The Balance between Form and Essence

Purpose
The purpose of Form is to allow the Mind to function in a rational, linear fashion.  Form gives the cascading thought process something to do. We use Form to explain to people things they can accept based on their prior understanding and experience. In a way, all Form involves symbols. Each symbol stands for something else; a more refined idea.  Greek philosophers assumed every Form in the world was an expression of an ‘ideal form’. This was a non-physical concept, similar to Sheldrake’s idea of the ‘Morphogenic (not ‘genetic’, by the way…) field’; a template that ‘in-forms’ all physical things and concepts, or thought forms.
The Purpose of Essence is to go beyond form; to interpret, as it were, the symbol the Form represents. Once we perceive the Essence of a symbol, the learning can be transferred to other situations, or Forms.  We become aware of Principles, which we then begin to perceive working around us through various Forms. Our perception becomes wider and more inclusive, tending toward wholeness. This awareness helps pull us out of the gravitational pull of Form.

Process
The processes involved at the level of Form can be tedious and laborious, as usually these processes involve a chain of cause-and-effect perceptions tied or limited to assumptions based on the past.  As such, those caught in Form often find their energy drained by dealing exclusively with Form, and often find themselves repeating the same processes over and over. This can lead to emotional and mental stagnation and ultimately depression. People who believe life is simple a parade of the ’same old same old’ are likely stuck in Form.  This belief operates as a self-fulfilling prophesy. Modern rational education is a good example of the process of Form. As I recall, ‘education’, for the most part, involved a flood of endless data, all seemingly disconnected with no central purpose…data for data’s sake.  What real learning took place seemed to be in spite of this process.
With Essence, we find a relaxation into the acknowledgement that information, and thus learning, are limitless. And what data can lead us to, again, is the recognition of central organizing principles. These principles, once discovered, are always simple and easy to understand. This is the principle of ‘Occam’s Razor’, which states ‘One should not increase, beyond what is necessary, the number of ideas required to explain anything’. In other words, True Principles are typically elegant and simple, and serve to explain a multitude of Forms.
Expectation
In Form, the expectation is that the Future will be exactly like the Past. The mind focused on Form needs certainty, and so will strive to re-create in its experience what it already knows, or assumes, to be true. A good example of this would be the ’sacred’ principles of the Scientific Method, including ‘results must be repeatable to be considered true’. Of course, results are not usually repeatable, due to the countless number of changing influences in any event, along with the ‘hidden’ effect of the observer and their unconscious expectation, as proven by Quantum Mechanics. Thus the ‘true believer’ in Form as absolute is constantly dealing with the frustration bred by uncertainty. This is in part due to the fact that another part of the Mind is striving to break free of Form, but in it’s denial of freedom the mind ‘splits’ creating a high level of inner conflict and turmoil.
The expectation of an Essence-based consciousness is much more open and fluid; ready to accept the novel and creative. As such, this view will create an experience of deeper and deeper levels of understanding and appreciation, which is ultimately much more satisfying. What were formerly seen as irreconcilable differences or opposites now collapse into a state of ‘friendly paradox’, where former opposites meet in mutual co-existence. There will come a point of release where the Mind finally breaks free of the Gravity of Form, and perceives for the first time the vastness of open Space, where anything and everything is possible.

Reference
The focus of Form is on the external…knowledge and experience must come from outside in the form of other’s knowledge through books, teachings, etc. Here is where the reliance on ‘experts’ leads many to underestimate their own knowledge and wisdom. This external reference easily casts one in the role of a ‘victim of circumstance’ and is inherently disempowering.  There is a hidden aspect of hierarchy and control when you look at the societal ramifications of an external reference. Populations are much more compliant and easily led into prescribed roles if they believe that their own self-referral is meaningless.  Ultimately, an external reference, through denial of inner reality, leaves one in the existential funk of the early philosophers of the early 20th century…’God is Dead and Life is Meaningless’
With a focus on Essence, reference is turned inward toward one’s own processes and wisdom. A key to coming to this point is an appreciation of the true nature of perception. If one were to watch a film and a flaw showed up on the screen, going up and rubbing the changing picture would lead quickly to frustration. When one realizes the problem is with the projector, cleaning the lens solves the problem once and for all.  We are the projectors of our perceptions, not the screens on which they appear to happen. Seek not to change the movie, but go back to the source and change that. The projector is, of course, the Mind. Once this is established, our perceptions then become our teachers, teaching us more about the nature of the projector. We find that ‘unlearning’ becomes more satisfying than more learning. As we unlearn our former unconscious assumptions, the picture gets clearer and clearer. This is experienced as clearer and deeper understandings, insights, and ultimately, gratitude.