I’m just sick and tired of The Fourth Way. Do you know what I’m talking about? It’s the way people use the phrase, "The Fourth Way". It has become the name of something, but I don’t think this was its original use.
I think the fourth way was originally meant to describe a path of liberation, one path among others. It was not the name of the path, but a description of it. When you study the fourth way, one of the things you learn is that there are other paths to liberation:
1. The way of the fakir
2. The way of the monk
3. The way of the yogi
The first way describes a path where the disciples gain control over their bodies as a path to liberation. The second way describes a path where the disciples gain control over their emotions as a path to liberation. The third way describes a path where the disciples gain control over their intellect as a path to liberation. The fourth way describes a path that incorporates aspects of the three other paths. It is also known as the work, the way of the sly man, and the way of the good householder.
Earlier today I jokingly told my teacher that I keep expecting to see a TM after The Fourth Way one of these days, to indicate that somebody has claimed it as a trademark. You know what I mean – something like this:
The Fourth Way™
Well, guess what I found? Out of curiosity, I did an Internet search for The Fourth Way, and sure enough, I found a site whose title was this:
fourth way®
I don’t mean to take anything away from this site, because they have some good stuff there. And singling out one particular site is not my point.
My point is this: trying to put a path of liberation into a box is a mistake. By its very nature, a path of liberation must be allowed to take shape into the culture and language where it is being practiced. As that culture and language slowly changes, the path will appear to change as well. It doesn’t really change – all real esoteric teachings are about one thing only, and are, at their core, the same. Trying to standardize it only makes it weak. Just look at the practitioners of any highly organized religious or esoteric system. How many Christs or Buddahs do you see coming out of these types of systems? This is not to condemn them, because I honestly think they have their rightful place in society. But you can only get so far in a place like that. Look at the results of what they produce and I think you will agree.
A famous teacher said:
“The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
The wind is going to blow wherever it blows. We cannot standardize it. We cannot put a patent on the wind’s direction, speed, temperature, or humidity. So it is with esoteric teachings. They will go wherever they will go, and they will not be restrained. If we wish to really grow, we must be willing to follow them wherever they go.
It’s not so much that I’m sick of The Fourth Way, I guess, but I feel sad that we have such a hard time understanding what consciousness is and what it isn’t. Consciousness is not about becoming more mechanized, more processed, more cookiecutter-ish. It’s not about patenting a certain formula for liberation.
Life is like a sandstorm. It constantly influences us, influences our minds, so that we cannot see what is actually so. Try as we might to wipe the “sand” away (and we can wipe it away for small moments at a time), life blows it back, and we fall asleep to what we previously saw clearly. If we are making effort, this is a process that repeats over and over. Wiping away, wiping away. The sandstorm does not relent.
This is why we mustn't become mechanical in our efforts to become conscious. Proper work effort is always fresh and new, never stale. You see? Work effort is not like churning out hamburgers at McDonalds, or cars in Detroit. It’s more like the bread your grandma used to bake, from scratch and with fresh ingredients.
We must remember how to work rightly. We must make right effort to awaken. It won’t just happen.
J. Thieme is a student of James Parkinson, who is the teacher of Solid Rock Vista. Visit the Solid Rock Vista website, where you can listen to the free podcasts on esoteric principles and read essays written by some of James' students.
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