Our meditations this morning [greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/giant-stature.html] emphasized the fact that all that is to be creatively achieved must be consequent upon the working of what we call the Spirit of God. At the same time we were, I am sure, very much aware that we have very little understanding of what those words, “the Spirit of God,” really mean.
We are capable of observing and examining whatever is present at the level of consciousness where we are, and what is below that level. The spirit of Godrefers to something that is higher than man, certainly very much higher than the present self-centered condition of human consciousness, so it is quite impossible to observe and to examine the spirit of God. The spirit of God is capable of observing and examining us, because we are at a lower level than that at which the spirit of God freely operates, that spirit having been excluded from human consciousness, and it remains excluded as long as human beings are self-centered. However, it is working just the same. There has never been a time when everything that is occurring, not only in this very small corner of the universe but everyplace else, was not under control. Within the scope of human experience it seems as though many things are far from being under control, but this is merely within the scope of the self-centered human consciousness; it has nothing to do with the truth of the matter. All things are under control and all things remain under control. It is because of this fact that it is possible for the state of human consciousness to be restored to what it should be, and it should be governed by the spirit of God. It is useless, as I say, to try to find out what the spirit of God is, to put it under a microscope, so to speak, so that we can dissect it and discover what makes it tick, because where would you look? It isn't within the range of possible human examination.
According to the record in the Gospel according to John, our Master made the statement that it was necessary to be born of the spirit. He said something about the wind, which is the symbol of spirit, blowing where it listeth. So is it also with the spirit of God. It is working as it should work; it is moving as it should move; it has never ceased to do so. This movement of the spirit of God, which is universal, comes to focus in relationship to mankind; it comes to focus in relationship to this whole world. It is working here creatively, even though human experience seems to indicate a rather chaotic state. We have noted something with respect to this which is happening in human experience, that there is a disintegrating aspect to the occurrence, and also an integrating one.
Looking at the state of affairs in the world historically speaking, we might be in position to observe at this point that the working of the spirit of God has been playing something of a delaying action because, in spite of all the opportunities that have been offered to human beings, the disintegrating experience remains paramount. If it was a matter of letting the spirit of God rip, so to speak, then everything would disintegrate insofar as the human world is concerned and that would include the inhabitants thereof. This is why I say there has been something of a delaying action, to permit the development of a manifest integrating aspect of the cycle. This relates to the various opportunities that have been offered to mankind to experience restoration to the true state. The opportunities were to make possible the beginnings of a manifest integrating aspect to the creative cycle. This integration could have occurred within historical times through the children of Israel, for instance. It obviously didn't occur, the opportunity was lost; but then, again, it could have occurred when Jesus was on earth. Obviously, it didn't. In spite of all the doctrines and beliefs that have been developed in Christianity, the world remains pretty much its usual mess, more of a mess these days because there are so many more people and it is the people that are messy.
So while the opportunities were provided, very specifically, relative to the whole human race, in fact very little occurred in any manifest sense which would give evidence of integration rather than disintegration. So things have been held in abeyance, disintegration has continued, but not in any violent sense, waiting for the development of something on earth which would allow the integration to be experienced. If it were all disintegration, obviously, nothing would be left. So it has been important that there should be something in the process of integration. We, ourselves, have begun to be aware of something with respect to this aspect of the creative cycle. Here is something, in which we are present and which is of an integrative nature. Something is beingdrawn together.
“Not by might, nor by power” — not by any human effort or endeavor,
not by any human organization — “but by my spirit, saith the Lord.”
By the spirit of God. This is the only thing that is capable of generating the integrating aspect of the cycle. Now, of course, human beings observe something of the disintegration on every hand. They have observed disintegration all down through the ages and they have undertaken various methods to try to prevent it or turn it toward integration, so that we might have a better world, as it has been put. And, apparently, hope still springs in human breasts along this line. Perhaps if we in Canada, now, give the Liberals a working majority or elect another party to power, maybe the Conservatives, then this will really start things integrating! I personally find it difficult to comprehend how anyone could believe any such hogwash, and yet many enthusiastically follow along the political trail, as though this were going to be the answer. Well, if nothing else is seen, I suppose there are those who have this as their highest vision. So it's not a matter of criticizing, but from our level of understanding we should easily be able to see that the answer doesn't come that way. It's child's play, really, children's games. “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.”
By the way, when I was speaking this morning, I hesitated a moment before using a certain expression, and I sought to qualify it so that it wouldn't be taken as though it was an indication of what was really true. Consequently, I was a little surprised—not altogether, I suppose, or I wouldn't have been so careful in saying what I did—when this expression cropped up in a number of letters of response I received, as though it was some sort of a central theme. The words I did use were “divine herd.” As I say, I was rather hesitant in using those words, because I was a little concerned as to what might be done with them. The herd pattern really relates to the animal kingdom, not to God. There are animals that operate in herds and packs and flocks; but this isn't the way man moves, rightly. A herd is made up of a number of separate creatures, and with all of them put together you have the herd pattern. But insofar as man is concerned, there is what is describable, rightly, by the term “oneness”. There is the sense of a shared identity. That shared identity was described in the Old Testament of the Bible by the words I Am That I Am.
There is One Spirit, the spirit of God. The spirit of God actually relates to the whole universe, but in its various fields of operation it is brought to specific focus. It is here insofar as this particular pattern is concerned. But our true identity relates to this one spirit, the spirit of the Lord, we may say. This is the spirit of God brought to focus insofar as we are concerned, and our experience of true identity is within that one spirit, not separate from it—it's not as though there were little isolated globs of spirit handed out to individual human beings. The individual human beings, as we know people in the world at the present time, are the varied evidences of one spirit, but, of course, the sense of self in human beings has not been included in that one spirit. There has been a separate ego developed by people which seems very real to them and makes them feel that they are apart from everybody else—"I'm me and you're you.” But the fact of the matter is, in true identity we are one. It seems a paradox that in true identity there is identity, individual identity; if we are one, how could it be? Well, we'd better find true identity and then we'll know. It's useless merely to discuss it, talk about it, theorize about it, and develop concepts about it, because that is not what it is. The only way to know what it is is to experience what it is, to experience the reality of our own true identity. When we do that there's no problem; we do find what oneness is, and it isn't a divine herd!
The spirit of God finds expression, this one spirit finds expression, in a variety of different forms; but it's still just one spirit. And when we are identified in that one spirit, we have the experience of oneness. The experience of oneness is describable by the word “love.” Human beings have misinterpreted that word in a host of different ways, but to know what it means the state of oneness must be experienced, and in that state of oneness we discover how we are related to each other—all connected, all springing out of this one spirit. However, I don't particularly wish to talk about that; I only mention it so as to dispel the idea of the divine herd.
All that is to be achieved is achieved by the spirit of God. Human beings trying to make an integrated state, fail. They can't do it. It is an attempt to do the impossible. The integrated state is consequent upon the working of the spirit of God, the one spirit of God—well, of course, it's integrated—but in order to permit this integrated state to be restored to human experience a good deal of disintegration is necessary. All that smacks of self-centeredness must be dissolved. Of course, if we individually smack too much of self-centeredness, then we ourselves find that we are dissolved. We must learn how to relinquish self-centeredness. This has been indicated by two little words, “Let go,” but just to use those words doesn't get the job done. We need to be aware, however, of the necessity of relinquishing something. To the extent that we have been self-centered, this idea of relinquishing self-centeredness looks like a rather tough proposition, because it seems as though pretty well all of us has got to go. If things are worked out by the spirit of God, with the individual cooperating in the process, all that needs to be done can be done. However, here again, we should recognize that it is not just an individual matter. The spirit of God is not operating just through you but through the person who's sitting next to you, too, and it is something that is unfolding on a collective basis. It isn't a competitive thing, in other words. The individual can't say, “Well, now I'm going to forge ahead spiritually and leave everybody else behind.” We all move together.
This doesn't mean to say that all those who are moving in the integrating cycle are at the same level. Recently I have been using an analogy of a staircase [greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/the-stairs.html] leading up out of the cellar. Of course, the staircase that leads up out of the cellar also leads down into the cellar; but we are concerned with going up. This staircase has a number of steps, and a person who is rising up out of the cellar will move from step to step.
Then everybody is not on the same step.
So there are differences in this sense, differences of level. [greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/factors-of-heredity.html]Again, this analogy provides a picture with respect to what I was talking about before, namely the ability to observe. If you're on the cellar floor all you can observe is what is on the cellar floor; if you're on the first step of the stairs leading up, then you're a little higher and you can overlook what is on the cellar floor just a little. You can begin to see things with a different perspective and you can recognize what is present on that particular step. Yet, while you may sense that there are steps leading up higher, you can't really see what those steps are; all you can do with respect to the steps that are above you is to develop concepts about them, and that is a waste of time. It's much easier not to develop concepts about them, so that we can experience what they are. As we noted this morning, if you develop a concept, that concept is going to stand in your way until you're willing to let it go. A lot of people prefer their concepts to the truth. We see this very much the case in the religious field, but not only there; in the scientific field, too; everywhere, in fact. People prefer to espouse their concepts, even in the political field. We need to learn not to develop them.
Now, there's a Class gathered here, and the tendency is to develop concepts—but first of all, to compare them. You have some already, so when something else is brought up, you compare them and say, “Do I like this, or do I like that?” Well, we get into a hassle on that basis, because human likes and dislikes enter into the picture, when they have no business there. So the idea is not to develop concepts; the idea is to develop an increasing sensitivity to the spirit of God, to the movement of the spirit of God.
If we are to develop that sensitivity, the spirit of God must be moving, of course. Well, the fact of the matter is that it is moving. We wouldn't be alive, we wouldn't be sitting here, if it wasn't. It is moving, but it needs to be brought to specific focus, so that it becomes intensified, and therefore there can be a much clearer discernment of what its quality is. That discernment comes not by the development of concepts but by feeling; the heart is a very important instrument. I'm not just speaking of the physical heart—that's important, of course—but of the ability to discern through feeling.
Of course, if one is all involved in problems and worries and troubles and all these sorts of things, the heart is fully occupied and there is no facility left to discern anything of the spirit of God. But most people think the things they are worried about, the things they are all concerned about, are more important than the spirit of God. The proof of this is in the fact that they get all emotionally involved in these things—the heart is turned in that direction. As long as it's turned in that direction, the individual has his back to the spirit of God. But he may say, “This is a pressing problem here; I've got to deal with it.” Well, how are you going to deal with it? If you try to deal with it in the usual way, you may seem for the moment to solve that problem, but when you turn around you find, “Oh, there's another one over here.” Then you have to rush over there and start solving that one. You're harried from pillar to post, and none of the problems are ever solved, because human beings trying to solve problems are attempting the impossible again. They may push something down here—"Well, I've got that under control now”—but something bobs up over there. It's all connected. There was a world war not so very long ago which was intended to defeat the nazis principally, “So we'll put fascism down,” but communism springs up over there. Nothing is solved. Do you think the world will come to an end if you're not on the job solving problems?
The only way that what needs to be done can be done is by the working of the Spirit of God
Therefore, this is the first order of business—that we may be associated with that working. We find, when we are associated with the working of the spirit of God, that we rise up a step and then another step, and we begin to see with a different perspective, so that what we thought were such pressing and terrible problems before are not so pressing and terrible anymore. The thing may still be there but you see it differently. You know, all these things with which human beings struggle are maintained by the very fact that they are struggling with them. As long as you are wrestling with the devil, the devil will be right beside you, won't he? As long as you have the devil in your grip, you are in his grip, too.
So there's no answer in that direction. Let go! Because only so can your feeling realm begin to settle down so that there may be a state of calm. Then you may hear the word spoken, “Peace, be still,” and there is a great calm. The heart is not frantically grappling with all the external things that seem so pressing. And only then does there begin to be a sufficiency of facility to discern the movement of the spirit of God, to sense something.
What is sensed I have spoken of as a tone, a tonal quality. The spirit of God is powerful. When we come right down to it, it is the only power in the whole universe. There is no other power. There is no evil power, or devilish power, except in the consciousness and consequent experience of human beings. That's the only place it exists, and it's a state of fancy; it isn't real at all. It is the human experience, and seems to be real to human beings, but it is only that way because human beings are contending with the spirit of God. Contention with the spirit of God spawns trouble, and if we notice any troubles around, we know why they're there. Because human beings have been contending with the spirit of God. Well, there's no sense to that. We're surely no longer interested in spawning more trouble; there's enough already.
We have the opportunity of associating ourselves with the working of the spirit of God as we become aware of its nature, of its quality, within the scope of our own experience; and this, as we move with it, is an integrating power insofar as we are concerned. It is also a disintegrating power insofar as human contention is concerned. But, at last, if there are those who are consciously, deliberately, consistently, moving with the spirit of God, there is something emerging into manifestation that is of the integrating aspect of the cycle. Then the disintegration can proceed because integration is here, and consequently the delaying action is no longer necessary. Let what is contending with the spirit of God be disintegrated. Now, of course, there has to be reached an adequate point of manifest integration before that would be safe, because I suspect that if we were to take the attitude here, now, in this moment, “Let all that is contending with the spirit of God disintegrate,” there might be some dust around, with no one to sweep it up! So the integrating development has to reach a certain point before the outworking of affairs in the world can be brought to a point of final issue.
Now this development is what is going on right now. We have not reached the point of final issue. It is indicated in the Divine Blueprint, the Book of Revelation, that there should be 144,000 people who are participating consistently in the integrating aspect of the cycle before the issue can be drawn, before it is safe to do it. Now, we've got a way to go yet; but that must come, and it will come as there are those, and there are, who are beginning to move more easily and effectively in the current of the spirit of God. It is the movement of that current which gets the job done.
It is not because we, for instance, are brighter than other people or more capable of doing what needs to be done. The only difference between those who are of the integrating cycle and those who are overly involved with the disintegrating cycle is that there is, for whatever reason—there is a reason; let's not pat ourselves on the back about it—a greater openness to the spirit of God. But it's not by our efforts, it's not by our might and our power, but by the spirit of God, that what needs to be done is done ...
and it is being done!
We ourselves have some awareness of the fact that it is being done in our own experience, and that spirit is working through all; it is working through all peopleeverywhere on the face of the earth. As there is an increase in the integrating aspect in manifestation, the intensification of the working increases. It increases to integrate more speedily, more effectively, and it also increases to disintegrate more speedily and more effectively. It works in both directions. And somewhere along the way it comes to a point of climax, a point when the issue is finally drawn. Then let him who is righteous be righteous still, and let him who is filthy be filthy still. In other words, that's it, the line is drawn. And wherever there is a predominance of self-centeredness, disintegration is sure; wherever there is a predominance of movement with the spirit of God, integration is sure. Now, we may recognize that this integrating process has a lot of implications. We don't need to examine them at the moment because all we are concerned with is to let our own experience be mor firmly associated with the spirit of God and the integrating process; then we'll become aware of some of the implications here.
This is rightly the concern of those who will be attending this Class; but not only them, of everybody else, presumably, as well. Changes are coming. These days they come more quickly than they used to come. In the earlier years of this ministry there was a great deal of plodding, and we all may be thankful that there were those who were willing to plod; otherwise we wouldn't be at this point. What we do now and what we experience sets the stage for those who come after. But we need to remember that all that is to be done is achieved solely by the spirit of God, not by the intelligence of human beings, not by the efforts of men, our own or anyone else's. This is not to say that we do not become active or that we sit around twiddling our thumbs. Obviously, the spirit of God is not interested in this sort of action. There are other things to be done as we become increasingly aware of the True Tone of the spirit of God, and we find ourselves impelled because we can't help it. In the external sense, we can't help it and we no longer would wish to help it anyway. Just let it happen, and behold all things work together to perfection. The integration takes place naturally and easily. Something is built according to the true design, a design of which we as human beings have no particular consciousness; we don't know what it is, so we would be incapable of building it. But it will be built, and we see something of that design emerging within the range of our own present awareness.
Let us rejoice that these things are occurring, and willingly move in the unfolding cycles which are initiated and maintained by the creative working of the spirit of the Living God. And so, tonight, we have had the opportunity of sharing something of a consciousness of what it is that is working, not merely on the basis of the words that have been spoken but on the basis of the current of the spirit that has been touched. It is working; let us let it continue to work in our own experience. It will continue to work, but let it work in our own experience. Aumen.
This is our class meditation period on the 11th day of May, 1954 in the Chapel on Sunrise Ranch, and carrying forward in our cycle of meditation in the application of the basic principles which we have been considering in the field of the unfolding expression of life and Being in the individual, I have a number of points to which I would like to draw your attention this morning.
I think if each one would remember that it is a process not only of the unfolding life expression, but of the unfolding manifestation of being, it will make it easier, for the Way is easy. Very often it seems to the human mind that it is hard and difficult, but if we could always remember that when the human consciousness whispers that it is hard, or it seems in some fashion to be difficult, to let the things of God have meaning, if we would always remember that that is a lie we could the better maintain the right attitude.
The manifestation of life, the increasing expression of life, is something which in and of itself does not and cannot appear; and the human being is inclined to evaluate his own experience, determine his own progress on the basis of his own concept of the degree to which the life expression is increasing. But this can lead into many traps, devastating traps. The increased expression of life can appear only as there is the reality of increased expression or unveiling of the Reality of Being.
In this process of movement from the Land of Egypt to the Promised Land of Reality the individual goes through many cycles, many periods that we call the abyss of nothingness [greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/abyss-of-nothingnesssabbath-rest.html], many steps forward, and if each one would ever remember that the darkness of the abyss of nothingness is evidence of progress, so that each could hold steady therein without all of the pushing and pulling and shoving that tends to appear, it would shorten the time that one remains in the abyss of nothingness and speed the unveiling of the Reality of Being.
This brings us to a point where we can consider a number of factors. The human mind is always inclined to forget the Master's injunction, “Judge not.” The human attempts to evaluate with inadequate understanding, inadequate vision, are constantly producing ill conditions. This is one of the things that you will be confronted with in the field, should your future rest in that area, or here or anywhere, because human beings who are making progress always come, sooner or later in one way or another, to a crisis point and that crisis point is of tremendous significance, whether in your life or in the life of another. As you pass through these crisis points—and it can be easy or hard, depending upon your attitude—it helps you to be in position to understand those whom you will serve in the days to come, when they begin to move in such cycles as will permit them to come to the crisis points or the points of the abyss of nothingness.
These cycles work physically, when a person is moving toward health. They appear mentally and emotionally, and sometimes they come at all three points all at once. These crisis points are of vital importance. There is no way by which we can emerge out of the Land of Egypt into the Promised Land without them because if it were required that you move more-or-less instantaneously from one state of Being to the other, it would be one big crisis point and it would be so overwhelming that you could not possibly be expected to make it. These crisis points which signify the steps of adjustment and change must be divided up, more for some than for others, but attitude is the big thing when we come to a crisis point, or the abyss of nothingness, because if one begins to resent and rebel and fight and struggle and twist and turn and try to get out from under the pressure, he will make that crisis point to be of no effect. He simply guarantees that he is going to have to face it again. When we learn to have the right attitude, no twisting, turning or squirming, no trying to evade, but face into it, we will find that it is possible to go through the crisis point easily, naturally, without any great suffering. But the suffering that comes at a crisis point is largely on the basis of the way the individual wiggles and twists and squirms when he is under the pressure. If he will just take it easy and relax, and let it work out, there will be no undue suffering. It may hurt a little, yes, but it is still easy. The right way is the easy way.
So there is the vital importance of learning yourself to have the right attitude so that you will be in position to help others face it effectively. And, when someone has come to a crisis point, an abyss of nothingness, if the response is centered truly, no rebelling, no fighting, no twisting, no squirming, if you are the server in the case you can he exquisitely gentle. But if under that circumstance, you begin to extend what we might call human sympathy, if you begin to function on a basis which will cause the person to think that gentleness is weakness on your part, you will have to be firm; but you have to learn how to be firm, in what way to be firm, because wrong function in that regard can be devastating. Sometimes the very nature of the case makes it necessary for you to stand afar off so-to-speak, and for those who do not understand, you may be classified as hard-hearted, cold. Under the pressure, someone may imagine that you are disinterested. But you were considering this morning on the tape recording, this primary test, and always there is a contest at these crisis points if the individual does not have the right attitude. Now if there is the right attitude, there is no contest, merely the shedding of an old skin and the process of being born into a new; and in the world as it is, there is a certain amount of labor in it, a certain amount of suffering in these steps of rebirth. But, generally speaking, there is something of that abyss, or a crisis point, just prior to the reality of birth into a new level of consciousness and function. If the individual will function correctly, relax correctly, co-operate correctly, it will be comparatively easy. But if he fights it and becomes tense, resentful and rebellious, he will suffer.
In such a case there is always a contest, and in such a case you need to be extremely alert, to put on as much pressure as the individual can stand, but not too much. And your proximity to the case, so-to-speak, the degree of nearness that you can utilize, will depend upon the individual's ability to carry through, to remember the Lord's statement that, “whom he loveth he chasteneth” rebukes, and so on. Sometimes human beings imagine that if you in a position of leadership, really love, that you will never rebuke, you will never be firm. That is not true; it is not true at all. But it is something that you learn to perceive in the current of the spirit. Now sometimes there is nothing you can do about it. You just let it work out. Other times you can seem to do something. Other times you have to do what you do without even seeming to do it. You have to be wise. So the crisis point is of great significance. And this gives us a starting point for a little consideration of this aspect of this problem of limitation factors.
I received a letter yesterday which emphasizes the point. For this particular individual, having heard something of what I have said with respect to proper function, etc., proper patterns of attitude which I was inspiring in you one toward another, undertook to judge me on the individual concept of the application of those principles. In other words, according to that viewpoint I was not living up to what I teach. Now that is one of the tricky snares that tends to appear. I have to face it all the time, and if you are going to do any leading you will have to face it. But, in a pattern such as this here, for instance, where we have a class or a group or the whole Unit on Sunrise, or anywhere else where I am under the necessity of functioning, having come into this pattern you have accepted, whether you know it or not, certain protection which I provide. In other words, as you begin to respond, I begin to modify the results of your ill action and to magnify or intensify the results of your right action, and if you are going to share with me in ministry, you will have to learn how to do that too.
We do it physically speaking through attunements, for instance, because one phase of the result of the attunement is to modify, lessen, the result of some ill function, perhaps eating wrongly or something else, some unwise action, a fall perhaps, or a thousand-and-one things. So, part of it is the modification of the results of something that is wrong or has been done incorrectly. And the other part of the attunement process applied physically, emphasizes, intensifies the corrective expression, the growing or the healing process, and we do that consistently. But that applies in every level of being in the whole life, because here, as much as response permits, I modify the ill results and intensify the current which produces the right results, as you permit it to be so.
Then, if an individual moves along for a certain period of time without taking full advantage of the opportunity so afforded, and begins to develop in consciousness the idea that he or she is justified in these repeated wrong patterns of function, he begins to forget that they bring ill results because the results have been modified and no one has been too seriously hurt, etc., and he begins to neglect the process of responding to the currents that would lift one up and over, he begins to develop habit patterns that disregard the basic factors that are involved, then I have a responsibility. It is not your responsibility one toward another. It does not alter the pattern of your pattern of relationship, but it does alter the pattern of my correct function, because then I have to utilize some point, and I generally pick one where the probabilities of someone getting seriously hurt are modified.
In other words, I generally pick on something that is comparatively little and I will avoid, if I am permitted to do so, making an issue on the comparatively big points or the serious factors. If I am forced to it, of course that is a different story. But I will start picking out some of these little points and letting that individual reap the reward as quickly as possible of the result of wrong function, and in my action in that regard, I am very often considered to be harsh, or cold, or inconsistent, or failing to live up to what I teach, which isn't the case at all, because if I fail to take that type of action when I find it necessary, I would be failing you and you would imagine you were in a state of progress and growth in which you are not, and then you would go out and try to function on a false basis, and you would fail. So, if there is some kind of a reactionary pattern that continues too long, the modification factors that I utilize are all withdrawn, and I begin to let the individual find out what it is to be down where he really is, not where he has imagined himself to be. It takes an understanding of the factors. Now I am not suggesting you try to do that, but I am pointing out that from my standpoint I have to do that or I would not be a leader.
So, with respect to something that is clearing and there is forward movement and the individual has not taken it for granted, and relaxed into sloppy habits in his growing process, I will continue the process in modification as long as it may be necessary, but when someone starts imposing on me in that regard, and starts doing it consistently so that there is a disregard of the opportunity that is afforded, I am going to start seeing to it that the results of ill actions start coming back. And generally speaking, the starting point with respect of such things comes in the range of inconsiderate function on the part of the individual involved. When human beings start to imagine that for me to live up to my own teaching, I must tolerate a lot of inconsiderate function on the part of someone, persistently maintained, well that person is due for a rude awakening, because it does not work that way.
This should help you to understand something of the patterns that are unfolding here, and it should be helpful to you at least in a realization of that which is to be required of you when you are in the point of focalization in the field or somewhere else—the wisdom, the understanding, whereby one may know when to ignore, when to tolerate, and when to positively reject something which the individual gives into expression in life. There is also the matter of simply modifying it. Sometimes we ignore it, sometimes we modify it, and sometimes we reject it positively, depending upon the circumstances, depending upon how many people are involved, and what opportunity we have to just let that individual have plenty of rope. There is the old saying, “If you give a person enough rope he will hang himself.” Well we are not interested in doing that, unless we have no choice.
So these limitation factors that are present in human beings, which spoil the pattern of individual manifestation, cloud the vision with respect to what is really working out, are often the basis upon which a human being makes an utterly false judgment and then assumes a pattern of self-righteousness which is in the range, the danger range, the range where, well, results are questionable shall we say. This matter of the limitation factors can be seen in this regard from a little different standpoint ... continued ... greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/mirage-vision.html
Yesterday evening I was speaking about the separation of the spirit from the body, an inevitable process and experience, at least in man’s present state. [greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/the-coming-forth-of-angel.html] As servers there certainly is a need to understand these things and know how to handle such situations. I might, for a moment, consider what might be described, I suppose, as the mechanics of the thing; the passage in the 12th chapter of Ecclesiastes, which relates to this matter, the 6th verse: "Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern." The point being made here is that the person should remember now his creator in the days of his youth, before this happens. We’re not considering at the moment—particularly in relationship to ourselves, but with respect to others, because we have, as servers, a proper part to play in this regard—when the point is reached where the separation of spirit and body is imminent. When it works out in a natural way for a person it's a very easy experience and there is a certain joy involved in it. We’re well aware of the fact that pneumaplasm, as we have called it, is an essential substance connecting spirit with form, pneumaplasm is present right from the point of conception, in relationship to the physical form. During the period of gestation, of course, there is a continuing generation of pneumaplasm. At a certain point in the unfoldment the connection between the incarnating God Being, or angel, is established from within the form. Initially, while the God Being, or angel, is present in relationship to the form, the unfoldment takes place from an external point; in other words, the point of conception is not the point when the God Being enters into the body. There is a point during gestation that this happens. It happens when the endocrine system is sufficiently developed to let it happen. Before that point the connection is an external one. Now, when the God Being enters the physical form, so that the development takes place from within the form, we needn't imagine the angel sort of compressed into a little bundle so that he could get in. Where there's a control the operation begins to occur from within rather than from an external source. During the time of gestation a mother may be rather—keenly aware of a sense of well-being because there is the sensing of the reality of herself, of course, the angel which she is; but also, there is a cooperative venture going on here, and there is the God Being related to the developing child also present where she is.
So there's a double dose, so to speak, and consequently. If there's an openness, a yieldedness in spirit, there is a sensing of something very much intensified in that regard. So, this cooperative venture continues until the birth of the child. Then, at that point, when the first breath is drawn, there is a beginning point for an incarnating God Being in individual form on earth, no longer sharing the responsibility with the mother. Of course, the mother still plays a part, but the child is distinctly on its own now, separate from the mother, but still in union with the incarnating angel. At that point the child's body seems to be almost transparent, and there is a consciousness of something angelic being present. Of course. It's usually seen merely as this little creature, but there's more to it than that. When the first breath is drawn there is this beginning point of the distinct existence of angelic incarnation on earth. Now, we may recall how it was put in the book of Genesis: "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Well, with the first breath of air this distinct manifestation—divine manifestation on earth—has a beginning point. The dust of the ground has been drawn together, and die breath of life is present in that form but in a very particular way when that first breath of air is taken into the lungs. Air is the symbol of spirit. And there is a very close relationship between air, the breathing mechanism, and pneumaplasm—pneumaplasm, which is the substance of spirit insofar as the physical form is concerned. Spirit has no meaning or effect Insofar as the physical form is concerned directly. It only happens because there is this connecting substance, the connecting substance which is generated out of physical substance, rising up to provide the connection that is necessary with spirit.
Now, all during the course of life, in physical form on earth, the pneumaplasm is present; it permeates the physical substance that is exuded, so to speak, from the physical substance and there is a connection with spirit. So, there is what may be referred to as a pneumaplasmic body and a physical body, but in oneness. You can't get them apart as long as life remains. However, at the point where what is called death occurs there is a separation between the pneumaplasmic body and the physical body. This is one aspect of it. Nowadays there is a good deal of discussion as to what constitutes clinical death, an endeavor to set some standards in this regard so that you really know when a person is dead. This seemed to be necessary because they're going to yank out his eyes, or his kidneys, or something else, as quickly as possible; therefore you have to know the exact moment so that you can immediately go to work; at least this is the human view in the matter. From our standpoint, the moment of death is described here as the loosing of the silver cord. Now, the silver cord is a localization of pneumaplasm which has a direct relationship to the endocrine system. And when this is broken, or there is a separation between this connection, between pneumaplasmic substance and the physical body in a specific sense, the silver cord and the endocrine system, at that point death has occurred. The physical body is no longer connected to the pneumaplasm; however, at that point the pneumaplasm may still be connected to the spirit. "Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern"—these all relate to various happenings at unto God who gave It." That's a very simple outline of the happening.
As we were considering the matter yesterday evening, I described the process as the coming forth of the angel. In a sense it's another birth—the coming forth of the angel and the relinquishing of the physical form. The only reason the physical form is alive is because the spirit is present in relationship to the pneumaplasm, and the pneumaplasm in relationship to the physical substance. So, there's life in the flesh, life born in the flesh. At the point of death there is a loosing of the silver cord. As I say, the silver cord is a particular localization of pneumaplasmic substance related to the endocrine system, and the high point in that endocrine system is the pineal gland. Now, when the silver cord is separated from the endocrine system, the physical form is dead, even though for the moment the pneumaplasmic substance, the pneumaplasmic body, may be still closely associated with the flesh. However, there is a gradual separation going on between the physical substance and the pneumaplasmic substance, so that here are two separate forms. Now, the physical body that's of no more value needs to be disposed of in some fashion. Various methods have been worked out for this in the various human societies. Possibly cremation is the cleanest and easiest way of disposing of the physical body, the purpose being to return the substance to the dust, to the soil from whence it came that's where it belongs now. It's not been removed from the experience of unfolding life, because life is unfolding throughout the whole universe, specifically throughout the whole of this planet. So that's where the body belongs, or the substance of which the body was composed. It's of no more value as a physical body. There's absolutely no point of mummifying it, or indeed in freezing it, as some people seem to think nowadays, that they may haw it out later. Well, this seems important from the standpoint of earthly oriented people, because that's all that they have there, slammed into a wall and there's nothing tore, so the body seems so tremendously important.
But the Lord God doesn’t have much trouble in creating a human body. In the womb it only takes nine months and then later, perhaps, a further period of time to become useful. But it's not really such a big deal, is it? It would be, if human beings took a billion years to produce, as some seem to imagine. It doesn't take a billion years; it only takes nine months—we know that. So it's no trick from the divine standpoint. Where there is a natural separation, then, of the spirit associated with the pneumaplasmic substance from the physical body, it is a very easy experience. And very often it is characterized by what may be referred to as the last breath. There's a first breath and there's a last breath. Well, you may say the last breath is merely the fact that the breathing mechanism has stopped and everything has shut down, and the air that was in the lungs is now being expelled; that's a nice mechanical way of describing it. But actually it relates to this process of separation—the pneumaplasmic body from the physical body. The individuals body is expiring; the breath is going out and the pneumaplasmic body is going out. The evidence of that going out can be heard in that sigh, the last breath; very peaceful, very natural. Just the way it should be under the circumstances as we have it.
Now, of course, on many occasions the separation of the spirit from the body is of a more violent nature, may occur in what some people call accidents, for instance, just suddenly like that!—in which case there is no particular forewarning, although there may be some foreboding. And there's nothing much that can be done about it. It just happens and that's it. But when the pneumaplasmic body is separate from the physical body, it may still be connected with the angel, with the reality of you. And this relates to a continuing cycle of what may be called ascension. There are several layers of pneumaplasm; we've been considering this from the standpoint of seeing a coarse end to the pneumaplasm and a very fine end to the pneumaplasm and all that is in between. The pneumaplasm specifically relates to the subconscious mind, the levels of the mind that are below the conscious mind; it relates to the level of the conscious mind; and it relates to the level of what we call spiritual expression. It is the level of spiritual expression, the finest pneumaplasm, that may maintain the connection with the God Being, with the reality of the person. We may see this particularly as being a vital factor in those whom we are serving on such an occasion. There is a very great need to maintain a smooth and consistent and calm vibration. It is very painful and distracting, for instance, if, as there sometimes is in the earthly oriented world, a bunch of relatives around there weeping and walling and in a mess. And here is the individual moving through this beautiful experience and being distracted by all this nonsense, when what is needed is an enfoldment, the provision of something of the right nature and enfoldment of additional pneumaplasm in this sense, so that what is being worked out can do so quite easily. And the first factor of outworking is the separation of the physical body from the pneumaplasmlc body, evidenced by that last breath.
But, of course, as I indicated before, the fact of death is only so when the silver cord has been loosed. Now, it is assumed, for instance, that the Master was dead when He was hanging on the cross; that was the appearance of the thing. I don’t suppose that they had too many of our present-day scientific tests; they weren’t interested in applying them anyway. The job had been done, the soldiers were through; they wanted to get off and so complete the task as quickly as possible. Anyway, there was the appearance of death but the silver cord was not loosed. Now, of course, there can be the appearance of death for anyone—the silver cord is not loosed—so it’s wise to wait a little. In the individual, if the silver cord has not been loosed and the individual is thought to be dead, that person will probably very shortly be dead if you just wait a little; the silver cord, in other words, will be loosed. Now, at that point of the separation, if there has been a strong connection at the level of spiritual expression, the pneumaplasmic body will still remain associated with the God Being and there will be a further process of ascension carried on for whatever period of time may be necessary. But that isn't the business of human beings; that is something that is happening from the standpoint of God Being and requires no interference or particular prayers or anything of this nature to let it happen. However, of course where there isn't that strong connection , and particularly in the case of a sudden accident, we will say, there may be a rupture there at both ends of the pneumaplasm, so to speak. Now with most people there is usually some remaining connection between the level of spiritual expression and God Being. But there may be a separation below that between the conscious and subconscious minds; in fact the pneumaplasm of the conscious mind may become separated from the pneumaplasm of the subconscious mind. But where the pneumapiasm is separated from the God Being, as it will be, a certain amount of it anyway, will be in most every case, then that is, I suppose you could say, in the nature of a second death. In other words, there is no more life in that pneumaplasm, no more spiritual connection in the individual sense in that pneumaplasm. So, just as it is the right thing to do to let the physical body disintegrate in whatever way may be fitting, so it is also right to let that pneumaplasm disintegrate. And this is where these bonds that may have been woven by living people come into the picture because that ghost, so to speak, may be kept alive by a living person and maintained. It becomes a parasitic situation, where the individual is deliberately—he's not being preyed upon by anything—but is deliberately giving his life force to maintaining pneumaplasm which is related to somebody else; but the somebody else is gone. And there's no sense to that, in the general sense, I suppose most people get over their grief, and the connections are dissolved, and the pneumaplasm is allowed to disintegrate as it naturally will.
When people walk past graveyards at night, particularly, there is a certain trepidation in many, it is because of this which I am now speaking. Under the ground there are some decaying physical bodies, and that's hidden from the sight of men, but perhaps above the ground there is a certain amount of pneumaplasm hanging around which is also in the process of disintegration, and a person may sense that; and if he is fearful he will tend to give his life force to that pneumaplasm. Now, this is basically the way that ghosts, so called, are seemingly living entities or caused to be living entitles; they aren't until some human being comes along and pours his life force into the ghost. Otherwise it will quite naturally disintegrate. Sometimes it takes a little longer to disintegrate than others, because of the violent emotional experience that may have been involved, particularly with respect to the point of death or the events leading up to it. This is why the ghosts are very often carrying their heads under their arms.
But there is something, one might say, factual about what human beings call ghosts. Not that we should pay any attention, or become interested in them, or try to investigate. Oh, no. Let them disintegrate! Because if someone becomes very interested In ghosts, of course, he's pouring his life force into the thing; he's going to discover all sorts of interesting facts, as he thinks of them—all meaningless," doesn’t mean a thing. By the same token, there are those who function in the realm of spiritualism where there is the endeavor to contact the dead, and that's where it is, contact the dead, this residue of pneumaplasm hanging around. And then—of course, a lot of the spiritualistic stuff is a hoax anyway—but what it is genuine, one might say, is a matter of making contact with the pneumaplasm that is present in some dead person. It isn't the person at all. The person seems to come to life because, whoever it is, someone's loved one obviously is looking for association with the one who has passed away. There's a bit of emotion Involved here and the life force is poured out and this thing comes to life, and it's like playing back a tape recording or something, and all this stuff in the pneumaplasm that was in the person. Everybody gets so excited: "Well, nobody knew that!" No. Then something comes out. Well, the person knew it, and the record is left behind in the pneumaplasm. And they get the record and put it on the turntable and play the record, and, by golly, it comes out when we play it. We play tapes. But where pneumaplasm has become separated from the source of life, let it disintegrate. We hear great stories about Edgar Cayce, who went into his trances and found out all sorts of things in that state. Well, he had a facility for playing back some of the records that he touched in that state. And insofar as the earthly oriented human being is concerned there is a great deal of knowledge, a great deal of information, many things in that background pattern of memory, which is part of the memory bank, incidentally, of the human race.
So, you needn’t pay any attention to spiritualism. People are easily deluded in this regard because of their longing, their loneliness and all this, and longing to contact some loved one. Whether it's a genuine situation or whether it's a hoax, it's all pretty much the same thing, really, because it doesn't mean anything. It's tomfoolery. Why would one wish to contact the dead? One wouldn't be interested, I don't think, in digging up the physical body and have it around. Then why the pneumaplasmic body? Let it disintegrate too. We're interested in the angel of the Lord; heavenly orientation, not earthly orientation; our associations with the living, not with the dead. Our primary concern, insofar as the living are concerned, is those who are Incarnate in human form, those who are present on earth, because this is where we came to get a job done. We don't need to be particularly interested at the moment as to where those who are not incarnate are, or what they're doing—that's their business; this is our business. We may have a consciousness of the fact that there are the hosts of heaven, as I indicated last night. In other words, there is something vast back of us, namely God. That is God. And so we are keenly aware of the support and the backing that we have. But here's the job to be done, right where we are. And it is done by those who are living souls, those through whom the breath of life is being breathed, so that the expression of life is made evident. I'm talking about life, not human existence; there's a vast distinction.
And as there is the expression of life, spiritual expression we call it, a very strong pattern of the essential pneumaplasm is generated and in place. Because of that, we sense, in the external sense, a close connection with God Being and we begin to experience the reality of that in our own expression. And there is no consideration that by any means could we be anything other than that. Obviously, a physical body in which there is no more life is not what we are at all. The physical body that we now have shares with us this expression of life. There is something in relationship to the physical substance of the body that participates in the generation of pneumaplasm; here is the ascending process, something moving out through the physical flesh. And you perhaps can see that it would naturally be possible for the whole body to move up, so that there would be nothing left, in which case there would be no separation of the body from the spirit. This is the true process, a process that was certainly demonstrated and revealed by the Master. However, that was His business, that was His job; that was something He took upon Himself to do. And the doing of it, of course, required that He accept into Himself what was true of humanity. The Christian world claims that He died for our sins.
Now, because there was a sinful humanity, because there was a fallen state on earth, clearly something had to be done about it, and the easy way was rejected. That point of rejection was made evident when He wept over Jerusalem. They would not, and He had to face the fact that they would not. Well, what are-you going to do? He couldn't do what He could have done if they would have let Him do it, so He had to do something else. Now, this relates to the healing process, restoring process, which is made possible if there is a sufficient reality of oneness with true being. This may be used in some measure—although it is wise to refrain from trying to do anything until you know what you're doing—to accept into oneself what may be present in someone else because that someone else is not capable, at the moment, of handling the problem. And accepting it into oneself, it is presumed that then one is capable of handling it within oneself, and because it's clear within oneself, then it is clear for the other person. Now, I was speaking of this a little bit, I believe, in one of the tapes this morning, from a little different standpoint. By the way, you’re having to take three of me today. We may be able to see this from the standpoint of individual service. But, as I say, I suggest that you don't experiment with it. You need to come to the point where you really know what can be done and what you are capable of handling.
Now, our Master knew what could be done and what He was capable of handling, and that was something immense! It wasn't just a matter of taking something from some individual. It was taking something from the whole body of mankind—accepting it into Himself and being willing to experience the results of so doing. Now, it was a deliberate thing insofar as He was concerned. It was all He could do from the standpoint of His own approach, after the other opportunity had been rejected. Human beings had rejected Him, so He couldn't work with them directly anymore. All He could do was accept this into Himself, just as an individual, and let it clear through in Himself, which, of course. He did. The result of accepting that into Himself was crucifixion. The result of the condition into which human beings have gotten themselves is crucifixion. If nothing had been done about it, this is what would happen now—it is happening, in fact, in the world of man—crucifixion. They wouldn't let it work out in the way much would have been easy when He was present on earth with human beings, so He had to accept the responsibility into Himself and carry through Himself so that the way was open, when the crucifixion came upon the body of mankind, for anything to happen. He offered healing, restoration, which is now being picked up to a certain degree, to a certain measure. We begin to have some consciousness of these things ourselves, in our own experience. Some have wondered why He may, after He was crucified and came forth from the tomb and so on, and presented Himself before the disciples, He said, "Well, put your fingers in the nail holes in my hands and put your hand in my side." Why, why should He be in the same condition? Well, He had taken that condition upon himself. Now, obviously there was something worked out in the days to come which cleared the pattern. Of course, human beings are inclined to think of Him still as hanging on a cross or with all these wounds all over, as though He was going to be that way forever. But He accepted that into Himself. It didn't prevent the resurrection, and then subsequently it was all cleared through. When the time came for what was called the ascension, He wasn't still full of holes.
Now, we see these things coming upon mankind, and we're not separate from mankind. But we need to know how to handle what is taking place. We need to understand what went before. We need to know that the way is clear, the door is open and that it can be done. If we didn't have what the Master accomplished on earth, we couldn't do It. How many of you would have liked to have assumed, the responsibility that He assumed in that situation? Of course, He was the only one who could really do it for mankind, because of His particular point of focus in the world. But we could have done it individually for our own worlds. And who would like to take such a responsibility?—because it appears that you have nothing to show for it, at the time. It all tends to seem so useless, it seems such a useless thing to those who are observing it, those who loved Him and were observing it. Of course, the carrying through required something, required some assistance from others, obviously. Someone took His body down from the cross and put it in the tomb, so that everything could work out decently and in order. But the disciples weren't of much value, were they? They were afar off. Peter denied; Judas had betrayed; but you'll recall that John stood with the Master in the judgment hall. He was the only one who was with Him, and he was with Him at the foot of the cross also. And there were some of the women. In other words, there was a certain enfoldment maintained by these during that time without, perhaps, a clear awareness of what was happening, but trusting, being faithful. And while the human consciousness may not have known exactly what was going on, the angelic consciousness certainly did. The one who was incarnate in John and in the various women—these ones. So, there was something provided in that regard, a necessary part of the cycle of resurrection which came.
And while, in our service, insofar as those in whom the separation of spirit and body is occurring is not the same by any manner of means, nonetheless we can see a responsibility here of enfoldment, so that there is a protected place in which what needs to be done can be done, done by the angel, by the God Being who is present there. If we have our eyes fastened on the external form, then of course it becomes a harrowing experience for people. The external form, in a sense, is quite incidental to what is happening. There is some substance related to the external form that is in the process of ascension, and when that is complete, well, the job is done and there can be expiration. And the withdrawal of the pneumaplasm—I'm thinking of this from the standpoint of those who have a close-woven cord of connection from the spiritual standpoint, thinking of Emily last evening, clearly enough, the strong cord of connection there—and when there is, it’s a very beautiful experience, because it’s not as though there was a sudden rupture and nothing, nothing on earth at all, in the realm of the dimensional world. But where this close connection with pneumaplasm is present there are connections still with the dimensional world through this pneumaplasm, not for the achievement of anything much more than allowing the ascension to continue to take place. But, nevertheless, there is a sensing of the spirit of the individual concerned being on hand for a while, not altogether gone, as is so often the experience in the earthly oriented state. There seems to be nothing, probably because there is nothing in that sense; not that anything happens to the real person, but to the connections with the dimensional world.
And so, I have been speaking of these things that as servers you may have some background understanding in your consciousness when you are called upon to handle anything of this nature. And you also need to understand because you will be associated with people, other people, who are losing loved ones, perhaps, that you don’t know and you have to help that person. Not the loved one who is being lost; you can't reach that situation; but you can reach the person who is concerned about it. So it's really a wide field of service. And, as I have been emphasizing, our service is spiritual expression, a consciousness of how to handle each circumstance that may arise. Now, in Class, we could not possibly cover all the circumstances that might arise. It's not necessary anyway, and we're not trying to make out a booklet that you can thumb through, "Oh, this circumstance. Now I have it here somewhere," because it will be something spontaneous of the moment to be right and not a rehash of something which you heard before. In fact, all these things which you hear now you will probably be inclined to forget in a specific sense. And yet, if you have been moving with me, it's all down here in you and when the occasion demands, whatever is required, you'll find it's right there. The spirit is very capable. And even if you don't have anything very specific about the circumstance itself, the spirit is very capable of picking up something here, something over there, something somewhere else, and bringing it all together, and there's the answer. You may say, "Well, how did I know that?" And because your mind didn't know it, the mind may begin to question and say, "Well, maybe that's not right, not true, maybe it's nonsense," and doubts come in. Get thee hence, satan. Just allow it to work the way it is designed to work and you will find yourself offering many things that you didn't know you had to offer; but if you're offering them, they must have come from someplace. They came from you. So perhaps that will complete our consideration in this particular area of circumstance so that we may go on to other matters in the classes in the days to come.
