What we’re about
UPDATE: Group has shifted to a public style Meetup group on the following Meetup link, please become a member and continue to make the meetings, thanks: Philosophy; Self-Inquiry Group | Meetup [The last meeting on this group was held on September 10th, 2023]
This is a friendly confrontation group. The object of the work is to seek the answer to the "Who am I?" question. We use the tool of self-inquiry to retreat from errors in our thinking, through the critical examination of our beliefs and thinking processes. This process should and will prove itself along the way in proportion to the seeker's honesty, persistence, and commitment.
We hold meetings currently through the "Jitsi Meet" and "Zoom" online platforms advertised in the events section. To log into meetings, you need to become a member first by clicking on the "request to join" tab at the bottom of the page. Joining a meeting on the night, click on the upcoming event, where there will be a link to the meeting on the right-hand side as you scroll down that page. If you are having any difficulties with this, contact me, the organiser, using the Meetup messaging facility.
A meeting will be advertised at least a week in advance, where there is usually some stimulating material presented in the topic heading and meeting information to think about. Generally, on the night each participant is given a block of time of around 10 minutes (dependent upon the number of participants on the night) to share thoughts on the topic after which will be quizzed on their opinions for the following 10 minutes. This helps seekers to itemise areas in their perspective that may feel false or not fully understood and provides questions for the seeker to reflect on when the meeting is over. A pen and paper at the ready may be beneficial to record anything that resonates during the meetings to reflect on later.
Our main guidelines are:
- Own what you say. Use "I" statements rather than "you", "one" or "we". Depersonalizing avoids ownership of feelings, experiences, opinions, and issues, making change an uphill battle. By using the word “we”, it seeks validation and acceptance of others. “My” puts your truth before your need to fit in.
- Be honest with yourself and others.
- No one is obligated to share or do anything.
- Ask questions with a sincere desire to understand how the other person thinks.
- Do not give advice.
- Some participants generally ask if it is ok to leave their camera off and if that is the way they prefer it, that works fine.
- Do not try to convince anyone of anything or play God by preaching.
- When asking a question, do not make it about you (the questioner).
Examples of what’s not a question:
- “You’re wrong” is not a question.
- “I went through the same thing once, and here’s what happened to me” is not a question.
- “Just read this book and it will solve all your problems” is not a question.
Recommended books to read (also please give ratings for these books as the more ratings a book gets, it will appear more often in the searches):
Essential Books for the Spiritual Search | TAT Foundation Press
"There is no greater religion than human friendship" - Richard Rose