The metamorphosis that occurs on the spiritual path creates a dramatic change in self-identity — from a human being defined by a physical form to a spiritual being whose awareness transcends form. This change comes about through a rise in vibrational frequencies that allows the love and wisdom of the Soul to infuse and transform its persona.
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Transformation is the fifth of ten phases in our journey.
The quotes below reflect our experiences.
“I no longer feel powerless about the state of the world because I know the power of self-transformation to create conditions for a new world. It will come from illumined minds, open hearts, and connections to Source, Spirit, God. Living from our higher nature gives us the power to transform ourselves and the world in which we live.”
“Whatever appears to be dark and debilitating in our lives can dissolve back into truth when observed in the light of the soul. When the darkness is enfolded by a higher state of awareness, it is transformed. This gives me hope that our future world will be one of breathtaking beauty, as our Elders have foreseen.”
“Looking back on our lives and observing patterns, we can see how pain and suffering become the source of spiritual growth. When faced with challenges, the soul leads us in directions that appear sacrificial to the personality at the time, but in fact they are leading us step by step to the Path of Liberation. Suffering becomes a gift, a beautiful thing. It creates a capacity for deep compassion and great love.”
“My spiritual understanding has exploded with the guidance from our Elders. I’ve learned it is my purpose to fully realize the Christ aspect—the Soul—within myself as it is within others and in all creation. No one is separate from God; we merely have to find our way back.”
“For transformation to occur, we need the courage to live in the spiritual freedom that arises when we govern ourselves according to universal laws and principles. Until humanity recognizes the higher Self as the only true authority for our lives, we will continue to depend on the arbitrary rule of external authorities. The wings of freedom develop in the crucible of taking responsibility for our lives and all other lives with which we share existence on this planet. We are learning that this is one of the pillars of the new civilization.”
“We now know that transformation is absolutely possible and that the pouring forth of Source—as Love, as Light—transforms all.”
“I know I am made of God-stuff. I am vast awareness inside—a ‘field’ of conscious, intelligent energy that is constant, infinite, eternal, loving, and animates us all. This all-pervading consciousness has innumerable positive qualities: peace, love, light, goodness, kindness, beauty, vitality, abundance, expansiveness, creativity, joy, laughter, clarity, wisdom, divine intelligence, and more. Even though I know this is my true essence, there is still a daily battle between two voices in my head—one that pulls me toward the sensory world of temporary gratification and self-aggrandizement, the other that pulls me toward my highest good and, when acknowledged, brings a smoother, more abundant life. The latter is my true self, my soul, the source of my realization that 'I' know 'myself' to be—one with all of life. Not, ‘I am one with all others’, but I AM all others. Still, the battle goes on...”
“Working under the guidance of Beings more evolved than us, plus receiving the unconditional love and support of my co-workers, have been essential to my healing. My personality life has faded away. There has been a shift to a deep connection with the soul and a strong desire to express this higher aspect in all I do.”
“When I reach a higher-frequency state, it seems an inner light illumines my whole being. My perspective changes and I see human beings with new eyes and an open heart. I can forgive every wrong suffered and everything related to existence becomes clearer and more understandable. These are moments of extreme joy and wonder, when a mysterious knowing penetrates my awareness, revealing things that were otherwise incomprehensible.”
“Under the influence of a higher power, I am moving closer to the unknown and feeling safe in doing so. A process of inner transformation has been precipitated by Ashramic energies. In relationship with Those who stand above, doors have opened to the creative powers of my soul.”
“I discovered there is a kind of Geiger counter in my heart, which I understand as the soul. When I read or hear something new, if it is true for me there is a resonance in my heart. Since learning about the evolution of the soul, I understand that humanity evolves through life cycles, as the Earth does. There are small cycles and great cycles. The chaotic change happening in the world today shows that a major evolutionary cycle is drawing to a close. However, life does not end, it is transformed by the inflow of new energy. We know that something new is being birthed in the life of Earth; an expansion of consciousness is taking place that brings a transformation of substance as well.”
“We can envision the future as a Garden of Eden with seeds of divinity blossoming into life-giving and light-bearing ‘trees’. The divine seed within all creatures needs Love to fully sprout. When our hearts and minds are open, and we have the patience and perseverance to develop the qualities of the soul, divine love infuses the personality and brings transformation. This love contains the water, sunshine and nutrients that enable the seed to develop—growing upward and expanding outward, forming branches and leaves. With continued dedication and divine grace, the tree will bear flowers and fruit, and bring light into our world.”
“My whole sense of reality has been transformed:
♦ from conceptual possibility about the realm of Spirit to the certitude of its livingness
♦ from intermittent realization to constant awareness of our spiritual Elders
♦ from seeking to knowing
♦ from concerns about the outer world to finding joy in the souls of all beings and a pressing desire to help others see
♦ from shadowy imaginings to an all-embracing love beyond previous experience
♦ from fluctuating responses to life’s demands to inner peace, clarity and love that radiates from the interaction with our Elders Brothers and Sisters.”
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The Goal of the Spiritual Path:
An Essay
Love moves the Soul, and the Soul, through love, moves many things. The soul is love, as it is light, and it is will. Through the fiery will of the soul, we have the potential to grow spiritually—to transform our consciousness and our lives.
The Ageless Wisdom teachings speak of love as the outstanding quality of the human soul:
“Love is the dominating force of the soul life; through this type of energy, the soul can be in rapport with all souls.” 1
These teachings tell us that prior to awakening, the soul evolves through many life cycles or incarnations. Until the time when it makes itself felt as a “self-shining light from within,” the higher self remains buried within the forms (physical, emotional and mental) of the personality. For lifetimes, the soul bides its time in a state of latency, accumulating knowledge and understanding through the varied roles taken on by the personality in the world of form. Eventually, the ceaseless struggles of human living arouse the soul from its long slumber and the seeker begins to ask the perennial questions, starting with ‘Why?’
The first contact with the light of the soul generally occurs at points of crisis, such as severe loss or prolonged disappointment. “Through the shattering of forms come our deepest learnings,” say the wisdom teachings. Being forced to release attachments to people, circumstances, and things of this world, one begins looking for deeper answers. The search for understanding heightens awareness of the subtler realities of the world of meaning—the natural realm of the soul. Through dreams and reflections, flashes of insight and intuition, answers begin to present themselves.
When the personality is painfully confronted with fundamental choices to be wrought out in the crucible of conscience, the search for truth intensifies. As the soul shines its light more brightly on the life being lived, the ‘hidden’ activities of the personality are also seen more clearly. The fundamental choice inherent in every crisis then appears: to grow towards the soul’s light, no matter what it may reveal, or to ignore that light.
Transformation becomes possible when one recognizes the presence of the soul and pursues its greater light. On the path, we learn to see through the eyes of the soul and become an observer of life, stepping outside the patterns and parameters of the persona and seeing from a higher perspective. We learn to discriminate between the real and the unreal, the true and the false, the eternal and the transitory. Opening to the inner silence through the practice of meditation, we become aware of the soundless voice that has always been there.
As the path unfolds and the soul and persona begin to integrate, higher frequencies of light enter one’s awareness. Inevitably, this sets up a confrontation between the soul’s aspiration for greater light and the shadow of the personality. One is led to the ‘burning grounds’—painful life crises that expose the polarities in our nature and the need to resolve them. Steadily, over time, the soul illumines the psyche and loosens the fierce self-identification of the personality. Through our own pain, we learn to recognize the pain of humanity. The Christ principle or Buddha nature—the soul in each of us—comes alive and the heart experiences genuine compassion.
The spiritual path has a clear and specific goal: for the light and love of the Soul to infuse the persona. This occurs gradually on the journey of transformation, as the true Self slowly gains influence over the persona and begins to guide its responses. This influence is enhanced in a group of kindred souls. Because the soul is by nature ‘group conscious,’ aware of its inherent kinship with other souls, the disciple is drawn toward groups at a similar stage of unfoldment, and to guidance from Souls who are truly wise and have transcended the realm of earthly experience.
It takes many lifetimes for the soul to reveal its full radiance and powers. Prior to illumination, one perceives only aspects of reality, not the ultimate Reality. Helena Blavatsky offers practical insight into the shifts in perception on the Path of Ascent:
“Whatever plane our consciousness may be acting in, both we and the things belonging to that plane are, for that time, our only realities. As we rise in the scale of development, we perceive that during the stages through which we have passed we mistook shadows for realities. The upward progress of the Soul is a series of progressive awakenings, each advance bringing with it the idea that now at last, we have reached ‘reality’.” 2
With expanding consciousness, one learns the art of letting go, realizing that old identifications must yield to newer and higher ones. The soul’s growing sense of connectedness to the higher realm of Souls supports the process of letting go. With steady infusions of light, there is a more consistent registration of the presence of Elders within the Hierarchy of Light. In the deepening experience of spiritual love, one opens to a profound sense of ‘returning home to Source.’
When the goal of the Path is achieved, the once-unconscious personality is transformed into a fully conscious soul. The impact of the individual who has been thoroughly infused with light is described in the following quotation:
“Every human being who reaches the goal of light and wisdom automatically has a field of influence which extends both up and down, and which reaches both inwards to the source of light and outwards into the ‘fields of darkness.’ When he has thus attained, he will become a conscious center of life-giving force, and will be so without effort. He will stimulate, vivify to fresh efforts all lives that he contacts, be they his fellow aspirants, or an animal or a flower. He will act as a transmitter of light in the darkness. He will dispel the glamour around him and let in the 'radiance of reality’." 3
1 Bailey, Alice A., A Treatise on White Magic, adapted
2 Blavatsky, Helena P., The Secret Doctrine
3 Bailey, Alice A., A Treatise on White Magic