There are people who are in love with the spiritual worlds, but as a stimulation not as a goal that demands much investment of hard work over a long period of time.
They refuse to work for it, they insist on consuming it, it is an unending source for inspiration and excitement for them, like children in a playground (infantile approach). They go against the idea that spirituality is like agriculture; in order to have fruits – much work over a long time – has to proceed it.
They can spend 30 years studying and practicing spirituality, but they cannot overcome their stubborn antagonism against the idea of hard work on oneself.
Each person has got a ‘ceiling’ and a ‘floor’ – the ‘ceiling’ is the spiritual world, and the ‘floor’ is what he has to work on in himself. The object of self-work is ‘to raise’ the floor as close to the ceiling as possible, no inner work – will maintain a great distance between them both, that will cause him to crash down all the time and all the way, from his high inspiration down to the reality of who he really is (floor).
One good example of neglecting the floor is the degree to which a person is allowing himself to take things personally; how many things and how quickly they make him become personally involved. The more he neglects his floor – the greater would be the gap between his floor and ceiling. If the degree to which he takes things personally – remains the same during his spiritual journey – then he is only playing with spirituality, but it is not a serious journey. He is eventually going nowhere.
*
He who wants knowledge must himself make the initial efforts to find the source of knowledge and to approach it, taking advantage of the help and indications which are given to all, but which people, as a rule, do not want to see or recognize. Knowledge cannot come to people without effort on their own part.
George Gurdjieff
The energy spent on active inner work is then and there transformed into a fresh supply, but that spent on passive work is lost forever.
George Gurdjieff
One of the best means for arousing the wish to work on yourself is to realize that you may die at any moment. But first you must learn how to keep it in mind.
George Gurdjieff
Gabriel