The "Guide to This Chapter" and "Key Points of This Chapter" were summarized by an AI editor based on the main text below; they are not things Mike said during the lecture. The main text comes from Mike's commentary, and the blockquotes are Seth's original words (the portions Mike read aloud).
Introduction
This session revolves around cells, probabilities, dreams, and the mind. Cells and the atoms and molecules within them are constantly changing, and they preserve the memory of everything that has ever belonged to them. They can process probabilities in an instant and make precognitive judgments about the body's internal and external environments. Conscious goals activate cellular cooperation. Personal choices and dreams rehearse probabilities, influencing reality, genetic inheritance, and the future of humanity. The text provides an exercise for recording probable choices, and points out that the history of the species can be discovered in the psyche's memory. The study of cells should be approached holistically.
Key Points of This Chapter
- Cells and the atoms and molecules that compose them change continuously, and carry the memory of all the forms of which they have been a part.
- Cells can process probabilities in an instant, making precognitive judgments about the environment outside the body; bodily movement depends on the overall cooperation of cells with atoms and molecules.
- Conscious intent activates inner mechanisms and changes cellular behavior; personal decisions alter what is known and influence the genetic inheritance of the human species.
- Dreams rehearse probable actions, and reactions in dreams affect daily reality just as waking experience does; all personal decisions added together make up the global world.
- The ground of the mind holds the archaeological memory of the species; in studying cells, one should treat them as wholes that have a past, a future, and connections with all things, rather than viewing them in isolation like an apple.
Main Text
Cells, Probabilities, Dreams, and the Landscape of the Mind
Today we continue sharing from Volume 2 of the Seth book The "Unknown" Reality, Session 707, titled "Cells, Probabilities, Dreams, and the Landscape of the Mind." This session began on Monday, July 1, 1974, at 9:21 p.m. Session 706 was held normally, but since it was unrelated to this book, it was omitted.
Earlier today I reminded Jane that in the material at 9:38 p.m. in Session 705, Seth talked about cells and the relationships among their components, that is, the relationships of molecules and atoms. So I thought that part of tonight's material would be able to address some questions arising from our topic. Near the end of this session, Seth made a brief clarification that also arose from this -- Rob and Jane actually still wanted Seth to talk more about cells. Seth said one final sentence at the end of this session.
Let's look at the preceding content.
Cells are of course changing, and the atoms and molecules within them are always in a constantly changing state.
That's correct.
The units of consciousness within all matter have a memory bank that far exceeds any computer.
These units of consciousness -- their computational power is extremely strong. They can use computational power that even quantum computers cannot achieve, and their memory storage capacity is also extremely strong. Let me say again about the memory within a single cell: if you used the storage media that humans currently use for memory, that is, our hard drives and memory chips, to record it, and if all the information in one cell were fully expanded and completely dumped out, that hard drive would be as large as the entire Earth. So you can see how much information is in there.
As a constituent substance of the cell, atoms and molecules carry within them the memory of all forms of which they have been a part.
The atoms and molecules that make up a cell may have come from other objects -- they may have come from the earth, from plants, from animals, from the universe. The atoms and molecules that are components of this cell retain the memory of all the forms and shapes they have ever inhabited. That is what makes them so remarkable.
For example, if a certain molecule in this cell came from an animal, then it retains the memory of that animal; if this molecule came from a plant -- such as the wheat you ate -- then it retains the memory of that wheat; if it came from seaweed, it retains the memory of the seaweed; if it came from minerals, such as from the earth, it retains the memory of the earth.
At some deeper levels, cells are always dealing with probabilities, and contacting genetic information to compare possible actions and developments.
Through comparing and analyzing a vast number of probabilities, cells identify the most probable action and development. Among many probabilities, it selects the one most suited to the present moment. For example, before you can take a step or move a finger, it involves the finest behaviors and calculations made in an instant. Remember, calculations made in an instant. You can see how strong its computational power is.
But this does not only involve the predictable actions of the physical organism. At these deeper levels, cellular activity includes making precognitive judgments about the environment outside the body. The body's cells are always operating within probabilities, finding the one most suited to its present moment. But this selection of probability does not depend only on its present cognition of the body itself; it also depends on its cognition of the body's external environment.
So the computational power of these cells is far beyond your imagination. Even for something as simple as taking a step with your leg or raising your hand to drink a glass of water --
The body obviously does not operate in isolation; it truly operates in relationship with everything around it. When you want to walk across a room, the body's operation must relate not only to its own behavior, but also make use of hindsight and precognition.
This phrasing is quite convoluted. Simply put, when you want to walk across a room, you are not simply mobilizing your muscles; you need to make a basic judgment about the room -- whether there are other people in the room, what the material of the floor is. These determine your gait. All the circumstances at that moment determine how you walk.
You might say, what's the big deal? Why have I never thought about this?
You don't need to think about it; you do it automatically. Let me give an example: if the room is paved entirely with very smooth marble, and suppose you are a woman wearing very high heels walking through this room, versus wearing slippers or sneakers, or walking barefoot -- it is completely different. The muscle movements in your body are all different. Not to mention that there is furniture and decor in the room; how you walk, what path you choose, whether you walk steadily or in some other way. You say you've never thought about this? Of course you don't need to think about it; your underlying cells have already calculated it all for you. You only need to think about what you want to do, and leave the rest to them.
Moreover, they must also take into account the precognitive activities of all the other elements in that room -- how those other elements will move, how they will act. For example, if there are other people in the room, suppose you are attending a cocktail party or a party, or you are in a dance hall, and you walk through this room -- is that completely different from walking through an empty room? How do you manage not to bump into others, or to bump into as few people as possible? How can you move through such a seemingly crowded place like a fish? You've had this experience, right? In this process, do you need prior judgment, prior calculation? No. You just do it. But who is doing the calculating? Your cells are doing the calculating.
At this basic level, of course, a muscular action involves an overall cooperation of cells and their components. Here I am speaking of the atoms and molecules themselves, for their characteristics not only deal with probabilities within the body's cellular structure, but also help the body make precognitive judgments about people or matter outside it.
The principle here is this: your cells are composed of these atoms and molecules, and these atoms and molecules were once also part of all things. This atom of yours may well have come from marble of the same material as your floor -- for example, composed of a carbon atom or a silicon atom, just as a random example. Since your cells contain components of all things, and every atom and molecule preserves the form and attributes of the object it once was, your cells naturally know the attributes of your surrounding environment. Because the cells were also once one of the constituent units of that environment. Now that the cell has become a unit of your body, it does not forget its previous experiences, so it can understand what your surrounding environment is like.
You know that a chair will not chase you around the room; that is common sense.
At least the chances are slim. He added "at least the chances are slim" -- meaning that normally it won't happen, but sometimes it will. Because they once did an experiment, during an ESP class, when Seth was present and had several people sit together, they once made a table dance in midair1, all the way up to the height of the ceiling, almost touching it. So when Seth later said "the chances are slim," he meant that occasionally it does happen.
A chair will not chase after you; that is your basic judgment, so you will not dodge the chair. But suppose there were two big dogs in the room? Would you walk through a room with two dogs the same way you walk through a room with two chairs? No, those are two completely different states.
But that particular reasoning mind knows what it knows.
It knows what it should know. Amazing, isn't it? You never even thought about it.
It is because at such a deeper level, the cells are aware of the nature of probable actions.
The cells know that the chair will not move.
The conscious mind's beliefs, however, set your goals and purposes.
The conscious mind is very important. Your decision -- you are the one who decides to walk across that room. It is precisely because you have such a consciousness, such an intention, that you are able to carry out such an action, and your muscle cells cooperate with you, and then all these inner calculations take place. When the thought of walking across the room arises in you, all your inner workings begin to operate, and then you naturally and very smoothly walk across the room, helping you achieve your goal.
So conscious intention activates the inner mechanisms and changes the behavior of the cells and their components. All of this happens because of a consciousness, an impulse, a thought, an idea of wanting to walk across the room -- it activates the inner mechanisms, and all the cells begin to mobilize and cooperate with you.
In a broader sense, you humans consciously set goals, and this also brings about the operation of similar inner physiological activities.
We not only have an effect on ourselves, but also on our fellow humans. Why? Because the cells in your body performed such an action, and these cells of yours will in the future also become cells in someone else's body. When they become cells in someone else's body, won't they also be of help to that person? So it is all interconnected.
The goals of humanity do not exist separately from the goals of the individual.
The overall goal of humanity can be broken down into countless small individual goals. With seven billion people, seven billion goals, they converge into the goal of humanity as a whole. So when you are living your own life, you are very effectively participating in the future development of all of humanity.
You think you are living a life that is entirely your own, but in fact you are participating in the future development of all of humanity. You say, how could that be? How could I influence the future? Suppose you are the head of a large company, suppose you are the leader of a nation -- then does your private life, your personal life, influence the development of all humanity? That is obvious from the large perspective. From the small perspective, how do you know you are not the future president? I use this example only to reinforce this point: you are also a member of humanity, and every action of yours also influences the future development of humanity.
The private psyche.
It sounds like a very nice term, but unless you apply it to your own psyche, it is meaningless. This individualized psyche must be placed upon your own psyche; if you do not use it, it has no meaning. Your individualized life actions must be set in motion.
With a little self-examination, you will know that in a very simple way, you are always considering probabilities.
If you think about it carefully, you will find that you are always thinking about probabilities. You are always thinking about whether to do this or that; even deciding what to eat for lunch takes a long time of deliberation, and when shopping you also deliberate over whether to buy this or that. This kind of consideration of probabilities is always present in you.
You are always choosing between probable actions, between alternative directions.
On the large scale, such as choosing a job, choosing a career, choosing a boyfriend or girlfriend; on the small scale, choosing what to eat, what to drink, what to wear, what to use. These are all choices, and your choices influence your life, and also influence the life of all humanity.
A choice presupposes probable actions. When you choose one, you presume that the corresponding action will be taken.
The inner self cooperates with you. Every action is possible; every one can be actualized within your system of reality. Everything you want to choose can actually be actualized; you simply chose the one you liked. The ones you did not choose can also be actualized.
Your private experience is filled with such decisions, far more than you usually understand, more than you imagine. Every day there are small, harmless examples. For instance, should I go to the movies or go bowling; should I brush my teeth now or lie in bed a little longer; should I write to my friend today or tomorrow. There are also vital decisions concerning career, lifestyle, and other deeper matters.
In your terms, every decision you make more or less changes the events you know.
Every decision you make more or less changes the world you know. This is quite normal.
Exercise 9
Below he inserted an exercise. This exercise is quite interesting.
As an exercise, take one day. Take a small notebook or use your phone to record, and write down all the probable actions, large or small, that you find yourself imagining. Try to follow what might have happened if you had taken the route you did not take. Then imagine what might happen because of the decision you did choose.
This exercise is very simple; anyone can do it, and it requires no particular difficulty. Just pick one day, and record all the decisions you make that day -- whenever it is a matter of choosing A or B, choosing this or that -- write them all down. For example, if there are three options, write down which one you chose and what the options were. Then at the end of the day, list them all out.
For example, when you get up in the morning, you decide whether to eat fried dough sticks or steamed buns, or to eat fried dough sticks and steamed buns at the same time. After you make your choice, think about how the unchosen matters, the unchosen probabilities, would have unfolded. Go over it in your mind, follow those actions you did not take, and see what would have happened. Follow each route down the line, and then think about what might have happened. Then also think about the decision you actually made now -- why you did not choose those three but chose the present one, and what consequences this decision might bring later.
For some small choices the results are obvious, but for some big matters you still need to speculate a bit. For example, today you chose to cooperate with this distributor rather than another one -- what changes might that bring later? For example, today you chose to hire an employee; there were three candidates, and you chose A but not B and C -- what will that affect? What impact will it have on B and C? What impact will it have on you? For this kind of choice, you need to do a simple analysis.
When you make these choices and do this exercise, do it with full concentration. It is a practice of your imagination, and at the same time it can loosen your beliefs about the choices in your present life. Because previously you were not aware that you were making these choices; you thought it was only natural, that it was simply what should be done. You did not know that at that very brief instant you actually made a choice.
You can indeed choose between health and illness, and choose a habit or lifestyle more focused on the mental rather than the physical, or more focused on the physical rather than the mental.
Such private decisions influence the genetic inheritance of humanity.
Your intention is the most important thing. Just as we said earlier that your intention to walk across the room is the most important thing, so too the intention behind your choice is the most important thing.
For you can alter your own genetic information within certain limits.
When you make such a decision, change occurs within you, change occurs within your cells. Because of such a decision, the change in your cellular information and the change in your genes will also lead to change in all of humanity.
For example, you can cause a cell or a group of cells to change their self-image. You do this often -- when you heal yourself of an illness, you often change the image of your own cells. Because you have an intention to become healthy, and that intention is conscious. If you want to be healthy, you can obtain health; that intention will influence all the cells throughout your body.
Of course, some people say, I never thought about illness; I didn't expect to get sick. Then just think about being healthy. In such an example, the self-healing property of the cells is strengthened. Because your thought of wanting to be healthy enhances the self-healing capacity of your cells. Suppose the self-healing ability of cells is divided into four levels; then you may activate the highest level. And humanity's self-healing ability is also strengthened -- because your cells' self-healing ability has been strengthened, reaching an unprecedented new height. For humanity as a whole, the self-healing ability of the entire group's cells is also strengthened. Theoretically this is how it works, and in practice it is also the case, because a mutation in the ability of this one cell can bring about mutations in other possibilities.
Now your private psyche is intimately concerned with your earthly existence. And in your dreams, you deal with probable actions. You often find solutions concerning a series of probabilities arising in that situation. In the dream state you rehearse all the probabilities, and then find an optimal solution.
In many cases, you set yourself a problem -- for example, the problem of "should I do this or that" -- and this forms a dream. Many times dreams come about this way: you ask yourself a question, and then in the dream it is rehearsed for you, acting out both probabilities to see which one is better.
In it you follow the alternative directions that would lead to probable futures.
In the dream you follow several different probable directions, and then see what kind of results they would lead to.
While you are sleeping and dreaming, your chemical and hormonal activities faithfully follow the directions of those dreams.
You are asleep, but your body's hormonal responses will rise and fall in accordance with the events you experience in your dreams. Your hormones are changing, your secretions are changing, and your cells are actually changing too.
Even within the reality you accept, your reactions to probable events in such a dream are the same as your reactions to the events you choose as your waking physical experience.
For example: you have a conflict with a colleague, and then in a dream you find that he apologizes to you and tells you the reason behind what he did at the time. You feel great sympathy for him and immediately forgive him. At this point your view of this colleague changes, and the next day at the office a serious change occurs. Because for the previous two days you had been at odds with each other; he did something that made you very upset, but in the dream the problem was already resolved. The next day when you arrive at the office, your attitude toward him suddenly takes a 180-degree turn. He doesn't know why, but because your attitude toward him has changed, won't his attitude toward you also change? He will think, I did something so bad to him, and I feel guilty about it, but his attitude toward me also hurt my feelings, and I didn't want to reconcile with him either. But when your attitude changes, he suddenly feels that what he did was truly inappropriate, and his attitude toward you will also change.
Does this change brought about by the dream have an influence on your real life? Of course it does. The probability of one dream can influence your practice in real life; your daily life will be affected, and you will change your ordinary life.
An extreme joke is this: a couple goes to buy lottery tickets, but because of a dream, one of them dreams they won the lottery, and in the dream the distribution was uneven and unfair, so they started fighting. After waking up, the two of them quarreled, reenacting the events of the dream all over again. Although they had not yet won the lottery, they developed different opinions about the future distribution of the lottery winnings, and in the end the two of them fought to an irreconcilable degree. Does a dream have an influence on your life? Of course it does.
You are not alone, however. Each living individual also has his or her own private dreams.
You are dreaming, and others are dreaming too. You may feel that you have already resolved the grudge with him, that you are already being very nice to him, but perhaps in his dream he is quarreling with you more and more intensely. So the two of you are influencing each other. What is the final result? It depends on the different probabilities of the dream experiences that each of you experiences.
These help form the acceptable probable systems of the next day and of the future.
Each different dream's interpretation of the development of probabilities will form the probable system of the next day, or of what we call the future.
On any given day, all individual decisions add up to the global world.
On any given day, the decisions of every person in the world add up -- you made decision A, another person in another decision chose C but not D, and so on. Put together the decisions of these seven billion people, and that is the entire world. What happens and what does not happen in the world on that day is determined by each person's choices.
There is a landscape of the mind; that is, the mind has its own civilization, its own private culture and geography, its own history and inclinations. But the mind is connected with the physical brain, so that within the folds of the brain there is hidden an archaeological memory.
We can imagine that our mind has a landscape-like existence. That landscape is an archaeological memory hidden within the folds of the brain.
How should we put it? When we do archaeology, don't we dig things out of the ground? When we do archaeology now, don't we dig fossils out of the ground? He continues with this analogy: suppose your thoughts, your ideas, are a landscape --
In your terms, to some degree, what you now know depends upon what you will know in the future.
What we know now is actually what we should know in the future. Of course! Because if you don't know it now, how would you know it in the future? What you know today must be something you will know in the future; that is certain.
The past species now reside within your body.
Within your brain now, within your thoughts now, within your cells now -- isn't there an ancient human residing there? Right, because you must know what you will know in the future, so do you now know what was known in the past? Certainly. And the same applies to those seemingly future species.
You also know the future human species. Why? Because what you know now must be what you will know later -- and what you will know later includes what future humans will become. Do you know that? You do. Isn't that strange? That's how it is.
So ideally, from a certain ideal perspective, the history of your species can be discovered quite clearly within the psyche.
If you humans choose to seek this kind of archaeological evidence, you don't have to dig only in the earth; you can also explore within.
The true archaeological world is not only found in the fossils unearthed from rocks and remains, but is also brought to light through the memories that reside within the psyche.
Human archaeology should not only look for those fossils and the things in caves; if you carefully study the inner memories of humanity, you can find many things of archaeology. You just have to bring them out, bring them into the light of day, rather than letting them remain hidden deep in memory or deep in the memory of the psyche.
Today's dictation ends here.
His meaning is this: your body's cells know far more than you imagine; they preserve all memories.
At 10:45 p.m., Seth then came through and gave a page of other material. In this material there was this sentence:
Incidentally, I believe I answered your question for you.
Because earlier in this session, as we said, Jane and Rob actually wanted to continue asking Seth about the question of cells. In fact, throughout this session he had been talking about this question, but he said he would make one final point:
The cell as an entity does not fall out of physical form like an apple.
What does he mean by this? The cell as an entity does not fall from a tree like an apple; it does not operate in the physical world in that way. Can it exist apart from physical form? No. As a physical entity, it always has the attributes of its physical form, but it cannot be separated from existence in this physical world -- this does not mean it lacks inner content.
His meaning is that you should not regard the cell as being like an apple, taking it out separately to consider the question. When you look at a cell, you must look at its wholeness: it has its past, it has its future, they are all placed there together, and it maintains connections with all things in the world. If you want to study the cell, you should study it from a complete perspective, rather than, as you humans now do, regarding an apple as physical and taking it out of the physical world to study it in isolation. With that kind of understanding, you have not understood at all the wisdom and the abilities of the cell as an entity in itself. Treating it like an apple is incorrect.
This session has a small exercise, and I hope everyone will do this exercise after class. Pick one day -- for example, today or tomorrow -- take out your phone and record every decision, write down all the possible branches, then imagine the probabilities of each branch, and then think about what consequences the present decision might bring.
注释与核实
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This claim could not be verified. ↩