(c) John, Rekesh 2004-2008. No part of this work may be copied or reproduced without the author's permission
12. Path (Part 2)
“So where does all this lead? Why should there be such spiritual evolution at all?”
Aliyah was quiet for a while. This was one of those existential questions anyone could pose.
“To answer that, let us study the correspondence again. Where does physical evolution lead? It is an exploration, seeking perfection within an environment; the perfection of the gene pool, if you will, though often this drive is described in terms of survival. It is by manifestation of a body that the properties of a gene are discovered. Until then, they are unknown, unexpressed. But once a gene is expressed, its fruit is known, and then it is fostered, repressed or removed from the pool as fit.”
“So?”
“So is spiritual evolution – an exploration through manifestation, a discovery of one’s own nature and also of the universe, a purging of that which is unsuitable, and the seeking of perfection. You can think of physical evolution as one ancestral body expressing itself in uncountable billions of bodies, whether they be amoebas, insects, animals or humans - seeking the limits of physical existence, continuously evolving. Likewise you can also think of spiritual evolution as one ancestral being or God expressing itself in uncountable billions of souls, discovering itself and seeking the limits of experience, continuously evolving.”
“So is that what God is, then? The sum total of all the beings that exist?”
“No, Emma! The Godhead is much more than that. To see that is not difficult if you study the analogy of physical bodies in proper context.”
Aliyah continued, “In the final analysis, all physical bodies are one with mother earth, for in her they live and move and have their essence. And the earth which represents the manifested Godhead is intimately connected with the Sun that in turn represents the creator-sustainer aspect of the Godhead.(1) Isn’t it the sun’s energy that drives all physical evolution? It is the totality of the solar system that represents the Godhead (1), not just the earth alone or the bodies alone. So you can see that God is much more than the ancestral being that we talked about. That ancestral being is, however, an integral aspect of the Godhead as it manifests.”
“But why all the pain and traumas associated with evolution? Nature is really cruel, isn’t it? Look at all the creatures that are killed and eaten! Surely no God would allow that! How could a spiritual evolution be anything similar?”
“Well, appearances can be deceiving. Let us look at the processes again, considering only the physical. A tree draws minerals from the earth into itself, which is part of the tree for a while and then exits the tree at some point in time. The tree essentially provides a more complex organization and function to the minerals. Likewise, an animal eats a plant, and the matter in the plant is now given a greater organization within the animal body. Follow so far?”
“Yes. You are saying that the food-chain represents a progressively greater organization of matter, a transformation.”
“Precisely. You can consider eating as upgrading the eaten stuff into a higher level of organization, until the matter exits the body through metabolism or death. A similar analogy is true in the realm of spiritual consciousness as well.”
“What do you mean?”
“Let’s say a bird swallows a fish. The process helps temporarily upgrade the spiritual consciousness of the fish, as the two blend together as one for a while before being separated again. The fish is given a greater perspective on life for a while, namely that of the bird, which is a more advanced species, just considering evolutionary history alone.”
Emma stared as though she couldn’t believe her ears.
“It is thus an impetus for the fish to progress further. In fact, it is an excellent arrangement that prompts a spiritual essence to evolve further, seek higher ground. The fish offers the gift of physical nourishment, though temporary, and the bird offers the gift of a higher consciousness, also temporary. That experience is not unlike that which spiritual practitioners describe as higher states of consciousness, but those are on a different scale.”
Emma, unable to contain her incredulity any longer, burst out, “This has got to be the worst I’ve heard so far, even for an analogy! Forget your spiritual gene, but this one really takes the cake! The whole thing is way-out wacky!”
“Not quite, Emma! In the case of lower order life forms, there is little by way of strong emotions to prevent such a merging from happening. Of course this happens only when the life form is consumed alive, such as a frog swallowing a fly, or a lizard dining on a cricket. What happens at the physical level also happens at a higher level. In fact, it extends to even lower orders, such as plants and fruits. Why do you think some trees grow more fruit in places where people can see them?”
Emma frowned for a moment, but soon recovered.
“So am I downgraded if a python gulps me down for dinner? And what about all the carnivores that have evolved, terrorizing other species?”
“You are right. There is no upgrading or downgrading of consciousness there. The emotional stress in the prey makes any such merging impossible.”
“Good! You are beginning to make a little sense. Just a little, mind you. Now how do you explain carnivores?”
“Well, do you remember our analogy of photosynthesis?(2) A tree is precipitated directly from the air. Only a small contribution to its body matter comes from solid earth. But in all appearance it seems to have been formed out of the body of the earth! You can see that the photosynthesis process by analogy reveals the creative influence of mind emotion and spirit on matter. Now apply the same concept on the spiritual genes and try to see how they might affect the physical species.”
“You mean physical evolution is driven by spiritual evolution?”
“That would be a good conclusion. What it means then is that the Godhead does not manifest a carnivorous tiger, a cannibalistic spider or a blood-sucking mosquito so as to have some morbid fun! Those species have arisen due to similar natures that are harbored within their spiritual essences. Those tendencies and natures are then reflected in the physical. It is a mechanism that allows those spiritual essences to discover their spiritual genes, the natures they harbor.”
This went beyond anything Emma had expected. It implied that carnivores were but natural manifestations of evolving spiritual essences, essences which drove the evolution of their physical counterparts. But still there were more vexing problems.
“Aliyah, I think you have pushed back the problem from the physical to a higher level. That still doesn’t explain why nature often appears cruel. Can you watch a leopard killing a deer and say the same thing you are saying now?”
Aliyah was silent again. There seemed to be no end to Emma’s questions.
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