La connaissance de soi

“Who are you, the one who knows?” Going back to Socrates’ question, Marie-Madeleine Davy turns her attention to the prior self, which is necessary in order to set out on the path which will lead us to knowledge of our true nature. However, in order to make progress on this pilgrimage we also require lucidity, she tells us, and the love of light. Such are the requirements for this quest, this lonely journey in search of the meaning of life. The art of being man is to be learnt. This work describes the necessary attitudes to reach knowledge of the self, the methods employed by different traditions to achieve it, the role of spiritual guides and schools of wisdom as well as the obstacles which hinder this inner journey. Marie-Madeleine Davy then explains what becomes of man along the path of his accomplishment. Once the call is heard, he must descend to the very lowest part of his being bypassing the ego and the prison of duality. He is then able to discover the source of life, abandon himself to beauty, love and the joy they spread. Marie-Madeleine Davy encourages us to examine what we have forgotten or what we no longer wish to see: self-knowledge represents birth into one’s own light, one’s inner sun. The man who knows himself has become a living man. “The fundamental question arises: is it possible to reach self-knowledge?” [...] On such a path, one is forever seeking companions with whom to share the road, and yet the path remains lonely. We would like to find a master to guide the way and offer reassurance in perilous situations but masters are rare and seldom available. More often than not, it is a mater of accepting the undertaking and carrying out one’s quest in more or less complete isolation, knowing that the best is to be found in one’s own heart.