The Collapsing Tower

4HE#OLLAPSING4OWER
THEBIRTHPANGSOFPOSTEGOCIVILIZATION
by Robert Lorenz, Ph.D.
2008
edited by Emily Fincher
the Collapsing Tower
foreword
introduction
chapter one
- page 1
chapter two - page 25
chapter three - page 59
chapter four - page 82
chapter five - page 103
chapter six - page 127
the Sacred Calendar of the Maya
Implications of the Mayan Calendar
the Nature of Ego Consciousness
the New Scientific Paradigm
Laszlo’s Akashic Field Theory
and the Theory of Everything
Going Beyond the Ego
chapter seven - page 147
the Theory and Practice of Manifestation
chapter eight - page 166
the Collapsing Tower
reference index
-II-
“But the time has come; the revelation has already occurred, and the guardian seers have seen the lightning strike the darkness we call reality. And now we sleep in the brief interval between the lightning
and the thunder.”
-William Irwin Thompson At the Edge of History
“Among weapons, I am the thunderbolt.”
-Krishna from the Bhagavad Gita
-III-
FOREWORD
by Carl Johan Calleman
Robert Lorenz’ book The Collapsing Tower
dominating materialist worldview conscious-
- The Birth Pangs of Post-Ego Civilization fills an
ness and mind are only secondary phenomena
important gap. Based on an understanding that
that have accidentally emerged from the matter
human civilization and the human mind evolves
that the universe is made up from. For almost a
according to the rhythm of the nine underworlds
century and a half, ever since darwin cemented
and thirteen heavens of the mayan calendar it
this metaphysical basis of modern science –
discusses our current situation and who we are
certainly at odds with that of both newton and
as human beings. The urgent question as to
einstein - ideas about a world beyond and a
what the consequences of the mayan calendar
higher purpose to life on this planet have been
are for our individual ways of living are brought
excluded from rational discussion. The question
to the forefront. It may be that our survival as a
of a higher purpose to life has been relegated
civilization ultimately goes back to the answers
to the private sphere and treated as a matter
we are now giving to this question even though,
of personal belief rather than one that may
superficially, it may seem as if some of factors
be rationally discussed based on knowledge.
jeopardizing our future are external, such as for
instance global warming, overpopulation, over-
of new fields have however been suggested
fishing or warlike situations. In reality, how we
to explain aspects of the workings of the cos-
handle such challenges may however go back to
mos that cannot be understood merely from
what frame of consciousness we are projecting
the four forces of physics. Examples of such
onto the world and hence it is critical to probe
new fields that are probed in depth by lorenz
the evolution of these frames of consciousness.
are sheldrake’s morphogenetic fields, laszlo’s
Lorenz’ approach is far from that of the sim-
k-fields and the creation fields studied by my-
plified self-help books suggesting how to get rich
self based on the mayan calendar, fields that
and successful overnight, but sees inner satisfac-
seem to have their origin in an underlying or-
tion as being achievable from a harmony with
der beyond the physical reality. Lorenz makes
the overall purpose of the universe. To under-
an excellent discussion of how these different
stand how this inner reality evolves the influ-
fields are transforming our worldview and ac-
ence of different fields on this is explored and
commodating explanations to the change that
in so doing he makes a clear break with the kind
is going on all around us. He also chisels out
of thinking that has dominated ourworldview
the implications of these fields for the every-
for a long time. According to this still largely
day experience of human life, sometimes with
-IV-
In the past few decades the existence
the help of the wisdom of eckhard tolle. To
expression of the growing unity consciousness
what extent the fields that have been described
emerging in the galactic and universal under-
by these different authors actually represent
worlds in accordance with the mayan calendar.
separate fields motivating giving them different
In this emerging perception we are never truly
names is a matter that still needs to be debated.
separate from our source, even though during
There are however two significant facts
certain eras the spiritual yin/yang fields filter-
about them that i would like to point out. The
ing our consciousness has created a perception
first is that the study of the nine underworlds
of such a separation. It is such perceptions,
and thirteen heavens of the mayan calendar has
largely of past eras, that the world is still suf-
provided empirical evidence that we are living
fering the consequences of. The present task of
in an evolutionary process that is guided by a
humanity would then seem to be to see through
higher universal intelligence. It is often said by
the veils and recognize its unity with the cos-
adherents of the materialist worldview that no
mic processes. Lorenz’ book asks all the rel-
proof has ever been found of any higher intel-
evant questions and discusses them eloquently
ligence in the universe, but at the present time
based on a sharp psychological scholarship.
such statements can only be made by someone
who is not updated with recent research. The
second thing is that evidence is increasingly
forthcoming that the so-called quantum vacuum field, the vast potential energies present
in vacuum that presumably provides the background to the abovementioned fields, is directly interacting with what we normally perceive
as physical reality. Hence, we are beginning to
understand that what has often been perceived
as two separate worlds, a “real world” and a
world beyond this, is really just one and the
same world functioning in concert according
to rules that we may partly understand. The
emergence of this insight, long held by psychics
and individuals with special gifts, is by itself an
-V-
Danger Opportunity Crisis
(fig. 1)
BINAH
-VI-
INTRODUCTION
There is an ancient Chinese curse, or
tion that is based on the limited ego self -- root-
blessing, that says, “May you live in interest-
ed in separateness, greed, and aggression -- and
ing times.” We certainly live in such times --
embrace the birth of a higher, more inclusive
perhaps the most interesting times in human
Self-sense. It is the thesis of this book that we
memory. Whether this curse is seen as warning
must choose one perspective or the other. Our
or promise, however, is a matter of perspec-
choice, however, may not be so immediately
tive. Two Chinese characters depict crisis: they
accessible. It is a matter of what thoughts and
translate as danger and opportunity (Figure 1).
beliefs we accept on our deepest, most private,
Where one person responds to extreme dif-
and innermost level of being. It is not a matter
ficulty with a feeling of crushing despair and
of what we present or expresses outwardly. Put-
defeat, another meets the same opposition with
ting on a “spiritual” show for others, or even for
the igniting of fiery challenge and a striving for
ourselves, by saying or doing the right things,
growth, maturation, even greatness.
performing the right practices, or supporting
Many people believe that we are living in
or joining the right causes is totally irrelevant
the End Times and will experience planetary
here. Appearances do not matter in the least
destruction from war, pestilence, and natural
in this process—nor do empty or superstitious
catastrophe either meted out by an angry god
gestures.
or self-imposed by man’s greedy inhumanity to-
ward mankind and nature. From this perspec-
that our experiences in life are reflections of
tive, humanity is an experiment gone awry; a
our innermost thoughts, beliefs, and feelings.
cancerous growth destined for eradication.
To find out what is really going on inside of
Others believe that the clear time of crisis in
you, all you must do is look at your life expe-
which we live is a prelude to planetary trans-
riences. Our lives are not a series of random
formation; that it is heralding the end of an old
events, the product of good or bad luck, a re-
way of life rooted in materialism, greed, domi-
ward or punishment dealt out by some capri-
nation, hate and war, and signaling the emer-
cious fate or moody, ill-tempered god. We have
gence of a new consciousness founded on unity,
everything to do with what happens to us, both
cooperation and love.
individually and collectively. Why and how this
Whether we experience death throes or
is true will be painstakingly scrutinized in the
birth pangs from this transformation will de-
following pages. The purpose here is to help to
pend on our ability to let go of a self-identifica-
dispel delusion and superstition and to define
-VII-
One of the primary tenets of this book is
and encourage conscious choice with regard to
will require fearless self-examination, a willing-
our individual and collective directions in life.
ness to sacrifice cherished, albeit dysfunctional,
Conjoining this tenet that our fate is in our
attitudes, habits, addictions, and philosophies.
own hands -- that we have, ultimately, complete
It will also call for the courage to stalwartly re-
responsibility for what happens to us -- is an-
sist powerful influences that will tirelessly fight
other key tenet: that we are rapidly nearing a
to maintain the life-annihilating status quo.
point of realization that we are co-creators in
a divine plan of spiritual evolution—a plan
model of our role in the creation of our person-
that was already in place at, and perhaps even
al- and collective reality, one that is supported
before, the birth of our universe. We will start
by a new scientific paradigm as revolutionary
our spiritual odyssey with an examination of
as was the shift from Newtonian- to quan-
such a course. The reality of a divine blueprint,
tum physics. This new paradigm integrates
however, does not abrogate the existence of
all branches of science, along the spectrum of
free will, which is viewed as evolving from its
minute quanta to the cosmological, and every-
relative absence in the early stages of develop-
thing in between, including consciousness re-
ment, when “parental” control is necessitated,
search and its implications for the emergence
through stages of waning influence from exter-
of a planetary transformation.
nal sources, to its fruition in adulthood.
After an overall examination of the cre-
ation plan, we will examine how this plan
explains why we are the way we are, why the
world is the way it is, as well as the implications of this plan for our future. The existence
of a divine plan does not, in itself, guarantee
humanity’s survival or evolution. A positive future, rather, will hinge upon the willingness and
capability of a critical number of individuals in
the human population to take up, and lead in,
the challenge of transformation. This is not a
vague process shrouded in mystery and incense.
It is a highly precise technical task—one that
-VIII-
Finally, we will examine a comprehensive
I
CHAPTER ONE
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The Sacred Calendar Of The Maya
In the century following the dawn of the Spanish Conquest carried out by Cortez and
the conquistadors on Good Friday of 1519, the estimated population of Mesoamerica was reduced from 25 million people to roughly 1 million, mostly by diseases brought by the European
invaders. The result was the cultural annihilation of not only the Maya, but of the Aztecs and
other Native American populations of central and southern Mexico. In addition, the Spanish
bishops destroyed all of the Mayan books, save four that were taken and sent to Europe. These
books were calendars—but far different from the calendars we are familiar with. Not mere astronomical chronologies of cyclical time, but rather, spiritually based explanations of human life
and the evo-lution of our consciousness according to a Divine plan. This structure of progressive
succession provides a remarkably accurate prophetic understanding of the future.
In this chapter we will examine the Mayan concept of reality derived from the spiritual,
psychological, and geopolitical insights of C. J. Calleman. The reader is referred to Calleman’s
two works on the Mayan calendar listed in the bibliography for a more detailed analysis - Solving
the Greatest Mystery of Our Time: The Mayan Calendar and The Mayan Calendar and the
Transformation of Consciousness. Although there are numerous books written on the subject, I
have found these two volumes to be the most painstakingly researched and empirically verifiable.
– The Nine Underworlds And The Thirteen Heavens –
Both the Mayans and the Aztecs conceived of the evolution of the universe in terms of
nine developmental levels known as Underworlds, with each stage divided into thirteen segments
that they knew as Heavens. Each Underworld encompasses a different, and progressively more
advanced, creation cycle than the one preceding it. This design was reflected in the nine-level
hierarchal structure of the most important Mayan pyramids – the Temple of the Inscriptions in
Palenque, the Pyramid of the Jaguar in Tikal, and the Pyramid of Kukulcan in Chichen Itza.
What is most interesting was the discovery of an ancient stele, or stone column, in Coba
on the Yucatan Peninsula that marks the origin of the First Underworld at 16.4 billion years ago
which is remarkably close to the scientific dating of the Big Bang. This, Calleman (2004) points
out, has far-reaching consequences. Because the start of the creation process of the nine Underworlds was initiated at a time when no galaxies or solar systems existed, it indicates that the
Mayan calendrical system is not based on astronomical movements. This is all the more interesting because, techno-logically, the Maya remained in the Stone Age. Their use of the wheel, for
example, was limited to toys, and was not employed in the engineering of tools.
Although each of the nine Underworlds starts at a different time, they all end on the same
date. Based on Calleman’s calculations, this date is October 24, 2011. Most other experts in this
subject calculate the end date as December 21, 2012. Jenkins (1998), for example, notes that the
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chapter one
Winter solstice of 2012 marks the precise alignment of the earth with the center of its galaxy, the
Milky Way. Such an alignment occurs only once every 26,000 years. While both authors deem
this a time of planetary transformation, each does for markedly different reasons. Jenkins’ calculations are astronomically rooted, while those offered by Calleman (2004) are based on spiritual
cycles that transcend astronomical phenomena. Although a difference of one solar year seems
insignificant in view of the vast time periods most of the Underworlds span, it does become
significant in terms of predictions for the occurrence of events in the final two Underworlds.
We are currently in the middle of the approximately thirteen-year span of the Galactic Eighth
Underworld, in which the duration of one year is quite significant.
Each of the thirteen segments, or Heavens, that sub-divide the Nine Underworlds was and
is ruled by the same sequence of energies, or deities. That the sequence of Thirteen Heavens
and their ruling deities is the same in each Underworld is crucially important. It allows for reliable prophecy, since we can look back and examine the hallmark events of individual Heavens
of prior Underworlds and expect that similar events are likely to occur in the corresponding
Heavens of future Underworlds. These correlations will be examined in greater detail shortly.
Additionally, time accelerates by a factor of twenty as we move from one Underworld into its
subsequent phase. Thus, in the National Sixth Underworld, beginning about 5,000 years ago,
each of the Thirteen Heavens was approximately 400 years in duration. In the Seventh, Planetary Underworld, beginning in 1775, each of the Thirteen Heavens spans approximately 20
years, and in our current Galactic, Eighth, Underworld, which we entered in 1999, each Heaven
lasts a single year (Calleman 2001, 2004).
These sequential Nine Underworlds overlap in a consistent pattern, such that each subsequent Underworld begins in the final, Thirteenth, Heaven of the one preceding it, forming a
series of nine overlapping steps. Because of this stepwise construction, each lower Underworld
can be thought of as existing in the “unconscious” of the ensuing higher one.
– The Nine Underworlds –
Calleman named each of the Nine Underworlds in keeping with the defining development of
that Underworld, usually evidenced in its final, Thirteenth Heaven. Very briefly, the fabrics of the
Underworlds alternate between unity (light) in the odd-numbered cycles, and duality (dark) in the
even-numbered. Within and among the unitary Underworlds there is, generally, a lack of emphasis
on differences and a resulting predominance of peace, while within and among the dual Underworlds, differences are emphasized and conflict predominates. A brief description of each Underworld follows:
– First Underworld: Cellular –
The First, unitary, Underworld began 16.4 billion years ago and commenced a step-wise evolution of the physical universe which encompassed the creation of galaxies, stars, and planets, as well as
the evolution of chemical elements. By the Thirteenth Heaven of this first creation cycle, the universe
reached a sufficient level of complexity/consciousness to create and sustain higher cellular life. From
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this point evolution proceeded quite rapidly, and evidenced the unmistakable markings of a cosmic
or divine plan – a design that became increasingly legible in each subsequent Underworld.
– Second Underworld: Mammalian –
The dualistic Mammalian Underworld began approximately 820 million years ago, during the
Thirteenth Heaven of the Cellular Underworld. The level of cellular development reached in the
prior Underworld spurred the evolutionary process that generated multi-cellular organisms, a continental structure, and plant kingdom. One of the most significant developments during this dualistic
Underworld was the advent of sexual polarity (duality). These advances culminated in the emergence
of higher mammalian consciousness and the instinctually based sexual/aggressive behaviors that
became characteristic at this level.
– Third Underworld: Familial –
Primate consciousness began to emerge 40 million years ago, during the Thirteenth Heaven
of the Mammalian Underworld. This Underworld gave rise to lemurs, monkeys, and the Australopithecines -- the precursors of hominid consciousness. The Australopithecines had the ability to walk
upright and to use primitive tools. Their social organization likely took the form of large families,
predominately peaceful in nature because of the unitary character of this Underworld. At this level
we can discern more obvious roots of human evolution.
– Fourth Underworld: Tribal –
The Tribal Underworld began approximately two million years ago and resulted in the evolution
of hominid consciousness; true prototypical human beings who had the ability to use complex tools
and rudimentary oral communication. Calleman (2004) considered this Underworld to be dualistic
and to have given rise to the instinctual origin of social polarities observed in later Underworlds, such
as racial, national, ethnic and religious oppositions. What we can distinguish here are the archetypal
roots of dualistic ego consciousness which does not emerge until the Sixth, dualistic, Underworld –
the beginning of the modern historical period.
– Fifth Underworld: Regional –
The unitary Regional Underworld that started approximately 102,000 years ago represents a
critical turning point. The Underworlds that do and will ascend from the Fourth Underworld engender a progressively increasing human consciousness and the development of greater and greater
capability for us to function as co-creators with the Creation.
Diversified languages developed during this Underworld, as well as our ability to create sophisticated art and tools. Social organization centered in regional cultures and corresponded, according to
Calleman (2004), to the proverbial Garden of Eden. Presumably, human beings lived in egalitarian
communities that spanned the period of the Ice Age to the development of farming, considered by
many scholars to be the single most significant development in human culture.
This idyllic situation, however, was not meant to last. As we will examine in the section on
the Thirteen Heavens, toward the end of the Regional Underworld, and particularly during the
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Thirteenth Heaven, a series of changes unfolded which altered the order of the world, and set the
stage for the violence that plagues us even now.
– The Shooting of Seven-Macaw and the Fall of Adam and Eve –
In Mayan Mythology Seven-Macaw represents the unitary Light of the Regional Underworld
that had to be deposed by the Twins, Hunahpu/Xbalanque -- who represent duality -- so that the
Light-Dark polarity of the National Underworld could come to predominance. The period ruled
by Seven-Macaw in many ways seems to have been fairly tranquil. But this idyllic, paradisiacal era
was destined to elapse to make way for greater evolutionary development (Calleman 2001).
In the Biblical myth of the Garden of Eden, the serpent’s role is to introduce duality to humanity. After “eating the fruit,” Adam and Eve became aware of the dualities of good and evil,
of masculinity and femininity. That the myth illustrates this introduction of duality is underscored
by the correlative Fall at 3761 B.C.E. in the Jewish tradition, and also corresponds to the date set
by the Maya for the defeat of Seven-Macaw in 3149 B.C.E. The vanquishing of Seven-Macaw,
according to the inscriptions of Palenque, set the stage for the new creation and the new duality of
the National Underworld (Calleman 2001).
In the Jewish-Christian myth the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden is,
however, portrayed as an act of God to punish them for their sinful act of eating from the forbidden
fruit. This supposedly was the reason that all women were later to give birth in pain and resulted in
an “original sin” that all mankind has inherited. In the perspective we are developing here such an
interpretation seems almost ridiculous and seems to serve nothing but instill fear in people. Rather
than some original sin, or an inherent evil in women, it seems that the step out of the Garden of
Eden was a step very much intended by the divine plan. Also, from the perspective of theology this
is an important discovery. Countless generations of human beings, and in particular women, have
been told that they are in this world because they did something wrong, or in fact that by their very
nature they are wrong, since an original sin cannot be corrected. Many verses of the Bible tend
to demean women. Many have thought it wrong to seek knowledge (because Adam and Eve ate
from the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge and supposedly were punished for it) and many have
thought that human beings, just by being here, just by being human, have done something wrong,
something sinful. (Calleman 2001). – Sixth Underworld: National –
The National Underworld is known as the Long Count. It began in 3115 BCE—traditionally 3114 BCE—in the Thirteenth Heaven of the Regional Underworld, and continues for 5,125
years. Again, it marks the beginning of the historical period, the birth of the ego, rise of patriarchy,
advent of organized warfare, and mankind’s mythical expulsion from the Garden of Eden. During
this Underworld humanity underwent the evolution of patriarchal civilization, written language,
major constructions, historical religions, science, fine art, and social organization from regions into
nations.
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According to Calleman, the National Underworld is dualist and favors the geographic and
metaphoric West, masculine consciousness, and the left-brain qualities of thought, analysis and discrimination/separation. These exist in the light or “yang” field of perception, as do their primary
expressions of science, Protestant Christianity, and capitalism. The more feminine qualities associated with the right brain—intuition, feeling, and synthesis (holistic perception)—were filtered out
and repressed, relegating them to unconscious or “inferior” status. In this new frame of consciousness, women, children, animals, and Nature were also demoted and relegated to the dark or “yin”
field of perception. As this Underworld proceeded “the living contact with the divine was gradually
lost, and spirituality turned into religion.” (Calleman 2004, italics added)
One of Calleman’s most interesting ideas is that what we call “mind” is impersonal and
changes as we move from Underworld to Underworld. That is, the mind that provides the structuring of our thoughts and perceptions is not, in fact, personal and fixed, but is disguised to appear so
to us. In the dualist National Underworld, the human mind conforms to what we commonly think
of as “ego mind”—producing a steady stream of chatter comprised of comments, evaluations,
judgments, discriminations.
These judgments and evaluations always lead the modern mind to look for something wrong,
either in you, somebody else, or the situation. This mind cannot rest in the present; instead it oscillates between past and future, always looking for ways to change things. It isn’t intent on being, but
becoming and so leaves no room for peace and satisfaction (Calleman, 2004).
The Fall, then, might be thought of as a fall from the state of wholeness experienced in the
Regional Underworld. This wholeness, however, was not a state of enlightenment as we conceive
of it, but a state of connectedness with Nature and the body—a state of pre-egoic embeddedness,
rather than trans-egoic enlightenment, to use Ken Wilber’s terminology (Wilber, 1981). It was not
yet capable of reflexive consciousness. This developed during the course of the National Underworld.
Among the costs of dualistic/reflexive consciousness—the emphasis on left-hemispheric
dominance we commonly call “ego”—has been the propagation of a profound sense of incompleteness, a basic dissatisfaction with existence that has emerged in the course of the National Underworld. Rooted in our sense of “half-ness,” this unease emerges from the progressive filtering out
of the right-brain mode of consciousness and all it carries. Something always seems to be missing,
but because the mind is accepted as “normal” and more or less eternal, it is not clear to us what we
lack. This leads to the conclusion that there is something wrong with us, others, or with the world.
The dominance of the duality of the National Underworld also leads us to make constant
comparisons, evaluations, and judgments of others and ourselves, and thus we are not able to be
fully present as complete beings. To the individual the mind is invisible, much like water to a fish.
The mind’s response to the half-ness that the ruling frame of consciousness has generated is to suggest things for the individual to “become” or to change things in the external world. It is not to find
peace (Calleman, 2004).
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chapter one
– Seventh Underworld: Planetary –
The Planetary Underworld lasts 256 years, 1/20th the duration of the National Underworld, and consequently functions at twenty times the frequency; that is, time speeds up twentyfold. From its commencement in 1755, the Planetary Underworld has been both unitary and
what Calleman (2001) calls “blindfolded.” Its unitary quality indicates an evolutionary trend
toward the striving for planetary accord, but its “blindfoldedness” implies a blocked channel
to the spiritual light. This age marked the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, initiated by
Watt’s invention of the steam engine in 1769. In Europe, the beginning of this Underworld witnessed the emergence of the Enlightenment, democracy, the beginnings of a world-view, and a
revolutionary new form of communication.
During the National Underworld, with its relatively slow 400-year rhythm from one Heaven to the next, communication by written message was sufficiently effective. Couriers could
travel from one nation to another in a few days, which was in keeping with the cadence of our
needs. In the Planetary Underworld, with its twenty-fold increase in time rate, the dispatching
of papers was no longer a sufficiently fleet means of communication. A planetary telecommunication system began to develop that used electricity to markedly accelerate the speed of communication. Virtually unknown in the National Underworld, electrical communication became
the dominant mode of communication (Calleman 2004).
During the Planetary Underworld, great strides were made on the material plane of existence, such as the development of modern science and technology. But because of the period’s
blindfolded nature, humans lost much of their prior contact with divine reality; strong agnostic
and atheistic sentiments rose to the forefront. The material aspects of reality, such as personal
and industrial gain, came to predominate, while religion took a unequivocal back seat to these
concerns. The unitary frame of consciousness mediated by this Underworld also mitigated prior
tendencies to make firm distinctions between people, thereby decreasing inequality. Women began to emerge as a political force in the mid-Eighteenth Century, children were acknowledged as
having special needs, and slavery in Europe was outlawed with the appearance of democracy.
The Divine plan fostered the development of democracy; a first step in the achievement of
full human equality that Calleman (2005) believes will be realized in the Universal Underworld.
In the National Underworld such equality did not exist. People were born into fixed classes,
where they remained for their entire lives, as is still the case in some parts of the world. The
French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars shook the royal houses of Europe. World War I
brought further collapse to the established order, replacing several European monarchies with
democracies. This is not to say that Napoleon and the WWI generals strived to advance democratic goals. Napoleon, in fact, had aspirations of presiding over a European empire, anointing
himself as its sovereign emperor. The phenomenon of individuals unknowingly serving the divine plan occurs, as will be shown, quite frequently in our history.
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Because Underworlds overlap, earlier ones can and do influence the expression of later
ones, particularly the next one in sequence. When the blindfolded and materialistic consciousness of the Planetary Underworld was mingled with the dualistic National Underworld with its
sense of half-ness or incompleteness, compensation for this sense of deficiency was sought in the
material world. Rather than experiencing the incompleteness as spiritual, and seeking wholeness
of self, individuals sought to increase their sense of self through material accumulation, professional degrees, and societal power and position. These identifications made them believe they
felt important.
The attainment of wealth, prestige, and the like, however, can only have a temporary soothing effect and can never provide true completion or full satisfaction. It is simply a compensatory
strategy for a mind that is not whole.
Moreover, this partial mind will not last, since it is always being transformed by the energies of the cosmic plan. Even with those who seem to have “made it”, there is usually a strong
unconscious fear linked to the fact that, with a yin/yang (light/dark) polarity that is not permanent, our place in the light can never be taken for granted. Feeling good, being happy, or “living
in the light” does not mean the same thing as being enlightened. It only means that we, at least
temporarily, perceive ourselves as being in the yang aspect of the polarity dominating our mind
(Calleman, 2004).
– Eighth Underworld: Galactic –
The Galactic Underworld began in 1999 and continues for 4,680 days. It is a dualist underworld that favors the geographic and metaphoric East and the right-brain hemisphere. This
step is designed to remedy the 5,000 yearlong imbalance created by the National Underworld,
which cast its light on and empowered the West and left-brain hemisphere. It is no wonder that
Calleman refers to the Galactic Underworld as the Apocalypse: in fewer than 5,000 days an
imbalance persisting for over 5,000 years must be corrected. The dominance of the West over
the East and the masculine left-brain consciousness over the more feminine qualities mediated
by the right brain, particularly in the 400 year period of the Thirteenth Heaven of the National
Underworld, will likely come to an abrupt end.
The dualist nature of the Galactic Underworld suggests a dramatic rise in hostilities between
East and West, much of which has come to dominate the news in the middle of this Underworld.
We appear to have entered WWIII, in which the number of survivors is highly questionable.
Also, because the Galactic Underworld is dualist, there is the promise of the increased recognition of spiritual aspects of reality—and not the separate/male god-concept characteristic of the
National Underworld. Coupled with this is an Information Technology (IT) Revolution whose
impact is as profound as that of the Industrial Revolution of the early Planetary Underworld.
Calleman (2004) speculates that these technologically- and economically important advances
of IT will begin to ebb as the Galactic Underworld proceeds, wherein the reliance on material
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chapter one
NATIONAL
PLANETARY
GALACTIC
UNIVERSAL
13 baktun
5,125 years
13 Days / Nights
of 394.3 years
13 katun
256 years
13 Days / Nights
of 19.7 years
13 tun
12.8 years
13 Days / Nights
of 360 days
13 uinal
260 days
13 Days / Nights
of 20 days
Aug. 11, 3115 2721 BCE
July 24, 1755 1775
Jan. 5, 1999 Dec. 31, 1999
Feb. 11, 2011 March 3
2721 - 2326
1775 - 1794
Dec. 31, 1999 Dec. 25, 2000
March 3 March 23
2326 - 1932
1794 - 1814
Dec. 31, 1999 Dec. 20, 2001
March 23 April 12
1932 - 1538
1814 - 1834
Dec. 20, 2001 Dec. 15, 2002
April 12 May 2
1538 - 1144
1834 - 1854
Dec. 15, 2002 Dec. 10, 2003
May 2 May 22
1144 - 749
1854 - 1873
Dec. 10, 2003 Dec. 4, 2004
May 22 June 11
749 - 355
1873 - 1893
Dec. 4, 2004 Nov. 29, 2005
June 11 July 1
Night 4 is Heaven 8
Expansion of New Wave
Tialoc, god of rain & war
355 - 40 CE
1893 - 1913
Nov. 29, 2005 Nov. 24, 2006
July 1 july 21
Day 5 is Heaven 9
Budding
Quetzalcoatl, god of light
40 - 434
1913 - 1932
Nov. 24, 2006 Nov. 19, 2007
July. 21 Aug. 10
434 - 829
1932 - 1952
829 - 1223
1952 - 1972
Nov. 13, 2008 Nov. 8, 2009
Aug. 30 Sept. 19
1223 - 1617
1972 - 1992
Nov. 8, 2009 Nov. 3, 2010
Sept. 19 Oct. 9
1617 Oct. 28, 2011
1992 Oct. 28, 2011
Nov. 3, 2010 Oct. 28, 2011
Oct. 9 Oct. 28, 2011
Underworld
Ruling Energy
Day 1 is Heaven 1
Sowing
Xiuhtecuhtli,
god of fire & time
Night 1 is Heaven 2
Inner Assimilation
of New Wave
Tlaltecuhtli, god of earth
Day 2 is Heaven 3
Germination
Chalchiuhtlicue,
goddess of water
Night 2 is Heaven 4
Resistance Against
New Wave
Tonatiuh, god of the sun
& the warriors
Day 3 is Heaven 5
Sprouting
Tlacoteotl, goddess of
love & childbirth
Night 3 is Heaven 6
Assimilation of New Wave
Mictlantechutil, god of death
Day 4 is Heaven 7
Proliferation
Cinteotl, god of
maize & sustenance
Night 5 is Heaven 10
Destruction
Tezcatlipoca,
god of darkness
Day 6 is Heaven 11
Flowering
Yohalticitl,
goddess of birth
Night 6 is Heaven 12
Fine tuning of New Protoform
Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli,
god before dawn
Day 7 is Heaven 13
Fruition
Ometeotl/Omecinatl,
Dual-Creator God
Nov. 19, 2007 Nov. 13, 2008
Aug. 10 Aug. 30
The Calleman’s Matrix, a prophecy chart showing the periods of rule by the thirteen deities
(energies) in the four highest Underworlds. This chart may be used for encyclopedic studies of
the evolution of all aspects of human history. It also provides a basic matrix for prophecy.
(fig. 2)
-9-
technology will be replaced by intuition and telepathy. With regard to this it is interesting to
note that, here in the middle of the Fifth Day, or Ninth Heaven, of the Galactic Underworld,
significant information has come into the public awareness regarding the deleterious effects of
electronic pollution, which will likely bring an end to the exploitation of Nature based purely
on the economic considerations of the left-brain hemisphere. The fact is that we can no longer
deny the existence of a living cosmos without facing a costly backlash of momentous proportion
(Calleman 2004). In this regard a frightening phenomenon of enormous consequence is taking
shape: the mass death of honeybees. This has been called “colony collapse disorder,” and could
potentially lead to massive crop failures and wide spread starvation. The ubiquity of cellular
phones is suspected be a significant catalyst in weakening the bees’ immune system, making the
bee population susceptible to a variety of diseases it could previously fend off.
On the positive side, the frame of human consciousness is also broadening. The historical
national, political and economic boundaries are dissolving, in spite of obvious resistance from
those who are most attached to such boundaries. As this Underworld proceeds, the current materialist civilization will, according to Calleman (2004), crumble, but not without a great deal of
opposition.
– Ninth Underworld: Universal –
The Universal Underworld synthesizes and balances all of the influences from the prior
eight Underworlds. It is at this time that humanity is predicted to attain a consciousness that is
both unitary and enlightened. The Christian Book of Revelation refers to this time as “a new
Heaven and a new Earth”—a time of enlightenment. Similarly, the Hindu Kali Yuga—the
darkest of the four Yugas, or epochs, which comprise a complete cycle of Earth existence—is
believed to have commenced at the onset of the National Underworld and is expected to end at
approximately the same time (2011-2012). The Kali Yuga will be followed by the Satya Yuga,
the first in the sequence of four Yugas believed to be a time of universal enlightenment.
In the Universal Underworld the ego is transcended. Compellingly, a number of Hindu
scholars I have consulted, as well as the Divine Mother, Mata Amritanandamayi, consider the
ego to be the equivalent of Satan or “the Devil.”
– Brief Overview of the Thirteen Heavens –
As detailed, each Underworld is divided into thirteen time segments called Heavens. These
correspond to the seven Days and six Nights of creation depicted in the Book of Genesis. The seven odd-numbered Heavens (1,3,5,7,9,11,13) are referred to as Days, while the six even-numbered
Heavens are known as Nights (2,4,6,8,10,12). Figure 2 presents The Calleman Matrix from The
Mayan Calendar and the Transformation of Consciousness. At the top of Figure 2 are the four
Underworlds that embrace what is commonly known as the “historical period,” along with the
time spans of the Heavens in each respective Underworld. Along the first vertical column, what
Calleman calls the Ruling Energy, are the Aztec names for the ruling deities or energies of each
-10-
of the Heavens, since the Mayan names are no longer known. The sequence of the Thirteen
Heavens and ruling energies or deities is identical for every Underworld. It rests upon this fact
that prophecy is made possible. The odd-numbered Heavens, or Days, are not shaded, while
the even numbered Heavens, Nights, are shaded. Thus, in the Galactic Underworld, the Ninth
Heaven is equivalent to the Fifth Day and extends from November 24, 2006 to November 19,
2007; and the Tenth Heaven is the equivalent to the Fifth Night and extends from November
19, 2007 to November 13, 2008. Note that the deities ruling the odd-numbered Heavens are, for
the most part, more nurturing than those ruling the even-numbered Heavens, which generally
appear to be more war-like. For example, Quetzalcoatl, god of light, rules the Ninth Heaven
(Fifth Day), while Tezcatlipoca, the god of darkness, rules the Tenth Heaven (Fifth Night). It is
important to remember that, within any given Underworld, each of the Thirteen Heavens has
the same term. However, the time duration decreases from Underworld to Underworld, such
that the span of the Heavens within each subsequent Underworld is 1/20th the length of those
within the preceding Underworld. Time speeds up exponentially as we ascend the pyramid of
Underworlds.
We will now examine the evolutionary progression of two fundamental phenomena through
the Heavens of the National Underworld—the emergence of modern civilization (including
writing and communication), and the development of the god-concept—and then examine their
further evolution through the Planetary and Galactic Underworlds.
– The Evolution of Modern Civilization During the National Underworld –
Based on pyramid and stele inscriptions, the beginning of the National Underworld, adjusted to the Gregorian Calendar, has been calculated to have begun August 11, 3114 B.C.E.,
with each of its Heavens lasting 394.3 years. Although most traditional archeologists view this
date as essentially meaningless outside of the local culture of the Maya, Calleman presents a
wealth of data supporting the notion that the Mayan Calendar has relevance for the entire
planet. This will become more apparent as we proceed.
The central themes of each Underworld are actualized toward the end of the one preceding it, and for the dualist National Underworld it became inarguably apparent toward the end
of the Thirteenth Heaven of the Regional Underworld that the emerging central themes were
war and the domination of the feminine by the masculine. This transition from human prehistory’s peaceful, egalitarian, Neolithic culture, rooted in Nature and Goddess worship, to the one
of masculine domination and war characteristic of historical times, is brilliantly developed in
Riane Eisler’s The Chalice and the Blade (1987).
In her cultural transformation theory, Eisler provides a wealth of evidence that, beneath
the seeming diversity of human culture, lie two fundamental societal models. The first is what
she calls the dominator model, which involves the ranking of one half of humanity over the
other, whether patriarchal or matriarchal. She describes the second as the partnership mode in
which social relations are primarily based on the principle of linking rather than ranking.
-11-
In this model diversity does not involve classification in terms of superiority or inferiority.
Eisler’s theory further proposes that the roots of our present global crisis are tied to a fundamental shift in our prehistory—a period of chaos and cultural disruption that left in its wake
enormous technological- as well as cultural change.
This was the shift in emphasis from technologies that sustain and enhance life to the technologies symbolized by the blade: technologies designed to destroy and dominate. This has been
the technological emphasis through most of recorded history. And it is the technological emphasis rather than the technology per se, that today threatens all life on our globe (Eisler, 1987).
The net result has been a 5,000-year-long bloody detour from the original partnership
standard of Western culture that developed between 7,000 B.C.E. and 3,500 B.C.E. The data,
according to Eisler, reveals what she refers to as “one of the best kept historical secrets”—that
“practically all the material and social technologies fundamental to civilization were developed
before the imposition of a dominator society.” In other words, war is not the spur to technological- and cultural advance that many have believed it to be. For example, prior to approximately
7,000 years ago, peace and prosperity appeared to reign in the Old Neolithic cultures of the
Near East. The art of the time reflected a notable absence of war imagery, such as bloody conquests and slaves in chains. Invaders, however, began appearing around the periphery of these
cultures about 7,000 years ago. As these invaders grew in numbers and ferocity, not only the art
but the entire fabric of Old Neolithic culture began to reflect the influence of these disruptive
forces, which ultimately supplanted the cooperative/partnership social model and Goddess worship with the male dominator model and gods of war.
Eisler cites archeological research that traces three waves of migratory steppe pastoralists
or “Kurgan” tribes that swept across prehistoric Europe. These migratory disruptions and population shifts were concentrated in three major periods: Wave No. 1, circa 4300-4200 B.C.E.;
Wave No. 2, circa 3400-3200 B.C.E.; and Wave No. 3, circa 3000-2800 B.C.E. The Kurgans,
according to Eisler’s research, were Indo-European or Aryan language-speaking stock—later
identified by Nietzsche and Hitler as the only pure European race. They were, notably, not the
original Europeans, as they derived from the Asiatic and European Northeast. These tribes were
dominated by powerful warrior priests and worshiped male gods of war and mountains. They
were known as Aryans in India; Hittites and Mittani in the Fertile Crescent; Kurgans in Eastern
Europe; and Achaeans, and later Dorians, in Greece. They were brutal conquerors that forcefully imposed their ideologies on whomever they subjugated (Eisler, 1987).
Another of the nomadic invaders was a Semitic people we call the Hebrews. They came
from the southern deserts and invaded Canaan, which was later called Palestine, to master the
Philistines who lived in the area. Modern Christianity and Judaism obscure the historical fact
that the original early Semites were ruled by a caste of warrior priests—the Levite tribe of Moses, Aaron, and Joshua—who, like the Indo-Europeans, brought with them belief in a fierce,
angry god of war (Jehovah or Yaweh).
-12-
chapter one
In the Old Testament we read how Jehovah’s orders to destroy, plunder, and kill were faithfully
carried out—orders that were seeded with important ethical precepts and mystical truths. What we
find in the Judeo-Christian Bible, however, is primarily a compilation of myths and laws designed to
impose and maintain a dominator system of social and economic organization. A system in which
male dominance, violence, and male hierarchic authority is the norm. In contrast to the societies
of the Regional Underworld that laid the foundation for Western civilization, the male dominator
societies acquired material wealth by employing more effective technologies of destruction, rather
than by developing more effective technologies of production.
Thus in war and blood modern history began. Plainly, the seeds sown in the first Heaven of
the National Underworld were those of domination and war—deified male rulers and a hierarchal
class system based on male supremacy dictated a consciousness based on judgment, discrimination,
and evaluation. This legacy is with us to this day, and will only be overcome when the dominator
model that spawned it is finally transcended. Referring to this time, philosopher Ken Wilber (1981)
wrote, “A mentality dominated by conflict, the development of metal weapons, organized warfare
and its glorification, and self-valuation based on prowess and domination clearly indicated a Fall had
occurred.”
Despite this, some of the greatest of human accomplishments occurred during the First Heaven of the National Underworld—from 3115 B.C.E. to 2721 B.C.E. For example, Lower and Upper
Egypt were unified in about 3100 B.C.E., creating the world’s first nation ruled by the first pharaoh.
The Egyptians regarded this unification as the fruit of divine intervention, and saw the beginning
of the Long Count as a feat of Cosmic creation brought about by the gods, as later did the Maya—
suggesting a Cosmic creation plan that governs the historical process (Calleman 2004). Also, in the
First Heaven a number of monumental constructions were erected: the pyramid of Djoser, the
oldest pyramid in Egypt, was constructed about 2975 B.C.E.; Stonehenge, the Sumerian pyramids,
and Ireland’s large Newgrange structure, somewhat earlier. The Sphinx was rendered toward the
end of the First Heaven (2773 B.C.E.), and the great pyramid of Giza was completed later during
the Second Heaven (2560 B.C.E.).
The sudden onset of modern historical civilization has baffled historians. When viewed in accordance with Mayan Calendar and the idea of the existence of a Cosmic time plan, however, the
suddenness is less mysterious. Seen according to the progression of the Thirteen Heavens, modern
civilization, as well as other fundamental aspects of human existence, has developed over a series of
steps, starting with the sowing of seeds in the First Heaven and forging to fruition by the Thirteenth.
Thus, the invocation of extraterrestrial astronauts (Sitchin, 1976) or other fantastical influences to
account for the rapid development of civilization is not necessary.
One of the major factors that illustrates the divergence between the prehistoric period of
the Regional Underworld and the historical period is the invention of writing. Writing recruits the
left hemisphere of the brain and the more “masculine” mode of consciousness -- linear thinking,
logic, discrimination, and abstract conceptualization. This is not to say that such capabilities did not
-13-
chapter one
Heaven /
Growth Stage
Ruling
Aztec Deity
Time
Span
Heaven 1
Sowing
Xiuhtecuhtli,
god of fire
& time
3115 2721 BCE
First Sumerian logograms on
clay tablets (3200 BCE); Egyptian
hieroglyphs (3100 BCE)
Heaven 3
Germination
Chalchiuhtlicue,
goddess of water
2326 1932 BCE
Gradual development of
Mesopotamian cuneiform
Heaven 5
Sprouting
Tlacoteotl,
goddess of love
& childbirth
1538 1144 BCE
Consonant alphabetis writing
in Canaan (1600 BCE); Chinese
writing in the Shang Dynasty
(1538 BCE)
Heaven 7
Proliferation
Cinteotl,
god of maize
& sustenance
749 355 BCE
Complete alphabetic writing
in Greece and Etruria
(750 BCE)
Heaven 9
Budding
Quetzalcoatl,
god of light
40 434 BCE
Papyrus codices in Rome (70 CE);
Paper invented in China (105 CE);
Mayan writing (250 CE)
Heaven 11
Flowering
Yohalticitl,
goddess of birth
829 1223 BCE
First book, The Diamond Sutra
printed in China
(868 CE)
Heaven 13
Fruition
Ometeotl/Omecinatl,
Dual-Creator God
1617 2011 CE
First daily newspapers in Holland
(1618); First national mail service
in Denmark (1624 CE);
Development
Steps in the development of written communication during the odd-numbered
Heavens of the Great Cycle (Calleman 2004)
(fig. 3)
-14-
exist in individuals in the Regional Underworld, as this kind of consciousness would have been
necessary to create the complex societies of the time. In the National Underworld, however, this
perspective began to dominate and suppress the intuitive/feeling, more “feminine” properties.
The Sumerians, who lived in what we presently call Iraq, began to use writing—logograms on
clay tablets—just before the beginning of the Long Count, which coincides with the beginning of
human history and the birth of the ego. Calleman (2004) notes that the development of writing
also had some negative consequences, notably an inability to live in the present due to the marked
increase in the rate of change associated with the new Underworld. Writing developed in response
to the need to preserve information, as did the construction of pyramids and monuments, which
were built in part to immortalize the pharaohs. Calleman (2004) notes that concerns about having
an impact on future generations does not arise in a timeless culture, but only in one in which linear,
cumulative time has supplanted the eternal present.
Figure 3 illustrates the evolution of writing during the odd-numbered Heavens of the National Underworld, depicting the progression from its initial sowing to fruition. Calleman chose
to focus on the odd-numbered Heavens because the ruling deities of these most facilitate the
growth of seed to fruit. This suggests that innovations are the issue of spiritual energies nurturing creativity working through individuals, rather than the isolated advance or chance discovery
of individuals per se.
This further implies that the Long Count embodies the historical evolution of the whole
planet, rather than just the Maya: “Thus advances in writing were made in several different locations, first in Egypt and Sumer, through several significant steps taken in China, to northern and
northwestern Europe at its fruition. The civilization evolution of seed to fruit nurtured by the thirteen Heavens can thus be followed only in a global context.” (Calleman 2004)
The historical evolution of writing depicted in Figure 3 further augurs a cyclical evolution of
human creativity. Significant innovations in writing occurred close to the beginning of the oddnumbered Heavens, where the even-numbered Heavens in between provided periods of rest—
thus creating an oscillation resulting in a cyclical wave movement of history. Such cycles, however,
are not mere endless repetitions as are astronomical cycles. The cyclical progression is more a spiral
of evolution, a step-wise accession of the levels of consciousness, which are nurtured particularly
by the seven odd-numbered Heavens.
– The Evolution of the Western God-Concept –
Through the Heavens of the National Underworld
What we think of as God changes from Underworld to Underworld. During the Regional
Underworld Goddess worship prevailed, and human beings were deeply connected to Nature
and the more feminine/life-giving aspects of existence. This was all to change with the Kurgan
invasions and the advent and progression of the National, dualistic, Underworld. During the Thirteenth Heaven of the Regional Underworld, and continuing on through the beginning of the
-15-
National Underworld, a radical reversal occurred, not only in terms of social organization, but also
in how Spirit was perceived.
According to Eisler (1987), humanity’s greatest calamity occurred amid the violent transformation of society in our prehistory—dwarfing all other human trials such as the fall of the
Roman Empire, the Dark Ages, the Plague, the World Wars, and other times of chaos. Now,
thousands of years later, Eisler sees the opportunity for a second major societal shift, from the
millennia-long dominator model to an advanced version of the partnership model. It is interesting to note how this is reflected in Calleman’s view of the Galactic Underworld, which calls for
a balancing back from the male-dominated consciousness of the past thousands of years. Both
view this as an evolutionary crossroads where the survival of our entire species is at stake.
Religion reflects social organization. This is because it is a man-made creation that is purported to be of Divine origin, whose primary purpose is to serve as a social “glue” and, typically,
as a repressive policing system to ensure collective hegemony. In the Old Testament story of Cain
and Abel, for example, Cain is considered the “evil” brother, while Abel is “good.” In fact, according to Eisler, the conflict between Cain and Abel symbolizes the confrontation of a pastoral
people (exemplified by Abel’s offering of his slaughtered sheep) and an agrarian people (illustrated in Cain’s offering of the “fruits of the ground”), in Jehovah’s acceptance of the slaughtered
sheep and rejection of the fruits. Jehovah, we must remember, is the pastoral/Hebrew god of war,
volcano and mountain, who was created by the pastoral priests to reflect, support, and perpetuate
the male dominator social structure.
The Neolithic mind recognized the oneness with all Nature that lies at the heart of Goddess
worship, and this perspective could not be embraced within the new dominator system. Force
was not enough to bring this mind in line with the new philosophy. Only a complete transformation of the way people perceive and process reality would suffice. Eisler’s work delineates the
massive physical and psychological destruction involved in this process—one that continued well
into historic times. The dominator priests of the three major religions originating in the Middle
East engaged in the systematic destruction of pagan holy sites and “heretics.” The message was
simple: convert or die.
The re-interpretation of the most sacred symbol of the Goddess—the serpent—by the
dominator priests confirms the clever insidiousness of this process. The image would either have
to be appropriated by the male rulers or discredited or destroyed as a viable symbol of the Goddess. In the myth of Adam and Eve, the serpent represents the ancient prophetic symbol of the
Goddess, who advises the prototypical woman, Eve, to disobey a male god’s commands. Her
“sin” was her refusal to give up Goddess worship and to go to the source of knowledge. “And
because she—the first symbolic woman—clung to the old faith more tenaciously than did Adam,
who only followed her lead, her punishment was to be more dreadful. Henceforth she was to
submit to all things.” (Eisler, 1987) Thus the demonizing of the serpent and of women was a
means of discrediting the Goddess. Eisler also points out the irony in the doctrine that woman do
-16-
chapter one
Heaven Number
Growth Stage
Time Span
West / America
Central / Europe
Heaven 1
Sowing
3115 - 2721 BCE
East / Asia
Sumer’s An
Heaven 2
2721 - 2326 BCE
Abraham’s
move to Canaan
(2300 BCE)
Heaven 3
Germination
2326 - 1932 BCE
Heaven 4
1932 - 1538 BCE
Moses
(1480 BCE)
Traditional Chinese
(Shang);
Vedic tradition
Zapotec
Tzolkin
(C. 550 BCE)
Isaiah (748 BCE)
Zoroaster (C. 550 BCE)
Deutero-Isaiah (C. 550 BCE)
Pythagoras (C. 550 BCE)
Lao-tzu;
Buddha (C. 552 BCE)
Reincarnation in India;
Confuscius (C. 551 BCE)
Quetzalcoatl
in Teotihuacán
Jesus / Paul (33-37 CE)
Christianity
Talmudic Judaism
Buddhism in China;
(60 BCE)
Heaven 5
Sprouting
1538 - 1144 BCE
Heaven 6
1144 - 749 BCE
Heaven 7
Proliferation
749 - 355 BCE
Heaven 8
355 BCE - 40 CE
Heaven 9
Budding
40 - 434 CE
Islam
(632 CE)
Heaven 10
434 - 829 CE
Heaven 11
Flowering
829 - 1223 CE
Second
Quetzalcoatl
in Chichén Itzá
and Tula
Expansion of
Christianity to northern
and eastern Europe;
Crusades;
Height of papal power
Heaven 12
1223 - 1617 CE
Heaven 13
Fruition
1617 - 2011 CE
Second wave
of Islam
Expansion of Christianity;
English Pilgrims
(1620)
Evolution of the historical religions,
especially during the odd-numbered Heavens of the Great Cycle
(fig. 4)
-17-
not partake in Divinity by noting that much of Hebrew mythology was drawn from the Goddessworshiping Mesopotamians and Canaanites, and that long after the Hebrew invasions of Canaan
the Hebrews themselves continued to worship the Goddess.
Thus, by the time of the First Heaven of the National Underworld the stage had been set.
The progression of the god-concept over the thirteen Heavens is depicted in Figure 4, adopted
from Calleman (2004). Note that, as in the case of the development of writing, the odd-numbered Heavens are times of significant advances, while the even-numbered Heavens are times of
integration. Because of the dualistic nature of the National Underworld that favored the masculine mode of consciousness and the left-brain qualities of judgment, discrimination (separating),
and hierarchal ranking, the god-concept we developed is reflective of these qualities.
Figure 4 traces the evolution of the Chaldean (Sumerian)-Jewish-Christian god-concept, the
tradition with the greatest number of adherents, which dominated not only the Western Hemisphere but other parts of the world, as well. Beginning in the First Heaven, the Sumerians worshiped An, whom they believed was an omnipotent god of heaven. He was considered by the
Sumerians, and later the Assyrians and Babylonians, to be a sky god -- king of gods, spirits and
demons -- who had the power to judge those who committed crimes. Although considered king
of the gods, he shared his place with a number of other gods. This construct changed during the
Third Heaven, when the biblical patriarchs brought the belief in their Creator God from Chaldea
to Canaan, thereby reducing the role of the extended pantheon, and solidifying the concept of
the single, omnipotent, god and the doctrine of monotheism. It was during the Fifth Heaven that
a consistent monotheist creed emerged and brought forth Jehovah, the jealous, female-subjugating
God of Moses, and deemed him the God.
Religious propaganda has elevated and identified the Judeo-Christian viewpoint as humanity’s greatest moral and ethical advance. What is ethical and moral in a dominator society,
however, is not the same as, or even similar to, what is ethical and moral in a society based on
partnership. As an example of this, Eisler (1987) cites Old Testament scripture regarding the fall
of Midian:
Having slain all the adult males, the ancient Hebrew invaders “took all the women of Midian
captives, and their little ones.” And now they were told by Moses that this was the command of the
Lord: “Kill every male among the little ones and every woman who hath known man by lying with
him, but all the women children who have not known a man by lying with him, keep them alive for
yourselves.
It is fascinating to note that “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” is the First Commandment; while “Thou shalt not kill” is the Fifth. These commandments, it is important to remember,
were meant for the Hebrews, who considered themselves the “chosen people.” Jehovah, it is stated
in the Old Testament, is a jealous god intolerant of competition. Eisler (1987) speculates that the
reason for this is that, even at the time of Moses, Goddess worship was prevalent among the He-
-18-
brews—and the aim of the Hebrew dominator priesthood was to eliminate all forms of Goddess
worship. There are, of course, allusions to this in the Bible itself. The Prophets Ezra, Hosea, Nehemiah, and Jeremiah constantly rail against the “abomination” of worshiping other gods. They
are practically outraged at those who still worship “the Queen of Heaven.” And their greatest
wrath is against the “unfaithfulness of the daughters of Jerusalem,” who were understandingly
“backsliding” to beliefs in which all temporal and spiritual authority was not monopolized by
men. But other than such occasional, and always pejorative passages there is no hint that there
ever was—or could be—a deity that is not male.
In 748 B.C.E, at the beginning of the Seventh Heaven, the mission of the prophet Isaiah
began. By teaching that the God of the Jews used invading peoples such as the Egyptians and
Assyrians as punishment for their ungodly ways, he was essentially teaching that the God of the
Jews exerted rule over other people and hence orchestrated world history. Thus, in the Seventh
Heaven (Day 4), at the apex of the Mayan Calendar and mid-point of the National Underworld
(also known as the Great Cycle), Jehovah/Yaweh broadened his reign as the only God of the
Jews to become the universal God, the One God of humanity.
It is more than worthy to note that the butterfly, the symbol of transformation and metamorphosis, represents the Seventh Heaven. But exactly what was transformed here? In the
Seventh Heaven, the new frame of consciousness truly began to prevail, and at this stage the
earlier views of an enchanted Cosmos, with a multitude of spirits and deities, transmuted into a
belief in a Universal God (Calleman, 2004). The subjugation of the feminine that began in our
prehistory was consummated. With the destruction of the Goddess, the god-concept was transformed from a loving and nurturing deity, which served to interconnect us with Nature and the
Cosmos, to a god of fear, domination, disconnectedness, and suppression. The new god-concept
was forever above and separate from humanity and Nature—he was one who demanded blind
obedience and threatened severe punishment to any who disobeyed.
Shortly after the beginning of the Ninth Heaven, Christianity split off from Judaism. About
300 years later, toward the end of this Heaven, Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire. It was then that the message of Christ, which was based on a partnership model
of non-violence, love, and the equality of men and women, was perverted by the dominator
consciousness of the time. This corruption sanctioned war, suppression of and violence toward
women, male dominance, and all manner of oppression in the name of Christ. Let us examine
how this dark alchemy was worked.
Eisler (1987) suggested that one of the most potent negative transformations in the Christ
mythology involved a shift of the central image from the birth of the godchild to his crucifixion
and death—from life giving to life taking. Jesus’ attempt to elevate the feminine virtues of love,
compassion and mutual responsibility over the masculine values of toughness, aggression and
dominance was met with overwhelming resistance from the dominator hierarchy. This resulted
in the quashing of scriptures, such as the Gnostic Gospels—which were declared heretical and
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ordered destroyed by the men who took control of the “orthodox,” or only “true,” Church, starting about 200 C.E.
What was so heretical about Gnosticism that it had to be banned? Specifically, what we find
in the Gnostic gospels is the same idea that caused the Hebrew priesthood to revile and seek to
do away with Jesus. This is that access to deity need not go through a religious hierarchy headed
by a chief rabbi, high bishop, or pope. It is rather available directly through gnosis, or divine
knowledge—without having to pay homage or tithes to an authoritarian priesthood.
What we read in the Gospel of Mary is that after the death of Jesus, Mary Magdalene was the
Christian leader who had the courage to challenge the authority of Peter as the head of a new
religious hierarchy based on the claim that only he and his priests and bishops had a direct line
to the godhead (Eisler 1987).
One of the cardinal reasons why the male dominance hierarchy considered Jesus’ teachings dangerously radical was that they violated both the Roman and Jewish male-centered family structures of the day (Bartchy- cited by Eisler, 1987). By the end of the Ninth Underworld,
Christianity had become the state religion of the Roman Empire, and had co-opted the original
philosophy completely (Calleman, 2004). In her Gnostic Gospels (1978), the theologian Elaine
Pagels notes that, after the fourth Century, when Christianity became the state religion, the
Christian bishops who were previously subjugated by the police now commanded them.
Other flagrant ironies exist in Christian history. For example, in 312 C.E. on the day before
out-numbered Constantine was proclaimed emperor of Rome by defeating and killing his rival,
Maxentius, he saw a “Divine vision” in the setting sun: a cross inscribed with the Latin words
in hoc signo victor seris (in this sign you will be victor). He had his soldiers inscribe these words
onto their battle shields. In Christian theological accounts, Constantine is described as one of
the greatest proponents of Christianity—without mention of at least one troubling point: He
is also purported to have ordered the death of his own son and to have had his wife boiled alive
in oil (Pagels, 1978). Such brutality became part of the fabric of Christian history. Many edicts
were enacted which made heresy toward the Church a capital crime of treason, punishable by
torture and death.
As the years went by, the Christianization of Europe’s heathens became the excuse for once
again firmly reinstating the dominator tenet that might makes right… The men in control of
the new orthodox Church might in ritual raise the ancient Chalice, now become the cup of
Holy Communion filled with the symbolic blood of Christ, but in fact the Blade was once again
ascendant over all. Under the sword and fire of the alliance of Church and ruling class fell not
only Jews and pagans such as Mithraists or devotees of the old mystery religions of Eleusis and
Delphi, but also any Christian who would not knuckle under and accept their rule. They still
claimed their goal was to spread Jesus’ gospel of love. But through the savagery and horror of
their holy Crusades, their witch-hunts, their Inquisition, their book burnings and people burn-
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chapter one
ings, they spread not love but the old androcratic staples of repression, devastation, and death
(Eisler 1987).
Midway through the Tenth Heaven, during the Dark Ages, Islam was born. The religion
was founded as the Qur’an was completed in 632 CE, at the exact midpoint of the Tenth
Heaven. Calleman (2004) suggests that the timing of Islam’s birth and growth may serve as a
harbinger of the imminent destruction of Western supremacy, which he predicts for the Tenth
Heaven in our current, Galactic, Underworld. It was during the Tenth Heaven of the National
Underworld that Islam challenged the rule of the papacy. This defiance of the pope’s supremacy
resulted in the bloody Crusades – which seared the European landscape for most of the Eleventh
Heaven. The net effect was the forceful conversion of many peoples of northern and eastern
Europe to the Christian faith. The purported aim of the Crusades—to reclaim the Holy Land
from Islam—failed.
– The Thirteenth Heaven of the National Underworld –
and the Transition to the Planetary Underworld
The Thirteenth Heaven of the National Underworld brought to bear the evolutionary
developments of the prior twelve Underworlds and made provision for the Planetary Underworld—a “blindfolded” and unitary Underworld with a staunch emphasis on material achievement and the apperception of life in terms of abstract, left-brained, principles and physical
law.
Beginning in 1617, a period of nearly 400 years of Western dominance over the East commenced, and it resulted in a profound separation of cultures. In 1615 the British Empire established its first trading post in India, and in 1620 the Pilgrims arrived in Massachusetts, marking
the conception of the United States. At the beginning of the Thirteenth Heaven the scientific
revolution began, highlighting the left-hemisphere provinces of analysis, mathematical calculations, abstract reasoning and sequential logic. Coincident with this was the dissociation of spirit
and matter, of mind and body, known as the Cartesian Split.
The duality introduced in 3115 B.C.E. flowered at this time: Protestantism, Capitalism,
and science—all expressions of the left-hemisphere—arose to dominate Western reality (Calleman, 2004). During the course of the Thirteenth Heaven, all of the Americas and many other
parts of the world were brought under Christian control. The masculine god-concept actualized
over the thirteen Heavens of the National Underworld—monotheist, transcendent, omnipotent,
punishing, judgmental and separate—was epitomized by Protestantism, which consummated
the symbolic expulsion of humanity from the Garden of Eden after The Fall. The sense of a
living cosmos was replaced by one of a cold, mindless, and mechanical interplay of material
forces and immutable laws. This dispirited interplay operated under the aegis of a disinterested
God forever separated from humanity (Calleman, 2004). Thus, the ego came into its full bloom
during this last Underworld of the Long Count, and then trembled in reaction to its collective
projection of an abstract, separate, judgmental, jealous, and petty god that was merely a reflec-
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chapter one
Growth Stage / Day & Heaven No. / Ruling Deity
Time Span
Invention or Development
Sowing
Day 1, Heaven 1
god of fire & time
1755 - 1775
Theory of telegraph
Anonymous (1753)
Bozolus (1767)
Germination
Day 2, Heaven 3
goddess of water
1794 - 1814
Optical telegraph
Chappe, Paris-Lille (1794)
Sweden (1794)
Sprouting
Day 3, Heaven 5
goddess of love & childbirth
1834 - 1854
Electrical telegraph
Morse (1835)
Whashington - Baltimore line (1843)
Proliferation
Day 4, Heaven 7
god of maize & sustenance
1873 - 1893
Telephone
Bell’s patent application (1876)
First telephone station (in U.S., 1878)
Budding
Day 5, Heaven 9
god of light
1913 - 1932
Radio
First regular broadcast
(in U.S.; Germany, 1913)
Flowering
Day 6, Heaven 11
goddess of birth
1952 - 1972
Television
First public broadcast (in U.K., 1936)
First color TV broadcast (in U.S. 1954)
Fruition
Day 7, Heaven 13
Dual-Creator God
1992 - 2011
Computer networks
Internet (1992)
Global television channels
Mobile telephones
The evolution fo telecommunications from the theory of the telegraph (seed) to cell phones
and the Internet (fruits) in the days of the Planetary Underworld (From Calleman, 2004)
(fig. 5)
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tion of it. If ever there was a Wizard of Oz, this was it.
Calleman (2004) draws the arresting conclusion that religion is a degeneration of spirituality. Religion becomes important only in civilizations where individuals have lost, or partially lost,
contact with the Divine, and its ostensible function is to rekindle this lost contact. This is typically
accomplished via the creation and appliance of rituals. When the global consciousness field has
prevented direct contact, however, these rituals actually foil the vehicle that developed them
from realizing their aim. This could not be truer than for the spiritually “blindfolded” Planetary
Underworld.
– The Thirteen Heavens of the Planetary Underworld –
The First Heaven of the Planetary Underworld, beginning in 1755, beheld the advent of Industrial Revolution, forecasting a major theme of this Underworld—the material/scientific achievement
of the West—that advanced through the next twelve Heavens. Calleman (2001, 2004) noted that
another canon of this Underworld was the development of democracy, which was a first step toward
establishing equality among human beings. And because this is a blindfolded and unitary Underworld,
diminished emphasis on religion and, in consequence, its destructive side effects, coupled with the promotion of a more democratic/humanistic attitude, has served as a corrective balancer of the inequities
of the National Underworld. The Woman’s Liberation Movement, The Civil Rights Movement, and
what could be called a strong anti-authoritarian leaning emerged during the last three Heavens of the
Planetary Underworld.
The acceleration of time has become palpable in the Planetary Underworld – marking a pace
twenty fold its velocity in the National Underworld. Figure 5 depicts the development of telecommunications in the Planetary Underworld. It clearly shows the rate of technological advance as reflective
of this planetary consciousness’ exponentially increased time movement. This furtherance of telecommunications is parallel to the development of writing during the National Underworld, as depicted in
Figure 3. Such advancements in writing, from etched symbols on clay to newspapers, were fitting for
a nation. When we began to evolve as a global community, however, an acute amplification of communication technology was necessitated.
Figure 5 illustrates this progression, wherein Day by Day (the odd-numbered Heavens), augmentations in global communication make progressively more striking leaps forward—from the seed of the
telegraph to the fruit of the global Internet.
– The Thirteen Heavens of the Galactic Underworld –
The frequency of change in the Galactic Underworld is twenty times greater than that of the
Planetary Underworld—what happened in the course of 19.7 years now occurs over the span of just
360 days. Most people are at least obliquely aware of this speeding up of time, and many are quite
distressed by it. It is even more dramatic to compare the National and the Galactic Underworlds,
as a two-step exponential increase is quite massive. The Heavens of the National Underworld were
roughly 400 years long, and those of the Galactic are slightly less than one, marking a hastening in time
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flow in the Galactic Underworld that is 400 times that of the National. This has profound implications
on all levels and dimensions.
Both the National and Galactic Underworlds are dualistic, which means partially enlightened
-- they embody both the light and the dark. Their primary difference is that the polarities are reversed.
In the National Underworld the light of emphasis fell on the Western Hemisphere of the globe and
on the left hemisphere of the brain, leading to the hierarchal male dominator mode of consciousness.
The light in the Galactic Underworld falls on the Eastern Hemisphere, and right hemisphere of the
brain, which confers the “feminine” mode of consciousness, and favors intuition, holism, feeling, and
an integrated, or partnership, mode of consciousness.
As indicated earlier, in just over twelve years of the Galactic Underworld we must balance more
than 5,000 years of imbalance created in the National Underworld. Perhaps this is why the Divine
plan inserted the 256 yearlong unitary/blindfolded Planetary Underworld between the two -- to mitigate the shock of a severe polarity shift.
At the time of this writing we are at the transition point of Day Five (the Ninth Heaven) to Night
Five (the Tenth Heaven). These energy shifts, according to Calleman (2004), are anticipated to be
progressively more appreciable as the Galactic Underworld progresses. For example, at the end of
September 2005, as we approached the shift from Day Four to Night Four, America experienced the
ravages of Hurricane Katrina, the greatest natural disaster in American history. In the middle of Day
Five, we faced the mass murders at Virginia Tech. The world is in a state of tumult at this time. The
Iraq War continues on, and may progress to civil war, terrorism is rampant, and the effects of global
warming are becoming progressively more severe. The influence of the West, in accordance with Calleman’s 2001 predictions, is rapidly diminishing on a global scale, creating upheaval in the wake of the
movement toward rebalance.
Such challenges may provide the imperative concussions required to awaken people. Something
remarkable is clearly happening. The “old way” of the National Underworld is disintegrating, and
in its wash we are seeing glimmerings of a new consciousness born from intuition rather than from
analytic expressions of the mind. Although technical advances are still expected to increase Day by
Day, Calleman (2004) speculates that technology will surrender ground to intuitive knowing as the
Underworld progresses:
Because of the nature of this Underworld’s yin/yang polarity, its Days will bring forth intuitive,
rather than analytic expressions of the human mind. Such expressions will rarely be predictable by
a narrowly rational mind and may often seem to appear out of the blue. Nonetheless, we will see a
return to an enchanted cosmos, and we will, through our increasingly more open senses, become sensitive to its true spiritual energy
–The Thirteen Heavens of the Universal Underworld–
Little can be said about this un-breached final Underworld, other than that the progression of its
Heavens are believed to culminate in a planetary transformation.
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II
CHAPTER TWO
-25-25-
Implications of the Mayan Calendar
–A Radical Re-examination of Addiction as a False Spiritual Path–
The Fundamental Addiction
There are many forms of addiction. Some of these involve physiological dependency,
and cause biochemical changes in the body. Others are purely psychological, and carry no physiological dependency in the classic sense that symptoms of physiological withdrawal present the
addictive agent is removed. The psychologically addicted individual may, however, experience
withdrawal symptoms such as mood swings, irritability, and depression. Transcending this distinction is the obsessive nature of addiction—addiction fuels a preoccupation with the addictive
agent as a solution to some problem, coupled with the compulsive use of that agent.
The material concept here is obsession. Anyone who has been caught up in obsession knows
the destructive effects it can have on every aspect of one’s life. Obsession is the doorway to Hell.
Regardless of the object of the obsession -- whether the relentless pursuit of some elusive or
unobtainable love object, the attainment of a particular drug-induced state, or some worldly
achievement deemed necessary for success or completion -- all other areas of life can be subjugated to it. Relationships, health, work, and even personal survival are within the scope of its
harmful command. All growth ceases as one’s life force is channeled into the acquisition of the
object of obsession. It is like a “consolidation loan,” where all of your bills are combined into
“one easy payment.” Here, in the case of obsession, all concerns are consolidated into a single,
uneasy, focus.
When we think of obsession most people envision extreme cases -- the crazed drug addict
who will go to any lengths to get his next fix (rob a liquor store, mug little old ladies) or the love
addict who stalks and maybe even kidnaps the object of his unrequited love, sometimes killing
the other as well as himself. We hyperbolize our notions in order to distance ourselves, to disidentify from “those people,” or to minimize our own problems by contrast. For example, an
addict can convince himself he is not an alcoholic because he does not get drunk in the morning,
maintains employment, or has not lost everything and ended up in the gutter. He succeeds in
sustaining this illusion even though he drinks himself to sleep every night, fosters endless conflict
with his loved ones, and is a menace behind the wheel.
Most individuals do not view their addictions as life debilitating, simply as “manageable indulgences,” because the damage they are doing is not conspicuous enough to them. Most people
can handle drug and alcohol use “responsibly.” Moreover, the vast majority of addictions are
socially condoned, and are even extolled as “cool”—as as smoking was years ago—or even seen
as virtues. Most common among these are workaholism and obsession with personal success (the
driven Type-A personality), driving one’s children to be “the best” regardless of their needs and
personal inclinations, fixation with physical appearance, and gluttony for material accumulation
as a measure of self-esteem and personal value.
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chapter two
Many addictions fall within the purview of what the Hindus call the “Three Terrible Karmas”: wealth, beauty, and fame. Preoccupation with these is considered injurious because it prevents spiritual growth by inflating the ego.
In western parlance the three are known as greed, vanity, and vainglory. Their appetites are
insatiable. Even for those who possess wealth, beauty, and/or fame the obsession does not go away.
These people may constantly compare themselves with others who also possess these ideals, and
their obsession turns from achieving them to preserving and defending them.
Obsession is what drives all of this, but what, in fact, is obsession? And what feeds it? Years
of observation have led me to the conclusion that obsession is the mad desire to be right about a
wrong solution to a problem. Frequently the employed solution, whether a substance (drugs or alcohol), some attainment (wealth, fame, sexual conquest, love, or the “perfect” body), or longed-for
material object (expensive car, house, or other status symbol) results in a temporary relief from, or
partial abatement of, a troubling state of mind. By definition, this alleviation would constitute an
erroneous solution because it is impermanent.
Ultimately, all addictive solutions end up being faulty. They stop working because it is not the
identified addictive-object to which the individual is truly addicted. It is the state of mind that the
addictive-object induces, albeit partially or temporarily, that is the true source of the addiction.
These states of mind create the illusion of safety, completeness or wholeness, self-sufficiency, and
freedom from tension, anxiety, or other unpleasant states. In essence, all such states of mind exist
to maintain the various illusions of the ego—that it is a complete entity in and of itself, confident,
secure, and immortal, and that it is comfortably rooted in its separateness, rather than in its true
frightened state of consciousness.
Calleman’s work clearly demonstrates that the birth of the ego at the beginning of the dualist
National Underworld in 3115 BCE was an epiphenomenon of the spiritual light shining on the
West -- the masculine aspect of consciousness, and the left-hemisphere of the brain. What we call
the ego is essentially the consciousness mediated by the left-hemisphere, stressing logic, discrimination/separateness, abstract thinking, language, and hierarchal functions over feeling, intuition, holistic perception, and relatedness. The result of identifying this half-self with the Self is the source
of our sense of incompleteness. It is this erroneous identification that has perpetuated a 5,000 yearlong frantic search for salvation, wholeness, and relief from spiritual hunger outside of ourselves.
Salvation has ever since been sought in the external, which has given rise to the separate/outside
god-concept, and to the degeneration of spirituality into religion.
This search outside of ourselves for what can only be found by looking inside -- by contacting the half of the Self that has been blocked from our conscious awareness --paves a fraudulent
spiritual path. Thus, all religions which promise salvation by worship of, and obedience to, an
outside (male) god -- such as the three religions emanating from the Middle East instruct -- fail as
providers of a legitimate avenue to wholeness and the transcendence of ego separateness, as do all
philosophies based on the delusion of personal isolation.
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These religions, then, become addictive solutions which can provide only partial or temporary relief from suffering, and it is the fervent desire to be right about an ineffective remedy that
lies at the root of religious obsession
The outside search for inner wholeness was further complicated by the onset of the unitary
and “blindfolded” Planetary Underworld, wherein the spiritual light was blocked, and scientific
and philosophical materialism became the primary source for the explanation of all phenomena. Eventually, everything was understood and explained in material terms, including our sense
of incompleteness. Not only did we look outside of ourselves for completion, now we looked for
material rather than religious or spiritual solutions. We sought a sense of wholeness in material
things and physical gratifications, money, sex, objects, worldly power, and the like.
There is no outer material solution to an inner spiritual problem. This mad search for inner spiritual wholeness in the outer material world has become the deadest dead end in modern
history. The attempt to rectify our half-ness with a material solution has led to some of the most
serious problems we face. We have become obsessed with and addicted to whatever we falsely
believe will fill this void. On the level of human relationships, for example, two “half-people”
desperately holding onto each other in order to ameliorate their respective feelings of insufficiency do not – and cannot -- make a whole person. It creates a serious dysfunction that can lead
to violence if one part threatens the other, either by looking elsewhere for new compensation, or
by seeking a path to inner wholeness.
The sense of lack based on half-ness is, as Calleman (2004) points out, the cement which
holds together all dominance hierarchies, whether democratic or not. It accounts for fanaticism
about religion, nationalism, and even sports teams—whatever provides the individual with a
sense of relief from incompleteness. The attempt to remediate the perceived void with material solutions has very serious negative consequences - consequences that threaten our physical
survival and even the survival of the planet.
The half-ness of the dualist frame of consciousness creates a more or less permanent sense
of lack in people. This generates ideas on a larger scale related to a need for “growth.” We see
this in population growth in poorer countries, where the driving force is not always for more
children as such, but a striving of parents to escape a sense of lack generated by the experience
of half-ness. We also see it result in the infatuation of many modern societies with “economic
growth,” as if it were an end in itself. This drive for an abstract growth of the economy, regardless of the actual human needs, is a very dangerous aspect of the human mind. This ambition of
some to alleviate the sense of half-ness through idealizing “growth” is what threatens to destroy
the ecological system of the earth and humankind’s place on it (Calleman 2004).
The addiction to the Religion of More has greater influence in America than in most
other cultures—more striving for beauty, more pleasure, more toys, the biggest houses and gasguzzling vehicles. The addiction to youthfulness spurs us to spend enormous sums of money to
sustain and imitate it – we use hormones, supplements, rejuvenating therapies, plastic surgery,
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and other absurdly expensive medical procedures to create the illusion of youth far beyond biological credulity. In our attempt to fill the bottomless pit of ego-need we are draining the world’s
resources, alienating the Third World while at the same time infecting it with our acquired addictions, and driving ourselves deeper and deeper into debt.
Eckhart Tolle has stated about the fundamental theme of pleasure versus joy: “Pleasure
is always derived from something outside you, whereas joy arises from within …All cravings are
the mind seeking salvation or fulfillment in external things and in the future as a substitute for
the joy of Being” (Tolle 1999).
– Mechanisms Underlying Some Common Addictions –
The idea that addiction is a way of compensating for the inherent incompleteness of the
ego is radical, perhaps even outrageous, with regard to the Western psychological perspective.
Western psychology, with the exception of Jungian psychology and its various derivatives, is
ego psychology. It strives to cultivate “healthy” egos -- a monumental oxymoron we attempt to
reconcile while denying its incongruity. The fallout from our identification of ego as our essence
has done incalculable damage to the planet and its inhabitants, and we are blind to the connection. In Eastern philosophy and psychology, as well as in its more spiritually oriented Western
counterparts, the ego is viewed as a baser level of consciousness which must be transcended in
order for us to progress, and even, in fact, to survive.
Most practitioners of Western psychology and psychiatry, however, work to strengthen the
ego, not as a step in the individual’s spiritual evolution toward ego transcendence, but as an end
in itself. This traditional approach involves the strengthening of ego boundaries and defenses as
a means to psychological health and adequate functioning. These tools are employed by the ego
to preserve its integrity and safety, not only from being overwhelmed by unconscious forces, but
also from threatening truths about itself.
We will first examine substance addiction, rather briefly as it is both familiar to many and
extensively discussed in the public forum. We will then explore, in greater detail, two forms of
addiction that are not generally included in these discussions, but fit well into the model developed here. These are sex and love addiction and the addiction to outside approval for existential
validation.
– Substance Addiction –
Any substance that can induce a pleasurable psychological state, or reduce, suppress, or
otherwise alter, a negative psychological condition (anxiety, fear, tension, guilt, depression, feelings of inadequacy, emptiness) is potentially addictive. These substances are all psychologically
addictive, and some are physiologically addictive as well. Included among them are alcohol,
nicotine, “recreational” drugs such as cocaine and its derivatives, marijuana, “uppers” such
as amphetamines and Ritalin, “downers” including heroin, barbiturates, and over-the-counter
sleeping aids, empathogens such as XTC which increase feeling and sexual responsiveness, and
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psychiatric pharmaceuticals including tranquilizers, anti-anxiety medications, anti-depressants,
and mood stabilizers.
As a general rule, what are typically called “downers” are physiologically and psychologically addictive, while “uppers” are primarily psychologically addictive. Drugs that are “bi-phasic,”
that is, which have an “upper” effect in low doses and a “downer” effect in higher doses -- such as
nicotine and alcohol -- generally induce both dimensions of addiction.
What they all have in common is that they are external agents upon which the individual
becomes dependent for the control of internal psychological states. In effect they reduce selfreliance and promote external government. We can say, then, that substance addiction is the
addiction to the illusion of mastery over the realm of feeling—the very mode of consciousness,
feminine and right-brain, that came under suppression during the National Underworld.
– Sex and Love Addiction –
“All human love is selfish.” -Amritanandamayi
A relatively recent phenomenon in American culture has been the rise of a Twelve-Step Program based on the principles of Alcoholics Anonymous for Sex and Love Addicts (SLAA). This
program has been roundly met with resistance and even ridicule. This is because most people view
sex and love, particularly romantic love, as what makes life worthwhile. That sex and love can, like
drugs, become the objects of obsessive addictions that serve to compensate for deep feelings of
incompleteness is quite threatening. Furthermore, a portion of our economy is dependent on love
and sex, so the suggestion that they can involve unhealthy obsession – addiction – is an unpopular
one. Yet the American preoccupation with sex and love is clear. Consider the amount of time,
money, attention, and effort that are dedicated to the subject in our culture, as well as the rash of
industries it spawns—fashion, cosmetics, music, movies, television, publishing (romance novels sell
more than any other genre), advertising (sex always sells), match-making (finding “the one”) and,
most apparently, the multi-billion dollar pornography business.
Sex and love addiction is admittedly not limited to America. It is a universal phenomenon, although it is most evident in America because of the power and ubiquity of the media. This global
influence is because the entire world, and not just America, is swayed by the Mayan Underworlds.
When the ego came into being during the National Underworld -- as spiritual light favored the leftbrain mode of separative/masculine consciousness -- it maintained itself by separating from and
dominating all expressions of right-brain feminine consciousness. The ego seceded from the body
and its instincts, which were judged as potentially overwhelming, which resulted in a dissociation of
ego-self and bodily instinct. To use Ken Wilber’s term, the ego hijacked the reproductive instinct
in order bring it under the ego’s control and use it for its own ends.
The idea is that the compulsive emphasis on body sensuality and sexuality on the one hand,
and the ego’s obsessive drive for power or abstract truth or future goals on the other, are both often characteristic of the dissociated self because, however otherwise different, they both play off
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chapter two
the same split, the same fragmentation. This implies that the alienated ego, on the one side, and
hypergenital sexuality and sensuality on the other, are correlative deformities of the organism
(Wilber, 1981).
The compulsive exploitation of the body and its reproductive instinct for pleasure and orgasmic
release is the driving force behind sex and love addiction. We will now examine the expressions of
sex and love addiction as fallacious solutions to the incompleteness of the ego mode of consciousness – ego consciousness we erroneously equate with Self.
– The Reproductive Instinct and the Three Faces of Love –
The reproductive instinct does more than generate new life through sexual union. It also
functions to preserve that new life through the nurturing and protection of the young. These
are different “branches” of the instinct. A third and distinct aspect, apparently limited to human beings, appears to serve a higher spiritual function, as demonstrated by Eastern practices
such as kundalini and tantric yoga, and even by western psychoanalytic theory. It involves the
sublimation and transformation of sexual energy into higher creative functions. It is frequently,
but not necessarily, achieved through the inhibition of orgasm, which aids in the activation of
higher energetic centers, or chakras. Thus the three tributaries of the reproductive instinct are
the creative/generative, the preservative, and the transformative.
The Hindu ternion god-concept—Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva—also reflects these same
three principles. Brahma is the creative principle. It is the generative force in all dimensions of
existence—physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. It is the fire of sexual desire that drives men
and women into conjugal embrace, with an aim to generate more bodies, more DNA. Vishnu,
the preservative power, is reflected in love that is caring, warm, nurturing, and protective. The
hot sexual/generative form of love creates new life, which is instinctively preserved by the Vishnu
principle. In addition to the protection of the young until they can function autonomously, Vishnu
instinct serves as the format for future familial and social relationships. Shiva, the Transcendent,
is the third face of the Hindu god-concept. He is also known as the Great Destroyer. A popular
depiction shows Him dancing triumphantly with one foot on a small figure that is subdued and
prone, its power destroyed. Its fundamental meaning is that the false self of the ego, along with its
concocted and selfish love, must be subdued and destroyed in order for the transcendent love of
the greater Self to be revealed. Shiva is also depicted with cobras encircling His neck or emanating from His third eye, an allusion that transcendence results from elevating the Kundalini. The
Kundalini is pictured as a coiled serpent lying dormant at the base of the spine of the average
ego-identified individual but fully active in the Enlightened One. This is done in part by control
of the expression of the sex drive -- by redirecting it from ego-based erotic/bodily expression governed by the lower energy centers, or chakras, to the higher spiritual centers. Freud also intuited
this in his concept of sublimation, in which sexual energy is inhibited in its corporeal expression
and transformed into creative energy. Let us now briefly consider each of these three complexions
of love.
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– Sexual / Generative Love –
The instinctual aim of sex is the generation of more DNA. The biological imperative is to
make more. It is what perpetuates the whole game of life. When hijacked by the ego, however,
the impersonal, instinctual aim of species procreation is subjugated to the needs of the personal,
individual ego. The sex drive is then “mentalized” and becomes eroticism, which fosters persistent or obsessive sexual interest or desire. For the ego, eroticism serves both as a distraction from
the life’s realities, as well as from the ego’s fundamental incompleteness. It works like a drug,
leading to obsession and addiction because it cannot possibly heal the essential incompleteness
of the ego, but only serve as a temporary distraction and impermanent balm to the ego’s terrifying sense of meaninglessness and alien separateness.
When one uses repeated orgasm as a release from tension, anxiety, and anger, one develops
tolerance identical to the resistance associated with the repeated use of any drug. Effectiveness
decreases with repeated use, compelling the individual to combine erotic sex with other forms
of stimulation, such as pornography and drugs, in search of the elusive original sensation. This
course inevitably culminates in physical, emotional, and spiritual depletion.
Sex and sex appeal are also commonly used for the purposes of validating the ego’s sense of
worth, as well as one’s power to control the attention of others. Frequently, this overshadows whatever pleasure is derived from the erotic interaction. Seduction involves the use of eroticism for the
purpose of control—it is more a demonstration of power than an expression of desire for sexual
interaction.
Another exhibition of obsessive addiction resulting from the ego’s hijacking of the reproductive instinct is what I have come to call “baby madness.” Many of the women I have worked
with over the years fall into this obsession in their mid-thirties, when the “biological clock” is
running out, and they have not yet had a baby. Frequently they say they cannot feel complete
until they realize this biological aim. What I have found is that this is less the biological imperative of reproduction than the ego’s frantic need to remedy its incompleteness. Many women feel
so strongly about this that they believe they cannot go on unless they produce a baby. This sentiment is strongly reinforced in biblical scriptures and by most religions, sometimes to the point
where barrenness is considered a punishable offense.
Wanting to have a child, of course, is a natural human instinctual desire. When desire
crosses the line to obsession, however, it is ceases to be about its purported focus – the baby. It
becomes an expression of ego selfishness—a means to achieve some level of completeness, to
prove one’s worthiness, or even to ameliorate one’s fear of mortality. The fundamental conclusion is that, whenever sex is used for ego purposes, there is a high likelihood that obsession and
addiction will result. The ego derives fear, inadequacy, and anger from its inherent incompleteness, no matter how much it insists and pretends to be the whole Self – and when it is fed in this
way, obsession is formed . Nothing and no one can change this. Only the transcendence of the
little self and identification with the Self can excise the root of addiction.
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– Preservative / Familial Love –
The preservative branch of the reproductive instinct represents, in its healthiest form, the
essence of unconditional love. Its instinctual base is revealed in the unconditional acceptance one
exhibits toward one’s own children, but not necessarily toward the children of others. In this regard
it is different from the unconditional spiritual love that evolved beings feel toward all of humanity.
It is possible that this spiritualized love may be a higher register of our instinctual preservative love.
Frequently, in Western and Eastern spiritual writings, enlightened beings refer to others as their
children, and treat them in a most caring, unreservedly loving way.
When hijacked by the ego, however, this form of love is converted into a soul-annihilating
hunger. In The Fantasy Bond, which is worthy of quoting at length, Robert Firestone writes:
Emotional hunger is not love, though people often confuse the two… It is a primitive condition of
pain and longing which people often act out in a vain and desperate attempt to fill a void or emptiness. …When acted upon hunger is a powerful emotion that is both exploitive and destructive to
others. People mistakenly identify this desperate feeling with love and think of this primal longing
as genuine affection. They confuse actions that are based on need with true regard for another
person.
Feelings of emotional hunger are experienced as deep internal sensations that range in
intensity from a dull ache to a sharp painful feeling. Often a person may touch others or express
physical affection with ostensibly loving gestures in an attempt to kill off this aching sensation.
Many parents offer affection and love when they feel the need for it themselves. This type of
physical affection drains the emotional resources of children rather than nourishing them. It is
a form of taking, not giving. Many people vehemently claim they are loving and caring, when if
fact they are actually feeling their emotional hunger and dependency.
It is wise to be suspicious of the words “love” and “I love you.” If parents examined their
motives truthfully, they would discover that they say these words most often not when they feel
for their children, but rather when they feel the need for reassurance from them. The word
“love” is often used in this way, and as a result children become suspicious and distrustful of
real caring and sharing, even when it is sincere. Early in their lives they learned to distrust positive verbal expressions and even physical affection, because more often than not these feelings
covertly expressed their parents’ need and desperation (Firestone, 1987).
It is common for parents to use their children to remedy their feelings of half-ness and
their fears of mortality. This puts children in the position of having to take care of their parents—to be responsible for their happiness, make them proud, provide them with meaning in
life, or otherwise redeem or glorify them. Parents who need their children to “be something” for
them rob their children of their own life-purposes. This happens when a parent, consciously or
unconsciously, pressures a child to be the success the parent could not be. In The Drama of the
Gifted Child (1981), Alice Miller wrote that children live in the unconscious of the parents.
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This can cause parents to become obsessed with their children, addicted to their performance,
and perhaps even enraged when disappointed by them. If a child is living out a, sometimes secret, aspiration of a parent, the child’s success becomes too important to that parent. The “stage
mother” is an example of this. The mother has fused with the child, and the child’s success is
the mother’s success, as is the child’s failure. Similarly, it is not uncommon to witness a father’s
violence at his child’s sporting event in reaction to disappointment in his child’s performance
-- acted out on his child, other children, or adults. Sometimes the level of over-involvement
reaches dangerously pathological proportions. At children’s soccer games I have personally witnessed otherwise civilized parents revert to levels of behavior reminiscent of those described in
accounts of the Roman arena.
Over nearly thirty years of counseling I have worked with many people who have sacrificed
themselves for one or both of their parents. Sometimes this is done consciously by choosing a
mate or profession that would otherwise not be deemed fitting, or by taking on a parenting role
to one or both parents to remedy that parent’s own difficult childhood. The child hopes to gain
love in this way, but more often than not ends up embittered because his efforts are not rewarded.
Even more painful is the experience of a son or daughter who gains the success a parent never
had and then faces the jealousy of the parent, or the parent’s resentment because he or she has
become dependent on a successful, grown child.
Such early bonding difficulties in the family have a pronounced impact on the child’s adult
relationships, wherein the established parent-child dynamic can be repeated from venue to venue. An observation I’ve made over the years is that, in their adult relationships, people search for
the idealized parent they never had, and end up getting the one they did. This will be clarified
when we probe the principles underlying the repetition of the past.
The projection of the idealized parent onto one’s partner makes one believe the partner is
necessary for salvation, which is the likely basis of co-dependency. Sometimes this is a mutual
projection, in which case the individuals are fused in an intensely obsessive fool’s errand I have
come to think of as a “fear huddle”—where two frightened, incomplete people commingle in
order to create an illusion of safety and/or wholeness. When I was a college student in New York
City I saw a picture on the cover of the National Enquirer that horrified me, but I did not understand why at the time. It was a photograph of a man with no legs strapped to a man who had no
arms. They were both smiling. The caption read, “You be my arms and I’ll be your legs.” This
image later became my personal archetype for the co-dependent relationship—two half-people
attempting to solder themselves together to become one whole person.
-Transformative Love
Shiva represents the highest expression of love—the impersonal and unconditional love of
All. The devotional path of spirituality has as its aim the realization of this ego-transcendent,
universal, and ecstatic love of All That Is. Ramakrishna, one of the greatest saints of India who
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chapter two
lived during the 19th and early 20th Centuries, described this state by declaring that he was
constantly and ecstatically in love with the entire universe. When hijacked by the ego, however,
this transcendent, impersonal and universal love is reduced to romantic intoxication, a very personal and exclusionary condition in which two spiritually incomplete people catch a glimpse of
ecstatic wholeness by fusing with one another. In the words of Argentine poet Jorge Luis Borges:
“To fall in love is to create a religion that has a fallible god.”
There is an allegory in the Hindu Vedas regarding Shiva, the Transcendent, and Kama,
the Hindu form of Cupid: Shiva is in deep meditation when Kama attempts to seduce him with
naked dancing maidens. Irritated by this intrusion, Shiva opens his third eye and blows Kama
out of existence. Distraught over this, Kama’s wife begs Shiva for Kama’s return. Taking pity on
her, Shiva reanimates Kama—but limits his existence to the emotional plane. In sum, romantic
love is heavily restricted. Through it one may pinpoint a glimpse of the transcendent, but only a
glimpse. It is also of note that, in Roman mythology, Cupid was not considered a benign spirit.
His poisoned arrows were weapons used to confound their marks and produce romantic and
erotic intoxication, rendering individuals unable to think clearly or to protect property and position, much like the “love potions” of witchcraft did. It was only much later that Cupid’s arrows
were deemed the “arrows of love.”
In the Middle Ages, romantic love was elevated to the position of “courtly love.” In We
(1983), Robert Johnson attempts to make a case for romance as a heightened form of adoration—almost a semblance of Goddess worship—where a knight would engage in dangerous and
heroic adventures in the name of the Lady of the court. Sex had nothing to do with this kind of
love, and was, in fact, seen to cheapen or defile it—perhaps this contributed to the burgeoning
of the “Whore/Madonna Complex,” wherein a man has a difficult time engaging in sex with
the woman he loves because he feels that desire and esteem are opposing feelings.
Romantic intoxication is highly addictive because it approximates the ecstatic state of transcendental spiritual union. It is the closest thing to a spiritual state that most Westerners experience. When under its influence, it is common for people in this state to say, “Now I know what
life is all about.” Romantic intoxication engenders a euphoric, drugged-like state when the
individuals are together, and a deep longing and hunger for one another when separated. It is
the most prized legal high available to the masses, and for many the mad search for “the One”
mimes the sacredness of a spiritual path. Unfortunately, it is a delusive path -- it does not lead
to true transformation and a permanent state of wholeness, but instead culminates in obsession
and disappointment and, not infrequently, violence. Withdrawal from romantic intoxication can
be quite severe, sometimes to the point of violence toward the loved one, and even to homicide and/or suicide. When the other is believed to be salvation from loneliness, incompleteness,
and meaninglessness, it is a crisis when that bond is threatened or broken. “I can’t live without
you” can easily become, “No one else should have you” or “You should die with me.” In some
countries “crimes of passion” or “crimes of the heart” are viewed with a more compassionate
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eye than identical crimes perpetrated “cold-heartedly” – bereft of romantic love’s mitigation. In
fact, the crime is no different from raving drug addict committing a violent robbery to get money
to support his habit.
How many people spend their lives searching for “the One” only to be repeatedly “betrayed”? How many do not realize that the One they are searching for is their complete Self,
and has nothing to do with anyone else? A woman I had been working with for nearly a year had
gone through a half-dozen men in that time, always certain that the next man was the “One.”
I knew she could not absorb the reality that no man was ever going to be the “One.” As she
reached a point of utter frustration, I asked, “Could it be that you are the ‘One’?” The lights
came on. “Maybe so,” she tentatively said.
Several years ago I heard an allegory which I feel encapsulates this mad search for outside salvation: When one of the gods created human beings in his own image, the other gods
became very concerned. They knew that one day in the distant future, human beings would
realize the Fact that they were, themselves, gods, and that by then they would be so numerous
that the current gods would feel too crowded. So they decided to hide from them the Fact that
human beings were, themselves, potential gods. The gods then held a conference to determine
the best place to hide the Fact, which they feared human beings would one day discover. One
of the gods suggested hiding the Fact at the bottom of the deepest ocean. Several of the other
gods said that it would not work, because one day the humans would invent vehicles which
could descend to the bottom of the deepest ocean, and they would find it. Another suggested
hiding the Fact at the farthest end of the universe, behind the darkest planet. One of the other
gods said that this would not work either, because in the far future human beings would invent
transports which could travel to the farthest end of the universe. They puzzled for a long time
over the best hiding place, as each subsequent suggestion was rejected because one of the gods
would see its flaws. As they reached a point of complete exhaustion, one of the gods jumped
up and excitedly announced, “I know! I know exactly where to hide the Fact from the humans.
It is where they would never find it!” He proudly announced, “Let us hide the fact that they
are gods deep inside of them! They would never think to look there!” Finally, all the gods
could agree. And in the far future, except for a handful of human beings who discovered the
hiding place, which the others never believed anyway, it has proven to indeed be the perfect
stronghold for the Fact. Ever since, human beings have been, to quote Waylon Jennings, “looking for love in all the wrong places.”
It does not appear to end, even in old age. Opportunities for geriatric romantic intoxication abound on the Internet. The search for the mythical “One,” the answer to incompleteness,
the mad search for the god we believe resides in another, continues unabated. The adage “hope
springs eternal” may have its origin in this frenzied hunt which, regardless of continual disappointment we “try, try again.”
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– Addiction to External Approval and Existential Validation: –
The Roots of the Addiction to Fame and Religious Obsession
Approval from others is a powerful force of conformity and control over the individual,
wielded by authority figures and the social collectives with which the individual identifies, such
as family, tribe, community, society, or religion. It is the “glue” which binds collectives and maintains order. Approval is tantamount to the validation and acceptance of one’s existence, an affirmation of one’s worth, goodness, and desirability. Disapproval means rejection, invalidation,
badness and, in some cases, expulsion from one’s collective. The difference between approval
and disapproval can mean the difference between life and death, salvation and damnation, or
existence and non-existence. In tribal societies, for example, banishment from the tribe frequently results in death, because lone adults are not accepted into another tribe. The loss of meaningful identification can easily result in suicide or insanity. It was for this very reason that, years ago,
ostracism was eliminated as a punishment for noncompliance at the West Point Academy.
Two important components, adjacent to the sense of incompleteness, facilitated the subjugation of individuals by perceived authority (singular or collective). The first factor was guilt
and the second was the interpretation of all guilt as badness. It is through our understanding of
these related factors that we are able to break free from the tyranny of mediocrity that keeps us
enslaved to others and to systems that have outlived their usefulness. Let us now trace the steps
whereby we have fallen under the spell that has become our strongest block to spiritual transcendence.
The experience of incompleteness presumes a separation from a prior state of wholeness—
from an earlier “Golden Age.” Most cultures have made reference to this bygone era. Why,
then, are human beings now separate and incomplete when they were once complete and whole?
The answers that have been posited to this question have had profound consequences for humanity. In Up From Eden (1981), Ken Wilbur writes that, when humanity was ousted from the
proverbial Garden of Eden (or Regional Underworld in Calleman’s parlance), it was not a fall
from grace, from an enlightened Golden Age, but rather a fall up to a higher, albeit more painful,
level of consciousness. It was a leap that could ultimately move us toward full Self-realization—a
journey into the darkness of separateness and incompleteness as a means to gain a rudimentary
sense of self. This inauguration could incite an evolvement into a fully enlightened state, rather
than buttressing the limited enlightenment of the Garden of Eden, or Regional Underworld.
Why did the Book of Genesis, written early in the National Underworld, depict this evolutionary step as expulsion and punishment, and wed it with shame and guilt? The reason for this
characterization involved, as was explained earlier, the need to suppress the feminine and the
Goddess-based religion that threatened the new male/dominator god-concept.
According to this viewpoint, The Fall was the penalty for an evil act perpetrated by Eve.
But this is but a fraction of the answer. The real driving force behind the “badness” theory was
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a misunderstanding of both the relationship between separateness and guilt, and of the nature
of guilt itself.
In order to understand guilt we must form a deeper understanding of the existential-psychological meaning of separateness. In The Trauma of Birth, Otto Rank (1933) examined the
historical, sociological, and psychological consequences of primal separation, as well as the consequences of subsequent separations to the development of personal will. Rank’s observations
can be summarized as follows: The existential condition of separateness, which is the consciousness of the ego, is experienced as the emotional state of guilt. This guilt opposes a being’s
will toward individuation, which requires a separating from a primal will, such as instinct or a
collective into which the individual was fused or embedded. Thereby, the guilt the individual
experiences in differentiating him- or herself from a more primal association—nature, family,
tribe or other collective—serves as counter-will to his/her efforts to individuate. The individual
experiences guilt as a natural consequence of opposing or separating from the instinctual will of
Nature, the will of authority, or the will of the social collective with which he/she is identified.
Guilt, therefore, was simply the natural consequence of leaving the Garden of Eden, the
instinctual bosom of Nature in which humanity was lodged. Leaving the Garden was equivalent
to abandoning the Mother Goddess or to leaving home. In this light, even the Kurgan invasions
can be understood as having served the cosmic plan. It was due to their brutality and the imposition of the dominator philosophy that humanity was impelled to leave the instinctual bosom of
Nature and to embark on the route of individuation.
In my understanding of this process, guilt can be thought of as the human equivalent to
the distress an animal feels when it is separated from the herd, pack, or flock. It is caused by separateness and serves an obvious survival tool, in that the distress motivates the animal to re-join
the group. For human beings, however, the dynamic is different. To evolve means to individuate,
which requires one to suffer the associated guilt, as guilt is attendant upon the process. It can be
thought of as the “price” of individuation. Those who cannot withstand the guilt of separation
cannot then tread the arduous path toward eventual enlightenment. It entails foregoing the need
for approval—as this sanction serves as a kind of opiate to numb or mitigate the discomfort of
separation-induced guilt.
Guilt, however, does not necessarily imply badness. Harmful, destructive, or otherwise
“bad,” actions can cause one to experience separateness from others or one’s own code of ethics,
but it is the separateness which gives rise to the guilt, not the “badness” of the act per se. If the
individual did not experience a sense of separateness as a result of his actions, there would then
be no guilt, as appears to be the case with the psychopath. For the normal individual, however,
a judgment must be made to designate the “goodness” or “badness” of one’s actions. The presence of guilt, however, is not sufficient to make this judgment.
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chapter two
It is in the equation of guilt with badness that religion derived its power and became, to paraphrase Engels, an opiate to quell the masses. Agreement with this equation, whether by misunderstanding or design, evolved as the National Underworld ensued. This explanation for a sense
of incompleteness or half-ness evolved into a belief that a fundamental “badness” was responsible for it. In 420 C.E., as Tezcatlipoca, Lord of Darkness, established rule at the beginning
of the Tenth Heaven of the National Underworld, Augustine systematized this notion into the
doctrine of Original Sin—which allowed only sanctioned (male) priests of the Church to remove
the stigma through the ritual of baptism. After baptism, the Church maintained that guilt could
be purged only via the ritual of confession, which also ensured against being cast into Hell if
one died while in a “sinful” state. Needless to say, this fomented great power for the Church,
ostensibly conferred on the Apostles by Christ Himself. Plainly, the authority to forgive sins and
to ensure eternal salvation was also an effective moneymaker—and may go down in history as
one of the most pernicious scams ever to be perpetrated against humankind.
History is riddled with those who have, like Augustine, appointed themselves agents of the
Divine, all claiming a direct artery to their subscribed god. From the hate-filled and self-righteous
Catholic Inquisitors and perpetrators of the witch-hunts and Crusades, to their Christian and
Muslin counterparts of recent times, they have all wrought damage on the human spirit. Their
ravages span from minor to catastrophic, and they have all boasted passionate followings that
also, dependent upon the perceived level of their leader’s authority, range in size and potency.
People follow because they are unable to bear responsibility for their individuality, which, according to Rank, is merged with the guilt of separateness. They search outside of themselves for
an authority upon which they can consign the burden of this responsibility. In The Future of an
Illusion (1928), Freud develops the concept that the monotheistic god is a projection of the “father
figure,” and is employed primarily as a device of social control that forces instinct into subjugation. By its very nature, therefore, religion is coercive and dependent upon an effectively powerful
authority figure. The more powerful (and famous) the premier, the greater is the tendency of
individuals to follow and to believe, delusively, that they have found salvation, sanctification, or
rehabilitation. As a matter of course, the most powerful and famous of all authorities is God or,
more specifically, the particular separate god-concept a religious conductor subscribes to. Wars
have been, and continue to be, waged over the rightness of these different god-concepts – waged
with the obsessive fervor of any demented drug addict in the throes of scoring dope in order to
forestall withdrawal.
Religion is a creation of the male dominance echelon presented by the priestly hierarchy
as the only channel of mediation between Man and God. It is, in effect, a projection of Man’s
own image into a formalized god-concept, a concept that places itself in the position of Authority, meting out acceptance or rejection of individuals. Religious obsession follows when God is
defined as an outside agency that judges, saves, or condemns.
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To reiterate: God is essentially constructed from the image of Man, and the level of consciousness
of those creating the image determines its limits. The stratum of consciousness depends on the
Underworld in which the image-creators exist. In the National Underworld the god-concept that
was conceived, and is still very much alive, was separate, anti-feminine, warring and jealous—he
crushed all enemies and would abide no other gods before him. This was the god of Genesis.
In Up From Eden (1981), Wilber explains how the ego protects itself from anticipated
annihilation upon corporeal death by creating the concept of a separate God who exists in an
eternal heaven, and which the ego can join in everlasting life—that is, if it is “good” and follows
the precepts of the religion to which it adheres. The religious authorities, of course, decide what
is good, and this is largely defined in terms that further the aims of the power hierarchy, rather
than with consideration for what is right in any moral or ethical sense. Only the ego seeks salvation, which religions typically define and promise as permanence in an afterlife. This salvation
is the impetus behind both the Christian martyrs and the Muslin martyrs who blow themselves
up to strike at “infidels.” Suffice it to say that playing the role of divinely-appointed agent of
God, replete with the righteous and blameless certitude of one’s judgments and actions, can be
an exhilarating and addictive experience that carries enormous obsessive vigor.
The Self, of which the ego is only a small and ephemeral fragment, does not require religious structure or the salvation it promises, as it is already “saved.” It is whole unto itself.
Religious obsession, therefore, is rooted in the ego’s desire for permanence (eternal life), rightness (my god is the real god), and the rabid denial of its insignificance and incompleteness. This
illusion of ego “greatness” is reflected in the historical construction of enormous monuments
-- pyramids, temples, cathedrals, and mosques. In modern times, skyscrapers, enormous sports
stadiums, and similar constructions fulfill this mission.
– Fame and Divinity –
One final point merits scrutiny in this section: The curious relationship between fame and
divinity. An actor, singer, or other public figure can become famous because he or she attracts the
focus of mass collective projection. The person then comes to represent a particular archetype,
such as the hero, villain, father or mother figure, sex symbol, or “girl next door.” Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, John Wayne are among those who attained this archetypal status. It eclipses
mere admiration or appreciation and can verge on the numinous. A musical artist can become
famous by tapping into collective sentiment, as Woody Guthrie did during the Great Depression, and as Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, The Beatles, and The Rolling Stones did later. When this
happens the individual or group is transmuted into an idol—quite literally an object of fervent
worship. For example, there are many who view Elvis Presley’s Graceland estate as a shrine, and
who actually pray to the deceased performer for help and guidance.
One reason that fame and divinity become confused is that that both fame and the godconcept are the results of collective projection. We project onto the famous the exalted and/
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or magical qualities that lie dormant within us, qualities typically reserved for application to
Divinity, such as grandeur, omniscience, or perfection. First we project, and then we identify
with our projections. Fans, for example, become addicted to specific famous people, and collect
objects they have worn or touched in much the same way other people amass religious relics.
The fan and the famous, then, develop a symbiotic relationship, each feeding off the other.
Famous people tend to become dependent on the adoration of others. It can nourish their
ego-delusions of godliness. They must hide the truth of their humanness because their disciples
need them to be super-human—external demi-gods with whom “common” people can identify. It is, in fact, their separateness that supports the illusion of their Divinity. And it is their
differentiation from the masses that makes their presence special.
The absurd overvaluation of fame is just one of the many manifestations of ego delirium
in our world. Some famous people fall into the same snare and identify with the collective fiction, and they begin to actually see themselves as superior to ordinary mortals. As a result they
become more and more alienated from themselves and others, more and more discontented,
more and more dependent on their continuing popularity. Surrounded by people who feed their
inflated self-image, they become incapable of genuine relationships.
In Hollywood there are gradations of celebrity. The A-list is made up of the most famous; the B-list, of the known but not necessarily famous; the C-list, of the “wannabes” or the
“has-beens.” One famous actor I know complained to me about how tense and boring the Alist parties and dinners were, and felt that he was always being scrutinized for signs of slipping.
But he also felt obligated to go to at least some of them in order to keep up appearances, and
believed that the other elite probably felt the same way he did. I asked him what he thought
the A-list, as a collective entity, fed on to keep it going, as I had heard this notion expressed
before. He did not have an immediate answer, but said he would think about it get back to me
at our next session. When we met next he looked somewhat disturbed, and indicated it was
because of what he had realized—that the A-list fed off the envy of the B-list. “It’s like cannibalism,” he said. “I’m part of a human food chain.”
There are many other addictions, but all of them serve the same function—they are wrong
or temporary solutions to a problem. They are typically outer, material antidotes to inner,
spiritual problems. Sometimes, however, addictions to psychological states can form, usually to
block access to another psychological state. For example, obsessive or chronic anger can be used
to block fear or sadness. Likewise, obsessive fantasy about future gratification can be used to
obstruct feelings of emptiness, inadequacy, or meaninglessness. Many people become addicted
to drama to compensate for a lack of meaning in their lives; likewise for so-called “adrenaline
junkies” who become addicted to danger. The list is endless, but the fundamental principle is
the same: there are only spiritual solutions to spiritual problems.
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–The Speeding Up of Time, Stress, and Shifting From Thinking to Intuition–
The rhythm at which we operate increases twenty-fold as we ascend each of the nine-steps
on the pyramid of Underworlds. This speeding up of the frequency patterns between Days and
Nights (odd- and even-numbered Heavens) results in a higher rate of change, which causes human
beings to perceive the passage of time as faster. In our current Galactic Underworld, for example,
as much change occurs in a 360-day Heaven as happened in a 19.7-year Heaven of the Planetary
Underworld, or in a 394-year Heaven of the National Underworld.
The source of the stress, or “burn-out,” phenomenon in our current Galactic Underworld,
according to Calleman (2004), is not simply the amount of work people have to complete. It is the
result of strife between the consciousness of the materialistic Planetary Underworld and that of the
spiritually based, higher-frequency Galactic Underworld, with its radically different values. The
resistance to the change of values from the Planetary to the Galactic Underworlds causes many
individuals to suffer extreme conflict and pressure. The Planetary Underworld operates “on the
clock,” wherein everything is ordered by thinking and the physical flow of time, while the Galactic
Underworld is moving beyond clock time and thought into the realms of what Calleman refers to
as “Divine” time and intuition. Divine time is the flow of the Galactic Underworld leading toward
enlightenment, whereas physical, measured time is subordinated to concrete processes. The clock
is a physical tool for measuring time, and it fastens us to a whole set of rules for life designed in the
industrialized Planetary Underworld. When the individual wants follow the flow of Divine time,
and the watch—based on physical time—tells him to do otherwise, a stressful conflict arises (Calleman 2004).
This hastening of time and its attendant stress cannot be explained by conventional calendars
based on corporeal time, such as the Gregorian, Muslim, or Jewish chronologies, on which the
physical duration of the solar year has remained unchanged for over a million years. Neither can
astrology explain this acceleration. Linear time is a result of the National Underworld’s influence
and the light shining on the left-brain hemisphere for approximately 5,000 years. In 1999, the
high frequency light pulses began to illuminate and activate the right-brain hemisphere, creating
conflict with the mores established in the National Underworld and solidified in the materialist
Planetary Underworld.
– Shifting to Intuition –
Because the Galactic Underworld favors the right-brain hemisphere over the left, there is
a corresponding partiality of intuition over thinking. In order to align ourselves with the higher
frequency of the Galactic Underworld, we must shift into the higher realm of intuitive knowing.
This is a higher octave of feeling connected to sensory/bodily awareness and immediate apprehension of energies. Many people are suffering from stress and burnout because they are still
trying to navigate the Galactic Underworld by thinking. This is ineffective for two reasons. First,
thinking is too slow. It cannot keep up with the frequency shift that has occurred, causing confu-
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chapter two
the Devil
(fig. 6)
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sion to result. The second reason, which is eloquently rendered by J. Krishnamurti in Freedom
From the Known (1969), is that thinking involves understanding the present in terms of the past.
When we think, we look for a previously established category in which to settle something we
perceive in the present. Unlike intuition, which is direct perception, thinking is filtered perception.
Hence, we cannot perceive and understand anything new through the employment of thinking.
– Galactic Spirituality and Transcending Physical Causation –
The view of spirituality in the Planetary Underworld was radically different from the view
that is evolving in the Galactic Underworld. Calleman (2004) noted that, because of the spiritually
blindfolded nature of the Planetary Underworld, rather peculiar spiritual ideas developed. The
Planetary Underworld fostered the notion that spirituality had to be fantastical or even outrageous,
and developed myths of bizarre extra-terrestrials, reptilians, Lemurians, and so forth. These ides
attracted attention, although they were bereft of any kind of empirical basis or verification. It is
understandable that the blindfolded consciousness of this Underworld produced such fantasy for,
according to Calleman; it was unable to perceive the spiritual dimension of the real world. Spirituality, then, was viewed as emanating from some hidden, inaccessible realm.
As a result, throughout the Planetary Underworld (from 1755 on), something of a fantasy world of
esoterica has been developed by a series of prophets or would-be prophets. It has been typical of
the esoteric tradition that, although it may have upheld the knowledge of the existence of a spiritual domain, ideas about the Cosmic plan were not grounded in the evolution of events in the real
world. In contrast, the spirituality that is emerging with the Galactic Underworld will be about a
change in our perception that will allow us to see the spiritual as well as the material dimension of
reality. Not only much of materialist science and organized religiosity but also many of the esoteric
traditions will come to an end now with the Galactic Underworld (Calleman, 2004).
– The Devil Key of the Tarot –
During the Middle Ages, because of the violent hegemony of the Church, esoteric knowledge
could not be taught openly or without encryption. The Tarot was created to disguise the esoteric
system as playing cards. The spiritual keys of the Tarot are comprised of the twenty-two letters
of the Hebrew alphabet, and it is through a grasp of the occult meaning of these that a deeper
understanding of existence can be acquired.
In The Tarot (1947) by the occult scholar Paul Foster Case, the last seven Keys (15-21) are
called “the seven stages of spiritual unfoldment.” Figure 6 depicts Key 15, which is typically
known as The Devil. In esoteric philosophy it is seen as the first of these seven stages. It has within
it a critical, but hidden, key to the understanding of the Cosmos and our place in it. After many
years of studying the Tarot, I accidentally came to an understanding of its hidden significance.
The result was a complete revision of my understanding of cause and effect on the deepest level of
my being. It is important to discuss this Key in some detail, because it is central to our understand-
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ing of how personal and planetary transformation must occur.
The Devil is derived from the Latin diabolus, adversary.
Internally we know that we are potential lords of creation. But here we meet a check and there
a defeat, and so we try to explain why we are not actually as free as we feel ourselves internally
to be. The symbolism of Key 15 represents the cruder forms of man’s answer to the question,
“What keeps me from expressing this inner freedom I feel?” At the same time the picture indicates the correct solution to the problem, and points the way which leads out of the difficulty
(Case, 1947).
The black background of Key 15 suggests darkness, limitation and ignorance, intimating
that they are the origin of our bondage. The Devil’s face is that of a goat and his ears are those
of a donkey, which signifies the obstinacy and stubbornness of materialism. His open hand connotes the idea that what sensation can verify is all there is. But it is the white inverted pentagram
between his horns that is the crux of this figure’s meaning. The pentagram is the occult symbol
for man. When the point is directed upward, it implies the dominion of consciousness over the
four elements -- the ancient term for the principles that maintain the physical universe. When
the point is directed downward, however, it denotes the dominion of the physical universe over
consciousness. It implies a reversal of the truth of man’s place in the cosmos. This illusory sense
of bondage is symbolized by the figures chained to the half-cube – representing our curbed and
finite understanding of only the sensory side of existence.
To this half-cube are chained smaller figures, representing self-conscious and subconscious modes
of human mentality. Their horns, hoofs, and tails show that when reasoning takes its premises
from surface appearances, human consciousness becomes bestialized. Observe that, though they
are chained to the cube, the loops of their chains are so large that they might lift them off their
heads. Their bondage is imaginary (Case, 1947).
For many years I interpreted the “bondage to materiality” depicted in Key 15 to mean
bondage to materialism—to things, one’s position in the temporal world, and to the accumulation of material wealth and power. Then, years later, I realized I had missed the essential point.
The basic bondage is not to things, money or power. It is bondage to the idea of material causation. My basic error was in believing that my psychological states and beliefs were the products
of the material conditions of my existence. What I suddenly came to realize was that material
conditions are not causes, but results. They are the results of my basic beliefs, attitudes, and
imaginings rather than the other way around. This led to the basic postulate: Cause is mental
and material conditions are effects.
In many ways modern science is confirming this reversal of the cause and effect relationship that has dominated science for approximately the last 250 years, since the advent of the
Planetary Underworld, the Industrial Revolution, and the modern era of materialistic science. In Chapter 5 we will explore this issue in depth and consider a number of researchers and
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their findings that support a new paradigm of science based on this reversal of our previously
accepted view of causation.
– Earth Changes and the Physicality Trap –
The physicality trap harkens back to the Planetary Underworld and its blindfolded assumption that physical factors are the only causative element affecting evolutionary changes. Calleman (2004) predicted that the period of the Galactic Underworld will likely provoke physical
earth changes because of the high-frequency change in consciousness. But these will not of the
doomsday variety wherein some punishing god destroys the earth through geophysical devastation. It is more likely that the social, psychological, and spiritual consequences of the old values
being replaced will be more striking than measurable geophysical changes. He also noted that
when Edgar Cayce, known as the “sleeping prophet,” was asked what kind of changes he expected at the turn of the new millennium (2000-2001), he prophesized a shifting of the magnetic
poles and the advent of a new cycle because of it. What he likely intuited was not a catastrophic
deviation in the Earth’s magnetic poles, but a shift in the polarity of consciousness and the beginning of the Galactic Underworld.
Galactic spirituality, according to Calleman (2004), will eventually transcend the belief that
good and evil have a causative influence separate from human consciousness. What we typically
think of as evil is, in fact, rooted in the selfish, sexist, and hostility-based frame of consciousness
of the ego. The idea that evil exists as a separate external force is also an ego-born concept, rooted in the ego’s separateness and its need to view itself as right, good, and utterly justified in all
of its actions, without regard for their consequences on others and Nature. “Despite much Hollywood mythology” writes Calleman, “there are no forces of good and evil, and paradoxically,
those who promote such views are contributing to the continuing suffering on the planet.”
–A
New Healing Paradigm: Healing = Holism –
The new healing paradigm involves the integration of mind, body, spirit, society and Nature. Such integration will lead to peace, and peace, or coherence, is the root of healing, while
conflict and disorder, or incoherence, is the root of dis-ease and disease. It was during the National Underworld that meaningful divisions and oppositions were established. It was then that
men and women were unequally divided and became conflicted as a result. People were set
against one another in a consciousness of warfare that persists to this day. As this Underworld
progressed, the left-hemispheric consciousness we call the ego became steadily more powerful
and began to actively dissociate itself from the mortal body and its instincts, as well as from the
right-hemispheric consciousness of feeling and intuition. The ego also separated itself from
Nature and felt license to exploit it for its own purposes. Finally, the ego separated itself from
all other egos. In its suicidal attempt to achieve domination and permanence, the ego has
waged war with everything it perceives to be separate from itself—including, ultimately, the
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chapter two
unconscious mind of which it is a fragment.
During the concordant Planetary Underworld, a degree of healing took place. Most
monarchies were replaced by more democratic systems in the West. The division between
the genders began to close and women became recognized as a political force. At the same
time, other breaches grew wider. Because this Underworld was spiritually blindfolded, material science was further estranged from the spiritual side of life, which, for the most part,
was reduced to expressions of empty religiosity that upheld the basic divisions and conflicts
of the National Underworld.
With the advent of the Galactic Underworld in 1999, we have the chance to establish
true peace and healing. Although it is a dualistic Underworld, its polarization balances or
neutralizes the conflict-ridden imparities created in the National Underworld, with the net
effect of creating this peace and healing. Conflicts, however, are bound to arise before such
reconstruction can occur. Those who are holding onto the old, male-dominator consciousness will fight to maintain control. This is evident in the changing structure of families,
which began in the fourth quarter (Fourth World) of the Planetary Underworld in 1947.
The typical family structure that has existed ever since The Fall has been based on
the same hierarchal structure, in which the husband was traditionally a ruler or breadwinner. It is in the very nature of the dualist mind of the National Underworld to generate
hierarchies and inequalities between people, and in the family women and children were in
the yin category. Gradually, however, after the onset of the Fourth World of the Planetary
Underworld, this family structure has become increasingly dysfunctional. Today the typical four-member family, ruled by a single head, is more of an archetypal memory invoked
in commercials that by a current reality (Calleman, 2004).
At the time of this writing we are approaching the end the Fifth Day of the Galactic
Underworld, which is ruled by Quetzalcoatl, the Lord of Light. This has formed a light
shining on and exposing both hidden lies and clandestine motivations. It also activated
what has lain buried in the subconscious, causing conflict with what we have been consciously believing and expressing. While distressing, it has been a psychological detoxification, which eventually will lead to healing. In this process, however, there will likely be
struggles and disturbances, and may induce the breakup of relationships where covert
and/or destructive intentions and patterns are exposed—particularly in those who are
threatened by another’s desire to move into higher levels of consciousness.
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– Healing –
Healing essentially entails a rebalancing of the effects of the dualist National Underworld.
Among these are the reintegration of imposed divisions between, for instance, the left- and righthemispheres of the brain, the conscious and the unconscious, the mind and the body, the genders, and human beings and Nature. Freud said that the goal of the psychoanalytic process was
to make the unconscious conscious. Jung wrote extensively about discovering and re-assimilating
the diverse parts of the Self. A commensurate process began in the unitary Planetary Underworld and served to initiate the bridging of separations created by the dualism of the National
Underworld.
In one way or another, the imposition of the dualist ego mind creates separation, a separation that we now, as part of our path toward enlightenment, will need to repair. Traumatic
events in early childhood really did cause pain at the time, but the only reason that these traumas
still influence us is that they are being co-opted by the mind. The modern, ego, mind allows the
past to dictate the present (Calleman, 2004). It is in this way—examined extensively by Eckhart
Tolle (l999, 2005)—that the ego mind maintains its control.
In the next chapter we will consider Tolle’s work regarding exactly how the ego mind functions to keep us out of the present. Briefly, the ego uses the pain of the past to keep our focus of
attention locked there, because the ego literally cannot survive in the present, but must bounce
back and forth between the past and the future.
In human development the dualist/ego mind emerges between years 3-7. This is also the
time when individuals typically report that they experienced serious traumas. It is also when we
begin to feel separateness and the loss of the relatively idyllic state when a strong connectedness
with the mother figure predominates. Calleman (2004) observes that this earlier state mirrors the
unitary Regional Underworld. Beginning at about three years of age, the child enters the early
ego phase, which Calleman equates with the consciousness of the early National Underworld.
The child experiences strong separation anxiety, night terrors, and other symptoms, which can
be quite daunting. Calleman notes that children who have not been abused or suffered other
early childhood wounds during the phase of early ego development will often make up traumas
to explain why they feel separate.
Calleman (2004) believes that healing involves making contact with the time in our lives
before the dualist mind emerged and then began to govern. Because the ego mind is preoccupied with judgments and evaluations regarding rightness and wrongness, it must be right about
past abuses and traumas. As this mind is consumed with scrutiny and appraisal, it is unable to
forgive – it finds forgiveness antithetical to its purposes. To paraphrase, “Revenge is mine, sayeth
the ego.” Forgiveness of oneself and others is important for healing and requires transcending
the control of the dualist ego-mind, allowing us to access the healing power of the unitary Underworlds (Calleman, 2004). Therefore, therapies that access the right-brain hemisphere, such as
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Gestalt therapy which stresses the here and now, emotive therapies which open blocked energy
in the body, Grof ’s LSD regression work, and “inner child” therapies which aim at healing by
contacting levels of consciousness that are “pre-Fall,” all work to liberate the individual from
ego-level fixation.
On the interpersonal level, healing during the Galactic Underworld will end dominance
of one person over another. There will be, predictably, strong opposition to this egalitarian
influence, especially by those who have benefited from structures of dominance and inequality.
Those involved with individuals who are domineering or attached to obsolete systems will be
forced to separate from them in order to progress in their own lives. This is not out of selfishness -- quite the contrary. Working toward one’s personal healing and enlightenment is of great
benefit to humanity, as it removes negativity from the general collective and feeds the impetus
toward planetary wisdom. It also serves to bring more love into the world, because only those
who have resolved their half-ness and become whole can truly love. Those who resist this are
working against the Divine plan and serve as impediments to human evolution.
– Socio-Political Implications –
During the Fourth World of the Planetary Underworld (1947-2011), the right-brain hemisphere began to enjoy greater penetration of light here in the West. With this came an increased
emphasis on peace, wholeness, mysticism and spirituality. It provided the foundation for the Sixties and its various radical movements—hippie, New Age, ecology, and Women’s movements.
The left-brain dominance hierarchy suppressed these mobilizations, but they planted the seeds
of change, integration, and healing that would later bloom in the Galactic Underworld.
The polarity shift in the Galactic Underworld will very likely result in a breakdown of the
supremacy of the West, as well as a collapse of the male hierarchies both in the West and the
East. It is not yet clear how this will happen, but it is probable that economic instability in the
West, and particularly in the United States, will play a major role. As we enter the transition
into the Fifth Night, the signs of economic disquiet in the United States are becoming more and
more apparent, in the form of loss of industrial supremacy, decline in the housing and mortgage
industries, fluctuation in the stock market, and rising oil prices.
A startling face of war has emerged in the Galactic Underworld. Religious war—wreaked
by Muslim suicide bombers and terrorists – has a new incarnation. Its motives are unrelated to
the glory of king or nation or to the acquisition and control of natural resources. It seeks, rather,
to weaken the West and its material dominance, and offers no individual gain other than religious
favor in the Muslim afterlife to its perpetrators. Calleman notes that these violent fundamentalist
Easterners who endeavor to destroy the West have strong left-brain dominance, indicated by the
fact that they read and follow written scripture, and reading and writing are left-brain functions. In
many ways they are the mirror-image counterparts of the Christian intransigents in the West.
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In The Mayan Calendar and the Transformation of Consciousness, Calleman (2004) made
two cogent predictions: First, the U.S. will be increasingly seen as distinct from Europe; second,
the U.S. will lose its power position in the world, although it will, at least for a while, retain its
military, technological, and media superiority. In the Galactic Underworld, material superiority
will eventually fail to promote true leadership and inspiration in the world; prevailing spiritual
guidance will start to come from India.
– Consequences of Opposing the Divine Plan –
The Divine plan depicted in the Mayan Calendar shows us the inevitable course of our
evolutionary process. Like fighting the tide, it is senseless to oppose it. Those who attempt to hold
onto the world order established in the Planetary Underworld can only fail, and will also face a
pronounced backlash.
The way the Cosmos operates, backlash may come in any number of forms -- sometimes in ways
that appear totally unrelated to the catalyst. In the event of catastrophe or war, the best question
to ask is: What are we doing to invite backlash? Considering the vast number of people today
who are focused only on the material values of the Planetary Underworld and who are ignorant
of the Cosmic plan’s deadline, there is every reason to expect a recoil, possibly on a cataclysmic
scale. Via a multitude of avenues, the Cosmic plan paves the way for creation, and it is outside
human power to change this. The more we align ourselves with the ultimate purpose of the Cosmos, however, the fewer conflicts attendant to its development will there be (Calleman 2004).
Calleman’s second book was published in 2004—before both the Indonesian tsunami in
December of that year, and the Pakistani earthquake of 2005. Shortly before the earthquake in
Pakistan, he released an article on his website predicting that the Muslim world would experience catastrophic events as a repercussion of its suppression of women. In The Mayan Calendar
and the Transformation of Consciousness, Calleman summarized his conjecture, writing that
the Middle East would be profoundly affected by conflicts and adversity because of its strongly
patriarchal mentality and domination by the dualist frame of consciousness. This would be the
area of the world most resistant to the re-balancing generated by the Galactic Underworld.
The tribal/nationalistic consciousness of the Middle East is firmly entrenched in the religious ideology generated by the Third Day (Judaism), Fifth Day (Christianity), and Fifth Night
(Islam) of the National Underworld. Hence, the religions of the Middle East are strongly dualistic and patriarchal, and are locked in conflict as a result. It is the most destructively regressive
area on the planet, and is very likely the wellspring of planetary strife. Again, because of its
violent adherence to these atavistic/tribal positions, it is foreseeable that the region will suffer
great destruction and bloodshed.
In his seminal work, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962), Thomas Kuhn examined how scientific paradigms change. He focused on the transition from Newtonian physics to
the New Physics. He questioned why it took so long for the new paradigm to be accepted as stan-
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chapter two
dard, given that it was legitimized several decades before it was officially adopted. His answer
was that an outmoded or standard paradigm is replaced by a new paradigm when those who are
invested in, and holding onto, the old paradigm die!
We assume that scientists are reasonable people who are objective and willing to change
their theoretical positions in light of new facts. This is demonstrably not the case. Because the
old guard operates the institutions, research facilities and technical schools, their egos and reputations are deeply enmeshed in the standard paradigm, and this attachment is reflected in their
urge to maintain the status quo. They do not simply alter their view in the face of contrary
evidence, however compelling. They hold on until they cannot hold on anymore. When I was
in graduate school we had a saying: Never let an ugly fact destroy a beautiful theory. Thinking back, maybe it was not really such a joke. Accepted reality is a function of the proportion
of people espousing a common viewpoint. This proportion changes in two ways—a significant
number of people who cling to the old way change and embrace the new paradigm, or a significant number of people who hold to it die.
Historically, death has proven to be the principal agent of change. This is the case in sociopolitical as well as the scientific worlds. The paradigm shift we are currently experiencing is the
supplanting of the dualistic male domination model to the holistic integrative and cooperation
standards. It is unlikely that many millions of people will “see the light” and voluntarily assume new perspectives about socio-political, religiously sanctioned, paradigms they have been
attached to for thousands of years.
– Prophetic Implications –
Guidance From Historical Analogies
The Mayan Calendar allows for prediction based on historical analogy. This is because
the thirteen deities ruling the progression through the thirteen Heavens are identical for each
Underworld. Calleman made several forecasts in his first book, Solving the Greatest Mystery of
Our Time: The Mayan Calendar, published in 2001, but written before the onset of the Galactic
Underworld. The first was that perceived time would significantly speed up during the Galactic
Underworld. Many people currently and viscerally experience this phenomenon. The second
was that, at least in the Northern Hemisphere, the world would come to be divided into three
crucial sectors: 1) the Western Hemisphere including the British Isles, 2) Central Europe, and 3)
the Eastern Hemisphere, including Russia. In his 2004 book, Calleman notes that these divisions
appeared early in the First Day of the Galactic Underworld when the U.S. and U.K. attacked
Iraq. The third prediction was that the dualist Galactic Underworld would precipitate conflict
between East and West, which has, indeed, already come to pass. During the First Day there was
the NATO war in Yugoslavia, and during the Second, the world witnessed 9/11, the Western
war in Afghanistan, and increased hostilities between Israel and Palestine. Calleman also correctly forecast that wars and conflicts would occur during the Days, or odd-numbered Heavens.
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Now, as we approach the end of the Fifth Day and enter the Fifth Night, there is an increased
likelihood that Israel will attack nuclear facilities in Iran and draw the United States into open
hostilities with Iran and, perhaps, Russia.
We see that, in the Mayan conception, light and Day do not necessarily imply good, any
more than darkness and Night imply bad. This is consistent with the dualist National Underworld, when wars typically erupted during Days, and in the Planetary Underworld when both
the Napoleonic Wars and WWI were waged during Days Two (1794-1814) and Five (1913-1932),
respectively.
– Prophetic
Progression Through the Galactic Underworld –
Based on the parallels among the ruling deities, the violence seen in Days Two and Five
in the National and Planetary Underworlds could likely forebode violence in the Galactic Underworld (see Figure 2 for dates). We have already beheld the terrorist attacks on the World
Trade Center and Pentagon during Day Two. Calleman draws interesting parallels between bin
Laden and Napoleon, both Day Two figures, in terms of the scale of their ambition—Napoleon
wanted his imperial brand of French Revolution to conquer the world; bin Laden’s desire for
Islam was comparable. Both men held distorted views of what their respective Underworlds
were meant to develop. Napoleon’s political desires had nothing to do with the democracies he
was instrumental in bringing about; bin Laden may have inadvertently served the designs of the
Galactic Underworld by strengthening the East and right-hemispheres, although he does not
embrace its ultimate aim of global unity and equality between the genders.
Night Two of both the Planetary and Galactic Underworlds saw old orders re-established.
The royal houses that had ruled Europe prior to the Napoleonic turmoil returned, temporarily,
to power. Galactic Night Two saw the re-dawning of Western dominance. Romanticism characterized Night Two of the Planetary Underworld. This was a reaction to the preceding abrupt
changes brought about by the American, French and Industrial Revolutions. It was a longing to
return to the past and more mythical times. Similarly, in the Galactic Underworld there has been
a desire for regression to a more predictable past, before the IT revolution and terrorism. The
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, for instance, premiered on the first day of the
new Night; Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone a week prior. Both were concrete expressions
of the Romanticism of the Galactic Underworld (Calleman, 2004).
In all the Underworlds, Third Day developments become firmly anchored in physical reality. During the National Underworld, alphabetic writing and monotheism were expressions of
Day 3 consciousness, as was the electrical telegraph in the Planetary Underworld. In the Galactic Underworld, it is still too early to determine what Third Day (December 15, 2002-December
10, 2003) cultivations will endure. Calleman’s speculations are that cloning and, possibly, the
decline of the West, along with its materialistic values, may become lasting effects—the solid
realization that the old way is over and we are living in a new reality.
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The most disturbing prophecies revolve around Day 5 and Night 5 of the Galactic Underworld,
November 24, 2006-November 19, 2007 and November 19, 2007-November 13, 2008, respectively.
Essentially, the Fifth Day of the Galactic Underworld brings the light of Quetzalcoatl, of Christ-consciousness. The light illuminates what has been obscured—including our lies, self-deceptions, denied
psychic energies, and what we generally think of as the “dark side” of human nature. All of this is
exposed. We then have a choice: to view the revealing of what has been hidden as an opportunity to
face the truth about ourselves, others, and the societies in which we live, so that we may begin to heal
and integrate or to view the disclosure as a threat and oppose the light, so that we may maintain our
positions of dominance. Thus Day Five creates conflict as well as awakening, and this will happen on
all levels of life—the personal, interpersonal, familial, social, and even international. Night Five, ruled
by Tezcatlicopa, the Lord of Darkness, represents the efforts to fully suppress the light and return to
the old way. As we shall explore, all Night Fives are a time of extreme challenge.
Quetzalcoatl, Lord of Light, rules Day 5. In the National Underworld, Day 5 gave rise to
Christianity. This may have some bearing on biblical prophecies regarding the return of Christ. It
more likely indicates a fundamental energetic change, rather than the arrival of a particular person,
that sets the stage for the planetary transformation predicted for the final, or Universal, Underworld.
This is not to say that individuals or groups will not, at least unconsciously, enlist the energy of Quetzalcoatl to stage a Second Coming toward the end of Day Five or during Night Five of the Galactic
Underworld—perhaps even employing some of the more sophisticated holographic and pulsed microwave technology designed to mimic extremely low frequency brain wave patterns (pseudo-ELF).
Pseudo-ELF is capable of inducing altered states in large numbers of individuals (Becker and Selden,
1985). If the technology were not available to do this, such speculation could be considered pure fantasy. But it is. Because of the unstable conditions in the Middle East it is possible that individuals may
exploit biblical prophecy and ignite an Apocalypse-like scenario for this purpose, as revelation states
that two pivotal events must precede the Second Coming—Armageddon and the near-destruction
of Israel.
Energies of the Days and Nights, even under the reign of the same deity, can be manifested very
differently. Because the Planetary Underworld was spiritually blindfolded, the spiritual energies were
materially manifested. Calleman gives an example: Jehovah’s Witnesses predicted that Christ would
return to earth in 1914 C.E. The intuition of upheaval was correct, corresponding with the advent
of Day 5 of the Planetary Underworld in 1913. Rather than Christ’s return, however, we saw WWI
and the Russian Revolution. That is, the consciousness of Quetzalcoatl manifested in materialist ways
-- significant advances in democracy, science, and mass communication – rather than in the form of
a Second Coming.
In the Galactic Underworld, however, the Quetzalcoatl energy will be expressed in a spiritually more awakened way, because of the new pulse of light illuminating the Eastern Hemisphere
integrated with the light already shining on the Western Hemisphere. We may expect, therefore, the
stirrings of a major spiritual arousal in the West (Calleman, 2004).
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chapter two
Cycle
Beginning
Catastrophic Event
Planetary
AD 1932
Hitlerism (1933), Stalinism, World War II, Atomic Weapons
National
AD 434
Collapse of Roman civilization, Huns (434), Dark Ages
Regional
32,000 YA
Exstinction of the Neanderthals (32,000 YA)
Human
640,000 YA
Illinoisan Ice Age (600,000 YA)
Anthropoid
12.8 MYA
?
Mammilian
252 MYA
Perm-Triassic exstinction (251 MYA) 97% of all species extinct
Cellular
5 BYA
Perm-Triassic exstinction (252 BYA)
YA = Years Ago, MYA = Million of Years Ago, BYA = Billions of Years Ago
Major Catastrophes during the Fifth Night (Ruled by the God of Darkness)
of the Different Creation Cycles
(fig. 7)
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– The Fifth Night –
Based on events occurring in the Fifth Night of prior Underworlds, we can expect that the
Fifth Night of the Galactic Underworld will prove to be very challenging. Inspection of Figure 7,
adapted from Calleman’s 2001 book, clearly portends the catastrophic influence of the Lord of
Darkness, ruler of the Fifth Night. During the Mammalian Underworld, 97% of all the planet’s
species were rendered extinct early in that Night, 251million years ago. This did not include the
annihilation of the dinosaurs near the cusp of the Sixth Night and Seventh Day, approximately
65 million years ago. The ensuing grave catastrophe, the Illinosian Ice Age, occurred during the
beginning of the Fifth Night of the Tribal Underworld, 600,000 years ago. The start of the Fifth
Night of the Regional Underworld, 32,000 years ago, saw the eradication of the Neanderthal.
We will consider parallel events of the National, Planetary, and Galactic Underworlds in greater
detail.
Attila became ruler of the Huns in 434 C.E., at the dawning of the National Fifth Night.
He attacked Central Europe, pushing the Germanic tribes to overtake Rome. This effected the
collapse of the Western Roman Empire, engendering the Dark Ages, the period of cultural impoverishment which held sway for the entirety of the Fifth Night, through 829 CE, and on until
1,000 C.E. Calleman (2004) observed that Augustine, who coined the doctrine of original sin in
420 CE, cited it as justification for the punishment meted out by Attila and the Huns in the form
of Rome’s destruction and the advent of the Dark Ages.
When the Fifth Night of the Planetary Underworld (1932-1952) began, Hitler came to
power in Germany -- Central Europe, where the Huns had initiated the destruction of Rome.
Churchill, in fact, referred to “Hitler and his Huns,” as both forces had invaded Central Europe
during Fifth Nights. Fifth Night developments of the Planetary Underworld included the Great
Depression, Nazism, Stalinism, WWII, the Holocaust, the Korean War, and the atomic- and
hydrogen bombs. “Although the phenomena of the two Underworlds had different characters,”
notes Calleman (2004), “it seems clear that the period from 1932-1952 was by far the darkest in
modern history”—as it corresponded to the Dark Ages of the National Underworld. We can,
therefore, expect the Fifth Night of the Galactic Underworld, essentially 2008, to be a very difficult time.
– Calleman views the Fifth Night as an endeavor –
at regression to the prior Underworld
The rule of Tezcatlipoca always means a last destructive attempt of the forces seeking a
return to the previously dominating Underworld. Thus, in the National Underworld, it meant
a temporary return to the tribe-like world of the nomadic Huns and the marauding Germanic
tribes, distortions of the social structure that had dominated the lower Regional Underworld. In
the Planetary Underworld, it meant, in a new guise (Hitler), a return to autocratic rulers, who
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had based their powers on supposedly “superior blood.” In principle Hitler’s ideals were not different from those of the royal dynasties that, throughout the National Underworld, based their
power on having “blue blood” in their veins. By analogy, we can expect that the rule of Tezcatlipoca in the Galactic Underworld will mean a last violent assault by the forces seeking a return
to the materialistic values of the Planetary Underworld. Also in this Underworld the struggle of
Night Five will probably have central Europe as its focus.” (Calleman 2004)
It is likely that the struggle for world domination will be between Western and European
corporations and their military forces, with roots in the materialistic consciousness of the Planetary Underworld, and Islamic religious militants, with their pinning in the National Underworld. Of note, the Qur’an was completed in 632 CE, the exact mid-point of the National Fifth
Night.
From an economic perspective, we can also expect that the Fifth Night of the Galactic
Underworld will reflect economic conditions seen in the prior two stages: the collapse of the Roman economy in the National Underworld and the Great Depression in the Planetary. Calleman
(2004) predicts that in the Galactic Fifth Night there will be “…not only a major downturn in the
capitalist economy, as was the case already in the Second Night of the Galactic Underworld, but
more like a total collapse of the international monetary system and the beginning of the end of
quantitative abstraction values mediated by the left brain.” In the final chapters of this book we
will detail other likely developments of the Fifth Night and ways of dealing with such eventualities.
– Spiritual Implications—Co-Creation –
Destiny and Choice
Study of the Mayan Calendar clearly indicates the existence of a Cosmic evolution plan,
and raises profound metaphysical questions about the nature and scope of human free will and
our role as co-creators in this scheme.
The overall perspective presented here—that human beings have been essentially like puppets
of the energies of the Cosmic plan, with strong limitations set by these energies on their freedom
to act and think—obviously runs counter to a currently very popular idea: that human beings
have the power to create anything they like. In such a view, a Divine time plan for the evolution
of consciousness does not exist, at least not one that humans would not be able to set aside with
the power of their thoughts and visualizations.” (Calleman, 2004)
The nature of the human mind is constrained by the Underworld that shapes it. In the
National Underworld, linear, left-brain ego consciousness prevailed, along with everything this
mind-set imposed—hierarchal power based on differences, domination of others, separation
and exaltation of the self over Nature, and what we typically call egotism.
In the Planetary Underworld the accumulation of material wealth to bolster egotism and gain
control over others contributed to a mind that emphasized this materialism at the expense of
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spirituality. In the Galactic Underworld these goals will become obsolete, as the new mind-set
based on egalitarianism, cooperation, and intuitive, or higher, knowing develops. Egotists will
fall by the wayside (Calleman, 2004).
We have reached a point in our evolution where we can consciously choose to become
co-creators with the Divine, and work with the Cosmic time plan, or to defy this plan, remain
locked in the dominance model and materialism of the National and Planetary Underworlds.
If we choose the latter, we will suffer the attendant consequences. In this choice lies the exercise
of our free will. Although the progression of the divine plan is completely predetermined, the
outcome is not fixed. It will be wholly determined by human choice. Gregg Braden cites a Hopi
prophecy in Isaiah Effect (2000) that tell us human beings can vacillate between the paths of
unity and duality until 2005, but whichever path they tread at the end of 2005, there they will
remain. This means that the energies of the Galactic Underworld will affect the individuals on
these two roads in radically different ways. During the Fifth Day of this Underworld, the light of
Quetzalcoatl will be opposed by those who have chosen duality, as its energy promotes unity and
egalitarianism, while those who have chosen the path toward unity will welcome it, even though
they may struggle with their own dualities as they work to overcome them. In essence, we are
choosers. We do not create these different paths; they already exist.
There is no external deity sitting in judgment of good and the evil. That is a construct of
the National Underworld. Judgment Day is the time at which we face the consequences of our
choices. Opting to climb toward the enlightened state means opening up to the spiritual energies
promoting intuition, the balancing of the brain hemispheres, and the equalizing of gender disproportions established over the last 5,000 years. Those who commit themselves to this endeavor
will tend to be more loving and altruistic, whereas those who adhere to duality and dominance
will be more selfish -- too disconnected from the Divine energies to align with them. Those who
decide to do the work required to seek enlightenment, by their very nature, will desire to include
as many others as they can on the journey. They will intuitively know that numbers – the conglomerate of individuals who join in efforts toward Self-realization -- will determine the success
or failure of the human experiment; not the Cosmic plan itself.
Calleman’s studies proffer that our connection to the higher energies of the Cosmic creation
field is being severely compromised. In part this is because the spiritually blindfolded consciousness of the Planetary Underworld is very firmly entrenched, and sees the Earth as only matter
to be exploited for economic gain. This poses a dire threat to the planet and to humanity’s sustained terrestrial life. We have created a pollution crisis—not with just the “normal” toxins from
cars, factories, and other forms of chemical contamination, but electromagnetic pollution that,
in the end, may prove to be our greatest hazard. Electromagnetic radiation literally pervades the
atmosphere. Television, radio, cell phones, underground and overhead cables and other devices we
blithely consider harmless may exert truly calamitous effects on life (Becker and Selden, 1985).
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This electromagnetic miasma, according to Calleman, interferes with the development of intuition and telepathic fields, and with our ability to receive spiritual energies from the divine
creation fields. Television, in addition, presents a highly distorted and materialist view of life,
and further supports most of the values of the Planetary Underworld.
The most disastrous consequence of electromagnetic pollution may be colony collapse disorder, a phenomenon that has been developing and metastasizing for several years, but has only
recently gained attention in the media. There has been a progressive dwindling of the Earth’s
critical honeybee population -- bees are simply abandoning their colonies. At the mid-point of
the Fifth Day of the Galactic Underworld, the die-off has reached 50% of the bee population in
many areas, and even greater percentages in others. This has caused enormous and widespread
concern among entomologists, agriculturalists, and other scientists, as the functioning of our
ecosystem is dependent upon the honeybee. Many believe that pollution from the proliferation
of cell phones is the cause, possibly compromising the bees’ immune systems and leaving them
more vulnerable to disease. Others speculate that genetically modified foods have a role in the
problem.
Our vegetable, fruit, and nut food supplies—and the survival of many other varieties of
plants and trees—rely on honeybee pollination. A drastic reduction in the bee population may
mean a drastic shortage in food supply. The net result could be mass starvation and a partial
human die off, perhaps commensurate with the loss rate of the honeybees. If such an event
should occur, we will face social breakdown, economic disintegration, and other phenomena
reminiscent of the Dark Ages of the nearly 400-year long National Fifth Night, and the Great
Depression of the 20-year long Planetary Fifth Night—condensed into roughly a single year.
There are other consequences believed to result from electromagnetic pollution -- a precipitous
rise in autism, attention-deficit syndrome, cancer, and myriad immunodeficiency disorders.
As we proceed, we will examine what measures must be taken to spiritually, psychologically,
and physically prepare for and survive such challenges. It is important to remember that realism
is not pessimism, and it is only through realistic assessment and work that we can truly effect
change. Everything hinges on our willingness to be aware.
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III
CHAPTER THREE
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The Nature of Ego Consciousness
– The Natural History of the Ego –
In this section we will begin to assay the evolution of ego consciousness and the
challenges involved in its transcendence. Ego transcendence is our most pressing spiritual issue
–– our very survival depends on it. As will become clear, the ego stage was meant to be a step in
the evolution of consciousness, but, because of its particular structure and function, has instead
developed the capability to halt the progression of consciousness in order to maintain itself as
it is. If God, Atman, Spirit, or All That Is, represents the full consciousness of unity in diversity,
the ego represents the awareness of diversity and difference devoid of the underlying unity.
– Symbolism of the Fall of Satan From Grace –
At the ashram of Mata Amritanandamayi, Her Holiness has repeatedly referred to the
ego as Satan—without suggestion that there exists a separate demonic entity, but rather that the
ways in which the ego functions can be represented this way. Satan embodies insolent pride, best
denoted by the Greek term hubris. According to an Old Testament myth, Satan was regarded
as the most seraphic of the angels. He then separated himself from God and, out of pride in his
own grandeur, attempted to usurp the throne of godhead for himself. In another version of this
myth, he is viewed as the greatest angel of God who serves as an adversary –– not of God but of
Man (Satan is Hebrew for adversary). In this sense he is seen as an agent of God whose function
is to test Man’s spiritual strength, to provide opposition in order to aid Man in his accretion of
spiritual fortitude—much like weights are used to build physical muscle. Satan’s testing of Job is
a case in point. In a sense, both adaptations of the myth are apt.
The Old Testament was compiled early in the National Underworld. The drama of Satan’s
rebellion against God may symbolize the ego’s futile attempt to become God in its own right—
where a part of the whole secedes and pretends to be the whole. This is what Ken Wilber calls
the Atman Project (1980) –– the ego’s pretension of godhead. The interpretation of Satan as
adversary also makes sense, in that the spiritual might required for transformation is built through
confronting and wrestling with the ego—which is perhaps the greatest and most arduous step in
Man’s spiritual journey.
– Ken Wilber’s View of Human Evolution –
References to Wilber in this section are from his seminal work Up From Eden: A
Transpersonal View of Human Evolution (1981). Wilber, in the tradition of Jean Gebser (English
translation 1985), traces the evolution of consciousness through a progression of levels, starting
at the pre–human, through the pre–egoic human, to the modern ego stage of development,
and culminating in the trans–egoic/transpersonal levels to which we are, hopefully, evolving.
The evolutionary progression—parallel to that of the Underworlds of the Mayan Calendar—
advances from pre–conscious embeddedness in nature (unconscious unity or aduality), to the
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chapter three
beginnings of individuality and separateness, to full ego separateness (duality), and culminates
in transpersonal consciousness (conscious unity). Before we delve into the evolutionary tiers, we
must first examine Wilber’s concept of the Atman Project, which he asserts is the driving force
behind the history and evolution of consciousness.
– The Atman Project –
Atman is the Hindu term for transcendent adual, or unity, consciousness—the Higher
Self in Western terminology. As human beings began to emerge from unconscious unity with
Nature, they began to experience a sense of separateness. This was a gradual process starting
approximately 12,000 years ago, in what Wilber (and Gebser) refer to as the Mythic–Membership
period, which corresponds to Calleman’s late Regional Underworld. Both Wilber and Calleman
view this budding separateness as the root of human fear and our fundamental sense of
incompleteness. Wilber’s concept of the Atman Project is a highly developed commentary on
how our solutions to this fear and incompleteness have shaped the course of human history.
In Up From Eden, Wilber states: Every individual correctly intuits that he is of one nature with
Atman, but distorts that intuition by applying it to his separate self. He feels his separate self is
immortal, central to the cosmos, all–significant. That is, he substitutes his ego for Atman. Then,
instead of finding timeless wholeness, he merely substitutes the wish to live forever; instead of
being one with the cosmos, he substitutes the desire to possess the cosmos; instead of being one
with God, he tries himself to play God. Also: Because man wants real transcendence above all
else, but because he will not accept the death of his separate self–sense, he goes about seeking
transcendence in ways which actually prevent it and force symbolic substitutes. And these
substitutes come in all varieties: sex, food, money, fame, knowledge, power—all are ultimately
substitute gratifications, simple substitutes for release in Wholeness. This is why human desire is
insatiable, why all joys yearn for infinity—all a person wants is Atman; all he finds are symbolic
substitutes for it.
Wilber refers to this drive as ontological hunger. Conceptually it is the same as Calleman’s
half–ness, which is the bedrock of all addiction. It is only with the transcendence of the separate
self that this longing subsides. Both view this transcendence as the “end of history” –– a
movement past left–brain linear time and entrance into the eternal Now of higher consciousness.
Alienation and despair end with the resurrection of the superconscious Self. In Wilber’s words:
Until the final resurrection of the true Self in superconsciousness, then, the false individual
and separate–self sense is faced with two major drives: the perpetuation of its own existence
(Eros) and the avoidance of all that threatens its dissolution (Thanatos). This inward, isolated,
pseudo–self is fiercely defended against death, dissolution, and transcendence (Thanatos), on
the one hand, while aspiring and pretending to cosmocentricity, omnipotence, and immortality
on the other (Eros).
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The Atman project has both a positive and a negative dimension. The positive aspect,
which does not imply “good,” is the accumulation of more symbolic substitutes for Atman in the
attempt to create the illusion of wholeness. The negative aspect is death denial. It arises from the
primal intuition that one’s true Self is immortal, but when it is applied to the ego, it is perverted
into the ego’s desire to live forever. And this becomes the driving force behind violence, murder,
and blood sacrifice—the illusion of living forever is fed by killing others, making substitute
sacrifices of them to avoid sacrificing the separate self.
Make no mistake: every person intuits that he is God, but corrupts the intuition by applying it to
his self, and he will then do whatever is necessary to confirm that distorted intuition in his own
case. Through substitute seeking (Eros) and substitute sacrifices (Thanatos) he propels himself
through the ocean of other equally driven souls, and the violent friction of these overlapping
Atman projects sparks the nightmare called history (Wilber, 1981).
– The Evolutionary Levels of Human Development –
The evolutionary levels delineated by Wilber, based on Gebser’s work, correspond roughly to
the Underworlds of the Mayan Calendar.
Level 1: Archaic–Uroboric
This is the primal condition of complete immersion in the environment, with no sense of
separateness—beginning as early as six million years ago (pre–sapiens) and continuing to 200,000
years ago. This encompasses the late Familial through the late Tribal Underworld period, a
period of spiritual sleep when consciousness had no sense of self–awareness. It spanned the
period from pre–sapiens humans to the times of Australopithecus africanus, Homo habilis, into
Homo erectus.
Level 2: Typhonic
The Low Typhonic period, when the Neanderthal predominated, extended from
200,000–50,000 years ago (late Tribal to middle Regional Underworlds). The High Typhonic
period, from 50,000–10,000 years ago (middle to late Regional Underworld), saw the ingress
of Cro Magnon (modern human beings). Here we see the beginnings of the emerging self.
The individual was no longer fused with the world of nature, but was magically interconnected
with it. Wilber views this level as dream–like, in which primitive typhonic men and women
experienced in their waking state what later human beings met in dreams.
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Level 3: Mythic–Membership
Extending from the late Regional Underworld through to the early National Underworld
(9,500 B.C.E.–1,500 B.C.E.), the Mythic–Membership period was initiated by arguably the most
significant transformation in history—from a hunter/gatherer subsistence to an agricultural one.
This transition also meant a radical change in consciousness, a shift from the eternal present of
the typhonic consciousness to that of extended time. Thus, in a very real sense, the future came
into being. People needed to think in terms of preparation for a future harvest, and this meant
adjusting goals, aims and expectations for a future outcome. Impulse control and the ability
to delay, channel, and sublimate instinctual activities evolved as a necessary consequence of
farming
Toward the end of the Low Typhonic period, approximately 50,000 years ago, language
emerged. It reached its developmental peak about 12,000 years ago, concurrent with the advent
of farming. Because agriculture involved planning for a future outcome, language had to
accommodate a new perspective. Thus, a tensed language evolved—past, present, and future
tenses—as a consequence of agriculture. This laid the groundwork for linear, cumulative time,
and was also the means by which the separate self could form. Mind began to cleave from its
immersion in nature and fusion with the body.
Farming had two other significant effects on human development. The first was the creation
of leisure. Man was released from the slavery of food gathering and had time to contemplate.
The second was the invention of money. Using money, people could symbolize the value of
specified material goods. These goods no longer had to be dragged from place to place, but could
be transferred representatively. This symbolic substitute marked a significant transcendence of
the corporeal realm, a true abstraction beyond the physical plane. Thus, farming surplus and its
abstract symbol, money, became the new Atman project.
Because farming surplus, or food, equaled life, and it could be exchanged for money,
the amassing of money became an end in itself. Money became the new emblem of immortality:
if money represented food surplus, and therefore life, more money meant more life, which
spawned idea that absolute money was tantamount to absolute life, or immortality. Money
became the promise of salvation, which is perhaps why banks are still frequently designed to
look like temples.
Several years ago I had an unequivocal experience with the relationship between money
and immortality. A wealthy client I had been working with came to my office looking very
agitated and depressed. He was a man who was obsessed with money. Wondering if he had
lost part of his accumulated wealth, I asked him what was troubling him. He told me that a
billionaire colleague had suddenly died. I knew that my client disliked this man and, in fact, had
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once said he had never met a billionaire he liked. I reminded him of this, and asked why he was
so upset over the death of someone he had not cared for.
What I thought was that his own mortality had been brought into consciousness, but I was only
partially correct. What he said was that he could not believe the billionaire was dead. He looked
truly perplexed. I inquired as to why he could not believe it. His answer shocked me. “I can’t
believe he’s dead,” he said, “because he was so rich!” He actually presumed the billionaire’s
wealth would somehow protect him from death.
– Blood Sacrifice as Life Insurance –
Worship of the Great Mother dominated the Typhonic stage, and reached its peak in the
early Mythic–Membership stage. She represented Nature and was viewed as the giver and taker
of life. With the advent of farming, humans began to believe that the health and fecundity
of the harvest depended upon Her largesse. It followed, then, that the Great Mother had to
be appeased to ensure the bounty of the harvest. The creation of an appeasement ritual is
a fascinating example of paleologic – the term Wilber uses to define intellectual strategies
employed by Typhonic humans. It is of utmost importance to remember that mankind did not
yet understand the connection between sexual intercourse and pregnancy. Blood, however, was
equated with new life, because women were observed to menstruate up until pregnancy. It was
inferred that the interrupted blood flow gave life to the developing fetus.
In Wilber’s words: To paleologic it was obvious: the menstrual blood flow of the woman
continues periodically throughout her maturity—except when she is pregnant. And thus it is this
“withheld” menstrual blood that is being converted into the form of a living baby and new life.
And therefore the Great Mother needs blood in order to bring forth new life. And this equation
was supplemented by the otherwise quite accurate perception that bodily life depends on blood:
take away blood and you take away life. For either or both of these reasons, the conclusion was
obvious: just as the earth needs rain to bring forth crops, the Great Mother needs blood to bring
forth new life… To put it in a nutshell: what was the way to appease the Great Mother, to keep
her as Protectress and prevent Her wrathful Vengeance? Give her what she demands: blood.
Out of this equation came the ritual of blood sacrifice—a magical rite to ensure fertility,
good harvest, the future, the sustenance of life. Wilber notes that exoteric Christianity still
practices a form of blood sacrifice, in which Christ is the sacrificial lamb who died for our
redemption and continued life, and whose body we eat and blood we drink symbolically in the
rite of Holy Communion. Even so–called “holy war” is a vestige of Great Mother worship,
although these conflicts are carried out in the name of male gods. The greatest culprits in this
regard have been Christians and Muslims, who “…have killed more people in the name of a
‘divinity’ than any other people in history. The only thing bloodier than a Christian holy war or
a Muslim holy war is a Christian holy war on Muslims (or vice versa).” Buddhists, on the other
hand, have never fought a single religious battle in their 2,500–year history.
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chapter three
– The Mythology of Murder –
A New Form of Substitute Sacrifice
(The Negative Atman Project)
Ultimate reality, according to Buddhism, is known as sunyata. It is the wholeness or ground
that contains everything, but is usually misinterpreted as “nothingness,” “emptiness” or “void.”
In this All–ness there exists no separate, isolated or bounded entity. This is a construct of the
separate self–sense, which is an artificial boundary that requires a tremendous energy to maintain.
When we identify with such a bounded self–sense, we must sustain a perpetual contraction
against Wholeness. Since fear is the emotional energy that fuels contraction, it can be said that
this boundary is a form of crystallized fear. This contrived barrier ultimately manifested as the
ego self, is maintained by two dynamic factors: Eros and Thanatos.
As mentioned previously, Eros is the hunger to find true union/wholeness that was lost
when the artificial border was erected. In order to truly do this, however, the separate self–
sense must be dissolved—but this is vehemently resisted because, to the Self that has identified
with the separate self, an overwhelming fear of death arises at the prospect of the boundary’s
dissolution. Eros, then, seeks symbolic substitutes for the real Whole—grasping, wishing, desiring,
perpetuating, loving, accumulating and so on. And its appetite is never satisfied because none of
the surrogates can replicate true wholeness (Wilber, 1981).
Thanatos is the force that works to tear down the artificial boundary created by the separate
self. Although it is commonly translated to mean “death wish,” it is only the separate, ego, self
that responds to Thanatos as a death–threat. In truth, it is transcendence, Self–realization, the
birth into Wholeness, and liberation. In the course of the spiritual evolution of consciousness,
therefore, the individual faces a choice between surrendering to the force of Thanatos and
finding substitute sacrifices. The path to transcendence and liberation involves killing the ego,
while the path to degeneration and slavery entails killing others in order to preserve the fictional
supremacy of the ego.
At the membership level, the separate self–sense is sufficiently developed to redirect the
“death–wish” of Thanatos from the artificial self–boundary and project it onto others—in
the form of murderous aggression: “And the simple fact is that, around the third millennium
B.C., especially in Sumer—those early city–states of Ur, Uruk, Kish, Lagash, and all—modern
massive warfare of one state against another was born.” (Wilber, 1981) This period corresponds
to the beginning of the Bronze Age, which saw the supplanting of Goddess worship and the
partnership model by the male dominator model, bronze weaponry, and their male gods of war.
(Eisler, 1987). And this rampant violence has existed and perpetuated ever since.
For the staggering and terrifying thing about war is that, despite the loathsome things said of
it on the one side, and, on the other, despite the noble causes and holy reasons and high ideals
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brought in to prop it up, one fact stands alone: war has been popular. It has thus served a
necessary function, and served it well. And it served the cultural Atman project, the attempts to
make egos into gods, power soaked and blood immune. We all know the statistics: for every one
year of peace in mankind’s history, there have been fourteen years of war (Wilber, 1981).
Level 4: Ego
Toward the close of the Bronze Age, about 2500 B.C.E, an entirely new mythology began
to emerge, which reflected the unmistakable solidifying of the ego. The Great Mother was
mythologized as dark, menacing, and devouring, while the radiant male Hero—depicted as
liberator—defeats her or her offspring in battle. Typical of the Hero Myth are the victories of
Zeus over Typhon, the youngest child of the Earth Mother Gaea, and of Indra, king of the
Vedic pantheon, over Vritra, the cosmic serpent. In Wilber’s words, “…the Hero clutched his
ego self out of the jaws of the Devouring Mother and secured thereby his own emancipation.
There was, however, a great price to pay for this victory: the Great Mother was not transcended
and integrated, but instead was defeated and cast aside.”
This resulted in the ego’s dissociation from the feminine, which includes feeling, intuition,
body, and Nature. In addition, because of the ego’s unique locus, halfway between the
subconscious and the superconscious, it was in a position to deny both. It rejected any dependence
on either Earth or cosmos: The ego rose up arrogant and aggressive, and –blown sky high with
its Atman project—it began to sever its own roots in a fantasy attempt to prove its own absolute
independence … But this speck, emerging by its own truly heroic and commendable efforts out
of the chthonic subconscious, turned then to lay waste to both its roots in the subconscious and
its future in the superconscious. It attempted—and succeeded—in suppressing access to both
realms, and imagining success, began to remake the cosmos in its own image (Wilber, 1981).
In many ways the ego is like an adolescent who denies dependence on both parents and other
higher authority. When the ego became a substitute self it adopted, like a typical adolescent, its
own thought process as ultimate reality. Abstract thought, then, became the new Atman project.
Thought, unlike the mortal body, lives on in a timeless dimension, which allows the ego to create
the illusion of immortality through identification with it (Wilber, 1981). Ego is still hiding out
there today.
The ego also initiated the concept of linear/historical time, in contrast with the cyclical/
seasonal time of the Mythic–Membership period, which simply repeated over and over, going
nowhere. This had several serious consequences. One was that, while cycles of time overlaid
the difficulties of prior years, and allowed a new start annually, linear time was cumulative,
and created what Eckhart Tolle (1999) called the burden of psychological time, the deeper
consequences of which will be examined in detail in the next section. Another of its effects had,
and still has, an even more profound impact.
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For once the ego was cut loose from seasonal nature and from the body, it had no felt roots
to ground its otherwise higher–order awareness. It then seemed perfectly acceptable to the
ego to begin a premeditated assault on nature regardless of the historical consequences of
such activity, because history and nature were no longer integrated in a mutually dependent
fashion…. The whole project was, in the deepest and truest sense, finally suicidal. That this
ecological interdependence of human body and natural environment only became obvious in
this century—that is to say, 4,000 years after the ego’s emergence—shows precisely how deeply
seated this prejudice was (Wilber 1981).
When the ego mind dissociated itself from the body –– the Typhonic realm –– the result
was a deformation of both. In the West, the Typhonic/somatic realm of sex, emotionality, and
instinct became symbolized by Satan, the mythical entity of absolute evil, and manifested as
obsessive genital–sexuality, hedonism, perversion and hyper–emotionality. The deformed ego
mind, on the other hand, displayed itself as a cold, emotionally deadened intellectualism,
obsessive power drive, and alienation from the natural world. “The ego,” said Wilber (1981),
“either shrank in terror of the body, or compulsively exploited it for pleasure and orgasmic
release.” Humanity’s obsession with sex and violence, which started in Mythic–Membership
times, still flourishes and, in fact, intensifies over time – because the dissociated ego from which
it stems remains intact and carefully tended.
When I was a psychology graduate student, a colleague had a drawing that nearly everyone
else copied and hung in his or her office. It depicted a squatting, naked man in profile with
his face turned forward. His brows were knitted into a quizzical furrow, and his face appeared
perplexed. Out of his rectum ran a tube that was attached to a funnel atop his head. The
drawing was entitled: “The Intellectual.” No one could explain why it had such appeal, even
though each of us had one on our wall. Looking back, I believe it was a warning about what
could happen if we lost our sense of humor and began to take ourselves too seriously, forgetting
the feeling–side of who we were.
– Operational Characteristics of the Ego: The Insights of Eckhart Tolle –
It cannot be overstated that our individual, collective, and planetary survival depends on
our ability to rise above the ego. As will be made plain in the following pages, all of our problems
derive from this aberrant mental structure, whose only aim is to keep itself in existence. It serves
no other purpose. Over the course of the last few millennia, we have come to erroneously
identify ego as Self, and in this regard we have, metaphorically speaking, “sold ourselves to the
Devil.” It is now crucial that we disillusion ourselves and claim our spiritual birthright. In order
to do this, we must first understand ego’s structure—what comprises it—and how it works to
preserve its existence.
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In A New Earth (2005), Tolle, agreeing with Calleman, saw humanity entering an
unprecedented era for the growth of consciousness. Both authors also predicted that some
religious institutions would meet this influx with open arms, while others—which can be thought
of as collective ego entities—would harden their positions and fight against the light. These latter
religious syndicates are so rigidly identified with their ideologies and “holy” books –– writings
that serve more as manifestos than scriptures ––that they are more like political alliances than
spiritual fellowships, and are closed to all alternate views of reality.
We have quite clearly reached a point of spiritual crisis, where the old way of interacting
with one another and with Nature is no longer viable. A rapidly increasing, albeit still small,
percentage of humanity is transcending the old and dysfunctional ego patterns, and embracing
the advent of the new consciousness – one based on wholeness rather than separateness. This
does not entail the institution of a new belief system or ideology, but rather the transcendence of
thought–based systems per se—a rising above thought into the realization of dimensions within
the Self that are far vaster than thought (Tolle 2005).
All great spiritual teachers have taught that God is love. One property of love is cohesion,
the force that holds everything in the universe together, from atoms to galaxies, and organizes
it into one functional, living Whole, an entity in which nothing is separate. It is the height of
arrogance that, as Wilber has also noted, the tiny “speck” which we call ego has pretensions
toward Supreme Divinity. Perhaps it is even more absurd that we continue to comply with this
delusion. The following formula has heuristic value:
Ego=Thinking=Separateness=Fear=Incoherence
Self=Feeling/Intuition=Connectedness=Love=Coherence
– Ego Dependence on the Past –
The 17th Century philosopher/mathematician Descartes made a critical error when he
famously stated, “I think, therefore I am.” It was a misconception typical of the era in which he
lived—the Thirteenth Heaven of the National Underworld, right on the cusp of the spiritually
blindfolded Planetary Underworld. By equating Being with thinking, he gave scientific validation
to a schism in the psyche that plagues us even now. In connection with this discord, we suffer from
compulsive thinking—a mental disease that creates a fragmentation of the mind. An incessant
internal dialogue creates and maintains the delusion that one is separate, not only from others,
Nature, and Spirit, but also from oneself (Tolle, 1999). In this way the ego mind operates like a
psychic parasite that feeds from us. When we identify its needs as our own, it, like any other form
of parasite, thrives. Although this occurs only if we are unaware that we have associated with
the parasite, for it is through unconscious identification that we liken its survival with our own.
Freedom begins when we properly distinguish the parasite as a parasite and dis–identify with it.
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Tolle (1999) points out that the difference between “mad” people who mutter and speak out loud
to themselves, and “normal” people, is that the latter do not give sound to their monologue. The
voice is confined to the head. “The voice comments, speculates, judges, compares, complains,
likes, dislikes, and so on. The voice isn’t necessarily relevant to the situation you find yourself in
at the time; it might be reviving the recent or distant past or rehearsing or imagining possible
future situations. Here it often imagines things going wrong and negative outcomes; this is called
worry.” Even if the voice happens to have relevance to the present, its interpretations derive
from the past. This is because ego draws its identity from history; it cannot exist in the present.
The voice in the head has a mind of its own. Most people are possessed by their thoughts—
and because the mind is conditioned by the past, it follows that most people are possessed by
the past, which they are then forced to reenact and relive over and over again. This is the
essential meaning of the Hindu Wheel of Karma. In his Freedom From the Known (1969),
Krishnamurti stresses that by interpreting the present through the eyes of the past, we get an
altogether distorted perception. His view is that we can never truly know anyone or anything
through thinking, because we are constantly looking for an established category in which we can
place present experience. By projecting the past onto the present, we transport it into the future.
This phrenic tendency is what enables the past to keep recurring. The result is that people really
do not see or relate to one another. They are not present because their attention is either in the
past or on the future –– which exist only as thought–forms in the mind—or they relate to others
through a role they play, which was also fabricated in the past.
Ego is no more than this: identification with form, which is primarily constituted of thought–
form. Ego arises when formless Being attaches to form. The result is forgetfulness of Being, the
most fundamental of errors. It creates what Einstein called the “optical illusion of consciousness,”
which nurtures the ego and its sense of separateness –– separateness that turns reality into
nightmare. It is from this that human misery and destructiveness stem. When we interpret form,
rather than formless Being, as absolute reality, we lose our sense of interconnectedness and live
in a place of fear. “When this delusion of utter separateness underlies and governs whatever
I think, say, and do, what kind of world do I create? To find the answer to this, observe how
humans relate to each other, read a history book, or watch the news on television tonight.”
(Tolle, 2005)
Whatever we identify with “I” or “mine” becomes part of the ego thought–form. A child’s
name is one of the first thoughts that he learns to identify with “I.” As with any thought
connected with “I,” it becomes inextricably bound up with identity. Insult to one’s name is
considered tantamount to attack on the essence of one’s self–sense. This also holds true for
ego identification with objects—investing things with a sense of self, thereby deriving a sense
of identity from them. Common among these linkages are one’s body, other people, pets, car,
house, profession, country, and religion. Any infringement on these can be seen as an attack on
one’s self, and may be met with strong defensiveness.
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– Content and Structure of the Ego –
It is a cornerstone of Eastern metaphysics and philosophy that there is no “I” separate
from the thought processes that created it. The ego mind is a product of past conditioning.
Such conditioning is two–fold: content and structure. Environment defines the content a person
identifies with: It is a product of culture and childhood upbringing. Regardless of the specific
content, which will vary from culture to culture and across socioeconomic levels, acute suffering
results from the loss of any object with which the ego identifies in order to enhance its sense of
self.
While content is defined by what one identifies with, the unconscious compulsion to identify
is structural. It is a basic operation of the ego mind. The word “identification” is derived from the
Latin word indem, meaning “same” and facere, “to make.” So when I identify with something,
I “make it the same.” The same as what? The same as I. I endow it with a sense of self, and so
it becomes a part of my “identity.” (Tolle, 2005)
Tolle (2005) and Calleman (2004) both view the ego very similarly—that the ego’s
identification with things creates addiction and an economic system of unchecked growth,
an endless striving for more. It is the ego’s Atman project that is destroying us, and the eco–
system of the planet, all in a futile attempt to ameliorate its sense of incompleteness and fear
of insignificance. “The unchecked striving for more, for endless growth, is a dysfunction and a
disease. It is the same dysfunction the cancerous cell manifests, whose only goal is to multiply
itself, unaware that it is bringing about its own destruction by destroying the organism of which
it is a part.” (Tolle, 2005)
Because wanting is structural, it is essential to the integrity of the ego. The ego wants to
want, and this hunger acts as the “life–force” of the ego. Paradoxically, according to Tolle (2005),
the ego wants much more than it wants to have. As long as the structural element of wanting
exists, no amount of accumulation can satisfy it. To quote a line from a Bob Dylan song, the ego’s
craving creates “a hungry, restless feeling that does no one any good.” Tolle (2005) observes that
among teenagers, the wanting can be objectless. It is simply there, and it keeps some of them in
a permanent state of negativity and dissatisfaction.
In addition to the structural components of compulsive identification and wanting, Tolle
identified separateness as the third fundamental element that comprises the anatomy of the
ego. The ego defines itself through negation—I–not I. Thus, the concept of “I” cannot exist
without the converse notion of “other.” Not only do we, when at the ego level, establish our self–
boundary in reference to the existence of others, we establish our ego’s sense of worth through
negation, subjugation, and invalidation of others. Which makes life a nightmare. In large part
this is because the ego thrives on making enemies of others in order to most poignantly define
itself. This can range from faultfinding and complaining at one end of the scale, to physical
violence and warfare at the other.
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One powerful aspect of ego boundary–defining and –strengthening entails making others
wrong in order to be right. In fact, this fortifies the ego more than anything else. The ego’s need
to make itself right by making others wrong is at the root of nearly all violence, particularly by
those who believe they know the “truth.” The history of Christianity is replete with examples
of how the belief that one is the caretaker of the truth, the only truth, can cause corruption
to the point of insanity. Torture, burnings, and mass killings have been routinely committed in
the name of “God,” as interpreted through various “holy” books invented during the dualistic
National Underworld. These writings are used to support the notion of a superior, male god of
domination and war –– an image that, in fact, is nothing more than a projection of the collective
ego.
In The End of Faith (2004), Sam Harris gives numerous examples of how the beliefs of
Christians and Muslims –– based on their fantastical, contradictory, and ultimately unverifiable
scriptural writings –– have been used to justify unspeakable violence. Every religious collective,
it seems, has God on its side, rooting for those particular “true believers” against the “infidels,”
“apostates” or any identified enemy. None realize, or are even willing to entertain the possibility,
that they are serving a construct of collective ego projections in the name of “Truth”—that the
“God” they serve is not true Divinity – the non–attached, essential, I AM presence of each of
us.
Both sides believe themselves to be in possession of the truth. Both regard themselves as
victims and the “other” as “evil,” and because they have conceptualized and thereby dehumanized
the other as the enemy, they can kill and inflict all kinds of violence on the other, even on
children, without feeling their humanity and suffering. They become trapped in an insane spiral
of perpetration and retribution, action and reaction (Tolle, 2005).
When we objectify others through conceptualization—“He is or they are a _____” (fill in
the blank with anything but “human being”)—we have effectively made a non–human object
out of the person. Therefore, we are relieved of the need to treat the other as human. Hitler did
it with the Jews, Gypsies, and others whom he defined/objectified as “undesirables.” It is clear
from our history that the human ego as a collective “us” against “them” is exponentially more
dangerous than the individual ego, although the mechanisms of each are the same. By far, the
greatest violence that humans have inflicted on each other has not been done by criminals or the
mentally deranged, but by normal, respectable citizens in the service of the collective ego. One
can say, as Tolle does, that on this planet, “normal” equals insane. What is it that induces this
insanity? A closed system of complete identification with thought and emotion – with ego.
– The Root of Suffering –
Even a cursory study of the ego and its operations clearly establishes that it is at the origin
of human suffering. Suffering, though, is different from pain. Pain happens in the moment.
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Suffering frequently is nothing more than commentary on pain: “How can this be happening to
poor me?” It is usually connected to seeing oneself as a victim, which the ego thrives on.
Unhappiness is an ego–created mental–emotional disease that has reached epidemic
proportions. It is the inner equivalent of the environmental pollution of our planet. Negative
states such as anger, anxiety, hatred, resentment, envy, jealousy, and so forth, are not recognized
as negative but as totally justified and are further misinterpreted as not self–created but as caused
by someone else or some external factor. “I am holding you responsible for my pain.” This is
what by implication the ego is saying… The ego can’t distinguish between a situation and its
interpretation of and reaction to that situation… In Shakespeare’s words, “There is nothing
either good or bad, but thinking makes is so.” What is more, suffering or negativity is often
misperceived by the ego as pleasure because up to a point the ego strengthens itself through it
(Tolle, 2005).
Even in its normal state, the ego is dysfunctional. Although it is a redundancy to refer to
a “pathological ego,” there are times when the ego’s dysfunction is so exaggerated that it can
be deemed clinically pathological. Paranoia is a case in point. It is an extreme amplification of
the ego’s inherent fear, coupled with an attempt to explain that fear through the creation of
frequently bizarre and complex stories. These stories have a consistent theme – somebody or
something else is responsible for the unrest. Paranoid individuals typically have a long history
of mental decompensation, severe adjustment difficulties, and marked interpersonal difficulties.
Often the “others” are powerful people or organizations that engage in elaborate schemes of
sabotage and persecution. This, of course, makes the paranoid ego feel very special—for why
else would they target him? It allows the ego to deny the truth of its cosmic insignificance
by magically elevating its self–importance to grandiose heights. In its most extreme form, the
paranoid ego “explains” its delusional victimization by taking on the role of hero, sometimes
Messiah, who is charged with saving the world from the forces of evil.
As history has repeatedly shown, when collective egos become paranoid the results can
be catastrophic: Heretic persecution and witch burnings during the Spanish Inquisition; the
paranoid relationships between nations which led to both World Wars I and II; Nazism and
the mass killing of Jews and European Gypsy tribes; totalitarian regimes throughout history;
American McCarthyism; and the endless Middle East conflict. Because the collective ego is
typically less conscious than the individuals who comprise the collective, it is common for
individuals to awaken to the insanity of the collective that they have been supporting. When
an individual becomes suddenly aware that his nation is perpetrating atrocities, a serious moral
dilemma arises (Tolle, 2005).
– How the Ego Controls Emotion –
Mind includes emotions and habitual mental–emotional reactions patterns, as well as
thought. Tolle (1999, 2005) eloquently defines emotion as the body’s reaction to the mind,
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basically as its visceral reflection. For example, the thought that you are in danger causes the
body to contract, as this is the physical correlate of fear. Because the emotional energy of fear
causes bodily contraction, it can have physically destructive effects if it is persistent. Contraction
prevents a free flow of energy in the body, and can also interfere with the release of toxins
because the constriction of the musculature reduces blood flow. In Character Analysis (1933),
Wilhelm Reich called this contraction “body armor”—a physical deadening that can result in
depression and a host of psychosomatic disorders. It is a defense against the conscious recognition
of emotion. It can, however, carry a very high cost. People who are insulated from their feelings
typically experience them on a bodily level as physical problems or symptoms. Moreover, a
strong unconscious emotional energy can even manifest as external events that “just seem to
happen.”
All thinking and emotion are not derived from the ego. Thought and emotion become ego
when you identify with them and they become “I.” Mental evaluation can occur without being
taken over by the ego. Typically these thoughts occur in response to actual external stimuli in
present–time. The body also has a primal intelligence, and can react to input in an instinctive
manner. These reactions appear to be fundamental forms of emotion, but they are not emotions
as we have come to think of them. They are instinctual reactions—a direct “flight–fight” response
to concrete external stimulus—such as primordial fear or anger in the face of a survival threat.
These are sudden flare–ups of intense energy driven by the survival instinct. Emotion, however,
is the body’s response to a thought.
Indirectly, an emotion can also be a response to an actual situation or event, but it will be
a response to the event seen through the filter of mental interpretation. The filter of thought,
that is to say, through the mental concepts of good and bad, like and dislike, me and mine. For
example, it is likely you won’t feel any emotion when you are told that someone’s car has been
stolen, but when it is your car, you will probably feel upset. It is amazing how much emotion a
little mental concept like “my” can generate (Tolle, 2005).
In many ways the body exhibits a great deal of intelligence. It cannot, however, tell the
difference between a circumstance and a thought. Fearful thoughts, for example, cause the body
to react as if it were truly in danger, even though it is perfectly safe. This is very useful information
because, when I understand that my body reacts to every thought as if it were a reality, I can
change negative physical reaction patterns by changing my thoughts. Although our thoughts are
capable of deceit, the body never lies, and always accurately reflects the thought that causes the
bodily emotional reaction. In the event of a conflict between thought and emotion, therefore, it
is the emotion that proves truthful. As we will shortly see, this infallibility of body response is of
inestimable value in the process of self–examination (Tolle, 2005).
The relationship between a thought and its reflected emotion can be understood as a
positive feedback loop. Most people are familiar with negative feedback loops, like a household
thermostat. The thermostat registers air temperature and is connected to a heater. When the
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thermostat is set to maintain particular air temperature, the heater turns on when air temperature
falls below that setting, and turns off when the temperature rises above it. When the feedback
relationship is positive, however, the hotter the air temperature gets, the more the heater works.
This is the relationship between thought and emotion: the thought feeds its related emotion,
and the emotion feeds the thought, creating a spiral of escalation.
Many persistent negative thoughts operate on a subconscious level. They are unquestioned
and negative core beliefs that were adopted in early childhood, i.e., “I am unlovable,” “people
always let me down,” “nothing good ever happens to me.” Most thoughts that trigger emotional
responses occur at a pre–verbal level, as unconscious assumptions about oneself, others and life.
As Jane Roberts has so thoroughly explained in The Nature of Personal Reality (1974), these
deeply–rooted beliefs not only form the individual’s perception of his reality, they create that
reality. Toxic thoughts evoke toxic emotions and experiences, and they create toxic conditions
within the body. Positive thoughts that generate positive emotions have the opposite effect,
“…. but these,” says Tolle (2005), “must be discriminated from positive emotions that are ego–
generated and deeper emotions that emanate from your natural state of connectedness with
Being.”
Even positive ego–generated emotions ultimately induce pain, while this is not true for
Being–based positive emotions. Both Krishnamurti (1969) and Tolle (1999) explain this similarly.
Both first distinguish that love, joy, and peace are not really emotions at all. They are spiritual
states that we confuse with emotions, and our semantics perpetuate that confusion. When
positive emotions are ego–based, it is the duality of those ostensible positive emotions that causes
pain. When they are Being–based, there is no duality. In Freedom From the Known (1969),
Krishnamurti draws a distinction between joy and pleasure in order to clarify how pleasure is
inextricably related to pain. He explains that joy is in the moment, and that remembered joy is
what we call pleasure. When we recall joy we also recognize that it is not here now—and it is this
that connects pleasure to pain. It is a form of non–acceptance; a resistance to what is.
There also are very important affiliations among the ego, time, and pain. The birth of the
ego, about 5000 years ago, was concurrent with the advent of linear time, a concept we have
come to call history. The further we proceed along the linear “time–line,” the more history we
accumulate—and much of this history is fraught with painful experiences. This creates a heavy
burden in the individual and collective mind, a burden that is intensified with the accumulation
of painful experiences. This is what the ego clings to in order to claim an identity.
To be identified with your mind is to be trapped in time: the compulsion to live almost
exclusively through memory and anticipation. This creates an endless preoccupation with past
and future and an unwillingness to honor and acknowledge the present moment and allow it to
be. The compulsion arises because the past gives you an identity and the future holds the promise
of salvation, of fulfillment in whatever form. Both are illusions (Tolle 1999, italics added).
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Tolle (1999) refers to the ego’s tendency to derive identity from the accumulated past and
salvation from an anticipated future as “psychological time.” “Clock time” refers to the practical
use of time. Understanding the difference is important in defining the relationship between time
and pain. Clock time is associated with working toward set goals, the use of mathematical and
physical laws to predict the future, and learning from the past. The reference point for clock time
is the present—gauging how the past is relevant to the Now.
Clock time converts to psychological time when we shift its reference point from the present
into the past or future. Thus, learning from past mistakes to live more effectively in the present
is using clock time. Holding onto remorse, guilt, or self–punishment about the past, making
past mistakes a part of myself—me or mine—recreates psychological time from clock time, and
fashions a false sense of identity. Similarly, working toward future goals is a function of clock
time if the main focus of attention is on the present moment. It is translated into psychological
time when excessive or even obsessive focus is placed on the future. When this happens, the
present moment –– which is all that exists –– is reduced to an avenue to the future, often merely
an annoying impediment to the realization of that goal.
A danger of ego–based psychological time is that it can be used to justify violence. In
this way, psychological time is a form of disease. This is clear in the study of ideologies such as
communism, Nazism, or any rigid belief system that advocates “the end justifies the means.” In
these systems, the highest good lies in the future: “For example, it is estimated that as many as
50 million people were murdered to further the cause of communism, to bring about a ‘better
world’ in Russia, China, and other countries. This is a chilling example of how belief in a future
heaven creates a present hell.” (Tolle, 1999)
The source of all negativity is related to the accumulation of psychological time and the
denial of the present (Tolle, 1999). All forms of fear, such as anxiety, worry, tension, and unease,
are produced by fixation on future and disconnection from presence. The cumulative effect of this
catalog of past experience is guilt, regret, bitterness, sadness, grievances, and non–forgiveness.
Ultimately, all ego actions are based on fear, no matter how they may appear. This is because the
ego is the half–mind that came into existence during the National Underworld, and with which
the Self has erroneously identified (Calleman, 2004).
Because of this collusion we have come to experience ourselves as separate fragments in a
hostile universe, disconnected from Nature and others, surrounded by other egos in the same
unfortunate state. “The basic ego patterns are designed to combat its own deep–seated fear and
sense of lack. They are resistance, control, power, greed, defense, and attack. Some of the egos
strategies are extremely clever, yet they never truly solve any of its problems, simply because the
ego itself is the problem.” (Tolle, 2005)
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– The Pain Body –
The ego’s tendency to derive its identity from past conditioning further results in a perpetuation
of old, typically negative, emotion. This aged, but still very much alive, emotional pain and
negativity accumulates in the energy field of the individual or collective. Painful experiences
that are not fully faced and discharged the moment they happen leave behind a “residue” which
merges with the store of painful experiences from the past, and forms a negative energy field
that occupies and emanates from the body and mind. Tolle (1999) calls this amassment the pain–
body, which functions like an invisible parasitic entity—a kind of “dark shadow” cast by the
ego with which the mind unconsciously identifies. In the esoteric tradition, this parasitic energy
form is known as an “artificial elemental,” a semi–autonomous creation which has a degree of
intelligence, and acts like a living lower being (Besant, 1939). It is our mind–identification with
this energy form that gives the pain–body the appearance of autonomous life.
The pain–body is so destructive because it is a collective as well as an individual phenomenon.
Our personal pain resonates with the pain of humanity living today and throughout history,
because this pain endures in the collective energy field comprised of all who are now living
and who have ever lived. Known in Hinduism as the Akashic records, or the Akashic field, it
is the repository of everything that has ever happened. It is the Akasha that shamans, mystics,
clairvoyants, and modern consciousness researchers explore to gain the deepest understanding
of who we are, where we come from, and where we are going.
The work of Stanislav Grof, first published in 1975 in Realms of the Human Unconscious,
contains studies of LSD regression to the stages of the birth experience. It clearly illustrates
how buried memories of this event, when stimulated into consciousness, tap into the pain
of humanity harbored in the collective unconscious. He describes four distinctly different
stages of the parturition process, which he calls “birth perinatal matrices,” or BPMs. Each of
these is associated with fetal experiences ranging from the oceanic ecstasy of floating in the
amniotic fluid (BPM I) to the death–rebirth experience of passage out of the womb (BPM IV).
Of particular interest with regard to the human pain body are BPMs II and III, the periods
right before the head emerges from the cervix. In BPM II the fetal head is pressed against the
cervix as the contractions increase, creating unbearable pressure and a sensation of “no exit” or
“hell.” In Realms of the Human Unconscious, Grof states: Typically, this situation is absolutely
unbearable and, at the same time, appears to be endless and hopeless; no escape can be seen
either in time or in space. Frequently, the subject feels that even suicide would not terminate it
and bring relief … Our planet is perceived in this stage as an apocalyptic place full of terror,
suffering, wars, epidemics, accidents, and natural catastrophes…. Typical for this experience
is empathy and identification with the victimized, downtrodden, and oppressed. A subject can
experience himself as thousands of soldiers who have died on the battlefields of the whole world
from the beginning of time, as the tortured victims of the Spanish Inquisition, as prisoners
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of concentration camps, as patients dying of terminal diseases, as aging individuals who are
decrepit and senile, as mothers and children dying during delivery, or as inmates maltreated in
chronic wards of insane asylums (Grof, 1975). In the next stage, BPM III, the cervix is open rather than closed, and the struggle through
the birth canal begins. Grof refers to this stage as “… a titanic struggle, frequently attaining
catastrophic proportions.”
The intensity of painful tension reaches a degree that appears to be far beyond what any human
being can bear…. The visions typically accompanying these experiences involve scenes of
natural disasters and the unleashing of elemental forces, such as exploding volcanoes, devastating
earthquakes, raging hurricanes, cyclones and tornadoes, electric storms, gigantic comets and
meteors, expanding novas, and various cosmic cataclysms (Grof, 1975).
Grof provides examples of how this penultimate stage of the birth process –prior to the
release and “re–birth” experience of stage IV–– taps into the most painful of collective human
experiences.
The religious symbolism of BPM III is typically related to religions that use and glorify bloody
sacrifice as an important part of their ceremonies. Quite frequent are allusions to the terrible
punishing God Yahweh, of the Old Testament and to the stories about Abraham and Isaac, the
Biblical deluge, the ten Egyptian scourges, and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah….
Elements from the New Testament particularly involve the symbolism of the Last Supper and
the transcending aspects of the crucifixion and Christ’s suffering, as well as the positive aspects
of the Last Judgment. The concept of purgatory in different cultural variations belongs to this
category as well. Particularly frequent are images from various Pre–Columbian cultures focusing
on human sacrifice and self–sacrifice, such as is found in the ceremonies of the Aztec, Mayan,
or Olmec religions (Grof, 1975).
Thus, infants are born with pain–bodies, and as they grow, the pain–body grows with them.
In addition to these universal birth experiences, the fetus also absorbs much of the mother’s pain
during the prenatal state, since the fetus is bathed in her energy field. During gestation, the fetus
ingests the negative emotions of the father, as well as the negative feelings expressed between the
parents. One abundant source of negativity is the memory cache of the fetus’ mother, to which
it has complete access while in utero. This phenomenon is explored in greater depth in the next
chapter.
– Interactions Between the Ego and the Pain-Body –
The pain–body and the ego operate in conjunction with one another to distort the present.
Events in the present are interpreted by the ego through the emotionally charged pain–body,
where they are amplified, because the injection of past pain heightens present–time emotional
reactions. This amplification is what the pain–body feeds on (Tolle, 2005). If an individual has
a heavily charged pain–body he is essentially tethered to the past. It becomes impossible for him
to step outside of his oppressively emotional “story.”
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The more negative emotion there is in the story, the heavier and more impenetrable it becomes.
And so the story is not recognized as such but is taken to be reality. When you are completely
trapped in the movement of thought and the accompanying emotion, stepping outside is not
possible because you don’t even know there is an outside. You are trapped in your own movie
or dream, trapped in your own hell. To you it is reality, and no other reality is possible (Tolle,
2005).
Those who have very strong and active pain–bodies also elicit negative reactions from
others. These reactions can include revulsion, aggression, fear, sadness, and even despair. This
creates negative interactions that are frequently interpreted by the ego through the filter of
an individual’s emotion–laden past. Of course, if you react negatively to another’s powerful
pain–body, it indicates that there is something in your own pain–body that resonates with that
negative material. Any emotionally painful experience can be used as fuel by the pain–body,
which is why it thrives on negative thinking, as well as drama in relationships. The pain–body
has a fierce addiction to emotional pain, worry, negativity, and unhappiness.
Intimate relationships and families are a fruitful feeding ground for the pain–body. In
these arenas, pain–bodies engage in mutual dramas, wherein the pain–body of one person
awakens and engages the pain–body of another. Children adopt the pain–body dramas of their
parents unknowingly, and in this way the pain–body becomes a legacy. This legacy is even more
pronounced when alcohol and/or drugs are involved. Under such conditions, “possession” of
the individual by the pain–body is evident to even a casual observer. Such erraticism is terrifying
for young children to witness. Even more horrifying is that the child’s pain–body incorporates
these patterns and later acts them out in his/her own intimate relationships.
Many relationships are unknowingly based on mutual pain–body attraction—which many
people misconstrue as “falling in love.” For example, the pain–body of a person abused in
childhood by the opposite sex parent will frequently be attracted to someone whose pain–body
is similar to his or her abuser. A significant component of the attraction they experience is the
magnetic pull of their mutual pain–bodies, ultimately toward the end of creating more pain.
This compulsion is largely responsible for the continuation of the childhood abuse pattern into
adulthood. Tolle (2005) describes a man who had a love–hate relationship with his mother when
he was a child, in which he hated her for withholding the love he so desperately needed. As
an adult he developed highly ambivalent relationships with women, who stimulated both his
pain–body’s neediness and his anger. This set up a pattern of seduction–punishment, where
intimacy triggered the rage he felt toward his mother, the expression of which would sabotage
the relationship. Over and over in my counseling work I have observed individuals engaging in
this pattern. In many of these cases, patients punish or reject their lovers for loving them, where
the underlying, unconscious motivation is to show the parent–substitute what it feels like to need
and love intensely, only to be rejected.
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– How the Pain-Body Renews Itself –
The pain–body can be dormant or it can be active. When the pain–body needs to feed,
it begins to activate by “turning on” some memory of past pain or evoking a dark mood. This
causes the individual to identify with this negativity in present time, and to think about it,
frequently acting as “bait” to incite worry about everything that could go wrong or past events
that might create problems in the present or future. In essence, we feed the pain–body whenever
we let a negative feeling spawn an act of thinking (Tolle, 2005). Of note, this is the converse
transaction of thought becoming emotion. When the pain–body asserts control of thinking and
mental functions, the mind’s activity becomes negative and, in turn, obliges the pain–body. One’s
internal dialogue—what Tolle refers to as “the voice in the head”—and imagination begin to
manufacture more negativity, such as sad, fearful, and/or angry stories about one’s life or future,
imagined possibilities of betrayal or loss, and every conceivable unhappiness. The indulgence of
this intercourse between mind and pain–body creates a strong addiction to unhappiness (Tolle,
2005).
The psychic parasite that is the pain–body functions and feeds like any physical parasite.
The host identifies the hunger of the parasite as his own hunger. If the physical parasite craves
sugar, the individual believes that it is he who craves it. When the individual identifies with the
pain–body, he or she begins to crave pain. Pain then becomes pleasurable. The voice in the
head now serves the pain–body. This creates a positive feedback loop, wherein thoughts feed the
pain–body, which generates more thoughts. This continues until the pain–body replenishes itself
and once again becomes dormant, leaving the individual depleted.
Another trough for the individual and collective pain–bodies is entertainment media, which
includes movies, television, music, and the travesty we call the “news.” What we widely accept
as “news” today would have been roundly rejected as sensationalist social pathology fifty years
ago—toxic psychic sewage serving only prurient interest in the promotion of mostly useless
products alongside destructive and dangerous values. The music business is not much better in
its promotion of insipid victimization in the lion’s share of “love” songs, the violent hatefulness
of rap “music,” and the shallow self–indulgence of most “pop.” Our contemporary media
stresses ego values of rightness, leading to revenge and violence, comparisons, leading to envy
and jealousy, and materialism, greed, and gender stereotypes.
Tolle (2005) makes the sad observations that, “If you were not familiar with our contemporary
civilization, if you had come here from another age or another planet, one of the things that
would amaze you is that millions of people love and pay money to watch humans kill and inflict
pain on each other and call it ‘entertainment.’” And, “So, in addition to reactivity, negative
thinking, and personal drama, the pain–body also renews itself vicariously through the cinema.
Pain–bodies write and produce these films, and pain–bodies pay to watch them. TV and printed
news is no better.”
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– The Collective Pain–Body of Humanity –
The general collective of humanity is comprised of a number of sub–collectives, each with its
own pain–body, some heavier than others. Within any particular collective, each individual mimics the
pain–body of the collective of which he is a part. Some of these collectives overlap, and each part of the
amalgam has its distinct influence on the individual. In the following chapter we will consider how and
why these assemblies influence the individual, as well as how they perpetuate their own pain–bodies by
creating reality structures which reflect them. For now we will examine some fundamental collectives
and how each affects the individual: the female–, national–, and racial collective pain–bodies.
– The Collective Female Pain–Body –
The collective female pain–body is most palpable during menstruation, when women’s
sensitivity on all dimensions is amplified by rising estrogen. Thousands of years of abuse and
suppression have created, on the one hand, a particularly burdensome pain–body in the female
and, on the other, a lesser degree of ego–identification than that of the male. This means that
the female is much more connected with her inner body and bodily intelligence, which is the
source of intuitive awareness. The female is generally more open to other life forms, less rigid, and
more attuned to the natural world than is the male. Because of this, women are more in line with
the creative flow of spiritual evolution that Calleman (2004) attributes to our current, Galactic,
Underworld: “If the balance between male and female energies had not been destroyed on our
planet, the ego’s growth would have been greatly curtailed. We would not have declared war on
Nature, and we would not be so alienated from our Being.” (Tolle, 2005)
During the course of the National and Planetary Underworlds, the ego commandeered most
women, but not as thoroughly as it did men. The suppression of the sacred feminine is felt by
women as emotional pain, and has become an enormous and integral part of the female pain–
body. Devastating memories are locked in the collective unconscious of all women. During the
so–called “Holy” Inquisition, between three and five million women were tortured and killed,
ranking with the Holocaust as one of the darkest events in history.
The sacred feminine was declared demonic, and an entire dimension largely disappeared
from human experience. Other cultures and religions, such as Judaism, Islam, and even Buddhism,
also suppressed the feminine dimension, although in a less violent way. Women’s status was reduced
to being child bearers and men’s property. Males who denied the feminine even within themselves
were now running the world, a world that was totally out of balance. The rest is history or rather
a case history of insanity (Tolle, 2005).
Now, because of the rapid changes that are occurring, the ego is losing its control over the
mind. This is happening more rapidly in women than in men, because of the tenuous hold the ego
exerts on the feminine mind. This is reflected in burgeoning power of women in many arenas of
society as we proceed through the Galactic Underworld.
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– National and racial pain–bodies –
National and racial collectives that have been subjected to greater violence, such as frequent
wars, invasions, genocides, and enslavement, have heavier pain–bodies than those that have
experienced less violence. The accumulation of collective negativity from either perpetration of,
or victimization by, violence appears to be the most significant determinant of the “heaviness”
of a collective pain–body. This is why older social collectives, such as those of the Middle East,
Asia, and Eastern Europe have very strong pain–bodies in relation to newer formations. This is
clearly apparent in the collectives of the Middle East today, where they are constantly renewing
and deepening their pain–bodies through an endless cycle of perpetration and retribution (Tolle
2005).
In countries, such as Germany and Japan, that have a history of pronounced pain–body
activity, but in which the current feeding ground for the pain–body is less bountiful, work is
substituted as a method of desensitization (Tolle 2005). Other nations, like Russia, use alcohol
for this purpose. In China, spiritual practices such as qigong, and t’ai chi serve to weaken the
pain body. Countries that have less of a history of violence and oppression, such as Australia,
New Zealand, and Canada, on the other hand, have lighter pain–bodies and a less pronounced
need for their desensitization or disempowerment.
In the next chapter on the creation of morphogenetic fields we will evaluate racial
suppression, enslavement, and genocide, and how the effects of these experiences are transmitted
along generations to influence future members of their collectives. Included in this examination
are the brutality against and enslavement of African Americans, the genocide of the Native
Americans, the Holocaust, the Conquest of the indigenous populations of Mexico and Central
America, and how hate directed against homosexuals by the dominant collective is having
genocidal effects.
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IV
CHAPTER FOUR
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The New Scientific Paradigm
In this and the next chapter we will examine what has become known as the “New
Paradigm.” We will focus on the organizing principles that underlie and inter-connect the
universe on all levels of complexity, spanning from the organization of material particles to that
of the cosmos itself, and including study of chemistry, biology, psychology, sociology, and history.
We have arrived at a point in human evolution where the outlines of a fundamental Theory of
Everything (TOE) is coming into focus, allowing us a profound understanding of our place in
the cosmos.
The shift to the New Paradigm is even more radical than its most recent ancestor -- the
change from the mechanistic Newtonian conception of the universe to paradigms proposed by
Einstein and the proponents of quantum mechanics. In the New Paradigm, we are developing
an understanding of both our essential oneness with life in all of its manifestations, and of our
role and responsibility as co-creators in the actualization of the cosmic plan of evolution. The
TOE is essentially organismic—that everything, from sub-atomic particles to the cosmos itself,
is alive. We will primarily reference the work of evolutionary biologist Rupert Sheldrake, and
the broader-spectrum work of philosopher of science Ervin Laszlo, as representatives of the
theoretical views of the New Paradigm. Both have developed comprehensive field theories of
the organismic model. We will first examine the work of Sheldrake, and then incorporate it into
the broader framework proposed by Laszlo.
– The Fundamentals of Sheldrake’s Morphogenetic Field Theory –
Formative Causation
Morphogenetic field theory concerns the causes of form. Why do things have the forms they
do? What maintains these forms? How do they give rise to similar future forms? This theory
supersedes physical explanations (including genetics) to account for why forms such as crystals,
plants, animals, and even animal- and human societies keep replicating over time and space.
The theory Sheldrake (1981) proposes is that, once a physical form appears, a corresponding
non-energetic field is created as a result of its appearance that increases the probability of reoccurrence of that physical form. Sheldrake uses the term formative causation to distinguish it
from the energetic causation associated with physics. Morphogenetic forms are non-physical and
do not use or contain any kind of known energy; they only manifest as a corollary of physical
energetic processes.
To help explain non-energetic formative causation, Sheldrake (1981) cites the analogy of an
architectural blueprint or plan. The non-physical plan provides the form of the building, while
the building materials, such as the bricks, wood, and mortar, provide the physical structure. By
following different blueprints, any number of entirely different buildings can be erected using
the same materials and requiring the same amount of work.
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Although the blueprint can be held responsible for the specific form of the house, its actual
construction would not be possible without the physical building materials and the laborers.
Likewise, the morphogenetic form serves as a blueprint; although it is not in itself energy, it is
responsible for the direction of energy and the assembling of the ingredients that comprise the
final physical form. The morphogenetic fields of all past systems -- physical, chemical, biological, psychological
and social -- affect the form of present and future similar systems with a cumulative influence
that acts non-locally across both space and time. For example, once a crystal forms in a particular
way, it exerts an influence on all subsequent crystallizations that prompts them to take shape in
a similar way. Likewise, plants, insects, and other animals mimic the forms of their predecessors
because past members of the species set the precedent for that form. Instinctual forms also pass
down through generations because similar animals set precedents for that behavior. Sheldrake
emphasizes that his theory is concerned only with the repetition of forms and patterns of
organization, and not with their origin (Sheldrake, 1981).
Once they are formed, morphogenetic fields can sustain themselves indefinitely on a nonenergetic level, independently of physical forms. These fields contain the virtual final form,
or “blueprint” of the systems to which they were originally connected. A morphogenetic field
becomes “activated” when it comes into contact with what Sheldrake (1981) calls a “morphic
germ.” The basis of the attraction is form. The morphogenetic germ is part of the physical
system to be. It then serves as an attractor, which then assembles the component parts of the
complete system, arranging them in their appropriate places. Once this assembly is complete, the
morphogenetic field is a perfect blueprint for the physical form of the system. This phenomenon
is clearly demonstrated in aggregative chemical morphogenesis, which occurs progressively as
high-temperature inorganic plasma is cooled. Observable during the cooling process is the
aggregating, or congealing, of subatomic particles into atoms. Then, as cooling proceeds, the
atoms aggregate into molecules; then molecules condense into liquids; and finally, crystals form
in the liquid. The atomic nuclei that exist in the plasma state are the morphogenetic germs for
the formed crystals in the cooled state.
– Morphic Resonance and the Influence of Past Forms –
Forms repeatedly come into existence, constituting themselves to resemble their predecessors.
This is true for forms of all levels of complexity -- molecular, viral, bacterial, plant, insect and
animal. Such constancy and repetition allows us to recognize and name things. Taxonomy, the
classification of organisms into an ordered system that indicates natural relationships, is based
on such repetition. How does this reoccurrence happen? In the case of chemical compounds
and organic crystals, conventional scientific theory attributes such repetition to changeless laws
or principles that, theoretically, should predicate the crystals’ primary appearance, but does not
account for changes to its form over the span of multiple incarnations. Similarly, according to this
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theoretical position, we should be able to predict in advance the precise effects of a mutation in
the DNA of a plant or animal. “Of course,” says Sheldrake, “in practice such calculations have
never been made; this comfortable assumption is untested, and most probably is untestable.”
(Sheldrake, 1981)
The alternative, radical, hypothesis suggested by Sheldrake is that chemical, biological, and
behavioral forms are repeated because there is a causal influence from previous similar forms.
Prior to its first appearance, however, its form cannot be anticipated, but once its first form
appears, it will be replicated in subsequent systems. This replication process becomes successively
more rapid over time and generations of reproduced systems. To explain this repetition
phenomenon, Sheldrake developed the concept of morphic resonance. In one respect, morphic
resonance is similar to the common energetic resonance easily observed in the sympathetic
vibration of stretched strings to sound waves. A taut string (or tuning fork) tuned to vibrate at a
particular sound frequency selectively responds to only that frequency out of a fusion of sounds.
An important distinction between energetic and morphic resonance, however, is that morphic
resonance responds to three- rather than one-dimensional patterns of vibration. Sheldrake’s
fundamental premise is that morphic resonance allows both the internal and external form of
a system to become present to a subsequent system with a similar form, thereby allowing the
pattern of the former to superimpose itself onto the latter.
Another noteworthy disparity between energetic and morphic resonance is that morphic
resonance does not appear to be diminished by distance or time – its influence is equally potent
over limited or substantial spans of either. In other words, morphic resonance exhibits nonlocality, a concept central to the New Paradigm. Non-locality was first observed in the study of
quantum mechanics, but later extrapolated to all systems: It indicates an inherent connection
among all things. We will deal with this subject extensively in the section on Ervin Laszlo’s
Akashic field theory.
The stability of forms, according to Sheldrake, is dependent upon the cumulative morphic
resonance of previous systems. This cumulative effect confers increasing soundness of form
over many repetitions due to the progressive elimination of minor fluctuations. Thus, for
morphic units that have existed for billions of years, such as the atoms of basic elements, the
morphogenetic fields will be so firmly established as to appear fixed. It is only in new forms that
the influence of cumulative morphic resonance is detectable. This is demonstrated in newly
synthesized compounds that have never before become crystallized, for which there is yet no
morphogenetic field and, therefore, no morphic resonance from prior forms. In The Presence
of the Past Sheldrake (1988) states:
It is a well-known fact to chemists that newly synthesized compounds are usually difficult to
crystallize: weeks or even months may elapse before crystals appear in a supersaturated solution.
Moreover, generally speaking, compounds become easier to crystallize all over the world (italics
added) the more often they are made. This happens in part because chemists tell each other of the
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appropriate techniques. But the more common conventional explanation for the phenomenon is
that fragments of previous crystals are carried around the world from laboratory to laboratory,
where they serve as “seeds” for subsequent crystallizations. The folklore of chemistry has a
rich store of anecdotes on this subject. The carriers of the seeds are often said to be migrant
scientists, especially scientists with beards… Or else seeds are thought to move around the world
as microscopic dust particles in the atmosphere.
That newly created morphogenetic forms exhibit non-locality is a testament to the
universality of information. It can also account for the fact that scientific and other discoveries
are made at roughly the same time in different parts of the world. Perhaps much of what has been
historically considered plagiarism can be attributed instead to the non-locality of morphogenetic
forms. For instance, in studying the works of Tolle, Calleman, and Sheldrake—men of the
highest intellectual honesty and principle—it is evident that many of their ideas are quite similar,
with striking parallels in even their presentations.
– The Inheritance of Form: Genetics and Morphogenetic Fields –
Traditional theory maintains that the inheritance of form is exclusively the result of DNA,
while the hypothesis of formative causation holds that organisms also inherit the morphogenetic
fields of their species’ past organisms. Sheldrake uses the analogy of music coming from a radio
to explain this theory of dual influence. The audibility and particularity of the music depends
on both the material structure of the radio set, and on the transmission to which the set is tuned.
If the listener were unaware that electromagnetic waves were being transmitted from a distant
studio -- waves that are undetectable by the human senses -- it would be easy to conclude that the
music was created by and within the radio set. Without the knowledge that the music originates
from a distant broadcasting station, an individual who is able to make a replica of the radio set
could easily assume his creation is proof that the transmission originates from within the set
(Sheldrake, 1981).
Analogized with Sheldrake’s hypothesis of formative causation, the ‘transmission’ would
come from prior similar systems, and its ‘reception’ would depend on the physical structure
and organization of the system being created. Alteration in the reception system, like a change
in a radio’s tuning frequency, would lead to variations in how transmissions are received. Both
environmentally- and genetically-induced alterations in reception systems can cause changes in
the morphogenetic fields to which a developing system is sensitive. Such changes in “tuning”
can lead to modifications or distortions of the final form. “Thus in developing organisms,”
explains Sheldrake (1981), “both environmental and genetic factors could affect morphogenesis
in different ways: either by changing the ‘tuning’ of morphogenetic germs, or by changing the
usual pathways of morphogenesis in such a way that variants of the normal final forms are
produced.”
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Once a new behavior has been learned, a concordant morphogenetic field is issued. Through
repetition, morphic resonance stabilizes this field and, according to the hypothesis of formative
causation, allows others (animal or human) to learn the behavior more easily. The hypothesis of
formative causation suggests that both genetic inheritance and morphogenetic fields play roles
in the inheritance of behavior, while the conventional, mechanistic, theory maintains that innate
behavior is solely a function of genetic programming. Learned behavior, on the other hand, is
thought to result only from physio-chemical changes in the nervous system, changes considered
incapable of modifying DNA. It was on the basis of this incapability that the Lamarckian
theory of the inheritance of learned behavior was rejected. The theory of formative causation,
however, suggests, “there is no difference in kind between learned and innate behavior, in that
both depend on motor (behavioral) fields given by morphic resonance.” (Sheldrake, 1981, Italics
added)
Sheldrake’s search of the psychological literature found experiments originally carried
out by William McDougall in the 1920s that inadvertently confirmed his hypothesis. In these
experiments, cited by Sheldrake (1981), McDougall tested the hypothesis of Lamarckian
inheritance -- the idea that acquired learning could be passed down through generations. Highly
inbred rats were trained to escape from an underwater tank by swimming to one of two exits.
The “wrong” exit was brightly illuminated and the rat was administered an electrical shock
if it took this escape route, while the “right” exit was normally lit and did not incorporate a
deterrent. The exits were alternately illuminated, and the number of attempts it made to leave
by the non-illuminated exit determined the learning rate for each test subject.
This experiment was conducted for 32 generations of rats and took 15 years to complete.
McDougall chose rats to breed for subsequent generations by random selection, before their
learning was measured. This was to prevent the conscious or unconscious culling of quicker
learning rats. What he found was that, in accordance with Lamarckian theory, there was a
measurable tendency for rats in successive generations to learn more quickly. In subsequent
experiments with different rats, slow learners were bred with slow learners and fast learners with
fast. To no one’s surprise, the offspring of quick learners learned quickly, while the offspring of
slow learners learned slowly. What has not expected, however, was the marked improvement of
the slow learners in later generations, despite the repeated breeding selection in favor of slow
learning.
Sheldrake cited later experiments performed by an independent researcher, W.E. Agar, and
his associates, at Melbourne. Carried out over a period of 20 years, for 50 successive generations,
Agar’s findings corroborated McDougall’s; but, additionally, he found that the rats from the
untrained line also learned more quickly over time. This was surprising, since the untrained
line had been subject to no behavioral training or modification. McDougall also observed a
similar effect, noted Sheldrake (1981), but dismissed it as fortuitous, tentatively positing that
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the constitution of the whole stock had somehow improved, but eschewing more detailed
explanation.
The results of these experiments strongly support the hypothesis of formative causation.
That the untrained line of rats significantly improved their skills over generations has compelling
implications, for human as well as animal behavioral evolution. One conclusion is that we are
significantly affected by others, for good or ill, whether we are aware of it or not. The degree
to which we are influenced by the morphic resonance of others’ behavior—regardless of the
nature of the behavior—is an important consideration in understanding human nature. In fact,
our survival as a species may well depend on our appreciation of it. Because if a large enough
proportion of people alters its behavior, regardless of the direction of that change, the resulting
morphogenetic field has powerful effects on the behavior of others. Which offers us either
enormous opportunity, or threatens us with great danger.
– Higher Morphogenetic Fields –
Sheldrake’s analogy of the transmission station and radio set also fits our understanding of
how the progressive Underworlds of the Mayan Calendar affect the functioning of the human
brain, i.e., hemispheric dominance, and alterations in what we commonly call “mind.” The
spiritual “transmissions” from the Underworlds can be thought of as different “programs”
from the transmission station, and the brain can be considered analogous to the radio set. For
our purposes, the Mayan Calendar can be regarded as the “master program” which regulates
planetary evolution.
Sheldrake refers to the higher morphogenetic fields associated with instinct, learning, and
behavior as motor fields, as they bring about changes in movements or actions rather than in
physical form, although the basic principles governing both are the same. Habits, instincts, and
learned behaviors, including cognitive strategies, fall into this category. The differences among
these lie in the degree to which they are stereotyped and shared by members of the same species.
At lower levels, these highly standardized patterns are reflexes; at higher levels, instincts. What we
call habits are less stereotyped, typically individual, patterns of movement toward the final forms
of their motor fields. Once an animal develops a new procedure to attain a goal, subsequent
repetitions of the procedure are stabilized by morphic resonance from its own past states, thus
solidifying the behavioral pattern as a means to attain similar goals in the future. For example, a
cat that repeatedly pounces and restrains a mouse with his left paw will likely develop this into a
fixed predatory behavior – the left paw with automatically dominate in this activity.
In this sense the ego can be thought of as a motor field—a structure of mind resulting from
left-hemispheric dominance generated by the emergence of an Underworld that fosters thinking
and the perception of separateness. Widespread repetition of this mode of mentation would
and did promote a very strong motor field over the centuries. As Calleman clearly illustrates,
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prior to the National Underworld (3115 B.C.E), a very different mind structure existed, and the
consequences of its subversion to the left-brain, male-dominant, hierarchical perspective were
colossal on all levels of human existence—psychologically, interpersonally, socially, and as well
as in relationship to the natural environment.
Over the first two millennia of the National Underworld, the ego motor field became
enormously powerful as morphic resonance accumulated and consolidated with each new
generation. At this point in our evolution the ego has reached a pathological form (Tolle, 1981,
2005) and is a threat to planetary survival. Our most important task now is the transcendence of
the ego. Toward this end we must look deeper into the nature of the structure and function of
motor/morphogenetic fields.
– Higher Motor Fields and Human Learning –
As individuals come into morphic resonance with the motor fields of those who have
mastered skills previously, the rate of learning for these abilities increases. In many cases, those
who have practiced these skills are unknown to the others personally. It is the motor field and
the ability to come into morphic resonance with it that are catalytic. In sum, it should become
exponentially easier for individuals to gain physical and educational aptitude as more and
more people acquire it and the motor field becomes more stable and powerful. The learning of
languages is a case in point. The capacity of children to learn language is supported by morphic
resonance from all past humanity. The particular language children learn is the result of coming
into morphic resonance with others who speak it, with resonance facilitating the learning of
grammar and vocabulary. Once they begin to speak the language, they “tune in,” on the basis of
similarity, to all those who have spoken it in the past.
A more scientifically controlled example of the effects of morphic resonance on the
acquisition of a skill is the improvement in standardized intelligence tests scores. As more and
more individuals take these tests, cumulative morphic resonance increases and facilitates the
performance of new test takers. This does not indicate that intelligence is actually improving,
but rather that the skill for taking standardized tests is increasing.
Sheldrake (1988) reported studies that such improvement had, in fact, occurred in IQ
testing from 1932 to 1978 -- the mean IQ of Americans increased 13.8 IQ points, with an
average increase of 0.3 points per year. Research using U.S. Army mental tests indicated that a
substantial increase in IQ occurred between 1918 and 1943. Since WWII, an average gain of
0.3 points per year has also been observed in Japan. In order to explain this increase, a number
of environmental factors were considered, such as massive urbanization, cultural revolution,
better nutrition, and education. “But these explanations suffered a setback when it was found
that a similar increase had occurred in the U.S. over the same period, when there had not been
such dramatic changes.” (Sheldrake, 1988)
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In one experiment by Sheldrake (1988), British and American subjects were asked to chant three
Japanese rhymes a fixed number of times. The subjects were unaware that one of these chants
was a genuine nursery rhyme known to generations of Japanese children, and the other two were
meaningless. The results far exceeded chance expectation: 62% could recall the genuine nursery
rhyme more easily than the fabricated chants after a half an hour. If the rhymes were equally
difficult, only 33% of those tested should have a better recall of the genuine nursery rhyme. The
morphic resonance established by generations of Japanese children reciting the genuine nursery
rhyme facilitated its memorization by individuals who had no knowledge of Japanese. Similarly,
Sheldrake (1988) cites a series of experiments by researchers using real and scrambled Hebrew
and Persian words. Subjects were able to reproduce real words more accurately than the false
words at a very high level of statistical significance, adding more support to the premise that
morphic resonance is a chief contributor to learning.
Higher Level Behavioral and Mental Fields
Sheldrake believes morphogenetic fields that organize behavior extend beyond the brain
and body into the environment, linking body and environment into a coherent whole. These
fields coordinate sensation and action, bridging the sensory and motor regions of the brain,
integrating the organism with its environment. They do not, however, necessarily leave material
traces in the brain, any more than the programs to which a radio set is tuned leave their marks
behind. A field engenders its effects only when the system is tuned to it. As in the radio analogy,
when the tuning is changed the field “disappears” and re-appears again only when the system is
re-tuned to its frequency.
An interesting example of field effects occurs in the psychological phenomenon of “state
dependent learning.” (Overton, 1984) It is commonly found that animals or humans who
are administered drugs such as alcohol, barbiturates, or psychoactive substances, do not recall
events or behaviors from when they were under the drug’s influence while they are in a normal
state, but will remember when they are again similarly intoxicated (Reus, Weingartner, and Post,
1979). Even more interestingly, an animal can be taught to approach a specific stimulus to obtain
a reward when in the normal state, and taught to avoid that same stimulus when in the drugged
state. Later, when returned to the normal state, the animal will approach the stimulus. If it is
then administered the drug, say sodium amytal, it will avoid the stimulus again.
A similar phenomenon occurs under conditions of extreme emotional arousal, such as
rage or terror. What is done or experienced under the extreme emotional state frequently
will not be recalled in the normal state. Such dissociative reactions are thought to underlie
the phenomenon of multiple personality-, or dissociative identity disorder. During hypnosis,
traumas and experiences associated with traumas are frequently awakened, while the conscious
mind has no prior recollection of such events (Eich, 1995).
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It is very likely that this phenomenon is the result of different motor fields that are established
under different drug/arousal conditions, and that when the drug or extreme arousal state is reentered, it “tunes into,” via morphic resonance, the associated motor field. Many shamanic
experiences are of this ilk. Through the use of psychoactive drugs, stress, fasting, and other
intensive means, individuals can be brought into contact with transcendent morphogenetic
fields. The individual can then serve as a “channel” for higher wisdom, sometimes of a prophetic
nature or for purposes of healing.
These fields include what are known as “sub-personalities.” The ego of each individual
can be thought of as an intricate morphogenetic form or field with its own particular complex
resonance. Some egos, whether because of strength of will or intensity of focus, can be thought
of as “stronger” than others. This is clear when we look at the developing ego of the child
relative to the adult, but it is also true when we compare adults with one another. It is particularly
apparent when we contrast, for example, the ego strength of a cult leader with those of cult
members. When such significant disparities exist, it is common for the morphogenetic field of the
“weaker” ego to assimilate characteristics of the “stronger” ego as a sub-personality. Sometimes
the resonance of the dominant ego is so much greater that it submerges the “weaker” ego field.
This is what occurs when followers with particularly weak egos become what are commonly
referred to as “clones” of their leaders. The typical case, however, is not so extreme.
Most people have assimilated the sub-personalities of their parents and other significant
adults. The morphogenetic fields of these sub-personalities become activated when the individual
comes into resonance with conditions or other stimuli that echo the individual upon whom the
sub-personality is based. For example, an individual carrying the sub-personality of a father who
became belligerent when he drank may exhibit the same rancor when he or she consumes any
alcohol, but be pleasant otherwise. Similarly, many individuals who were abused as children do
not exhibit like behavior until they are brought into resonance with the sub-personality of the
mistreating parent when they have their own children. In fact, whenever a person’s behavior is
radically inconsistent under different conditions, it is highly likely the reverberation of a subpersonality.
The mother is a central focus in psychotherapy in large part because the most primal level of
identification occurs during gestation. In the womb, during childhood, and even in adulthood, a
kind of empathic and telepathic induction transpires between mother and child. Because of our
inherent inter-connectedness, we subconsciously experience morphic resonance with the feelings
and thoughts of others whose environment we share. It is not necessary to be in an altered
state for this to happen; heightened emotional receptivity, an intimate bond, or vivid arousal
facilitates emotional and telepathic induction. A fetus’ fusion with the thoughts and feelings of
its mother, therefore, can manifest a very powerful sub-personality. Other sub-personalities may
form during the pre-natal stage, particularly when interactions with the mother are sufficiently
intense, but it is more likely they will be forged during childhood.
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– The Problem of Memory –
The mechanistic (or standard) paradigm maintains that memories must be stored in the
brain—somehow encoded as “memory traces,” changes in synaptic connections between nerves,
or alterations in RNA. There is, however, no substantial evidence that any such mechanisms can
account for memory. Morphogenetic field theory, however, transcends physical explanations and
maintains that past mental states are capable of influencing present states directly, independently
of physical memory traces. Sheldrake (1988) proposes that organisms are affected by morphic
resonance from other like (collective memory) and from their own past states (self-resonance),
which provides the basis for their own individual memories and habits. In human beings, this
yields the construct of personal identity.
In their attempt to establish themselves as credible scientists, early 20th century psychologists
anchored their understanding of behavior, mind, and mental/emotional activity in the material
sciences of physics and biology. Pavlov’s work on conditioned reflexes was used to buttress the
idea of memory traces, even though Pavlov himself was not fully convinced of their existence
(Sheldrake, 1988). Thus, early in the last century, psychologists believed that all psychological
activity could be interpreted as simple associations and chains of reflexes.
Starting with the work of neuropsychologist Karl Lashley, many investigators have
demonstrated that habits and learned behavior can persist despite extensive damage to the
cerebral cortex and sub-cortical regions of the brain. In his 1929 monograph, Brain Mechanisms
and Intelligence: A Quantitative Study of Injuries to the Brain, Lashley cites many studies in
which he made lesions of assorted sizes in different regions of the cerebral cortex of rats. He
then tested the rats’ learning ability in a series of mazes with varying levels of complexity. What
he found radically altered his belief about how the brain stored memory: the particular locus
of the lesion was not nearly as influential as was the volume of tissue damaged. When memory
loss occurs, most research indicates that the extent of the impairment depends more upon the
amount of tissue destroyed than it does on the location of the damage -- challenging the notion
of specifically localized chemical or physical memory traces within the brain. Lashley, however,
never considered the possibility that memory was not somehow stored in the brain at all.
Boycot (1965, cited by Sheldrake, 1988) demonstrated a similar phenomenon in an
invertebrate, the octopus, where learned habits endured following extensive damage to the
brain. This suggested that memory is both “everywhere and nowhere in particular.” His and
similar findings led Pribram (1971) to the conclusion that memory is stored in the brain in a
manner akin to a hologram. Sheldrake, however, maintains that this is no more than vague
speculation. Similarly, the idea that memories are biochemically stored in the brain also has
significant weaknesses. The decades-long time span of many memories far exceeds the turnover
time of molecules in our bodies, with the sole exception of DNA. It is difficult to explain how
memory stored in the brain would be immune to such turnover (Sheldrake, 1988).
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Sheldrake’s hypothesis of formative causation makes the radical interpretation that the
persistence of learned habits, despite damage to the brain, is possible because habits depend
on motor fields that are not stored in the brain at all. Therefore, such fields are not impaired
when the brain is damaged, and remain intact despite molecular turnover. His conclusion is that
physical memory traces do not exist.
Sheldrake refers to “the case of the blue tits” as a strong example of habit persistence. In
the study, birds demonstrate how memory transcends the lifespan of individuals, bolstering the
evidence that memory is not neurologically or biochemically stored in the brain. The studies
observed the proliferation of a new habit among birds in Britain -- the opening of milk bottles:
The first record of this habit was from Southampton in 1921, and its spread was recorded
at regular intervals from 1930 to 1947. Once discovered in any particular place, the habit spread
locally, presumably by imitation…. Tits do not venture more than a few miles from their breeding
place, and a movement as much as fifteen miles is exceptional. Hence new appearances of the
habit more than fifteen miles from where it had previously been recorded probably represented
new discoveries by individual birds.
The habit also appeared in Sweden, Denmark, and Holland. The Dutch records are
particularly interesting. Milk bottles practically disappeared during the war, and became
reasonably common again only in 1947 or 1948. Few if any of the tits that had learned the
habit before the war could have survived to this date, but nevertheless attacks on bottles began
again rapidly, and it seems certain that the habit was started in many different places by many
individuals (Cited by Sheldrake, 1988, italics added).
The blue tit study shows how morphic resonance underlies both the inheritance of instincts
and the establishment of an animal’s own habits. Without any connection or communication,
aptitude gained by some animals creates motor fields that facilitate the acquisition of the same
habits by similar animals.
– Tuning into the Memories of Others –
We think of our memories as our own because we are more similar to ourselves in the past
than we are to anyone else. Self-resonance from our prior states is highly specific. Sheldrake’s
hypothesis of formative causation suggests that, to the degree that we are comparable to others,
i.e., family, social group, race, and ethnicity, we will, via morphic resonance, share or tune into
their memories, thoughts, feelings, or images. This occurs both in our waking life and when we
dream.
In The Holotropic Mind, Grof (1990) cites numerous cases of individuals undergoing
LSD regression who were able to tune into memories of their parents’ childhoods, ancestral,
and even fetal memories. Many of their accounts were subsequently corroborated. In the late
1970s, I personally had this experience while engaged in a series of LSD regression sessions
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aimed at exploring fetal memories. In one particular incidence, I knew I was in the pre-natal
state. The sense I had was that it was roughly in the third trimester. I felt fear that bordered on
terror. Mental images of my maternal grandparents’ apartment emerged, and with these was the
presence of a sadistic teenage boy. I felt that he was going to abuse me physically and, perhaps,
sexually. I had no idea who he was. The tenor was one of extreme menace, and the impression
that this had happened several times before. None of this made sense to me. I felt that I was
approximately twelve years old—old enough to remember such an event, particularly if it were
not a singular occurrence. It was then that I realized this was not my memory. I intuitively knew
that it was my mother’s memory of an event that had happened repeatedly in her childhood.
The teenage boy was her older brother, who was known to be a violently abusive individual, and
who eventually died of alcoholism.
Having regressed to the pre-natal state, I was able to access my mother’s memories and
the repressed emotions associated with them. In a very real way, these concealed memories
and emotions had become part of my own unconscious. This initiated an investigation that
preoccupied me for the next twenty years: Namely, what is intrinsically mine and what have I
picked up from others and unknowingly claimed? Realizing that I had been carrying a feeling
of dread all of my life that was a product of someone else’s experiences eventually allowed me
to free myself from it.
Grof ’s explorations reveal that ancestral, as well as racial and collective memories exist
as morphogenetic fields that can come into resonance with us. Grof (1990) believes that these
memories, and particularly those which carry a strong emotional charge, are imprinted in our
genetic code and transmitted down through generations. It is much more inferable, however,
that non-physical morphogenetic fields are responsible for such transmission. Through shared
genetic and cultural similarity individuals are, via morphic resonance, affected by the experience
of predecessors who share a similar genetic and/or cultural heritage.
Catastrophic or extremely painful events that affect particular ethic or racial groups have
an impact on the collective unconscious of all humanity, but most profoundly influence the
contemporary population of those collectives. For instance, the genocide of the Native Americans,
the American enslavement of African Americans, the Spanish Conquest and the genocide of the
Aztecs, Maya and other native populations of North and Central America, and the Inquisition,
have left indelible imprints on the psyche of humankind, yet they have wrought the greatest
destruction on the present-day members of those targeted ethnic and racial groups.
Racial and collective experiences go a step beyond ancestral memories. Racial experiences
can involve people outside one’s immediate family or bloodline, extending out to any members of
the same race. This process can reach beyond racial lines to other racial groups and to collective
memories of humanity as a whole. I mentioned earlier that psychiatry traditionally looks upon
our psyches as being affected only by what we have experienced first hand, through our physical
senses or as a result of our own interpretations of these experiences. However, our observations
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of hundreds of people who have reported ancestral, racial, and collective experiences support
Carl Gustav Jung’s assertion that our psyches are also deeply affected by a collective unconscious
that gives us access to a vast warehouse of memories encompassing all of human experience
from the beginning of time (Grof, 1990).
We also tune into the memories of others through the recall of “past lives.” Reincarnation,
also know as the Wheel of Death and Re-birth, or the Wheel of Karma, is accepted by much
of the world’s population as the means by which the soul is purified, and we learn to be become
accountable for our actions (“karma” means “action”). Following the Second Council of
Constantinople in 553 A.D, this belief system was declared heretical. Reincarnation asserts
that we enter into subsequent lifetimes for the purpose of expiating the karma accumulated
from prior lifetimes. When we become aware that our life’s lessons continue in a thematic and
escalating cycle, that awareness is our invitation to embrace the spiritual path – a path that
leads us to recognize and accept that we are not at the mercy of being done to, but that we are
the doers. Until that time, we are bound to keep repeating the same patterns endlessly, without
regard for their consequences or efficacy.
Empirical evidence supports reincarnation as a credible phenomenon. For example, there
is an abundance of documented cases where individuals report detailed knowledge of people,
places and events from the past – knowledge they could not have obtained first-hand – that
has later been objectively verified (Ian Stevenson, 1966). Following regression therapy in which
purported past-life traumas are relived and released, the alleviation of serious psychological
and physical disorders has also been reported and authenticated (Moody, 1975). But this does
not necessarily prove, or even suggest, that we, as individuals, have lived before. The belief in
literal reincarnation—that you and I keep coming back into physical form and living lives as
identifiable separate entities—is, according to Buddhist philosophy, a naïve interpretation. It
is doubtful that such arbitrary ego boundaries survive the process of death. In The Middle
Length Discourses of the Buddha (Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya, 1995), the term rebirth
is used, rather than reincarnation. It is only Cosmic Consciousness that exists, and it is this that
incarnates and takes on physical form.
Another belief is that it is the Self, or Oversoul, which incarnates in physical form. We
can think of the Oversoul as the entire field of human consciousness—composed of all human
life for all time. The Oversoul particularizes itself and assumes individual identities in order to
explore itself. Each individual’s life can be seen as a kind of “probe” into a facet of material
existence. When an individual dies he, and the experience he has gained, are assimilated into the
larger Self -- a vast self-structure that incorporates all of humanity. It is in this way that mankind
evolves. Sheldrake’s (1998) view is that morphic resonance provides a new interpretation for past
life memory. A person may simply “tune into” the morphogenetic field of a deceased person,
which continues to exist beyond physical death as part of the pooled memory, or collective
unconscious, of humanity. Exactly how the past influences the present in this way will be
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examined in the next Chapter on the New Paradigm, which focuses primarily on the work of
Ervin Laszlo.
In the early eighties I had an experience that strongly supports Sheldrake’s theory. A young
German woman came to my office for “hypnotic past-life regression.” She explained that she
had a great sympathy for what happened to the Jews in Germany, and had done a great deal
of work for Jewish organizations that were helping the survivors. She was convinced that, in
a past life, she had died in a concentration camp at the hands of the Nazis. Her concern for
what happened during the war had escalated to obsessive proportions and was consuming her
life. Recovering the lost memories, she believed, would help her find relief and regain control. I
explained that I did not do standard hypnosis, but we might be able to contact blocked traumatic
memory with the method I did use.
I asked her to lie down and begin to increase the depth and frequency of her breath,
and explained that this kind of breathing activates what Wilhelm Reich called “body armor.”
It stimulates blocked emotions, and that frequently these emotions will break through into
consciousness, usually with their attendant traumatic memories. While she breathed in this
manner, I verbally guided her back earlier and earlier in her life. I asked her to imagine being a
little girl, an infant, and then a fetus living inside of her mother. I then directed her even earlier
and asked her to imagine what it was like before she was conceived. She continued breathing
strongly for a few more minutes. Then her countenance abruptly changed and the room became
very still.
“I’m there,” she said, and paused for a minute. “But it’s not what I thought.” She appeared
shocked. She became very silent, but I asked her to continue. After a while she said, “I’m one
of them.” She opened her eyes and sat up. She remembered that she was a member of the SS,
which was the last thing she had expected to discover. “I couldn’t kill anymore,” she said. ”So
they killed me.”
For many years I believed this was a genuine memory, largely because it conflicted so acutely
with what my client expected to uncover. She wholeheartedly believed that she had been a Jew
who was murdered by the SS -- she had never contemplated a scenario in which she was aligned
with the Nazis. So, was this truly a past-life memory? After all, her initial sense was borne out: a
member of the SS had killed her in a concentration camp. Perhaps it was the collective German
shame about the Holocaust that, via morphic resonance, allowed her to tune into this memory.
– Regulation and Regeneration –
Regulation allows a developing system to reach its final form even if a part of it is missing
or impaired. It is what permits, for example, fledgling embryos of many species to repair damage
and continue through a normal course of development. This is because the morphogenetic field
cannot itself be physically marred and is capable of mending the physically damaged area of the
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system. Many higher-level motor entities, like morphogenetic systems, are capable of regulation,
because their associated motor and morphogenetic fields lead them toward characteristic final
forms. Regulation occurs at all levels of the motor hierarchy, including in the behavior of societies
and the functioning of the planet as a living, integrated whole. Elementarily, if a few muscles in
a dog’s leg are injured, compensatory muscles adjust to allow normal function of the limb. In
the case of an amputated limb, the other legs modify their position and workload so that the dog
can still walk. Or if the dog’s normal route home is blocked, it adapts its habitual movements to
find a new path to the goal. These accommodations occur naturally and with relative rapidity.
Regulation and regeneration are closely related. While regulation allows developing
systems to compensate for damage or disruption and continue maturation to their final intended
forms, regeneration is the ability of already actualized systems to correct anomalies and repair
damage. Both are functions of the system’s association with its morphogenetic form. Because
the morphogenetic form is not damaged when the physical system sustains loss or injury, the
physical system—if it is biologically capable—will regenerate and reconstitute itself. An example
of regeneration is the re-folding of proteins that have been denatured, or unfolded, into a
flexible polypeptide chain and lost their original conformation. When these polypeptide chains
regenerate, they reform directly into the most energetically stable configuration, bypassing less
stable alternatives. The consistency of the process defies all properties of randomness.
The fixed association of a system with its morphogenetic field explains how the integrity of
a system is maintained despite the continuous turnover of its constituent cells. “The forms which
are most similar,” elaborates Sheldrake (1981), “and which will have the greatest effect will be
those of the system itself in the immediate past. This conclusion would appear to have profound
physical implications: the preferential resonance of a system with itself in the immediate past
could conceivably help to account for its persistence not only in time, but also a particular
place.”
The behavioral equivalent of regeneration occurs when a motor field has brought a behavior
to actualization, but is then disrupted, i.e., when a cat re-captures a mouse which has escaped
its grasp; in the potter wasp’s mending of completed nests damaged by experimenters; or the
repairing of large termite galleries through the cooperation of many individual termites. These
activities are not, as Sheldrake (1981) submits, necessarily signs of intelligence, any more than
is the faculty of flatworms to regenerate when damaged. It is the motor field that endows these
restorative powers.
The motor or morphogenetic field can be thought of as an “attractor.” It guides systems to
the realization of their intended final forms. Although intelligence is not required for regeneration
and regulation, the processes demonstrate a level of creativity. This is observed when systems
find new pathways of development or acquisition of behavioral goals in the face of disruption
or blockage.
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“Where there’s a will there’s a way.” The will is given by the goal or the morphic attractor,
which, from the present point of view of the organism, lies in the future. The progress of a system
towards its morphic attractor involves adjustments, great and small, of its component parts and
their interrelationships; it finds a way. In so far as it is prevented from following the usual, habitual
path, it may find a more or less novel means of reaching the same goal (Sheldrake, 1981).
On the human level we can observe regulation and regeneration in many behavioral forms.
Alcoholism is a case in point. In the lexicon of Alcoholics Anonymous, alcoholism is commonly
referred to as “cunning and baffling,” exhibiting a kind of “evil intelligence” which works to subvert
and undermine the alcoholic’s intention to stay sober. I know several individuals with long-term
sobriety who, to their shocked incredulity, found themselves at parties with drinks in their hands,
having no conscious awareness of having accepted the cocktails. This is no mystery if one accepts
that alcoholism a highly practiced habit, a motor field that has consuming alcohol as its goal. In
these terms it is no more complicated than a dog finding a new path home when the usual course
is blocked.
Social and cultural systems are also drawn to morphic attractors. We have discussed this in
the repair of nests of social insects, but it is also readily observed in human families, communities,
and larger societies that have suffered losses of life, environmental or economic calamities, and
other substantial disruptions. The morphogenetic field of the organized social system works to
restore it. Individuals, responding as parts of the group mind, progressively re-establish the system’s
integrity.
These fields influence the people within them. Some may be more aware than others of
what needs to be done, and leaders of various kinds tend to have the ability to communicate those
imperatives. Both this awareness of and the response to the needs of the system are influenced by
the collective field, and are not simply the products of separate, individual minds. Rulers, patriarchs,
matriarchs, shamans, prophets, and other persons in authority rarely claim that they are speaking
as individuals: they establish a platform under the aegis of the gods, guardian spirits, ancestors, or
values and traditions of the group. Nor do they claim to be speaking or acting for themselves alone,
but for the sake of the group’s safety and survival (Sheldrake, 1988).
We can submit that motor fields that routinely evidence regulation and regeneration also govern
the ego and the pain-body. The ego has an elaborate system of defenses that it uses to maintain
its integrity—that is, its illusory sense of rightness and superiority, and more so, its separateness.
Although the ego uses seemingly complex machinations to achieve its goals of superiority, rightness
and separateness -- devices that may appear cunningly intelligent -- that illusion largely dissipates
when one understands that these agents merely comprise a web of avenues designed to reach very
few destinations. The pain-body operates in a similar but simpler fashion, since its primary goal is
singular -- to generate more pain. It regulates by discovering new or different paths toward this end.
If an established way is impeded, it simply finds or forges another.
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– Morphogenetic Fields of Sub-Human and Human Societies –
The organismic paradigm views the entire universe as a macro organism comprised of a
nested hierarchy of entities of ever-increasing complexity, wherein more complex systems “nest”
or contain systems of lesser intricacy within them. Atoms can be thought of as organisms that
nest and cohere into molecular organisms, then cells, cellular systems, and individual living
beings. These, in turn, constitute societies. Coordinated eco-systems are born from these, and
eventually become a planetary body, which is part of a solar system. Innumerable solar systems
form galactic organisms, which, in sequence, are subsumed in the universal organism of which
we are a very minute part.
In an analysis of sub-human societies, we discover something distinctly at odds with the
Western mode of thinking. Among social insect populations, the society, rather than the individual
within it, is the revealing object of study. The morphogenetic field of the hive or colony defines
the behavioral fields of the individuals. The individuals can be likened to cells in a body, whose
morphogenetic field organizes, nests, and coordinates their activities. It is the prevailing field
that maintains the integrity of the colony, hive, flock, or society despite the continual turnover of
individuals, injury, damage, and other threats to its survival.
The precise and elaborate coordination displayed by social insects, such as termites, in
repairing their nests clearly suggests that they are following an intricate but invisible plan. In
an experiment conducted in the 1920’s by the South African naturalist Eugene Marais (cited
by Sheldrake, 1988), a large steel plate was driven through a tall termite mound, bisecting it
completely. Although the termite workers on one side of the barrier were completely out of
contact with those on the other, they built arches within each section of the nest that perfectly
matched one another. This level of coordination is commonly observed in schools of fish, flocks
of birds, and animal herds. That they operate as a composite organism is irrefutable, particularly
so when they are seen reacting to a perceived threat. An entire school of fish can be observed to
systematically diffuse away from a predator’s path in less than one-fiftieth of a second, yet none
of them collide. Similarly, flocks of dunlins act as a single coordinated organism in response to a
threat -- shifting flight direction in less than half the time of an individual bird’s average startle
reaction. This speed reveals that the birds cannot be directly responding to the actions of others
within the flock, but are operating as an integrated collective organism (Sheldrake, 1988).
Animals exhibit a kind of social memory very much, in principle, like that of human
societies. This is observed, for example, in how birds and animals consistently follow age-old
pathways to the same breeding grounds. This non-genetic cultural inheritance is evidenced by
the fact that an animal adopted from another group, one with a different migratory pattern,
will be influenced by the morphic resonance of the new group and appropriate its migratory
route (Sheldrake, 1988). The morphic resonance of the group collective can explain these
phenomena. In sum, the same principles of formative causation can account for the folding of
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protein molecules, the development of all organisms, as well as for the formation of animal and
human societies.
Historically, the organismic view of society governed until the Planetary Underworld, when
it came under attack from atomistic and materialistic/mechanist science. On the social level,
this corresponded with the development of Individualism and the atomistic/separatist model of
society. The result was a shift in focus from the collective to the individual as the crucial object
of study in human society. Later, Darwin’s theory of the survival of the fittest, together with
the Individualist theory of social organization, was used to justify rampant capitalism and the
systematic subjugation of others. Sheldrake (1988) notes that when the Darwinian theory was
extrapolated to entire ethnic groups and races under the banner of Social Darwinism, it became
a justification for imperialism and mass subjugation, most notably in the carnage endeavored by
the Nazis.
As we remove our spiritual blindfolds and proceed through this next-to-the-last Mayan
Underworld, we are again becoming aware of the Old/New Organismic Paradigm. It is
becoming increasingly evident to us that cultures are living social organisms. They have forms
that are self-reproducing and self-organizing, they are capable of regulation and regeneration,
and they evolve. What makes one cultural organism different from another is its morphogenetic
field, the particular social roles and structures individuated and stabilized by morphic resonance
with countless others from the past. Jung’s concept of the collective unconscious most closely
echoes Sheldrake’s thoughts regarding the social organism. Jung’s archetypes, or “innate psychic
structures” can be thought of as morphogenetic fields created by resonance from generations of
individuals (Sheldrake, 1988).
Perhaps all of humanity is best seen as a social organism comprised of a nested hierarchy of
ever more inclusive sub-groups. Each higher echelon includes the groups, or morphic units, that
came before, and these then provide the morphic units for the next, larger and more inclusive
level, and so on until we reach the broadest and most comprehensive stratum, that of humanity
itself. Here it is imperative to accept that we have not yet attained a level of social consciousness
that can reasonably be defined as humanity. We are still identified culturally, ethnically, sexually
and racially – to our detriment. As we transcend ego-separateness these divisions will dissolve
and we will embrace a sense of our Oneness. This, however, is unlikely to transpire without
powerful resistance from the male-dominated religious and economic power hierarchy.
Myths, Rituals and Traditions: the Morphic Fields That Define Societies.
Every culture has its mythic stories of origin, replete with heroes, gods, demons and other
super-human beings. Their purpose is to account for why we, and the social organisms of which
we are a part, function as we do. For example, prior to The Fall and the beginning of the ego
these myths centered on the Great Mother. In Up From Eden (1981), Wilber explores the roots
of blood sacrifice as a means of ensuring an ample harvest during the Mythic-Membership
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phase of evolution. A powerful morphogenetic field arose as a result of the endless cycle of
birth-death-rebirth that characterized the seasons of farming. In fact, the morphogenetic field
that issued from many generations of blood sacrifice likely effected the perpetuation of blood
sacrifice into modern times in the forms warfare, mass exterminations, and other condoned
violence.
The modern/historical period embraced the Fall -- the expulsion of Adam and Eve from
the Garden of Eden -- as its mythic story of origin. This engendered the myth of history, based
on linear time, and the notions of progress shaped by the Judeo-Christian tradition. It is very
difficult for the modern mind to fully grasp that the entire intellection of historical progress is
mythic in origin. We simply take for granted that historical time is a fixed part of the fabric of
reality. Its mythic origin becomes more scrutable when we view “…the idea of historical progress
toward an end that in some sense recreates the primal paradise before the Fall. This model
of history is itself a morphogenetic field, strongly stabilized by morphic resonance. Western
civilization has developed and is still developing within this field; Western science has grown up
within it.” (Sheldrake, 1988)
It is difficult for the Western mind to grasp the concept that all time is Now because those
in the West are deeply rooted in the hemispheric dominance of the left-brain. Those of the
Eastern hemisphere are less anchored there. While visiting a Buddhist temple in Chang Mai,
Thailand, a man who was both an artist and monk explained the difference between Eastern
and Western mentality with reference to art: In the West, creativity and invention, he said, were
the marks of a talented artist. In the East, the standard was how well the artist could replicate
the masterpieces of the past.
The Western perspective has other roots in mythical origin, as well. Scientific theories, like
other myths, are culturally based intellectual constructs designed to provide explanation of our
world within defined parameters. Each scientific discipline has unique paradigms that define
the thinking and enterprise of its respective community. These scientific paradigms are defined
by morphogenetic fields and are stabilized and strengthened by cumulative morphic resonance
from generations of scientists (Sheldrake, 1988). Indeed, many scientists develop a religious-like
faith in their particular provinces.
Because science and technology are products of the European Enlightenment, coincident
with the Planetary Underworld, we tend not to see their origins in a mythic view of history.
Modern Man’s liberation from the dark and archaic world of religion began, according to
tradition, with the separation from its suppressive forces.
From this point of view, science is altogether different from primitive mythical thought: through
a heroic struggle against the forces of priestly prejudice, great men such as Galileo and Darwin
have led humanity out of the darkness of superstition into the light of rational knowledge. But
this familiar story sounds very much like a myth itself (Sheldrake, 1988).
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There are other parallels. Both science and religion depend heavily upon rituals and
initiatory rites of passage. In the world of science, there are qualifying exams, dissertations, and
the conferring of higher degrees and their associated titles. In Eastern and Western exoteric
and esoteric traditions, there also are initiatory rites of passage, degrees and titles. All of which
are designed to bring the student or initiate into resonance with the morphogenetic fields of
the particular scientific or religious/spiritual lineage. In a very real sense, the initiate becomes
incorporated into the system in which he aspires to practice. It is through the cumulative morphic
resonance of generations that the continuity and stabilization of both scientific and religious/
spiritual traditions occurs.
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V
CHAPTER FIVE
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Laszlo’s Akashic Field Theory and the Theory of Everything
The materialistic Planetary Underworld birthed a mechanistic paradigm of science
wherein matter and spirit/consciousness were considered separate. This model has seen steady
erosion for decades as it faces the New Paradigm. One fundamental feature of the New Paradigm
is that it is evolutionary, which makes a great deal of intuitive sense because everything in the
physical universe has its ultimate origin in a primordial explosion, and has developed from
this singular source. This is the basis for the belief in an underlying unity of all things—that
everything is inherently connected and related to everything else.
Sheldrake’s hypothesis is ambiguous with regard to the creation of new morphogenetic fields.
He is vague on the point of their origin, and views their emergence as essentially mysterious,
a likely product of the intrinsic creativity of matter, energy, Nature, or life, giving rise to these
new patterns of organization. The sudden appearance of more advanced forms of established
morphogenetic fields is cryptic, as well, as they embrace lower level morphic units which existed
prior to their first appearance, but evidence quantifiable differences and advancements. This is
true of reptilian forms which are incorporated into the pattern of organization of the first birds:
“In general, new patterns include old ones within themselves; nevertheless they are new and
come into being suddenly; they have a wholeness and integrity which do not admit of gradual
appearance.” (Sheldrake, 1988)
Another challenge to our understanding is how morphogenetic and motor fields exhibit
non-local properties, i.e., how crystal formation in one place can affect crystal formation in a
very distant location in the absence of any apparent physical contact. There appears to be an
inherent inter-connectedness that transcends space and time, such that changes in form and
function transmit instantaneously, or nearly so. Sheldrake cites Bohm’s theory of the implicate/
explicate order (Bohm, 1980), which postulates different “realms” or “spheres” of existence. The
most obvious dimension is what Bohm calls the explicate order. This is the realm of manifest
physical reality – what appears as “separate” things and events in space and time. It is tantamount
to Kant’s phenomenal world.
Bohm’s implicate order is the source of the everyday explicate order as reported by the senses.
Through it, the explicate order “unfolds” into space-time, entities and events. It is not directly
knowable by the senses, since it is of an order of abstraction removed from knowable everyday
experience. It is the ground underlying the explicate order, and is the source of everything that
ultimately becomes manifest. Bohm uses the term holomovement to describe this unbroken and
undivided totality beyond time, which is both unknowable and indefinable. A limited analogy for
the implicate order is provided by holograms (Bohm, 1980).
Bohm’s interpretation of morphogenetic fields and morphic resonance posits an interplay
between the explicate and implicate orders. It accounts for the non-locality of morphic fields
and the physical systems that they regulate. In Bohm’s view, morphogenetic fields exist in
the implicate order, beyond space-time. Thus, it can be held that such fields are not located
anywhere.
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Since time and space are irrelevant in the implicate order, everything of a similar nature
is connected via resonance, so that events that occur in one place will interpenetrate events
that occur in all others (Sheldrake, 1988). It is on this point that Laszlo best illuminates our
understanding of the New Paradigm of science.
– Basic Issues –
The Akashic Field and Universal Memory
The pivotal feature of the New Paradigm is this: that reality exists as a function of an
interconnecting, information-conserving and –conveying cosmic field. Akasha is the universal
energy field that gives rise to all manifest forms and interconnects them into a coherent, universal
whole. For the ancient Hindu philosophers it is the energy field that is the birthplace of all things,
including space and time, and is the Universal Memory of everything that has ever happened.
“In the traditional conception, Akasha is an all-encompassing medium that underlies all things;
the medium that becomes all things. It is real, but so subtle it cannot be perceived until it becomes
the many things that populate the manifest world.” (Laszlo, 2006)
In Western esoteric terminology Akasha is called the aether. It is Bohm’s implicate order
-- the universe’s fundamental information field that mediates all interactions at all levels, from
the subatomic to the cosmic, and everything in between. That the manifest universe we interpret
as reality is a substantiation of universal cosmic energy is not a novel concept. There is a vast
tradition supporting the view of our reality as a dense reflection of more subtle worlds, which
are in turn a reflection of even more subtle energy fields, all of which are derived from one
primordial source.
In Indian philosophy Brahman is the eternal, timeless, and unknowable Absolute. It is the
static, unchanging Fundamental Reality. In what is known as the lila, or play of Brahman, He
gives rise to All That Is. In Hindu mythology, Brahman begets Brahma, the creator god, who
manifests the physical universe and everything in it. Brahman then forgets His absolute nature,
identifies with the materialized universe, and so begins the process of evolution—through His
creations—back to who He was in the beginning, the static and timeless state of pure potential,
the source of the quantum vacuum before the existence of any forms.
The Indian term samsara means the acceptance of the phenomenal, mundane world as
truth, rather than as a reflection of Brahman. This initiates the cycles of life, death, and rebirth,
again, the lila of Brahman—the illusion that we are “getting somewhere.” This play of ceaseless
growth and decline is the mistaken avowal of the manifest world—a secondary reality, or maya
-- as what is real. What the Hindus refer to as “non-duality,” or advaitavada, is the realization
that both Brahman and the derived reality of the manifested world comprise the whole (Laszlo,
2004).
Science and metaphysics in the West are consolidating in a transcendent view of existence.
Contemporary physics has surpassed the materialistic view of the Planetary Underworld and
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its tenet that space is empty and passive. Reality is now seen as incorporating the non-material
vacuum, an infinite sea of information and potentiality that issues everything and all universes
which have ever existed. This perspective emerged in the second half of the Twentieth Century
and provided the nexus for a number of “grand unified theories” (GUTs). In these GUTs, the
empty vacuum of Newtonian space was reinterpreted as the zero-point field (ZPF), wherein
energies are proven to be present even at absolute zero temperature, where all classical forms of
energy vanish. This energy sea, also known as the “unified vacuum,” or “quantum vacuum,”
was seen to be both a super-dense body of energy and a super-dense field of information (Laszlo,
2004).
Laszlo and others believe that the quantum vacuum is the holographic information
mechanism that records the historical experience of matter, not only from the birth of our
current universe, but from all prior universes. The scientific material reviewed by Laszlo suggests
that this is effectuated by the interaction among torsion waves in the Akasha which, according to
Russian physicists, travel at one billion times the speed of light (Laszlo, 2004).
Quantum particles have a property known as “spin,” which generates a specific magnetic
momentum. This effect creates minute vortices in the quantum vacuum, conceptually akin to
the wake of a ship in water. The wake’s characteristics impart information about the speed, size,
and direction of the ship, as does the spin about the quantum particle. Water has a remarkable
capacity to register and conserve information, as indicated by, among other things, homeopathic
remedies that remain effective even when not a single molecule of the original substance remains
in a dilution.
Like vortices in water, vacuum-based vortices have a nucleus around which circle other
elements—and these tiny vortices carry information, much as magnetic impulses do on a
computer disc…. These minute spinning structures travel through the vacuum, and interact with
each other. When two or more of these torsion waves meet, they form an interference pattern
that integrates the strands of information of the particles that created them. This interference
pattern carries information on the entire ensemble of the particles (Laszlo, 2004).
Water vortices differ from those created in the quantum vacuum in that the latter move
faster than the speed of light. They are also persistent, enduring long after the objects that
generated them. To illustrate, experiments performed by Vladimir Poponin (cited by Laszlo,
2004) demonstrated what he called “The DNA Phantom Effect.” When a DNA sample in a
temperature-controlled scattering chamber was subjected to a laser beam, the electromagnetic
field within the chamber formed an expected structure – photons lined up in an order that
mirrored the DNA. What was utterly unexpected, however, was that this order lingered even
after the DNA was removed from the chamber. The imprint remained as a memory in the field.
The ability of the quantum vacuum to preserve and convey information via interfering torsion
waves may have no discernable limit (Laszlo, 2004). In essence it preserves information from the
state of the entire universe—and this information may be eternal.
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The quantum vacuum appears to be frictionless, much like super-cooled helium -- both
super-fluid and super-dense. It is in this seemingly contradictory medium that all things in the
universe exist and create vortices that disturb or excite the vacuum. These vortices generate
torsion waves that form interference patterns, and these patterns carry information. While the
individual vortices intersect and merge, they are not lost or distorted – rather, they superpose, or
lie on top of one another. Like how information in a hologram is stored in every part of it, the
superposed waves in the vacuum are stored throughout it.
Superposed vacuum-interference patterns are nature’s “holograms”; they carry distributed
information on all the particles, and on all the ensembles of particles, throughout the reaches of
space and time. The hypothesis we can advance may be daring, but it is logical. The quantum
vacuum generates the holographic field that is the memory of the universe (Laszlo, 2004).
Propagating vacuum waves interconnect vast regions of the galaxy, perhaps the entire
universe. Because these vacuum waves do not attenuate, they persist indefinitely. The profound
impact of this will become apparent shortly.
– The Informed Universe: Universal Coherence and Non-locality –
In our universe, the apparent separateness of things and events is just that—an appearance;
an “optical illusion of consciousness,” as Einstein wrote. Because of the nature of the quantum/
cosmic vacuum, or Akasha Field, time and place are non-local—what happens in one time and
place happens in all times and places. It is only our perception – limited and subjective – that
attributes locality to what we observe and experience. This is a confounding notion, but will become
clear as we proceed.
The universe is governed by transcendent principles that organize everything into a cosmic
super-net, a complex structure that is primarily informational. The informed universe is not a
universe of separate things and events, of external spectators and an impersonal spectacle. Unlike
the world of mainstream sciences, it is not even materialistic. Matter—the kind of “stuff ” that is
made up of particles joined in nuclei joined in atoms joined in molecules that may also be joined
in cells joined in tissues joined in organisms joined in ecologies—is not a distinct reality. It is energy
bound in quantized wave-packets. The classical idea that all there is in the world is matter, and that
all matter was created in the Big Bang and will disappear either in black holes or a Big Crunch, was
a colossal mistake. And the belief that when we know how matter behaves we know everything—a
belief shared by classical physics and Marxist ideology—was a colossal pretense (Laszlo, 2004).
The entire universe, then, can be viewed as a non-local quantum field. This is an astute
position, as the entire manifest universe originated from a minute quantum system in which all
“parts” were so “entangled” with each other that they remain forever interconnected in time and
space, regardless of their apparent separation in either, whether microns or light years, microseconds
or millions of years.
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This space- and time-transcending connection was originally posited by Einstein in
cooperation with Boris Podolsky and Nathan Rosen in their famous EPR thought experiment,
was later verified by the French physicist Alain Aspect in the l980s, and subsequently confirmed in
laboratories world-wide (cited by Goswami, 1993, and Laszlo, 2006). Laszlo (2006) summarizes
the findings as follows: “…no matter how far the two particles are separated, when the spin
of one of them is measured, the measurement of the other shows that its spin is precisely the
opposite of the spin of the first, as quantum theory requires—even though this was not, and
could not have been, determined in advance. It is as if, at the very instant of the measurement,
the second particle comes to ‘know’ the state of the first.”
Non-locality occurs on cosmological as well as on quantum levels. It accounts for universal
coherence, wherein all parts of the universe are informed by all other parts, constructing an
inter-connected whole. Although information is universal, in that all things inform all other
things, this does not mean that everything has a uniform impact on everything else. As with
morphic resonance, the A-field facilitates influence most directly between things that are most
similar. Tuning forks and strings on musical instruments resonate with other forks and strings
vibrate on the same or close frequencies, but not with forks and strings on a different range. This
selective response is also found when we navigate the Internet. When we input the address of a
Web site, the system matches it with the code that corresponds to that address, and no other.
When we apply the conjugate principle to the interference patterns in the A-field, we get
a simple and logical picture. Through the holograms created in and conveyed by the A-field,
things are directly “in-formed” by things that are most like them. For example, amoebas are
directly informed by other amoebas. This does not mean that things that are unlike one another
would not be mutually informed. They are so informed, but the informational effect is not
equally evident in all cases. Amoebas are informed by other single celled organisms, and they
are also informed by far simpler entities such as molecules and by far more complex ones such
as multi-cellular organisms. But information by other things on other levels is far less intense
and evident than information by things that correspond to a things own level. The same goes for
human beings. We are directly informed by our fellow humans, yet we are also informed, though
less directly, by animals, plants, and all of nature. Information conveyed through the A-field
subtly tunes all things to all other things and accounts for the coherence we find in the cosmos,
as well as in living nature (Laszlo, 2004).
– The A-Field and the Cosmos –
From his review of the cosmological literature, Laszlo suggests that the hologram of the
universe organizes the holograms of its galaxies into a coherent “organism” with parallel
evolutionary paths. Galaxies and stars evolve congruously throughout the universe because of
information transmitted throughout the universal A-Field. Via torsion waves in the vacuum,
the A-field carries this information over distances beyond the range of the speed of light, and
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at a speed a billion times light’s velocity. The interference patterns of torsion waves create
cosmic-scale holograms, which extend throughout our universe and correlate its galaxies and
other macrostructures (Laszlo, 2004). As such, the entire cosmos operates as a single coherently
integrated system or organism.
It turns out that galaxies evolve nearly uniformly in all directions from Earth, a finding that is
surprising, because not all parts of the universe are connected by light, the fastest form of signaltransmission according to Einstein’s theory of relativity. At its periphery the universe expands
beyond the 13.7 billion light years that rays of light could have traveled in the time that has
elapsed since the Big Bang—and yet galactic evolution is consistent throughout the universe.
(Laszlo, 2006).
If the universe were not so finely tuned, it would have failed to survive. There is no
satisfactory explanation for its precise “tuning of the constants” in mainstream cosmology,
which assumes that the pre-space of our universe was random, and everything in it resulted from
chance fluctuations. The New Paradigm, championed by a number of pioneering cosmologists,
provides a more elegant explanation.
The “Bang” that gave rise to our universe, and the vacuum in which it occurred, was informed
by a prior universe—a previous cycle of the Metaverse . Whether the universe is finite or infinite
in space (and that is still not clear at present), it is most likely not finite in time: the cosmos is not
limited to a single-cycle universe. This is relevant to our query, for it is evident that all universes
that exist, and have ever existed, arise in the quantum vacuum. The particles that make up a
given universe spring from the vacuum and fall back into it at the end of the universe’s life cycle.
The vacuum existed before any universe was born, and will continue to exist after all matter in
that universe vanishes into black holes. In the course of a vast series of universes, the vacuum
becomes progressively tuned to the processes that take place in the universes that succeed one
another (Laszlo, 2004).
Universes evolve much like we do. At conception, the genetic code of a zygote that matures
into a fully formed human being is programmed by the genetic code of its parents. We are
not randomly configured, and neither is the universe. The universe’s parent is the Metaverse,
and from it the universe receives a massive-scale genetic template to guide its growth and
configuration. This is the basis of evolution for all organisms, from individual to cosmic, from
cells to universes.
– The A-Field and the Living World –
The A-Field coordinates activity on all levels of complexity, from the cosmological to the
quantum. On the biological stratum, nearly instant coherence occurs among all parts of an
organism, between individual organisms and their environments, and between whole colonies,
groups, and communities of organisms and the ecological systems of which they are a part.
Such precise integrity requires alterations in the genome (nuclear DNA), which are prompted
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by environmental changes, and allow for favorable mutations that support survival in the new
milieu (Laszlo, 2004).
Both the genome and the phenome, which records non-genetic characteristics, are
responsive to external influences. This responsiveness provides great survival advantages, as
coherence among genome, organism, and environment allows organisms to produce offspring
capable of adapting to environmental conditions that would have been fatal to their ancestors.
This is frequently seen, for example, in bacteria that develop resistance to various drugs, and in
adaptive mutation of microorganisms to be immune to the effects of chemicals or environmental
toxins. It is also common for plants and insects to mutate their genomes such that they detoxify
or create resistance to poisons (Garrett, 1994; Laszlo, 2004).
Living organisms are markedly coherent both within themselves and with the habitat in
which they exist. Internally, all parts are correlated with all other parts. Changes in cells or
organs affect all other cells and organs, and occurrences in the external medium are reflected
in the internal.
The genetic makeup of even a simple organism is so complex, and its “fit” into the milieu
so delicate, that in the absence of such “inside-outside” tuning, living species could not mature
into a viable form before being eliminated by natural selection. That our world is not populated
by the simplest of organisms, such as bacteria and blue-green algae, is due in the last analysis
to the kind of “entanglement” that exists among genes, organisms, organic species, and their
niches within the biosphere (Laszlo, 2004).
The genome’s sensitivity to external stimuli is also responsible for the rapidity with which
higher species have been able to evolve from simple organisms. Without the ability of the
genome to react directly to environmental stimuli, random mutations would not have been
able to produce complex organisms within the known time frame of evolution (Laszlo, 2006).
“The oldest rocks on this planet date from about four billion years before our time, and the
earliest and already highly complex forms of life (blue-green algae and bacteria) are more
than 3.7 billion years old. The relatively rapid emergence of these forms of life could not have
relied on random mutations alone.” (Laszlo, 2006) In his famous statement, physicist and
cosmologist Fred Hoyle offered that the likelihood of life evolving to its present state by chance
alone is about the same as a hurricane blowing through a scrap yard and assembling a working
airplane.
The rapid evolution of life on Earth can be elucidated by the radical concept of the
Metaverse—that our universe is the latest in an evolutionary progression of universes. According
to this theory, the Akashic fields of prior universes continue on even after the universes cease
to physically exist, and the information contained in these non-physical fields informs the
evolution of their descendant universes (Laszlo, 2004).
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– Parallel Universes, the Metaverse, and the Evolution of Universes –
The theory of parallel universes proposed by the physicist Hugh Everett (1973) and
subsequently supported by physicists Richard Feynman and Stephen Hawking, is likely the most
profound integration of physics and metaphysics to date (Laszlo, 2004). It was originally proposed
over fifty years ago in order to account for a number of anomalies in quantum mechanics and
cosmology. For example, at the quantum level, a particle can exist as either a particle or a wave
as long as it is not observed or interfered with in any way: “…it is in a curious state which is the
superimposition of all its possible states.” Once it is observed or measured, however, the state of
superimposition is discharged and the particle becomes resolved into a single state, behaving like
any “ordinary” thing. Everett’s hypothesis is that “…all the states of the quantum are realized
every time it is measured or observed; they are just not realized in the same world. The many
possible states of the quantum are realized in as many universes.” (Cited by Laszlo, 2004)
This corresponds to the metaphysical idea of “multiple possible realities” (Roberts 1974)
-- that each of us exists within a vast spectrum of parallel realities or universes, some like this one
and others radically different from it. The theory of multiple possible realities suggests that we
can evolve to the point where we are cognizant of them, even “traveling” from one to the other.
We will examine this subject in greater depth in Part Four: Co-Creation.
The radical paradigm shift that we are seeing in the field of quantum mechanics is also
occurring on the cosmological level. In recent years, the theory that our universe was created in
a randomly as the result of a singular Big Bang has come under focused scrutiny. The Big Bang
invites apprehension, since the finely tuned coherence of our universe, on all observable strata,
defies the logic of having been conceived randomly. For example, the conditions required for
the emergence of life on Earth are dependent on the precise state and order of over three dozen
physical parameters. The sheer number of these variables has an unimaginably low probability
of aligning arbitrarily. Roger Penrose (cited by Laszlo, 2006) calculated the probability of a
universe such as ours evolving through a random selection from among the possible alternatives
as so small that it “hardly merits being taken seriously.” These puzzles of coherence again
suggest that this universe did not form from indiscriminate fluctuations of the quantum vacuum,
but was instead born from the womb of a prior “meta-universe”: a Metaverse—much as the
genetic code of its parents informs and controls the growth of an embryo.
– The Origin and Destiny of Life and the Universe –
Where did everything come from and where is it going? Was there anything here before all
this began? Will there be anything here after it is all gone? To adequately answer these questions
we must first renounce the narrow mythology of the three monotheistic religions that issued
from the Middle East during the National Underworld—that an all-powerful male god created
everything just the way it is now.
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Modern cosmology asserts that the quantum vacuum, the informational matrix that
shoulders all material creation, did not originate with the Big Bang, and will not cease to exist
when the matter and energy born of this colossal detonation dies back. “The subtle energies and
information that underlie this universe were there before its particles of matter appeared and
will be there after these particles disappear. Thus, the deeper reality is the quantum vacuum, the
enduring virtual-energy sea that pulsates, producing periodic explosions that give rise to local
universes.” (Laszlo, 2004)
As previously cited, the more modern belief is that we live in a multiverse, rather than
in a universe -- a succession of universes of ever-increasing complexity where more recent
incarnations are shaped and informed by the “experiences” of their predecessors. If this were not
the case, and each universe were the result of a spontaneous and arbitrary event, the probability
that they would spawn complex and evolving life forms would be virtually nil.
This theory is predicated on the cosmological principle that all universes leave their holographic
records of progression in the A-field, the quantum vacuum. The birth of a new universe does
not override the holographic traces of prior ones, but instead superposes itself upon them,
accumulating their history in the new context. Newer universes “stand on the shoulders” of their
predecessors and evolve both more efficiently and to a greater degree of complexity.
As the vacuum records the evolution of each universe, it enables the successive universes to
build on the experience of their predecessors. This clarifies the mystery of why our universe is
so finely tuned to the evolution of life: it was not the first universe to be born in the Metaverse.
Prior universes have tuned the Big Bang that gave rise to it to the conditions they achieved in the
course of their own evolution. The fine-tuning of our universe is not a mystery, and it is not a
matter of serendipity. It is a matter of inheritance (Laszlo, 2006).
The same laws hold true for the biosphere. That it evolved so quickly strongly suggets that
the evolution on Earth was not the result of chance mutations. Laszlo (2004) stresses that it is not
necessary to invoke the fantastical notion of “biological seeding,” that spores of proto-organisms
were brought to Earth by meteors or other extraterrestrial means and instigated the chain of
biological life that has resulted in our species. This falls into what Calleman calls the “physicality
trap,” a carry-over from the Planetary Underworld. Instead, Laszlo suggests that biological life
was informationally seeded from elsewhere in our universe or, perhaps, from prior universes.
But where did it all come from in the first place? This is the greatest mystery we ponder.
There must have been an act of creative power that initially activated the mechanism by which
our universe was generated—the act of “metaversal design.” (Laszlo, 2004) We are considering
ideas and empirical findings, including Calleman’s perspective on the Mayan Calendar, which
shed new light on the creationist-evolutionist controversy. As Laszlo (2004) tenders: “The
creationist position would be the logical choice if cutting-edge evolutionary theory asserted that
the origin of living species was truly the product of blind chance. But it does not.”
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The instrument of the Great Intelligence the Hindus call Brahman is beyond the grasp of
human intelligence—at least of the ego intelligence that is mired in separation and opposition.
The creationist-evolutionist argument may be a succinct reflection of this false opposition so
furiously cultivated by ego consciousness, as Laszlo (2004) demonstrates.
In the final count the evolutionist/creationist controversy has no point. The question “design
or evolution” poses a false alternative. Design and evolution do not exclude each other; indeed
they require one another. The Metaverse is unlikely to come into existence out of nothing, as a
result of pure chance. And if it was designed, it was evidently so designed that it could evolve.
The truth of the matter is not “design or evolution.” It is “design for evolution.”
– Individual, Collective and Universal Consciousness –
The A-Field and Consciousness
Evidence has been accumulating that our conscious minds are linked with one another
via the A-Field, similar to how quanta, galaxies, and organisms are joined together in their
respective realms. Coherent non-locality, it appears, is demonstrable on all observable strata.
On the level of consciousness, primitive peoples know this coherence as “sympathetic magic,”
which has been corroborated in controlled experiments under the rubric of telesomatic, or
non-local, medicine. That the mind of one person can affect the body of another, and that
thoughts, images, and impressions transfer from one person to another has been convincingly
established, as in the practice of prayer. These studies form the basis of what has become known
as transpersonal psychology (Radin, 1997).
Consciousness is not an experience solely within the purview of human beings. It is likely
the very foundation of the universe and everything that is part of it. Laszlo suggests that, “We
do not have to explain how unconscious matter generates immaterial consciousness, because
consciousness may not be entirely immaterial, and matter may not be entirely unconscious.”
(Laszlo, 2006) Even elementary particles exhibit some level of consciousness, borne out by their
capability to choose from among alternate possibilities for their behavior.
Consciousness is not a product or function of the brain, as materialist scientists have
advocated. Sheldrake’s (1981, 1988) and others’ findings have shown differently (Basforth,
1990). The brain and consciousness are correlated but, as every student of basic statistics learns,
correlation does not imply causation. For example, consciousness typically ceases in the absence
of brain activity, but not always. There are numerous and well-documented cases of individuals
who, despite a flat EEG – no measurable brain activity -- have recalled detailed experiences from
during the flat line, when they were deemed medically to be deceased (Grof and Halifax, 1977;
Ring, 1980). This will be explored more fully when we question survival after death.
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Laszlo (2006) speculates that vacuum-interconnection, or coherence, applies to the human
brain as well as to the cosmos and quantum world. All cerebral functions, including thoughts,
feelings, and perceptions are associated with brain waves—and these brain waves create vortices
that carry information. They propagate in the A-Field and compose interference patterns with
the vortices generated by the brain waves of others. These interference patterns result in the
formation of complex holograms that interact with other holographic interference patterns to
build even more complex holographic structures -- what we think of as tribal, communal, or
cultural social organizations. Taken together, these forge the “super-hologram” of the collective
unconscious—the memory repository of humanity (Laszlo, 2006). It is unlikely, however, that
brain waves themselves are responsible for the effects Laszlo describes, as they are quite weak.
It is more inferable that the collective unconscious is comprised of holograms from the waves’
attendant non-physical thought forms create the vortices in the A-Field.
We can use Sheldrake’s concept of morphic resonance to understand how the consciousness
of one individual connects with that of another. Resonance is based on the principle that “like
meshes with like.” As discussed in the examination of Sheldrake’s work, personal identity is
based on this principle of self-resonance, as we are most akin to how we were in the immediate
past. Personal memory is the result of reading out information we ourselves have created, that
is, of interpreting events through the filter of our emotional reaction to them. The formula, as it
were, for our experience is the sum of two factors: the events that transpire in our lives and our
emotional response to them. It is through our reaction that we ascribe significance, the context,
to these incidents, the content. Difficulty, even delusion, arises when we attach the significance
we gave to old experiences to other like events – when we supply new content with a context that
is no longer germane.
As Sheldrake (l981) also established, our functional memory storage and access exceeds, and
probably exists independent of, the biological capacity of our physical brain. Therefore, longterm and collective memory is stored extra-somatically—in the morphogenetic- or holographicA-field. This mechanism may also account for the phenomenon of total life recall – life flashing
before one’s eyes -- at the threshold of death.
When the resonance “bandwidth” expands, we become aware of the holographic or
morphogenetic fields of others. This is the basis for transpersonal experiences that can occur
during altered states induced by psychoactive substances and other means (Grof, 1975). Laszlo
(2004) views transpersonal experiences as neither fanciful nor metaphysical. He sees them,
rather, as physical, or more precisely quantum-physical, events in that they occur when the brain
accesses a broader range of holographic information from the A-Field. Laszlo hypothesizes that
transpersonal episodes result from a de-activation, or at least a diminishing, of left-brain processing
-- relatively slow, linear, and conceptually-based -- and an activation of the right brain. He calls
this right-hemisphere connection “quantum-processing mode.” This is a highly accelerated mode
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of conversion that is evidenced, for example, by autistic individuals who are able to perform
astonishingly rapid mathematical calculations.
This is the case not only in autism, but also in the altered states produced by meditation,
prayer, and aesthetic, or ecstatic experiences. Because autistic individuals are largely cut off from
the world around them, their quantum brain processing turns inward and can produce unusual
mental feats. For normal individuals who can communicate with the outside world, quantum
brain processing creates contact with the holographic field in which the brain is immersed.
Hence, in altered states, the normal brain picks up information from a variety of holograms
besides its own (Laszlo, 2004).
Grof (1975) also observed that when normal waking consciousness is suspended through
the induction of LSD, humans can access information from almost any part of the universe. In
what Grof calls “dual unity,” a transpersonal experience, one can merge with another person,
whether the other is alive or dead, but retain one’s own psychic boundaries throughout the
event. One can also have this convergence with a group of people, or even with animals, and
entire eco-systems. There appear to be no determined limits to our ability to receive holographic
information when our conscious censor is inactivated.
– The Fundamental Existential Questions –
The Question of Good and Evil
The issue of good versus evil is not material until we reach an evolutionary level of
consciousness where we are capable of real choice. This occurs at the level of reflexive
consciousness, or the awareness that one is aware. Prior to this there is no real choice. Animals
are aware, but that awareness does not reflect back on self and on self in its environment. Most
young children are not reflexively conscious and, unfortunately, neither are many adults who
subsist at a low level of psycho-spiritual development where all behavior is incited by need, and
there is a scarcity of consideration for its impact on others or the environment (Laszlo, 2006).
Laszlo determines whether actions are good or evil based on how they affect the evolutionary
process -- if they engender coherence or incoherence. Coherent actions promote congruency,
health, and optimum functioning. When, for example, the physical body is coherent, its organs
operate harmoniously and its immune system is strong. The body is hale and naturally resistant
to disease. When an organ becomes incoherent, it ceases to interact harmoniously with the body
as a whole. It becomes diseased and can threaten the life of the very body that houses it. When
cells become incoherent, they reproduce in their incoherent form, without regard for the ecology
of the larger body system. These cells produce a great deal of heat and toxins and become
cancerous. In many ways human beings mimic this process -- they have become malignant to
the planetary body upon which they depend for survival (Laszlo, 2006).
Gauging coherence/incoherence is a very practical method to determine health/sickness,
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sanity/insanity, and good/evil. This measure can be applied to the components of all systems
-- individuals, families, social groups, businesses, and nations. By its standard, ironically, most
religions can be deemed evil, in that they manifest significant incoherence. In his book god is
Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything (2007), Christopher Hitchens builds a very strong
indictment of religion as an instrument for polluting our lives in the name of redeeming them.
For example, regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Hitchens states:
Two peoples of roughly equivalent size had a claim to the same land. The solution was,
obviously, to create two states side by side. Surely something so self-evident was within the wit of
man to encompass. And so it would have been, decades ago, if the messianic rabbis and mullahs
and priests could have been kept out of it. But the exclusive claims to god-given authority, made
by hysterical clerics on both sides and further stoked by Armageddon-minded Christians who
hope to bring on the Apocalypse (preceded by the death or conversion of all Jews), have made
the situation insufferable, and put the whole of humanity in the position of hostage to a quarrel
that now features the threat of nuclear war. Religion poisons everything. As well as a menace to
civilization, it has become a threat to human survival (Hitchens, 2007).
Later Hitchens adds: Violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to racism and tribalism and
bigotry, invested in ignorance and hostile to free inquiry, contemptuous toward women and
coercive toward children: organized religion ought to have a great deal on its conscience. There
is one more charge to be made to this bill of indictment. With a necessary part of its collective
mind, religion looks forward to the destruction of the world (Hitchens, 2007).
There is a high level of incoherence in our world. Ego has fueled it, particularly in the last few
centuries, beginning in the deeply materialistic Planetary Underworld. Although entrenchment
in the ego is only a step in the path of human evolution, it may be the final stage unless we
make meaningful changes. The ego in its existent form and endowment is an agent of evil – it
generates and perpetuates tremendous incoherence on every plane of our lives. Transcendence
of this now-pathological phase of our development is the most imperative task we face. Our
success or failure in this endeavor will determine our survival.
– The Question of Survival After Death –
Is there evidence supporting the survival of consciousness after death? Or are these beliefs
merely wishful thinking—a form of death-denial? For most people this is the crucial question
about our existence. Do we continue on after death as we were in life, but without our physical
body? Or, if we do endure, is it in some other form of consciousness? To ponder this question,
we must look to studies of consciousness unconnected to brain function. These examine an array
of five experiences: near-death (NDEs), out-of-body, mystical, past-life, and those involving
after-death communication. All of these experiences are extra-sensory -- unmediated by the
physical senses.
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In NDEs, the EEG is typically flat, which denotes clinical death. There are cases, however,
where individuals have reported vivid and accurate accounts of events that occurred during
the flat line, when they evidenced no discernable cerebral function (Moody, 1975; Ring, 1980;
1984; 1985). Kenneth Ring studied NDEs of people who were blind, and reported interesting
findings (Ring, 1997). In one series of tests, 15 of 21 blind people who approached clinical death
reported having contemporaneous, fully sighted visions. Fascinatingly, these experiences were
consistent whether the subjects were blind from birth or had lost their sight later in life.
Since early publications by Tart (1968) and Monroe (1971) concerning out of body
experiences (OBEs), there has been an avalanche of studies and books on the subject, as well
as a great deal interest from military researchers. In OBEs, people frequently see things from a
point of view far removed from their physical bodies and surroundings. This sensation is also
known as “remote viewing,” and the military has experimented with it for number of years. A
comprehensive examination of this subject can be found in Jim Marrs’ excellent Psi Spies (2007),
and a vast body of information is available by searching “remove viewing” on the internet. In
mystical experiences, individuals access realms far beyond their physical senses, usually larger
and higher in scope than the purview of their natural capabilities – they are trans-sensory, in
addition to being extra-sensory.
Laszlo (2004) cites the relatively recent studies of “after death-communication” (ADC). ADC
involves exchanges between the living and people who are dead. In their book The Induction
of After-Death Communication in Clinical Practice (2005), Botkin and Hogan describe the
method they use to induce a state of consciousness that accommodates this intra-dimension
communication. They employ “sensory desensitization and reprocessing,” a rapid eye-movement
technique based on a process originally designed for the treatment of post-traumatic shock. It
has been reported that ADC can be experienced by a very high percentage of individuals -over 90% -- who use this procedure to establish an effectual state of consciousness. Apparently,
personal belief in the workability of the method does not appear to influence its rate of success.
Individuals in the studies tended to become convinced of its validity, as the experiences they
reported were quite vivid and compelling.
Laszlo believes that, although it appears to have significant therapeutic value, ADC does
not provide unequivocal evidence of actual communication between the living subjects and the
deceased for whom they are grieving. If such communication were empirically irrefutable, it
would evidence our immortality, and strongly suggest that the deceased live on in a separate but
available dimension of our reality. Laszlo (2004) sees this is a wishful conclusion, but an unlikely
one. A more credible explanation is furnished by the theory of an informed universe and the
Akasha field.
The A-Field carries the holograms of our bodies and brains, and also carries the holograms
of the communities in which we participate and of the milieu in which we live.
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Our brains can individually retrieve every element of these holograms. Retrieving the elements
of our own hologram gives us the astonishingly complete and encompassing memory store that
comes to light in near-death experiences and other altered states of consciousness. It extends to
all things we have experienced in our lifetime, including our experience of the womb and of
birth.
But this is not all: we can also read out the holograms of other people, and thereby relive
their experiences. The people whose experiences we relive may be living or dead: the hologram
in which their lifetime experiences are encoded do not phase out in time. As long as there
are humans on this planet—and humanoid beings on other planets in the universe—the lived
experiences of all people can be relived, over and over again.
Laszlo notes that in such communications, individuals report having been in discourse with
the deceased not as they were at the time of their deaths, but as they were earlier in their lives.
He views this as a play of fancy, one that can foster the healing of grief, but not as a form of
bona fide intercourse. The same conclusions apply to the phenomenon of mediumship, wherein
the medium is reading the holographic records of the deceased by “tuning into” the memory of
the living person who is seeking communion. For Laszlo, the entire span of our life experience is
archived in the A-field and constitutes our contribution to the Akashic record. His initial belief
was that these holographic recordings, and not the individuals who created them, are what
endure after death – that they are, more or less, immortal. “Our individual experience is not
limited to ourselves and our individual lifetime. It can be re-experienced and thus relived at any
time at any place, today and at all times in the future.” (Laszlo, 2004)
Laszlo’s (2004) review of the research on past-life experiences and reincarnation led him to
the conclusion that all such phenomena are rooted in the A-field. For example, an individual can
read out of the holographic A-field the impressions, ideas, and experiences of the deceased, or
even historic events, and readily assume that they are recalling the content of their own previous
lives. This sensation of recollection does not, of course, validate the veracity of these experiences
as past life memories. The holographic records are real, but the conclusion that they are one’s
own historical experiences is dubious. In Grof ’s LSD regression work exploring perinatal states,
he documented many instances of individuals coming into resonance with deceased persons and
historical events. It would be easy, even natural, for the untrained to infer that these were past-life
memories, rather than holographic recordings in the collective retention.
Ian Stevenson’s (1974) work with the purported reincarnation experiences of children
represents perhaps the most exhaustive study of past-life experiences to date. In an attempt to
verify the truth of their claims, Stevenson studied reports of thousands of children from all over
the world. Most of the subjects ranged in age from 2 years – when they developed the ability to
verbalize their impressions – to 6 years.
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This age range is noteworthy in that it spans the pre-ego to early ego stages of development.
The left hemisphere is nascent then -- barely developed in 2-3 year olds -- so the brain’s linear
processing capability is minimal. Perhaps this facilitated the right hemisphere “quantum
processing” faculties to access the permanent records of the A-field to a marked degree. Right
brain connection would give the child entry to a very broad range of holographic records, which
one might indeed conclude were personal memories of a past-life.
Laszlo’s (2004) initial commentary on children’s reincarnation experiences and on the
experiences of adults in altered states of consciousness was: The experiences reported by
children—and by grown-ups in altered states of consciousness—actually occur, and show that
we can access the experiences of other people whether they stand before us or are far away, and
whether they are living today or have lived sometime in the past. But when we re-experience
other people’s experiences we do not reincarnate them, for the images and ideas that surface in
our consciousness stem not from single individuals whose soul has survived their death and is
now reincarnated in us. Rather, the ideas, images, and impressions entering our consciousness
have their source in the vacuum. The information carried in the vacuum’s A-field is active and
effective. Its range is vast; it embraces other humans as well as other forms of life, and all things
in the universe. In integrating with it, it not our individual body and our individual soul, but our
individual experience that achieves immortality.
We do not disappear from the world without a trace; all that we experience becomes part
of the collective memory bank of humankind, to be read out again and again. We can live on in
the brain and consciousness of people today, and in all future generations.
The fundamental tenet of this work is that the failure to discriminate another’s experience
from our own provokes us to relive the other’s experience as our own, and to bear their attendant
emotional consequences. About those who interpret these experiences as past-life recollections,
Laszlo (2006) states succinctly, “(f)or them, long-term personal memory merges imperceptibly
into transpersonal memory.”
In Science and the Re-enchantment of the Cosmos (2006), Laszlo quotes a letter he received
from the philosopher Chris Bache, eminent researcher and author of Lifecycles: Reincarnation
and the Web of Life (1990). In it, Bache expounds on his theory that past-life experiences are an
epiphenomenon of holographic tracings left by an individual life in the A-field. Bache suggests that,
as experience is accumulated through many cycles of reincarnation, an advanced consciousness
is reached and a new form of individuality is birthed. This higher level of individuality, the true
Self, continues to exist beyond death and outside of the space-time structures we associate with
our existence. It is transcendent of the ephemeral ego as well as traditional concepts of the soul
that are mortal.
In my own work, whenever I touched my life in nonordinary states, it broke open to reveal
a tapestry of collective threads. I could not find any part of “my” existence that was not part
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of the larger tapestry of life. And yet, over the course of years, things happened that seemed to
suggest that something was being birthed in these experiences that would endure beyond any
frame of reference previously imaginable to me, beyond egoic existence, beyond any space-time
structures altogether. I found it necessary to affirm the emergence of a new and higher form
of individuality being generated by the universe’s relentless accumulation of experience—both
accumulation through many cycles of reincarnation, and through the systematic integration into
one point of awareness of vast territories of transpersonal experience. Furthermore, what was
happening to me seemed to be an instance of a larger pattern operating within the universe at
large. In the end, it was the Metaverse evolving itself in and through the universe. The Metaverse
was birthing itself into new forms, and at critical thresholds these forms endured. They were not
dissolved by death….
In conclusion Bache states: (Italics added) The universe relentlessly generates, collects, and
integrates experience. In time self-emergence yields systems strong enough to begin to form
continuities across multiple incarnations. At first fragmented and disjointed, these lives eventually
come together to form more integrated wholes. This process of accumulation and integration
reaches a bifurcation point where something comes into being that had not previously existed.
I experienced this birth as an explosion of brilliant, luminous, extremely dense, extremely clear
crystalline diamond light…. This birth seemed to be made possible by the accumulation of
learning generated by a maturation of consciousness across many lifetimes. Not reincarnation
of a soul, as if the soul existed prior to this point, but reincarnation that gives birth to the soul.
When Laszlo (2006) consolidated these experiences with his own ideas, he concluded
that holographic tracings of a lifetime are conserved in the A-field, and that they are capable
of autonomous development independent of the brain and body that created them. “In the
process of enduring interaction of the human consciousness with the A-field, something akin
to the traditional notion of an individual soul appears to be generated.” This leads to the third
fundamental existential question we will study in this section.
– The Question of Personal Separateness –
In 1624, when he was gravely ill, English poet John Donne wrote, “No man is an island
unto himself.” The approach of death kindled a transcendence of ego consciousness that led to
this wise poetic/mystical insight. As we ascend from the ego separateness of the last millennia we
are confronted with the personal, social, and ecological devastation it has produced. But these ill
effects are mitigated by an important dividend. We have gained something that we may not have
been able to realize any other way—the “pearl of great price” referred to in Christ’s parable of
the merchant who sold all he had to buy a single pearl he deemed priceless. That something is
our individuality.
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The first stage of the evolution of individuality establishes separateness—I-not I. This
budding individuality takes an aggressive stand to prevent absorption back into Nature and the
collective from which it issues. There is a strong danger of becoming lodged at this point in our
evolvement, which is precisely what has occurred. What ultimately extricates us from our stasis
is the realization that our survival depends upon radical change. On the most fundamental level
this is experienced as the spiritual impulse, the recognition that we are both individualized and
part of a larger whole, and is best expressed by the pantheistic doctrine of “unity in diversity.”
In science, this impulse is observed in the recent onslaught of information regarding
transpersonal, transcultural and telesomatic connections (Radin, 1997). Modern researchers
have clearly demonstrated the degree to which our brains and minds are linked, whether or
not we are consciously aware of it. For instance, the transpersonal ability to synchronize the
electrical activity of one’s brain with those of others appears to be universal (Laszlo, 2004).
Entire cultures are similarly connected, even absent any evidence of physical contact.
Archeological and historical evidence testify that transpersonal connections also occur between
entire peoples and cultures—in widely different locations and at different historical times, ancient
cultures developed an array of similar artifacts and buildings, i.e., giant pyramids were built in
ancient Egypt as well as pre-Columbian America, with remarkable agreement in design …
also, pots, urns and other artifacts produced by indigenous and independently evolving cultures
in Europe, as well as in Egypt, Persia, India and China exhibit striking recurrences in basic
form and design—defying conventional explanation. The civilizations lived far apart in space
and sometimes in time, and did not seem to have had conventional contacts with one another
(Laszlo, 2004).
Starting in the fourth quarter of the Planetary Underworld, 1947, and particularly through
the course of the Galactic Underworld, beginning in 1999, there has been burgeoning interest
in how our minds affect our bodies, each other, animals, plants and the environment in which we
live (Radin, 1997). This, as well as the research discussed earlier, speaks of our universal interconnectedness within the A-field at all levels of observation. It is in our conscious use of this
knowledge that our hopes for our future lay.
– The Integral Vision of Reality –
The Concept of Physical Reality
We now know that physical reality does not consist merely of matter existing in space and
time. Space, not matter, is now generally viewed as the fundamental medium of the universe—
the super-dense and super-fluid quantum vacuum from which all things become manifest, and
ultimately return. Schrodinger (cited by Laszlo 2006) viewed all material bodies and forces
as “shapes and variations” in the structure of the quantum vacuum. This unified vacuum
creates all particles that comprise local universes and re-absorbs them once they complete their
evolutionary cycles. It also generates gravitation, electromagnetism, as well as the strong and
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weak nuclear forces. The unified vacuum is, quite literally, the “alpha and the omega.” It is All
That Is, uniting everything into a unified whole, the discovery of which provided science with an
integrated vision of reality (Laszlo, 2006).
Einstein said that space is primary and matter, secondary. It can also be held that of the two
states of matter—the corpuscular and the wave aspect—the wave aspect is primary, because all
things that exist in the super-fluid vacuum produce waves—propagating vortices. We then ask:
why do we see these waves as material bodies? Laszlo’s answer is that vacuum waves are like
“solitons,” or solitary waves, which appear to have a discrete, particulate nature: “It is like a
rolling ocean wave moving along at the same speed you are walking.” (Laszlo, 2006)
Although what we perceive with our senses is solid matter moving about in empty space,
physical reality is different. In the final count the physical universe, including particles, stars,
planets, rocks, and living organisms is not material: all these matter-like things are complex
waves in the quantum vacuum.
– The Nature of Spiritual Reality –
Spirit -- or consciousness -- and matter are two facets of one reality, as they both stem from
the quantum vacuum. Their differences are apparent, not real. The integrated view of reality,
therefore, is that it is psychophysical (Laszlo, 2006). Because consciousness is analogous to space,
it may be inferred that it contains, embraces, and gives birth and form to the physical. For this
reason, physicists such as Amit Goswami (1993) embrace the philosophy of monistic idealism,
the idea that all things derive from consciousness. This opposes the monistic philosophy of
material realism, the traditional belief that material particles are the mainspring of everything:
“In view of the way that quantum physics has demolished material realism, monistic idealism
may be the only viable monistic philosophy of reality.” (Goswami, 1993)
Heisenberg (1958), with his Uncertainty Principle, opined that a quantum object cannot
occupy a given place and still be moving in a predictable fashion at the same time. Simply stated,
if we could take a snapshot of a submicroscopic object, we could determine its position, but be
unable to acquire information about its state of motion, and vice versa. “What,” asks Goswami,
“is the object doing between snapshots?” Similarly, Bohr demonstrated that electrons “jump”
from one orbit to another within their atoms. “Where does the electron go between jumps?”
Goswami questions.
Between observations, the electron spreads out in accordance with the Schrodinger equation,
but probabilistically, in potentia, said Heisenberg, who adopted the word potentia from
Aristotle. Where do these potentia exist? Since the electron’s wave collapses immediately upon
our observation, potentia could not be in the material domain of space-time; in space-time all
objects have to obey the Einsteinian speed, remember. Thus the domain of potentia must be
outside space-time. Potentia exist in a transcendent domain of reality. Between observations,
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the electron exists as a possibility form, like a Platonic archetype, in the transcendent domain of
potentia (Goswami, 1993).
Probably the most radical, and most unsettling, conclusion drawn from quantum mechanics
concerns the macro-world of everyday objects -- objects that are made up entirely of quanta.
Goswami asks whether or not the moon exists how and where we see it when we are not looking.
While this might seem a ridiculous question, and flies in the face of common sense, from the
perspective of quantum mechanics the conclusion is that it does not—the moon also exists as a
possibility form in transcendent potentia between observations.
Perhaps the most important, and the most insidious, assumption that we absorb in our
childhoods is that of the material world of objects existing out there—independent of subjects,
who are the observers. There is circumstantial evidence in favor of such an assumption.
Whenever we look at the moon, for example, we find the moon where we expect it along its
classically calculated trajectory. Naturally we project that the moon is always there in spacetime, even when we are not looking. Quantum physics says no. When we are not looking, the
moon’s possibility wave spreads, albeit by a miniscule amount. When we look the wave collapses
instantly; thus the wave could not be in space-time. It makes more sense to adopt an idealist
metaphysic assumption: There is no object in space-time without a conscious subject looking at
it.
So quantum waves are like Platonic archetypes in the transcendent domain of consciousness,
and the particles that manifest upon our observation are the immanent shadows on the cave
wall. Consciousness is the agency that collapses the wave of a quantum object, which exists in
potentia, making it an immanent particle in the world of manifestation. … Nothing is outside
consciousness. This monistic view of the world is crucial. (Goswami 1993)
Since the cleavage of reality into the spiritual/religious and material domains early in the
Planetary Underworld (Cartesian dualism), physics has been the standard definer of physical
reality. Venturing into transcendent perspectives was deemed heretical. The paradigm shift we
are facing calls for the obliteration of this false division.
The exile of the ego is the entry into transcendent consciousness. This has been repeatedly
demonstrated in both drug and non-drug altered states, such as with meditation and fasting,
and in a variety of extreme environments, such as Native American sweat lodges. In many
transcendent experiences individuals make contact with what they describe as the consciousness
of the universe itself—an all-pervading state that is both infinitely intelligent and infinitely
creative. This is known as Purusha in Hinduism. It is Pure Consciousness, Self, the Creative
Consciousness that feeds and facilitates the entire manifest universe. The other apt Hindu term
is Prakriti -- unmanifest or primordial matter. It can be envisioned as a fullness of infinite potential,
the substratum beneath all objective planes of existence. In Western esotericism it is symbolized by
the High Priestess of the Tarot, the mind-stuff out of which everything is made—the A-field. It is
Purusha, Self, that shapes Prakriti into the forms that manifest as physical objects and experience.
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– Co-Creation and the Next Step in Human Evolution –
The most profound expression of the shift to a new paradigm is the move from unknowing
to knowing participation in creation. This can be called the Great Awakening—Calleman’s
final Underworld of the Mayan Calendar. Perplexingly, most people have not yet embraced an
awareness that they have input into what happens to them. They see themselves as hapless victims
of circumstance, bad luck, or the influence of others. They flounder in search of some kind of
parental figure—a god or a person—who will save them from their loneliness and dis-ease.
But as history has shown, saviors often become jailors. The vast majority of these individuals
would not choose to read this book. In fact, many of them actively resist any disturbance to
their spiritual sleep. It is best to leave them to the forces of evolution governed by Universal
Intelligence, so that they may awaken in their own time. The remainder of this book is aimed at
those who accept the imperative to transcend the ego and its tethers, and who are willing to do
the work required.
The work of ego transcendence must be done for three crucial reasons: first, to eliminate
from the human collective one’s contribution to the destructiveness of self, others, and the planet
– damage that has been effected by this level of consciousness – and, second, to open oneself to
blocked transpersonal and cosmic consciousness. This rising will have profound consequences,
not only in expanding sensitivity to plants, animals, and the biosphere, but also in producing
greater empathy among humankind. Third, and most importantly, it will allow us to become
aware, on the deepest level, of our complicity in the physical manifestations of our personal and
collective lives.
We must very deliberately examine our fundamental beliefs. Are they passive, simply
explaining reality? Or are they active, giving structure to the A-field, the quantum vacuum, to
create experiences that reflect them? We will explore the possibility that the A-field is essentially
neutral, and will reflect in experience whatever strong convictions and images we impose upon
it. If we really know this, then we cannot interpret our experiences as verification of the truth
of our convictions. As radical, and possibly preposterous as it may sound, maybe we make it
all up as we go along, both on the individual and collective levels. Failure to even weigh such a
possibility is the inherent danger of religious dogma. It constitutes a self-fulfilling prophecy—the
belief in evil creates evil, and prophecies of doom engender apocalyptic scenarios. This is most
germane in surveying the religious insanity in the Middle East: Each side cleaves to its dogma
and devotion, certain that the other is wrong and evil, while blithely unaware that both are
reacting to manifestations of the underlying A-field that they, themselves, have created.
We have reached a point in our development where we can function as conscious co-creators
with the Divine. According to Calleman, arriving at this level of consciousness is the sum and
substance of the Mayan Calendar. We have the power to structure the A-field with our thoughts,
imaginings, and feelings, whether we are conscious of this aptitude or not. We must now take
responsibility for doing so.
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We must proceed with great caution. The ability to create is not tantamount to the ability to create
wisely. Once we become aware of how we manifest the content of our existence from the A-field,
we must also become aware of, and rigorously question, with what our manifestations align
themselves. Until fairly recently, the greater part of humanity has been thoroughly entrenched in
egoic and even pre-ego mental structures, and has been unconsciously and rampantly cultivating
from them. Even most of those who live at the ego level, but who have a conscious awareness of
the psychological techniques of manifestation, practice them from the intentionality of the ego,
frequently believing that they are coming from a higher place.
In recent years there has been an increasing presence of books, audio material, and
workshops on the subject of manifestation. In and of itself, this is an encouraging sign, in that
it indicates a fostering of inquiry and stronger sense of autonomy. The problem, however,
is that nearly all of this material is being used for purposes antithetical to their aim – they
are facilitating the augmentation of the ego. The ability to manifest is not a sign of spiritual
evolvement or enlightenment. It is simply a skill – a use of available technology. What calibrates
spiritual development is the tenor of our use of this technology—whether we employ it in the
service of the ego or of the Divine plan.
As Calleman (2005) stresses, there are disastrous consequences when we fight against the
flow of spiritual evolution. Harboring in the “old way” and manifesting from ego selfishness,
dominance, material superiority, and separateness—fomenting incoherence—will invariably
result in destruction, as we have reached a point of critical mass in our ability to sustain the
damage we have already wrought. Our dilemma is clear: transcend the pathological ego or
perish. It seems impossible that a mammoth transformation of the ego can take place in time
to save us from ourselves and our ravaged planetary ecology, given the depth of compromise
caused by our ego, and its greed and disregard for nature.
Fortunately, the work of overcoming the limitations of ego consciousness does not require
that everyone participate. Due to the phenomenon of non-locality, the effects of this work on
the part of a relative few can gain purchase in the A-Field and generate its own momentum. In
The Divine Matrix, Gregg Braden (2007) cites studies conducted by the TM (Transcendental
Meditation) Organization that focused on employing meditative techniques to reduce violence
and crime rates in different cities. In 1972, twenty-four U.S. cities with populations greater than
10,000 noted measurable changes in violent crime when as few as one percent of their residents
participated in the exercises.
These and similar studies led to a landmark project, “International Peace Project in the
Middle East,” published in the Journal of Conflict Resolution in 1988. During the IsraeliLebanese war of the early 1980s, practitioners were trained in precise techniques of TM to
create peace in their bodies, rather than simply thinking about it in their minds or praying for it
to occur.
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On specific days of the month, at specific times each day, these people were positioned
within the war-torn areas of the Middle East. During the window of time that they were at
peace, terrorist incidents, crimes against people, emergency-room visits, and traffic accidents
all declined in number. When the participants stopped their practice, the statistics reversed.
(Braden, 2007)
These researchers found that only the square root of one percent of the population was
needed to effectuate inner peace and have an impact on the entire community. Remarkably, in
a city of one million people, the requisite number of participants is about 100. In a world of six
billion, we would need just 8,000 beings committed to a radical shift in our prevailing mindset.
8,000 individuals working with the Divine Plan, as outlined in the Mayan Calendar, and doing
the work to transcend ego consciousness, can bring about a fundamental change in planetary
consciousness. For those who are capable of doing this work, therefore, it becomes morally
imperative for them to do so.
Because all beings are inter-connected via the principle of non-locality, our individual states
of consciousness are not private or self-contained. Our personal states have an effect on others
-- many others, as the TM studies suggest. If you change for the better (or worse) it renders
like change in others. This is most apparent in those closest to you, but the effect continues,
albeit to a progressively diminishing degree, to all of humanity and planetary life. By working in
groups to foster personal evolvement, therefore, we are capable of creating a significantly more
tangible impact. It is not an understatement to say that the greatest service one can perform for
humankind is to dedicate oneself to ego-transcendence. -126-
VI
CHAPTER SIX
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Going Beyond the Ego
“Thinking maddens the mind” (Tao Te Ching) – Lao Tzu
Most mystical and esoteric systems refer to Self as the highest form of Individuality, wherein
one is Realized, aware of concordance with All That Is. In Hinduism, It is called Atman; in
Western terminology, Higher Self. It is the supreme level of human development -- the state
of the enlightened consciousness of unity. In light of all we have discussed until now, we know
the Self as the Creative Intelligence that gives shape to the A-field, the quantum vacuum.
A predicament arises when the Self forgets that It is the creator of these forms, and instead
identifies with them. This breeds the dangerous and painful illusions of separateness and duality.
Self-Realization is the awareness that one’s Essence, or true nature, is the shaper of the creations
in the A-field, but is not the creations themselves.
For the last 5,000 years, Self has mired in ego-self, and we have denied our true Essence. We
have, as Tolle (1999, 2005) illustrates, come to draw our sense of identity from the accumulation
of past experiences, and beliefs derived from these experiences, and we seek our salvation in the
future. Ego-identification causes us to view ourselves as “historical” beings, separate from, and in
opposition to, others, Nature, and Spirit. We live in fear and isolation on self-constructed islands,
oblivious to the reality that we are part of a continuous and vast mountain range beneath the
surface of the obscuring waters. Our condition is self-perpetuating and self-exacerbating – and
has dramatically worsened over the past few hundred years. We have become brittle shells,
ignoring and denying the agile and luminous Self encased within.
The ego clings to its history to preserve its self-sense. The ego needs the past to keep itself in
existence -- it cannot survive in the present, in the Now. It must, then, constantly work to impose
the past onto the present, which it does by attempting to interpret every present-time experience
through the filter of past events and their attendant emotions. When we conceptualize the future,
the same thing happens—unconsciously, or sometimes consciously, we project the past onto the
future, allowing the past to repeat itself over and over. Most people do not have a future, an as
yet unrealized space of open and free possibilities. They have an endlessly recurring past. Thus,
thinking and conceptualization serve the survival aims of the ego. For this reason, most traditional
spiritual practices, such as Zen, stress moving away from thinking and conceptualization as the
primary avenue by which we can transcend the ego.
The greater part of most people’s thinking is involuntary, automatic and repetitive. It is no
more than a kind of mental static that fulfills no real purpose. Strictly speaking, they don’t think:
Thinking happens to them. “’I think’ is just as false a statement as ‘I digest’ or ‘I circulate my
blood’. Digestion happens, circulation happens, thinking happens.” (Tolle 2005) Furthermore,
because thinking is a function of left-brain ego consciousness, all thinking keeps us trapped in
duality: right/wrong, good/bad, friend/enemy, and so on. It keeps the opposition state of ego in
place, and as long this it maintained, we are perpetually at war with everything and everyone.
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– Barring the Ego and Pain-Body From Repeating the Past –
Most people are entirely unaware that they are replaying the patterns of their past. The
names and places may change, but the basic themes remain the same. Why is this true, particularly
when the cycle is undesirable, given that so many of our patterns are negative or destructive?
Tolle (2005) cites two reasons for this. The first is that unresolved pain from the past assumes a
parasitic role in the host psyche in the form of the pain-body; the second is that the ego engages
in ceaseless commentary on this pain --what he calls “the voice in the head.”
The phenomenon of repetition works like this: The ego-mind, or voice in the head,
comments on unresolved pain, either contemporaneously—“It’s not fair,” “Nobody loves me,”
etc.—or as the memory of pain revisits consciousness— “I really had it bad as a child.” This
narration on the original, unresolved, suffering frames a template, or filter, through which
present-time experience is then evaluated. An expectation for the present to be like the past
develops and strengthens through the very repetition it devised. This forecast and the images it
stimulates induce the body to create more pain, for the body cannot distinguish between a real
event and an imagined one. It is this propensity to renew old emotional pain that nourishes and
strengthens the pain-body. The ego’s firm expectation that the present and future will mimic the
past—even without the individual’s consent—forms the core of dysfunctional thinking. When
expectation is coupled with body-generated emotions that correspond to the expectation, the net
result is a re-creation of the past in the present, and its projection into the future.
When we look at the present through the obscuring emotional eyes of our stored past, we
are blind to what is in front of us. We can no longer objectively see people and events in our lives,
but rather see our inner, manufactured, reality projected outwardly.
This is not to say that all thinking and all emotion are of the ego. They turn into ego only
when you identify with them and they take you over completely, that is to say, when they become
“I”…. Indirectly, an emotion can also be a response to an actual situation or event, but it will be
a response to the event seen through the filter of a mental interpretation, the filter of thought,
that is to say, through the mental concepts of good and bad, like and dislike, me and mine. (Tolle,
2005)
To stop this repetition, which can be called the “wheel of karma,” we must first identify it
when the pain-body is operating. To do this, we must overcome a fundamental prejudice—that
every emotional reaction we experience is caused by, and is an appropriate response to, a presenttime external stimulus. The greater part of our emotional lives has a negligible connection with
the actual circumstances of our physical lives. We simply assume that it does. By rupturing this
delusion, we begin to break free of the first of the great tyrants that enslave us.
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– Ways to Identify the Influence of the Pain-Body –
There are several overt symptoms through which we can recognize the influence of the painbody: 1) chronic negative states 2) over-reactivity and/or inappropriate reactions to a stimulus, 3)
unexplained mood shifts, and 4) psychosomatic reactions.
– Chronic Negative States –
Chronic negative states including, but certainly not limited to, unhappiness, reactive
depression, anxiety, and irritability connote the existence of a “story” – one the ego keeps
telling itself to justify the legitimacy of the negative state. In a cycle of self-perpetuation, the
story then supports the negative state, and the negative state supports the story. The story is
empowered, accepted as reality, and is not seen as contrived. “When you are completely trapped
in the movement of thought and the accompanying emotion, stepping outside is not possible,
because you don’t even know there is an outside.” (Tolle, 2005) In general, nothing can be done
until the intensity of the transaction subsides. When it does, you can then observe the state
you are in along with its accompanying thoughts. The act of observation carves out a place
for non-identification with the dysfunctional state, because observation inherently creates some
separation from whatever we are observing. When we have become familiar with observation,
we can proceed to a place where we break the delusion that the present is the source of our pain
– pain that roots in and braches out from the past. Precise techniques for making this critical
discrimination will be dealt with below in the Methods section.
– Over-reactivity and/or Inappropriate Reactions to Life Situations –
Whenever there is an inappropriate or overly intense emotional reaction it can be traced
back to a time in the past when such a reaction was warranted. Its inapplicability to the present
illustrates a heavy emotional overlay from long ago events, and the failure to discriminate past
from present. In the instance of overreaction, the pain-body’s disquiet is consistently forming
responses that are markedly out of proportion to their apparent cause. This disproportion allows
us to recognize the pain-body at work. It is rarely observed, however, by the one who is reacting
-- who is, in essence, possessed. (Tolle, 2005) Because the voice in the head constantly justifies
these reactions as relevant and reasonable, the individual who is experiencing them is blind to
their origins and to their incongruity. These rationales, combined with the ego’s needs to be
right and opposed to others, obscure greater consciousness and prevent the objective appraisal
of one’s behavior. Emotional amplification is what the pain-body cultivates, harvests and feeds
upon.
Inappropriate emotional reactions also signal the influence of the pain-body. In the face
of a genuine compliment, for example, you become suspicious and angry. You begin to think
that the giver is “setting you up,” or trying to control you. You may even assume a belligerent
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attitude toward him. Why? This distrust is most likely the product of having been manipulated
by people in the past that used compliments and gift giving as tools of control. Similarly, it
is not uncommon, as Firestone (1987) explains, for adults who have withstood control, overprotection, or emotional suffocation as children at the hands of adults who claimed to engage in
these dynamics in the name of love, to have suspicious reactions to expressions of affection and
approval.
– Unexplained Mood Shifts –
Spontaneous shifts in emotional state are a commonly employed feeding strategy of the
pain-body’s morphogenetic field. Sheldrake (1981) likens this to the phenomenon of regulation
in animals—establishing alternate avenues to a goal. I have come to call this “baiting.” Consider
the following scenario: You are comfortably sitting in your living room reading a book. Seemingly from nowhere you begin to feel a low level of anxiety. Ego commentary begins and you
wonder if something is not right. Maybe you forgot to pay a bill. Did the boss look at you oddly
yesterday? You begin to worry a little, and this increases your anxiety. More ego commentary
ensues, engaging the imagination in the countless possibilities of what might be wrong, or what
could go wrong. You identify with various imaginings, and enter a paranoid realm where possibilities become probabilities. More worry and more anxiety flood your consciousness. Now
you are really becoming alarmed. Maybe your co-workers are plotting against you. Perhaps
you have cancer. Now your heart is palpitating and you are afraid that you might be having a
heart attack. You cross into the storm of a full-blown panic attack and dial 911. An ambulance
takes you to the hospital. You wait in terror in the emergency room until you can be evaluated.
Finally, the doctor comes and performs an EKG. He tells you that you simply had a panic attack
and your heart is fine. Much relieved, you willingly pay an exorbitant charge for the ambulance
and evaluation. Your pain-body, happily fed, once again goes dormant, and you are thoroughly
exhausted.
– Psychosomatic Reactions –
In his book The Divided Mind (2006), John E. Sarno theorizes that the mind creates psychosomatic reactions in order to distract itself from becoming aware of threatening negative
emotional states such as rage, fear, and grief. He believes it is the mind’s way of maintaining the
illusion of a strong self-image, rightness, or a façade of superiority or coolness.
The ego mind perceives that this is imperative and will go to great lengths to keep untoward
emotional material from surfacing. Sarno builds a compelling case for his theory of distraction,
offering many case histories. He also provides concrete evidence of the inefficacy of attending
to only physical symptomology -- how the mind then simply creates another set of symptoms,
frequently much more dangerous and painful ones, until or unless the underlying emotional
substratum is addressed.
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There is, however, an additional possibility for why the ego mind employs this distraction defense. Perhaps it is a way to safeguard the store of emotional pain in the pain-body. For
example, a heavy accumulation o0f unconscious rage can feed the pain-body in several ways.
One way is by keeping the individual in a condition of anxiety over feeling, and possibly acting on, this emotional energy, thereby fueling the pain-body with fear. When this buried rage
is projected onto others it also serves to create paranoia, contributing further to the fear as the
individual now believes that others are trying to hurt him in some way. Another is by promoting
a sense of victimization that issues from the psychosomatic disorders and physical pain attendant
to the distraction defense.
– Methods of Diminishing the Pain-Body –
All of the following formulae entail breaking one’s agreement that the negative emotion
of the pain-body is connected to present-time circumstances. This is the crux of these methods,
because the pain-body feeds on our endorsement that its reactivity is pertinent in the present
moment.
– Self-observation –
Self-observation necessitates becoming aware of one’s thoughts, emotional reactions/feelings, and behaviors. Rather than automatically identifying or commenting on them, we learn
to restrain this impulse and simply observe. Because the act of observation, by its very nature,
requires separation from what we are observing, it eventually induces dis-identification or detachment. It is important to do this without self-judgment, because self-judgment is just another
strategy by which the ego nourishes the pain-body and, besides, it is utterly pointless—and paradoxical--to criticize oneself for doing the spiritual work of transcending the ego and pain-body.
As we practice self-observation we begin to both sever our identification with the pain-body
and deprive it of its primary sustenance -- our agreement that its reactions are cogent, valid and
germane. Eventually it will weaken, but before it wilts, it fights back. It is important, therefore,
to be prepared for its retaliation as we engage in the practice. Let us take the example of worry.
Worry is a highly effective strategy to keep one firmly away from the Now. It is basically anxiety
about the future, and is typically rooted in fear of the repetition of loss, hurt, and difficulty from
the past. When we address this malignant habit, it is necessary that we become very vigilant
about our thoughts, feelings, and imaginings.
There appear to be three stages to the self-observation process. The ego and pain-body
complex is very subtle and cunning. What becomes clear during the first stage of this process is
awareness of worrying after you have done it—perhaps hours or even days later— despite your
belief that you were engaged in self-observation. Many people give up at this point, finding it too
difficult to proceed. If you persist, however, you will notice that you become aware of worrying
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earlier and earlier—still after you have done it, but rather than hours later, it happens in minutes.
Eventually, as you persist in your practice, you advance into the next stage that, in some ways, is
more arduous.
During this second stage of learning to self-observe, you are mindful that you are worrying
while it is happening, but find you are unable to stop because its momentum is more powerful
than your ability to control it. This can be a very trying experience. What you must appreciate is that your practice of self-observation has actually progressed. At this point it is crucial to
maintain self-observation and detach as much as you are able to from self-critical thoughts. Selfobservation eventually weakens the pain-body, while self-critical thoughts feed it. By steadfast return to self-observation and a refusal to feed the thoughts by agreeing with them, the pain-body
becomes progressively feebler.
As you progress and you begin to become more quickly aware that you have been worrying, something quite magical begins to happen. A point is reached where you become aware
that the momentum of the habit pattern does not surpass your ability to stop it. The point of
choice has been reached. This is when you realize you are simply grappling with a habit that you
can continue or you can break. You can choose to consciously feed the habit with thoughts and
imaginings, continue self-observation and refuse to feed the habit, divert your attention from the
worry to something else, or engage in a direct contrary action—such as not calling to check-up
on someone you are worried about, as you know it is just the worry habit at work and there is
no empirical evidence that he is in distress. The contrary action may also take the active form of
calling someone from whom you have been fearing criticism, when you now know the worry is
unfounded.
This technique squarely aims to render the ego/pain-body complex and so can be expected
to generate significant resistance. This resistance can take many forms: forgetting to do the practice, feeling victimized by having to do the difficult work of self-observation, feeling superior to
others for doing it (“holier than thou”), or even worrying more as an act of rebellion. One of the
most interesting ego/pain-body gimmicks is the linking of worry and care: If you really cared
about someone you would worry about his or her well-being; or if you don’t worry about your
future, you don’t care about yourself.
It is critical to remember that any thought related to our progress in self-observation, or its
legitimacy, is driven by the ego, and is accordingly intended to inhibit the process. Self-evaluative
thinking starts in the ego, and when we give attention to it we risk agreeing to it and nurturing
the ego. It is important to cultivate a dispassionate attitude of observational awareness, allowing
any commentary to simply drift by without attaching to it in any way. Even if we fight the ego we
are legitimizing it and, fundamentally, conceding that the voice in the head has some soundness.
Even hating it gives it attention that it feeds on.
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– Anchoring the Origin of Thoughts and Feelings –
At any given moment we must be able to distinguish the source of our thoughts and feelings. How we deal with them depends on their origin. For example, you are walking in a park
and a large, wild-eyed man is rapidly approaching you with a raised stick in his hands.
You know you are in danger and feel fear. Your thoughts and feelings are the result of a
present-time stimulus. Now, suppose you are walking in the park and a man walks toward you
does not appear to be threatening at all, yet you feel fear. It is most likely that the origin of your
fear is the past. Perhaps the man reminds you of someone who endangered you in your childhood. The reason why it is “most likely,” rather than certain, that the man in the present stimulates past fear is connected to a possibility that was discussed briefly in an earlier chapter. Perhaps
the man, himself, felt in danger and was fearful. By empathic and telepathic induction it is very
easy to unconsciously pick up the thoughts and emotions of others and believe they have their
origin within us. Thus, there are three standard provenances of our thoughts and feelings that
must be carefully differentiated: present, past, and other people. Unless we become practiced in
this discrimination we will erroneously identify all thoughts and feelings we experience as legitimate responses to the present.
In recent decades a new, insidious, wellspring of thoughts and feelings has appeared. During the late fifties, subliminal advertising began to be inserted into movies and the media. By
briefly exposing messages or pictures on a screen, too rapidly to consciously perceive, the viewers’ minds could be manipulated to promote the sale of products or affect mood. This technology was fairly primitive in comparison to the form that emerged later, where the mind could be
influenced by microwaves and other sophisticated electronic means aimed at mass guidance of
thought and mood. These machinations and the purposes for which they were developed, along
with specific procedures with which to protect oneself from them, will be examined in Chapter 7.
Once you can locate the origin of the thoughts and feelings you are experiencing that ability
will diminish your tendency to habitually identify with them – it generates its own momentum.
It gives you freedom to take more appropriate action. If you are experiencing negative thoughts
or feelings and there is nothing in your immediate environment stimulating them, it must by
default be coming from the pain-body, which is mired in the past, from another person or group
of people, or from some form of manufactured electromagnetic or microwave influence. We all
pick up collective thoughts and emotions, for example, and it is very easy to assume that they are
reactions we are producing in the present because of something in our lives that we are unaware
of. This can initiate a “feeding frenzy” of the pain-body. Knowing that this input has no credible
stimulus in the moment can be a great relief. You can simply observe and not attach significance
to them. Gaining expertise in determining the typical origins of thoughts of feelings allows you
to deal more effectively with the fourth origin, which is much more complex.
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Ultimately, the rewards of effectively managing these arenas provides a major impetus for doing
the work of ego transcendence, as all such manipulative influences depend on the ego’s identification with the states they promote.
– Transmutation of the Pain-Body –
Tolle (2005) refers to self-observation as conscious Presence. When we are engaging in selfobservation we are fully conscious that we are present in the moment. We are simply being aware,
and nothing more. It involves no ego-commentary. Everything that comes to your awareness is
simply observed without editorializing—regardless of what it is. According to Tolle: It is your
conscious Presence that breaks the identification with your pain-body. When you don’t identify
with it, the pain-body can no longer control your thinking and so cannot renew itself anymore by
feeding on your thoughts. The pain body in most cases does not dissolve immediately, but once
you have severed the link between it and your thinking, the pain-body begins to lose energy. Your
thinking ceases to be clouded by emotion; your present perceptions are no longer distorted by the
past. The energy that was trapped in the pain-body then changes its vibrational frequency and is
transmuted into Presence. In this way the pain-body becomes fuel for consciousness. This is why
many of the wisest, most enlightened men and women on our planet once had a heavy painbody.
This is the essence of alchemy—not the transmutation of lead into gold, but the
transmutation of the heavy, negative, and “leaden” emotional energies that keep us locked to
the Wheel of Karma into the brilliant, positive, gold of Presence. This is true magic. Let us look
at how this can be done.
Thought creates and maintains forms in the Akashic field. These thought-forms stimulate
complementary imaginings, and our imaginings stimulate interrelated feeling states. Happy
thoughts create commensurate imaginings and feelings, and likewise for negative thoughts. There
is also a reciprocal relationship between thought and feeling: thoughts stimulate corresponding
feelings; feelings stimulate symmetrical thoughts and imaginings. If you feel someone else’s fear
and do not know it issues from outside of yourself, you will likely generate thoughts and feelings
from this negative emotional energy. In other words, you will own the fear, and your pain-body
will feed off it.
The knowledge that thought maintains forms, which includes the forms of feeling states—by
categorizing them, i.e., fear, grief, anger, etc.—is very valuable. What this means is that feelingforms are kept intact by thoughts, and if you detach the thought from the feeling-form that
form begins to disintegrate and the energy that was trapped within it can become free energy.
This transfers energy from the pain-body to Presence. All feeling-forms can be transmuted in
this way, whether they are from the pain-body, from other people via empathic induction or
electromagnetic manipulation, or from your own negative thought patterns. I have found the
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following course to be effective in converting emotional negativity into free energy and Presence.
The formula is to focus attention on the various energies and sensations you are experiencing, and
to allow thoughts and images to pass by without concentrating on them. Thoughts and images do
not have to be shoved away or suppressed. It is enough to note them and let them go. This includes
labeling energies as “feelings,” because names constitute thought-forms. Keep enough attention on
your breath to maintain it in an even rhythm. Attention on the breath keeps you present, as there
are no past or future breaths, only those you are inhaling and exhaling. If you keep your attention on
your breath and your bodily energies and sensations you will be more able to detach attention from
thinking, and this is the intention. When you do this for a while, the feeling-forms begin to devitalize
and eventually the structured energy that defines them begins to dissipate into free energy.
When you are dealing with very painful feelings the process may be longer and more intense,
and the ego/pain-body complex will put up greater resistance. Persistence, however, will pay off. It
can help to enlist the aid of a partner with whom you can work, or even a willing professional. There
are times when the emotional pain is nearly unbearable, especially when facing the specter of extreme
childhood abuse or catastrophic losses. In this case a professional therapist may be indispensable,
particularly when emotional release work is indicated.
– Emotional Release Work –
For the past twenty-five years I have been working with a neo-Reichian rapid breathing technique
designed to overcome muscular defenses or “character armor” (Reich, 1949). It allows the release of
unresolved emotional charge from painful incidents in childhood and even earlier. I will describe the
rudiments of the method, along with some of what can be expected, but I must stress that the system
is very powerful and should only be facilitated by someone who has been properly trained.
The subject lies flat on a comfortable surface with his or her knees bent up and feet flat. The
subject is then instructed to breathe deeper and faster—but not to hyperventilate. It is the breathing
rhythm of walking up a steep incline, about 30-40 deep breaths per minute. The subject is then told:
“You will obviously feel light-headed from this kind of breathing. This pattern of breathing is not
easy to maintain, so I’ll remind you to keep going. Buried fear will come up as numbness, coldness,
nauseous sensations, possible rigidity your hands and face. The reason for this is that fear is the energy
that causes contraction… Buried anger comes up as shaking and sometimes waves of heat… Buried
grief comes up as tears.”
After a few minutes of breathing, the subject is directed back to childhood or to a time of
unresolved emotional pain, abuse, or trauma. Physical pressure is applied to the solar plexus,
upper chest and neck muscles to facilitate unblocking. While maintaining the deep and rapid
breathing, the subject is then told to review the memory of the painful incident, paying close
attention to feelings and sensations. Buried emotional material typically becomes revealed within
five or ten more minutes of commencement.
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As indicated, a typical pattern of release includes numbness and rigidity in the face and
hands, sometimes coupled with shaking and trembling of the legs and jaw. This, I have found, is
indicative of the release of anger and/or rage that was held in check by fear. Sometimes, as the
anger or rage begins to emerge, the subject is instructed to scream into a pillow. This frequently
stimulates the release of buried grief in addition to anger and rage.
Please be cautioned again that this is a precarious process, and is best done by a professional.
The subject may enter states that can be very intense, and the facilitator must be willing and able
to see them through, as incomplete or ineffective guidance can have damaging consequences for
both parties.
– Recognizing Sub-Personalities –
The mystic Gurdjieff said that human beings suffer from two great delusions. The first is
that they are awake, and the second is that their identities are singular -- that they each contain a
distinct personality. In response to the belief in singularity, Gurdjieff described Man as a “plural
being” (1973). His student Ouspensky (1957) compared the human personality to a mansion
inhabited by several people, but with just one telephone line to the outside world. At any time,
any one resident can pick up the telephone to call out and claim to be master of the house.
Each inhabitant represents a sub-personality. The “master” is the Essence or Self. Each of the
sub-personalities has its own motivation and style, and each, when it is active, purports to be the
individual’s primary identity.
In their most extreme form, sub-personalities are dramatically apparent in cases of multiple
personality, or dissociative identity, disorder. This disorder is marked by extreme and spontaneous
shifts in identity, of which the individual is completely unaware. Some of these sub-personalities
are so conspicuously different from one another that, in earlier centuries, the condition was
ascribed to spirit or demonic possession. These shifts are most observable in typical people, for
example, when they are drinking. You may start out talking to one personality, then, after he or
she has consumed a few drinks, an entirely different personality appears. The first personality
may have been friendly and the second, abrasive or confrontational. You might be inclined to
attribute this about face to a radical change of mood, but if analyzed more carefully, it more
credibly indicates that the individual’s identity has shifted. Such fluctuations are also seen when
a person’s roles or positions change – when he or she is dealing with a child versus dealing with a
parent, speaking to a boss versus speaking to a subordinate, or plunging from a place of success
to one of failure, or vice versa.
Sub-personalities can form through a number of different means. Many are constructed in
childhood, when the child’s personality is still developing. Influential adults, and sometimes older
siblings, are introjected or incorporated into the child’s developing disposition. Young children
typically, and subconsciously, identify with parental figures, which tend to be the basis for powerful
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sub-personalities. This happens without regard for the specific nature of the relationship, be it
abusive or loving, and irrespective of whether or not the child desires to emulate the authority
figure. In fact, striving to not be like an abusive guardian can forge a strong sub-personality,
because the subconscious mind does not grasp the abstract concept of not. It is the child’s
intensity of focus on the figure, whether fueled by love, fear, or even hatred that determines
the strength of subconscious identification. Thus, we adopt as sub-personalities the personas
of both our allies and our adversaries. As adults, we can tap into the entire range of influences,
depending on the situations we encounter. But of the two, the adversarial sub-personalities are
the most destructive, to both self and others.
It is vital that we understand the dynamics of the negative/adversarial sub-personality, how
it is created, and the damage of which it is capable. Let us employ the case of an abusive parent
and a small child. When a child is overpowered by an emotionally, mentally, and/or physically
abusive adult, the child’s attention is fully focused on the abuser. This creates a condition for
the child akin to a hypnotic state, where the child’s conscious mind becomes so riveted on the
adult object that it is rendered highly suggestible, and temporarily inoperative. The subconscious
mind, in contrast, is fully functional. Statements made by the overpowering adult then take on
the power of hypnotic programs. Negative declarations become truths and commands. “You
are no good!” becomes “I am no good” in the mind of the child. “I hate you” becomes “I
hate myself,” and so on. This is due in part to the translatable nature of a child’s mind: “You
are…” automatically translates to “I am …” in early developmental stages. The more insidious
consequence is that such statements act as commands to action: “You are bad” becomes a
directive to be bad, and “I hate you” becomes an instruction for the child to hate himself, and to
act accordingly.
The angry/hateful/violent abuser also infiltrates the personality structure of the child via
the psychological defense of identification – what is clinically referred to as introjection. It is
clear to the child that the overpowering adult is more skilled at surviving than he is, and it is on
this instinctual/survival basis that the intra-psychic structure of the child incorporates the more
commanding personality of the abuser.
As indicated previously, the existential condition of separateness evokes the emotional condition
of guilt—regardless of the cause of the separation. The rejection-based feeling of separation a child
experiences from the abusive parent or adult authority figure therefore kindles guilt in the child,
which contributes to his distress and cements the bond between child and perpetrator. The child will
then seek forgiveness or acceptance from the individual who abused him, primarily because a young
child is aware that he cannot survive on his own. An avenue by which the child seeks acceptance is
in capitulating to the condemnations of the abuser. This particular mechanism is eloquently treated
in Robert Firestone’s Fantasy Bond, where Firestone discusses how the child adopts the blame for
the abuse by affirming his own culpability. The child does so in order to preserve the illusion that his
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When a woman experiences trauma during her pregnancy, the vestiges of those events
create a conditioning milieu in utero. The fetus can then transmute this energy into a subpersonality that has the mother’s dysfunctional emotional reactivity at its core. Because such
sub-personalities form when there is no sense of independent existence, they tend to be very
deep, pervasive, and are accepted as a basic part of the child’s, and later, the adult’s character.
Thus, they can be very difficult to detect, extract and address.
Jennifer (not her real name) came to see me because of chronic worry, anxiety attacks, and
insomnia. She was taking a number of different medications that had had only limited success
in easing her symptoms. In our first session, she revealed that her father was an alcoholic and
that he and her mother would have loud, chaotic arguments into the night. Reasoning that
her anxiety and insomnia could be rooted in fearfulness caused by this, I did emotional release
work with her using the rapid breathing method. During this first session she had a profound
emotional release. The constant tightness in her chest loosened and she felt enormous relief.
When she came in the following week, however, her original symptoms had returned. Whatever
the cause of her distress, it was apparently more deeply seated. She volunteered that she had
experienced these struggles for as long as she could remember. Suspecting that the problem
originated in her earliest stages of development, I then inquired about what she knew about her
mother’s life during Jennifer’s gestation and infancy. She told me that only several months before
she was conceived her mother lost a one-month old baby, apparently as a result of congenital
abnormalities. Prior to that her mother had had two miscarriages, one in the second trimester
of her pregnancy. Jennifer’s older sister exhibited none of Jennifer’s symptoms; nor had any
miscarriages and infant deaths occurred in close proximity to her conception.
Jennifer also informed me that her mother worried constantly while she was pregnant with
her, and that this worry about Jennifer’s health and survival continued long after she was born—
even to the present day. I explained the concept of sub-personality formation to Jennifer, and
suggested that most of her difficulties with chronic anxiety and insomnia likely derived from the
unconscious introjection of her mother’s anxious persona. The relief on her face was markedly
discernible. She then realized that she was perpetuating the same cycle with her own daughter,
and that now it was possible for this legacy to end. It was clear to her that the pervasive anxiety
she experienced had its origin in her mother’s unresolved trauma and its wake.
Negative sub-personality complexes can also form when a dominant collective of individuals
exerts detrimental influence on a less powerful or smaller collective. When, for example, a
more diminutive community within a large society is rejected, vilified, ridiculed, or otherwise
aggressed upon, a powerful self-destructive sub-personality is fomented in the individuals who
identify with the targeted group. For thousands of years this has been the plight of women, who
have historically been the mark for projections of inferiority, evil, and unworthiness from the
dominant male collective. As in the case of individuals, rejection of an aggregation elicits a sense
of alien separateness that is associated with deep guilt feelings. These guilt feelings precipitate a
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strong need for acceptance, which subconsciously translates as acquiescence to the destructive
projections.
The gay population exemplifies this phenomenon. Alcoholism, drug addiction, depression,
destructive sexual practices, homophobia, shame, and alienation are common struggles in this
collective. Why is this so? Are homosexual men inherently depraved sex and drug addicts, or are
they victims of destructive, and sometimes lethal, projections from the dominant heterosexual
male population? Decades of psychological testing have shown that gay men are not significantly
different from the straight male population in indices of mental health. In order to understand
how such acute self-destructiveness manifests we need to further assess the nature of human
collective minds.
Collectives are governed by the social or herding instinct. Its biological aim is to maintain
the integrity and survival of the group. In essence, the herding instinct favors homogeneity
or sameness over heterogeneity or difference. Frequently, deviations are perceived as a threat
to the instinct-dominated collective. In tribal societies, ostracism or rejection by the cultural
collective was tantamount to a death sentence. In more “advanced” cultures, exclusion is not
commensurable to physical death, but does prompt a kind of spiritual death resulting from the
anguish of alienation.
As is true in the case of children who have been rejected or abused, a condition of alienated
separateness begins to plague the disenfranchised and illustrates itself as guilt. Because all feelings
of guilt are pre-supposed by influential religions to be the consequence of badness, the forsaken
individual or collective is typically willing to accept punishment as a means of “cleansing” it
away. And because the need to be accepted is inherent in all humans, the rejected and/or abused
individual, singly or as part of a targeted collective, is more available to accept destructive
projections and adopt them into the self-concept. The net result is that these individuals or
collectives carry out the destructive intent of the dominant community by participating in their
own self-destruction. Awareness of this mechanism is the first step toward healing.
– Ally, Adversary, and Ally/Adversary Sub-Personalities –
We carry within our intra-psychic structure the personas of those who most deeply affected us
when we were children. These generally include parents, other adult relatives, older siblings, and
close family friends. I have found it useful to classify sub-personalities as ally, adversary, and ally/
adversary. Ally sub-personalities are those we introject because we experienced them as loving,
protective, or otherwise having contributed meaningfully to our wellbeing. Not only do we absorb
the personality traits of these individuals, we also assume their burdens and difficulties, such as
health problems or disabilities—as an act of devoted reciprocity because the ally has helped us.
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We also take on the personality characteristics of our primary adversary or adversaries, but for different reasons. The adversary-identification is rooted in force. The mental, emotional or physical
force directed at the child, as described previously, creates a hypnotic-like state, wherein the child’s
conscious mind is overwhelmed, while the subconscious mind is rapt – recording everything that
happens. In this way, a replica of the adversary is formed in the subconscious mind of the child,
along with any negative beliefs the adversary directs at the child. These negative statements form the
basis of a punitive conscience that is directed at the self. The child also learns to mimic the adversary’s behavior toward others, acting out in similar ways in response to comparable outside stimuli.
When an oppressive adversary victimizes a child, a polarized dynamic is created in the child’s
psyche. Victimization and oppression become connected. As the child matures he can then access
both the victim and oppressor personas, depending on the circumstances. If he comes into contact
with someone whose behavior is in keeping with that of his childhood adversary, he can readily assume the role of victimized child, although the impetus for his incongruent manner may well be a
mystery to him. Conversely, if he comes into contact with someone who is reminiscent of himself as
a victimized child, memories of psychic and/or physical abuse are evoked and, rather than face these
memories, he may personify the oppressor and act out toward the victimized individual. This is the
likely mechanism whereby child abuse persists through generations, becoming a self-perpetuating
cycle in spite of all conscious desire to avoid its repetition. Most perpetrators of child abuse were,
themselves, mistreated. To an adult with this history, the sound of a crying child can be enough to
arouse intense feelings of psychic pain, and reflexively activate the persona of the adversary. Frequently, child-abusers cannot decipher their actions and feel terrible confusion and remorse.
The most pernicious sub-personality, however, is the primary ally/adversary. In this case,
one influential person manifests both extremes of the behavioral/emotional spectrum—love/
hate, validation/invalidation, praise/punishment, and so on. The bond with an ally/adversary
creates a powerful and extremely destructive approach-avoidance conflict. This endless and irreconcilable inner conflict between polarized states creates intense ambivalence and is a leading
contributor to debilitating stress and psychological collapse. The ambivalence created by the
ally/adversary is directed both toward self and others, and is analogous to having a little poison
in your food—not enough to kill you but enough to keep you sick. It fosters chronic anxiety and
an equivocal stance toward all facets of an individual’s life, and is particularly harmful to intimate relationships, an arena in which it can create absolute havoc.
By examining our childhood histories and the significant people in our early lives, we can
usually identify those who fit within one or more of these three classifications. Once this is
established, we can then survey ourselves with a focus on how we are emulating each of these
individuals today. Through self-observation we can recognize our related sub-personalities when
they are activated and begin the process of detachment. This is the first step toward transmuting
the energy held within them.
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the Enneagram
(fig. 8)
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– Identifying and Retrieving Disowned Parts of the Self –
As we move from infancy through childhood and adolescence, we leave parts of ourselves
behind. This is especially true for parts of ourselves that are formed as a result of trauma and
that we have tended to block from our conscious awareness because they are fraught with psychic and/or physical pain. In a sense, these cast-off parts function like sub-personalities, but they
have their origin in us, not in others. While sub-personalities can be effectively managed through
an understanding that they are introjected from others, and have no inherent basis within us,
discarded parts of the self require a different strategy if they are to be disempowered from damaging us. We must own them.
Since most of our disowned parts are the product of trauma or abuse, professional help is
generally indicated to successfully contact them, release their blocked emotional content, and
bring them back into our self-sense. Until we do these things, they operate autonomously, immobilized in negativity and providing a stream of emotional fuel for the pain-body. They also
provide a format for the repeating cycle of trauma and abuse we recreate throughout our lives.
For those who wish to undertake their own self-exploration, there are ways of unearthing disowned fragments of the self. Destructive patterns of abandonment, betrayal, abuse, and
other dynamics in which we feel victimized provide the most telling clues. They illustrate guideposts from which we can trace our histories back to renounced components of ourselves. Once
the origin of a pattern is identified, the next step is to embrace and accept that wounded and
discarded part of ourselves – giving it refuge back in our consciousness. In your imagination,
you can picture yourself walking up to the wounded child you were and enfolding him or her
into your arms. To the conscious mind this is mere fantasy, but to the subconscious mind it can
be quite authentic and compelling when it is done with focused intention. To accept parts of
ourselves that we previously rejected, either because they were deemed unacceptable or too
painful to remain in our consciousness, is a very powerful act. It will frequently result in a deep
emotional release. You can imagine that you are bringing the child into your heart where he or
she can peacefully rest. When coupled with emotional release breathing, this is a very effective
means of extricating congested pain that festers in these stranded pieces. Again, the assistance
of a trained professional may be required.
– Study of the Enneagram Ego-Types –
The Enneagram is a tool for transformation, designed to help us disentangle the Essence
of who we are from the ego-personality type each of us carries into this world. Each particular
ego-type can be thought of as a psycho-spiritual “obstacle course” that one must master in order
to transcend the ego and evolve spiritually. The term “Enneagram” is derived from Greek and
means “nine-pointed figure” (Figure 8). It provides a template for examining the nature and
inter-relationships of our nine different ego-personality types.
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The Sufi mystic Gurdjieff brought the ancient Enneagram to the West, but its use for
psychological typing is a recent development. Oscar Ichazo (1982), a Bolivian student of Gurdjeiff, first systematized the typology of the nine personality standards on the configuration of
the Enneagram. Later, psychiatrist Claudio Naranjo further expanded on Ichazo’s typology by
aligning it with depth psychology. Naranjo’s book, Character and Neurosis (1994), provides a
comprehensive study of his related work.
The modern Enneagram has been synthesized from many different spiritual and religious
traditions. Much of it is a condensation of universal wisdom, the perennial philosophy accumulated by Christians, Buddhists, Muslims (especially the Sufis), and Jews (in the Qabalah) for
thousands of years. The heart of the Enneagram is the universal insight that human beings are
spiritual presences incarnated in the material world, and yet mysteriously embody the same life
and Spirit as the Creator. Beneath the surface differences and appearances, behind the veils of
illusion, the light of Divinity shines in every individual. Various forces obscure that light, however, and each spiritual tradition has myths and doctrines to explain how mankind has lost its
connection with the Divine (Riso and Hudson 1999).
The Enneagram is about self-knowledge only. It is not a religion or an integrated spiritual
path. It focuses exclusively on self-discovery and is designed to help the seeker avoid self-deception.
One of the great dangers of transformational work is that the ego attempts to side-step
deep psychological work by leaping into the transcendent too soon. This is because the ego always fancies itself much more “advanced” than it actually is … Real self-knowledge is an invaluable guardian against such self-deception.
Presence (awareness, mindfulness), the practice of self-observation (gained from self-knowledge), and understanding what one’s experiences mean (an accurate interpretation provided by
a larger context such as a community or spiritual system) are the three basic elements needed for
transformational work. Being provides the first, you supply the second, and the Enneagram supplies the third. When these three come together, things can happen quickly. (Riso and Hudson,
1999)
Here we will consider the Enneagram on only its most cursory level, as it is a complete
system of self-understanding. The works of Don Riso and Russ Hudson (1996, 1999) and those
of Claudio Naranjo (1994, 2004) are cited in the bibliography, and provide a more thorough
investigation and understanding of this most valuable tool.
– The Nine Types and Their Respective Fears –
While many books have been written about the Enneagram, I have found that the two
volumes written by Riso and Hudson—The Wisdom of the Enneagram (1999) and Personality
Types: Using the Enneagram for Self-Discovery (Second Edition 1996)—to be most accessible.
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These authors, from my viewpoint, present the Enneagram in its correct light: as profound
psycho-spiritual methodology, and not as another glib “improve your self-image/find your soulmate” quick fix fad. It is a deep and erudite study that is intended to be taken seriously.
The Enneagram is not a means to improve your personality. It is an instrument through
which to transcend it, to see the ego structure we hold so tightly as “my personality” for the limitation it is—a set of control mechanisms for manipulating others, being right, and avoiding fear.
Each of the ego-types has its unique way of doing this. By identifying your ego-type and studying its various devices for deflecting the truth of its impediments, you can gain invaluable insight
about how it operates and controls. Once you have made this identification, you can employ the
methods discussed earlier to observe yourself and distinguish the Essence of who you are from
the ego structure that holds you in bondage. The names and brief description of each ego type
are taken from The Wisdom of the Enneagram.
Type One: The Reformer—This is the principled, idealistic type; ethical and conscientious,
with a strong sense of right and wrong. Afraid of making mistakes, they are highly organized,
orderly, perfectionist and critical. They have problems with repressed anger and impatience.
Basic fear: being bad, corrupt, evil, or defective.
Type Two: The Helper—Caring and interpersonal, they are warm-hearted, empathetic,
generous, and self-sacrificing, but can be people pleasing, flattering, and needy. They have problems taking care of themselves and acknowledging their needs or anything negative. Basic fear:
being unworthy of being loved.
Type Three: The Achiever—Highly success oriented, they are adaptable, ambitious, status
conscious, self-assured, and charming. Driven to succeed and very concerned about their image
and what others think, they frequently have problems with “workaholism,” competitiveness, and
vanity. Basic fear: being worthless or without inherent value.
Type Four: The Individualist—This is the romantic, introspective, and sensitive type. They
are reserved, artistic, quiet, emotionally honest, and withhold themselves from others because
of feelings of vulnerability and defectiveness. They can feel disdainful of others and special.
Typically, their problems revolve around self-indulgence and self-pity. Basic fear: being without
identity or personal significance.
Type Five: The Investigator—Intensely cerebral, insightful, and curious, they are excellent
at focusing and concentrating on complex ideas. They are also innovative, independent, and
highly imaginative. They have problems with eccentricity, isolation, and, frequently, nihilism.
Basic fear: being incompetent, useless, or incapable.
Type Six: The Loyalist—Sixes are committed, security-oriented, reliable, and responsible,
but can also be anxious, defensive, and evasive. They can be very indecisive, vacillating between
cautiousness and rebelliousness, passivity and aggression, and typically have problems with selfdoubt and suspicion. Basic fear: being without support or guidance.
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Type Seven: The Enthusiast—These individuals are versatile, optimistic, spontaneous, and
busy. They are multi-taskers, and are generally playful, high-spirited, and practical; however,
they can also be undisciplined, scattered, and over-extended. They are constantly in search of
new and exciting experiences, and can be very distractible; sometimes they are confused with
individuals who have attention-deficit syndrome. Their basic fear is being deprived or trapped
in pain.
Type Eight: The Challenger—These individuals are strong, dominating, self-confident and
assertive. They can be decisive, protective, and resourceful leaders. However, they often feel that
they must control their environment, and can become confrontational and intimidating. They
often have problems with allowing closeness. Their basic fear is of being harmed or controlled
by others.
Type Nine: The Peacemaker—Nines are easygoing, peaceful, accepting, trusting, and stable. They are supportive but are too willing to comply in order to keep the peace. They avoid
conflict and tend to be complacent and go along with others in order to keep the status quo.
They often have problems with being stubborn and passive. Basic fear: loss of connection and
fragmentation.
Although you may get an idea of where you fit into the Enneatypes from these very brief
descriptions, it is recommended that you consult Riso and Hudson’s The Wisdom of the Enneagram (1999) for a more comprehensive study of their meaning. For an in-depth analysis of
each type you can read Personality Types: Using the Enneagram for Self-Discovery (1996).
Once you are aware of your ego Enneatype and the basic fears associated with it, you will
have greater access to understanding the content and progression of your life. Because fear is an
expectation as well as a feeling, your essential fear reflects your underlying negative expectations
of yourself, others, and events. It represents the specific way your pain-body and ego create and
feed negativity. As we will probe in the next chapter, thinking, feeling, imagination, and intention are the primary influences responsible for creating and maintaining our unique life experiences. The depth of intensity of the work that is called for when you choose to co-create with the Divine, rather than with the ego, requires that you do more than make a decision. You must
know yourself. You must know when you are manifesting from the ego. And until you do, all of
your efforts are doomed to merely strengthen the ego, and pull you in the direction away from
your spiritual intent.
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VII
CHAPTER SEVEN
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The Theory and Practice of Manifestation
We will now examine the teachings of the mystic philosopher Neville Goddard. Neville,
who used only his first name in his publications, was born in Barbados, West Indies. He came
to the United States in 1922 at the age of 17 to study theater, but eventually instead took up the
study of metaphysics. For seven years he studied under an Ethiopian Jew named Abdullah, who
taught him Hebrew, the mysticism of the Qabalah, and the true meaning of the scriptures. Until
this death in 1972, Neville wrote and lectured on what he termed The Law—the theory and the
practice of manifestation. The expressed intention behind his teachings was spiritual transformation. He did, however, engage his students by teaching them methods through which to attain
material goals.
In Immortal Man (1977), a compilation of lectures presented by Neville beginning in the
late 1950s, Margaret Ruth Broome edits and presents a distillation of his spiritual thoughts and
writings over several decades. These can be summarized in three fundamental propositions: 1)
The individual’s state of consciousness determines the conditions and circumstances of his life,
2) The individual can choose the state of consciousness with which he desires to be identified,
and, 3) Man can be what he wants to be. We will consider each of these propositions in detail,
as they constitute a very practical and effective system of psycho-spiritual transformation.
– The First Proposition –
When considering the First Proposition, that an individual’s (or collective’s) state of consciousness determines the conditions and circumstances of his life, we must first determine what
exactly defines a “state of consciousness.” For Neville, this is comprised of the totality of an
individual’s beliefs, what he consents to and agrees to be true. These mental conditions are also
reflected as feeling tones that Neville refers to as “moods.” Whether these beliefs and associated
moods are reflective of truth or not is irrelevant. They can be falsehoods, half-truths, superstitions, prejudices, or even lies. But if a person agrees to their authenticity and feels that they have
veracity, then they are empowered as such and define his state of consciousness. As long as he
maintains his mental and feeling agreement with a given state, the circumstances of his life will
conform to it, and he will encounter the same struggles again and again. Wherever he goes,
whatever changes he makes to the external structures of his existence, the conditions within
them will remain unchanged, because the state of consciousness in which he abides controls
virtually all of his experiences. (Neville, 1977)
These states are habitual, so people remain locked in them for years and even decades, and
they are very difficult to break free from. People identify with them as “who I am.” Frequently
they are viewed as “fate,” something imposed on the individual by potent outside sources, and
over which he has no control. They tend to see physical causation as primary and consciousness
as its secondary effect, while the truth is, as was discussed earlier, the antithesis of this perspective. Neville quoted Churchill as saying, “The moods determine the fortunes of people rather
than the fortunes determine the mood.”
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When a man awakes he realizes that everything he encounters is a part of himself and what
he does not now comprehend is related by affinity to some as yet unrealized force in his own
being; that he wrote but has forgotten what he wrote, yet within himself he started the entire
unfolding drama. (Neville, 1977)
Also: What I am telling you may seem to be bordering on insanity, for the insane believe
in the reality of subjective states and the sane man only believes in what the senses dictate. I tell
you, when you awake you assert the supremacy of imagination and put all things in subjection
to it. You never again bow before the dictates of facts, accepting life on the basis of the world
without. (Neville, 1977)
When, in the middle of the last century, Neville presented his material on manifestation,
he unknowingly gave voice to several of the primary theoretical positions of modern cosmology
and quantum theory, such as the idea of multiple-possible realities: I am telling you there are
worlds within worlds within worlds, and they are all here right now. It is like turning on a radio.
You turn it ever so slightly and you have a new wave length and a new station bringing you
something entirely different, yet they are not interfering with each other…. These worlds are all
here now, and they are peopled just as we are peopling this world, and they are just as real as this.
(Neville, 1977)
In more modern parlance, states can be grasped as accumulated thought-forms or morphogenetic forms that exist in the quantum A-field. They may be considered non-local -- they exist
on a transcendent level -- and can be entered into anywhere and at any time when our personal
thoughts come into resonance with them. This can happen inadvertently or by design. Either
way, when you enter a state of consciousness it contains everything you need to externalize it, to
manifest it in physical reality. Most people enter states more or less accidentally. Without realizing they have entered a new condition, they begin to think from that particular state, unaware
that their thoughts are now dictated by the nature of the new frame, and are not connected to
their own independent intentionality. When we think from a state we have identified with it, and
accepted it as reality. Thinking from the state stimulates feelings and imaginings that conform to
the thoughts, and this creates experiences that confirm the legitimacy and sway of the state. For
example, when you enter a state of fearfulness because you picked up and absorbed the emotional energy of fear from another person, you begin to have fearful thoughts. These thought
anchor you in the state, which prompts more fear and stimulates frightening images of danger.
This then invites experiences, or an interpretation of experiences, that confirm the state.
As an individual can inadvertently enter into one state, he can just as unwittingly move from
there into another. If he has been in a “bad” place for a while and something happens to change
his thoughts, he may shift into a “good” or “better” state – and his experiences will change correspondingly. He will typically attribute this to outside forces, such as good luck, unavailable to the
reality that his thoughts have changed in accordance with the new state, have become congruent
with its correlated feelings and imaginings. In this way we are buffeted from one state of being
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to another, all the while oblivious to the fact that it is we who are responsible for these changes
in our circumstances and perspectives
Conscious manifestation, as opposed to unconscious, occurs when we knowingly and
intentionally shift into a different state. A basic method for acquiring this ability is reiterated
throughout Neville’s teaching. It entails imagining the state of consciousness you wish to enter—
picturing precisely what it would look and feel like if you occupied that state. The initial phase
requires thinking of the state you wish to penetrate. The second step is thinking from that state.
What would it be like if you were in that new state now? What would be your thoughts? How
would you feel? (Neville, 1977).
In Neville’s words: We are like travelers who pass through states. Poverty remains a state
when a man who was once poor moves out of it into a state of affluence, but he doesn’t destroy
the state of poverty. Anyone can fall into it… The occupant in a state called poverty is saying, “I
am” before he says “poor.” He doesn’t say, “I am poor,” meaning he is different, as far as “I am”
goes from the one who says, “I am rich.” It’s the same I AM-NESS that occupies the state of
poverty as is occupying the state of wealth. You can get into any state and the being in the state
is God. You wear these states as you wear your clothes.
You can determine the state you are in through careful examination of your thinking. Inner speech is the most explicit indicator. What you outwardly express is much less telling, and is
more a mark of social or political correctness than of true beliefs. It is our thinking that reflects
our basic agreements, our actual convictions. Neville (1977) says this poetically: “The whole vast
world is but inner frozen speech. What are we saying on the inside? … What you are doing on
the inside, you are doing in tiny little speech movements and they are crystallizing in the world
around you.” Another way of unearthing our true beliefs is by examining our experiences, because they are unerringly a shadow of our belief-driven thinking. When you can recognize the
beliefs that would account for the experiences you repeatedly encounter in life, and can observe
how your thinking reflects these beliefs, you then have the power to change them.
In order to change our experiences and world we must view our thinking in a new light.
Thinking is not confined to the privacy of our heads. It is not merely passive commentary on conditions and situations that are somehow thrust upon us. We must come to regard thinking as an
active form of creation that invokes the conditions and situations that attribute to external forces.
By being accountable for what we think we take responsibility for what happens to us. This is an
enormous step, and by taking it we cease to be victims and begin to assume our rightful role as
creator in life. Remember that the ego/pain-body complex feeds off negative internal dialogue
and constructs the illusion that it is justified or even necessary for your wellbeing. It is, rather, the
primary way through which we draw misery into our lives. Once you accept that thinking has
a powerful active/creative function, you will then be motivated to detach from these internal
conversations. Inner talking mirrors our imagination, and our imagination mirrors the state with
which it is fused. If the state with which we are fused is the cause of the phenomena of our lives,
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then we are relieved of the burden of wondering what to do, for we have no alternative but to
identify ourselves with our aim, and inasmuch as the state with which we are identified mirrors
itself in our inner speech, then to change the state with which we are fused, we must first change
our inner talking. It is our inner conversations which make tomorrow’s facts (Neville, 1954).
We are what we tell ourselves we are. When we engage in internal discourse bemoaning our
fates, for example, we are creating the very conditions we want eradicated from our lives. This
can be a quite subtle dynamic. Neville (1954) quotes D. H. Lawrence who said, “Those who go
searching for love only make manifest their own lovelessness. And the loveless never find love,
only the loving find love, and they never have to seek for it.” The loveless focus on their condition of lovelessness, and internally converse about it, usually with cloying self-pity, and through
that focus and discourse, fix it firmly in place.
Any time you feel sorry for yourself you inhabit a state of misery. Most people do not see
that they have entered a state, so they look instead for what is wrong with them, or someone else,
or the life-situation that are experiencing. It is, however, only a state you inhabit, and one you can
abandon. It is pointless to condemn oneself or others for falling into a state. And while you can
change the state you are in, you cannot, eradicate it, because it is, as Neville says, “a permanent
fixture of the universe.” (Neville, 1977)
– Justified States –
Neville’s observation that we customarily enter into different states unknowingly leads directly into the arena of forgiveness. He views human beings as “pilgrims moving through states.”
Regardless of the nature of a state in which a human being dwells, it is “justified,” that is, forgiven, because it is only a condition of consciousness that he has inadvertently tumbled into. This
only pertains to individuals who have made unconscious choices in navigating these courses.
See the whole vast world as infinite states and you are an immortal being. You enter that
state and it becomes alive. Therefore, you are not to blame if you enter a horrible state… If you
enter the state of poverty you have to experience poverty. If you remain in it you must drink it
to the dregs. If you go into any state and remain there you are going to drink it to the very last
drop. (Neville, 1977)
The creation, according to Neville, is complete. (Neville, 1952) All of the possible states that
could exist already exist. “The entire space-time history is laid out, and we only become aware
of portions of it successively.” (Neville, 1977) This concept mirrors the successive Underworlds
of the Mayan Calendar, where each Underworld, and more specifically each Heaven within
it, can be thought of as a state designed for the learning of particular lessons. The final, Ninth
Underworld, is intended to stimulate a planetary transformation, the awakening to what we are
in Essence, where all barriers and divisions dissolve and we become aware of our inherent Oneness.
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Humanity is a single being that has “particularized” or separated itself into individual entities in order to fully experience physical creation (Carey, 1982, 1995). Neville refers to this
descent into material experience as delving into educative darkness: “We are generating and
multiplying these garments of flesh. The drama is from innocence, through experience, to an
awakened imagination.” (Neville, 1977) To Neville, imagination is God (the creator). Through
eons of experience in the physical plane, we are awakening to the fact that imagination is who
we are. In his re-interpretation of the Old and New Testaments, Neville says that Jehovah, Yahweh, God, and Jesus are best understood when one substitutes the word imagination for these
names: All things are possible through imagination.
We have the physical man, the man of dust; then we have the spiritual man, the man of imagination, and that is the immortal man… When I see the duality of man, and how all things are
created by the hidden man, I forgive everything the physical man does. For the physical man is
only a state. One being is playing all the parts. The part played by the thief is the same being
who is playing the part of the judge who judges the thief. The murderer and the murdered are
parts, but the being is one. (Neville, 1977)
– The Second Proposition –
The Second Proposition is: we are choosers. We can determine the state of consciousness
with which we desire to be identified. The world appears different from different states of consciousness. When we engage imagination, we literally create a world that conforms to whatever
state we inhabit. It is in this fusion of state of consciousness and imagination—imagining from
the state of consciousness—that we create the “objective world” in which we live. If this created reality is not to our liking, externally generated reforms are useless. For example, you may
unknowingly enter a state of bitter resentment over a loss you consider unfair. Imagining from
this state will unintentionally create more reasons for your resentment. If you are not aware that
you are participating in the creation of these negative experiences, you will remain in that state
for perhaps a very long time, until a catalyst spurs you into another state. You will then imagine
from the new state and generate corresponding experiences. If that new state is a positive one
you, and maybe even others, could think you have undergone a transformation, but it is only a
change of state. We must change the state if we are to change the reality. When changes of state
are made consciously, a real transformation has occurred. “All things exist in the human imagination. Everything you see as an objective reality was produced by imagining.” (Neville, 1977)
The fundamental tenet is this: Imagination is the creative power of the universe. We must
come to rely on and master the power of imagination for our salvation. By turning to some
form of external god we are enrolling a false god. It is of utmost importance that we see prayer
in a different light. Prayer is not the begging of some capricious god or so-called “holy” person
for assistance. Although there are Self-Realized Beings, they are here to enlighten others and
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demonstrate the Way. They do not need to be idolized. “Prayer is not petition; prayer is giving
thanks. You don’t get down on your knees and petition anyone outside of yourself. There is no
intermediary between yourself and Self. You need no priest, no so-called healer; you need nothing on the outside; it’s all within Self.” (Neville, 1977)
Technically, prayer can be thought of as a “subjective appropriation of an objective hope.”
(Neville, 1977) Neville encapsulates his method as “assuming the feeling of the wish fulfilled.”
(Neville, 1952) We must imagine the wish that we intend to bring forth—we must imagine from
the wish fulfilled. Not only must we imagine that we are experiencing the fulfillment of the wish,
we must experience how we will feel at that very point of fulfillment. Thus, we must begin by
feeling that the goal has already been achieved -- that its consequences exist now. This is what is
required to make the subjective state an objective reality. Neville quotes Prime Minister Anthony
Eden: “An assumption, though false, if persisted in will harden into fact—for good or ill.” (Neville, 1977)
People are most challenged in this process when confronting the “facts” of life that confound them. If we accept what we observe as factual, let reason dictate that they are fundamental reality, and we are unaware that we are empowered to do anything else but accept them, then
we will never make genuine progress (Neville, 1977). We require a firm understanding that what
we are deeming factual is simply the issue of prior imaginings, that the “facts” of physical reality
are its effects. Imagination is cause, and nothing physically exists that was not first in imagination. Neville’s idea verges on the modern concept of the quantum vacuum when he states, “The
reality is in my imagination and not in its actuality. The world seems so real and we think this is
reality, but it’s not; reality is the imaginal act which we project on the screen of space.” (Neville,
1977)
We must know the truth that the causative/eternal body is the imagination—that it is God.
The recognition and embodiment of this is the essence of Self-Realization. We are not finite,
mortal bodies living in an impermanent world. We are eternal beings who have the power to
consciously choose whatever state we wish to experience, and to go from state to state as we elect,
or to reside in no state on the physical plane -- to exist in transcendent consciousness.
Before we entered the spiritual forgetfulness of physical existence we were One Being and,
according to Neville (1952, 1954) and Carey (1982, 1995). We knew everything. After our amnesia lifts, our memory will begin to return and we can grasp who we are. “We are the gods forming
THE God.” (Neville, 1977) The One became fragmented, but for what purpose? Neville put
it best: “God became as we are that we may become as He is. We are learning to exercise our
talent wisely, but we make mistakes and our mistakes will appear in our world to show us what
we have done, whether we have used it wisely or unwisely.” (Neville, 1977)
Until we reach the stage of Self-Realization, however, we must be circumspect about the
use of imagination. Whatever you imagine with persistence and feeling is empowered to be-
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come part of your experience. This is particularly true for the period before we drift off into
sleep. Holding an assumption in our imagination in the moments prior to sleep, especially if
that assumption crosses into our dream life, is a very powerful avenue for manifestation. This is
stressed in all of Neville’s writings, and is true regardless of the nature of the assumption. On
the causative level of imagination, what we deem good or bad is irrelevant. Whatever we hold in
imagination and assume to be true becomes the seed of a dynamic objective physical experience.
Therefore, to rail against fate or complain about one’s circumstances is futile. Nothing comes to
us unless we call it.
– The Third Proposition –
The Third Proposition is that Man can be what he wants to be. In order for this proposition to be realized, though, the imagination must be strengthened and controlled. Without first
mastering our imagination, all efforts to change for the better are weak and inconsistent, and old
habits of belief and internal dialogue win out. We remain as we are and perpetuate our own discontentment. To start, we must determine for ourselves that our thoughts and beliefs stimulate
imaginings and feelings that conjure the conditions of our lives. This is done through fearless
self-observation. Many people are resistant to this idea. They are hypnotized by the physical facts
of their lives, and are ignorant to the true provenance of their experiences.
In his re-interpretation of biblical scripture, Neville equates The Flood of Genesis with the
deluge of facts that have overwhelmed us, cloaking the truth: that the imagination is the key element in that determines the nature and content of our circumstance, “…facts have overflowed
the world like the flood. Man is drowned with facts, victimized by facts. It is in the imagination
that everything lives and not in its fact. Unless imagination penetrates the facts the deluge remains a deluge…. We are now in the deluge; this is the flood” (Neville, 1977).
Neville’s chief method for rectifying the inversion of the flow of causation is “revisioning.”
A revision is a corrected version of anything, a recreation. Thus, revisioning an event is, in effect,
looking past the “facts” of the event and seeing it in an entirely different way. Interpretation that
is free from the weight of the “facts” is, according to Neville, the most efficient means of awakening the mighty power of the imagination. He recommends revising the day in imagination over
and over at its end, changing whatever is displeasing to something pleasing, and repeating this
until it takes on the tone of reality (Neville, 1954).
Whatever is not revisioned lives on uncontested in the quantum vacuum, and creates its
holographic thought-forms for future experience. But because the mind does not discriminate
between the “facts” of physical reality and the revised events created by imagination, an event
that has been successfully revisioned can take precedence over one that remains as it occurred.
A year ago I had a graphic experience with the power of revisioning. My wife and I were
rushing to get our children ready for school and I fell down three wooden steps in my house onto
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chapter seven
the wood floor. It knocked the wind out of me and I thought that I might have broken a rib or
two. I remained still for a couple of minutes and caught my breath. When I got up I realized that
no ribs were broken, but I had severely bruised several of them on my left side. I was barely able
to work that day. I had a full schedule of counseling and was unable to do any revisioning. My
mind kept telling me it would take months to heal from the effects of this fall. This thought had
its origin in a car accident I had had years earlier in which I hit the steering wheel with my ribs.
I was in pain for several months then, and it took most of a year to mend.
That night I could barely sleep. I decided to try revisioning, partly to put the idea to a
stringent test, but mostly out of desperation. I devised a revision scenario. What I imagined was
slipping on the stairs but catching myself, rather than falling, and feeling the relief of averting a
bad fall. I repeated this revised event over and over for about twenty minutes in my imagination
before I drifted to sleep. The next morning I was still in a great deal of pain, but I no longer
worried about taking months to recover. That next day I had four cancellations and was able to
give myself revision sessions. By the end of the day I felt slightly better and more hopeful that
the revision would work. I continued revising whenever I could that day, and when I went to bed
I continued until I fell asleep. The following morning I was significantly better. The pain had
reduced by half. I continued revisioning whenever I could during that day and evening. After
two more days the pain was nearly gone. I persisted until the pain had been completely relieved,
which took an additional two days.
This experience was an empirical validation of the power of imagination over facts. I knew
that if I had accepted the factual basis of the original event I would have sought medical help,
and would likely have dealt with its effects for a long time. By staying “grounded” in the facts,
I would have robbed myself of the healing/redeeming power of my imagination. I would have
done what most people do—personify this power and project it onto another, whether a Deity
or MDeity. In all likelihood, the outcome would not have been so swift or certain.
Neville (1977) sees revision of one’s attitude as the threshold of correction, cure, and, ultimately, spiritual transformation. Subjugation of oneself to the facts of physical existence is what
Neville terms “sin”—that is, “missing the mark” or failing to understand the truth behind the
flow of causation. Sin is not about “being bad” or violating some external religious code or other
authority. It is a wrong attitude. Forgiveness has to do with revision of that wrong attitude. It is
not about assuming a spiritually superior position. Rather, it is about correction.
Revision is of greatest importance when the motive is to change oneself, when there is a
sincere desire to become something different, when the longing is to awaken the ideal active
spirit of forgiveness. Without imagination man remains a being of sin. Man either goes forward
to imagination or remains imprisoned in his senses. To go forward to imagination is to forgive.
Forgiveness is the life of the imagination. The art of living is the art of forgiving. Forgiveness is,
in fact, experiencing in imagination the revised version of the day, experiencing in imagination
what you wish you had experienced in the flesh. Every time one really forgives—that is every
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chapter seven
the Keys of Manifestation
The Magician
The High Priestess
The Empress
The Emperor
(fig. 9)
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time one relives an event as it should have been lived—one is born again (Neville, 1954).
Also, expectancy and desire must become one. Your outer world is only actualized movement. Through ignorance of the law of revision those who take to warfare are perpetually
defeated…. Don’t blame, only resolve. It is not man and the earth at their loveliest, but you
practicing the art of revision makes paradise (Neville, 1954).
When we revise, we manifest or bring forth possibilities other than the one that exists in
physical reality. It could be held that what we call manifestation is really revision. Technically,
manifestation is not the same as creation. If, as Neville maintains, the creation is complete (on
the higher causative level of non-physical reality), in the sense that all possibilities already exist,
then manifestation becomes the act of selecting from these myriad possible realities in order to
conjure them to the physical plane of experience.
In his book Parallel Worlds, cosmologist Michio Kaku (2005), co-founder of string theory,
states that, although the idea of multiple possible realities is relatively new within the worlds of
quantum physics and cosmology, its origins are not. Shamans and the practitioners of qabalistic
and other mantic arts have been engaged in this realm for many centuries (Hall, 1975). During
the Middle Ages, the secrets of manifestation were hidden in the Tarot in the form of playing
cards. The first four Keys delineate the steps of manifestation: Key 1, the Magician symbolizes intention, imagination, and desire; Key 2, the High Priestess, upon whose lap is the Torah,
represents the idea of multiple or infinite possible realities, the matrix of all potentiality. It is the
imagination of the Magician that selects one of the possible realities represented by the High
Priestess, and through his intention firmly holds his focus of imagination. But that is not all. It is
the desire of the Magician that serves as the magnetic force that brings the imagined possibility
closer to physical manifestation, or materialization. Key 3 is the Empress, who is the High Priestess “impregnated” with the feeling-infused imagined potential of the Magician. Finally, Key 4,
the Emperor, represents the actual physical manifestation of the potential
(Figure 9).
It is very likely that the suppression of this material by the dominant male power hierarchies
during the National and Planetary Underworlds was wholly intentional. Knowledge is power.
For example, knowledge of the timing of eclipses was very potent in the hands of the Egyptian
priests. Imagine the effect it had on the ignorant masses of Egypt when the clergy “foretold” an
eclipse of the sun, and then, with incantations to the gods, “brought the sun back.”
Technical knowledge can be mistaken for magic by the uninformed. Technical “wizard” is
a common term even today. The same holds true for mental technology. Since the last quarter,
or Fourth World, of the Planetary Underworld, however, and particularly since the beginning
of the Galactic Underworld in 1999, there has be an outpouring of esoteric and occult (hidden)
knowledge to the general public, at least in the West. This can be seen as a harbinger of spiritual
awakening. -157-
chapter seven
the Sephiroth on the Tree of Life
NEGATIVITY
THE LIMITLESS LIGHT
KETHER
THE LIMITLESS
CHOKMAH
BINAH
DAATH
THE ABYSS
CHESED
GEBURAH
TIPHARETH
THE VEIL
HOD
CHESED
YESOD
MALKUTH
(fig. 8)
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-The Conscious Control of Inner Speech
It is our internal dialogue that determines our conditions, and whether they are dynamic or
static. “Your inner speech is perpetually written all around you in happenings.” (Neville, 1954)
How so? In esoteric philosophy there is a fundamental principle known as the Law of Correspondence. It is depicted by the hexagram and the phrase, “As Above, So Below.” This means
that what exists on the lower plane is a reflection of, or corresponds to, what is present on the
higher plane. It also says causation flows from the higher plane to the lower. What exists on the
material plane mirrors and is generated by what exists on the etheric, or Akashic, plane, which in
turn reflects and is caused by activity on the astral plane. Although there are higher planes that
govern activity on the astral plane -- more fully explained in Dion Fortune’s Mystical Qabalah
(1984) -- we will focus here on the “planes of manifestation”: the astral, etheric or Akashic, and
the physical. Figure 10 depicts the Qabalistic Tree of Life with the Sephiroth, or spheres of
manifestation/influence.
The functioning triangle of the Lower Triad consists of Hod, Netzach, and Yesod. Hod
and Nedtzach…are respectively Form and Force on the astral plane. Yesod is the basis of etheric
substance, Akasha, or the Astral Light, as it is variously called. Hod is especially the Sphere of
Magic, because it is the sphere of the formulation of forms, and is therefore the sphere in which
the magician actually works, for it is his mind that formulates the forms, and his will that makes
the link with the natural forces of the Sphere of Netzach that ensoul them.... The power of
the will projects the magician out of Hod, but only the power of sympathy can take him into
Netzach. A cold-blooded person of dominating will can no more be an adept working with
power than can a fluidically sympathetic person of pure emotion. The power of concentrated
will is necessary to enable the magician to gather himself together for his work, but the power
of imaginative sympathy is essential to enable him to make his contacts. For it is only through
our power to enter imaginatively into the life of types of existence different to our own that we
can pick up our contacts with the forces of Nature. To attempt to dominate them by pure will,
cursing them by the Mighty Names of God if they resist, is pure sorcery. (Fortune, 1984)
The lower Sephiroth form the Individuality, which is said to incarnate from lifetime to
lifetime in the quest for transcendence—and is depicted by Tipareth, or the Higher Self, the
nadir of the Second Triad. Mind is formed by Netzach, which generates emotion and instinct,
and Hod, which is the realm of thought, imagination, and the directional power of will. In Hod
are created the thoughts and images that are energized and empowered by the emotional/instinctual force of Netzach for the purpose of physical manifestation. Without Hod, the forces of
Netzach have no form, and without Netzach, the forms of Hod have no power to manifest.
From the point of view of magic/manifestation, however, Yesod is the crucial Sephirah. This
Sephirah is also known as The Treasure House of Images, the Sphere of Maya, or Illusion. It is the
unconscious, filled with all of the holographic forms that have existed since the beginning of time.
It is, in effect, the quantum vacuum.
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Because of the reciprocal relationship between Hod and Netzach, our thoughts and images
create charged thought forms that impress themselves upon the Akashic field of Yesod. This
initiates the process of physical manifestation. It is how our thinking or internal dialogue creates
experiences. When we do not realize that our thoughts and associated images become charged
with emotional energy, that they are causative, and instead assume they are benign, or even useful, commentaries on physical events, we create a perilous positive feedback loop. Focusing on
a negative condition stimulates negative images and feelings self-exacerbate, stimulating more
negative images and feelings, on and on. These become the Akashic thought forms that spawn
more negative conditions, which in turn stimulate more mental commentary.
We attract into our lives what we are. When ideals and inner speech are constructive, we
manifest positive things in our lives. If we are dissatisfied with our condition, we must examine
our inner speech and see how this is beckoning more of what we wish to avoid. We must then
change our internal dialogue. “When imagination matches your inner speech to fulfilled desire,
there will be a straight path in yourself from within out, and without will instantly reflect the
within for you, and you will know reality is only inner talking.” (Neville, 1954) When either
imagination or desire does not match with inner speech, however, it is inner speech that dominates. Thus, Neville’s formula for assuming the feeling of the wish fulfilled, when properly understood, is a functional method of manifestation. Here “assuming” is the key word. When we
assume something, we believe that it is true in spite of a dearth of physical evidence. This is the
essence of faith—to believe that if we hold something strongly in imagination with the feeling
that it exists now, we will bring it into physical manifestation. Thus, “Imagination plus faith are
the realities out of which man fashions his world.” (Neville, 1977)
– The Conscious Control of Imagination –
It is essential that we understand that what we do in the privacy of our minds does not
remain there. It creates powerful effects in both our personal and collective lives. Our survival
may well depend on our ability to assume responsibility for the god-like ability of imagination
we possess.
Objective reality is solely produced through imagining—Look at the world and see what we
have done with it because we didn’t know what we were doing. The morning paper will show
you the most horrible things in the world and its all man’s imagination. It need not be, but we
have fed it morning, noon, and night because man has not controlled his imagination. Learn to
control your own wonderful human imagination. When you do you will have heaven on earth.
(Neville, 1977)
This opens up deep philosophical and metaphysical issues. For example, what is truth?
Is there such a thing as an objective reality that we can use as a standard, a way to measure
the validity of our perceptions, or even our sanity? What we call truth may be more a matter
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of personal and collective belief/agreement than most would be comfortable acknowledging.
What call the truth has changed over the centuries and millennia, much as has what we deem
moral. According to Neville, “Truth depends on the intensity of imagination, not upon external
facts. Facts are the fruit bearing witness of the use or misuse of the imagination. Man becomes
what he imagines.” (Neville, 1954) To the person who understands the power of imagination,
Neville’s “imaginative man”, the outer sensuous world is a product of one’s imagination. To his
“reasonable man” only sensual facts are real. Imagination is nothing but useless fancy. Great
minds such as Einstein, however, were indeed imaginative men.
Our salvation as a species may well depend on our ability to imagine a more harmonious
world—and transfigure that into truth. We have not yet evolved to the level of Humanity. We
are still tribal, racial and nationalistic, but as we progress through this penultimate Underworld
of the Mayan Calendar, it is becoming increasingly clear that this evolutionary surge must occur.
This will require a group effort and a great deal of practice. We must first see the necessity for it,
and it is likely that world events leading up to and during the Fifth Night (November 19, 2007 to
November 13, 2008) will provide the catalysts for this becoming clear.
Strong incentive is required to break deeply entrenched habits of belief and imagination.
The thought-forms existing in the Akashic field have been reinforced and held sway for a long
time. They control most people’s expectations, and until they change, we will continue to rehash
the same patterns. The ego/pain-body complex is one. It has been deepening over the millennia
and impels us to expect, imagine, think, and behave in ways that threaten our existence. Tribal and
national hatreds, male domination of women, disregard and rape of Nature, and a pathological
sense of separateness are all within its purview.
Individually and collectively, we seem to learn only the “hard way.” We may have to reach
the brink of destruction to make meaningful changes to the processes and perspectives that I
have come to call “the old way.” It is during the Fifth Night that the profiteers of the old way will
take a strong stand and attempt to reverse the flow of spiritual evolution through the imposition
of another Dark Age. Have no illusions about this. We are at the brink of spiritual combat that
will decide the fate of humankind and the planet. Spiritual warfare is strikingly disparate from
physical warfare. Thus far in human history, warfare has been a battle between and among
collective egos. It has been based on opposition and domination. This includes religious wars, as
religion is an ego-based construct. In spiritual warfare, the central struggle is between coherence
and incoherence, but it is not a direct conflict—at least not for those wishing to create coherence.
It requires passionately and firmly holding a vision of a higher, harmonious, and caring reality.
This is done on the level of imagination.
This kind of warfare is generally analogized to “psychological warfare,” which attempts to
weaken the enemy by creating doubt. There are, however, more sophisticated and terrifying methods
called “psi,” or psychic warfare. Although it may sound like science fiction, it is quite real. In 1970,
Ostrander and Schroeder published Psychic Discoveries Behind the Iron Curtain and set off a wave
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of alarm in the West, particularly in the United States. It was apparent then that psi warfare was
a legitimate possibility. This stimulated research funding to “close the gap.” When I was a postdoctoral scientist at the UCLA Brain Research Institute during 1973 and 1974, there was a scientist
named Dr. Ross Adey who did extensive work on the effects of electro-magnetic wave frequencies
on human brain waves, behavior, and mood (Adey, 1976). This technology was subsequently found
to be capable of affecting both individuals and larger groups (Becker and Selden, 1985). That was
over thirty years ago. Science and technology advance very quickly, and it is difficult to say how much
headway has been made in this area since then. This technology and its implications will be covered
in much greater depth in upcoming Newsletters.
Of particular interest are the effects of extremely low frequency (ELF) waves. The planetary
surface and the ionosphere generate a spectrum of waves identical to that of the human brain.
This links human beings to the planet in a harmonious fusion. The technology has been available
for some time now to alter this alliance. When directed at a population, the effects of ELF waves
can vary from the creation of soporific states to aggressive mania. The government-sponsored
Alaskan transmitter HAARP (High-Frequency Active Auroral Research Project), ostensibly
designed to communicate with submerged nuclear submarines, can send focused radiated power
to heat up sections of the ionosphere which bounces power back down again. ELF waves from
HAARP can alter weather patterns and, purportedly, affect the mood of large groups of people
(Begich and Manning, 1995). ELF technology has also been used to send auditory and visual
information directly into the brain, inducing auditory and visual hallucinations (Becker and
Selden, 1985).
Although much more technology of this nature exists and is at the disposal of those who
are in support of the materialistic, militaristic/male-dominated model of life, they are operating
against the direction of spiritual evolution. These evolutionary forces are catapulting us toward
a planetary transformation that extends far beyond the technological control of others. In the
esoteric and occult literature, black magic is defined as any method used to control or dominate
the will of another. I am not being naïve when I say that the longevity of these means is limited—
but its wielders will not relinquish control peacefully.
During the Fifth Night we must have faith, both in the supremacy of spiritual evolution of
light over darkness, and in ourselves as co-creators of this great spiritual endeavor. Faith and
hope are different. Hope is what we have for a low probability event we, more or less, blindly
wish will come true: I hope that I will win the lottery. Faith is based on some level of empirical
belief: I have faith that tomorrow you will be the person I am familiar with today. I can hope
that cats will bark, but I have no faith that they will.
I do not need to hope that my imagination can influence events in my life, or that collective
imagination can do so in the larger world. I can demonstrate this for myself and have faith. This
is why disciplined practice is necessary. It takes strong focus and intent to detach imagination
from present-time physical reality and use it to manifest a higher one.
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chapter seven
the Tower
(fig. 11)
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Love and hate have a magical transforming power and we grow through their exercise into
the likeness of what we contemplate. By intensity of hatred we create in ourselves the character
we imagine in our enemies. Qualities die for want of attention, so the unlovely states might best
be rubbed out by imagining ‘beauty for ashes and joy for mourning’ rather than by direct attacks
on the state from which we would be free.” (Neville, 1954)
Once we demonstrate our ability to use imagination to alter the conditions in which we find
ourselves, we then develop a great strength of faith: “…we fashion the world that surrounds us
by the intensity of our imaginations and feelings, and we illuminate or darken our lives by the
concepts we hold of ourselves.” (Neville, 1954) Also, “It is thus to our own consciousness we
must turn to as the only reality, the only foundation on which all phenomena can be explained.
We can rely absolutely on the justice of this law to give us only that which is the nature of
ourselves… To attempt to change the world before we change the concept of ourselves is to
struggle against the nature of things.” (Neville, 1954)
The combination of strong and determined imagination and thinking from the end desired
is what brings about miracles. Neville (1954) stresses that, “The spanning of the bridge between
desire—thinking of—and satisfaction—thinking from—is all-important.” Reason cannot do this
because reason depends on what the senses report about the facts of physical reality. It can only
think of what we desire, because the physical senses report some kind of deficit. It cannot think
from the condition of desire satisfied because, to reason, this is not “real.” It is not here now.
Only imagination can do this because it is not constrained by the physical senses. In this manner
we are able to escape from the limitation of the senses and ego-based bondage of reason (Neville,
1954). This is the knowledge that allows us to persist in imagination and transcend the hypnotic
power of “facts”—that it is the inner body, the imagination, which is causal and determines the
activities of the outer body and one’s life experiences.
Neville suggests the following formula: Construct mentally a drama which implies that
your desire is realized and make it one which involves movement of the self. Act precisely as
though you were going to take a nap, and start the predetermined action in imagination. A
vivid presentation of the action is the beginning of that action. Then, as you are falling asleep,
consciously imagine yourself into the scene. The length of sleep is not important, a short nap is
sufficient, but carrying the action into sleep thickens the fancy into fact (Neville, 1954).
When I was in the first grade we sang the following song:
Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,
Life is but a dream.
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I can still remember how these lyrics haunted me. It was as if theyold of some great and
mysterious secret my child mind could not comprehend, but could feel. Over the many decades
since then I have caught myself singing it in my head. Now, after years of studying Eastern and
Western esoteric traditions, I know why those words stayed with me. Life is a dream—so why
not make it a good one? Neville (1954) concludes Awakened Imagination with these words:
The pictures and circumstances we see in dreams are creations of our own imagination and have
no existence save in ourselves. The same is true for the pictures and circumstances we see in this
dream of life. They reveal our concepts of ourselves. As soon as we succeed in transforming
self, our world will dissolve and reshape itself in harmony with that which our change affirms.
And finally,
The universe that we study with such care is a dream, and we the dreamers of the dream,
eternal dreamers dreaming non-eternal dreams. One day, like Nebuchadnezzar we shall all
awaken from the dream, from the nightmare in which we fought with demons, to find that we
never left our eternal home; that we were never born and have never died save in our dream.
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chapter eight
VIII
CHAPTER EIGHT
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The Collapsing Tower
The somewhat enigmatic title of this book was inspired by Paul Foster Case’s explanation of the Qabalistic tarot’s 16th Key. The Tower (Figure 11), also known as The Lightning
Struck Tower, is based on the Hebrew letter Peh (pronounced “pay”) which means “the mouth
as an organ of speech.” It is ruled by the planet Mars. “In its psychological manifestations it is
the destructive, iconoclastic force which tears down the structures of ancient custom and tradition.” (Case, 1947) The converse pair attributed to Peh are Beauty and Ugliness, because human speech inevitably contains and contributes to one or the other.
The lightening-flash is a masculine symbol that destroys old forms in order to make way for
new. It is the sudden burst of illumination or inspiration that razes structures that are founded
on ignorance, symbolized by The Tower. The falling figures represent sub-consciousness (female) and self-consciousness (male). “They fall headfirst because the sudden influx of spiritual
consciousness upsets all our old notions about the relations between sub-consciousness and selfconsciousness.” The woman is crowned because false knowledge allows subconscious motives
to dominate the personality. We see this when people excuse themselves for unintelligent action
by saying “I can’t help it; that’s the way I feel.”
-The most important symbolism of Key 16 is the crown on top of the tower
The crown knocked from the tower by the lightening flash is the materialistic notion that
matter and form are the ruling principles of existence. Since “Crown” is a Qabalistic term relating to the number 1, and to the Will, this crown refers to the false monism of the materialist, and
to the false interpretation of will which makes it something personal, something which may be
set against the impulse originating in the cosmic Purpose (Case, 1947).
The Tarot, like the Qabalah, is part of what is called the “perennial philosophy.” As its
name suggests, it is timeless and, therefore, not specifically connected to any period of human
history. Not only has its endowment endured over centuries, its validity has become more and
more apparent as new knowledge accumulates. Its Tower represents speech -- its twenty-two
courses of masonry correspond to the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet -- and also represents the consequences attendant to the development of human speech. These consequences
lie in the eventual development of “inner speech”—thinking—which resulted from the dominance of left-brain, ego, and separatist consciousness during the National Underworld. The
Tower Key directly illustrates this: “It is reared on a lonely peak, and suggests the fallacy of
personal isolation which is the basis of all false philosophy.” (Case, 1947)
When I saw the second commercial airliner piloted by Saudi terrorists crash into the Twin
Towers in 2001, during the Third Heaven of the Galactic Underworld, an image of Key 16
flashed in my mind. Along with it came an intuitive certainty of the accuracy of Calleman’s
prophecy that the Galactic Underworld would bring the Apocalypse (2004). The Twin Towers
are phallic ego symbols of masculine prowess and economic dominion.
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They stand on an island of rock (Manhattan), disassociated from their surroundings by virtue of
their immensity. Later, when the news reports confirmed that a third airliner had crashed into the
Pentagon, my intuition was further confirmed. Mars, the Roman god of war, rules The Tower,
and the Pentagon is the seat of the American war machine. As an aside, it is interesting to note
that, in occult literature, the pentagon or pentagram is a symbol of white or black magic, depending on whether its point is directed up or down. For example, in the Devil Key of the Tarot there
is an inverted pentagram between his brows, which symbolizes bondage, tyranny, and what is
generally thought of as “evil.”
Although there are numerous conspiracy theories regarding who instigated the attacks on
9/11—Muslim terrorists, the CIA, the New World Order mob, or the Illuminati—in the final
analysis it does not matter. The Cosmic Plan uses individuals to achieve its ends, whether these
individuals are aware of it or not. Consciously or unconsciously, all serve the Light—regardless
of individual desires or intentions.
Key 16 is the second in a series of seven Tarot Keys that delineate the stages of spiritual
development. It follows Key 15, The Devil (Figure 7), which represents the first stage of spiritual
unfoldment—the recognition of bondage to the belief in material causation. Case’s summary
statement of Key 16, The Tower, is quite relevant to the Underworld in which we currently
live.
This picture corresponds to the second stage of spiritual unfoldment, wherein a series of
sudden, fitful inspirations leads to the perception that the structure of knowledge built on the
foundation of the fallacy of personal separateness is a tower of false science. At this stage, the
advancing seeker for wisdom suffers the destruction of his whole former philosophy. For this
tower is built on a foundation of misapprehension. The whole structure is an elaboration of superficial observation, traditional race-thought, false reasoning and an erroneous theory of will.
(Case, 1947)
We are now experiencing the prophetic influence of The Tower, and will to an even greater
degree during the Fifth Night of the Galactic Underworld, upon whose threshold we stand. The
old way is dying. But we must be vigilant and take care. The death throes of the old ego-self
are violent. As was discussed early in this book, we must be cautious to not identify with them.
Rather, we must recognize what is happening in and around us as the birth pangs of post-ego
civilization. As the ego dies and the emerging Self is born we, and our world, will change. This
is the promise of all spiritual paths, and even of the spiritually degenerated religions that have
evolved and taken root over the last few thousand years. It is the marrow of truth that cannot be
eradicated.
In practical realms, this means staying out of despair. Regardless of what occurs, we must
remember that it is time-limited. If the Fifth Night of the Galactic Underworld—spanning
most of 2008—is similar to the Fifth Nights of prior Underworlds (Figure 8), it may prove to be
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one of the most difficult periods in our history. In part, this is due to its brevity and the parallel
concentration of events. This acceleration will inevitably create a significant and palpable disorientation in those not prepared for it.
You can download Aaron Russo’s America- From Freedom to Fascism (2006) from YouTube.com on the internet for more insight into what is happening in America. In his documentary, Russo presents a frighteningly sober and well-researched account of how America is rapidly
moving toward martial rule. There are a number of possible justifications for the imposition of
this political condition, including pandemics, economic collapse, Muslim insurgency and largescale terrorist attacks on significant targets. Most people, however, remain blithely cocooned
from the harbingers of this eventuality, and if these or similar events do transpire, the shock may
be lethal. Awareness is our greatest ally. It cannot be stressed enough that it is absolutely essential
to know what is yours and what is emanating from outside of you.
Despair is highly contagious and must be appropriately staved off via the methods discussed
regarding the management of the pain-body. I have come to think of despair as “death energy.”
It weakens both the physical and psychic immune systems and makes us susceptible to physical
and mental disease. It negates the will to live. It does, however, have a useful evolutionary function, in that it removes weak and defective genes from the collective pool. That said, it is not
wise to associate with those who refuse to rise up out of their own despair. It does not mean you
should not be helpful to those in need, but unless another is willing to help himself, you place
yourself in danger of submerging into despair at his side.
In The Tarot, Case outlines a series of seven steps for spiritual unfoldment that lead to a
complete transformation of consciousness—the planetary transformation promised by spiritual
systems such as the Mayan Calendar. Very briefly, Case delineates the ensuing five stages (Figure
12) after The Devil (Key 15) and The Tower (Key 16), as follows:
The third stage is The Star, Key 17. The meaning of The Star is meditation. It involves the
drawing up of energy from the lower reproductive centers, without fixating attention on sexual
functions. The result is transmutation of energy from lower to higher chakras. By its definition,
meditation requires the cessation of thinking (inner speech), and is what naturally succeeds The
Tower. Case describes this third step in lyric terms:
It is the calm which follows the storm depicted by Key16. It is a period of quest and search. The
light is dim, like starlight, but these stars are distant suns. Thus it is written: “When you have
found the beginning of the way, the star of your soul will show its light.”
The Moon, Key 18, symbolizes the fourth stage, and stands for healing processes wherein
the cells of the body are repaired and regenerated by the energies activated by meditation. It is
the stage of conscious cooperation in the cosmic plan. At this point, imagination plays an immeasurably important role. The Moon emblematizes the Sephiroth Yesod, the Akashic or quantum field, which controls all activity on the physical plane. This is the subconscious formation
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chapter eight
the Final Five Steps
of Spiritual Development
The Star
The Sun
The Moon
Judgement
The World
(fig. 12)
-170-
one of the most difficult periods in our history. In part, this is due to its brevity and the parallel
concentration of events. This acceleration will inevitably create a significant and palpable disorientation in those not prepared for it.
You can download Aaron Russo’s America- From Freedom to Fascism (2006) from YouTube.com
on the internet for more insight into what is happening in America. In his documentary, Russo
presents a frighteningly sober and well-researched account of how America is rapidly moving
toward martial rule. There are a number of possible justifications for the imposition of this
political condition, including pandemics, economic collapse, Muslim insurgency and large-scale
terrorist attacks on significant targets. Most people, however, remain blithely cocooned from the
harbingers of this eventuality, and if these or similar events do transpire, the shock may be lethal.
Awareness is our greatest ally. It cannot be stressed enough that it is absolutely essential to know what
is yours and what is emanating from outside of you.
Despair is highly contagious and must be appropriately staved off via the methods discussed
regarding the management of the pain-body. I have come to think of despair as “death energy.”
It weakens both the physical and psychic immune systems and makes us susceptible to physical
and mental disease. It negates the will to live. It does, however, have a useful evolutionary function, in that it removes weak and defective genes from the collective pool. That said, it is not
wise to associate with those who refuse to rise up out of their own despair. It does not mean you
should not be helpful to those in need, but unless another is willing to help himself, you place
yourself in danger of submerging into despair at his side.
In The Tarot, Case outlines a series of seven steps for spiritual unfoldment that lead to a
complete transformation of consciousness—the planetary transformation promised by spiritual
systems such as the Mayan Calendar. Very briefly, Case delineates the ensuing five stages (Figure
12) after The Devil (Key 15) and The Tower (Key 16), as follows:
The third stage is The Star, Key 17. The meaning of The Star is meditation. It involves the
drawing up of energy from the lower reproductive centers, without fixating attention on sexual
functions. The result is transmutation of energy from lower to higher chakras. By its definition,
meditation requires the cessation of thinking (inner speech), and is what naturally succeeds The
Tower. Case describes this third step in lyric terms:
It is the calm which follows the storm depicted by Key16. It is a period of quest and search.
The light is dim, like starlight, but these stars are distant suns. Thus it is written: “When you have
found the beginning of the way, the star of your soul will show its light.”
The Moon, Key 18, symbolizes the fourth stage, and stands for healing processes wherein
the cells of the body are repaired and regenerated by the energies activated by meditation. It is
the stage of conscious cooperation in the cosmic plan. At this point, imagination plays an immeasurably important role. The Moon emblematizes the Sephiroth Yesod, the Akashic or quantum field, which controls all activity on the physical plane. This is the subconscious formation
-171-
that is regenerated and repaired through the agency of imagination. It is during this stage that
the knowledge gained from meditation is incorporated into the physical organism. The physiological changes in cellular function then lay the groundwork for the manifestation of latent
powers.
The fifth stage is called The Sun, Key 19, and represents the stage of consciousness that
integrates what has gone before into a new form. “Thus it is a regenerative mode of consciousness, incorporating all the elements of control into a new realization of personality.” Human
language becomes a more deft method of expressing ideas, but its inherent limitations are fully
recognized -- that is, language is limited to describing only that which is concrete and within the
range of the senses; even abstract terms are derived directly from the realm of sensory experience. It does not deal with experiences that exist beyond the range of physical sensation.
The Sun represents liberation from the limitations of physical matter and circumstances.
At this stage the will of the adept can dominate all physical forces because he transmits a clear
expression of the One Will. Although it is at this stage that the adept has conscious self-identification with the One Life, it is not the final stage. He still experiences himself as a separate, or at
least distinct, entity.
Judgment, Key 20, illustrates the power that dissolves the false personality and its sense of
separateness. Its mode of consciousness is Perpetual Intelligence. Its name is derived from the
Hebrew letter Shin, meaning serpent’s fang. It represents the power that “kills” the false personality and resolves separateness. It implies that Perpetual Intelligence is a mode of consciousness far beyond the current limits of most human beings. Its name also implies everlastingness,
eternity, and thus, conscious immortality. It is the final stage of separate, personal consciousness,
after which personal consciousness is utterly obliterated by a higher realization.
At this stage the adept realizes that his personal existence is nothing but the manifestation
of the relationship between self-consciousness and super-consciousness. Thus he knows that his
personality has no separate existence. At this stage his intellectual conviction is confirmed by
fourth-dimensional experiences that finally blot out the delusion of separateness forever (Case,
1947).
Case refers to the final stage of spiritual unfoldment, Key 20, as The World. Sometimes
Key 20 is called The Universe, intimating that the consciousness it represents is truly cosmic
and not merely terrestrial. The Transcendent dancing Shiva of Hinduism embodies this level of
consciousness. It is the state of perfect union with the One Power that is the source of the All,
and the directing force behind the manifestation of all things.
“Here is a representation of what you really are, and what the cosmos really is.
The universe is the Dance of Life. The immortal, central Self of you That is the Eternal Dancer.”
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