical Mind.
Anger and Conflict Management training may help for a while, but sooner or later the negative faces return. Impartial awareness is the key to permanent dissolution, says Egby. Ancient teachings contained the truth but its realization was complicated. “I felt the need for a book in everyday language that accomplishes a breakout and a new direction.”
Some teachers such as Gurdjieff, Ouspensky, and recently Vernon Howard, described the Mechanical Mind as imposing a hypnotic existence on people. People say and do hurtful things to themselves and others, frequently repeating the same actions, and blaming it on their ancestors. You can test the power of Mechanical Mind. Ask a person to sign their name as if writing a letter, then ask them to copy it consciously, and most people find it impossible to forge their own signature. The Mechanical Mind knows how to do it exactly.
“Cracking the Glass Darkly: Discovering the Power and the Ecstasy of Your True, Cosmic Self” has four sections: (1) Breaking Free from the False Self; (2) How to recognize and enjoy the Here and Now, understanding there is no other time than Now. (3) Loving Yourself Unconditionally, understanding how “conditional love” is suffering imposed ruthlessly by the False Self. Once the truth is realized, one is free to love unconditionally, a phenomena that eliminates anxiety and hurt. Finally (4) The Path to Your Cosmic Self states that if you have an “idea” or “concept” about God, the Creator, Holy Spirit, Infinite Intelligence, it is more than likely based on images picked up from your past environment. In other words, your image of God was taught to you. It is someone else’s idea. And the Mechanical Mind reflects it.
Is this a religious book? Not a bit. However, you may well have a better understanding of your religion after reading it. To achieve cosmic consciousness, one must be free of viewing the God Force through a glass darkly and allow one’s own spiritual consciousness to open.
Author Robert Egby has taught the “Glass Darkly” theme and the teachings of the ancients for over 25 years. In his earlier life he was an international reporter and award-winning news photographer based in the Middle East, a broadcaster, editor and writer. In the introduction he describes his own sufferings and how he came to write the book. He is a hypnoanalyst, spiritual teacher and ordained minister and lives in Chaumont in upstate New York.
Book Summary:
Author: Robert Egby. “Cracking the Glass Darkly: Discovering the Power and the Ecstasy of Your True, Cosmic Self.” ISBN: 978-1-4343-4901-9 AuthorHouse.
“Cracking the Glass Darkly” is available on Amazon.com and at select book sellers.
