The strange idea that men are differently sown into the earth, in the light of the Parable of the Sower.
“You must realize that all the parables in the Gospels are about the Kingdom of Heaven and the parable of the Sower is the first. It is the starting−point of Christ’s teaching about the mystery of the Kingdom.” Maurice Nicoll, The New Man, p201
“In the parable of the Sower it can be seen that the first mystery is that Man is sown on to the earth as material for the Kingdom of Heaven. What is really meant? What did the sower sow? He sowed men. This is the first startling idea, hidden in the parable. Men are sown on earth as material for the Kingdom of Heaven—some by the wayside, some on rocky ground, some among thorns and some on good soil. It is only those in the last class that are capable of undergoing that inner evolution that brings them to the level of the Kingdom. It is plain that men are meant, because in his private explanation of the parable to his disciples Christ says: ‘When anyone heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the evil one, and snatcheth away that which hath been sown in his heart. This is he that was sown by the wayside.’ (Matt, xiii, 19. ) And he goes on to speak of ‘he that was sown on rocky ground’ and ‘he that was sown among thorns’ and ‘he that was sown upon the good ground’. In the light of the Kingdom of Heaven, then, humanity on earth is an experiment in inner evolution.” The New Man, p202.
“A literal-minded person may think that an actual sower went forth to sow and actual seed fell on stony ground, etc. but the whole parable of the Sower and the Seed transcends the words completely and passes into the language of Higher Emotional Center which uses only images and so is universally understandable—i.e. we see the beginning of a universal language which is the language of Higher Emotional Center.” Maurice Nicoll, Psychological Commentaries, p356
“The person who lives only in very small parts of centers, in little personal things, on hearing this Work will only understand it in a very little small way. This situation is mentioned in the parable. The seed means the ideas of esotericism, the ideas of this Work. If the ideas of this Work fall, as living seeds, on very small ‘I’s, on very little parts of centers inhabited by very small, very little ‘I’s, it is as if the seed—that is, the ideas of this Work—fall ‘by the wayside’.” Commentaries, p73.
“We have now to think of the strange idea that men are differently sown into the earth, in the light of the Parable of the Sower and the Seed as given in the version of Matthew. I will quote again the first part of the parable:
‘Behold, the sower went forth to sow; and as he sowed some seeds fell by the way side, and the birds came and devoured them.’
After Christ had told his disciples in reply to their question why he spoke in parables, that it was given to them to understand the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven but not to the multitude, he says:
‘Hear ye then the parable of the sower. When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the evil one, and snatcheth away that which hath been sown in his heart. This is he that was sown by the wayside.’
(Matthew xiii.18, 19)
It is the last sentence which is strange: ‘This is he that was sown by the way side.’ It is strange because it implies that Man is sown differently into life. That is, men have not the same opportunities for understanding esotericism.” The Mark, p64.
“Esotericism is about living in life but it is not of life. Its source is not from life. If it were it could not lift you above life – above mechanicalness. How can what originates in life lift you above life? Esotericism is a rope — above life. The magnetic center in a man means his power of distinguishing between influences which are life influences and created within the sphere of life, and influences which come from conscious man, from outside life.” The Mark, p67
“The parable as a whole is about the teaching of the inner evolution of Man and the categories of people defined in it refer to the possibilities of people differently placed (or sown) in life with regard to receiving and understanding this teaching and undergoing the inner evolution that it is concerned with.” The Mark, p78.
Logion 9
Yeshua says...
A farmer went out to plant,
scattering seed everywhere.
Some seeds fell on the surface of the road,
and the birds came and ate them.
Others fell on rocky ground
and could not take root in the earth,
and so never germinated.
Still other seed fell among the weeds and brambles,
which choked it out and insects devoured.
Some, however, fell onto fertile soil
which produced fruit of high quality,
yielding as much as sixty
and one-hundred and twenty percent.
Read more Impressions on the Parables.
Page numbers for Maurice Nicoll refer to Psychological Commentaries on the Teachings of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky (Eureka Editions:2020) unless stated otherwise.
Page numbers for Maurice Nicoll’s The New Man refer to Martino Fine Books, Eastford CT, 2019
Page numbers for Maurice Nicoll’s The Mark refer to Thomas Nelson & Sons, New York, 1954
Quotations from the Gospel of Thomas are from Lynn C Bauman, Ward J Bauman, Cynthia Bourgeault, The Luminous Gospels (Praxis 2008)
Read the Impression introducing the Gospel of Thomas.
0 Comments