"...this Sacred-Triamazikamno consists of three independent forces, which are called: the first, 'Surp-Otheos'; the second, 'Surp-Skiros' the third, 'Surp-Athanotos'; which three holy forces of the sacred Triamazikamno the said science calls as follows: the first, the 'Affirming-force' or the 'Pushing-force' or simply the 'Force-plus'; the second, the 'Denying-force' or the 'Resisting-force' or simply the 'Force-minus' and the third, the 'Reconciling-force' or the 'Equilibrating-force' or the 'Neutralizing-force'." - Gurdjieff, Beelzebub's Tales to his Grandson (1949), 4203 XXXIX.
In Beelzebub’s Tales we are told that man can absorb and transmute for his own benefit the three holy forces contained in the Omnipresent-Substance Okidanokh. These three forces are the Holy-Affirming or first force, the Holy-Denying or second-force, and the Holy-Reconciling or third force.
The Omnipresent-Okidanokh or Omnipresent-Active-Element is a very interesting substance. It is the only cosmic substance that obtains its arising from the fusion of the three Holy Forces of the Sacred Theomertmalogos, after this prime emanation of our Most Holy Sun Absolute acquires its own Sacred Triamazikamno. This substance then “takes part in the formation of all both great and small arisings. . .“ (Beelzebub’s Tales p. 138 – All subsequent quotes are from the Tales). This substance is omnipresent and everywhere penetrating. But “no results of any kind normally obtained from the processes occurring though this Omnipresent World-substance can ever be perceived by beings or sensed by them; certain being-functions however can perceive only those results of the said processes which proceed for some reason or other abnormally, on account of causes coming from without and issuing either from conscious sources or from accidental mechanical results.” (P. 153). Now, all this is very interesting. Even amazing and even funny, I would say.
The form-giving inherency of the Omnipresent-Active-Element relies on one of its peculiarities, namely, Djartklom. When the Omnipresent-Substance enters a cosmic unit in formation, “it is dispersed into the three fundamental sources from which it obtained its prime arising.” “And in this way, this Omnipresent-Active-Element actualizes, at the outset, in every such new arising, the sources for the possible manifestation of its own sacred law of Triamazikamno.” (P. 140).
Without Djartklom, no cosmic unit of the Universe could have the possibility of acquiring its own Sacred Traimazikamno. One condition under which Djartklom takes place, is under regulation of the process of Nature described as “The-obtaining-of-the-required-totality-of-vibrations-by-adaptation.” (P. 144). This process of Great Nature “proceeds in beings absolutely without the participation of their consciousness.” This, of course, is what we call evolution by natural selection. It is through this process that there arises the “one-brained,” “two-brained,” and “three-brained” beings. A brain is crystallized from one or another of the holy forces localized in the Omnipresent-Okidanokh, acting exclusively as an affirming source. This explains the difference between the three types of brain-systems.
Man is a three-brained system is a constant theme in Beelzebub’s Tales. We have three brains: the thinking brain, the moving brain, and the feeling brain. Each brain is a center of consciousness that participates in man’s global functioning and the exchange of substances constantly and continuously taking place between man and his environment which extends all the way to include the needs of Great Nature. Each brain has a specific localization in man’s organism. The thinking brain is localized in the head; the moving brain is localized in the spine; and great part of the feeling brain is localized in the solar plexus. Each brain in man is a channel for actualization of each of the three holy forces present in the Omnipresent-Okidanokh. The thinking brain for actualization of the holy-affirming; the moving brain for actualization of the holy-denying; and the feeling brain for actualization of the holy-reconciling.
The practical implication of all this is that man can absorb through each one of his three brains each of the three holy forces present in the Omnipresent-Active-Element. This is so because another specific condition that gives rise to Djartklom, one of extreme importance for us striving for inner development, is the results of the conscious and intentional fulfillment of being-Partkdolg-duty (“conscious labors” and “intentional suffering”). It is through this way of achieving Djartklom that we are in the position of absorbing, for further transmutation, the three holy forces present in the Omnipresent-Okidanokh and contained in the three being-foods. In this way, we can acquire our own sacred law of Triamazikamno. That is why in the Tales “conscious labors” and “intentional suffering” are clearly identified as the first and second conscious shocks (P. 792).
The tragedy for contemporary man is that because of “the abnormal conditions of external being-existence” men little by little created for themselves, only the holy-denying force is now absorbed and transmuted in man. This heavy indictment is stated in the following two statements found on page 147 of the book:
“And so, my boy, the process of Djartklom in the Omnipresent-Okidanokh proceeds in the presence of each of these favorites of yours, and in them also, all its three holy forces are blended independently with other cosmic crystallizations, and go for the corresponding actualizations, but as, chiefly owing to the already mentioned abnormal conditions of being-existence gradually established by them themselves, they have entirely ceased to fulfill being-Partkdolg-duty, then, in consequence of this, none of those holy sources of everything existing, with the exception of the denying source alone, is transubstantiated for their own presences.
“The crystallizations arising in their presences from the first and from the third holy forces go almost entirely for the service only of the common-cosmic Trogoautoegocratic-process, while for the coating of their own presences there are only the crystallizations of the second part of the Omnipresent-Okidanokh, namely, of the ‘Holy-Denying’; and hence it is that the majority of them remain with presences consisting of the planetary body alone, and thus are, for themselves, destroyed forever.”
What can man do in order to avoid being only a planetary body and as such being destroyed forever? Obviously man has to fulfill being-Partkdolg-duty or “conscious labors” and “intentional suffering.” Only in this way and through the proper process of Djartklom in the Omnipresent-Okidanokh can man absorb and transmute for himself the holy-affirming and holy-reconciling forces contained in the three being foods, namely, organic food, air, and impressions.
Practically what is demanded from man is that every time he experiences a malfunctioning in his source of denials or functioning of his holy-denying force, that is to say, a malfunctioning in his spine, he throws in the holy-affirming force by activating his head brain. In this way, and this way only, can man absorb from the three being-foods the holy-affirming and holy-reconciling he now so much needs.
This is the true meaning of the ancient and venerable Science of Alchemy by which man can acquire his own law of Triamazikamno. In its most external form this alchemy is illustrated in the last pages of the chapter “The Arch-Preposterous” of Beelzebub’s Tales.
- Will Mesa -
Holy-Affirming,
Holy-Denying,
Holy-Reconciling,
Transubstantiate in me,
For my Being.
"Try to understand that resistance is according to law. If there is no resistance, there can be no struggle; there can be no new energy. Without production of new energy, there can be no possible contact with higher levels in ourselves. Struggle has to be accepted as the only means that we have for producing energy. Each time that we have a little new possibility is that a spark of another kind of energy has linked us with a different level of ourselves. Every moment of our asleep life we are like a man shut in the basement of a very big house who has no idea there is anything else than that dark, bad smelling basement he is used to. As soon as that spark of energy is used up, he is bound to find himself again in that basement. Struggle is necessary - there is resistance - and then I affirm more."
- (Inside a Question: Works of Henriette Lannes, Pupil of G.I. Gurdjieff, p. 200) -