outer self

Outer Self Concept File

1. What are Seth's specific claims about this concept? How many times, in which books, and does the wording change over time?

The concept of the outer ego / outer self:

• Seth states explicitly that the outer ego works together with the inner ego; one enables you to manipulate effectively within the world you know, the other brings you subtle inner perceptions, and without them physical life could not be maintained [seth-speaks §512].
• The outer ego is described as "that portion of your personality most turned toward the flesh"; it was meant to serve as an assistant but has been indulged into becoming a "tyrant"; it is not inherently stubborn, it longs to learn, and its curiosity is of great value [seth-speaks §512].
• In the early sessions, Seth calls this part the "outer ego," with the inner ego organizing the entire energy field, while the outer ego directs this whole in its manipulations within the physical universe [early-sessions-2 §58].
• The outer ego is "more limited by physical properties," but by shifting focus and aligning with the inner ego, it can directly experience inner reality—this is the most advantageous way to experience inner reality, because the outer ego can be aware of what is happening and apply that knowledge in its own domain [early-sessions-2 §58].
• Difficulties arise when the inner ego and the outer ego pursue directly opposed viewpoints and different goals; when a complete or nearly complete barrier exists between the two, the entire self is to a large extent deprived of value fulfillment [early-sessions-2 §58].
• The inner ego needs the outer ego and its outer senses in order to materialize itself within the various camouflage patterns; without the outer ego, the inner ego cannot further its value fulfillment through participation in energy constructions [early-sessions-2 §58].
• The outer ego is not "swallowed up" after a particular physical existence; rather, it retains control over the traits and abilities it has formed and trained, and at the end of that existence it remains as the director and controller of these capacities; it can even continue to grow and develop after an existence [early-sessions-2 §58].
• When the inner ego sends forth a new outer ego for a new camouflage exploration, the previous outer ego still possesses almost unlimited avenues of development; it may choose to remain a self, then return again to its familiar plane, face new challenges, and develop new abilities [early-sessions-2 §58].
• In reincarnation, it is the same outer ego that incarnates again, and the information from past lives is retained by the subconscious of that self; theoretically such a self could continue to incarnate in this manner indefinitely, continually growing and developing, while always dealing with the problems of manipulation and material construction [early-sessions-2 §58].
• If there is good communication between the ego and the inner self, the ego begins to understand what it is and recognizes that it possesses greater capacities than could be realized by continuing to incarnate on one plane [early-sessions-2 §58].

Wording and changes over time:

• The early sessions (1964) use the term "outer ego," emphasizing its structural distinction and communicative relationship with the inner ego [early-sessions-2 §58, early-sessions-1 §37].
• Later material (early 1970s) uses "outer ego" or "the outer self," situating the concept within the operational framework of the "multidimensional personality" and the "inner ego," with greater emphasis on its role as the portion of the personality turned toward the flesh, meant to serve as an assistant [seth-speaks §512, §526].
• Session 37 of the early sessions (1963–64) states that "the outer ego is but a counterfeit image of the inner ego," that the outer ego is ordinarily unaware of the thoughts or communications of the inner ego, while the inner ego knows the outer ego's every step, every breath, and every dream [early-sessions-1 §37]; this wording no longer appears in The Seth Material, which instead emphasizes cooperation and balance between the outer and inner egos [seth-speaks §512, early-sessions-2 §58].

2. What mechanism does he give?

The basic mechanism of the outer ego is this: the inner ego projects itself outward as the physical material image and the world, and this projection process is automatic [early-sessions-8 §334]. The outer ego appears to respond to physical stimuli, but in reality it is responding to the outward projection of its own inner reality [early-sessions-8 §334]. Objects in the physical universe are only symbols expressing other realities in the private inner realm [early-sessions-8 §334]. The intensity of inner feeling is the dominant factor; a sudden and strong negative emotion or a positive joy can immediately produce substantial physical effects [early-sessions-8 §334]. Multiple low-intensity negative feelings accumulate into an overall negative emotional atmosphere, which is then projected outward as poverty or illness in physical reality [early-sessions-8 §334].

The mechanism of physical construction generated by the outer ego is this: thoughts are electrical in nature and can stimulate enzymes in the inner mechanism, which then automatically begin the work of physical construction in accordance with inner expectations [early-sessions-3 §86]. The outer ego uses the physical system as a checking board, and physical conditions are not permanent but constantly changing [early-sessions-3 §86, early-sessions-8 §334]. Chemical and electrical reactions originate from mental enzymes, which participate in the process of building psychological energy into physical constructions [early-sessions-3 §86].

The mechanism of interaction between the outer and inner egos is this: the outer ego must concentrate a large amount of energy on coping with survival and manipulation within the outer camouflage world, a world created by the inner ego whose continued existence depends on the inner ego's sustained vigilance [early-sessions-1 §35]. The outer ego cannot withstand the direct impact of full inner sensory experience, and is therefore protected from being shocked by such experiences [early-sessions-1 §35]. The channels of communication between the inner and outer egos are never closed; pathways of exchange between the two are preserved [early-sessions-3 §120]. The outer ego frequently acts, without knowing it, on the basis of inner information it has refused to acknowledge having received, which can save it from dangerous situations [early-sessions-3 §120]. The outer ego may be compared to being at the center of a pipeline, with one end extending into the physical universe and the other into the world of inner reality [early-sessions-3 §86].

3. Are there observable inferences or explicit predictions (including time, quantity, conditions)?

• The outer ego works together with the inner ego; the outer ego enables you to manipulate effectively within the world you know, while the inner ego brings you the subtle inner perceptions without which physical life could not be maintained [seth-speaks §512].
• The outer ego can cut itself off from abilities that are inherently part of you, adopting artificial limitations, but denying fact cannot change it [seth-speaks §512].
• The outer ego was meant to be an assistant but has been indulged into becoming a tyrant; yet it is far more flexible than is generally supposed, and it longs to learn, and its curiosity can be of great value [seth-speaks §512].
• If you hold a narrow conception of the nature of reality, the outer ego will do everything in its power to keep you confined within the closed little world of the reality you accept; conversely, if your intuitive creative instincts are given freedom, they will communicate knowledge of broader dimensions to that portion of your personality most turned toward the flesh [seth-speaks §512].
• The outer ego is of later development; it is jealous of its position and wants all knowledge at hand, but this is impossible; it cannot tolerate anything being hidden, yet the mechanisms of its own behavior are hidden from itself, and it knows only its own surface feelings [early-sessions-3 §119].
• In many respects the outer ego is a reflector, the surface of the self that looks outward; yet the rest of the entire self cannot be left to an organizer or caretaker who does not direct attention to the inner depths, but rather sits on the front porch of the self while inner operations go unattended [early-sessions-3 §119].
• The outer ego does not want to meet the inner ego, nor to acknowledge its existence; just as the eye cannot see its own pupil without a mirror, the outer ego cannot even see itself, were it not that the inner ego hides in the depths of every reflection [early-sessions-3 §119].
• When the outer ego reflects the outer world from its conscious surface, it sees the reflection of the inner ego, that is, the image in its own eyes; and because the ego creates matter unconsciously rather than consciously, and creates it according to inner rather than outer expectations, when the ego contemplates the material universe it meets face to face the face of its own inner ego, and the outer ego cannot escape this inner self [early-sessions-3 §119].
• If, when the body is unhealthy, you must communicate with the inner guide, there are ways to do this (the material does not give the specific details of the method) [early-sessions-3 §119].
• Scientists will soon discover that the ego has no true boundaries, but they themselves will not think of the implications involved for quite some time [early-sessions-2 §55].
• The basic reason for the limitations involved in the ego (outer ego) is its absolute dependence on the outer senses; through the outer senses you must always view reality in an arbitrary, truly unvarying manner, and reality simply cannot be contained within such boundaries [early-sessions-2 §55].
• No truly effective brotherhood will be achieved until the expansion of the ego occurs to some extent; if cultural limitations were removed, at least some benefit would result [early-sessions-2 §55].
• The conscious expansion or extension of the ego momentarily and initially involves a slight expansion of tissue; this is a temporary and initial, almost imperceptible enlargement, a deep pulsation of cells and molecules—in fact a pulse that causes a small but definite enlargement of tissue (this phenomenon, as described in the material, could be perceived by touch or measurement of bodily tissue) [early-sessions-2 §55].
• The ego is the "outer" self you think you are; its security and its apparent command are maintained precisely because the inner levels of the personality continually support it, maintain the physical functioning, and stay in communication with the multiple stimuli arising from both outer and inner conditions [seth-speaks §526].
• The ego pretends not to know what the whole self indeed knows, because the ego is in the front line of the turbulent sea of physical reality, concentrating on this task and unwilling to be distracted; but the ego can accept, without objection, data coming from the inner portions of the personality [seth-speaks §526].
• Regarding observable inferences, the material describes the hidden character of the outer ego's behavioral patterns: the outer ego cannot tolerate anything being hidden, yet it is precisely the mechanism of its own behavior that is hidden from itself, and it knows only its own surface feelings [early-sessions-3 §119]; and the outer ego cannot escape the inner self, and in contemplating the material universe it must confront the reflection of the inner ego [early-sessions-3 §119].
• With regard to explicit times or quantities in observable predictions, the material provides no specific dates or quantitative indicators; but in the area of out-of-body experience, the material gives one clear condition: you cannot maintain loyalty to your plane and live out a normal life span while out of the body—this is necessary, and when you leave the body you cannot leave your problems behind [early-sessions-2 §55].

4. Where does he say the science of the time went wrong, and in what direction should it look?

He says the problem first lies in treating the outer ego as the whole self: identifying solely with the outer ego cuts one off from one's other abilities; physical senses specialize in perceiving the "camouflage" of matter, while perceiving the inner reality that gives it form requires another kind of attention and subtler manipulation. [seth-speaks §512]

In ESP research, he criticizes researchers for presupposing an artificial dual self, separating the self that acts and manipulates from the self that breathes and dreams; he argues for starting from the whole self that can use both inner and outer senses, and also holds that one cannot judge ESP as a subnormal or supernormal ability for the entire human species simply because Westerners cannot use it effectively. [early-sessions-1 §25]

He believes scientists' error also lies in being constrained by their own instruments: material instruments translate data into the "camouflage" patterns familiar to the researchers, and this translation weakens the data and distorts its original meaning; endlessly seeking ever smaller particles or extending instruments ever further into the cosmos cannot remove the distortion built into the instruments themselves. [early-sessions-1 §19]

The research direction he proposes is to use the inner senses and to know and examine them through their effects: allow inner data to be received spontaneously and non-judgmentally, then examine the effects of this data on the personality of the receiver and its physical action on the brain, rather than first requiring that such data be converted into data receivable by the outer senses and then expecting it to remain intact and undistorted. [early-sessions-1 §19, §25]

He regards the mind as the meeting point of the inner and outer senses, and as the discovery instrument that ought to be used; in his distinction, the brain belongs to the physical "camouflage" and can be probed by physical instruments, while the mind cannot be found or probed by such instruments; the secrets of the universe are to be discovered within the mind, using the mind itself as the instrument. [early-sessions-1 §19]

Regarding structural changes and the reorganization of molecular patterns, he criticizes the approach of working from the outside inward, holding that this leads to procedures that are costly, complex, and nearly impossible; the direction he points to is manipulating structure from within, or directly manipulating the whole self, and distinguishing the direct experience provided by the inner senses from the secondhand experience translated through the outer senses. [early-sessions-1 §33]

5. What experiments or exercises did he suggest? What did Jane and Rob actually do at the time, and what did they observe?

• Seth explicitly encouraged Jane and Rob to try various experiments on their own, calling them "homework," and stated that doing experiments themselves "can, to some extent, train the abilities" [early-sessions-1 §12].

• In Session 454, Seth recommended to a visitor named Tam an exercise called "walking on water": before sleep, imagine your mind as an ocean upon which you can walk, with all emotions on the surface and you above them; then imagine yourself walking on the water, listening with the inner ear and seeing with the inner eye; you should see a figure on the horizon in your field of vision; do not run, but relax and let the figure approach; when the figure comes near, let him speak first [early-sessions-9 §454].

• Seth suggested this exercise be done every night, before sleep, and need not be long; if for the time being you see only a dark figure and a horizon, do not force it; the exercise is symbolic, but there is truth in symbolism; and he recommended doing this exercise at least 30 to 35 times before considering other projection-type exercises [early-sessions-9 §454].

• On January 4, 1964, without Seth present, Rob and Jane experimented on their own: they drew the curtains, lit the room with a red Christmas tree bulb, spread a triangular black cloth on the dark walnut table, wore dark clothing, and placed Jane's wedding ring on the cloth; the two sat facing each other with hands flat on the cloth, sometimes touching, the ring always visible between their hands—after sitting quietly for a while, nothing resulted [early-sessions-1 §12].

• They then replaced the ring with a Spanish-American military insignia of Jane's grandfather (brass, which Jane had polished and removed the ribbon from the day before), turned off the only light source, and sat quietly in the dark [early-sessions-1 §12].

• During the dark sitting, Jane noticed that her hands "disappeared"—she could not see them, but was not worried; at times the metal insignia did the same [early-sessions-1 §12].

• After a rest, Rob began asking Jane random questions, which she answered one by one, and the topics extended naturally; Jane then spontaneously began speaking in an ordinary tone, and Rob took notes in the dark, finding that his handwriting remained fairly clear and legible in the darkness [early-sessions-1 §12].

• During this experiment, Rob, with eyes closed, had a colored vision—an image of a man walking along a road, which he considered part of the "Joseph series"; Jane, for her part, told the story of an English woman named Sarah Wellington from 1748 [early-sessions-1 §12].

• On the evening of January 10, 1964, after telling Rob that she could enter a dissociative state while working at the gallery, Jane unexpectedly entered a near-sleepwalking state lasting about three hours, without deliberately trying to enter it [early-sessions-1 §14].

• She described the feeling as one of strong dissociation and drowsiness, with heavy eyelids and her head drooping to one side, yet her senses were extremely acute, and she could hear every sound in the room; her body felt light and weightless, with no sense of muscular weight or pressure, especially in the shoulders, and her arms and hands felt like water or air [early-sessions-1 §14].

• When Rob asked her to stand, she could barely rise and had to be helped to the sofa; she felt she was about to enter some very deep trance state, but her consciousness was clear, and fear made her hold back from going deeper, yet she could not immediately break out of the state either; Rob made her coffee, she drank two cups, and stood at the window letting the cold wind hit her face, all to no avail [early-sessions-1 §14].

• When Rob suggested she write down her feelings to concentrate, her handwriting was completely unlike her own—fine, wavering, increasingly small, with no pressure on the pen, and the style childlike; regarding that state, Rob found that she could read small print on letters, fine marks on matchboxes, and passages in books at unusually great distances [early-sessions-1 §14].

• Jane described the state as: a feeling of weightlessness and an inability to function in the material world, yet owing to this unusual behavior Rob found her limbs heavy, while to herself they felt light as air; she felt extremely relaxed, yet her senses remained remarkably alert, and she could converse with Rob relatively normally [early-sessions-1 §14].

• In 1965, in a half-awake state on a Sunday morning, Jane heard a slow, hoarse male voice whisper "twelve-o-five" just outside her ear; when tested with a pendulum, the answer obtained was "random telepathy" [early-sessions-4 §153].

• During the same period, in a half-awake state before the alarm rang, Jane stood in gray-white smoke and smelled smoke; she knew she was not dreaming, and at the same time felt a panic, and the moment the panic arose the experience ended [early-sessions-4 §153].

• Seth noted at the time that Jane and Rob were both working diligently to conduct regular experiments with the pendulum; he observed that they "are gaining proficiency in communication between the ego and the subconscious" [early-sessions-4 §153].

• Concerning the nature of the inner ego, Seth explained: the inner ego is composed of the dominant traits and abilities of past personalities, focused inward, while the outer ego is focused outward; they are the two faces of the same sphere of action, one pulling inward and the other outward; the subconscious may be regarded as the nucleus surrounded by the inner and outer egos; all communication is the result of tension, and tension is the inherent impulse of action to know itself; without tension there is no existence—a lack of understanding of tension sets the organism against itself [early-sessions-4 §153].

6. What supplementary or contradictory claims are given by other concepts in the corpus relevant to this concept?

The "outer ego" works together with the "inner ego"; one enables you to manipulate effectively in the world you know, the other brings you those subtle inner perceptions [seth-speaks §512]. There is no real division between the "outer ego" and the inner self; the so-called subconscious may be imagined as the meeting place between the two [seth-speaks §512]. The personality is multidimensional, but you may choose to identify only with the "outer ego" and cut yourself off from abilities that are inherently yours [seth-speaks §512].

The "outer ego" is the projection or shadow of the "inner ego," not its source [early-sessions-1 §37]. The "inner self" is the driving force and source of personality for the "outer self," and it knows every action of the "outer ego" [early-sessions-1 §37]. The "outer ego" is far less conscious, perceives far less, and is far less stable than the "inner ego"; it leaps out of the "inner ego" [early-sessions-9 §509]. The "inner ego" is continuously aware of its own individuality and its unity with all other consciousness, whereas the "outer ego" is not continuously aware of anything and frequently forgets itself [early-sessions-9 §509].

The "outer ego" is responsible for manipulation within physical reality and is more subject to physical attributes than the "inner ego" [early-sessions-2 §58]. The "outer ego" can, by shifting focus, align its own energy with the "inner self" and the inner senses, thereby experiencing inner reality; this is the most advantageous method because it can consciously be aware of what is happening [early-sessions-2 §58]. If the "inner self" and the "outer self" pursue directly opposed viewpoints and goals, difficulties arise; when a complete or nearly complete barrier exists between the two, the whole self is to a large extent denied value fulfillment [early-sessions-2 §58]. When the two are balanced and in communication, the "inner self" can communicate directly with the "outer self," and the "outer self" can also convey its physical experience to the "inner self," helping the "inner self" to grow [early-sessions-2 §58]. The "inner self" needs the "outer ego" and its outer senses to allow itself to materialize in the various camouflage forms [early-sessions-2 §58]. After a particular existence ends, the outer ego is not "devoured," but continues to govern the abilities and traits it has formed and trained, and may even continue to grow and develop [early-sessions-2 §58].

The "outer ego" is overestimated; its true nature has not been recognized [seth-speaks §512]. The "outer ego" was meant to be the assistant of the "inner ego," but has been indulged into becoming a tyrant, yet it is far more flexible than usually supposed and longs to learn [seth-speaks §512]. The outer senses are camouflage patterns, useful only for perceiving the camouflage world, and useless for perceiving inner reality [early-sessions-1 §37]. The outer senses cannot reliably perceive even camouflaged reality, and they themselves are part of the camouflage pattern [early-sessions-1 §37]. Modern psychological theories (such as Jung's hypotheses) are pointed out to have limitations, because the "inner self" (what Seth calls the "inner ego") is the organizer of what the "outer ego" regards as unconscious data [early-sessions-9 §509]. The "unconscious" is in fact conscious, and the "outer ego," on the basis of its ignorance and limited focus, regards apparently unconscious activity as chaos [early-sessions-9 §509].

7. Questions not yet asked

1. Seth claims that when the outer and inner egos communicate there is a "pulse of slight expansion of tissue"; can high-resolution brain imaging (e.g., fMRI or EEG) detect corresponding dynamic volume changes in relevant brain regions during tasks involving expansion of self-awareness?
2. Seth holds that thoughts are electrical in nature and excite physical construction through enzymes; an experiment could be designed to test whether specific enzymes (e.g., cortisol, amylase) secreted during strong emotion show a predictable association with physiological indicators (heart rate, skin conductance), and whether that association follows the "intensity-dominant" pattern Seth describes.
3. Seth says the outer ego acts on inner information "without knowing it"; a concealed implicit association test (IAT) or subliminal priming experiment could be designed to measure the degree of behavioral change after unconscious receipt of information, and to compare it with self-reported conscious awareness, in order to test for the unconscious guidance mechanism he describes.
4. Early material calls the outer ego a "counterfeit image" of the inner ego and says it cannot directly see itself; this resembles the psychological theories of "self-deception" or cognitive dissonance. An experiment could be designed to compare prefrontal activation patterns in self-reflective tasks (such as journal writing) with those in ordinary tasks, to test for the neural basis of the "self-boundary" Seth describes.
5. Seth recommends the "walking on water" exercise and requires at least 30 repetitions; a longitudinal intervention study could be designed: recruit subjects to perform this imaginal exercise daily, measure changes in introversion/extraversion personality traits, self-perception, or creativity, and record details of the visual experience during practice, in order to test the verifiable effects of the "inner senses" that Seth describes.

Appendix: Claim List (for Phase C)

id	Claim	Type	Source
outer-self-1	The outer ego works together with the inner ego; the outer ego allows one to manipulate effectively within the known world, and the inner ego provides inner perceptions, without which physical life cannot be maintained.	Ontological assertion	seth-speaks §512
outer-self-2	The outer ego was meant to serve as the inner ego's assistant but has been indulged into becoming a tyrant; yet it is far more flexible than usually supposed, longs to learn, and its curiosity is of great value.	Ontological assertion	seth-speaks §512
outer-self-3	The outer ego is the projection or shadow of the inner ego, not its source, and the inner ego knows every action of the outer ego.	Ontological assertion	early-sessions-1 §37
outer-self-4	The outer ego can, by shifting focus and aligning with the inner ego, directly experience inner reality, because the outer ego can be aware of what happens and apply that knowledge in its own domain.	Mechanism description	early-sessions-2 §58
outer-self-5	When the inner ego and the outer ego pursue directly opposed viewpoints and different goals, difficulties arise; when a complete or nearly complete barrier exists between the two, the whole self is deprived of value fulfillment.	Mechanism description	early-sessions-2 §58
outer-self-6	After a particular physical existence, the outer ego is not swallowed up, but retains control over its own traits and abilities and can continue to grow and develop.	Ontological assertion	early-sessions-2 §58
outer-self-7	In reincarnation, it is the same outer ego that incarnates; the information from past lives is retained by the subconscious of that self, which can theoretically incarnate indefinitely and grow.	Ontological assertion	early-sessions-2 §58
outer-self-8	The outer ego cannot withstand the direct impact of full inner sensory experience, and is therefore protected from being shocked by it.	Mechanism description	early-sessions-1 §35
outer-self-9	The outer ego frequently acts, without knowing it, on the basis of inner information it has refused to acknowledge receiving, which can save it from dangerous situations.	Mechanism description	early-sessions-3 §120
outer-self-10	When the outer ego contemplates the physical universe, it meets face to face the face of its own inner ego; the outer ego cannot escape this inner self.	Mechanism description	early-sessions-3 §119
outer-self-11	The basic reason for the limitations involved in the ego is its absolute dependence on the outer senses.	Ontological assertion	early-sessions-2 §55
outer-self-12	Scientists will soon discover that the ego has no true boundaries, but they themselves will not think of the implications involved for quite some time.	Testable prediction	early-sessions-2 §55