"They will ask thee concerning the Spirit. Say: The Spirit is by command of my
Lord, and of knowledge ye have been vouchsafed but little" (Koran Al Israa
17:85)IntroductionAt present we are living in a very complex era that
humankind's intelligentsia call the "Space Age," the "Computer Age," the "Atomic
Age," the "Information Age," and the "Technological Age." These are descriptive
culminating "Ages" of the Piscean period that will soon give way to other
developments. In time, we will hear terms or phrases such as, the "Ascension
Age," the "Quantum Age," the "Hyper-Space Age," and the "Photon Age." All of
these latter Ages allude and refer to the characteristical nature of the forces
that will soon interact, interface and integrate with humanity in the coming
Aquarian Age causing a transmutation within the psychosomatic system of man at
cellular and atomic levels. The two-helix DNA structure comprising our genes
would split and multiply into twelve strands, in accord with the same law that
divides a cell. Certain atoms within the pineal gland would simultaneously
become active, as would certain sections of the brain. The synapses and
dendrites of the neurons of the brain would form new connections all over the
grey matter linking both the right and left hemispheres, and both the cerebellum
and the cerebrum. Chakras beyond the major seven would likewise be stimulated
and anchored into man's lower force-field. Additionally, the various layers of
the chakric-system and their many petals or attributes would unfold giving man
untold abilities. It is said that the attainment of enlightenment is not merely
a psychological event, it is also a chemical and electrical one. It is in fact
an alchemical affair. In short, in the Aquarian Age man will be spiritually
mutated, and made anew to a greater perfection-but only if man is prepared and
works to facilitate this. This transmutation is the evolutionary quantum leap
that awaits humanity.With all of the awe-inspiring metaphysical developments
that would occur, there are still simple truths that would need to be addressed
to enlighten the layman, such as the existence of the soul, which is the topic
of this paper. There are lots of seekers and potential seekers of a higher
reality that need to be shown the way. It is the writer's hope that this paper
would fill the void in people's mind regarding the hidden side of their
existence, and hopefully, cause then to fathom further in the marvelous
mysteries of the universe.The Search for the SoulThe scientific search for the
soul began ever since the dawn of spiritualism that had its onset in the early
decades of the 19th century when the Fox sisters claimed communications with the
spirit world. Still, in spite of all the "marvelous" high-tech achievements of
man in these latter days of the Piscean Age, the question of the existence of
the soul and its survival of physical death remains unanswered successfully by
conventional science. The soul's existence has not been academically and
scientifically "proven" in the laboratory to the satisfaction of scholars of all
branches of learning; on the other hand, however, the non-existence of the soul
has not been proved either. To our knowledge, the devices that would monitor,
measure, and scan frequencies beyond the known energy-spectrum remains to be
invented ere the concrete proof of the existence of the soul required by Science
may be attained. The many inventions of Tesla and Edison revealed that they were
pioneers working on this problem.Throughout the centuries philosophers have been
speculating upon the existence of the soul and its survival of the body; of its
nature and relationship to the physical form; of its origin and destiny; and
also of its possible glorified nature, or its state of immortality. However,
intellectual and analytical reasoning have failed to provide any substantial
evidence of an independent entity existing apart from the physical body. The
serious search for the soul by our world philosophers and thinkers through a
priori, or reason alone seems to have waned in the twentieth century. Perhaps it
is realized that the intellect has its limitations in grasping, comprehending,
and truly knowing abstract and metaphysical matters, or it could also be the
realization that any concept that could be thought of has already been
conceptualized in the past--that any novel ideas would merely be variations of
former metaphysical speculations and of the wide variety of theories, and would
not make man any more wiser. This would once again substantiate the eternal
truth that there is nothing new beneath the sun. Still, there are always
die-hards.The physical senses, the mortal mind, and the intellect are poor
faculties when it comes to determining the nature of Reality or the Absolute.
What is relative may be known intellectually and experienced objectively;
relative absolutism may be speculated upon though without knowing whether one's
conclusions are of the absolute truth in the absence of scientific proof, even
if they be rational and logical; examples of this is the "Unified theory" of
Einstein and the "Idealism" of Kant. Absolute absolutism is simply indescribable
and ineffable. It transcends the intellect, and anything said about it in
conventional terms is simply misleading. Even our description "indescribable and
ineffable" may be inappropriate. From the standpoint of the Absolute all that we
know of whether through our senses or intellect are perhaps erroneous and
illusory.In the Qabala, the esoteric oral tradition of the Hebrews/Jews, the
Absolute is called "Ain Sof." It is the hidden God, the Source of all not
mentioned in the exoteric scriptures. Jehovah, the god of Moses, with his human
characteristics, is merely a reflection of the supreme god found in the
pantheons of the coexisting cultures of the time. The existence and nature of
Ain Sof was not publicized because the Initiates knew that the mental capacity
and spiritual development of the masses had not reached the required level
whereby such revelations could be intuitively grasped and safely applied. This
state of affairs still exist nowadays but with a twist. Now the mental
development of man has far outpaced his spiritual side. Whenever abstract
matters are discussed, the human mind tend to concretize and anthropomorphize
that which cannot be objectified or understood intellectually; and with man's
failure of apprehending abstract matters he comes to the conclusion of their
non-existence. Man, therefore, becomes ignorant of his ignorance.Though the
above ideas concerning Reality may appear to be distinct, in actuality, they are
interrelated and are connected with one's mode of apperception and intuitive
insight. Superficially, they are our different ideas or understanding of
Absolute Reality. We will not speculate further upon this, for the more we delve
intellectually, the further we stray from the truth. Reality may only be known
and experienced mystically.How is the soul related to the above concepts? Is the
soul merely another invention of the mind, or can it be known and experienced in
a physical and concrete manner, or any way that transcends the physical senses
and intellect? As the Age of Pisces relied heavily upon analytical thought in
order to apprehend "truth," so the Aquarian Age will rely most emphatically upon
altered states of consciousness, intuition and other higher faculties in order
to perceive, experience and comprehend abstract realities. Whether the intuition
or a higher faculty proves the existence of the soul will depend entirely upon
the empirical knowledge acquired by each individual in an absolute state of
awareness. That science would finally prove the existence of the soul, or
certain aspects of it at some future date we have no doubt, but the answer to
such a question may be acquired here and now through mystical means. In the
coming Age there will be a shift of emphasis from speculative metaphysics to
applied metaphysics or practical mysticism. Though this is already occurring
with the varied activities of the proponents and exponents of occultism and
metaphysics in the last few decades, this condition will intensify further in
the next millenium. The true knowledge of the soul would have to come from the
soul itself. It cannot be otherwise. Science may only discover aspects of
it.When Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity he ushered
man onto the road of civilization and into the path of spiritual inquiry. Fire
relieved prehistoric man of many fears. With the discovery of fire, man could
for once in his life relax in the comfort of his cave without the fear of being
attacked by unexpected predators. In his new-found ease man commenced to think
and introspect. His higher mind began to awaken and he started off pondering
upon the existence of invisible realms and a "self" independent of the material
form. This cogitation was triggered by certain experiences that he had such as
dreams, psychological impressions, and unexplainable instinctive knowledge. In
dreams he felt that something within him goes forth out of the body to continue
the activities of the day. This was the birth of the belief in the existence of
the soul. The belief and search for an incorporeal principle of human life,
therefore, goes way back beyond recorded history and is to be found in all
cultures in one form or another. So far, only the spiritual cream of
society--the mystics and saints--have solved the problem of the existence of the
soul through experimentation in the laboratory of the Spirit.Throughout the ages
mystics, sages, and prophets have impressed upon us the importance of knowing
the immaterial entity that animates and directs the body. Some consider this
entity to be the mind, the self, the soul, the life-force, the spirit, the ego,
the personality, the psyche, the Spark of God, etc. They declare that it is only
through knowing this intangible reality of man is it possible to know one's
Source and one's purpose of being. The instinctive drive that motivates and
impels man to search for the soul stems from the imponderable soul-factor
itself. The importance of the search is sensed by the mind but the exact reason
is not known explicitly. This is what Jung called the religious instinct.
Moreover, this "instinct" is not to be found in man alone, but also in the other
primates and the cetaceans. Another curious fact is that the higher animals
exhibit many so-called human qualities such as guilt shame, and pride. If these
feelings are associated with the soul, then soul, or at least soul-essence may
be said to indwell in animals also. However, man is considered the only being
that wonders about the soul, death, the after-life, etc. In The Meaning of
Immortality in Human Experience, William Ernest Hocking (1873-1966), the
American philosopher says that,"Man is the only animal that contemplates death,
and also the only animal that shows any sign of doubt of its finality."Does the
soul really exist? And what is the value of identifying the soul? Without the
search and discovery of the "soul" along with the knowledge of its purpose of
existence through whatever means possible, there would always be a feeling of
dissatisfaction and uneasiness in the bosom of man. Without the undeniable proof
of the survival of individual identity life would appear to be a series of
meaningless events and experiences. If the soul does not exist and everything
ends at the death of the human form then all the struggles and all the strivings
in life serves no purpose. Why bother with the harsh teachings of life if all
will end up in total annihilation with not a single iota of the immaterial man
surviving the physical form? Suicide would be a convenient escape; and yet,
somehow, we sense that suicide somehow violates cosmic rules--rules laid down by
whom or what?On the other side of the coin, man's inflated ego has caused him to
believe that he is the only creature on earth with a soul. His "superior
intelligence" is proof of it. Man believes that no other creature possesses
faculties such as imagination, reason, and the will as he has--the vital
faculties needed to control and direct the environment. This reasoning gave man
a sense of supremacy and uniqueness; and also the sense of being the chosen one
of God, for was he not made "in the image of God"? This is basically an
egocentric point of view, one that gives rise to the exploitation, abuse,
manipulation and ultimate destruction of Nature. Associated with this belief is
the presupposition that intelligent life only exists on earth, and that Man is
representative of it. Man is so blinded by the ego that he does not realize that
life adapts itself to whatever conditions it finds itself. The chemical and
environmental necessities for sentient life here on this planet may not be the
requirements for the manifestation of life on another planet. Life may subsist
on other or unknown elements. For instance, carbon being the basis of life on
this planet may not be the basis of life on other planets. Other planets may
make use of silicon, silica, or other materials instead. That which gives life
is not any of the known gases, but the universal life-force called prana. Aside
from this, from the metaphysical point of view, life does not solely exist in
the spectrum of energies that we objectively perceive, but exists even beyond
that. So, as an example, a planet such as Venus or Pluto may be host to
intelligent beings residing in the higher dimensions of the planet without being
detected by the crude telescopes or instruments that we call technologically
advanced, such as the Hubble Space Telescope.Vital questions that might be
addressed are whether animals possess souls, or is this a unique gift to man
alone; is soul a substance or a function; and that if man evolved self-identity
out of the functions of the life-force, at what point of his evolution did he
acquire it; and should soul be considered an entity, at what point in the fetal
development does it ensoul the form, or does it enter when the baby takes in its
first breath? Such questions may only be answered should we possess a true
knowledge of the metaphysical part of life. A study and understanding of all of
the seemingly intangible aspects of nature such as the microcosmic constituents
and functions of man--the etheric elements supporting organic life, the divine
spiritual force that sustains the microcosmic structure, the three-fold Soul,
etc., assists greatly in answering profound questions.Man possesses subconscious
knowledge of his soul, but for some reason he blocks this out consciously by
"pretending" to be ignorant. He hypnotizes himself into disbelieving immaterial
realities for this is the line of least resistance to him. Actually it is much
easier to remember than to forget. The proof that the soul, the spiritual
essence of man exists is that we are searching for it! It is the mystery of the
soul searching for itself.We realize that this topic is controversial in nature,
and as being related to religion, it acquires a certain sensitivity among
religious fundamentalists. However, this emotional sensitivity should be shelved
aside in the rationalistic study of the soul; for one must be objective,
open-minded, sensible, tolerant, and circumspect in the acquisition of
beneficial knowledge. Unrestrained emotionalism is a hurdle towards the
acquisition of truth. Hopefully this paper would offer the reader a greater
insight into the mystery of the soul and our intense search for it. This is a
complex subject and it would not be possible to wholly satisfy the intellect.
Its purpose is no more than to act as a stimulus for the mystical consciousness
of the one perusing its pages. Whenever we use the word "soul' we are
generalizing and mean the whole immaterial part of man, unless otherwise
specified or implied.DEFINITIONThe Webster's Dictionary defines soul as "the
immaterial essence, animating principle, or actuating cause of an individual
life," and also as the "spiritual principle embodied in human beings, all
rational and spiritual beings, or the universe." It also defines the soul as the
"person's total self."Religion and philosophy regards soul as the immaterial
aspect or essence of the microcosmic man that confers a sense of self and
being--a sense of being an independent entity, quite apart from the external
environment. Basically, religious philosophical thought believe the soul to be
eternal in essence. Neoplatonism is one of the school of thought that propounds
this tenet. The theologian and prelate St. Augustine likewise, believed in the
immortality of the soul, as did Cicero, the Roman orator. The soul is often
thought to be synonymous with the mind or consciousness. Theology builds up upon
the above definitions by considering the soul to be divine in nature and capable
of surviving the dissolution of the physical form. In our modern times the
belief in soul survival is called Survivalism. Certain schools of metaphysics
further assert that the soul, or spirit to be a spark or emanation of the Source
of all and that it is an evolving aspect of the microcosm working towards
apotheosis or deification.Perhaps it would be superfluous to say that the
soul-concept is subjective. Whether it exists is beside the point: the Self, or
soul as an essence has never been perceived objectively by anyone. What are seen
as phantoms or ethereal forms by psychics or the average person during certain
psychological states are possibly the sheaths enshrouding the spiritual essence.
If we have a soul, then what are we? What is "it" that is supposed to possess a
soul or Self? Can a Self possess a Self? Is the soul to be differentiated from
the Self? Unless we recognize that there are various aspects to the immaterial
man we would not begin to understand him. It is in this respect that Occultism,
Mysticism, the Ancient Wisdom and Metaphysics in general, are far in advance of
the knowledge possessed by exoteric Religion, Philosophy, and Science.The soul
is not wholly definable. We may generalize and say that the soul is the
immaterial aspect of man; and yet this non-substantial quality of man is
composed of various components, not all of which may be immediately
apprehensible by the various faculties of the mind. Also, our media of
information conveyance such as words, signs, and symbols are incapable of
transmitting the whole truth as it is. The divine aspect of the immaterial man
cannot be expressed through language, nor can they be formulated into ideas. A
faculty of a lower aspect of the microcosm is incapable of knowing a higher
aspect in its entirety. In order for a higher aspect of the microcosm to be
known it is necessary to exercise the faculties associated with it. For instance
the clich? "it takes a thief to catch a thief" describes and supports our
proposition exactly. No one knows a thief better than another thief. Likewise,
in order to know something we must be that something or function at its level.
This metaphysical principle has a very wide application, and many unusual occult
phenomena may be produced from its use.Although the academic definition of the
soul has been given above, there is no standard agreement or understanding as to
the terms "soul" and "spirit" and also of the other spiritual concepts taught in
the many religions, sects and cults. This lack of standardization causes
confusion and often result in senseless heated debates and even physical
conflicts. Some systems of metaphysics consider the above terms as archaic and
specific words denoting the various aspects of the soul or spirit are utilized
instead. Should religion update its terminology and doctrines in accord with the
modern findings of science and the pure spiritual teachings of mysticism it
would be more aligned with the plan of God and attract more followers into its
fold; as it is, true religion appears to be withering in the temples of God.
This statement may be contradicted, however, those that argue against it may not
understand what true religion is.The many attributes of the soul are generally
known to be the personality, the conscience, the emotional feelings, the mental
faculties, the Ego, the memory, the various levels of consciousness, and the
will. Generally speaking, philosophy, religion, and metaphysics are all in
agreement as to this.Copyright ? 2006 LuxamoreLuxamore Metaphysical teacher,
counseler, healer and merchant of occult/magickal items of Indonesia.
http://www.indotalisman.com/ http://www.bezoarmustikapearls.com/
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