This is an excerpt from an email I recently sent to a friend of mine which I thought some of you might enjoy. I miss my old Astral Pulse forum buddies, although it looks like the place has changed a great deal. God bless all of you...now work on overcoming your egos and awakening your consciousness (I'm trying too!).
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OK, I have a couple of minutes, so I am going to respond to a few things you wrote which I found interesting and compelling. First of all you wrote, " I was told to stay away from astral traveling. There is too much negative energy there." The negative energy, including "evil" entities that one might confront would generally be negative aspects of oneself. This is vital to realize. Winston Churchill's quote that "There is nothing to fear but fear itself," is actually a profound truth. As you know, what must be conquered is our false-selves, our egos, and once we destroy the demons within our SELF, we realize our true, inner being. In other words, it's about awakening the consciousness. Every religion, every bit of knowledge is really just a tool to help us understand what must be done, but the doing of this "work" is up to us. That's why I love that quote you shared. The knowledge is key, but it's about overcoming knowledge in the end too and experiencing the absolute, limitless light and, thus, becoming one with the Father and even moving beyond that.
I have to start working on a presentation/training I have, but let me leave you with this. I didn't write it, but it's a very objective description of "reality." I am not necessarily espousing everything you'll read here (I don't understand nor, obviously, do I have experential knowledge of these things, but I do intuitively understand them and I found this to be a very well-done, easy to understand explanation (enjoy!- oh yeah, and I bolded some sections and made some commentary...take the time to look this over, I'm anxious to hear how much of this is new and how much you've already heard...I assume you are more steeped in Buddhist/Hindu explanations but maybe I'm wrong):
The Ray of Creation
Before the dawn of the Mahamanvantara (the great cosmic day), Nothing (No-Thing/Eternal Siety) existed. All that was, was the Omeyocan (Nahuatl), the Absolute Abstract Space. It is here that the womb of the ocean of Divine Mother Space resides, waiting to be fecundated by the Eternal Cosmic Common Father in order to initiate the dawn of creation.
The womb of the Divine Mother Space is the Absolute, it is that which is the Siety, the original point of departure of everything existent.
The Absolute – Three Aspects
1. Ain (Hb: Nothing)- the unmanifested Absolute, the womb of the ocean of Divine Mother Space. This is where only the wind and the darkness exists.
2. Ain Soph (Hb: Limitless)- This is our atomic star that sends it's Ray into the world in order to be cognizant of its own happiness. This is the Star of Bethlehem, that which guides the path of the Boddhisatva. This is the original point of departure, where everything comes from in the beginning of the Mahamanvantara and where everything returns during the Mahapralaya.
3. Ain Soph Aur (Hb: Limitless Light)–The Ray of Creation. This is the Cosmic Christ, Quetzlcoatl (Nahuatl), Okidanok (Gurdjieff), Vishnu (Sans), Kukulcan (Mayan), etc. This is the source of all life and light in the universe. It is the ray that sacrifices itself in order to give birth to the multiple realms and forms upon the eternal Tree of Life. It Sacrifices itself in order to undergo multiple transformations, becoming more and more dense, more complicated so as to give life opportunity upon various planes of existence.
The Ray of Creation begins in the Absolute and ends in the Inferno, Avitchi, Greek Tarturus, or submerged Mineral Kingdom.
It is within the Absolute that we find the first cosmos. That is, the first order.
The tree of life represents both a macrocosm and microcosm; it is a map of both the organization of the universe and of man. The Tree of Life (Hb: Otz Chiim), is the result of the multiple transformations, sacrifices, sufferings of the Ray of Creation. We use the symbol itself in order to comprehend and place all of the various activities of the Cosmic Christ in every region of nature.
There are seven cosmos, each with their own laws. The laws depend upon the density and complexity of the Ray of Creation. The ray always begins in the subtle departments of Spirit and descends gradually into the complexities and density of matter.
The Ray of Creation begins in the Absolute, with the Protocosmos.
Each cosmos has its own laws. The unique law, the law of the Absolute exists within the first cosmos. The Protocosmos is infinitely divine, ineffable. No mechanical principle exists within it. It is governed by one unique Law, the Law of the Will of the Father, the Law of Love.
The law of the first cosmos is converted into three laws in the second cosmos. Thus there are 3 laws that govern the Ayocosmos. When we get further and further from the central, spiritual sun, governed by the unique law, we penetrate into more and more complicated worlds with more laws.
The physical plane is where 48 laws reign. Below the crust of the Earth is the first infradimensional zone, governed by 96 laws. The density of this region has increased, as each atom possesses 96 atoms of the Absolute within its intimate nature. Below this, the second infradimensional zone exists which possesses 192 laws, and each atom possesses 192 atoms of the Absolute. Each zone within the infernal dimensions increases in materialism in a horrific way. These are the Klipoth.
There are three principles which exist within the Absolute. These are the three Gunas, which are called Satya, Rajas and Tamas. They are in perfect balance within the Mahapralaya, the Great Cosmic Night. When they are not in balance or repose, there is a spin into motion, a spin out of the Absolute, which is the cause of the dawning of the Great Cosmic Day.
Satya – Wisdom
Rajas – Longing
Tamas – Movement
The Ray descends from the Absolute, the Ain Soph Aur into the first Sephirah:
Kether unfolds into the next two sephiroth, thus manifesting the Holy Triamazicamno.
Triamazicamno (Gurdjieff: see Beelzebub's Tales to His Grandson) : the Holy Law of Creation, the three primary forces; 1. Holy Affirming +, 2. Holy Denying -, 3. Holy Reconciling =
This trinity is the Logos. It is a tri-unity, one but also three. The Law of Three creates and creation itself is God.
As the Gospel of John describes it....
"In the beginning was the Word (Kether) and the Word was with God (Chockmah), and the Word was God (Binah)."
The trinity unfolds within every atom (Proton +, Neutron =, Electron -). There are three forces present in all things. These are the Affirming (man), denying (woman) and Reconciling (Prometheus, the sexual force) forces.
The Trinity is recognized in every religion:
1. Kether (Hb. Crown): The Father; Brahma; Huehueteotl; Wotan; Osiris; Tepeu-Kokumatz
2. Chockmah (Hb. Wisdom): The Son; Vishnu; Quetzalcoatl; Sigfried; Horus; Kukulcan
3. Binah (Hb. Understanding): The Holy Spirit; Shiva; Tlaloc; Thor; Isis;
The Logos is the Spritiual Sun which is One in Three. It is also the Divine Androgynous, Two in One. It is Ometecuhtli-Omecihuatl, the Lord (Nahuatl: Tecuhtli) and Lady (Nahuatl: Cihuatl) of Duality (Nahuatl: Ome). Thus it is Mary or Ram-IO and Joseph or IO-Sephas. These masculine and feminine principles conceive the universe with their holy sexual act.
The Logos is the Multiple Perfect Unity. It is the Holy Sun, RA. It shines within every Star and every Planet. The immensity of the light that is given by the Cosmic Christ (Logos) it is the force that creates. This immense amount of light is organized in every cosmos by seven principle Logoi. These Logoi are seven Cosmo-Creators or Archangels. They are Perfect incarnations of the Cosmic Christ, perfect Monads that are fused with the Logos. These seven Archangels are the Spiritual representations of seven universal principles. These seven universal principles are the means of the organization of the light that is being created by the Holy Triamazicamno. This is the Law of Seven, the Holy Heptaparaparshinock.
Heptaparaparshinock (Gurdjieff): The Law of Seven, Organization.
There are seven notes in an octave and seven colors or rays on the electromagnetic spectrum. "In the beginning was the Word (Logos)..." That Logos is sound, vibration, light, movement etc which is always organized within the Law of 7. There are three sephiroth that represent the Triamazicamno and seven sephiroth below that.
The Cosmo-Creators are one with the Logos. They are seven Logoi. Thus the Cosmic Christ manifests within the Triamazicamno and the Heptaparaparshinock.
Each one of the seven cosmocreators emanates from itself zillions of Monads.
Monad: (Gr) from the Greek word Monas (unity). The Monad itself is the Intimate Spirit. It is our own particular Inner Being that manifests in the universe in order to reach absolute and complete self-realization. The Being is the Tree of Life, it must realize Itself in every region of the Tree of Life, Kether down to Malkuth and everything in between. The Monad is Chesed/Gedulah which is Mercy/Love. Within Chesed (the Inner Being) are the Divine Soul (Geburah: Justice) and the Human Soul (Tiphereth: Beauty). Thus the Monad is made of three principles:
1. Chesed: (Atman) The Inner Being that rides the back of the feathered serpent in order to enter into cosmic manifestation. It manifests be the sacrifice of its own Cosmic Father, one of the seven Archangels that rules creation. It descends through one of these seven rays according to the spiritual idiosyncrasy of that particular Monad. He is King Arthur.
2. Geburah: (Buddhi) The feminine soul where all of the most precious cosmic elements of the Being are placed. She is Queen Guinevere.
3. Tiphereth: (Tiphereth) The Human Soul. This is the reflection of the two previous aspects of the Monad which is sent by the Intimate to descend into the world to fight the battle of the antitheses. It is the reflection of the Human Soul that initially descends, this reflection itself is called the Essence or Buddhata.
The Buddhata descends into the world in order to give the Monad the chance to conquer the inferior regions of nature, namely, the four elements. These four elements are given to the Monad by DIVINE MOTHER NATURE. They are actually four principle elements that are called the four protoplasmatic bodies or vehicles. They are as follows:
1. Mind or Lunar Mental Body(Netzach)
2. Emotion or Lunar Astral Body* (Hod)
3. Vital Body or Etheric Double (Jesod)
4. Physical Body (Malkuth)
The Logos is not created, but is only potential in us. We must complete the three mountains in order to realize this within ourselves. This is the path of self-realization.
Quetzlcoatl was the Aztec Christ, represented as a serpent bird. It is said that he flew to the Earth with sparks on his wings. These sparks are the individual Monads. Our Monad has to create its Tree of Life. The Logos is only a potential in us. Its creation is the intimate self-realization of the Being.
Thus Divine Mother Nature has given these four bodies to the Monad for its work. These four protoplasmatic bodies synthesize into three seeds or principles because the vital and physical bodies are always connected. These three principles are synthesized within the creative mercury of any individual, within the sexual forces of Jesod-Mercury. These three seeds must be transformed into solar vehicles, the Solar Bodies, the Mercabah.
The Father Who Is In Secret has also placed three seeds of itself within Jesod-Mercury. These three seeds are the seeds of the Holy Triamazicamno, without which all creation would be impossible. This gives the creativity to the sexual glands. This gives the forces, if transmuted inwards and upwards as taught in the Arcanum AZF, and potential for the Holy Spirit to descend and create a Human Being from a Humanoid animal.
Thus we have three lunar seeds given by Divine Mother Nature and three seeds given by the Holy Father all synthesized within Jesod.
This is the rough ashlar of the medieval alchemists and masons. The brute stone must be chiseled into the cubic Philosopher's Stone by work in Alchemy. "Behold, I am laying a stone in Zion, a stone that will make men stumble, a rock that will make them fall; and he who believes in him will not be put to shame." Romans (9:33)
Our bodies are degenerated and we need to regenerate. We must cleanse our vehicles and create solar vehicles. This is only possible through Alchemy.
The Inhabitants:
The lowest types of inhabitants are those that dwell in the lowest and most complicated level of creation, the Tritocosmos. This is the Inferno of Dante, hell. Here, demons dwell. These levels are submerged within the crust of the earth (in the interior dimensions), but humanity has psychologically sunk down into these levels and are obviously bringing the worlds of 96 laws, 182 laws etc to the surface. Demons also dwell in the physical plane; any creature with ego is a demon.
The physical Plane (Malkuth and Yesod): four types of inhabitants: minerals, plants, animals and humanoids.
Currently, we are only inhabitants of the physical world.
As we work with the three factors, (Alchemical Birth, Mystical Death and Sacrifice for Humanity) we walk the path of initiation. We may complete the Minor Mysteries, but not enter into the Major Mysteries until we reach psychological equilibrium and begin working in Alchemy.
When we work in Alchemy the Holy Spirit descends (white dove) into us and raises the Serpents of Fire of Kundalini through each of our bodies, (physical, vital, astral, mental and causal) The serpents of Atman and Buddah never fell. The serpent rises slowly through each of the 33 vertebrae of our spine (33 degrees of Occult Masonry), in accordance with the merits of our heart. This is represented by the 33 years of the life of Jesus. (Any Buddha with 5 or 7 serpents raised up over its head which represents this process.)
The Holy Spirit first works in the physical body, and raises the first serpent within this body. This is the first initiation of Major Mysteries. When the Holy Spirit raises the second serpent, it is within the vital body and we complete the second initiation of Major Mysteries.
The Astral Plane (Hod): In order to be an inhabitant of the astral plane, one must possess the astral body. In order to possess the astral body, the Divine Mother Kundalini must raise the third serpent of fire/the third major mystery.
The solar astral body can leave the physical body at will and enter into the astral plane, the 5th dimension.
The Mental Plane (Netzach): With the 4th initiation of Major Mysteries the solar mind is created. This is when the initiate becomes a symbolic Buddha because the Monad has conquered the mind, it has defeated the four elements. It now is a Master of Nature. The Solar Mind is the path of John the Baptist.
*NOTE- I know people who can travel to the causal plane at will. They are not necessarily destroying their ego so they run the risk of becoming a fallen Bhoddisatva. I met a guy on the astralpulse forums years go who detailed everything and despised occult/mystical/religious explanations. I'll send you something from him, it's interesting but at the same time scary to think of how advanced one can become. -Dan
The Causal Plane (Tiphereth): With the 5th initiation of Major Mysteries the causal body is created and the Human Soul incarnates. We then possess the human soul (as Jesus wrote, with patience, you shall possess your soul).
The one who reaches Tiphereth reaches the Venustic Initiation. It is here that the new Master choose their future cosmic evolution:
1. The Spiral Path: when the initiate takes a very long "vacation" in Nirvana. This is the easy way out. This is the path of the Nirvani or Pratyeka Buddhas and their students are the Sravakas. This Master NEVER incarnates the Christ.
2. The Straight Path: those great souls who sacrifice everything, all of their secret occult powers and all of their dharma in order to assist suffering humanity in any way possible. These souls continue to walk the three mountains and incarnate the Christ. They always take up horrendous works because they decide to pay all of their Karma in a relatively short amount of time. They are called Boddhisatva (vehicle of wisdom; Chockmah and Tiphereth) or Son (second logos is the Son or Chockmah) of Man (superior Manas is Tiphereth).
The initiate who reaches Tiphereth is called the Melech (pl. Malachim) or King. As we know when Christ is born (within the Boddhisatva) three Kings come from the east. This is symbolic as there are three types of Melech:
1. The Black King: the initiate who has reached Tiphereth and still has ego.
2. The White King: the initiate who is completing the second mountain, no more ego.
3. The Yellow King: the initiate who is resurrecting or resurrected, perfect Christified Master.
When the Yellow King resurrects, he becomes an inhabitant of the Third Logos or Binah. As he completes the last three tasks of Hercules, he completes the three supernal Sephiroth:
1. Binah: Third Logos; Nirvanakaya
2. Chockmah: Second Logos; Sambogakaya
3. Kether: First Logos; Darmakaya
When the Darmakaya completes these tasks, s/he enters into the mysteries of the absolute and becomes and inhabitant first of the 11th Eon (Ain Soph Aur). Then s/he becomes an inhabitant of the 12th Eon (Ain Soph) and becomes an Ain Soph Paranishpana, one who has incarnated their own Star. Finally, the greates mastery is that of the Paramarthasatya. This Master becomes an inhabitant of the highest, the No-thingness, the illuminating void. Only Master Aberamentho (Jesus Christ) has attained this in this corner of the universe. He reached the level of the Sacred Anklad or perfect objective reasoning.
"any creature with ego is a demon."
Care to explain this one?
I'm not going to mince words here anymore, so here goes......
Why does everyone perceive Ego as a negative thing?
Why do you all believe it must be annihilated?
Do you all realise that the inflection you use when saying this word denotes a negative aspect?
Ego is just a word. It describes something, but we have lost the reference for it.
This is due to the indoctrination you all received in your lives, so open your eyes and ears.... don't block this info with your belief filters, okay?
Ego is not a negative!
Ego is not just part of this construction we call 3D life/incarnations.
Ego is the part of us that enables us to recognize ourself !!
Even what we call God must have Ego!! Now that's a big statement.
Think about it. For the Universe/god to recognise itself it must have Ego.
Therefore, Ego cannot be bad or evil.
So, let's think about this next statement..... If Ego is not a bad thing, and all awareness must have it to be aware, then we must have to do something different with it than what we have been led to believe.
Consider this then..... instead of attempting to annihilate something that you cannot; perhaps you should try Balancing it instead!!
Yes. Balance it!
True Enlightenment is when we are balanced between the worlds in awareness.
Therefore, Balance in all things is also a pre-requisite.
You would have heard the old sayings of "Everything in moderation"... yes?
Now apply that truism to the concept of Ego.
Stop wasting your time and effort in trying to destroy it, you will not succeed anyway. It cannot be annihilated.
But it can be Balanced.
Not flaming, raging egomania... and not timidity based low self-esteem and lack of a healthy awareness of self.
Balance is needed, it is part of the tasks here this time people.
Please, take this knowledge on board, test it, play with it, compare it to your current ingrained beliefs.
Then when you are ready, choose your behaviours. Make them balanced at all times where you can.
Once you are balancing every day, you will find the truth in these words.
Be well
I would agree that you can never have enough balance, but I wouldn't go as far as to say that the ego is a good thing. It's my belief that the ego and thoughts come from the same problem - which is a disconnection in awareness. When you transcend the need to think, you have transcended the ego. I know a lot of you probably think that transcending the need to think is impossible, but I would posit that it is not - just read the introduction to "Power vs Force".
@ Tayesin: I'll say it again, I think you have ego mixed up with self awareness. When I experienced oneness, there was no ego, but there could not have been a me experiencing anything unless I was self aware. The ego is just a covering for your true nature. Names and designations are like potted flowers and decorations. I would say that the ego and imagination are the reciprocal of reality, the inverse of what is. The ego allows you to recognize a part of you, yes, but not the true You. To "annihilate" the ego would take you into the present moment fully and thus allow you to escape the imposed limits of time. Once you've done that you can say with certainty that you are a master. However in spite of all this, I think we're thinking along the same lines.
I have always associated the term "ego" with the notion that you are separate from others/the source. It is the this feeling of separateness that can give rise to all sort of negative qualities and lower selfish desires. So yeah, in that sense the ego is very much negative. It is that notion of separateness that one needs to eradicate. That's how I see ego anyway.
So many people telling me so many contradictory things... all I can do is go with my intuition. Wouldn't it suck to spend your life trying to destroy your ego, but then it's not possible? Or spend life embracing your ego, just to find out you've been an egotistical jerk your whole life.
It almost makes everything more complicated when different people you have much respect for are telling you different things about important aspects of life and where to focus your time and energy - it's a big deal! It's your LIFE. Goes to show, everyone has to figure it out for themselves in the end.
I mean no disrespect to anyone - it comes out of my own spiritual dilemmas.