Many Masters

Who is Lucifer?

2011-03-28T21:42:00.000-07:00

Many scholars and theologians debate this controversial topic so I decided to do a topical study to see what was uncovered. What I found is jaw dropping to most Orthodox Christens but I realized that a loving GOD would do no less than to love all his creation, which is each soul and astral being. All lesson of parenting we gain from the Holy Bible show us a great contradiction. The lesson of the protocol son, who rebelled and returned home and was accepted with open and loving arms vs Lucifer's rebellion and be cast out of heaven. Is man really kinder than the DIVINE to his own children? If you're sensible, you clearly see this makes no sense. To share this revelation I have included text from different resources that paint a different picture to what most are taught.

First was this statement from Menschwerdung, i. 3–10

"When God created the angels, the principle of fire and light became manifest. Their spirit or life-anguish (consciousness) has its origin in the fire. From thence it passed through the light, and became there the anguish of love, by which the wrath was extinguished." (Menschwerdung, i. 3–10.)

I found this important because true love extinguishes wrath which supports my original statement of a loving GOD. This is important because it means all is forgiven through love, well true love. Now that that has been established, unto the statement which describes Lucifer and his binding to the DIVINE.

"As Michael has been created after the type and beauty of God the Father, so was Lucifer created after the type and beauty of God the Son, bound to Him in love, and his heart was resting in the centre of light, as if he were God Himself." (Aurora, xii. 101.)

So now we have established that Lucifer is bound to the DIVINE in love. I also found this reference;

God (the divine primordial Will) by becoming objective to Himself, and thereby constituting Himself a created being, assumed a threefold aspect, which gave rise to three different self-conscious divine powers, called "archangels," representing the three types of the Holy Trinity. The angels or powers are called Michael, Lucifer, and Uriel.

"God, constituting Himself a created being, assumed the aspect of such a being in regard to His trinity; and as this trinity is the greatest and highest in God, also He created three princes of angels (divine reflections of His own image) which are superior to all others." (Aurora, xii. 88.)

The idea is to open to the GODHEAD and all his mysteries which I think is well said in this statement;

"If you consider the depth of heaven, the stars, the elements, and the earth, you will, of course, not grasp with your eyes the pure and clear Godhead, although God is there and within it; but if you rise up in your thoughts and direct your mind to God, who in His holiness rules within the All, you are then penetrating through heaven and grasping the very sacred heart of God Himself." (Aurora, xxiii. 11.)

These next two chapters are really interesting but long, defiantly worth the read regarding the Holy Graal from the Hidden Church;

The Hidden Church of the Holy Graal

II THE POSITION OF THE LITERATURE DEFINED

The books of the Holy Graal are either purely of literary, antiquarian and mythological interest, or they are more. If literary, antiquarian and mythological only, they can and should be left to the antiquaries, the critics and the folk-lore societies. But if more it is not improbable antecedently, having regard to the subject, that the excess belongs to the mystics, and to those generally who recognise that the legends of the soul are met with in many places, often unexpectedly enough, and wherever found that they have issues outside that which is understood commonly and critically by the origin of religious belief. The ascetic and mystic element--to repeat the conventional description--outside the considerations which I have put forward, is for those of all importance, and it is otherwise and invariably the only thing that is really vital in legends. The impression which is left upon the mind after the conclusions of the last sub-section is assuredly that the "divine event" is not especially, or not only, that "towards which creation moves," but a term, both here and now, towards which souls can approximate and wherein they can rest at the centre. Over the threshold of the Galahad Quest we pass as if out of worlds of enchantment, worlds of færie, worlds of the mighty Morgan le Fay, into realms of allegory and dual meaning, and then--transcending allegory--into a region more deeply unrealised; so also, after having reflected on the external side of the romances and the preliminary analogies of things that are in ward, we pass, as we approach the end of our research, into a world of which nothing but the veils and their emblazonments have been so far declared. No other romances of chivalry exhibit the characteristics which we discern in the perfect and rectified books of the Holy Graal, but if we do not know categorically why romance came to be the vehicle for one expression of man's highest experience, we have reasons--and more than enough--to determine that it was not automatic, not arbitrary, and yet it was not fortuitous; it came about in the nature of things by the successive exaltation of a legend which had the capacity for exaltation into transcendence. The genesis of the story of Galahad is not like the institution of the ritual belonging to the third craft grade in Masonry, which seems without antecedents that are traceable in the elements--actual or symbolical--of the early building guilds. By successive steps the legend of the Graal was built till it reached that height when the hierarchies could begin to come down and the soul of Galahad could go up. It is important for my own purpose to establish this fact, because in that which remains to be said I must guard against the supposition that a conventional secret society or a sect took over the romances, edited them and interpenetrated the texts with mystic elements. That is the kind of hypothesis which occult interests might have manufactured sincerely enough in the old days, and it would have had a certain warrant because there is ample evidence that this is exactly the kind of work which in given cases was performed by the concealed orders. The Graal, as a literature, came into other hands, which worked after their own manner, and worked well.

There is another fact which is not less important because of certain tendencies recognisable in modern criticism. I will mention it only at the moment, that the reader may be put on his guard mentally; there is no single text in the literature which was or could have been put forward as a veiled pronunciamento against the reigning Church on the part of any historical sect, heresy, or rival orthodoxy. The pure Christianities and the incipient principles of reform took their quack processes into other quarters. The voices which spoke in the books of the Holy Graal as no voices had ever spoken in romance were not putting forward a mystery which was superior specifically to the mysteries preserved by the official Church. They trended in the same direction as the highest inquisitions move, and that invariably. The most intelligent of all the heresies is only the truth of the Church foreshadowed or travestied. The reforms of the Church are only its essential lights variously refracted. Even modern science, outside the true prerogatives of its election as our growing physical providence, is the notification of the things which do not ultimately matter in comparison with the science of the Church, which is that of the laws ruling in the search after the eternal reality. The Graal at its highest is the simulacrum or effigy of the Divine Mystery within the Church. If she, as an institution, has failed so far--and as to the failure within limits there is no question--to accomplish the transmutation of humanity, the explanation is not merely that she has been at work upon gross and refractory elements--though this is true assuredly--but that in the great mystery of her development she has still to enter into the fruition of her higher consciousness. Hereof are the wounds of the Church, and for this reason she has been in sorrow throughout the ages.

So far I have defined, but in one sense only, the position of the literature. It remains to be said that what I have termed from the beginning the major implicits, as they project vaguely and evasively upon the surface, are integral elements of the mystic aspects. But they must be taken here in connection with one feature of the quests which is in no sense implied, because this will concern us in a very important manner in the next book. I refer to the Recession of the Graal. I have no need to remind any one after so many enumerations that the final testimony of all the French Quests is that, in one or another way, the Graal was withdrawn. It is not always by a removal in space; it is not always by assumption to heaven. In the German cycle the Temple was inaccessible from the beginning and the Palladium never travelled, till--once and for all--it was carried in a great procession to the furthest East. Wolfram left it in primeval concealment; but this did not satisfy one of the later poets, who married--as we have seen--the Graal legend to that of Prester John. Now, it might be more easy to attain translation, like St. Paul, than to find that sanctuary in India where, by the assumption, it must be supposed to remain. But having regard to the hidden meaning which seems to lie behind Wolfram's source he was within the measures of his symbolism when he left the Graal at Mont Salvatch, not removing to the East that which in his case did not come therefrom. Albrecht, who tells of the transit, first took the precaution to change the hallowed object. I believe that the testimony to removal was inherent to the whole conception from the beginning, concurrently with the Secret Words, and that the latter were reflected at a later period into the peculiar claim concerning sacerdotal succession. They were all Eucharistic in their nature. The testimony itself is twofold, because, in addition to the withdrawal of the Living Sign, the texts tell us of the House that is emptied of its Hallows; these are in particular the Longer Prose Perceval and the Quest of Galahad. There is also Manessier's conclusion of the Conte del Graal, but no very important inference is to be drawn therefrom. One of our immediate concerns will be to find the analogies of this prevailing conception elsewhere in the world; the present study of Graal mystic aspects is simply preliminary thereto, and the eduction of the significance behind the major implicits. It is at this point curiously that one element of Graal history which has been somehow ascribed to Guiot comes to our assistance, providing an intermediary between the literature of mystical romance and--as we shall learn--the obvious text-books of the secret schools. It opens, I think, strange vistas of intellectual wonder and enchantment. We have heard already that the Stone which is identified with the Graal in Wolfram was at one time a stone in the crown of Lucifer, and seeing that, according to other legends, the thrones left vacant by the fallen angels are reserved for human souls, it becomes intelligible why the Graal was brought to earth and what is signified by the mystic jewel. The Stone in the crown of Lucifer symbolises the great estate from which the archangel fell. It was held by the fathers of the Church that, when still in the delights of Paradise, Lucifer was adorned by all manner of precious stones, understanding mystically of him what in the text of the prophet Ezekiel is said literally of the Prince of Tyre: In deliciis paradisi Dei fuisti; omnis lapis preciosus operimentum tuum: sardius, topazius, et jaspis, chrysolithus, et onyx, et beryllus, sapphirus, et carbunculus, et smaragdus--nine kinds of stones, according to Gregory the Great, because of the nine choirs of angels. And Bartolocci, the Cistercian, following all authorities, understands these jewels to signify the knowledge and other ornaments of grace with which Lucifer was adorned in his original state as the perfecta similitudo Dei--in other words, the light and splendour of the hidden knowledge. It follows on this interpretation (1) That the Graal Stone in no sense belongs to folk-lore; (2) that it offers in respect of its origin no connection with the idea of physical maintenance, except in the sense that the things which sustain the soul maintain also the body, because the panis quotidianus depends from the panis supersubstantialis; (3) that the wisdom of the Graal is an Eucharistic wisdom, because the descent of an arch-natural Host takes place annually to renew the virtues thereof; (4) that the correspondence of this is, in other versions of the legend, the Host which is consecrated extra-validly by the Secret Words, and so also the correspondence of the Stone which comes from heaven is the Cup which goes thereto; but in fine (5) that the jewel in the crown of Lucifer is called also the Morning Star, and thus it is not less than certain that the Graal returns whence it came.

http://www.sacred-texts.com/sro/hchg/hchg65.htm

III CONCERNING THE GREAT EXPERIMENT

There are others who, out of all time, have received a high election, and for them the subject is often--in its undivided entirety--found resident in that state of external religious life in which it has pleased God to call them.

The Secret Doctrine in the religions equally and the schools is that of the communication of Divine Substance. I speak of it as secret in both cases, though it is obvious that in the official church there is no instituted reservation or conscious concealment on any point of doctrine or practice; but the language of the heights is not the language of the plains, and that which is heard in the nooks, byways and corners, among brakes and thickets, is not the voice of the rushing waters and the open sea. That is true of it in the uttermost which was said long ago by Paracelsus: Nihil tam occultum erit quod non revelabitur; but as there are few with ears to hear, it remains a voice in the wilderness crying in the unknown tongue. We know only that, according to high theology, the Divine Substance is communicated in the Eucharist--normally in the symbolical manner, but, in cases, essentially and vitally according to the true testimonies. It is therefore as if the elements were at times consecrated normally and at times by other words, more secret and efficient arch-naturally. Then the enchantments terminate which are the swoon of the sensitive life in respect of the individual, who enters into real knowledge--the soul's knowledge before that supervened which is termed mystically the fall into matter. The Great Experiment is therefore one of reintegration in the secret knowledge before the Fall, and when, or if, the Holy Graal is identified with the stone in the crown of Lucifer, that which is indicated thereby is (a) the perpetuation of this secret knowledge, and (b) that under all circumstances there is a way back whence we came. So close also those times of adventure which--among other things and manifold--are the life of external activity governed by the spirit of the world, and this is accomplished by taking the great secret into the heart of the heart, as if the Blessed Sacrament, truly and virtually, into the inmost being.

So, all said the return of Lucifer’s stone will return him to his postion. I believe this goes back to the original statement of this analysis and the binding of love between Lucifer and the DIVINE. Love extinguishes all wraths.

So now we come to the traditional views about Lucifer and proof of our misconceptions. Here is a true analysis of the term Lucifer and how it came to be equated with Satan;

http://www.freethoughtpedia.com/wiki/Lucifer

Lucifer is only mentioned in the Holy Bible twice, here is the best know instance;

King James Version: Isaiah Chapter 14

4 That thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased!

5 The LORD hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the sceptre of the rulers.

6 He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth.

7 The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet: they break forth into singing.

8 Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Since thou art laid down, no feller is come up against us.

9 Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.

10 All they shall speak and say unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us?

11 Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee.

12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:

14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.

Reference; http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/kjv/isa014.htm

Also the definition for Lucifer from this same reference;

Lucifer Brilliant star, a title given to the king of Babylon (Isa 14:12) to denote his glory.

http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/ebd/ebd232.htm#006

So this means that in this content of Biblical Verses, this title was given to the King of Babylon to glorify him.

Many do not understand the words and prophetic esoteric visions written into the books of the prophets did not always come from YAHWEH but also from darker and lesser demi gods who also made war on this planet to rule. Demeter was such a dark GOD but can be easily identified by words of wrath and anger within the text. YAHWEH is light and love. This passage represented the battle between Light and Dark gods. Lucifer not being of the Dark but of the exalted.

Lucifer is not Satan, Satan is who oversees hell. Hell is a pit for non-believers and those who do great evil. Satan himself is merely doing the work for those against YAHWEH and it is man who does and creates great evil. Thus this layer in the astral is needed as a place hold for these souls. Mankind created the need for a hell.

Divine Feminine Powers ~ Written in Star’s

2010-11-03T19:04:00.000-07:00

Mythical St Ursula – Transformation from Mystical to Christian

This is one of my favorite Archetypes, her transformation into Theology is amazing. Ursula is my middle name so her story touches me in a very deep level. In this photo or Ursa Major and Ursa Minor you notice she is positioned in the celestial stars right next to Draco star system. Bears eat the snake . . .

Christianized form of the Saxon Goddess Ursel, or Horsel, the "Ercel" of Thomas Rhymer's Erceldoune, and the Venus of the Horselberg-Venusberg.

Ursel means "She-Bear," the title of Artemis Calliste, the same as the Helvetian Goddess Artio, in the guise of Ursa Major, the Great Bear (Big Dipper), whose constellation circles the pole star without disappearing into the sea. The ancients said Artemis the She-Bear ruled all the stars until Zeus usurped her place.

The mythical St. Ursula was accompanied by eleven thousand virgins,a common pagan image of the Moon-goddess accompanied by her children, the stars. One of the Goddess's foremost shrines was Cologne, where "Ursel" was converted into a Christian heroine to account for the reverence paid to her by the local people.

The tale on which Ursula's canonization was based was first invented about the 9th century AD; then, "During the 12th century this pious romance was preposterously elaborated through the mistakes of imaginative visionaries; a public burial-ground uncovered at Cologne was taken to be the grave of the martyrs, false relics came into circulation and forged epitaphs of non-existent persons were produced."

The churchmen claimed that St. Ursula was a Breton princess betrothed to Conon, prince of England, in the 5th century AD. Prior to her marriage, she too her eleven thousand virgins on a pilgrimage. While passing through Cologne, they were attacked and slaughtered by the Huns, at the instigation of two Roman generals who feared the Christian ladies' exemplary piety would convert all the northern Barbarians to Christ.

This fable was intended to Christianize the lunar bear-goddess worshipped at Cologne, the same who was Artio, the Helvetian "Mother of Animals," with another cult center at Berne ("She Bear"), where her portrait still appears on the Bernese coat of arms. Ursel and Artio were alternate names of the Triple Artemis who took the "bear-king" Arthur to paradise.

The Greeks said Argemis Calliste, "Fairest One," was associated with both the moon and the constellation of the Great Bear. In Britain, Ursa Major was often called Mistress Ursula," at first a title of the Goddess, later transferred to the saint.

Artemis the She-Bear was so widely recognized as the Mother of Animals that the island once sacred to her, Callista, is still called Thera,"She-Beast." Arcadians traced their descent from her son Arcas, the Little Bear (Ursa Minor) a bear-god like the Celtic Arthur. Hellenic mythographers pretended that Arcas's mother was a mere nymph, Calliste, who was punished for losing her virginity by receiving the form of a bear, along with her child; but Artemis took pity on them and placed them in the stars as Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. This version of the myth was invented to "account for the traditional connection between Artemis and the Great Bear." The Christian version was invented for different reasons, but with the same ultimate aim: to moralize the Goddess.

Some memory of Ursula the Moon-goddess seems to haunt the foundation of the Ursuline order of nuns, by St. Angela Merici in 1506. Catholic authorities now claim the Ursulines were the oldest order of teaching nuns.

But most convents were centers of learning for women until the church forbade women's education in the 13th century. The ursulines were perhaps the only order of teaching nuns who remained obedient to the papacy, and so were permitted to continue.

Yet, the Ursulines began under a cloud of suspicion. Angela Merici was a native of Brescia, which Pope Calixtus III described as a hotbed of witches. Angela's first group of sisters numbered exactly 28, the lunar number. They made their first devotion in a church dedicated to another mythical saint who was only another transformation of the Goddess, St. Afra,or Aphra (Aphrodite). Angela was not allowed to establish her holy society of teachers until forty years had passed since her original vision, which she received not in a church but in an open field under the moon. She and her women had no religious habit, no vows, and no communal life. They went to their pupils' homes to teach, like itinerant governesses.

The church was not interested in Angela until she underwent "popular" canonization in her home territory. Two centuries later, the church decided to take advantage of the popularity of her cult by declaring her Blessed. Finally in 1807 she was canonized by Pope Pius VII. But she is still almost as vague and dim as the Ursuline lunar She-Bear that the people of Brescia once worshiped.

A 20th century Catholic scholar mentioned her with one of those curious slips of the pen so common among patriarchal writers; he said the Ursuline order was founded by "Bishop Angela of Brescia."

Jesus, most beloved of all Master

2010-09-14T20:21:00.000-07:00

Jesus, most beloved of all Master, manifested forgiveness for all of us in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mount of Olives). Our true salvation came not from his death and resurrection on the cross but more so from his heart in this Garden when he manifested our salvation with his words and passion of true love from his Heart. To bear all our evil doings to the point of anguish that blood dripped for each pour of his body and he trembled with pain. Beloved Master Jesus, it is not by your death on the cross but by your words and passion of the heart.

Jesus recognized the power of the spoken word as part of Creation. We reflect on Genesis, the creation story.

Genesis 1

The Beginning

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

2 Now the earth was [a] formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.

6 And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.

9 And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good.

11 Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

However, the Holy Bible is very vague about the detail of this prayer, in this garden. It rather portrays Christ as seeking mercy for him own self asks GOD to remove this cup and ultimately Christ accepting the will of the Father. I tell you a being capable of the miracles he preformed and the vast knowledge of the DIVINE himself would be in a higher state of consciousness that concerned only about the events were yet to come. In this garden, Christ engaged in deep conversation with the higher beings in the highest of realms which is hinted of by the appearance of an angel. Much conversation occurred here.

Let’s reflect on the passage from Luke.

Luke 22:39-45

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives

39Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40On reaching the place, he said to them, "Pray that you will not fall into temptation." 41He withdrew about a stone's throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42"Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." 43An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. 44And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. [b]

45When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow.

So, that’s all there was??? What, about half of a second???

I tell you its no stretch for a rational mind to know there was a lot more to this pray that what is written. He was away long enough in that garden that his disciples fell asleep. Think about how you are when you are exhausted from sorrow, do you fall into slumber right away or do you meander around a bit in a haze and state of shock still thinking about the events?

Each of the Masters gives us great gifts and should be not consider a lesser contribution in any way. Jesus in his infinite wisdom realized the power of manifestation with words and heart and gave each of us the ultimate gift and the ultimate gift to the DIVINE source. He took our sins upon himself literally to the point of anguish that blood sweat from each poor. His pain was great in this hour.

My favorite Christian Church got it right, with these words so was it manifested into reality;

The Book of Mormon contains a reference to the intense agony endured by Jesus Christ as he atoned for the sins of all humanity:

And lo, he shall suffer temptations, and pain of body, hunger, thirst, and fatigue, even more than man can suffer, except it be unto death; for behold, blood cometh from every pore, so great shall be his anguish for the wickedness and the abominations of his people. (Mosiah 3:7, emphasis added.)

Critics claim that the reference to blood coming from a pore is anachronistic, since Nephite authors would not have known about skin pores. Joseph Smith, it is claimed, would have known about pores, and so the Book of Mormon's addition of the word "pore" to the Bible's account in Luke 22:44 of Christ's suffering reflects Joseph Smith's 19th century worldview, and not an ancient author's.

However, rather than focus on microscopy or physiology, members of the Church hope to spend far more time obeying Jesus' command to repent, which he gave in a description of the atonement as revealed to Joseph Smith:

15 Therefore I command you to repent—repent, lest I smite you by the rod of my mouth, and by my wrath, and by my anger, and your sufferings be sore—how sore you know not, how exquisite you know not, yea, how hard to bear you know not.

16 For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent;

17 But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I;

18 Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink—

19 Nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men.

20 Wherefore, I command you again to repent, lest I humble you with my almighty power; and that you confess your sins, lest you suffer these punishments of which I have spoken, of which in the smallest, yea, even in the least degree you have tasted at the time I withdrew my Spirit. (D&C 19:15–20.)

The garden and the cross

However, even that emphasis, were it the sole message of the Church (and it is not) does not exclude the cross. Note, for example, this excerpt from the Christmas message of Gordon B. Hinckley, past President of the Church:

We honor His birth. But without His death that birth would have been but one more birth. It was the redemption which He worked out in the Garden of Gethsemane and upon the cross of Calvary which made His gift immortal, universal, and everlasting. His was a great Atonement for the sins of all mankind. He was the resurrection and the life, "the firstfruits of them that slept" (1 Cor. 15:20). Because of Him all men will be raised from the grave.[1]

Other statements by Elder Bruce McConkie, who is sometimes used as evidence for this criticism, show he was not as one-sided as critics imply:

And now, as pertaining to this perfect atonement, wrought by the shedding of the blood of God—I testify that it took place in Gethsemane and at Golgotha, and as pertaining to Jesus Christ, I testify that he is the Son of the Living God and was crucified for the sins of the world. He is our Lord, our God, and our King."[2]

The official training booklet sent out with missionaries includes this statement:

The Atonement included His suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane as well as His suffering and death on the cross.[3]

As a fourth example, consider something that recently came from the Church press:

Jesus' atoning sacrifice took place in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross at Calvary. In Gethsemane, He began to take upon himself the sins of the world…. The Savior continued to suffer for our sins when He allowed Himself to be crucified.[4]

The importance of Gethsemane in the scriptures

Gethsemane does present some interesting problems. Critics reject it in part because it is only mentioned twice in the New Testament (Matt. 26:36 and Mark 14:32). While this may be so, the events that transpired there are mentioned also in the other two gospels. In other words, all four gospel writers felt it important enough to include it in their 'memoirs.' In John 18:1 it is reported that Christ and His disciples "often resorted thither." Luke 22:39 tells us that He went there, "as he was wont" (compare Luke 19:29 and Luke 21:37, the latter of which says He spent the 'nights' on Mount Olive). This was apparently a special place for them to seek solitude, a private place to seek their Father in prayer. It is evident from the commentaries written on the various gospels that the exact purpose of the experience is not well understood. We don't need to go into the events verse by verse, but there are some things that need to be noted. Despite the importance the Lord places on prayer in general, there are only a few places where He is actually depicted as doing so; this prayer in Gethsemane is one of them147. Furthermore, there are few places in the New Testament where He is depicted as being 'strengthened' by an angel (Matt. 4:11). The experience in the Garden is one of them (Luke 22:43, an angel to strengthen him during His prayer). There are others who have also commented on the singularity of this experience, and attributed it, at least in part, to the atonement.

Here is some history about the church;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeology_and_the_Book_of_Mormon

Many presumed Mormons as witches; Mary Ellen Tracy was a Mormon for 10 years
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Ellen_Tracy

However, it was a label many who followed a higher path were accused of. The path of our soul is well defined in an ancient place of the highest astral realms . . . follow your heart. However Christ was not labeled a witch yet he was our example of following a higher realm, preformed miracles or magic, however you’d like to see it. Spoke to angels and fought and won against the greatest darkness. He still does this for us today.

Blessings be with you ~

State of Mind ~

2010-06-05T07:14:00.000-07:00

It need be said that the greatest gift one can give himself/herself is the condition of their state of mind. The mind is the ultimate creator in the realities within you; this is a gift from God as we are all created in his likeness. These thoughts and ideas then trickle down into reality.

Many of us are driven by emotions, that's all we know. These emotions originate in the mind and then are expressed through the heart. Religious institutions are designed to help those, who do not fully understand the importance of this principle, to achieve a higher condition of being within our thoughts. However many do not take this ultimate lesson from the teachings they receive from such institutions.

We as peoples have the power as a whole to change this world by this simple principle. As Christ himself tried to show us; adapt a mind of lovingness, reach to your brother and sister in charity, walk in the beauty of creation and all that has been added unto you. Be forgiving and regard each as yourself, be grateful for your loved ones, your wife or husband, your children and all other family members.

Radiate positive and be passive, forgive and forget and allow your mind and heart to be free of burden. Don’t let social conditions make you feel hurried or overwhelmed. Let go and take your time in your accomplishments. Take control of your mind and how all is perceived within.

Choose a greater path, don’t fear that someone may take advantage of you, it will happen but those are ones who are dark and negative and are trying to alter your condition. Someone taking advantage of you is them trying to hurt you but ultimately it is their soul’s path and reconciliation will come to them. Turn the other cheek and walk away knowing that you walk in the light of Christ.

The Egyptians believed upon transfiguration of physical death the soul is weighed on a scale. On one side is a feather (love) and the other is a weight (negative emotions). This is “KEY” how you live you life and the conditions of your mind is the determining factor of the flight of your soul in the spiritual realms.

Too many are caught up in the idea that one mistreating them is a lack of their intelligence to see what’s happening and to do something about it. This is not the case at all, rather it is the lack of intelligence of the one who is doing the mistreating not to see within themselves that their agenda is obvious and the one being victimized is the one who truly loves them. Now this does not mean that you should be their doormat, remove yourself from their doing and carry on with the love in your heart.

Exercise lightheartedness by meditation, by acknowledging the sunlight upon your face and praying, speaking directly to Divinity. Close your eyes and use your imagination to carry you to higher ground. Create a journey that will fill you with joy taking yourself to a place that is your personal sanctuary. Imagine yourself walking with Christ himself talking and sharing, and then live it! Fill yourself with light everyday within these exercises.

Upon the very moment of your passing from this realm into the spirit realm, the condition of your mind is the journey of your soul. You create that path within your daily living so choose well.

Love be with you always~

The Book of Mormon; Doctrine and Covenants 88:6-50

2010-04-23T22:09:00.000-07:00

The Book of Mormon; Doctrine and Covenants 88:6-50

The Church of Jesus Christ and Latter Days Saints is my most favorite Christian Church. In 1999 I know I was lead to this church as a result of a prayer to GOD. I asked why there were no modern day prophets and within 14 days my son led the Elders to my door step. A series of synchronicities along with other events and good people who understood the esoteric nature of the human soul were housed within this church. I was drawn to how Joseph Smith communicated in an esoteric nature Moroni and was lead to re-establish the Gospel of Jesus Christ in North America. I understood this as the truth and the way we are all connected and communicate with ascended beings.

Section 88 was given to Joseph Smith in Kirkland Ohio on December 27, 1832 and was designed by the Prophet as “olive leaf . . . plucked from the Tree of Paradise and the Lords message of peace to us.

So here it goes . . . almost word for word (changed some “old” words “eth’s” to contemporary verbiages and a few comments in parentheses’) . . . the association to the Ascended Masters and light beings of The Great White Brotherhood. I know I was lead in this path for a reason, not to change it but to connect us all in oneness. Truth shines on its own.

Doctrine and Covenants 88:6-50

6 He that ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things, in that he comprehended all things, that might be in all and through all things, the light of truth;
7 Which truth shineth. This is light of Christ. As also he is in the sun, and the light of the sun, and the power thereof by which it was made.
8 As also he is in the moon, and is the light of the moon, and the power thereof by which it was made;
9 As also the light of the stars and the power thereof which it was made;
10 And the earth also, and the power thereof, even the earth upon which you stand.
11 And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlightened your eyes, which is the same light that quickened your understandings;
12 Which light proceeded forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space –
13 The light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law to all things are governed, even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things;
14 Now, verily I say unto you, that through the redemption which is made for you is brought to pass the resurrection from the dead.
15 And the spirit and the body are the soul of man.
16 And the resurrection from the dead is the redemption of the soul.
17 And the redemption of the soul is through him that all things, in whose bosom it is decreed that the poor and the meek of the earth shall inherit it.
18 Therefore it must needs be sanctified from all unrighteousness, that it may be prepared for celestial glory;
19 For after it hath filled the measure of its creation, it shall be crowned with glory even with the presence of God the Father;
20 That bodies who are of the celestial kingdom may possess it forever and ever; for this intent was it made and created, and this intent are they sanctified.
21 And they who are not sanctified through the law which I have given unto you, even the law of Christ, must inherit another kingdom, even that of a terrestrial kingdom or that of a telestial kingdom (lower realms).
22 For he who is not able to abide the law of a celestial kingdom can not abide by celestial glory.
23 And he who can not abide the law of the terrestrial kingdom can not abide a terrestrial glory.
24 And he who cannot abide the law if a telestial kingdom cannot abide by telestial glory; therefore he is not meant for a kingdom of glory. Therefore he must abide a kingdom which is not a kingdom of glory.
25 And again, verily I say unto you, the earth abideth the law of a celestial kingdom, for it filleth the measure of its creation, and transgresseth not the law—
26 Wherefore, it shall be sanctified; yea notwithstanding it shall die, it shall be quickened again and shall abide the power by which it is quickened, and the righteous shall inherit it.
27 For notwithstanding they die, they also shall rise again, a spiritual body.
28 They who are of a celestial spirit shall receive the same body which was a natural body; even ye shall receive your bodies, and your glory shall be that glory by which your bodies are quickened.
29 Ye who are quickened by a portion of the celestial glory shall then receive of the same, even a fulness.
30 And they who are quickened by a portion of the terrestrial glory shall receive the same, even a fulness.
31 And they who are quickened by a portion of the telestial glory shall receive the same, even a fulness.
32 And they who remain shall also be quickened; nevertheless, they shall return again to their own place, to enjoy that which they are willing to receive, because they were not willing to enjoy that which they might have received.
33 For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him and he receive not the gift? Behold he rejoices not in that which is given unto him, neither rejoices in him who is the giver of the gift.
34 And again, verily I say unto you, that which is governed by law is also preserved by law and perfected and sanctified by the same.
35 That which breaks a law, and abides not by the law, but seeks become the law unto itself, and will to abide by sin, and altogether abide in sin, cannot be sanctified by law, neither by mercy, justice nor judgment. Therefore they must remain filthy still.
36 All kingdoms have a law given;
37 And there are many kingdoms; for there is no space in which there is no kingdom; and there is no kingdom which there is no space. (we are all Kings and Queens of our Kingdoms)
38 And unto every kingdom is given a law; and unto every law there are certain bounds also and conditions.
39 All beings who abide not in those conditions are not justified.
40 For intelligence cleave unto intelligence; wisdom receives wisdom; truth embraces truth; virtue loves virtue; light cleaves unto light; mercy hath compassion on mercy and claims her own; justice continues its course and claims its own; judgment goes before the face of him who is seated upon the throne and governs and executes all things.
41 He comprehends all things and all things are before him, and all things are around and about him; and he is above all things, and in all things, and through all things; and is round about all things; and all things are by him, and of him, even God forever and ever.
42 And again, verily I say unto you, he hath given a law unto all things by which they move in their times and seasons;
43 And their courses are fixed, even the courses of the heavens and the earth, which comprehend the earth and all the planets.
44 And they give light to each other in their times and in their seasons, in their minutes, in their hours, in their days, in their months, in their years – all these are one year with God, but not with man.
45 The earth rolls upon her wings, and the sun gives his light by day, and the moon gives her light by night, and the stars also give their glory, in the midst of the power of God.
46 Unto what shalt I liken these kingdoms, that ye may understand?
47 Behold, all these are kingdoms, and any man who hath seen any or the least of these hath seen God moving in his majesty and power.
48 I say unto you, he hath seen him; nevertheless, he who comes unto his own was not comprehended.
49 The light shines in darkness, and the darkness comprehends it not; nevertheless the day shall come when you shall comprehend even God, being quickened in him by him.
50 Then shall ye know that ye have seen me, that I AM, and that I am the true light that is in you, and that you are in me; otherwise ye could not abound.

So it is, in its full bounty, revelation in 1832 by Joseph Smith ~ profound!

AEON Matthew 28:20: “…I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

2010-03-22T18:31:00.000-07:00

The definition below from Wikipedia and is “perfect” so I left it as is.

The word aeon, also spelled eon or æon, means "age", "forever" or "for eternity". It is a Latin transliteration from the koine Greek word ὁ αἰών (aion), from the archaic αἰϝών (aiwon). In Homer it typically refers to life or lifespan, but by at least Hesiod it could refer to ages or generations. It has a similar meaning to the Sanskrit word kalpa and Hebrew word olam. A cognate Latin word aevum or aeuum (cf. αἰϝών) for "age" is present in words such as longevity and mediæval.
Although the term aeon may be used in reference to a period of a billion years (especially in geology or astronomy), its more common usage is for any long, indefinite, period of time.

Eternity or Age

The Bible translation is a treatment of the Hebrew word olam and the Greek word aion. These two words have similar meaning, and Young's Literal Translation renders them and their derivatives as “age” or “age-during”. Other English versions most often translate them to indicate eternity, being translated as eternal, everlasting, forever, etc. However, there are notable exceptions to this in all major translations, such as Matthew 28:20: “…I am with you always, to the end of the age” (NRSV), the word “age” being a translation of aion. Rendering aion to indicate eternality in this verse would result in the contradictory phrase “end of eternity”, so the question arises whether it should ever be so. Proponents of Universal Reconciliation point out that this has significant implications for the concept of Hell.

Contrast Matthew 25:46 in well-known English translations with its rendering in Young's Literal Translation:
1. And these shall go away to punishment age-during, but the righteous to life age-during. (YLT)
2. Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. (NIV)
3. These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. (NASB)
4. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal. (KJV)
5. And these will depart into everlasting cutting-off, but the righteous ones into everlasting life. (NWT)

In philosophy and mysticism

Plato used the word aeon to denote the eternal world of ideas, which he conceived was "behind" the perceived world, as demonstrated in his famous “allegory of the cave”.
Christianity's idea of "eternal life" comes from the word for life, zoe, and a form of aeon, which could mean life in the next aeon, the Kingdom of God, or Heaven, just as much as immortality, as in John 3:16.
According to the heterodox Christian doctrine of Universal Reconciliation, the Greek New Testament scriptures use the word "eon" to mean a long period of time (perhaps 1000 years) and the word "eonian" to mean "during a long period of time"; Thus there was a time before the eons, and the eonian period is finite. After each man's mortal life ends, he is judged worthy of eonian life or eonian punishment. That is, after the period of the eons, all punishment will cease and death is overcome and then God becomes the “All” in each one. This contrasts with the traditional Christian belief in eternal life and eternal punishment.
Occultists of the Thelema and O.T.O. traditions sometimes speak of a "Magical Aeon" that may last for far less time, perhaps as little as 2,000 years.

In Gnosticism

In many Gnostic systems, the various emanations of God, who is also known by such names as the One, the Monad, Aion teleos (The Broadest Aeon), Bythos ("depth or profundity", Greek Βυθός), Proarkhe ("before the beginning", Greek πρόαρχή), the Arkhe ("the beginning", Greek ή αρχή), are called Aeons. In the different systems these emanations are differently named, classified, and described, but the emanation theory itself is common to all forms of Gnosticism. In the Basilidian Gnosis they are called sonships (uiotetes); according to Marcus, they are numbers and sounds; in Valentinianism they form male/female pairs called "syzygies" (Greek Συζυγίες, from syzygoi).
This source of “All” being is an Aeon in which an inner being dwells, known as Ennoea ("thought, intent", Greek Έννοια), Charis ("grace", Greek Χάρις), or Sige ("silence", Greek Σιγή). These are the primary roots of the Aeons. The split perfect being conceives the second Aeon, Caen ("power"), within itself. Along with the male Caen comes the female Aeon, Akhana ("love"). Complex hierarchies of Aeons are thus produced, sometimes to the number of thirty. These Aeons belong to the purely ideal, noumenal, intelligible, or supersensible world; they are immaterial, they are hypostatic ideas. Together with the source from which they emanate they form the Pleroma ("region of light", Greek Πλήρωμα). The lowest regions of the Pleroma are closest to the darkness—that is, the physical world.
The transition from the immaterial to the material, from the noumenal to the sensible, is brought about by a flaw, or a passion, or a sin, in one of the Aeons. According to Basilides, it is a flaw in the last sonship; according to others the sin of the Great Archon, or Aeon-Creator, of the Universe; according to others it is the passion of the female Aeon Sophia, who emanates without her partner Aeon, resulting in the Demiurge (Greek Δημιουργός), a creature that should never have come into existence. This creature does not belong to the Pleroma, and the “One” emanates two savior Aeons, Christ and the Holy Spirit, to save humanity from the Demiurge. Christ then took the form of the human Jesus, in order to be able to teach humanity how to achieve Gnosis. The ultimate end of all Gnosis is metanoia, or repentance, the undoing of the sin of material existence and the return to the Pleroma.
Aeons bear a number of similarities to Judaeo-Christian angels, including their roles as servants and emanations of God, and their existence as beings of light. In fact, certain Gnostic Angels, such as Armozel, also happen to be Aeons.
The Gnostic Gospel of Judas, recently found, purchased, held, and translated by the National Geographic Society, also mentions the Aeons and speaks of Jesus' teachings of them.

Valentinus

Valentinus assumed, as the beginning of all things, the Primal Being or Bythos, who after ages of silence and contemplation, gave rise to other beings by a process of emanation. The first series of beings, the Aeons, were thirty in number, representing fifteen syzygies or pairs sexually complementary.

The Valentinian system was, until recently, only known through the criticisms of its opponents; however, the discovery of the Nag Hammadi library has given access to Valentinian texts, including sources that have been tentatively identified as written by Valentinus.
Tertullian's Against the Valentinians gives a slightly different sequence. The first eight of these Aeons, corresponding to generations one through four below, are referred to as the Ogdoad.

One common form is outlined below:
• First generation:
Bythos (The Depth) and Sige (The Silence)
• Second generation:
Caen (Power) and Akhana (Immensity)
• Third generation, emanated from Caen and Akhana:
Nous (Nus, Mind) and Aletheia (Veritas, Truth)
• Fourth generation, emanated from Nous and Aletheia:
Sermo (the Word) and Vita (the Drive)
• Fifth generation, emanated from Sermo and Vita:
Anthropos (Mankind) and Ecclesia (Civilization/ Community)

• Sixth generation:
Emanated from Sermo and Vita:
Bythios (Profound) and Mixis (Mixture)
Ageratos (Ageless) and Henosis (Unification)
Autophyes (Growth) and Hedone (Pleasure)
Acinetos (Immovable) and Syncrasis (Commixture)
Monogenes (Common origin) and Macaria (Destined death)

Emanated from Anthropos and Ecclesia:
Paracletus (Comforter) and Pistis (Faith)
Patricas (Paternal) and Elpis (Hope)
Metricos (Maternal) and Agape (Love)
Ainos (Praise) and Synesis (Intelligence)
Ecclesiasticus (Son of Ecclesia) and Macariotes (Blessedness)
Theletus (Perfect) and Sophia (Wisdom)

Ptolemy and Colorbasus

According to Irenaeus, the followers of the Gnostics Ptolemy and Colorbasus had Aeons that differ from those of Valentinus. Logos is created when Anthropos learns to speak. The first four are called the Tetrad and the eight are called the Ogdoad.

• First generation:
Bythos (the One) and Sige (Silence, Charis, Ennoea, etc.)
• Second generation (conceived by the One):
Caen (Power) and Akhana (Love)
• Third generation, emanated from Caen and Akhana:
Ennoae (Thought) and Thelesis (Will)
• Fourth generation, emanated from Ennoae and Thelesis:
Nous (or Monogenes) and Aletheia
• Fifth generation, emanated from Nouse and Aletheia:
Anthropos (Homo, Man) and Ecclesia (Church)
• Sixth generation, emanated from Anthropos and Ecclesia:
Logos and Zoe
• Seventh generation:
Emanated from Logos and Zoe:
Bythius and Mixis
Ageratos and Henosis
Autophyes and Hedone
Acinetos and Syncrasis
Monogenes and Macaria

Emanated from Anthropos and Ecclesia:
Paracletus and Pistis
Patricos and Elpis
Metricos and Agape
Ainos and Synesis
Ecclesiasticus and Macariotes
Theletos and Sophia

The order of Anthropos and Ecclesia versus Logos and Zoe is somewhat debated; different sources give different accounts. Logos and Zoe are unique to this system as compared to the previous, and may be an evolved version of the first, totalling 34 Aeons, but it is not clear if the first two were actually regarded Aeons.

Modern interpretations

According to Myther, the total number of Aeons, being 32, reflects the similarity of the mechanism to the Tree of Life, which, as suggested in the Zohar, incorporates 10 Sephiroth and 22 paths interconnecting these 10 Sephiroth; while 10 Aeons are created during the first five generations from which come the other 22 Aeons later during the sixth generation

Other References:
http://www.willamette.edu/~ttalbott/PICTURES.pdf
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/lostgospel/
http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G166&Version=kjv
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelema

As you can see clearly there are several definaitions as to what an Aeon really is depending upon the content in which you use the word.

Awakening

2010-02-07T09:39:00.000-08:00

The awakening of each individual soul is a requirement as we approach this new dimensional shift of our planet. Our realtionship with the "DIVINE" and the planet itself must change for this shift. When a soul begins to awake profound spiritual truths begin to reveal themselves. You may experience visions, deeper psychic communication with the GOD conscious. You will begin to build relationships with your spirit guide or guides, your guardian angel, the Ascended Masters and other Angelic forces that offer their service and help to draw out your true inner light and elevate it to a higher existence. One may also find themselves meeting their twin flame if your soul is in need. Through these relationships and expression of love to them you will rise to a higher existence in this physical expression of life.

The key here is in the “Relationship” you build which defines your path and journey from inception. You may not understand all that occurs and find yourself questioning the process. The answer is “Do your homework, study topics that are directly in line with your personal journey”. Next answer is to remain open minded, remain flexible and navigate each junction of growth with love, truth and you radiant inner beauty as if you were working with GOD directly.

You approach a higher prayerful state where the inner magic of your consciousness begins to manifest your deeper desires and hopes to bring to pass these things in reality. Constant focus, a humble spirit and a commitment to the journey will yield is reward. A contrite spirit will yield disappointments.

Document your journey so that you can clearly see your path and journey as lessons have a tendency to repeat themselves if not learned initially. Maintain and insist upon those things that are important to your relationship such as truth, integrity and mutual respect. You will be tested so don’t throw away anything that is important to your conscious needs.

Whatever your journey yields it is the higher path to the ones true self and is designed to manifest the light being from within. This comes with commitment to do Lightwork and help others obtain the “Kingdom of Heaven” within each of them.

Reach your hand to your brothers and sisters and open the window to Heaven for them.

Find more music like this on SaveNaturefree Here.

Zealotry

2009-12-27T13:40:00.000-08:00

Zealotry

In all things in pursuit of truth and our connection with the Divine One, we must all be zealous in our quest. Not only to seek the truth each day but to share and teach others along the way in our path. In the great struggles of mankind each victory was obtain buy a zealous heart and spirit which lead to great victory. Below are several theological references on the topic and are excellent examples of how one can be zealous for the wrong cause but can have a change of heart and continue his ambitions in the right direction. Paul the Apostle is the greatest of this example.

"Zealot" redirects here. For other uses, see Zealot (disambiguation).
Zealotry was originally a political movement in first century Judaism which sought to incite the people of Judaea Province to rebel against the Roman Empire and expel it from the holy land by force of arms, most notably during the Great Jewish Revolt (AD 66-70). Zealotry was described by Josephus as one of the "four sects" at this time.

The term Zealot, in Hebrew kanai (קנאי, frequently used in plural form, קנאים), means one who is zealous on behalf of God. The term derives from Greek ζηλωτής (zelotes), "emulator, zealous admirer or follower".

Josephus' Jewish Antiquities states that there were three main Jewish sects at this time, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes. The Zealots were a "fourth sect", founded by Judas of Galilee (also called Judas of Gamala) and Zadok the Pharisee in the year 6 against Quirinius' tax reform, shortly after the Roman state declared (what had most recently been the territory of Herod Archelaus) a Roman Province, and that they "agree in all other things with the Pharisaic notions; but they have an inviolable attachment to liberty, and say that God is to be their only Ruler and Lord." (18.1.6)

According to the Jewish Encyclopedia article on Zealots[4]:

“ Following Josephus most writers consider that the Zealots were a so-called fourth party founded by Judas the Galilean (see Grätz, "Gesch." iii. 252, 259; Schürer, "Gesch." 1st ed., i. 3, 486). This view is contradicted, however, by the fact that Hezekiah, the father of Judas the Galilean, had an organized band of so-called "robbers" which made war against the Idumean Herod, and also during the reign of Herod, if not long before by the fact that the system of religious and political murders practised by the Zealots was in existence during the reign of Herod, if not long before. ”

In either case, it has also been argued that the group was not so clearly marked out (before the first war of 66-70/3) as some have thought.

The Crisis under Caligula has been proposed as the first open break between Rome and the Jews.
Two of Judas' sons, Jacob and Simon, were involved in a revolt and were executed by Tiberius Alexander, the procurator of Iudaea province from 46 to 48.

When Rome introduced the imperial cult, the Jews unsuccessfully rebelled in the Great Jewish Revolt. The Zealots continued to oppose the Romans.

The Zealots had the leading role in the Jewish Revolt of 66. They succeeded in taking over Jerusalem, and held it until 70, when the son of Roman Emperor Vespasian, Titus, retook the city and destroyed Herod's Temple during the destruction of Jerusalem.

The Zealots objected to Roman rule and violently sought to eradicate it by generally targeting Romans and Greeks. Zealots engaged in violence against other Jews were called the Sicarii[8]. They raided Jewish habitations and killed Jews they considered apostate and collaborators, while also urging Jews to fight Romans and other Jews for the cause. Josephus paints a very bleak picture of their activities as they instituted what he characterized as a murderous "reign of terror" prior to the Jewish Temple's destruction.

According to Josephus, the Zealots followed John of Gischala, who had fought the Romans in Galilee, escaped, came to Jerusalem, and then inspired the locals to a fanatical position that led to the Temple's destruction.

Sicarii

One particularly extreme group of Zealots was also known in Latin as sicarii, meaning "violent men" (sing. sicarius, possibly a morphological reanalysis), because of their policy of killing Jews opposed to their call for war against Rome. Probably many Zealots were sicarii simultaneously, and they may be the biryonim of the Talmud that were feared even by the Jewish sages of the Mishnah.

According to historian H.H. Ben-Sasson, the Sicarii, originally based in Galilee, "were fighting for a social revolution, while the Jerusalem Zealots placed less stress on the social aspect" and the Sicarii "never attached themselves to one particular family and never proclaimed any of their leaders king". Both groups objected to the way the priestly families were running the Temple.[7]

The term sicariii also referred to a class of gladiators who fought with a long, curved knife.

Paul the Apostle

See also: Paul of Tarsus and Judaism

Taking the Greek word zelotes in Acts 23:3 and Galatians 1:14 of the New Testament to mean a 'Zealot' with capital Z, an article has been written up to suggest that Paul the Apostle may have been a Zealot, which might have been the driving force behind his persecution of the Christians (see stoning of Saint Stephen) before his conversion to Christianity and his conflict with Jewish Christians even after his conversion.

While most of translations render this Greek word as an adjective "zealous", the word is a noun meaning 'adherent, loyalist, enthusiast; patriot, zealot'. A 'Zealot' with capital Z, however, would suggest a member of the particular Zealots, the group emerged in Jerusalem ca. A.D. 28 according to Josephus. In the two cited verses Paul literally declares himself as one who is loyal to God, or an ardent observer of the Law, but see also Antinomianism in the NT. This does not necessarily prove Paul was revealing himself as a Zealot. A translation (Modern King James Version) renders it as 'a zealous one'. Two modern translations (Jewish New Testament and Alternate Literal Translation) render it as 'a zealot'. The latter may not be inaccurate, but it is disputed by those who claim it gives wrong association with the Zealots.

"GALATIANS 1.14 And profited in the Jews religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers."

Here Paul confession that he was zealous in his fathers tradition without question but PAUL learned the truth in his spirit and followed that path no longer depending on traditions.

"ACTS 22.1-11 Paul’s defense before a crowd ; Men, brethren and fathers hear ye my defense which I make now unto you. I am verily a man which am a Jew born in Tarsus a city in Cilicia yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers and was zealous toward GOD, as ye all are this day. And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and woman. As also the high priest doth bear me witness and all the estate of the elders from whom also I received letters unto the brethren and went to Damascus to bring them which were there bound unto Jerusalem for to be punished. And it came to pass that as I made my journey and was come nigh unto Damascus about noon suddenly there shone from Heaven a great light round about me. And I fell unto the ground and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul why persecutes thou me? And I answered, Who are thou Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecute. And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid but they heard not the voice that spake to me."

Reference; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zealotry
Holy Bible King James Version

zealot

c.1300, "member of a militant 1st century Jewish sect which fiercely resisted the Romans in Palestine," from L.L. Zelotes, from Gk. zelotes "one who is a zealous follower," from zeloun "to be zealous," from zelos "zeal" (see zeal). Extended sense of "a fanatical enthusiast" first recorded 1630s.

fedayeen

partisans or irregulars in the Middle East, from Arabic pl. of fedai "devotee, zealot, one who risks life for a cause," from Pers. fidai.

Reference; http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=zealot&searchmode=none

Lilith

2009-11-14T20:04:00.000-08:00

A recent study from the Theosophical Society on this topic made me want to do further analysis. Some names as she has been called are;

The Tree of Life
Descent of the Goddess
The Star – Eye of Medusa (ALGOL)
Virgin Mary
Black Madonna and associated with Miracles and Magic
Dark Moon Lilith – Associated with mermaids, Sirens, fairies, succubus’s, vampires
The Star
The Cosmic Feminine
The Light
GOD Essence

Here is the link, its about 1.5 hours long so . . .
http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=6EA1BACF-10E0-4072-8029-6FB1F15B599F&file=F74BCD8C-26F0-45A1-8532-56E209B8705E#F74BCD8C-26F0-45A1-8532-56E209B8705E

In Christianity, Esoteric, Astrologic and Mythology she is represented as both a Dark and Light being. I pinged several pages and found some interesting view points on the matter.

First I want to examine the opinion from http://herodyssey.blogspot.com/2009/01/robert-g-brown-book-of-lilith.html

Here the book by Robert G. Brown; "The Book of Lilith" is examined. It is the product of an active, imaginative and thoughtful mind; taking an existing mythos and making it his own. He states;

“It’s the dawn of days… and God’s a-creatin’… Contrary to popular belief, God creates Lilith first. Lilith is vastly intelligent, but the moment she opens her eyes she is full of questions and confusion… and then God gives her Adam, a narrow-minded, prideful man, and things just get more impossible for Lilith. Their new home, the Paradise of Eden is a ticking time bomb—and then boom, ground zero—it goes up in a mushroom cloud. The effects of Lilith and Adam’s stormy relationship balloon outwards like a shock wave across the known world and the fallout washes over unsuspecting and unenlightened people.”

The first sentence in this commentary is profound to me. I thought to myself, If GOD created Lilith first than maybe Lilith is the “Feminine” essence of GOD himself. GOD split himself into his own duality? This would make Lilith a Goddess, yes? GOD claimed the “male” for himself and created “female”. This makes perfect sense to me so why is she represented as something dark and evil?

Is it not a fact that both man and women have both Light and Dark within them? Isn’t it our choice on which we allow to control us?

In Christianity she is noted as being Dark as well, I have copied this narrative from a website that I feel in love with titled

Feminist Mormon House Wives! (I Love this!)
http://www.feministmormonhousewives.org/?p=469

Mother of All: Lilith & Eve

By: Artemis - January 30, 2006

One night a few months ago, I was pondering the mysteries of the kingdom. Something had jogged my memory about Lilith (might’ve been Kaimi trying out different goddess pseudonyms for himself), and while she is not part of our doctrinal narrative, I started thinking how she might fit in.

According to Wikipedia, “Lilith is a female Mesopotamian night demon believed to harm male children. In Isaiah 34:14, Lilith (לִּילִית, Standard Hebrew Lilit) is a kind of night-demon or animal, translated as onokentauros; in the Septuagint, as lamia; “witch” by Hieronymus of Cardia; and as screech owl in the King James Version of the Bible. In the Talmud and Midrash, Lilith appears as a night demon. The idea of Lilith as the first wife of Adam arose in the Middle Ages.”

Now, most of us know the story of Eve, but just for kicks and equal billing, here’s what the Wik says about her: “in the Torah, Yahweh is described as causing a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and removing part of his body, usually interpreted as a rib (though a more literal translation is non-specific). From this body part, Eve is subsequently created, as a companion to alleviate Adam’s loneliness, and while Eve, is not mentioned by name in the Qur’an, she is nevertheless referred to as Adam’s spouse, and Islamic tradition refers to her by an etymologically similar name - Hawwa. In fact, although her creation is not recounted in the Qur’an, Tabari recounts the biblical tale of her creation, stating that she was named because she was created from a living thing (her name means living). The torah gives an etymology for woman, or rather the Hebrew equivalent (ish-shah), stating that she should be called woman since she was taken out of man (ish in Hebrew). The etymology is regarded as implausible by most semitic linguists.”

The story of Lilith that most people know (if they know anything about her) is that she was supposedly Adam’s first wife, but was a very uppity kind of woman and refused to have sex underneath Adam, as that was the submissive position. The original Woman on Top. Adam complained, Lilith was banished, Adam got lonely, God sent angels to bring Lilith back, Lilith refused on grounds of her independence. God got Adam another, more submissive wife, Eve, and they lived happily for a little while after.

While Wikipedia is quite explicit that the Lilith/Adam marriage story is at the end of the myth’s evolution, I want to turn things around a bit and suggest that in terms of our collective psyche, Lilith and Eve represent two halves of the feminine falsely separated into opposites–one powerful, confident and independent, the other submissive and compliant. Let’s say for the sake of argument, that the traditional patriarchal cultures that have dominated most of history have, either consciously or unconsciously, promoted this split to make sure they can keep control over women, i.e., teach the message that an uppity, independent, and egalitarian-minded woman is Bad and a submissive, “weaker”, and obedient woman is Good. If women believe this, women will do what men want because it is the ‘natural’ or ‘good’ order of life.

Instead, what if we unify the personalities/personas of Eve and Lilith? The true companion of a complete Adam and his masculinity is a complete woman and her femininity (Eveleth?), who is powerful and good, nurturing and strong, independent and committed. The Mother of All.

Really, our LDS conception of Eve is evolving this direction anyway. She’s no longer the one who botched things for the rest of us, she’s a hero who made a brave, scary, and righteous choice (i.e., God wanted her & Adam & the rest of us to experience mortality, it was his will that they transgress one law to keep another, making her decisions a transgression, not a sin, sin being to knowingly act against the will of God). Now, it’s obvious that the ‘power’ issue is currently in flux among the Saints because we’re always back-and-forthing about how women and men are equal, but we (institutionally and culturally) still cling to a strong directive of men being the power wielders–they being the ones with the priesthood and presiding authority (though after Elder Oaks’ conference talk last fall, I’m not sure what that really means anymore).

Perhaps we are headed for a reality where all women and our Founding Mother can embrace all the good qualities of Lilith and Eve, dropping the demonity of female confidence and equality in all things. Sounds like a Utopia, eh?

Wow, I must admit this LDS housewife is really putting this topic to bed. But to further examine what she is saying here if it were true that Lilith was the one who refused to submit to Adam and rebel how is it that EVE rebelled against “GOD’s” order not to eat from the “Tree of Knowledge of good and evil?”

I have always believed that defiance and rebellion were the original sin and not “sex”. After all male a female are divided and designed to reproduce of course this should be done with great dignity and respect towards each other. Now if you look at religion all together as "just a tool to control the mass populous" then “rebellion” would be what you would want to control the most to maintain order in that populous, right?

Further Biblical evaluation of Lilith is as follows;

http://www.ritualwell.org/holidays/sukkot/copy2_of_primaryobject.2005-06-17.5328518821

Lilith first appears in Jewish tradition in midrashic literature. The two accounts of the creation story (one in Genesis 1, the other in Genesis 2) prompted the rabbis to teach that these stories reflect the creation of two different women, the first Lilith, the second Eve. According to tradition, since Lilith was created in God's image simultaneously with Adam (Genesis 1), she asserted her equality with him. When Adam refused to recognize Lilith's claims, Lilith left the Garden of Eden for eternity. The legend of Lilith has been expanded upon and transformed over centuries. Although Lilith is often demonized in these traditions, today Jewish women celebrate her for her bold, independent spirit.

Lilith reminds us to celebrate our individuality, to find ways to enhance women's status in Jewish life, and to fight for equality for women world-wide.

Eve, whose name means life, is the first woman in the Bible, and the mother of life. That she cherished her role as procreator is suggested by her speech upon the birth of her first child: "I have gained a child with the help of the Lord" (Genesis 4). God only tells Adam that he cannot eat from the tree, and scholar Ellen Frankel challenges us to imagine how different the story might have been if God had spoken to Eve directly. Today women celebrate Eve for her curiosity and passionate pursuit of knowledge.

Eve reminds us to love and respect life, to accept the consequences of our choices, and to make the best of our fate.

I personally disagree with the implication that GOD only gave this commandment to Adam because in Genesis 3:3 Eve clearly understands the consequences so, someone told her! Again who is really the serpent, it’s not Lilith but the rebellious, curious nature within all of us?

I to have to agree that Lilith is a “Hero” and has taken blame for all bad things in our society because of the Feminine oppression in our historical past. Most horrific things which occurred in most of our Historical past were of man’s doing such as War, rape and oppression itself.

However Egyptians were the first great Society as we know it that worshipped the female light and the vessel of life. It is believed that the Egyptian/Tibetan culture had strong influences by the Atlanteans so I think this also requires further examination.

[[Vol. 2, Page]] 285 THE TIBETAN LILITH.

http://www.sacred-texts.com/the/sd/sd2-1-16.htm

But in whom lower, more material, though sidereal, beings had incarnated. These beings in female forms (Lilith is the prototype of these in the Jewish traditions) are called in the esoteric accounts "Khado" (Dakini, in Sanskrit). Allegorical legends call the chief of these Liliths, Sangye Khado, (Buddha Dakini, in Sanskrit); all are credited with the art of "walking in the air," and the greatest kindness to mortals; but no mind -- only animal instinct.*

(c) This is the beginning of a worship which, ages later, was doomed to degenerate into phallicism and sexual worship. It began by the worship of the human body -- that "miracle of miracles," as an English author calls it -- and ended by that of its respective sexes. The worshippers were giants in stature; but they were giants in knowledge and learning, though it came to them more easily than it does to the men of our modern times. Their Science was innate in them. The Lemuro-Atlantean had no need of discovering and fixing in his memory that which his informing PRINCIPLE knew at the moment of its incarnation. Time alone, and the ever-growing obtuseness of the matter in which the Principles had clothed themselves, could, the one, weaken the memory of their pre-natal knowledge, the other, blunt and even extinguish every spark of the spiritual and divine in them. Therefore had they, from the first, fallen victims to their animal natures and bred "monsters" -- i.e., men of distinct varieties from themselves.

Speaking of the Giants, Creuzer describes them well in saying that:--

"Those children of Heaven and Earth were endowed at their birth by the Sovereign Powers, the authors of their being, with extraordinary faculties both moral and physical. They commanded the Elements, knew the secrets of heaven and the earth, of the sea and the whole world, and read futurity in the stars. . . . It seems, indeed, as though one has to deal, when reading of them, not with men as we are but with Spirits of the Elements sprung from the bosom of Nature and having full sway over her. . . . All these beings are marked with a character of MAGIC and SORCERY. . . . "

And so they were, those (now) legendary heroes of the pre-historic, still, once really existing races. Creuzer was wise in his generation, for he did not charge with deliberate deceit, or dullness and superstition, an endless series of recognized philosophers, who mention these races and assert that, even in their own time, they saw their fossils. There were sceptics in days of old -- no fewer and as great as they are now. But even a Lucian, a Democritus and an Epicurus yielded to the evidence of facts and showed the discriminative capacity of really.

[[Footnote(s)]] -------------------------------------------------

* These are the beings whose legendary existence has served as a ground-work upon which to build the rabbinical Lilith, and what the believers in the Bible would term the antediluvian women, and the Kabalists the pre-Adamite races. They are no fiction -- this is certain, however fantastic the exuberance of later growth.

King James and Qabalistic view

MALE AND FEMALE HE CREATED THEM...

Genesis I: 27 reads: "And Elohim created Adam in His Image, in the Image of God He created him; male and female He created them."

Genesis II:18 and 22 read: "And Yahweh said, 'It is not good for Adam to be alone. I will make a fitting helper for him.'...And Yahweh fashioned the rib that He had taken from the man into a woman; and He brought her to the man."

Today, we know that Genesis I and II are simply two separate Creation stories. Genesis II derives from a Sumerian story, while Genesis I is a later creation of the Hebrew Priesthood (created by the Deuteronomic School around 700 BCE). However, to a people who were quite determined to take the Scriptures as ultimate Truth, such a contradiction was not welcome at all. It demanded an explanation that reconciled both stories.

Qabalistically speaking. As we know, Adam was created to perfection. He was created in the perfect image of "Elohim." Of course, God is not seen as being either male or female, but as both at once. Even the Name Elohim is a feminine word (Eloah—Goddess) with a masculine plural suffix. Thus, if God is male and female, the mother and the father, then Adam (which translates as "Mankind") must also have originally been male and female in one. To be otherwise would have been to be unbalanced, and thus imperfect.

And thus was Adam's perfection, said to be even greater than the Angels. In fact, in this view, Adam was not a human at all—but a Cosmic Being known as Adam Kadmon. He was the Archetype upon which humans would later be based.

Either way you look at it, Lilith is truly misinterpreted and misrepresented through out the ages. I tried to keep away from the darker tales and focus on Lilith’s origins to try and uncover the greater truth without clouding the information with negativity.

Wow, we girls do get kicked around sometimes . . . hope you have enjoyed the information I gathered.

Tiphareth

2009-11-08T16:56:00.000-08:00

Tiphareth

Tiferet ("Adornment", Hebrew: תפארת [tiˈfeʔɾɛθ]) or Tifaret, Tifereth, Tyfereth, Tiphereth - also known as Rakhamim ("Mercy", Hebrew: רחמים [ɾaħăˈmim]) or Shalom ("Peace", Hebrew: שלום [ʃɔˈlom]) - is the sixth sefira in the Tree of Life in Kabbalah, which is the spirituality of Rabbinic Judaism. It has the common association of "Spirituality", "Balance", "Integration", "Beauty", "Miracles", "Compassion", and "Masculinity".

Tiferet
Tiferet is the force that integrates the sefira of Khesed ("Compassion") and Gevurah ("Overpowering"). These two forces are, respectively, expansive (giving) and restrictive (receiving). Either of them without the other could not manifest the flow of Divine energy; they must be balanced in perfect proportion (by sharing), and this is the role of Tiferet, wherein the conflicting forces are harmonized, and creation flowers forth.

Tiferet is unique amongst the Sephirot as it is connected to all the other Sephirot (except Malkuth and Daath) via the subjective paths of the unconscious. Its position down the center between Keter and Yesod indicates to many Kabbalists that it is somewhat of a "converting" Sephirot between form (Yesod) and force (Keter). In other words, all crossing over the middle path via Tiferet results in a reversed polarity. The law of conservation of energy and mass tends to corroborate this - in all cases of energy transmutation, a sacrifice is necessary so a new form may be born.

Tiferet is the middle of the tree. Five Sefirot surround it: above are Chesed at the right (south) and Gevurah at the left (north), and below are Netzach at the right, Hod at the left, and Yesod directly below. Together these six comprise a single entity, Zer Anpin, which is the masculine counterpart of the feminine sefira Malkuth. In certain contexts, Tiferet alone represents all the sefirot of Zer Anpin, so that the entire tree appears with only five sefirot: Keter, Chochmah, Binah, Tiferet, and Malkhut.

In the standard tree, Tiferet has eight paths, leading (counterclockwise) to Keter (through Daat), Binah, Gevurah, Hod, Yesod, Netsach, Chesed, and Chokmah.

Tiferet can be also a variation of the word "Tifarah" and in Modern Hebrew used in Israel is translated as "Glory" (from God - "Elohim, Adonay)

Non-Jewish associations

In Christian Cabala, Tiphereth is especially associated with Jesus Christ, 'God the Son' (as opposed to Kether, which is God the father, and Yesod, the Holy Spirit). This is because this is the Sephirah in which the divine force 'sacrifices' itself, transmutating into the forces of energy and matter, in order that creation might come to be. It is the sephirah in which 'God becomes a mortal man'. Illustrative of the process of Tipharet is Jesus' teaching in the book of John "No one comes to the Father except through me". Kether is raw energy as the Godhead and is as such unknowable by the conscious mind - Tiphareth (the son) balances the force and form of Kether and Yesod respectively allowing Kether to assume a knowable form. A Christian mystic, in relating to Jesus, repeats the process in the other direction, by transmutating that which is lower, in order to achieve the divine. In terms of the Kabbalah, Tipharet encompasses not only "God the Son" but also the related myths of Osiris and other sacrificial gods.

The archangel of this sphere is Raphael, and the Malakhim is the Angelic order.

Christianity primarily focuses on Tipharet as a driving spiritual force, emphasising the points of love, beauty, self sacrifice and service in its greater aspect. Particularly the Osirian sect and other derivations of pantheistic religions, with their personification of Gods, emphasise the unknowable from the standpoint of Yesod. The eastern religions, particularly Taoism and Buddhism are more closely related to Kether, with their focus on unity and the indefinable aspect of the Divine.

Tiphereth is associated with divine love, with healing, balance and harmony. In comparing with Eastern traditions, Tiphereth is usually associated with the central Anahata chakra in tantric tradition, which contains many of the same archetypal ideas.

777 attributes Tiphereth as the four sixes of the tarot as well as the Princes and Emperors cards, Ra, Rama, Buddha, Apollo, Adonis, God the Son (Jesus), Phoenix, Lion, Bay, Laurel, Topaz, Lamen of he Rosy Cross, Abracadabra, Coffee, and Alcohol.

References

Jewish
• Bahir, translated by Aryeh Kaplan (1995). Aronson. (ISBN 1-56821-383-2)
• Lessons in Tanya
• Kabbalah 101: Tiferet

Non-Jewish
• 777, Aleister Crowley (1955). Red Wheel/Weiser. (ISBN 0-87728-670-1)
• The Mystical Kabbalah, Dion Fortune (1935). Weiser Books. (ISBN 1-57863-150-5)

Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiferet

The Qabalistic Tarot – A Textbook of Mystical Philosophy by Robert Wang

Book “T”

Book T, a complex presentation of Tarot symbols, elaborates a formula originally given in the Cypher Manuscripts. This includes the order of Trumps and the relationship of the Trumps to Hebrew letters. Most significant is the extraordinary reverence accorded the Tarot. It was believed that Book T, the Tarot, is the secret key not only to the Hermetic Qabalah, but all of the Western esotericism.

The book begins;
HRU THE GREAT ANGEL is set over the operations of the Secret Wisdom. “What thou seest write in a Book, and send it unto the Seven Abodes (Adobes are described as the throne of the Divine) that are in Assiah.”

To explain that a bit further;

(Very important to all pure abodes is the 'Source' (Tibetan: ཆོས་འབྱུང; Wylie: chos 'byung; Sanskrit: dharmodaya) from which they well and which supports them, the 'Wellspring' as they as myriad fonts are emergent. It may be understood as an interface, portal or epiphany between the Dharmakaya and the Sambhogakaya. It is seminal in the establishment of mandala whether outer, inner or secret. It is the opening and consecration of the sacred space which enfolds and supports the expanse of the pure abode. In iconography it is represented by the six-pointed star, the two interlocking offset equilateral triangles that form a symmetry. This is the 'sanctum sanctorum' (Sanskrit: garbha gṛha). It later developed into the primordial purity of the lotus which supports the mandala, thangka or the murti of the deity. In temple siting it is the power place or 'spirit of place' that was augured or divined in the sacred geometry of 'geodesy' (Sanskrit: vāstu śāstra). In yoga asana, the 'source' is Vajrasana, the 'seat of enlightenment' the ancient name of Bodh Gaya and an alternate name for mahamudra or padmasana.[15]

"Source of phenomena or qualities (chos 'byung, dharmodaya). Pundarika defines dharmodaya as that from which phenomena devoid of intrinsic nature originate. "Phenomena devoid of intrinsic nature" refers to the ten powers, the four fearlessnesses, and the other 84,000 aspects of the teachings. Their source, dharmodaya, is the pure realm, the abode of all buddhas and bodhisattvas, the place of bliss, the place of birth; it is not the place that discharges blood, urine, and regenerative fluids, i.e., the vagina. Source: Stainless Light, Toh. 1347, vol. Da, f237a3-5"..[16]

For the tribe of Muslim mercenaries serving the Khazar Khaganate, see Arsiyah.

Assiah (or 'Asiyah, also known as Olam Asiyah, עולם עשיה in Hebrew, literally the World of Action) is the last of the four spiritual worlds of the Kabbalah—Atziluth, Beri'ah, Yetzirah, 'Asiyah—based on the passage in Isaiah 43:7. According to the Maseket Aẓilut, it is the region where the Ofanim rule and where they promote the hearing of prayers, support human endeavor, and combat evil. Their ruler is Sandalphon. According to the system of the later Palestinian Kabbalah, 'Asiyah is the lowest of the spiritual worlds containing the Ten Heavens and the whole system of mundane Creation. The light of the Sefirot emanates from these Ten Heavens, which are called the "Ten Sefirot of 'Asiyah"; and through them spirituality and piety are imparted to the realm of matter—the seat of the dark and impure powers.[1][2]

The four worlds as described in the Qabalistic Tarot are Atziluth – The Archetypal World, Briah – The Creative World, Yetzirah – The Formative World, Assiah – The Active World.

Representing purely material existence, it is known as the World of Action, the World of Effects or the World of Making. In western occultism it is associated with the Tarot card suit known as Pentacles (or Coins or Disks, the terminology varies according to the deck). The world of Yetzirah precedes it.

Five Pure Abodes according to Tibetan
Five Pure Abodes (of the form realms) (Wylie: gtsang-ma'i gnas lnga; Sanskrit: pañcaśuddhanivāsa)
• Avṛha (Sanskrit; Tibetan: མི་ཆེ་བ; Wylie: mi che ba)
• Atapa (Sanskrit; Tibetan: མི་གདུང་བ; Wylie: mi gdung ba)
• Sudṛśa (Sanskrit; Tibetan: གྱ་ནོམ་སྣང་བ; Wylie: gya nom snang ba)
• Sudarśana (Sanskrit; Tibetan: ཤིན་ཏུ་མཐོང; Wylie: shin tu mthong)
• Akaniṣṭa (Sanskrit; Tibetan: འོག་མིན; Wylie: 'og min)

Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assiah

“And I saw in the right hand of Him that sat upon the Throne a book sealed with Seven Seals.” “And I saw a strong Angel proclaiming with a loud voice; ‘Who is worthy to open the Books and to loose the seal thereof?’”

The passage with which Book T is prefaced certainly represents the attitude if the order toward its Tarot deck. The lines are from The Apocalypse of Saint John, chapter 5. The Saint, having risen into the celestial realm, is shown a scroll and is told that none on the earth is worthy to open it. The Lamb of God, however, having sacrificed his blood for mankind is deemed worthy.

The suggestion is that the Tarot is the book of the spoken of in the Apocalypse and is the key to the universe. The key to the cosmos is in our perception and the Tarot is the underlying external symbols.

This book or set of universal patterns is open to no one of this earth. It can only be opened by the Lamb of God, who is Christ/Buddha/Osiris in this context. Only those who have been initiated into the Christ center of the Qabalah (Tiphareth) can fully understand the Tarot. Here the initiation of Tiphareth may be understood as a “sacrifice of man’s blood” in that it involves a losing of the “Personality Self” as it has been previously known.

Tiphareth is the "Christ" center within us all. It is not until one assumes the nature of the Lamb of God is he/she deemed worthy of the opening of the seals on the Scroll of the Apocalypse, Book T, the Tarot or whatever the pattern of the Cosmos might be called. What a beautiful place this is when ones soul has reached this level of love.

The Holistic Qabalah

http://zero-point.tripod.com/holistic/Tiphareth.html

Title: Tiphareth, Beauty

Magical Image: Majestic King, A Child, Sacrificed God
Position on the Tree: Center of the Middle Pillar

Yetziratic Text: The Sixth Sephira is called the Mediating Intelligence because in it are multiplied the influxes of the Emanations; for it causes that influence to flow into all the reservoirs of the blessings with which they themselves are united.

God Name: Tetragrammaton Aloah Va Daath

Archangel: Raphael
Order of Angels: Malachim, the Kings
Planetary Correspondence: The Sun, Shemesh
Spiritual Experience: Vision of the Harmony of Things, Mysteries of the Crucifixion
Virtue: Devotion to the Great Work
Vice: Pride
Physical Correspondence: The Breast
Symbols: Lamen, Rose Cross, Calvary Cross, Cube, truncated Pyramid, Diamond
Tarot Cards: The four Sixes
Color: Golden Yellow

Thelemapedia

Thelemapedia is the original encyclopedia of Thelema and Magick focusing on the works and philosophy of Aleister Crowley

Part of the Tree of Life series

In the Qabalah, Tiphareth is the sixth of the ten Sephiroth on the "Tree of Life." Its meaning in Hebrew is Beauty. The other Sephiroth are: Kether, Chokmah, Binah, Chesed, Geburah, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, and Malkuth.

Qabalistic Attributions

The following attributions are mostly taken from 777, by Aleister Crowley. The small "#" links will show the full column of that attribution (i.e. all the names, planets, parts of the soul, etc.)

Key Scale: 6 (#)

Name: Tiphareth (Beauty) (#)
Astrology: Sol (#)

Godforms
Egyptian (selection): Asar, Ra [On, Hrumachis] (#)
Egyptian (practical): Ra (#)
Hindu: Vishu-Hari-Krishna-Rama (#)
Scandinavian: Balder (#)
Greek: Iacchus, Apollo, Adonis [Dionysus, Bacchus] (#)
Roman: Apollo [Bacchus, Aurora] (#)
Christian: God the Son (and Maker of fine Weather) (#)

Tarot
General Attribution: The 4 Sixes, also Emperors or Princes (#)

Titles & Attributions
Wands: Victory (Jupiter in Leo) (#)
Cups: Pleasure (Sol in Scorpio) (#)
Swords: Science (Mercury in Aquarius) (#)
Discs: Success (Luna in Taurus) (#)

Colors
King Scale: Clear pink rose (#)
Queen Scale: Yellow (gold) (#)
Emperor Scale: Rich salmon (#)
Empress Scale: Gold amber (#)

Material Correspondences
Animals: Phoenix, Lion, Child [Spider, Pelican] (#)
Plants: Acacia, Bay, Laurel, Vine [Oak, Gorse, Ash, Aswata] (#)
Precious Stones: Topaz, Yellow Diamond (#)
Perfume: Olibanum (#)
Vegetable Drugs: Stramonium, Alcohol, Digitalis, Coffee (#)
Mineral Drug: — (#)
Alchemical Metal: Iron (#)

Magick & Mysticism
Element: Air (#)
Magical Weapons: The Lamen or Rosy Cross (#)
Magical Formula: ABRAHADABRA, IAO:INRI (#)
Parts of the Soul: Ruach (The Intellect) (#)
Lineal Figures of the Planets, &c., and Geomancy: — (#)
Chakra: Anahata (heart) (#)
The Soul (Hindu): Lower Manas (#)
Quarter: Depth (#)
Order of Qliphoth: Thagiriron (Disputers) (#)
Forty Buddhist Meditations: Buddha (#)

Magical Power: The Vision of the Harmony of Things (also the Mysteries of the Crucifixion), [Beatific Vision] (#)

System of Taoism: Li (#)

Figure related to Pure Number: Calvary Cross, Truncated Pyramid, Cube (#)

The Four Worlds
Heaven of Assiah: Shemesh (Sphere of Sol) (#)
God Name in Assiah: Jehovah Eloah Va-Daath (#)
Archangel of Assiah: Raphael (#)
Angels of Assiah: Malakim (Kings) (#)
Divine Name of Briah: IHVH (Jehovah) (#)
Angel of Briah: Metatron (#)
Choir of Angels in Briah: Chashmalim (#)
Palace of Briah: Hekel Ratzon (Palace of Benevolence) (#)

Quotes
This Sephira is in some respects the most important of all. It is the centre of the whole system; it is the only Sephira below the Abyss which communicates directly with Kether. It is fed directly from Chokmah and Binah; also from Chesed and Geburah. It is thus admirably fitted to dominate the lower Sephiroth; it is balanced both vertically and horizontally. In the planetary system it represents the Sun; in the system of Tetragrammaton it represents the Son. The entire geometrical complex of the Ruach may be regarded as an expansion from Tiphareth. It represents consciousness in its most harmonized and balanced form; definitely in form, not only in idea, as in the case of the number Two.

The word "Ruach" comes from the Hebrew meaning "spirit", "wind", "breath", or "air". The Greek equivalent is "pneuma" and the Latin is "spiritus".

I like to refer to it as the “wind” of the Holy Spirit or the Divine Conscious.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruach

Tiphareth is the beauty of the heart within, self sacrificial for the greater good of all mankind and creation. A deep love and passion for all creation and “The Creator” that you are willing to give the ultimate sacrifice.

True beauty and love.

Saint Antonio

2009-11-04T18:14:00.000-08:00

My recent spiritual meditation journey on "All Saints Day" has lead me to a path, one with Saint Antonio. Even though I found two very different descriptions of who he was and his importance, he is one in the same. I know this Saint has significance in my path forwards and especially since I recently asked Thoth’s assistance with communication with the animals.

St. Antonio’ s day
On St.Antonio’s day, January 17th , it is said one hour more: as a matter of fact the day becomes longer (about 45 minutes). In the past on St. Antonio’s day (the saint protector of animals) the priests went from stable to stable to bless the animals.
On the walls of the stables people used to put images of the Saint among the animals; there was always a big pink pig, symbol of the physical temptations which the Saint was subjected to during his life: this was the cause of his retreat in the Thebaid desert.
On this day people used to eat gnocchi and the women stopped spinning because this could symbolise the spinning of St.Antonio’s beard. Another custom was to prepare a cake and have it eaten by people and ill animals.
As an old saying goes one day a man who was having lunch in front of the Saint said the well known proverb: St. Antonio with the white beard, I’m going to eat gnocchi you aren’t. The Saint felt hurt and turned the man’s plate over. It was impossible for the man to eat his gnocchi too.
On St. Antonio’s day animals didn’t work, and people didn’t stay in the stables at night. They said that animals spoke after midnight and nobody could listen to their speeches.
This Saint was also the patron of blacksmiths, horse shoer’s and he had powerful influence: he could make people find lost objects or cure the sacred fire, a bad illness also called St. Antonio’s fire.

St. Antonio Maria Zaccaria

Founder of the Clerks Regular of St. Paul, commonly known as the Barnabites; b. in Cremona, Italy, 1502; d. 5 July, 1539. While he was still an infant his father died, leaving the care of the child's education to his mother, who taught him compassion for the poor and suffering by making him her almoner. After completing the studies given in the schools at Cremona he was sent to Padua for his philosophy, and in 1520, when he had finished this course, began the study of medicine in the university at that place. At the age of twenty-two he received his degree of Doctor of Medicine and returned to Cremona to practise his profession. Three years later he began to study theology and received holy orders in 1528. He now devoted himself with renewed energy to works of charity and mercy, visiting and consoling the sick in hospitals and poor-prisons. The ministry of preaching and the administration of the sacraments produced such great fruit that St. Antonio was encouraged to seek a larger field for his labours and to carry out a great project which he hard formed for the good of souls. He went to the populous city of Milan, of which he was a burgess, and entered the Confraternity of Eternal Wisdom. Among the members of this religious body he allied himself with two priests, Fathers Ferrari and Morigia, and told them of his idea of founding a congregation of secular clergy. Northern Italy at this period was in a deplorable condition. Frequent wars had devastated the country. The advent of the Lutheran soldiery and their contempt for everything Catholic had spread the contagion of bad example, while famine and plague followed in the track of the soldiers. These scourges combined to produce a state of misery that appealed most powerfully to Antonio and his associates. "The Congregation of the Regular Clerks of St. Paul", St. Antonio's work, which began with five members, was canonically sanctioned by Pope Clement VII in 1533. Their rule bound them to "regenerate and revive the love of the Divine worship, and a truly Christian way of life by frequent preaching and the faithful administration of the sacraments."

The first superior of the new congregation was St. Antonio, who soon became known in Milan as an apostle. Besides giving conferences in churches to ecclesiastics and lay people, he went into the streets of the city with crucifix in hand, and produced great fruit in souls by preaching on the Passion and Death of Christ and the need of penance for sin. In 1536 he resigned the superiorship to Father Morigia and later went to Vicenza at the request of Cardinal Ridolfi. There he succeeded in reforming morals and in bringing two religious communities of women to a stricter observance of their rule. In the latter labour he was greatly aided by a congregation of nuns "The Angelicals of St. Paul", which he had founded in Milan. He introduced, also, the devotion of the "Forty Hours' Prayers", in Vicenza. The last two years of his life were spent in Milan. He sought there a more suitable church for his Congregation and accepted the offer of the church of S. Barnabas, but died before the affair was arranged. From this church of St. Barnabas, the Congregation received the name by which its members are commonly known, i.e. Barnabites. Worn out by his voluntary penances, as well as by his untiring labours of charity, he was attacked by fever during one of his mission. Knowing that this illness was his last, he had himself brought to his native city, Cremona. There, in his mother's house, he received the last sacraments and peacefully expired at the early age of thirty-seven. His body was found incorrupt 27 years after his death. He was declared Blessed by Pope Pius IX in 1849. (See BARNABITES.) On 15 May, 1897, he was solemnly canonized in St. Peter's, Rome, by Pope Leo XIII. His writings are: "Detti notabili, raccolti da varii autori" (Venice, 1583); "Constitutiones ordinis clericorum regularium" (not published); "Sermones super praeceptis Decalogi" (not published).

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01588a.htm

Home > Catholic Encyclopedia > A > St. Antonio Maria Zaccaria

Sources

DUBOIS, Le bienh. Ant. Maria Zaccaria, fondateur des Barnabites et des Angeliques de St. Paul (Tournay, 1896); St. A.M. Zaccaria, fondateur des Barnabites (Paris and Leipzig, 1897); Brevi vite dei Santi (Rome, 1897); Vita illustrata di S. Antonio M. Zaccaria fondatore dei Barnabite e delle Angeliche di S. Paolo (Cremona, 1897); JEPPA, Lebensbeschreibung des Hl. Anton Maria Zaccaria, Stifters der Barnabaiten Germ. tr (Fulda, 1900); HEIMBUCHER, Die Orden und Congregationem der katolischen Kirche (Paderborn, 1897).

About this page

APA citation. Kelly, P.H. (1907). St. Antonio Maria Zaccaria. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved November 4, 2009 from New Advent: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01588a.htm

MLA citation. Kelly, Patrick Henry. "St. Antonio Maria Zaccaria." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 4 Nov. 2009 .

Transcription. This article was transcribed for New Advent by Frère Gilles Beaudet (Christian Brothers).

Ecclesiastical approbation. Nihil Obstat. March 1, 1907. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.

Contact information. The editor of New Advent is Kevin Knight. My email address is feedback732 at newadvent.org. (To help fight spam, this address might change occasionally.) Regrettably, I can't reply to every letter, but I greatly appreciate your feedback — especially notifications about typographical errors and inappropriate ads.

Thoth

2009-10-25T19:26:00.000-07:00

Thoth as described in Encyclopedia

Thoth[1] was considered one of the more important deities of the Egyptian pantheon, often depicted with the head of an Ibis. His feminine counterpart was Seshat.[2] His chief shrine was at Khemennu, where he led the local pantheon, later renamed Hermopolis by the Greeks (in reference to him through the Greeks' interpretation that he was the same as Hermes) and Eshmûnên in Coptic. He also had shrines in Abydos, Hesert, Urit, Per-Ab, Rekhui, Ta-ur, Sep, Hat, Pselket, Talmsis, Antcha-Mutet, Bah, Amen-heri-ab, and Ta-kens.[3]
He was considered the heart (i.e. the mind, as the Egyptians saw it) and tongue of Ra as well as the means by which Ra's will was translated into speech.[4] He has also been likened to the Logos of Plato[4] and the mind of God[5] (see The All). In the Egyptian mythology, he has played many vital and prominent roles, including being one of the two deities (the other being Ma'at) who stood on either side of Ra's boat.[6] He has further been involved in arbitration,[7] magic, writing, science,[8] and the judging of the dead.[9]
He was originally the deification of the moon in the Ogdoad belief system. Initially, in that system, the moon had been seen to be the eye of Horus, the sky god, which had been semi-blinded (thus darker) in a fight against Set, the other eye being the sun. However, over time it began to be considered separately, becoming a lunar deity in its own right, and was said to have been another son of Ra. As the crescent moon strongly resembles the curved beak of the ibis, this separate deity was named Djehuty (i.e. Thoth), meaning ibis.

History
Thoth became associated with the Moon, due to the Ancient Egyptians observation that Baboons (sacred to Thoth) 'sang' to the moon at night].
The Moon not only provides light at night, allowing the time to still be measured without the sun, but its phases and prominence gave it a significant importance in early astrology/astronomy. The cycles of the moon also organized much of Egyptian society's civil, and religious, rituals, and events. Consequently, Thoth gradually became seen as a god of wisdom, magic, and the measurement, and regulation, of events, and of time. He was thus said to be the secretary and counselor of Ra, and with Ma'at (truth/order) stood next to Ra on the nightly voyage across the sky, Ra being a sun god.
Thoth became credited by the ancient Egyptians as the inventor of writing, and was also considered to have been the scribe of the underworld, and the moon became occasionally considered a separate entity, now that Thoth had less association with it, and more with wisdom. For this reason Thoth was universally worshipped by ancient Egyptian Scribes. Many scribes had a painting or a picture of Thoth in their "office". Likewise, one of the symbols for scribes was that of the ibis.
In art, Thoth was usually depicted with the head of an ibis, deriving from his name, and the curve of the ibis' beak, which resembles the crescent moon. Sometimes, he was depicted as a baboon holding up a crescent moon, as the baboon was seen as a nocturnal, and intelligent, creature. The association with baboons led to him occasionally being said to have as a consort Astennu, one of the (male) baboons at the place of judgment in the underworld, and on other occasions, Astennu was said to be Thoth himself.
During the late period of Egyptian history a cult of Thoth gained prominence, due to its main centre, Khnum (Hermopolis Magna), also becoming the capital, and millions of dead ibis were mummified and buried in his honour. The rise of his cult also led to his cult seeking to adjust mythology to give Thoth a greater role.
Thoth was inserted in many tales as the wise counsel and persuader, and his association with learning, and measurement, led him to be connected with Seshat, the earlier deification of wisdom, who was said to be his daughter, or variably his wife. Thoth's qualities also led to him being identified by the Greeks with their closest matching god Hermes, with whom Thoth was eventually combined, as Hermes Trismegistus, also leading to the Greeks naming Thoth's cult centre as Hermopolis, meaning city of Hermes.
It is also viewed that Thoth was the God of Scribe and not a messenger. Anubis was viewed as the messenger of the gods, as he travelled in and out of the Underworld, to the presence of the gods, and to humans, as well. Some call this fusion Hermanubis. It is in more favor that Thoth was a record keeper, and not the messenger. In the Papyrus of Ani copy of the Egyptian Book of the Dead the scribe proclaims "I am thy writing palette, O Thoth, and I have brought unto thee thine ink-jar. I am not of those who work iniquity in their secret places; let not evil happen unto me."[38] Chapter XXXb (Budge) of the Book of the Dead is by the oldest tradition said to be the work of Thoth himself.[39]
There is also an Egyptian pharaoh of the Sixteenth dynasty of Egypt named Djehuty (Thoth) after him, and who reigned for three years.

Mythology
Thoth has played a prominent role in many of the Egyptian myths. Displaying his role as arbitrator, he had overseen the three epic battles between good and evil. All three battles are fundamentally the same and belong to different periods. The first battle took place between Ra and Apep, the second between Heru-Bekhutet and Set, and the third between Horus, the son of Osiris, and Set. In each instance, the former god represented order while the latter represented chaos. If one god was seriously injured, Thoth would heal them to prevent either from overtaking the other.
Thoth was also prominent in the Osiris myth, being of great aid to Isis. After Isis gathered together the pieces of Osiris' dismembered body, he gave her the words to resurrect him so she could be impregnated and bring forth Horus. When Horus was slain, Thoth gave the formulae to resurrect him as well. Similar to God speaking the words to create the heavens and Earth in Judeo-Christian mythology, Thoth, being the god who always speaks the words that fulfill the wishes of Ra, spoke the words that created the heavens and Earth in Egyptian mythology.
This mythology also credits him with the creation of the 365 day calendar. Originally, according to the myth, the year was only 360 days long and Nut was sterile during these days, unable to bear children. Thoth gambled with Khonsu, the moon, for 1/72nd of its light (360/72 = 5), or 5 days, and won. During these 5 days, Nut gave birth to Kheru-ur (Horus the Elder, Face of Heaven), Osiris, Set, Isis, and Nepthys.
In the Ogdoad cosmogony, Thoth gave birth to Ra, Atum, Nefertum, and Khepri by laying an egg while in the form of an ibis, or later as a goose laying a golden egg.

Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thoth

Thoth in the “Golden Dawn” or Qabalistic Tarot

Tarot

Part of the Magick in Theory & Practice series.

See also: Thoth Tarot

Tarot (Tar-oh) is a system of symbolism and philosophy consisting of a set of 78 images, normally embodied in a deck of cards similar to a regular set of game-playing cards (see playing card). In the English speaking world, they are most often encountered as a form of cartomancy.
There also exist in France a card game known as Tarot played with a 78-card set with similarities both to usual card sets and to cartomancy Tarot card sets. This is the most usual acception of the word tarot in France. See Tarot (card game).
The earliest extant examples of Tarot decks are of Italian origin and roughly date back to the 15th century, when they were used to play the game of Tarocchi. In the course of its development it became connected to cartomancy and thence to occult studies. The set of 78 images, rich with symbolic meaning, is considered by students of this "occult" or "esoteric" Tarot (tarotists practising tarotism) to be independent of the particular representation as a deck of cards; consequently they focus on the study of the images (and their symbolic meanings) as distinct from any particular instance.
In addition to its philosophical and divinatory uses, Tarot is also used as an aid to meditation.
The occult associations of Tarot are considered taboo in some competing philosophical circles. Strict forms of Christianity, for example, may be incompatible with Tarot or any other occult studies.

Thoth Tarot
The Thoth Tarot, also called the Book of Thoth, is the deck of 78 tarot cards designed by Aleister Crowley and illustrated by Lady Frieda Harris. The project began in 1938 and was completed five years later in 1943, although it was not published until 1969 by the O.T.O. through the efforts of Grady McMurtry X°. The entire deck is designed to be a pictoral representation of the Qabalah and especially the Tree of Life, a system of ten spheres and 22 interconnecting paths that is used to organize mystical concepts.

History of the Thoth Tarot
Although the origin of the Tarot in general is unknown, there is a definite beginning to Crowley's beautiful and intelligent rendition of this symbol system.
In February, 1899 e.v., Crowley attained to the grade of Practicus, and was accordingly entrusted with the secret attributions of the Tarot. He continued these studies for some time and eventually published the previously secret attributions in the Book 777.
It should be noted that the Tarot was his daily companion from 1899 e.v. until 1912 e.v., at which time he published a full account of the Tarot in The Equinox, Vol. I, Nos. 7 and 8. He succeeded in uniting all philosophical and magical systems under the Form of the Holy Qabalah and eventually this made its way into the Thoth Tarot.
For many years he was bothered by the fact that there wasn't any authentic Text of the Tarot. He was introduced to a skilled artist, named Frieda Harris, who embarked with him on the slow and tedious task of creating the Book of Thoth.
The original idea was to form a pack of cards that were based on the Mediaeval Editions, but corrected in the information that was published previously. This proved to be a task that may never see completion as it was too much for them to handle alone. However, Frieda Harris talked Crowley into creating an original work, embedded with all of the latest discoveries in modern science, mathematics, philosophy, and anthropology; to reproduce the whole of his work pictorially on the skeleton of the Holy Qabalah. He accepted the task.
The initial planned 3 months of work extended into 5 years and were still not published until 26 years after their completion, long after Crowley had exited this plane.

Ref: Aleister Crowley and Frieda Harris, Book of Thoth. Weiser Books, 1981. ISBN 0877282684

Ref: http://www.thelemapedia.org/index.php/Tarot

Emerald Tablets - Thoth

I, THOTH, the Atlantean, master of mysteries,
keeper of records, mighty king, magician,
living from generation to generation,
being about to pass into the halls of Amenti,
set down for the guidance of
those that are to come after,
these records of the mighty wisdom of Great Atlantis. In the great city of KEOR on the island of UNDAL, in a time far past, I began this incarnation.

Not as the little men of the present age did
the mighty ones of Atlantis live and die,
but rather from aeon to aeon did they renew
their life in the Halls of Amenti where the river of life flows eternally onward.
A hundred times ten have I descended the dark way that led into light,
and as many times have I ascended from the
darkness into the light my strength and power renewed.
Now for a time I descend,
and the men of KHEM (Khem is ancient Egypt)
shall know me no more.
But in a time yet unborn will I rise again,
mighty and potent, requiring an accounting
of those left behind me.

Then beware, O men of KHEM,
if ye have falsely betrayed my teaching,
for I shall cast ye down from your high estate
into the darkness of the caves from whence ye came.
Betray not my secrets
to the men of the North
or the men of the South
lest my curse fall upon ye.
Remember and heed my words,
for surely will I return again
and require of thee that which ye guard.
Aye, even from beyond time and
from beyond death will I return,
rewarding or punishing
as ye have requited your truest.

Great were my people in the ancient days,
great beyond the conception of the
little people now around me;
knowing the wisdom of old,
seeking far within the heart of infinity
knowledge that belonged to Earth's youth.
Wise were we with the wisdom
of the Children of Light who dwelt among us.
Strong were we with the power drawn
from the eternal fire.
And of all these, greatest among the
children of men was my father, THOTME,
keeper of the great temple,
link between the Children of Light
who dwelt within the temple and the
races of men who inhabited the ten islands.

Mouthpiece, after the Three,
of the Dweller of UNAL,
speaking to the Kings
with the voice that must be obeyed.
Grew I there from a child into manhood,
being taught by my father the elder mysteries,
until in time there grew within the fire of wisdom,
until it burst into a consuming flame.
Naught desired I but the attainment of wisdom.
Until on a great day the command came from the
Dweller of the Temple that I be brought before him.
Few there were among the children of men
who had looked upon that mighty face and lived,
for not as the sons of men are the
Children of Light when they are not incarnate
in a physical body.

Chosen was I from the sons of men,
taught by the Dweller so that his
purposes might be fulfilled,
purposes yet unborn in the womb of time.
Long ages I dwelt in the Temple,
learning ever and yet ever more wisdom,
until I, too, approached the light emitted
from the great fire.
Taught me he, the path to Amenti,
the underworld where the great king sits
upon his throne of might.
Deep I bowed in homage before the Lords of Life
and the Lords of Death,
receiving as my gift the Key of Life.

Free was I of the Halls of Amenti,
bound not be death to the circle of life.
Far to the stars I journeyed until
space and time became as naught.
Then having drunk deep of the cup of wisdom,
I looked into the hearts of men and there found I
greater mysteries and was glad.
For only in the Search for Truth could my Soul
be stilled and the flame within be quenched.

Down through the ages I lived,
seeing those around me taste of the cup
of death and return again in the light of life.
Gradually from the Kingdoms of Atlantis passed waves
consciousness that had been one with me,
only to be replaced by spawn of a lower star.
In obedience to the law,
the word of the Master grew into flower.

Downward into the darkness turned the
thoughts of the Atlanteans,
Until at last in this wrath arose from his AGWANTI,
the Dweller, (this word has no English equivalent;
it means a state of detachment)
speaking The Word, calling the power.
Deep in Earth's heart, the sons of Amenti heard,
and hearing, directing the changing of the flower of fire
that burns eternally, changing and shifting, using the LOGOS,
until that great fire changed its direction.
Over the world then broke the great waters,
drowning and sinking, changing Earth's balance
until only the Temple of Light was left
standing on the great mountain on UNDAL
still rising out of the water;
some there were who were living,
saved from the rush of the fountains.
Called to me then the Master, saying:
Gather ye together my people.

Take them by the arts ye have learned of far across the waters,
until ye reach the land of the hairy barbarians,
dwelling in caves of the desert.
Follow there the plan that yet know of.
Gathered I then my people and
entered the great ship of the Master.
Upward we rose into the morning.
Dark beneath us lay the Temple.
Suddenly over it rose the waters.
Vanished from Earth,
until the time appointed,
was the great Temple.

Fast we fled toward the sun of the morning,
until beneath us lay the land of the children of KHEM.
Raging, they came with cudgels and spears,
lifted in anger seeking to slay and utterly destroy the Sons of Atlantis.
Then raised I my staff and directed a ray of vibration,
striking them still in their tracks as fragments
of stone of the mountain.
Then spoke I to them in words calm and peaceful,
telling them of the might of Atlantis,
saying we were children of the Sun and its messengers.
Cowed I them by my display of magic-science,
until at my feet they groveled, when I released them.

Long dwelt we in the land of KHEM,
long and yet long again.
Until obeying the commands of the Master,
who while sleeping yet lives eternally,
I sent from me the Sons of Atlantis,
sent them in many directions,
that from the womb of time wisdom
might rise again in her children.

Long time dwelt I in the land of KHEM,
doing great works by the wisdom within me.
Upward grew into the light of knowledge
the children of KHEM,
watered by the rains of my wisdom.
Blasted I then a path to Amenti so
that I might retain my powers,
living from age to age a Sun of Atlantis,
keeping the wisdom, preserving the records.
Great few the sons of KHEM,
conquering the people around them,
growing slowly upwards in Soul force.

Now for a time I go from among them into
the dark halls of Amenti,
deep in the halls of the Earth,
before the Lords of the powers,
face to face once again with the Dweller.
Raised I high over the entrance, a doorway, a gateway
leading down to Amenti.
Few there would be with courage to dare it,
few pass the portal to dark Amenti.

Raised over the passage, I, a mighty pyramid,
using the power that overcomes Earth force (gravity).
Deep and yet deeper place I a force-house or chamber;
from it carved I a circular passage
reaching almost to the great summit.
There in the apex, set I the crystal,
sending the ray into the "Time-Space,"
drawing the force from out of the ether,
concentrating upon the gateway to Amenti.

Other chambers I built and left vacant to all seeming,
yet hidden within them are the keys to Amenti.
He who in courage would dare the dark realms,
let him be purified first by long fasting.

Lie in the sarcophagus of stone in my chamber.
Then reveal I to him the great mysteries.
Soon shall he follow to where I shall meet him,
even in the darkness of Earth shall I meet him, I,
Thoth, Lord of Wisdom, meet him and hold him
and dwell with him always.

Builded I the Great Pyramid,
patterned after the pyramid of Earth force,
burning eternally so that it, too,
might remain through the ages.
In it, I builded my knowledge of "Magic-Science"
that I might be here when again I return from Amenti,
Aye, while I sleep in the Halls of Amenti,
my Soul roaming free will incarnate,
dwell among men in this form or another. (Hermes, thrice-born.)
Emissary on Earth am I of the Dweller,
fulfilling his commands so many might be lifted.
Now return I to the halls of Amenti,
leaving behind me some of my wisdom.

Preserve ye and keep ye the command of the Dweller:
Lift ever upwards your eyes toward the light.
Surely in time, ye are one with the Master,
surely by right ye are one with the Master,
surely by right yet are one with the ALL.

Now, I depart from ye.
Know my commandments,
keep them and be them,
and I will be with you,
helping and guiding you into the Light.
Now before me opens the portal.
Go I down in the darkness of night

http://www.crystalinks.com/emerald1bw.html

This is “Tablet 1” but I encourage you to go to the link above and read all the Tablets.

Five Tips for Hearing God’s Voice

2009-10-15T09:19:00.000-07:00

This was a study I did from a group I have subscribes to called “The VoiceofLove”. I thought this to be a lovely method to make a deeper connection with God so I have summarized this lesson for your pleasure!

Five Tips for Hearing God’s Voice

1. Validating how you already hear God’s voice.

Open your mind to new possibilities of all forms of hearing God’s voice. It’s different for everyone.

a. True voice of inner God or higher self
b. Signs or feelings in things around you
c. Intuition or a sense of knowing
d. Pendulum
e. Music and lyrics
f. Inspiring quotes of books

2. Quieting the Mind

a. Meditation is a wonderful way to quite the mind.
b. Many forms of meditation here is simple way;

i. Extending love to your thoughts. Becoming aware of your thoughts and welcome them. Visualize light going to your thoughts. Embrace them and don’t struggle against them.

ii. Extend love to everything you are aware of and it becomes simple to hear God’s voice. A loving state instantly connects you with God.

iii. When your mind quiets down ask God and question and see what you hear.

iv. Trust the answer.

3. Opening the Door

a. Meditation can be used to find peace thus connecting with God.
b. Start a conversation with God, some call this prayer.
c. God hears you, asks specific questions. Request specific things you need or help you are seeking.
d. God see his child with so much love its hard to comprehend.
e. It can take time for the answer to unfold, it may not always be immediate.
f. Trust the process and know all things are done in your best interest and timing thereof.

Once you’ve gone within and quitted your mind and started a dialog with God. Ask for whatever it is you are seeking. Open your mind to communicating everyway possible; thoughts, love, song, seeing pictures or movies in your minds eye.

4. Hearing in Different Ways

a. Close your eyes share your mind with God and ask a question.
b. Acknowledge what you see in your minds eye and trust your answer.

5. Giving God’s voice Expression

a. When you begin to hear God’s voice (intuition or knowing) it is important to give this voice expression.
b. Hug or smile, pen or paper, sharing with another how God is working in you.
c. Bring truth and love to the world.
d. Joining with God and expressing.

This is a beautiful start on a beautiful journey of great love and peace. I hope each of you will give it a try . . .

God's Chosen

2009-10-04T20:26:00.000-07:00

The Chosen

Today I am doing a topical study on “The Chosen” and looking to different doctrine to analyze what each discusses about this topic. I found not all doctrine identify the chosen by the word specifically so I had to hop around a bit.

Let start with the Quran – Chosen was not part of the index guide but I did manage to find topics about the chosen under the word “Light” and “Those nearest to Allah”.

I found it interesting that in the Quran that as a reward for the deeds of their past life,there will be companions with beautiful, big and lustrous eyes-Like they are pearls, well guarded. I take this as those companions are special souls . . .ummm.

The Quran

Sura 4. An-Nisa
4.174 - O Mankind! Surely, there has come to you clear proof from your Lord: And we have sent to you light that is clear.
Sura 6. Al-An’am
6.1 – All the Praises and thanks be to Allah who created the heavens and the earth, and made the darkness and the light. Yet those who disbelieve hold others as equal with their Guardian-Lord!
Sura 24. An-Nur (The Light)
24.35 - All is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The parable of his light is as though there is a Niche or opening and within it is a Lamp: The Lamp is enclosed in glass: The glass as if it was itself a bright star: Lit from a blessed Tree, an Olive, neither of the East nor the West, whose Oil is almost by itself bright, even though fire never touched it: Light upon Light! Allah guides whomever he wills to His Light: And Allah sets forth parables for mankind: And Allah knows all things.
24.36 - This Light shines bright in those houses, that Allah has permitted to be raised to the honor; For the celebration of His Name in them: In them his names and the houses, He is glorified mornings and in evenings of everyday!
Sura 56. Al-Waqi’ah (The inevitable event)
56.10 – And those foremost in faith will be foremost in the hearafter.
56.11 – These will be those nearest to Allah:
56.12 – In the Garden of true joy:
56.13 – A number of people from those of the old,
56.14 – And a few ones from those of later times.
56.15 – They will be on thrones inlaid with gold and precious stones,
56.16 – Reclining on them, face to face,
56.17 - Around them will serve youths of ever lasting freshness,
56.18 – With little glasses, shining tumblers, and cups filled from clear flowing fountains;
56.19 – No ill effects will they suffer from them, and they will not be dazed;
56.20 – And with fruits, any that they may select;
56.21 – and the flesh of fowls, any that they desire.
56.22 – And there will be companions with beautiful, big and lustrous eyes-
56.23 – Like they are pearls, well guarded.
56.24 – A reward for the deeds of their past life.
56.25 – No pettiness will they hear in there, and not even a little of sinful speech.
56.26 – But only saying “Salaam, Salaam (Peace, Peace).”
Sura 57. Al-Hadid (The Iron)
57.12 - On the day you shall see the believing men and the believing women – How their Light runs forward before them and by their right hand: Their greeting will be “Good New for you this Day! Gardens of Paradise beneath which flow rivers! To live there for ever. This is indeed the highest success!”
57.13 - On the day the hypocrites – Men and Women, will say to the believers: “Wait for us! Let us get a light from your Light!” It will be said; “You go back to the rear! Then seek a light from where you can!” So, a wall will be out between them, with a gate in it. Within it the wall will be mercy throughout, and outside and all alongside of it, will be anger and punishment.
57.14 - Those hypocrites outside will call the believers, “Were we not with you?” The others will reply, “True! But you led yourselves into temptation; You looked forward to our destruction; And you doubted Allah’s Promise: And your false desires deceived you; Until the Command of Allah became true. And the Deceiver (Satan) deceived you in respect to Almighty Allah.
57.15 - “So, this Day shall no ransom be taken from you, or from those who disbelieved. Your home is Fire: That is the proper place to claim you: And it is an evil place to rest!”
Sura 66. At-Tahrim (Holding something to be forbidden)
66.8 - O you who believe! Turn to Allah with sincere repentance; In the hope that your Lord will remove from you your sorrows and admit you to Gardens beneath which rivers flow – The Day that Allah will not disgrace the Prophet and those who believe with him, their light will run before them and on their right hands, while they say “Our Lord! Perfect our light for us, and grant us forgiveness: Verily, You are Able to do all things.”

Reference: English translation of the message of “The Quran” by Professor (Dr.) Syed Vickar Ahamed.

Jewish Dictionary

—Biblical Data: God’s Chosen is found expressed exactly that way.

Name for the Jewish people expressive of the idea of their having been chosen by God to fulfil the mission of proclaiming His truth among all the nations. This choice does not imply a superior claim, but a superior duty and responsibility on the part of the Jewish people, inasmuch as they have been pledged by the covenant which God concluded with Abraham, their ancestor, and again with the entire nation on Sinai, to testify, by precept and example, to the truth revealed to them, to lead a holy life as God's priest-people, and, if needs be, sacrifice their very lives for the sake of this truth. In this peculiar sense they are called God's own people; their religious genius, as manifested in their patriarchs, prophets, inspired poets, sages, and heroes, having rendered them the chosen people of religion to a far greater extent than the artistic and philosophical genius of the Greeks made that nation the chosen people of art and philosophy, or the juridical and political genius of the Romans made them the chosen people of law and politics.

—In Rabbinical Literature:
According to the Rabbis, Israel has not been chosen as the people of the Law on account of its racial superiority. "Israel is of all nations the most wilful or headstrong one [ ], and the Torah was to give it the right scope and power of resistance, or else the world could not have withstood its fierceness" (Beẓah, 25b). "The Lord offered the Law to all nations; but all refused to accept it except Israel" (Mek. Yitro, Pes. R. K. 103b, 186a, 200a). "A Gentile who consecrates his life to the study and observance of the Law ranks as high as the high priest," says R. Meïr, by deduction from Lev. xviii. 5; II Sam. vii. 19; Isa. xxvi. 2; Ps. xxxiii. 1, cxviii. 20, cxxv. 4, where all stress is laid not on Israel, but on man or the righteous one (Sifra, Aḥare Mot, 86b; Bacher, "Ag. Tan." ii. 31). Israel is likened to the olive. Just as this fruit yields its precious oil only after being much pressed and squeezed, so Israel's destiny is one of great oppression and hardship, in order that it may thereby give forth its illuminating wisdom (Ex. R. xxvi.). Poverty is the quality most befitting Israel as the chosen people (Ḥag. 9b). Only on account of its good works is Israel among the nations "as the lily among thorns" (Cant. R. ii. 2), or "as wheat among the chaff" (Midr. Teh. i. 4; Weber's "System der Altsynagogalen Theologie," etc., pp. 59-69, is full of glaring errors and misstatements on the subject of Israel as the chosen people).

Consciousness of Selection.
Unlike any other nation, the Jewish people began their career conscious of their life-purpose and world-duty as the priests and teachers of a universal religious truth; and their whole history, with all its tragic sternness, was and to the end of time will be devoted to the carrying out of this purpose and the discharge of this duty. This view is expressed in all the Biblical and rabbinical passages referring to Israel as the chosen people, or to Abraham as their ancestor. "For I have singled him out [A. V., "have known him"] to the end that he may command his children and his house after him, that they may keep the way of the Lord to do justice and judgment" (Gen. xviii. 1, Hebr.; compare Neh. ix. 7, "Thou art the Lord, the God who didst choose Abram").

Conditions of Choice.
That Israel's character as the chosen people is conditioned by obedience to God's commandments is stated in the very words of the Sinai covenant: "Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people; for all the earth is mine: and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation" (Ex. xix. 5, 6). "The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people; but because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers" (Deut. vii. 7, 8). The great obligation imposed upon Israel as the chosen people is especially emphasized by the prophet Amos (iii. 2): "You only have I singled out [R. V., "known"] of all the families of the earth: therefore will I visit upon you all your iniquities." Compare Deut. xiv. 2: "Thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all peoples that are upon the face of the earth," and ib. xxiv. 18, 19, R. V.

God's Witnesses and Their Inheritance.
Particularly is the world-mission of the chosen people dwelt upon by Deutero-Isaiah, the seer of the Exile (Isa. xli.; xlii. 1-7; xliii. 10. "Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen"; ib. verse 21, R. V., "The people which I formed for myself that they might set forth my praise"; compare xliv. 1, 2; xlix. 6, 7).

As God's chosen people, Israel is also called His "inheritance" (Deut. iv. 20; ix. 26, 29; xxxii. 9; Ps. xxxiii. 12: "The people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance"; I Kings viii. 53, Jer. x. 16; and elsewhere). As the children of the Patriarchs they are His chosen ones (Ps. cv. 6).

Reference: http://www.jewishdictionary.com/

Apostolic succession – Speaks for itself

Apostolic succession, in Christian theology, the doctrine asserting that the chosen successors of the apostles enjoyed through God's grace the same authority, power, and responsibility as was conferred upon the apostles by Jesus. Therefore present-day bishops, as the successors of previous bishops, going back to the apostles, have this power by virtue of this unbroken chain. For the Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Anglican churches, this link with the apostles is what guarantees for them their authority in matters of faith, morals, and the valid administration of sacraments. Essential to maintaining the apostolic succession is the right consecration of bishops. Apostolic succession is to be distinguished from the Petrine supremacy. Protestants (other than Anglican) see the authority given to the apostles as unique, proper to them alone, and hence reject any doctrine of a succession of their power. The Protestant view of ecclesiastical authority differs accordingly.

Apostolic succession is the doctrine in some of the more ancient Christian communions that the succession of bishops, in uninterrupted lines, is historically traceable back to the original Twelve Apostles. Apostolic succession is not the same as the Petrine supremacy. As a general rule, Protestantism rejects the doctrine of apostolic succession. Protestants consider the authority given to the apostles as having been unique, and therefore proper to them alone without being inherited by later prelates. Thus, they reject any doctrine of a succession of the original apostles' authority.

Reference: The Columbia Encyclopedia. Copyright © 2001-09 Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

Heliogabalus – Gods Chosen were those who were appointed authority to preisthood.

Heliogabalus hē′lēōgăb'ələs or Elagabalusĕləgăb'ələs, c.205–222, Roman emperor (218–22). GOD’s chosen - were those in leadership.

He was a priest of the local sun god, Elagabalus, at Emesa and was named Varius Avitus Bassianus. He was a cousin of Caracalla; according to the claims (almost certainly false) of his ambitious mother and grandmother, he was the son of Caracalla. He was chosen by the troops in Syria as emperor in opposition to Macrinus, who had killed and succeeded Caracalla. When Macrinus was defeated and killed at Antioch, Heliogabalus became emperor as Marcus Aurelius Antoninus. His reign was a tragic farce. He imported the cult of which he was priest, and Rome was shocked and disgusted by the indecency of the rites as well as by the private life of the emperor, who gave high offices to an actor, a charioteer, and a barber. His grandmother, Julia Maesa, induced him to adopt his young cousin, Alexander Severus, but Heliogabalus later tried to have the boy killed. Heliogabalus and his mother were murdered in an uprising of the Praetorian Guard. Alexander Severus succeeded.

Sol
Sol sŏl, in Roman religion, sun god. An ancient god of Mesopotamian origin, he was introduced (c.220) into Roman religion as Sol Invictus by emperor Heliogabalus. His worship remained an important cult of Rome until the rise of Christianity.

Reference: The Columbia Encyclopedia. Copyright © 2001-09 Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

Bhakti - Chosen are those who fully surrender to GOD.

Bhakti (Devanāgarī: भक्ति, Sanskrit: devotion, or portion)[1] in practice signifies an active involvement by the devotee in divine worship. The term is often translated as "devotion", though increasingly "participation" is being used as a more accurate rendering, since it conveys a fully engaged relationship with God.[2] One who practices bhakti is called a bhakta,[3] while bhakti as a spiritual path is referred to as bhakti marga, or the bhakti way.[4][5] Bhakti is an important component of many branches of Hinduism, defined differently by various sects and schools.[6]

Bhakti emphasises devotion and practice above ritual. Bhakti is typically represented in terms of human relationships, most often as beloved-lover, friend-friend, parent-child, and master-servant.[7] It may refer to devotion to a spiritual teacher (Guru) as guru-bhakti,[8][9] to a personal form of God,[10] or to divinity without form (nirguna).[11] Different traditions of bhakti in Hinduism are sometimes distinguished, including: Shaivas, who worship Shiva and the gods and goddesses associated with him; Vaishnavas, who worship forms of Vishnu, his avataras, and others associated with; Shaktas, who worship a variety of goddesses. Belonging to a particular tradition is not exclusive—devotion to one deity does not preclude worship of another.[12]

The Bhagavad Gita is the first text to explicitly use the word "bhakti" to designate a religious path,[13] which the Bhagavata Purana develops more elaborately.[7] The so-called Bhakti Movement saw a rapid growth of bhakti beginning in Southern India with the Vaisnava Alvars (6th-9th century CE) and Saiva Nayanars (5th-10th century CE), who spread bhakti poetry and devotion throughout India by the 12th-18th century CE.[14][15] Bhakti influence in India spread to other religions,[16][17][18][19] coloring many aspects of Hindu culture to this day, from religious to secular, and becoming an integral part of Indian society.

Reference: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia © 2001-2006 Wikipedia contributors (Disclaimer)

Bhakti bŭk'tē [Skt.,=devotion], theistic devotion in Hinduism. Bhakti cults seem to have existed from the earliest times, but they gained strength in the first millennium A.D. The first full statement of liberation and spiritual fulfillment through devotion to a personal god is found in the Bhagavad-Gita. The Puranas (from the 1st cent. A.D.) further elaborated theistic ideas. Devotion to Shiva and Vishnu and to the latter's avatara (incarnations), Rama and Krishna, continues to be practiced throughout India. Intense love for God and surrender to Him, reliance on His grace rather than on rituals, learning, or austerities, and the continuous repetition of His name are the means to the goal of His constant presence. The devotee may worship the chosen deity as child, parent, friend, master, or beloved. The bhakti tradition has tended to stress authentic inner feelings as opposed to institutional forms of religion and to disregard caste distinctions. Great devotees and saints such as the Alvars of S India (a Vaishnavite group of wandering singers), Mirabai, Tukaram, Tulsidasa, Kabir, and Chaitanya have continuously inspired the cults, founded their own sects, and produced a great literature of songs and poems in their vernaculars.

Reference: The Columbia Encyclopedia. Copyright © 2001-09 Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

Hermetic - “Know Thyself” In knowing thyself you can reach souls perfection and be part of the chosen.

The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn (or, more commonly, the Golden Dawn) was a magical order founded in Great Britain during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which practiced theurgy and spiritual development. It has been one of the largest single influences on 20th-century Western occultism. Concepts of magic and ritual at the center of contemporary traditions, such as Wicca[1][2] and Thelema, were inspired by the Golden Dawn.

The three founders, William Robert Woodman, William Wynn Westcott, and Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers were Freemasons and members of Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia (S.R.I.A.).[3] Westcott appears to have been the initial driving force behind the establishment of the Golden Dawn.

The Golden Dawn system was based on hierarchy and initiation like the Masonic Lodges, however women were admitted on an equal basis with men. The "Golden Dawn" was the first of three Orders, although all three are often collectively referred to as the "Golden Dawn". The First Order taught esoteric philosophy based on the Hermetic Qabalah and personal development through study and awareness of the four Classical Elements as well as the basics of astrology, tarot divination, and geomancy. The Second or "Inner" Order, the Rosae Rubeae et Aureae Crucis (the Ruby Rose and Cross of Gold), taught proper magic, including scrying, astral travel, and alchemy. The Third Order was that of the "Secret Chiefs", who were said to be highly-skilled but no longer incarnate; they supposedly directed the activities of the lower two orders by spirit communication with the Chiefs of the Second Order.

This article covers the meaning of the self in spirituality (both the egoic self and the witnessing Self). For other meanings of 'self', see Self.

The Self is a complex and core subject in many forms of spirituality. Two types of self are commonly considered - the self that is the ego, also called the learned, superficial self of mind and body, an egoic creation, and the Self which is sometimes called the "True Self", the "Observing Self", or the "Witness". [1]

The Self is pure consciousness or Being in Self-awareness. Whereas, the I am principle is individuality made manifest. They are separate and distinguishable. Even the I-sense eventually dissolves. MMY

Further information: Ego (spirituality)

Ken Wilber describes the Witnessing (or Observing) Self in the following terms:

"This observing Self is usually called the Self with a capital S, or the Witness, or pure Presence, or pure Awareness, or Consciousness as such, and this Self as transparent Witness is a direct ray of the living Divine. The ultimate "I AM" is Christ, is Buddha, is Emptiness itself: such is the startling testimony of the world's great mystics and sages." [8]

He adds that the Self is not an Emergent, but an aspect present from the start as the basic form of awareness, but which becomes increasingly obvious and self aware "as growth and transcendence matures." As Depth increases, consciousness shines forth more noticeably, until:

"shed[ding] its lesser identification with both the body and the mind ... in each case from matter to body to mind to Spirit... consciousness or the observing Self sheds an exclusive identity with a lesser and shallower dimension, and opens up to deeper and higher and wider occasions, until it opens up to its own ultimate ground in Spirit itself. And the stages of transpersonal growth and development are basically the stages of following this Observing Self to its ultimate abode, which is pure Spirit or pure Emptiness, the ground, path and fruition of the entire display." [8]

In a similar vein, Evelyn Underhill[9] states:

"It is clear that under ordinary conditions, and save for sudden gusts of "Transcendental Feeling" induced by some saving madness such as Religion, Art, or Love, the superficial self knows nothing of the attitude of this silent watcher—this "Dweller in the Innermost"—towards the incoming messages of the external world: nor of the activities which they awake in it. Concentrated on the sense-world, and the messages she receives from it, she knows nothing of the relations which exist between this subject and the unattainable Object of all thought. But by a deliberate inattention to the messages of the senses, such as that which is induced by contemplation, the mystic can bring the ground of the soul, the seat of "Transcendental Feeling," within the area of consciousness: making it amenable to the activity of the will. Thus becoming unaware of his usual and largely fictitious "external world," another and more substantial set of perceptions, which never have their chance under normal conditions, rise to the surface. Sometimes these unite with the normal reasoning faculties. More often, they supersede them. Some such exchange, such "losing to find," appears to be necessary, if man's transcendental powers are to have their full chance."

Reference:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self_(spirituality)
http://www.referencecenter.com/ref/reference/GoldenDa/Hermetic_Order_of_the_Golden_Dawn?invocationType=ar1clk
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermetic_Brotherhood_of_Light

Earth Healing Meditation

2009-09-30T18:05:00.000-07:00

Earth Healing Meditation

GOD, please hear our hopes and desires and grant them unto us this day.

Sit on the ground, place your hands on the dirt beneath you. Visualize the earth from space as a bluish-white sphere of positive, whole, healed energy. Experience the earth as a living organism.

Once you have this visual image in your mind say;
Pure are the caves and plains
Pure are the grass, flowers and things growing in the fields
Pure and pristine are the winds and skies
Pure are the lakes, rivers, streams and hills
Pure are the clouds and rains
Pure are the woods and trees
Pure are the valleys deep
Pure are the bays and seas

Refresh your visualization in your mind as all above have been purified, continue in your detail;

Pure are the birds that fly
Pure are the beasts and the bats
Pure are the Fish and the Whales
Pure are the hares and cats
Pure are the Owls and snakes
Pure are the stags and deer
Pure are the lizards green
Pure are all creatures here

Again, click “refresh” . . . just kidding! Refresh the image in your mind seeing all these things as true and purified. Feel the vibration of the Earth, her harmonics of life. See her as healed and renewed.

Say; “As I receive your energy, now receive mine”.

Pour all your feelings and desire of a healed planet, hope and feelings of love for mother earth through your hands and imagine the energy penetrated the earth. Imagine she is healed and feel her energy become lighter, lifted and healed.

GOD, thank you for your blessings Amen.

Multidimensional: What is Lightbody

2009-09-27T20:25:00.000-07:00

Archangels and Archeias of the Seven Rays

2009-09-27T20:10:00.001-07:00

Enjoy!

Facebook | Promoting your Facebook Page

2009-09-25T10:54:00.000-07:00

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The Seven Rays and Extended Rays

2009-09-21T13:03:00.000-07:00

The Seven Rays

Seven great energies or streams of force demonstrate the qualities of Deity. The Wisdom Teachings speak of them as the Seven Rays and they are dominant conditioning and qualifying factors in our lives. But not only this; they are, we understand, cosmic elements, reaching us from the unknown spheres of other systems, and no part of the life of our planet is unaffected by them.

In the same way as the seven colours are parts of the spectrum and the seven notes are tones of the octave, so these Rays are differentiations or qualities of the one divine Emanation. In some of the eastern teachings they are called the seven breaths giving life to all forms, and they have been referred to in various ways in different philosophies. It is these great "Energies" that St John called symbolically "the Seven Spirits before the throne of God."

The Seven Rays, each carrying particular qualities and tendencies, are responsible for the different psychological types. Several Rays will probably influence us, but one usually predominates and gives the main colouring to our character. There is a connection here with astrology ... the astrological influences carry these same streams of energy and our alignment with particular Signs puts us more directly in touch with these qualities.

The following summary only gives a very brief idea of each Ray, but serves to indicate their different types of influence.

The energies of the rays can be used in meditation and prayer, envoking their power directly into your life. You can gain an understanding of each ray's mystery through personal experience. If you envoke the rays through meditation it will help you bring out the best qualities of that ray in your life, so you can work with the energy consciously.

First Ray: Will or Power
Color - Red
Purpose - will/power, politics
Chohans - El Morya and the Manu
Purpose, positivity and leadership are the outstanding qualities of this Ray. It carries great strength and driving force, in fact it is sometimes called the Destroyer. It is the Ray of the ruler and is particularly related to the field of Government. Those who initiate undertakings and are found in positions of power are especially aligned with this type of energy.

Second Ray: Love-Wisdom
Color- Blue (some say Indigo)
Purpose - Love/wisdom, education
Chohans - Kuthumi and the Planetary Christ
This Ray embodies the building and relating qualities and is the blending and inclusive energy that leads to true understanding. Its strength is through persistence and it radiates the spirit of relationship and the attractive quality of Love. On this Ray are found the lovers of Truth and those who seek the path of Wisdom; the Teachers, Healers and Philosophers are the exponents of its magnetic energy.

Third Ray: Active Intelligence
Color - Yellow
Purpose - Active intelligence, civilization, humanity, economics/business
Chohans - Paul the Venetian and the Mahachohan
This energy carries an underlying impulse towards both mental and physical activity. A clear intellect and an ability to plan are its characteristics and a capacity for abstract thinking and intelligent organising are this Ray's especial gifts. Its influence works particularly through economics and industry.

Fourth Ray: Harmony through Conflict
Color - Green
Purpose - Harmony through conflict, nature, love, faery realm, art.
Chohan - Serapis Bey
This is the Ray of beauty, art, and creative expression in all forms. It is the energy which, through conflict, brings order out of confusion, harmony out of discord, unity out of diversity. It finds its expression particularly in the cultural field, but it also has great influence upon humanity as a whole, and brings about the achievement through struggle by which we evolve.

Fifth Ray: Concrete Knowledge and Science
Color - Orange
Purpose - Concrete science
Chohan - Hilarion
This Ray is pre-eminently that of mind, critical ability and research. It is the Ray of the keen and enquiring intellect that demands great accuracy and gives much attention to detail. Within this stream are found those working in all the different branches of science.

Sixth Ray: Devotion and Idealism
Colors - Indigo, purple, sky blue
Purpose - Devotion/Idealism, religion
Chohans - Sananda, though some believe Nada was, or is, the chohan of this ray.
Dedication and fanatical altruism are the main impulses of this Ray. It carries a militant one-pointedness and intensity, and further characteristics are devotion and a spirit of service. It is the Ray of the crusader and the idealist and is the great force within Religion.

Seventh Ray: Ceremonial Order and Ritual
Color - Violet
Purpose - Ceremonial order/magik
Chohans - Saint Germain, though some say Portia co-rules as the silver violet flame.
This is the Ray which links spirit and matter and it works through law, organisation ane ritual. Those under its impulse delight in order and perfection of form. Since it is concerned with the concretising of energy, finance comes within its province, as well as all ceremonial activity.
This gives the general picture of the Rays, but they are many-sided and too complex to be fully portrayed in a short summary. It must be added, however, that their energies can work out as detrimental tendencies as well as valuable qualities. For example, First Ray energy may activate the strong, courageous leader, but may equally well stimulate adversely the ambitious, arrogant dictator. Upon our response to these great forces and our handling of them depends how they manifest.

There are many interesting relationships and correspondences which can be followed up in connection with the Seven Rays. Their influence is felt in all kingdoms of nature and recognition of their conditioning energies gives us new insight into our fellow humans as well as ourselves. Study of them will be at the roots of New Age psychology, for understanding of the Rays that influence us individually will reveal both the bases of our problems and our lines of potentiality, and will help us to meet the ancient Greek, yet ever current, demand—"Know thyself."

- M. J. Eascott and N. Magor
Excerpted fromThe Plan and The Path,Eastcott and Magor, 1964Sundial House, Kent, England

Know Thy Self
Know The Self
Know The One

Extended Rays

Eighth Ray –
Colors - Seafoam Green of Violet Green
Purpose – Higher cleansing
Chohans – Kumeka and Nada
The eighth ray is the first of the new rays manifesting to prepare us for the New Age. As the seventh, violet ray is a cleansing ray, the ray one rung above it is said to be even more cleansing and transformative. Through described as “seafoam green”, I ‘ve heard some describe it a “violet green” which at first doesn’t seem to make any sense. Think of the high-vibrational quality of violet – the bluish-red flame of true violet has a mysterious quality. Take that same quality and transpose it to green spectrum. Violet Green isn’t even a color we see yet with our physical eyes, but we can see it psychically with our inner sight. Many people see the energy of healing modalities such as Shamballa Reiki as violet green. In his book , The complete Ascension Manual, Dr. Joshua David Stone describes the eighth ray as “composed of the fourth ray, and the seventh ray and the fifth ray with a touch of white light, all mixed together.” This ray is used to manifest the powers of cleansing and healing to prepare for the higher rays to come. The eighth ray is used to remove any unwanted thoughtforms, spirit attachments, and spiritual implants in the energetic field.

Ninth Ray-
Color – Bluegreen
Purpose – Joy, attracting the body of light
Chohan – unknown
The ninth ray brings quality of spiritual joy or spiritual bliss. Through working with this ray, the individual attracts the “body of light” which is another way of saying lightbody or merkaba vehicle. The person doesn’t so much attract the merkaba, but rather he or she prepares the way for the manifestation of the merkaba, the chariot of light that allows people to ascend to a higher consciousness. It is important to clear your physical and energy bodies with the previous eighth and seventh rays to clear the way for the lightbody to become permanent manifestation of your consciousness.

Tenth Ray –
Color – Pearlescent
Purpose – Anchoring the body of light
Chohan – Some see Quan Yin as the keeper of the white, pearl or alabaster flame.
The tenth ray has the power to anchor the body of light, the higher consciousness into physical form. The pearlescent ray is described as a combination of the three rays of activity (the red, blue and yellow rays) ,mixed with white light. Through working with the tenth ray, you can come to understand your true will more clearly by integrating the higher consciousness into your everyday life.

Eleventh Ray –
Color- Pink orange
Purpose – Bridge to the New Age
Chohan- unknown
The pink orange light in the eleventh ray acts as a bridge, a connection to the New Age. This ray is very cleansing and can clear anything that was not cleared by the seventh and eighth rays. It removes anything that block an individual, a community or an area from the patterns of the New Age. It is the first, second and fifth rays mixed with white light. The eleventh ray brings the will, wisdom/love and insight of the New Age to the planet.

Twelfth Ray-
Color – GOLD
Purpose – The anchoring of the New Age and Christ consciousness
Chohan- unknownThe twelfth ray is the power of Christ consciousness.
It is a mixture of all eleven rays with white light, to form the golden light of Christ consciousness, all in perfect balance and harmony for any given time or place. This is the highest power that can be used to integrate the Aquarian principle into your life and world. The only higher vibration that can be accessed here in the third dimension of the Earth is the energy of Mahatma, who is known as the avatar of synthesis.

Beacons of Light - Lightworkers

2009-09-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

I read this email this morning from "Beacon's of Light" group. It rang so true to me I wanted to share it with everyone. This is exactly where we as spiritual beings are moving to during the planets dimensional shift. Enjoy . . . it's beautiful.

Is Heaven Up?

We visit you this day with an overview from what you call Home. We think it interesting that humans think heaven is up. That concept comes from when humans were very young, when your parents nurtured and cared for you. You remember your parents leaning in from above you, as they were picking you up from your crib. Even as you began to crawl and walk your parents towered above you. That shared memory in the collective of humanity is what makes you think heaven is above you in the sky. We tell you this story so that you can understand how humanity has evolved over time, through reaching different points of critical mass. It is happening again now.

We are not here to tell you which way to turn, nor to tell you whether anything you do is right or wrong because there are only personal choices for each and every one of you. Instead, it is about your empowerment. It is re-membering who you are as a spirit.

Ceiling of Evolution

One point we wish to share is that there is a part of you that exists at Home, no matter what you do here on Earth. You come in and take one of these physical bubbles of biology to play the game of pretending to be human. In order to do that, you have to also pretend to be separate from each other. It is such a wonderful game and you humans have become so good at playing it. You actually think you are separate from each other, when in fact you are not. That is fascinating to us. You walk around pretending to be separate, but you are actually connected to others with all these attachment cords. When you feel something someone else feels it, too. Of course, you share thoughts and feelings because your energetic structures are part of one another. Yet you place yourself in a little cocoon, pretending to be separate for the duration of your stay here on planet Earth. You do it so well, but that separation is beginning to go away. That separation is what has been keeping much of your own evolution at a certain level, at almost a ceiling of evolution on planet Earth. Now the separation is dissolving and that is creating much change on your planet. Some of these changes may appear in what you currently consider to be a negative way, but fear not for all change leads to advancement.

It is no longer possible to hold secrets on planet Earth. How beautiful is that? It is a direct result of all of humanity having better communication with their higher selves, and that is what you have started to emulate from Home right away. So far, there has only been a little inkling in your heart that determined whether something did not quite resonate with you. Now that humans are starting to listen without all the filters, you will learn how to fine-tune this new guidance system. The Pineal Crystals are already starting to activate. You are beginning to activate the crystals now. This process is moving very, very rapidly now throughout the Earth. In a relatively short period of time you will be able to feel as if you are inside one another’s heads, almost as if you can look through their eyes and see from their perspective. Can you imagine holding a secret at that point? Not possible, dear ones, and that is what humans are becoming accustomed to right now.

The CORE Personality

There is another point we wish to share to help you understand what is ahead. Each one of you has what we call a core personality. Your sciences in the area of psychology explain that the personality of a person is an accumulation of all experiences they have had in their lifetime. That is exactly correct, but it is not limited to just one lifetime; it includes all 12 simultaneous dimensions within each of your past lifetimes. After you complete an incarnation on planet Earth, you go Home and review each experience that you had. You examine each one, sorting through your original intentions and releasing those you completed. You set aside those experiences that you received a gift from and those you have not, placing them back into your energy matrix to ensure that you will bring them in the next time you enter a physical body. When you incorporate and release experiences, you incorporate them into something we call the core personality, the personality of the soul. That is actually the true personality without any hampering of your human thought patterns or belief systems. That is very magical and it is what is taking place now as humanity is evolving, particularly over the next two years. You are all going to start returning to your true core personality and that is very beautiful. What you will find is a confidence in who you truly are.

Ah, dear ones, this is such a difficult life for you to lead. You have basically taken off your wings and pretended to be human. You cannot even re-member who you were or why you came here. Yet you struggle, bump into one another, search to find people who are going in the same direction, and try to find your way in the dark. You have done very, very well. In the moment that you find a place, a door, or a path that works, you turn around and show it to other people. You open the door and hold it open so others can find their way, for you are truly beings of light. You are the predecessors of light on planet Earth. You have been here to plant this energy and open these doors so that when people start to awaken from the dream, there is one part they will not have to deal with. That is the final piece we wish to address today.

Love - Fear Quotient

There are times when light on this planet will be in many different forms. We have a slightly different definition of light than do most humans. Our definition certainly differs from how your scientists describe light, as a ray of light with various rays and focuses. They put electromagnetic waves over here, radio waves there, television waves here, and the visible light spectrum is a tiny little part of all those waves. We include all of that and more in our definition of light. Our definition of the purest form of light is love. Love is how you feel it in your bodies, hearts and souls. What is happening is that you now have an opportunity to spread more light on this planet than you have ever had before. Please be aware that with light come shadows, and with shadows come fear. Fear is the opposite of love. Many of you believe that hate is the opposite of love, but hate is an emotion. Hate is a reaction. Hate is a fear-based belief system which we call BS. The balance of fear and love is now shifting on planet Earth, thanks to the work that many of you have been doing.

You carry love, and when you express your light, it not only flows through you to fill you up, but it also flows around you to help others. Spreading light gives you a confidence within your soul, helping to re-mind you of who you truly are. The absence of light creates darkness, which is how we define fear. Humans feel darkness in their souls through fear. We have spoken of fear many times, for it is actually a lack of information; it is only possible to be afraid of the unknown. Once you fill in that information, even if it is incorrect, you lose the grip of fear and get to deal with what really is. We illustrate this concept by sharing a story with you. A woman wakes up one day and feels a lump in her breast. She is very concerned, for she quietly wonders if it is cancer like her mother had. She thinks, “No, I am stronger than that. I will not worry about it.” That woman could be in great danger, because that fear of cancer can easily create that dis-ease where there was none before. Fill the vacuum with knowledge and relieve your mind. Even though she goes to the doctor and finds out she does have cancer, the fear is gone so now she can deal with it. She could also decide that she does not agree with the doctors, but at least she would have the benefit of that knowledge and it is enough to fill the vacuum. Now she can start to heal, find the gift and start to release. This is often the hardest part for people to understand.

Fear is an Opportunity for Light

Then we come to rooms like this. There are thousands of you who are watching this broadcast—the Lightworkers on planet Earth. For you, dear ones, fear is an opportunity for light. Fear is calling you into work. Fear is an opportunity for you to be of service on this planet now, and that is what you do so beautifully. You bring love. You bring light. You bring information where there is none, so you can release this entire process of fear. We ask you to carefully watch the words you speak. If they can be construed as fear-based in any way, re-word them to more accurately communicate. Many will also become very sensitive to fear-based messages, motivations and actions in your own world. Fear can not control you when you are aware of it. Become aware of fear-based movements, as this is the typical manner in which humanity has been controlled for eons of time.

As you move out of the field of duality you will experience less of the light/dark, love/fear, good/bad, right/wrong, and up/down thinking. These opposites are now being balanced by a new connection to your own higher self. This is partly being facilitated by the crystals that are forming inside your own physical body, for they are going to help you. That which could have been very negative is now being adapted by the most adaptable beings throughout the universe…human beings. You are changing it all in the blink of an eye.

Help from the Other Side

All eyes of the universe are upon Earth, for this was the one game that was never expected to make it. This was the one game that had no predisposition—that had no guidance system built in. It was the game of total free choice and here you are leading the universe, about to evolve into a spot where you have never evolved before. We tell you it is so incredibly beautiful. You have come to visit us. You have come to see yourself through our eyes so we may reflect your beauty and help you to re-member Home, to re-member that part of you. What you are not aware of are the huge gatherings on this side of the veil to watch you, and honor you. For all those beings who stepped aside for you come in and play this game are on your side are working behind you.

There are sports on your planet that you love to play. You play football with teams all over the world. At the end of the season your teams go to the playoffs, all competing for the number one spot. A team that loses now becomes the other team’s champion. They want the team that was good enough to beat them to go all the way, just the same way that all those same beings on the other side are trying to help you do what you came to do. They are part of you and you have access to that help.

Manipulation

Humans have been manipulated over and over, and over again on this planet. It has happened in almost every government, religion, and corporation. The way you can most easily be manipulated is through your own fear. Start finding ways to break through even the smallest pieces of your own fear, and you can no longer be manipulated on planet Earth. That is starting to happen in a big way, but is going to take every one of you working together. A single soul cannot stop the manipulation. However, that is no problem because you are all part of each other and you are starting to let down those boundaries, honoring that within each other. Can you imagine a planet with beings that have evolved beyond the need for fear? That is true empowerment, for when you empower anyone else outside of yourself you are also empowering yourself. You are empowering and creating a space for that to happen. When you overcome this place of fear and start looking at the opportunities for spreading light, you become a magnet. As if magically, others will come to you with their fears and you will be making a difference on this planet. That is what you have come to do and we are here to help re-mind you of that.

We are so honored you are here, for we have been talking for a very long time and now you are listening. We are so honored to be here and see the most beautiful angels on the gameboard of planet Earth. Enjoy the ride, dear ones. Do not worry about the destination for there is none; it is all about the journey, so enjoy wherever you are in that journey right now. Embrace it, love it, laugh with it, cry with it, feel it and ride it out, because when you get Home you will tell all the beautiful stories of your journey on planet Earth. We will all sit around the fire with you and laugh…and make smores.

Dear ones, your whole world is changing. You have known this and have written about it for eons of time. You have known there was a big shift coming. Everyone postulated as to what exactly that looked like, and tried to find how you could speed it up. It is here, happening today, and it is continuing. All the dreams and aspirations you had once hoped for in the year 2012 are here today. We cannot wait to see what you create in 2012 because you are so excited about it, but first you must find which day you are going to play that game.

Connect in any way that you can, dear ones, and touch one another often for that is something that is only done on planet Earth. It is a way to help you re-member who you are, and for others to re-member who they are. It is a way to give your gifts freely and with a tremendous amount of love. Know that we are with you every step of the way, for we have never left you. Know that we love you, as we spread our wings just to reflect your magnificence and to help you re-member who you are. You are the greatest angels that have ever lived.

We leave you with three little reminders. Treat each other with the greatest respect. Nurture one another and play well together.

Espavo.

The group

What is Merkabah?

2009-09-15T17:06:00.000-07:00

I found this to be the most religiously diverse explanation of Merkabah I have ever read, just my style! Enjoy . . .

Merkabah

The Hebrew word Merkabah (מרכבה "chariot", derived from the consonantal root with general meaning "to ride") is used in Ezekiel (1:4-26) to refer to the throne-chariot of God, the four-wheeled vehicle driven by four "chayot" (Hebrew: "living creatures"), each of which has four wings and the four faces of a man, lion, ox, and eagle.

Several movements in Jewish mysticism, including the Ma’asei Merkavah of the late Greco-Roman period following the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, and later, students of the Kabbalah, have focused on these passages from Ezekiel, seeking underlying meaning and the secrets of Creation in what they argued was the metaphoric language of the verses. Due to the concern of some Torah scholars that misunderstanding these passages as literal decriptions of God's image might lead to blasphemy and/or idolatry, there was great opposition to studying this topic without the proper initiation. Jewish biblical commentaries emphasize that the imagery of the Merkaba is not meant to be taken literally; rather the chariot and its accompanying angels are analogies for the various ways that God reveals Himself in this world. Hasidic philosophy and Kabbalah discuss at length what each aspect of this vision represents in this world, and how the vision does not imply that God is made up of these forms. Jews customarily read the Biblical passages concerning the Merkaba in their synagogues every year on the holiday of Shavuot, and the Merkabah is also referenced in several places in traditional Jewish liturgy.

In Christianity, the man, lion, ox, and eagle are used as symbols for the four evangelists (or gospel-writers), and appear frequently in church decorations. They also appear in the Tarot card "The World". The creatures are called Zoë (or the Tetramorph), and continuously surround the throne of God in Heaven, along with the twenty-four angelic rulers, the Seraphim, the Cherubim, the seven Archangels, the Ophanim, and countless angels, spirits, and saints, where they sing praises to the Trinity, and beg Christ to have mercy on humankind.

The Biblical Merkabah

See also: angelology

According to the verses in Ezekiel and its attendant commentaries, the analogy of the Merkaba image consists of a chariot made of many angels being driven by the "Likeness of a Man." Four angels form the basic structure of the chariot. These angels are called the "Chayot" חיות (lit. living creatures). The bodies of the "Chayot" are like that of a human being, but each of them has four faces, corresponding to the four directions the chariot can go (north, east south and west). The faces are that of a man, a lion, an ox (later changed to a child or cherub) and an eagle. Since there are four angels and each has four faces, there are a total of sixteen faces. Each Chayot angel also has four wings. Two of these wings spread across the length of the chariot and connected with the wings of the angel on the other side. This created a sort of 'box' of wings that formed the perimeter of the chariot. With the remaining two wings, each angel covered its own body. Below, but not attached to the feet of the "Chayot" angels are other angels that are shaped like wheels. These wheel angels, which are described as "a wheel inside of a wheel", are called "Ophanim" אופנים (lit. wheels, cycles or ways). These wheels are not directly under the chariot, but are nearby and along its perimeter. The angel with the face of the man is always on the east side and looks up at the "Likeness of a Man" that drives the chariot. The "Likeness of a Man" sits on a throne made of sapphire.

The Bible later makes mention of a third type of angel found in the Merkaba called "Seraphim" (lit. "burning") angels. These angels appear like flashes of fire continuously ascending and descending. These "Seraphim" angels powered the movement of the chariot. In the hierarchy of these angels, "Seraphim" are the highest, that is, closest to God, followed by the "Chayot", which are followed by the "Ophanim." The chariot is in a constant state of motion, and the energy behind this movement runs according to this hierarchy. The movement of the "Ophanim" is controlled by the "Chayot" while the movement of the "Chayot" is controlled by the "Seraphim". The movement of all the angels of the chariot are controlled by the "Likeness of a Man" on the Throne.

In Jewish commentary

The earliest Rabbinic merkabah commentaries were exegetical expositions of the prophetic visions of God in the heavens, and the divine retinue of angels, hosts, and heavenly creatures surrounding God. The earliest evidence suggests that merkabah homiletics did not give rise to ascent experiences - as one rabbinic sage states: "Many have expounded upon the merkabah without ever seeing it.

One mention of the merkabah in the Talmud notes the importance of the passage: "A great issue—the account of the merkavah; a small issue—the discussions of Abaye and Rava [famous Talmudic sages]. The sages Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakkai (d. ca. 80 CE) and later, Rabbi Akiva (d. 135) were deeply involved in merkabah exegesis. Rabbi Akiva and his contemporary Rabbi Ishmael ben Elisha are most often the protagonists of later merkabah ascent literature.

Prohibition against study

The Talmudic interdictions concerning merkabah speculation are numerous and widely held. Discussions concerning the merkabah were limited to only the most worthy sages, and admonitory legends are preserved about the dangers of overzealous speculation concerning the merkabah.

For example, the secret doctrines might not be discussed in public: "Seek not out the things that are too hard for thee, neither search the things that are above thy strength. But what is commanded thee, think thereupon with reverence; for it is not needful for thee to see with thine eyes the things that are in secret. It must be studied only by exemplary scholars: "Ma'aseh Bereshit must not be explained before two, nor Ma'aseh Merkabah before one, unless he be wise and understands it by himself, Further commentary notes that the chapter-headings of Ma'aseh Merkabah may be taught, as was done by R. Ḥiyya. According to Yer. Ḥag. ii. 1, the teacher read the headings of the chapters, after which, subject to the approval of the teacher, the pupil read to the end of the chapter, although Rabbi Zera said that even the chapter-headings might be communicated only to a person who was head of a school and was cautious in temperament.

According to R. Ammi, the secret doctrine might be entrusted only to one who possessed the five qualities enumerated in Isaiah iii. 3 (being experienced in any of five different professions requiring good judgement), and a certain age is, of course, necessary. When R. Johanan wished to initiate R. Eliezer in the Ma'aseh Merkabah, the latter answered, "I am not yet old enough." A boy who recognized the meaning of (Ezek. i. 4) was consumed by fire (Ḥag. 13b), and the perils connected with the unauthorized discussion of these subjects are often described (Ḥag. ii. 1; Shab. 80b).

Further analysis

Beyond the rabbinic community, Jewish apocalyptists also engaged in visionary exegeses concerning the divine realm and the divine creatures which are remarkably similar to the rabbinic material. A small number of texts unearthed at Qumran indicate that the Dead Sea community also engaged in merkabah exegesis. Recently uncovered Jewish mystical texts also evidence a deep affinity with the rabbinic merkabah homilies.

The merkabah homilies eventually consisted of detailed descriptions of multiple layered heavens (usually seven in number), often guarded over by angels, and encircled by flames and lightning. The highest heaven contains seven palaces (hekhalot), and in the innermost palace resides a supreme divine image (God's Glory or an angelic image) seated on a throne, surrounded by awesome hosts who sing God's praise.

When these images were combined with an actual mystical experiential motif of individual ascent (paradoxically called "descent" in most texts) and union is not precisely known. By inference, contemporary historians of Jewish mysticism usually date this development to the third century CE. Again, there is a significant dispute amongst historians over whether these ascent and unitive themes were the result of some "foreign," usually Gnostic, influence, or a natural progression of religious dynamics within rabbinic Judaism.

Maimonides

Maimonides' 12th Century work, Guide for the Perplexed is in part intended as an explanation of the passages Ma'aseh Bereshit and Ma'aseh Merkabah. In the third volume, Maimonides commences the exposition of the mystical passage of the mystic doctrines found in the merkavah passages, while justifying this "crossing of the line" from hints to direct instruction. Maimonides explains basic mystical concepts via the Biblical terms referring to Spheres, elements and Intelligences. In these chapters, however, there is still very little in terms of direct explanation.

A Hasidic explanation

Hasidic philosophy explains that the Merkaba is a multi-layered analogy that offers insight into the nature of man, the ecosystem, the world, and teaches us how to become better people.

The four Chayot angels represent the basic archetypes that God used to create the current nature of the world. Ofannim, which means "ways", are the ways these archetypes combine to create actual entities that exist in the world. For instance, in the basic elements of the world, the lion represents fire, the ox/earth, the eagle/air, and the man/water. However, in practice, everything in the world is some combination of all four, and the particular combination of each element that exist in each thing are its particular Ofannim or ways. In another example, the four Chayot represent spring, summer, winter and fall. These four types of weather are the archetypal forms. The Ofannim would be the combination of weather that exists on a particular day, which may be a winter-like day within the summer or a summer like day within the winter or whatever.

The Man on the throne represents God, who is controlling everything that goes on in the world, and how all of the archetypes He set up should interact. The Man on the throne, however, can only drive when the four angels connect their wings. This means that God will not be revealed to us by us looking at all four elements (for instance) as separate and independent entities. However, when one looks at the way that earth, wind, fire and water (for instance) which all oppose each other are able to work together and coexist in complete harmony in the world, this shows that there is really a higher power (God) telling these elements how to act.

This very lesson carries over to explain how the four basic groups of animals and the four basic archetypal philosophies and personalities reveal a higher, godly source when one is able to read between the lines and see how these opposing forces can and do interact in harmony. A person should strive to be like a Merkaba, that is to say, he should realize all the different qualities, talents and inclinations he has (his angels). They may seem to contradict, but when one directs his life to a higher goal such as doing God's will (the man on the chair driving the chariot) he will see how they all can work together and even complement each other. Ultimately, we should strive to realize how all of the forces in the world, though they may seem to conflict can unite when one knows how to use them all to fulfill a higher purpose, namely to serve God.

Ma'asei Merkavah

Ma’asei Merkavah, the first distinctly mystical movement in Jewish history, appeared in the late Greco-Roman period, after the end of the Second Temple period following the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E. It is a form of pre-Kabbalah Jewish mysticism, that teaches both of the possibility of making a sublime journey to God and of the ability of man to draw down divine powers to earth; it seems to be an esoteric movement that grew out of the priestly mysticism already evident in the Dead Sea Scrolls and some apocalyptic writings. Hekhalot writings are the literary artifacts of the Maasei Merkavah.

Merkava/Hekhalot mysticism began after the end of the Second Temple period following the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E., when the physical cult ceased to function. The idea of making a journey to the heavenly "hekhal" seems to be a kind of spiritualization of the pilgrimages to the earthly "hekhal" that were now no longer possible.

In medieval Judaism, the beginning of the book of Ezekiel was regarded as the most mystical passage in the Hebrew Bible, and its study was discouraged, except by mature individuals with an extensive grounding in the study of traditional Jewish texts.

Hekhalot

Hekhalot (“Palaces/Temples”) writings are the literary artifacts of the Maasei Merkavah. The main interests of all Hekhalot writings are accounts of mystical ascents into heaven, divine visions, and the summoning and control of angels, usually for the purpose of gaining insight into Torah. The locus classicus for these practices is the biblical accounts of the Chariot vision of Ezekiel (Chap. 1) and the Temple vision of Isaiah (Chap. 6). It is from these, and from the many extra-canonical apocalyptic writings of heavenly visitations, that Hekhalot literature emerges. Still, it is distinctive from both Qumran literature and Apocalyptic writings for several reasons, chief among them being that Hekhalot literature is not at all interested in eschatology, largely ignores the unique status of the priesthood, has little interest in fallen angels or demonology, and it "democratizes" the possibility of divine ascent. It may represent a "rabbinization" of these earlier priestly ideologies.

The title, “Hekhalot” (palaces), derives from the divine abodes seen by the practitioner following a long period of ritual purification, self-mortification, and ecstatic prayer and meditation. In their visions, these mystics would enter into the celestial realms and journey through the seven stages of mystical ascent: the Seven Heavens and seven throne rooms. Such a journey is fraught with great danger, and the adept must not only have made elaborate purification preparation, but must also know the proper incantations, seals and angelic names needed to get past the fierce angelic guards, as well as know how to navigate the various forces at work inside and outside the palaces.

The literature sometimes includes fantastic and baffling descriptions of the precincts of heaven and its awesome denizens. The highly literal and overly-explicit images of heavenly objects and their numbers (…four thousands of thousand of fiery chariots and ten thousand fiery torches amidst them…) common to this literature may be intended, reductio ad absurdum, to convey the truly ineffable nature of the ecstatic experience. At times, heavenly interlocutors will reveal divine secrets. In some texts, the mystic’s interest extends to the heavenly music and liturgy, usually connected with the angelic adorations mentioned in Isa. 6:3. The mantra-like repetitive nature of the liturgies recorded in many of these compositions seems meant to encourage further ascent. The ultimate goal of the ascent varies from text to text. In some cases, it seems to be a visionary glimpse of God, to "Behold the King in His Beauty." Others hint at "enthronement," that the adept be accepted among the angelic retinue of God and be given an honored (god-like?) seat. One text actually envisions the successful pilgrim getting to sit in God's "lap." Scholars such as Peter Schafer and Elliot Wolfson see an erotic theology implied in this kind of image, though it must be said sexual motifs, while present in highly attenuated forms, are few and far between if one surveys the full scope of the literature. Literary works related to the Hekhalot tradition that have survived in whole or in part include Hekhalot Rabbati (or Pirkei Hekhalot), Hekhalot Zutarti, 3rd Enoch (also known as Hebrew Enoch), and Ma’aseh Merkavah. In addition there are many smaller and fragmentary manuscripts that seem to belong to this genre, but their exact relationship to Ma’asei Merkavah mysticism and to each other is often not clear (Dennis, 2007, 199-120).

Key texts

The ascent texts are extant in four principal works, all redacted well after the third but certainly before the ninth century CE. They are: 1) Hekhalot Zutartey ("The Lesser Palaces"), which details an ascent of Rabbi Akiva; 2) Hekhalot Rabbati ("The Greater Palaces"), which details an ascent of Rabbi Ishmael; 3) Ma'aseh Merkabah ("Account of the Chariot"), a collection of hymns recited by the "descenders" and heard during their ascent; and 4) Sepher Hekhalot ("Book of Palaces," also known as 3 Enoch), which recounts an ascent and divine transformation of the biblical figure Enoch into the archangel Metatron, as related by Rabbi Ishmael.

A fifth work provides a detailed description of the Creator as seen by the "descenders" at the climax of their ascent. This work, preserved in various forms, is called Shi'ur Qomah ("Measurement of the Body"), and is rooted in a mystical exegesis of the Song of Songs, a book reputedly venerated by Rabbi Akiva. The literal message of the work was repulsive to those who maintained God's incorporeality; Maimonides (d. 1204) wrote that the book should be erased and all mention of its existence deleted.

While throughout the era of merkabah mysticism the problem of creation was not of paramount importance, the treatise Sefer Yetzirah ("Book of Creation") represents an attempt at cosmogony from within a merkabah milieu. This text was probably composed during the seventh century CE, and evidence influence of Neoplatonism, Pythagoreanism, and Stoicism. It features a linguistic theory of creation in which God creates the universe by combining the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, along with emanations represented by the ten numerals, or sefirot.

Heikhalot literature and "Four Entered Pardes"

Idel, Scholem, Dan, and others have raised the natural question concerning the relationship between the "chambers" portion of the Heichalot literature and the Bavli's treatment of "The Work of the Chariot" in the presentation and analysis of such in the Gemara to tractate Khaggigah of the Mishna. This portion of the Babylonian Talmud, which includes the famous "four entered pardes" material, runs from 12b-iv (wherein the Gemara's treatment of the "Work of Creation" flows into and becomes its treatment of "The Work of the Chariot") to and into 16a-i. [All references are to the Art Scroll pagination.]

By making use of the Rabinically paradigmatic figures of Rabbi Aqiba and Rabbi Ishmael in their writings, the generators of the Heikhalot literature, quite arguably, seem to be attempting to show some sort of connection between their writings and the Chariot/Throne study and practice of the Rabbinic Movement in the decades immediately following upon the destruction of the Temple. However, in both the Jerusalem Talmud and the Babylonian Talmud the major players in this Chariot/Throne endeavor are, clearly, Rabbi Aqiba and Elisha ben Abuyah who is referred to as "Akher." Neither Talmud presents Rabbi Ishmael as a player in Merkabah study and practice.

In the long study on these matters contained in " 'The Written' as the Vocation of Conceiving Jewishly" [McGinley, J W; 2006] the hypothesis is offered and defended that "Rabbi Ishmael ben Elisha" (more often, simply "Rabbi Ishmael") is in fact a Rabbinically sanctioned cognomen for Elisha ben Abuyah who, as is well known, apostasized from the Rabbinic Movement. The argument is that through this indirection Rabbinic offialdom was able to integrate into the Gemaric give and take of argumentation and analysis the huge body of halakhic and hermeneutical teachings of this great Torah scholar without, however, honoring his equally significant apostasy. To be sure, in the accounting of this figure's mystical study and practice the pejorative (in context) "Akher" is used instead of "Rabbi Ishmael." This is because Elisha ben Abuyah's teachings under the heading of "The Work of the Chariot" came to be considered heretical in contrast to his halakhic and hermeneutical teachings which were generally admired -- and whose wieghty influence, in any case, could not be ignored. All of this indicates that the generators of the Heikhalot literature were indeed savvy in choosing "Rabbi Ishmael" as paradigmatic in their own writings as a means of relating their own endeavors to the mystical study and practices of the tannaim in the early decades following upon the destruction of the Temple.

Both Aqiba and the "Ishmaelic Akher" traded upon the "two-thrones"/"two-powers"-in-Heaven motif in their respective Merkabah-oriented undertakings. Aquiba's version is memorialized in the Bavli Gemara to tractate Khaggigah at 14a-ii wherein Aquiba puts forth the pairing of Hashem and "David" in a messianic version of that mystical motif. Immediately after this Aqibian "solution" to the puzzle of thronesS referred to in Song of Songs and the two thrones spoken of in Daniel, Chapter Seven, the text presents Aqiba as being pressured -- and then acquiescing to -- a domesticated version of this twoness theme for the single Jewish God which would be acceptable to Rabbinic officialdom. The text offers Justice [din] and Charity [tsadaqqa] as the middot of God which are enthroned in Heaven. [Again, 14a-ii] Akher's non-Messianic and Metatron-oriented version of this "two-thrones"/"two-powers"-in-Heaven motif is discussed at length in the entry "Paradigmatia" of the above-mentioned study. The generic point in all of this is that by the time of the final editing of the Mishna this whole motif (along with other dimesions of Merkabah-oriented study and practice) came to be severely discouraged by Rabbinic officialdom. Those who still pursued these kinds of things were marginalized by the Rabbinic Movement over the next several centuries becoming, in effect, a separate grouping responsible for the Heikhalot literature.

In the "four-entered-pardes" section of this portion of the Bavli Gemara on tractate Khaggigah, it is the figure of Aqiba who seems to be lionized. For of the four he is the only one presented who ascended and descended "whole." The other three were broken, one way or another: Ben Azzai dies soon after; Ben Zoma is presented as going insane; and worst of all, "Akher" apostasizes. This putative lionization of Rabbi Aqiba occurs at 15b-vi-16a-i of our Gemara section. However, in the author's other publication of 2006 [pages 366-369] something remarkable is revealed about the "prooftexting" offered in support of this putative lionization of Rabbi Aqiba. For a careful analysis of both the prooftexts offered and in whose name they are offered shows that these most curious "prooftexts" are in fact subtle satires of the self-aggrandizing feature of Aqiba's character make-up.

Christianity

According to Timo Eskola, early Christian theology and discourse was influenced by the Jewish Merkabah tradition.

In Christianity, the man, lion, ox, and eagle are used as symbols for the four evangelists (or gospel-writers), and appear frequently in church decorations (and also in the Tarot card "The World", and in the Rider-Waite Tarot deck, also the "Wheel of Fortune"). These Creatures are called Zoë (or the Tetramorph), and are constantly surrounding the throne of God in Heaven, along with the twenty-four angelic rulers, the Seraphim, the Cherubim, the seven Archangels, the Ophanim, and countless angels, spirits, and saints, singing praises to the Trinity, and begging Christ to have mercy on humankind.

Notes

References

This article incorporates text from the 1901–1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, a publication now in the public domain. Dennis, Geoffrey. The Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic, and Mysticism(Llewellyn Worldwide, 2007)

Dennis, Geoffrey, "Water as a Medium for Altered States of Consciousness in Early Jewish Mysticism," Anthropology of ConsciousnessVol. 19, No. 1, 2008.

Kohler, Kaufmann. "Merkabah" at JewishEncyclopedia.com

Jacobs, Joseph and A. Biram Ma'aseh Bereshit, Ma'aseh Merkabah at JewishEncyclopedia.com

Karr, Don. Notes on the Study of Merkabah Mysticism and Hekhalot Literature in English

Scholem, Gershom. Origins of the Kabbalah, ISBN 0691020477

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia © 2001-2006 Wikipedia contributors (Disclaimer)

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The Principles of Meditation

2009-09-14T15:50:00.000-07:00

The Principles of Meditation

as taught by Joel S. Goldsmith

These are principles all teachers and practitioners follow and teach to their students. You may want to envoke one of the 12 rays I mentioned in my Blog Spot during your meditation to help you arrive at your spirital goals.

1. Make yourself physically comfortable. Sit erect, with your spine straight, your feet planted firmly on the floor, your hands relaxed in your lap, and breathe normally.

-There is no mystical or occult reason for this; it is very simple: When the body is perfectly comfortable, one is not conscious of it.

-Take a breath and count to four. Breathe in and out four or five times counting to quiet your mind. Breathe normally.

2. Next, repeat silently or audibly, "I turn within to the Christ of my own being." If thoughts enter, repeat this phrase.

-ALWAYS go into meditation by yourself. NEVER let another lead you into meditation.

3. We will never be able to stop the mind completely. If human thoughts or concerns enter, do not fight them. Relax, let the thoughts come and then let them go. As you practice, this interference will subside. Be patient.

4. Now move to the subject, "What is God?" You are not interested in another's concept of God; you interested only in asking, "What is God?" and receiving the answer from God. The kingdom of God is within you, so the answer must come from within your own being.

- Sit quietly and ask, "Speak Lord, thy servant heareth, " or "Father, I am here, speak."

5. Assume a listening attitude as if you were waiting to hear the answer. Thoughts may come. Think about God as the source of our being and all that is, Omnipresent, Omnipotent, and Omniscient.

6. Someday, while meditating and pondering this idea, "What is God?" realizing now the nature of prayer, you will suddenly find that you cannot think any more; you have come to the end of thought about God and prayer. Then you will sit quietly, at peace - no more thoughts, no more questions, no more answers, just peace. Thought will be quieted; the inner ear will open; and a long deep breath, like a sigh of relief or a sense of release, will probably come to you. It will be as if you were escaping from something, as if a burden were dropping off of your shoulders.

It will appear in many different ways, and when that release or relief comes, you will be so full of the Spirit that you will want to get right up and do the work that lies ahead for the day, or perhaps some work that has been neglected. With that release will come divine wisdom, divine guidance, and divine strength, for this reason: That deep breath, that "click" or release, was a God-experience-the actual presence or activity of God in your consciousness.

From "Living the Infinite Way" p. 35 and personal instructions to Geri McDonald.

Pure of Heart

2009-09-12T20:56:00.000-07:00

Pure in Heart

Exactly what does “pure in heart” mean? Does it mean we are sin free? Or does it mean we are to be perfect? Let’s look at what scripture tells us.

Psalm 24:3-5 – Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hand and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from GOD of his salvation.

Matthew 5:8 – Blessed are the pure at heart; for they shall see God.

James 4:8 – “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse you hands ye sinners; and purify your hearts ye double minded.”

This set of scripture from King James Version of The Holy Bible used above addresses “pure of heart” separately from sin. To wash your hands from sin, to clean them and get ride of the sin. Purification is linked directly to being doubled minded and deceitful. What is occurring in your mind. Saying one thing and thinking another? Or judging one person for an action when your are guilty of the same?

Talmage analyses Rev 20:17-15, Isaiah 65:17-25 and 11:6-9 and what shall come of those who are impure of heart. He states “The Millennium is to precede the time designated in scriptural phrases “the end of the world”. When the thousand years are passed, Satan shall be loosed for a little season, and the final test of man’s integrity to God shall ensue. Such as are prone to impurity of the heart shall yield to temptation while the righteous shall endure to the end.”

In Talmage’s notes on Chapter 42 he discusses “Regeneration of the Earth” and says this; In speaking of the graded and progressive glories provided for His creations, and of the laws of regeneration and sanctification, the Lord has thus spoken through revelation in the present dispensation; “And again, I say unto you, the earth abideth the law of the celestial kingdom, for it filleth the measure of its creation, and transgresseth not the law. Wherefore it shall be sanctified; yea notwithstanding it shall die, it shall be quickened again, and it shall abide the power by which it is quickened, the righteous shall inherit it. The appointed change, by which the earth shall pass to the condition of the celestialized world, is referred to in numerous scriptures as the institution of “a new heaven and new earth”. (Rev 21:1, 3 & 4)

The Law of the GOD conscious and the celestial will be abided by the earth. It’s obvious the destruction of man is the deceitfulness in his/her mind. One must be TRUE in ones heart and to God. Be true to each other for there are no secrets in the spiritual realm. It is clear how this is to be dealt with and one should not wait for this time to reconcile their condition and/or state of mind.

Here's info on the Muslim "Heart Purification"

Ramadan Purification of Hearts

Christ Control Over Matter and Energy

2009-09-10T14:15:00.000-07:00

Christ Control over Matter and Energy

Further analysis and review of this book by Talmage titled “Jesus the Christ” I became amazed at the observation that Talmage made in this book. The subject matter is “Christ’s control over matter and energy”. We all know about the story when Christ was in the boat with Peter and a great storm came and all the men thought they would parish. Christ calmed the storm and waters with his voice.

Talmage’s observation is a follows; Among the recorded miracles of Christ, none elicited greater diversity in comment and in attempt to elucidation than the marvelous instance of control over the forces of nature. Science ventures no explanation. The Lord of earth, air and sea spoke and was obeyed. He is who, amidst the black chaos of creation’s earliest stages, had commanded with immediate effect – Let there be light: Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters; Let the dry land appear – and, as He decreed, so it was. The dominion of the Creator over the created is real and absolute. A small part of that dominion has been committed to man as the offspring of God, tabernacle in the very image of his DIVINE father. But man exercises that delegated control through secondary agencies, and by means of complicated mechanism. Man’s power over the objects to his own devising is limited. It is according to the curse evoked by Adam’s fall, which came through transgression, which by the strain of his muscles, by the sweat of his brow, and by the stress of his mind, shall be achieved. His word is yet but a sound wave in the air. Through the Spirit that emanates from the very persona of Deity, which pervades all space, the command of God is immediately operative.

Not man alone, but also the earth and all the elemental forces pertaining thereto came under Adamic curse; and as the soil no longer brought forth good and useful fruit, but gave of its substance to nurture thorns and thistles, so the several forces of nature ceased to be obedient to man as agents subject to his direct control. What we call natural forces – heat, light, electricity, chemical affinity – are but a few of the manifestations of eternal energy through which the Creator’s purposes are subserved; and these few, man is able to direct and utilize only through mechanical contrivance and physical adjustment. But the earth shall vet be “renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory”; then soil, water, air and the forces acting upon them shall directly respond to the command of glorified man, as they now obey the word of the Creator.

I found this revelation profound! Talmage is basically saying that we being created as the offspring of GOD we have the power to command the elements of nature. Furthermore, as we approach the new millennium, it is obvious that all curses placed upon us in the “fall of man” will be lifted and we would regain control over the elements. Moses also commanded this power over the elements as well. These were acts of “will” by high holy beings. The new millennium promises us all beings will be higher in their vibration level and love will be the dominate power. It makes perfect sense to only trust such powers to higher beings . . . we should begin to see signs of “higher beings” or “beings of light” gaining these controls back as we move closer to the dimensional shift.

Reincarnation vs. Resurrection

2009-09-07T10:57:00.000-07:00

Reincarnation vs. Resurrection

Okay, so in my post last week on Transfiguration vs. Transformation I mentioned I was reading this book on “Jesus the Christ” by Talmage. By the way, this book is used by the Mormons in teaching of the scriptures. (Mormon’s are my favorite Christian church on the planet and I am a member)

In this book under the topic of “The Kingdom of Heaven to Come” on page 788 it states verbatim “The coming of Christ in the Last Days, accompanied by the apostles of old and the resurrected saints is to mark the establishment of the Kingdom of Heaven upon the earth. The faithful apostles who were with Jesus in his earthly ministry are to be enthroned as judges of the whole house of Israel. “(I am skipping over the general information regarding the Mormon Nephite Twelve as most are not familiar with this and for discussion purposes I wish to revisit this later.)

Further down the page the author make an analogy and states “While the expressions “Kingdom of God” and “Kingdom of Heaven” are used in the Bible synonymously or interchangeable, later revelation gives to each a distinctive meaning. The kingdom of GOD is the church established by DIVINE authority upon the earth; this institution asserts no claim to temporal rule over nations; its scepter of power is that of the Holy Priesthood, to be used in the preaching of the gospel and in administering its ordinances for the salvation of mankind living and dead. The “Kingdom of Heaven” is the divinely ordained system of government and dominion in all matters, temporal and spiritual; this will be established on earth only when it’s rightful Head, the King of Kings, Jesus the Christ comes to reign.”

Though I have found no one in the church to use the term “Reincarnation” I did use my Bible Dictionary in a King James Version of the Holy Bible from The Church of Jesus Christ and Latter Day Saints and the definition of “Resurrection” is “Resurrection consists in the uniting of the spirit body with a body of flesh and bones, never again to be divided.”

When looking at all this information together, at least in my opinion it is obvious that the faithful apostles who were with Jesus in his earthly ministry will be given new bodies. What better means to do that by then via reincarnation and then” Transition” into immortalized beings? Many great physics believe in reincarnation and I personally do also. I believe it is a universal truth. Should we look for those reincarnated apostles now given the truth of the other quickening events occurring?

Just looking at all angles for the greater truth; I hope this will spark further analysis on your part. What’s your opinion??

Sundays Prayer

2009-09-06T08:49:00.000-07:00

Sunday’s Prayer

Today I will attune to the glory of the universe and all of existence. I will be constantly reminded of your great plan for all of creation and the universal consciousness to fill the vastness with great love.

Today, in all that I see and all that I do, I will be reminded of your perfect plan for each of us. To lead us on a path of perfect consciousness, oneness with your DIVINE presence and to help us attain a higher spirit of love for all things.

Today I will remain humble, loyal, committed and true to your spirit of passion for each living thing, every form of life in the universe. I of my own will shall share all the love in my heart for YOU with the entire universal consciousness and all of creation therein.

Today, as I look around at all creation, I will see the beauty of all things as if I saw them through your eyes. I will be well pleased in the beauty of the light, the sky, stars and moon. All living creatures on earth and the song of their life force, the sounds of the breathing planet and the harmonics of the wind.

Today, I will praise you in all things. Blessed be all things in your great name . . . Amen

Esoteric Christianity - Understanding the deeper spirit of Christ

2009-09-03T05:49:00.000-07:00

The Christian community needs to ask, "What happened to the biblical reference to the Christ within, the hope of glory?" In the ancient mystical teachings we learn that the "second coming" will be a perfected consciousness of love-wisdom such as the Christ possessed. This vision for humanity is the cornerstone of esoteric Christianity.

Esoteric Christianity, with its transformational techniques, is little known to many. Some of its principles are often discovered through metaphysics, new thought, or mystical, agnostic, or other approaches. However, they are in danger of being distorted or glamorized, even over-simplified when taken out of context.

Historical creeds of all religions have some aspect deeply preserved until the aspirant is prepared or experiencing little-understood spiritual phenomena. At that point, the adage, "When the student is ready, the teacher appears, truly seems to work." Someone will reach out and, if only for a brief time, guide the one in need across troubled waters to safety.

To begin to explain Esoteric Christianity requires boldness, audacity, and tenacity. It can be endless in definition because it transforms the experiencer and the experience redefines the faith. However, as contemporary Christians find themselves needing a greater personal sense of intimacy (not dogma or doctrine) with their spiritual Source, this recognizable route to God gradually emerges, expanding our spiritual experiences.

A major challenge for many is whether esoteric, or mystical, Christianity, as some call it, involves God or Jesus. Esoteric Christians believe Master Jesus, the Christ, pointed followers to the Father, as he affirmed he "and the Father are one." The symbology of Oneness is important to esotericists as they lift their thinking to identify with Soul, rather than personality. I am the Soul affirms this new identity.

A major adjustment is to learn to live "as a soul having a human experience," rather than to relate so strongly with personality stuff. This ability to shift identity is a major effort of transformation: "Know Thyself." The concept of the mystical body of Christ focuses our soul identity to Oneness and aligns Esoteric Christianity to the kabalistic concept of Adam Kadmon, the heavenly human.

Another consideration is that each of us is one brain cell in the mind of the planetary being or in the life we share. We recognize thoughts as things and that each of us either blesses or pollutes our setting. Mindfulness is an attribute we seek to build, as we strive toward higher consciousness in the midst of daily living, believing we are to be the hearts, hands, and minds of God as we integrate with the Christ, teacher of angels and of humanity.

"New Age," having become a catch-all phrase, originally carried the meaning of seeing an expanded vision of the higher Plan. Jesus brought in the then-new Age of Pisces, perceiving his work and sharing a new perspective with his disciples, which, indeed, called them out of their old system. He challenged them to know God, the Father, in innovative ways, to move from just fulfilling the letter of the law to living by the spirit of the law.

Without negating the commandments of the Old Testament, he laid upon them the great commandment to love God and to love the neighbor as the self. Here the consciousness of the disciples had to shift to realize that mere obedience was not enough. Their master stretched them to loving hearts, loving hands.

The great commandment expands all of us beyond comfortable personality boundaries and into the energy of the soul--Lots Of Vital Energy. Then we bring our attunement Earthward from the higher dimensions into the world around us, acting upon it to bring transformative influences to daily life.

We expand the Christian vision by fulfilling it on a one-to-one basis. Spiritual laws and the love of Christ form the foundation upon which we carry out our part of the Christ mission. Consider Mother Teresa and those left behind in her order when death came, those upon whom the mission now falls. They took it upon themselves to align with her vision and continue to fulfill it. As contemporary Christians, we are to keep the vision alive, expanding our love-wisdom until the true fruit of this world religion blossoms.

Only enlightened ones can point direction to the holy; we admire, appreciate, and listen to the saints and sages, the teachers and masters who have found the way. Their wisdom may be just what we need to advance on our own path. In the esoteric tradition is a saying, "Only a lighted flame can pass on the light." Oral traditions used to pass teachings from a wise one to a devotee, who then lived accordingly; in due time, s/he would become responsible for passing the teachings on to others.

Fears around mystical moments, hard-to-grasp experiences, or phenomena often caused the wise one, the shaman, or the astrologer to be suspect. Persecution kept those with access to such wisdom quiet, guarding what they knew. The Inquisition murdered thousands of women who were the healers and visionaries of their people. Call it magic or folk wisdom, it cost them their lives.

Because we often fear that which we do not fully comprehend and because religious fanaticism runs high, people with broader ideas often limit what they share. This self-protection keeps concepts from being distorted by those who do not realize deeper meanings which may come through meditation and inner contact.

Yet at troublesome or pain-filled moments, all of us call out to the heavens: "Why?" "Is this all there is?" We invoke divine help, and doors often open at such power-filled moments.

Ten Points of Importance

Ten points of importance come to mind as I attempt to define an infrastructure of thought that fits most esoteric Christians:

l. Life has a reason and a purpose. Esoteric teachings offer an overview of this Great Life and its purpose. This set of teachings is called cosmology.
2. All life is sacred, especially human life: Remember ye are gods. The cosmos is seeking to expand us into divine beings--a major difference to many other approaches. Self-actualization, self-worth, self-unfolding of potential--all are part of the message. It does not mean we do not err but that we are in essence divine and are to embrace the struggle of transformation.
3. Humanity is never left without dialogue with the higher worlds. From the most ancient prophets to modern, inspired ones, the will of the Creator is broadcast (my term) through the ethers to those who would hear. Perceived by listening ones, all world religions have developed out of the necessity to respond to the message and the knowledge derived from it. Each world religion donned an outer form, a manner in which it could be presented. This explanation became the cloak of its revelations.
4. Spiritual law consists of many definitive messages from the higher world to assist us to conform to our vision of the higher will of the Father-Mother, the Divine, the Source--whatever vocabulary fits the perception. The Ten Commandments, the Four Noble Truths and the Eight-fold Path, the Koran, the Popol Vuh, even the Beatitudes fit this idea, if we accept that Master Jesus as the Christ was instructing his disciples in his yoga, or yoke. These words share a common root word, yug, which means "union." Indeed, Jesus's prayer was that we would come to be one with him.
5. Each denomination, holy order, or religion develops its vocabulary, and these concepts and terms may be confusing to others. Each system abounds in mystical realities, and this veil has to be penetrated to reveal and grasp the subtler inner teachings. Esoteric symbols teem with great meaning, with profound truths awaiting discovery and insight. Great teachings contain the story of the soul and the universe, and as teaching myths and parables preserve truths uncovered by preceding teachers or wise ones, they await our readiness for their revelation.
6. Master Jesus is accepted as the historical Christ. The long-awaited Great One created such a state of alignment to the heavenly world, his vehicles--body, emotional nature, and mental equipment--were of such holiness that the Great Lord Christ, who had never incarnated, could descend into the body of Jesus to live through his prepared nature. From the baptism on, Jesus is the Christ, the Wayshower, the Elder Brother, Son of God and Son of Man, or fully human and fully divine, which is our transformational goal. We are to realize the Christ consciousness as well.
7. The message of the Christ was preparation and how-to's. Disciples were to dedicate themselves to living by guidelines appropriate to their understanding of his instructions. By doing that, he explained to the disciples, they would be visited by the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, advocate of the Lord. They would find themselves visited by certain phenomena and gifts that would stretch them, lifting them into another level of relationship to the Holy. These gifts, like fruit on the vine, are to be harvested and revered for the bounty they bring.
8. The emphasis of the message of the Christ is to live as the Wayshower Jesus did--loving and caring, open to the mystical reality wherein we become one with the Father-Mother Creator, Giver of Life. In this mystical relationship we give birth to the Christ-Within, the hope of glory. We discover the central truth of all religions that focus on the inner nature as the fulfillment of life. The Christ-Within is the goal. We are to be obedient children as we begin our quest to come into alignment with the path of life, but we are to grow into spiritual maturity wherein the inner nature can be one with the Christ, the Higher, the Holy. The goal for the Esoteric Christian is to become Christed--whether called "enlightenment" or "salvation."
9. This goal permeates the life of the serious disciple with a dedication which often astonishes many. A life of self-discipline, understanding, discernment, prayer, and meditation is typical. Other practices may include: tithing, dietary disciplines, fasting, healing, dream study, intuition, silence, visualization, and service. Each one seeks to know higher will and to accommodate it within the framework of one's lifestyle.
10. Additional points of information:

* Not all esotericists are Christians, but all are aware of spiritual law.

* Groups vary from quiet and dignified to very flamboyant, but all recognize the importance of group life.

* Some believe in reincarnation, others do not, but all ponder it.

* There is a distinct interest in on-going life, other dimensions and phenomena that are confusing or uncomfortable for some--angels or devas, life-after-death, visions, and friends in spirit all hold interest.

Esoteric Christianity affirms healing of planetary life and all that this might mean. It does not see such wonders as "miracles"--just universal spiritual laws at work which are not yet comprehended. We learn to live in a mystical attunement to the Lord Christ, allowing the Plan to work itself out through us as it will.

REV. CAROL E. PARRISH-HARRA, Ph.D., is the founder of Sancta Sophia Seminary (1978) and Sparrow Hawk Village (1981), a spiritual community in the foothills of the Ozarks, near Tahlequah, Oklahoma. After a near-death experience in 1958, she began an earnest search for a new perception of spirituality. Today, she is a master teacher of teachers, international lecturer, and author of ten books. The latest of these are Adventure in Meditation--Spirituality for the 21st Century, each of three volumes earning the Athena Award for Mentoring, and The New Dictionary of Spiritual Thought, containing 1100 concepts of today's most important Western and Eastern esoteric and spiritual concepts. One review stated, "No other reference book today provides the clarity and depth of insight into the timeless wisdom teachings, going beyond intellectual understanding to touch the innermost heart and soul."

Transformation vs Transfiguration

2009-09-02T08:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I sent a “You Tube” clip (I have attached again for those of you who did not have time to watch) regarding the physical transformation currently happening to individuals as we approach the new age of the living world. This period we are in now is called the “Golden Age”.

This has perpetuated further individual analysis on my part and I wonder what the difference was between “transformation” and “transfiguration” as written in the bible.

TRANSFORMATION is what many of us are experiencing now as stated in the brief clip from yesterday mentioned above. Those who are experiencing molecular change within their bodies are doing so along with the earth herself as she is a living body and is beginning to rise in her dimensional shift. Those individuals will remain here on the earth to usher in the “New Millennium.”

I am reading this book called “Jesus the Christ” by Talmage and in the subject matter of “The Millennium” on page 790 it states “The more wicked part of the race shall have been destroyed (perish)” further along it states “Men yet in the flesh shall mingle with immortalized beings; children shall grow to maturity and the die in peace or be changed to immortality “in the twinkling of an eye.” (Scripture reference is 1 Corinthians 15:51-57)There shall be surcease of enmity between man and beast; venom of serpents and the ferocity of the brute creation shall be done away, and love shall be dominant power of control.” Further along the page it states “And Enoch saw the day of the coming of the Son of Man, in the last days to dwell on the earth in righteousness for the space of a thousand years” (Scripture reference is Rev 20:1-6). It’s my observation that these immortalized beings are “the children of the light”.

TRANSFIGURATION is what will occur to those who do not remain behind on this earth. Good and Beautiful people whom GOD loves dearly but who cannot rise with the earth and undergo the necessary molecular change. These individuals will be gathered up and ascend into heaven with assistance of those immortalized beings.

This is a profound revelation I came to during my theological studies and I hope it has inspired you to look more closely. Each faith has its own understanding about “The Millennium” but I encourage you to pursue the knowledge of each to obtain the perfect truth.

Ascension -Stear spiritually and Firmly, You are blessed

2009-09-01T08:05:00.000-07:00

I found this clip on You Tube and I liked it very much. It's clear concisest and to the point. I have been experiencing many of these phyical changes since February myself. This is no hype, its true and I am living proof! The spirituality of mankind is changing rapidly and we must all live with greater amounts of true love in our hearts and towards each other. I'd love to hear how many others are experiencing change?

What if "GOD" were the SUN

2009-08-31T07:59:00.000-07:00

If you have watched these two videos (I have added them above) than I am sure it has sparked your imagination as it did mine. I read a short but to the point book by John Edwards, a world renowned Physic called "What if GOD were the SUN". I was amazed and liberated by this concept as I had always thought in the metaphysical realm the way our souls get to heaven is through the sun.

I believe the "SUN" is a common factor in each solar system in order to spring forth life and in Ancient Egypt and other Civilization they recognized that "GOD" was the "SUN" long ago on a spiritual plane. The bible continually speaks about light, children of the light, Jesus is the light of the world. Light is "GOD" and the only natural source of light is cosmic energy through the "SUN".

What are your thoughts?

Sundays Prayer

2009-08-30T06:47:00.000-07:00

My Prayer
I pray for unity and peace in the presence of conflict;
for love in the presence of hatred;
for forgiveness in the presence of injury
I pray we honour the many names for God,
the many paths to God, the many ways
to worship God; for there is one power
and presence of God, and that God loves
each one of us equally.
It is therefore in unity I urge
all nations, their leaders, and their people to turn
to God by whatever the name for guidance
during these challenging times and to
pursue peace, not war, for this is what
honours the God of all our faith traditions.