Monday, April 29, 2013

A.R.E. Meeting for 4/29/13


Leader: Greg
Reader: John

We read the first three sections in the chapter on "Love." Next week we will start with the section titled "The Test of Love."

The experiment for the week is:
Make an effort to experience the potential within you to love life. Try to have a feeling of trusting life. Look beneath those experiences that seem 'ugly, or heavy, or hard' for a deeper meaning and the hand of the divine. Record instances in which you are able to see life in this way.

Monday, April 22, 2013

A.R.E. Meeting for 4/22/13


Leader: Greg
Reader: Greg

We listened to the ARE audio for the chapter on "The Lord Thy God is One," and finished reading the chapter. Next week we will start the chapter on "Love."

The experiment for the week is:
Try living each day for itself. Make necessary decisions for the future, but eliminate all unneeded worry or concern for things you anticipate may happen. Trust that you will be even more capable of doing the right thing when the event actually occurs. Where it is appropriate, say to yourself, 'I don't have to decide on that right now,' and then move your attention back to what is happening around you at that moment. If possible, spend some time in nature as part of this experiment, looking for examples of how nature does things unhurriedly and one at a time. Keep a record of specific instances in which you were able to know more fully the oneness of all time by living in the present.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Edgar Cayce on the Book of Revelation


Source

Cayce’s Dream Interpretation of the Revelation

Through Cayce’s otherworldly journeys, he learned the true interpretation of the Bible. According to Cayce, the Bible is the symbolic account of the fall and restoration of the human soul to its divine origins. Genesis is the symbolic testimony of humanity’s fall from heaven and paradise lost. Revelation is the symbolic testimony of humanity’s restoration to heaven and paradise found.DivineUniversalPlan
 The Book of Revelation was written by a man named John(possibly John the Apostle) toward the end of his life. John records a vision he experiences, probably while dreaming or meditating. This vision contains a tremendous amount of symbolism; the same kind of symbolism one would see in a dream, a vision of the spirit world. In fact, the Book of Revelation contains the same symbolism found in the symbols in the Prophet Daniel’s dream. All Biblical dreams, such as those of Joseph, Gideon, Daniel, Paul, and Peter, are very symbolic and therefore had a hidden spiritual meaning rather than a literal interpretation of the symbols. Such is the case with the Book of Revelation.
During several of Cayce’s journeys into the spirit realms, he was able to unlock the secrets to the symbolism in the Book of Revelation. He gave a large amount of information specifically for the purpose of discovering the book’s hidden meaning.

Cayce described the true nature between humanity and God. Cayce revealed that humans actually have three different dimensions of human awareness: the conscious mind (personality, the subconscious mind (soul) and the superconscious mind (spirit). An important goal in everyone’s life is to awaken our superconscious mind to attain what Cayce called at-one-ment with God.
The superconscious mind is called by many names by many religions in many different cultures. Some of these names are: Buddha consciousness, Christ consciousness, the Collective Mind, the Universal Mind, the Collective Unconsciousness, the Holy Spirit, Brahman, God, the Clear White Light, Allah, Higher Self, the Mind of Christ, etc.
Cayce’s references to the Christ, the Christ consciousness and the Mind of Christ has little to do with the personality known as Jesus. Cayce revealed that Jesus became the Christ – a full manifestation of the Christ consciousness – the perfect union of the human with the divine. It is God’s desire for all of humanity to become Christs (or Buddhas if you live in the East). Such a condition will truly bring the Kingdom of God to the Earth. Cayce revealed that the Book of Revelation is the symbolic story of how humanity in general (and a human in particular) attains this manifestation of the divine.
Cayce’s symbolic interpretation about the Book of Revelation can be contained in a book all by itself. In fact, a whole book has been written about Cayce’s interpretation of Revelation. It is entitled Edgar Cayce’s Commentary on the Revelation. There is also a video on this subject from the ARE Foundation (the Cayce organization)
What follows is a very brief summary of the information he received.
Chapters 1-3:  Letters to the Churches
Literal:  John, on the island of Patmos, explains that he was in the Spirit when Christ appears to him standing in the midst of seven candlesticks. Christ then tells John to write down what he sees and hears concerning seven churches.
Interpretation:  While in meditation, John’s conscious mind becomes open to his subconscious mind and his superconscious mind. The seven churches and the seven seals represent the seven spiritual centers (i.e., chakras) of the body where the physical, mental and spiritual forces all come together. The superconscious mind within John, tells him that anyone who can regain control of these spiritual centers within their bodies can access the superconscious mind and never need to reincarnate again (Revelation 3:12). Here is a table of the symbols:
ChurchGlandSeal
EphesusGonads1
SmyrnaAyden2
PergamosAdrenals3
ThyatiraThymus4
SardisThyroid5
PhiladelphiaPineal6
LaodiceaPituitary7
Chapter 4-11:  Christ Opens the Seals of the Book in Heaven
Literal:  John now appears at the throne of God and sees four beasts and twenty-four elders around it. On the throne sits God who has a book with seven seals. John weeps when he learns that no one can open the seals to the book. One of the elders tells John that Christ is able to open the seals. Christ then opens the seals, resulting in many Earth changes. The seventh seal unleashes seven angels who sound seven trumpets which are sounded one by one.
Interpretation:  John has a mental awakening when he attains the spiritual level of the superconscious mind, within the throne of his own body. The four beasts are his four lower spiritual center’s animalistic desires and the twenty-four elders are the twenty-four nerves from his brain leading to his five senses. The superconscious mind, is now in full control of John’s body. The body is symbolized as a book with seven seals which “no one has the ability to open on his own” (Revelation 5:3). Only through the development of the superconscious mind within a person, can these spiritual centers within the body be opened (i.e., spiritually activated). 
As each spiritual center within the body is activated, different parts of the body are purified and upheavals of the body occur mentally, physically, and spiritually. The superconscious mind spiritually activates the seventh spiritual center (the Pituitary, the master gland of the body). As a result of this, it becomes “quiet in heaven for one half hour” (Revelation 8:1). This is symbolic of the perfect control of the mind for one half hour through meditation. The following are some of the symbols of Revelation interpreted by Cayce:
SymbolMeaning
Paradise of GodThe original consciousness of humanity before its fall into flesh
Tree of LifeThe spiritual centers of the body, such as the heart and the pituitary, that becomes perfectly synchronized
Angel of the ChurchThe intelligent force governing a spiritual center within the body
SatanThe force of self-centeredness, self-gratification, self-indulgence, self-importance, self-righteousness, self-consciousness, self-glorification, self-delusion, self-condemnation, self, ego, the “false god,” the “beast”
Book of LifeThe collective unconscious record (memory) of all souls
EarthThe physical body
Mountain of fire striking the EarthThe forces within the physical body which are constantly warring within
New JerusalemThe superconscious mind awakened
NakednessThe exposure of faults
Seven lampsThe wisdom of the seven spiritual centers within the body
Chapter 12-14:  A Woman, a Dragon, Two Beasts, and a Lamb
Literal:  John sees a woman with twelve stars about to bear a child. Next to the woman is a dragon that is ready to devour the child she is giving birth to. After the child is born, the child is taken to the throne of God. Afterward, a war in heaven occurs and the devil and his angels are cast out of heaven to Earth. John also sees a beast rise out of the sea which the world worships. John then sees a lamb on the Earth and angels proclaiming the fall of Babylon.
Interpretation:  John is shown a picture of the soul of humanity in its development since the days of eternity. The woman symbolizes the soul of humanity crowned with twelve stars, the twelve basic patterns of human personality as described in the zodiac. The child she bears is the conscious mind. As the conscious mind is born, a rival force of the self occurs, which brings about recurring periods of rebellion in humanity. Through divine intervention, the conscious mind is protected while the unconscious mind, from which it sprung, is withdrawn below the conscious level. This is the same story as symbolized as the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Rebellion from the physical brings conflict into the soul but the soul can remain above it by remaining concealed from the forces of self will.  
The “beast rising out of the sea” is the selfish animalistic desires that arise which are capable of ruling humanity. These desires spring from the self-will of the unspiritual intellect of humanity whom the world worships as a symbol of material success. The human intellect, lacking spiritual orientation, cuts itself off from all that is divine. The lamb that John sees are the forces of the superconscious mind in the world going into action. “Babylon,” the human desire for earthly riches and success in the gratification of the flesh, begins to be destroyed as humans are shown the consequences of their prostitution of their higher faculties.
SymbolMeaning
Seven candlesticks, seven spiritsPerfection, the divine number
SixImperfection, the number for humanity
Mark of the beastThe unevolved animalistic force within humans
Mark of the lambThe evolved divine force within humans
666The unevolved animalistic force affecting the triune nature of humans (body, mind, spirit)
Chapter 15-18:  Seven Angels, Seven Vials of Seven Plagues, and a Prostitute Riding a Seven-Headed Beast
Literal:  John is shown seven angels each of whom holds a vial containing a plague which they pour upon the Earth one at a time. John then sees a woman sitting on a seven-headed beast with ten horns. The woman wears on her forehead the name Mystery, Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth. John is told the seven heads symbolize the seven mountains on which the woman sits and the ten horns symbolize ten kings. These make war against the lamb and the lamb conquers.
Interpretation:  John is seeing within the soul of humanity, the collective unconscious, that the souls of individuals are purified and tested on seven levels of consciousness symbolized by the seven plagues being poured out by the seven angels. When all seven levels of consciousness have been purified, then and only then can a person control the physical, mental, and spiritual forces within his body.
Physical diseases arise from the misuse of the forces and self-gratification of the flesh, wars against universal truth. This brings about conflict in the world against groups and governments. The end of the seven ordeals comes when humanity’s social institutions and concepts collapse, leaving universal truth to be realized.
The Prostitute of Babylon symbolizes humanity’s desire lust for riches and gratification of the flesh. The beast it rides on are man-made ideas stemming from self-gratification. It is explained to John that these forces have taken control of the seven spiritual centers of the human body, thereby becoming possessed and ruled. However, as the highest forces of evolving humanity overcome the forces of self, even the ten basic urges of the body, symbolized by the ten horns, will in time fulfill the divine pattern. As the divine nature in humanity becomes less realized, society is destroyed by its own hand through self-gratification.
SymbolMeaning
Seven plaguesThe purification and tribulation experienced by souls in order to overcome negative karma
Vials of God’s wrathKarma, eye for an eye, sowing and reaping, the consequences of our negative acts
ArmageddonThe spiritual conflict within humans
False prophetSelf-delusion
Chapter 19-22:  Rejoicing in Heaven, the Devil Thrown into a Bottomless Pit, a New Heaven and New Earth
Literal:  John now sees much rejoicing in heaven and the appearance of Christ. An angel casts the devil into a bottomless pit for one thousand years. John then sees a new heaven and a new Earth come into being.
Interpretation:  What was the final salvation of the bodily, mental, and spiritual forces described within John, now are shown to take place in collective humanity. When humanity recognizes the divinity within them as the controlling force in the world, and turns away from their own selfish pattern of living for self alone, the old pattern disappears and the Christ pattern emerges.
John is told that the merging of the evolved self with the divine superconscious, which has taken place in John, must also take place in all humanity (Revelation 19:7). The fulfilled pattern of evolved humanity, the Christ (i.e., superconscious mind), is now shown in a position of power (the so-called “second coming of Christ”).
Now the archetype of humanity’s continual rebellions, the self-willed intellect symbolized as the “devil”, is confined for a time in the collective unconscious mind. During this period of one thousand years (the 1000 year reign of Christ), only the evolved souls will be permitted to incarnate the Earth (Revelation 20:4). At the end of this period, the remaining souls begin to incarnate, bringing with them their unsatisfied ambitions and desires. This, of course, brings about the former conditions of imbalance (wars and plagues). These conditions, all man-made, are now themselves eliminated and all mental forms and patterns not formed by divine will are purged (Revelation 20:14).
The “new heaven and new Earth” John sees is humanity’s perfected state of consciousness and regenerated body. The human mind at this point is now one with the divine in the perfection of control and is free from outside limitations. The human conscious mind merges with the superconscious mind.
John states that if anyone adds or takes away from this book, that person will experience the plagues in this book. The book is the body, which is the vehicle for human experience in the world. Through it, the lessons of the soul are learned. There can be no shortcuts or meanderings without dire consequences to the body.
SymbolMeaning
Marriage of the LambThe union of the body and mind with the Christ consciousness
Word of GodThe Gnostic “logos,” the Christ consciousness, the fully evolved pattern for humanity
Lake of FireThe subconscious mind’s area of repression, the “id”
The first resurrectionThe reincarnation of advanced souls to Earth
Gog and MagogWorldly influences
The dead in judgmentReincarnating souls
HellRemorse, self-condemnation, guilt and frustration
The second deathThe destruction of all man-made unevolved conditions
12 tribes of Israel,
12 gates, 12 angels,
12 foundations,
12 disciples
The 12 basic patterns of the human personality as revealed in the Zodiac
Temple of GodThe superconscious mind, the Christ consciousness
New JerusalemThe evolved soul in one-ness with divinity
“The conquering of self is truly greater than were one to conquer many worlds.” - Edgar Cayce

Monday, April 15, 2013

A.R.E. Meeting for 4/15/13


Leader: Greg
Reader: Eric

We read one section in "The Lord Thy God is One" chapter and we are now up to the "Personal Experiences" section.

The experiment for the week is:
In your daily contacts with others, imagine that they are part of your immediate family. If you feel apathetic or upset with someone, try to imagine how you might feel more caring or tolerant if that person were a close and beloved family member (e.g., a sister, brother, father, aunt, etc.) Then try to act on that new feeling. Record instances in which you try this experiment. Write the person's name (unless it is someone you don't know), the family member status you imagine for him, and how you acted on the feeling.
For example:
  person: a stranger I was sitting next to on the bus
  family status imagined: that she was my sister
  action: I struck up a friendly conversation with her instead of just sitting there silently next to  her.

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Sunspots and Earth Changes

In 1935, a 29-year-old man asked Cayce about the possibility of cataclysmic earth changes. The reading connected potential disaster with the actions, thoughts, and deeds of humankind. Cayce said, in part: "Tendencies in the hearts and souls of men are such that these [disasters/cataclysms] may be brought about. For … man – by his compliance with divine law – bring[s] order out of chaos … by his disregard … bring[s] chaos and destructive forces into his experience." (416-7)


On another occasion, Cayce made the astonishing observation that the phenomenon of "sunspots" was inextricably connected to instability and turmoil upon the planet earth itself. In fact, the readings state that whenever war, strife, and turmoil occurred in the affairs of humankind, sunspots would occur as a natural consequence. 

“The more ye become aware of thy relationships to the universe and those influences that control same, the greater thy ability to help...even as to the sun which reflects those turmoils that arise with thee; even as the earthquake, even as wars and hates, even as the influences in thy life day by day. Then, what are the sun spots? A natural consequence of that turmoil which the sons of God in the earth reflect upon same.” (5757-1)
In other words, instability among people leads to instability upon the planet and throughout the universe!


When a 40-year-old woman asked for more information about herself and her relationship to the universe, the response came that for all individuals everything that was out of accord with spirit and divine laws somehow had an impact upon the heavens itself. In the language of the readings: "For, faults and failures, sin and sorrow, are the outgrowth of disobedience to the divine law, and influence the heavens in the experiences of individual souls!" (2408-1)

Knowing that we are the cause of this earthly activity, how can we change it?  Cayce said:
“Change thy attitude to this: Know that what is in the heavens, even, did not produce a single characteristic in an individual soul; but that the individual soul, as a part of God…wrought the changes that are signified in the activities at the time of materialization into a three-dimensional consciousness. For, faults and failures, sin and sorrow, are the outgrowth of disobedience to the divine law, and influence the heavens in the experiences of individual souls!” ( 2408-1)

Monday, April 8, 2013

A.R.E. Meeting for 4/8/13


Leader: Greg
Reader: Sylvia & Greg

We read the first two sections in "The Lord Thy God is One" chapter and we are up to the section "The At-onement Through Jesus, the Christ." We also read through the first three sections with quotes in the Experiments book.

The experiment for the week is:
Examine your life and choose one way in which you are using energy which is not in accord with your ideals. This can be an emotional, attitudinal or active way of using energy. Write down what you select. Then demonstrate in your daily life your understanding of the inherent oneness of all force by transforming that energy to a more loving or constructive form. Record your experiences.
Example: Feeling frustrated and angry with other drivers who are discourteous.
Transformation: Changing your expression of the one energy by sending out to those people a prayer instead of thoughts of anger.

Monday, April 1, 2013

A.R.E. Meeting for 4/1/13

Leader: Greg
Reader: None

We listened to an A.R.E. audio recording about The Cross and the Crown and discussed the experiment for last week. Unfortunately, we ran out of time, so we did not make our way into "The Lord Thy God is One" chapter this week.

For an experiment, determine what you need most to work on, and do it this coming week.