The Art of Presence

"The six essays in this book are based on meetings or other events which were held between 2005 and 2010. This was a period of rapid change in the Fellowshipís teaching, and each essay was written in response to a perceived challenge which students faced as a consequence of that change. In effect, this book provides a series of snapshots of the process of one-by-one identifying and overcoming some of those challenges. ... During the three decades following its founding in 1970, the teachings of the Fellowship were based on my Teacher's interpretation of the system expounded in the works of Peter Ouspensky, primarily In Search of Miraculous and The Fourth Way. Although it always had the ultimate aim of awakening higher states of consciousness, the teaching initially focused on the study of the four lower centers and the creation of a steward. By the year 2000, however, as the being of the students grew, the teaching began to move beyond Ouspensky's presentation to focus more on ways in which a mature steward could engage and prolong those higher states, which came to be called presence." From "Author's Introduction", The Art of Presence