Sun of Life, Sun of Righteousness, Always Shining Sun

Eternal Sun Shining on Mountains and Valleys

Posted on by Harold Boulette

“The first coming of Christ in the exercise of desire is an inward and sensible thrust of the Holy Ghost, urging and driving us toward all virtues. This coming may be likened to the splendor and the power of the sun, which, from the moment when it rises, enlightens and brightens and warms the whole world. So likewise Christ, the eternal Sun, beams and shines, dwelling above the summit of the spirit. … But that man in whom this should take place must be inwardly seeing, with the eye of the understanding.

“In the higher lands, … the sun shines upon the mountains bringing an early summer there, with good fruits and strong wine. … The same sun gives its splendor to the lower lands. … There the country is colder, and the power of the heat less; nevertheless, there too it produces many good fruits, though little wine.” ~John of Ruysbroeck

Sunrise of Christ

Much like Jacob Boehme, Ruysbroeck had to be careful what he wrote for fear of being charged with blasphemy or worse. So much of what he says here is allegory and you have to know the symbolism.

First, the “coming of Christ” doesn’t make much sense if you interpret it literally. Even if you understand that Christ in an immortal spirit that dwelt for a time in the man Jesus, not the man Jesus, you may not realize that such a spirit is everywhere, always. So I believe that what Ruysbroeck means is not the sudden arrival (or sunrise) of Christ, but of the awakening of our individual souls through the power of Christ found in the Light of the Spiritual Sun.

It is not by coincidence that Ruysbroeck, as with many others, compares this rise of Christ to the rising sun. Great spiritual men and women have always known that there was a connection between Christ and the Sun, though they may not have known exactly what it was. Continue reading “Eternal Sun Shining on Mountains and Valleys” →

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borrower, authentic man, bodies, Individuality, harmonious whole

Harmonious Whole for Spiritual Growth

Posted on by Harold Boulette

“Still greater difficulty attends the development of the six-petaled lotus flower situated in the center of the body, for it can only be achieved as the result of complete mastery of the whole personality through consciousness of self, so that body, soul and spirit form one harmonious whole. The functions of the body, the inclinations and passions of the soul, the thoughts and ides of the  spirit must be tuned to perfect unison. The body must be so ennobled and purified that its organs incite to nothing that is not in the service of spirit and soul.” ~Rudolf Steiner

Six-Petaled Lotus

What Mr. Steiner calls the six-petaled lotus is better known as the sacral chakra. This energy center is located just above the root center and is associated with the color oranges and the reproductive organs. While it sound like Steiner is placing great importance on this chakra, in other places he makes it clear that he considers the development of the heart chakra more so. This development of the six-petaled lotus center is also going to aid in development of the heart center.

Mastery of Self

Whether you believe in energy centers or not, virtually all real spiritual schools teach that mastery of self is necessary for significant spiritual development. Some individuals, and even some spiritual schools, teach that it means turning completely within and ignoring the external world entirely. That simply turns people into sheep who let the forces of darkness run amok in the world. If enough of that happens, we will lose and the darkness will control this world permanently.

Hermes taught that both the internal and the external are important with his well-known quote, “As within, so without”.  So mastery of self does mean looking within, but it doesn’t mean ignoring the external world. You don’t get a harmonious whole by looking at only a part and ignoring the rest.

Harmonious Whole

Steiner, and most other spiritual teachers, say that one of the goals of spiritual development is to get the body, spirit, and soul functioning together as a harmonious whole. We would add mind to that giving the four points of a cross with harmony at the center.

Some think that spiritual development means ignoring the body and mind. That is simply not true. While we may occasionally see a spiritual person  who is physically weak, or apparently so, that doesn’t represent the typical adept.

The spiritual student cares for his body. He doesn’t eat junk simply because it tastes good, or is popular. She eats what is healthy and nourishing. He exercises to keep his body strong, but without become obsessed with it. A harmonious whole starts with a healthy body.

Development of the mind is not ignored by the sensible spiritual student—or anyone else who is sensible, for that matter. A strong body doesn’t do much good if it is under control of a weak or ignorant mind. So spiritual students, read and study. They learn as much as they can. Even though intellectuals are often the enemies of the spiritual, we cannot overcome their attitudes without knowing what they know and showing that we are intelligent as well as spiritual.

Last, but certainly not least, is development of the spirit and soul. The first step in this is to awaken them from the dormant state they are in when we enter this world of matter. That is done using the Light of the Spiritual Sun. We use a method commonly called “sun-gazing,” although most practicing it are looking at the physical sun, not the spiritual. More that simply gazing at the sun is required to take in the higher Light of the Spiritual Sun.

While it is easiest to describe this as a step-by-step process. In reality we must do all of it at the same time. By which I mean that you can work on your body for part of the day, your mind for another part, and your spirit and soul in a third part. Not simultaneously, but all in one day. If you want to reach those advanced spiritual levels, you have to work at maintaining that harmonious whole. And we need to awaken all eight energy centers (chakras) so energy flows through them on all levels as well.

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Expanded Abilities from Expanded Consciousness

Posted on by Harold Boulette

“Expanded abilities can develop in people who’ve had a near-death experience, a traumatic accident, or major surgery. It is as though the dramatic shock to the energy body and the mind cracks them open so more of the soul can flood in, bringing heightened consciousness-and-energy. … The traumatic event acts as an excuse to be new—a sort of shortcut to expanded consciousness. … You’ll find, too, that as one ability opens, it’s tied closely to other abilities, and several may occur in rapid sequence.” ~Penney Peirce

Expanded Abilities

What Ms. Peirce calls “expanded abilities” is mostly expanded consciousness. We can think of consciousness as having many layers like an onion. Reaching a new level doesn’t mean we have learned everything. There are probably even higher levels after that until we finally reach the highest called Cosmic Consciousness or Christ Consciousness.

Traumatic Events

Traumatic events can help us awaken a higher level of consciousness. It may be a close brush with death, a severe illness, or even being under anesthesia for surgery. This doesn’t mean you need to have such an experience to reach higher levels of consciousness. There is no need to run out into traffic or jump off a cliff.

Sometimes the traumatic experience is mental rather than physical. The trauma of seeing men dying in a war helped trigger St. Francis’ awakening. Nostradamus was changed by the death of his wife and two children during the plague.

Some are fortunate enough that the triggering event, while traumatic, is not undesirable. They may be triggered by meeting a famous holy man, or even reading about one. Continue reading “Expanded Abilities from Expanded Consciousness” →

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Spiritual Connections, Individual Equality in Community

Equality in Community Guided by Divine Light

Posted on by Harold Boulette

“In days gone by, you have had leaders to guide you, but before them were even greater leaders, whom you have not known. The inspiration of their word is something that must never be lost; it must be preserved for all time.
“You must establish a community, where men can live together and where they can enjoy the companionship of women. Men always benefit from united effort, but this is inseparable from necessary restrictions. Let the restrictions imposed be such that no man can feel resentment because of the restraints set upon him. Let the only ordinances and restriction imposed be founded on the nature of man and upon spiritual and moral values.
“We must seek to assure freedom of action for every man and woman, so long as it does not prejudice the equal rights of others. … The rewards must go to the men who are best in all ways. …We must to provide for the sick and helpless, for the old and incapable. … We must make men high-minded and above all pettiness. … We must be a guiding light before the eyes of all men.” ~The Kolbrin Bible (SOF:1:6-11)

Great Leaders

There have been many great leaders in the world of various types. There are great political leaders, great business leaders, great leaders in science and art. The greatest leaders of all, however, are the great spiritual leaders. They are the greatest because they care for our immortal spirits and souls rather than our mortal bodies. They are great because they believe in equality.

Sadly, the other side of the coin is also true; we have had terrible leaders.

In business, the bad leader is the one who cares only for profit regardless of the cost to humanity. He might sell tobacco products, pesticides, or junk food. The his products kill people doesn’t bother him at all, as long as they make him wealthy.

In politics, science, and even religion, terrible leaders are very similar to that bad business leader. The politician who seeks to help only those wealthy who donate large sums of money to his campaigns, and perhaps even more under the table, is just as bad as that business person. The scientist who will say a certain processed food is healthy when the manufacturer donates millions to the university he works for, and the preacher who preaches whatever the crowd is will to pay to hear is equally as bad. Continue reading “Equality in Community Guided by Divine Light” →

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