“If you suffer yourself to be always looking into Nature and the things of Time, and to be leading the will, and to be seeking somewhat for thyself in the desire, it will be impossible for thee ever to arrive at the Unity, that you wish for. Remember this and always be on your watch. Give not your mind leave to enter into, nor to fill itself with, that which without you; neither look backwards upon yourself; but quit yourself and look forward upon Christ. Let not your left eye deceive you, by making continually one representation after another, and stirring up thereby an earnest longing in your self-propriety; but let your right eye command back the left; and attract it to you, so that it may not gad abroad into the wonders and delights of Nature. Yea, it is better to pluck it quite out, and to cast it from thee, then to suffer it to proceed forth without restraint into Nature, and to follow its own lusts. However, for this there is no necessity since both eyes may become very useful, if ordered aright; and both the divine and natural Light may in the Soul subsist together, and be of mutual service to each other.” ~Jacob Boehme
Always Looking Into Nature
Let’s get one thing straight right away. There is nothing wrong with Nature. Nor is there anything wrong with enjoying what nature has to offer. What Boehme is talking about, we would today call Materialism. He is warning us to not get caught up in the traps and endeavors of materialism. To use the more proper spiritual terminology in use today, he is telling us to not get attached to the material world and the things in it.
We can let our body enjoy eating a good meal. We can let our mind enjoy a good play or concert. But we must not get too attached to those things. We must remember that they are temporary and don’t come from God, but from the Demiurge who created the fallen realm of matter. We can live in a material house, but we shouldn’t get so attached to it that we refuse to leave it when a tornado or wildfire threatens to destroy it. And as Boehme warns, we shouldn’t always be looking into Nature for our pleasures and activities, but spend a good amount of our time looking at the Spiritual instead. Continue reading “Looking Into Nature Rather Than Spirit”