Given the present tense state of the world, the stewardship team here at Meditation Mount is moved to extend an invitation to join us in releasing more ‘Light and Love’ into the world during these turbulent times when the darkness of ignorance and separateness is clouding the psychological skies and temporarily blocking out the light of the inner sun – the Soul – in making its radiant presence felt.
It is extremely difficult to see clearly in foggy conditions. Whether it be mist from a river seeping through a city or a thick marine layer rolling in from the Pacific Ocean to blanket a southern California coastal town, our visibility is obscured and our ability to observe accurately is greatly curtailed. This condition happens whenever moisture and temperature differences combine. The inner realms of the human psyche produce similar climatic conditions. Inside the Astral plane, the turgid waters of the emotions mix with the fires of the lower mind to create a fog bank that can often be impenetrable and tends to bend and refract the light of truth. This psychological weather phenomenon is what the Ageless Wisdom teachings refer to as the Mists of Maya – the fog of illusion – that darkens and distorts reality.
It is said that we humans inhabit a particular waveband on the tonal spectrum of Creation that is called the Astral plane - comprising the emotional and lower mental bodies – that by its very nature is foggy and has been named accordingly as the ‘worlds of illusion’.
As we comprehend the full meaning of the spiritual axiom: ‘energy follows thought’, it becomes abundantly clear that the world around us is a product of our thoughts. Everything we think creates a vital thought-form in the ethers, that when further magnetized by our emotions, reaches a point of precipitation. The substance of the astral plane is like a plasma that conforms and responds to the thoughts we impress upon it. It becomes a shifting kaleidoscope of images that we live inside, and yet, it is not the ‘real’ world. It is the world we have created, and it feels real because it resembles and corresponds to our own inner feelings. Living inside the world of illusion is like living inside a vast reinforcing loop of unseen causes.
A quote from The Tibetan Master shines further light on the subject:
“The Astral plane when first definitely seen by the opened eye of the Aspirant, is one of dense fog, confusion, changing forms, interpenetrating and intermingling colors, and is of such a kaleidoscopic appearance that the hopelessness of the enterprise seems overwhelming. It is not light or starry clear. It is apparently impenetrable disorder, for it is the meeting ground of forces.”
It is so easy to be stuck and imprisoned in our own projections, and those of us who are fans of the movie ‘The Matrix’ know full well that the inhabitants of this digital world have no idea they live inside a programmed facsimile. In ‘The Matrix’ and other Hollywood movies, the ‘grand illusion’ is kept alive by computer-generated images (CGI). I believe that we have an equivalent capacity inside of us to generate our own ‘reality’. Instead of CGI, I call it ELMGI, which stands for Emotional and Lower Mental Generated Images. In this manner, the astral world is populated by our conjured images, and what we see projected on the screen of daily life is unquestionably embraced by us as reality. You might surmise that the illusory Astral plane is like living inside a complex movie of our own making.
The main theme of ‘The Matrix’ was the un-plugging of oneself from the coded world of programmed reality and liberating oneself as a free agent. In a similar fashion, it is the unplugging of oneself from non-reality that is the journey through the astral plane. The Buddha provided us with a powerful spiritual ‘get-out-of-jail’ card by emphasizing the need for ‘non-attachment’ to form as key to achieving liberation. So, what does all of this have to do with the present state of the world?
If we think about the state of the environment and ask ourselves why it is so polluted, we may come to the painful conclusion that what we see on the ‘outside’ is a precipitation and a result of what is occurring on the ‘inside’. Simply stated, every time you and I put out a negative thought of hatred, irritation, or anger, it actually causes an energetic emission in the form of a psychic chemical. When we spew out toxins into the world, we are creating an acid rain cloud inside the collective human psyche that is highly corrosive and is eating away at the social fabric. Cleaning up the outer environment begins by cleaning up the original source of pollution: namely, the emissions from our own thoughts and emotions.
We also dispel the astral fog enveloping us by allowing the warmth and light of the Soul to shine. The obscuring dark clouds are lifted by acts of loving kindness, through deep feelings of gratitude, and by an effervescent joy that bubbles out from a heart that has been opened and is now willing to give and serve others.
Our immediate task is to navigate to the next level of consciousness beyond the ‘worlds of illusion,’ and when we've achieved this, our head pops out into the clear light of day. Then, when the Soul shines like the Sun, we stand with our heads above the clouds and safely above the swirling emotional waters. From this enlightened vantage point, not only do we see the beauty of life, we see the goodness and beauty in each other. Bathed in the Light of the Soul, we finally experience the unbounded joy of life and know without a shadow of a doubt that ‘separateness’ is an illusion. This is the evolutionary journey that awaits but we can only begin from where we presently find ourselves. The journey starts by facing the tests that we have invoked.
Humanity as one family is at a major choice-point – not only with the upcoming General Election in the USA but also in general as a species. We stand at a crossroad and have now to choose whether to continue pursuing a path of war and global alienation with our sisters and brothers around the world or dare to seek a lasting and deep peace among all nations, creeds, and cultures – a peace that can only be born from within an open and compassionate heart. Do we choose to continue walking a path of self-centeredness that has the isolated ‘part’ seek to plunder and take over the resources of the ‘whole’ for its own advantage, or are we at a point where ushering in an era of ‘caring and sharing’ is the obvious and most natural way to live in integrity with our core values and create a world that works for all? Time is running out.
Stimulated and prompted by the Principle of Essential Divinity, Meditation Mount is committed to supporting the awakening of the Soul in every person so that this wise and steady guiding light can help us navigate the present difficulties and inspire us in building a society that expresses the qualities and characteristics of our true spiritual heritage. Starting now and carrying on for the foreseeable future, we will be increasing the generation and distribution of hope-filled offerings from the Mount through social media and other communication channels as a positive response to the present challenges in the world. One offering of immediate usefulness is the ‘Soul of America’ meditation which is intended to help positively charge the atmosphere in preparation for the November 5th election.
This is both a time of great emergency where old and outworn forms are painfully falling away as well as a potent time of emergence when the green shoots of new possibilities are beginning to show themselves as signs of real hope for a brighter future. This preferred new reality will not be a product of CGI or ELMGI but will, instead, be crafted by utilizing Soul Generated Images (SGI) – those magnetic memes that, like the seed, contain the light-filled promise of things to come.
The art and science of producing Soul Generated Images lies at the heart of Creative Meditation which is our core practice at Meditation Mount. The saturating of the ethers with seeds of new possibilities and cultivating a life in which they can quicken and flourish, is a powerful way in which we can each contribute to fulfilling the promise and destiny of the Soul of Humanity as a bringer of Light.
There is an ancient prayer used throughout the ages that boldly declares:
Lead us from darkness into Light
From the unreal to the Real
And from Death to Immortality
This prayer continues to be our rallying cry and companion on the long pilgrimage.
Right now, the clarion call we are hearing is for ‘All Souls on Deck’. May we respond by showing up each day as a powerful Beacon of Light, a welcome source of Loving Kindness, and a trusted messenger of Fiery Hope for those around us. Thank you for bringing this needed Light into the world through all that you think, say, and do.
In the Light of the Soul,
Michael Lindfield
Board President,
Meditation Mount