The road to ascension
Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet." Albert Einstein
For your reading pleasure from The Ascension Primer":
"Say That Again?
- The main theme or process of ascension involves letting go or undoing all that has been created before. The perfect ascension mantra is "give it up, give it up, give it up".
- When we undo, let go, or purge and release, we are emptying out and leaving much more room for Source to enter and fill us up. We are also returning to our original purified and pristine state....the state that we arrived in when our souls were first created.
- The ascension process is providing us with many opportunities to let go, as we cannot do it through will of the mind....we must experience it in full living color which creates a new state of being. The most common < ways of letting go are through:
o Intolerance and apathy
o Darkness and contrast
o A dark night of the soul
o Exhaustion
o Energy shifts
o A health crisis
o Loss of employment
o Not participating in the old systems
But there is much, much more to letting go and arriving in a higher state of being. This transmutation process of vibrating higher and evolving creates some strange, intense, and at times frightening experiences for most of us. And thus come the ascension symptoms.
HAVE YOU EVER been in the middle of a compelling conversation and suddenly you could not remember or access the simplest of words or names? Do you find yourself eating several times a day, as your blood sugar levels feel as though they are plummeting? Have you had periods where you could not sleep all night or maybe awakened regularly between 2 and 4 a.m...or also had periods where you slept like a log all night and during the day could not keep your eyelids open?
Or perhaps you intermittently experience overwhelming feelings of no sense of place. Ever looked in the mirror and not know who in the world you are looking at? Have you had periods of time where you have lost all your passion, felt deflated and lethargic, could not muster up the energy to do a thing, and simply did not care anymore?
If you have experienced any of these scenarios, you are most certainly not alone. For most of us, the ascension symptoms are perhaps the most universal, yet at the same time, the most baffling and frightening as well. With no frame of reference for what we are experiencing, we may even feel that we are developing some kind of mental disorder, or really losing it. In fact, this is basically true, as we are losing it! We are losing all the denser and lower vibrating aspects of ourselves.
Many times going to a doctor can prove futile as the mainstream medical community has not seen and has no reference for most of these symptoms. The majority of the time, the symptoms eventually go away on their own without any kind of treatment. But there are also times when seeing a doctor can be beneficial as well. And always remember, that not all our strange and uncomfortable physical, mental, and spiritual maladies can be attributed to ascension symptoms. Sometimes a cigar is simply just a cigar.
Although the ascension symptoms vary from individual to individual, many of them are fairly universal. If you are having a strange symptom or experience that is not listed here, you are not alone. Each of us is wired differently and will experience this rapid and intense process according to who we are, how we view things, what we believe, and how connected and open we are to Source and the higher dimensions.
What we believe determines how we run our energy. The filter that we run our energy through, or what we are about, will greatly affect and determine our ascension process. One of the greatest and easiest things we can do to promote a gentler ascension process is to not take things personally. This process cannot be avoided. We agreed to it because we knew we could handle it, and we are all in this together. Nothing is attacking you personally. You are not being abandoned, stomped on, ignored, or punished. You have not done anything wrong. You are not a bad person. On the contrary, you are having this experience because of the grand and exquisite person that you are! Your bravery, strength, and dedication are very highly revered by every living thing in the universe.
This monumental experience of ascension is a unique, powerful, and amazing experience that is paving the way for all others to follow. By breaking the new ground, you are making things much easier for all who come after you. Bless you...as you are truly divine.
And know that as you progress through your ascension process, your inner child and your ego begin to diminish. In this way, the process becomes much, much easier as time goes on. You will arrive at a place, if you haven't already, where you will be able to simply observe what is going on within you from the outside. "Oh, another symptom is here," you may think or "here comes another energy surge!" As the ascension process is so on-going, you will eventually become so familiar with all its' aspects that it is really no big deal anymore. As you hobble around half dead, you get used to it (smile)! And you will come to learn that it will not kill you. You may be dying while you are alive and may feel downright strange and uncomfortable at times, but these feelings always pass. And as we are so gradually moving into all the feel good energy and feel good states of being, things get better and better.
In the beginning, our density and the density of the planet is being broken up and moving out. Because it is up and around us, this is all we see and experience for awhile. But it gets better and better... and we have made so much progress already! In the end you will find that it is all worth it.
Generally speaking, our bodies, minds, and spirits are going to higher levels. They are losing their density. In order to "die" or go to a higher dimension where the frequencies are much higher, one has to "fit." You can't put a square peg into a round hole. And you can't squeeze a dense blob of energy through a delicate screen. While making this amazing transition into the higher realms while in a physical body, much is taking place as we are transmuting, so to speak. And as we raise our frequencies higher and higher (lighter matter vibrates at a higher rate), we are at times here in this old 3D reality and at times in a higher dimension.
In the higher dimensions, things are very different. We aren't used to being there while we are still inhabiting our old 3D vehicle, with an old 3D mind and way of thinking. And the physical level is always the last to be affected and to change when any kind of change occurs. And much change is occurring!
So then, our bodies are transmuting and becoming lighter and lighter and purer and purer. This can cause many various physical aches and pains as anything vibrating lower (especially old traumas and injuries or even unbalanced health situations) feel it the most. When the higher energy moves in, and we are receiving higher and higher energy every day, it affects anything that is of a lower vibration. And the lower the
vibration, the more it is felt.
Our minds are beginning to see new realities and higher ways of being and living through this process. As the layer of density that has clouded our thinking becomes thinner and thinner, it is as if we gain great clarity and insights and can finally see what really is...and at times, we may not know where we are! Through this process, our emotions are also affected. When we suddenly begin to open, it can be quite dramatic and quite unfamiliar to us. And our spirits are becoming closer and closer to Source as we begin to remember what it is all about. Heightened levels of love, compassion, and gratitude are some of the aspects of the ascension process that I enjoy the most.
Because we are returning to Source and the original purified version of our souls, much is involved in the undoing process. What an exciting adventure and wild ride it is!
TOOLS FOR COMFORT
"SOMETHING TERRIBLE must be wrong with me." "I think I am dying." "This is the strangest thing I have ever experienced." "I think I am losing my mind." "Any doctor would think I am crazy and never understand." "I am losing my foothold and can't seem to get it together." "I really don't fit in now. Why is everyone else going along fine in their lives, and I am having these weird and unsettling feelings and emotions?" "I don't belong here anymore." "What else could possibly happen?" "I can't take anymore." "I'm all alone." "No one else understands." "Everyone else is in some other place having another experience and I am...I know not where, but it is neither here nor there." "I feel just plain strange." "Things in the world are seemingly getting worse and worse and nothing seems to ever change or get better." "I am so confused. Nothing makes any sense anymore and I don't know what is going on with anything."
Hmmmmmm...how about some more thoughts: "Wow. Everyone I know is experiencing hell. I'm sure glad I'm done with that." "I've never felt so much peace and freedom in my life. I feel as though I am away from all the yucky stuff." "It's sure calm here. I feel at one with nature and the cosmos, and so very connected and powerful." "Every night I sleep like a
If you haven't already, you will go from paragraph one to paragraph two. It can be hard to imagine the reality of paragraph two when you are in paragraph one. When we are really in a space, it can feel as though that is all there is. But things always pass."
WHAT IS ASCENSION ?
Sandy Stevenson 
Ascension is a natural and normal part of the evolutionary process of the Universe. It has always been so and will probably continue until it is no longer necessary as a universal process.
Therefore any ideas of this process being something new or weird, usually means that this concept hasn't been understood. When the real meaning of this concept is not grasped, we get separation and terms such as `the Ascension'. Let's look more carefully at what Ascension is.
Experiential growth
Evolution is basically a continuing growth through learning in many forms. This growth comes about through greater spiritual wisdom, compassion, tolerance, integrity, true understanding and such qualities that lead us to Unconditional Love.
Energy and vibrations
Each person has their own unique energy vibration and it is this we are recognizing when we feel someone is instantly familiar or we are immediately comfortable with someone. Whilst each being always holds this special energy, the overall vibrational field of a being alters - depending on the current level of evolution he or she is at. Our individual vibrational band as a being decides the world we see. All dimensions exist `Now' but we can only see things that lay within the vibrational band of Light that we resonate with - that matches us. Wisdom and love raise ones vibration, taking it from dense, slower moving frequencies to faster finer frequencies.
An evolutionary stage
Ascension is merely a stage in this evolutionary process and involves reaching a place where one is ready to raise oneself to the frequency of Light, whereby the fifth dimension becomes accessible and visible.
It is not something for the `chosen few', but is available to every being in the entire universe. It is obtained on an individual basis, within the time frame that being chooses to experience his or her growth. It is inevitably gained by everyone at some point or another.
A natural transition
One does not need to understand the process or to have ever heard the word Ascension in order to ascend. It is simply a word that is used by some to define this particular step of ones growth.
All stages of evolution are wonder-ful and contain their own special beauty and wisdom. However, it is felt by many that Ascension is a special stage as it involves the transition from a third dimensional reality of duality and its relevant learning, to an awareness of oneness, harmony and love.
Moving to the fifth dimension, one passes through the fourth and releases all buried emotion and thought that has too dense a vibration to permit the being to raise him or herself and his lower subtle bodies, into the higher frequencies of Light.
Universal manifestation
Those attaining Ascension in past times, have allowed the physical body to `die' and having increased the vibration of the subtle bodies, raised themselves into the fifth dimension. There is now an opportunity to change this universal pattern and ascend all our lower bodies, bringing a new pattern of ascension into Universal Manifestation. For the first time in this universe, there is a possibility for those choosing it, to increase the vibratory rate of the molecular structure of the physical body. As in all new things presented to humanity, the idea may well seem `way out' and impossible. Not so long ago, talking to someone thousands of miles away or walking on the moon, would have seemed impossible.
Earth attaining Ascension
The planet Earth is currently attaining a state of ascension. The Being who has Earth as her body (much the same as humans have theirs) has reached a point where she is choosing this major step in her evolution. She is currently releasing all condensed and negative energy and raising her entire physical form and its surrounding subtle bodies (which she has just the same as the human beings). All that which is part of the Earth and identifies itself with her such as the flora and fauna operating in the natural flow of the universe, simply moves with her. Any life stream that has separated or is not a natural part of that Earth, who has evolved to a point of `free will and choice' to decide its own movement - may or may not choose to Ascend. Human beings and some animals are definitely in this category.
Evolutionary opportunity
At this special time of planetary evolution an opportunity exists for every individual within the entire Earth structure, currently incarnated or not, to choose to release all the lower levels of density and move from a reality based on materialism and separation to one based within the heart center and oneness of all life.
This opportunity is available on such a broad scale to all humanity, because the Earth is ascending. Usually Ascension is obtained by the individual without being able to use the planet's increasing frequency to assist their own momentum towards Ascension. Everything is in Divine order and those on Earth at this time are destined to be able to tune into this assistance. Other planets in the universe have previously attained ascension and now it is our Earth that is doing so.
Linking with the Divine
Anyone may choose at this time to re-link with their Divine source, release their patterns of limitation, release judgement and separation and move into the loving place of the heart. It does require a real commitment and a discipline and determination. It is achieved by following spirit in any given moment. This means following the heart and moving only with what feels right, usually accompanied by interest or excitement. If one continues to move in patterns dictated by the mind, often out of fear and need for security and all of the `shoulds' and musts' contained within its belief patterns, you will not be allowing yourself to feel in the heart that which resonates as true and in the Divine flow of the universe.
The Earth was once a perfect ball of evenly distributed energy. She agreed to share a learning process with mankind, as he began a learning through `limitation'. In carrying out this learning man has caused an uneven distribution of this energy, through various means such as negative thought, rainforest destruction, pollution, etc.
Learning through limitation
The process of learning through limitation has reached deep levels of restriction. Many now, no longer remember that they are a spiritual being and child of God, part of a Divine source and connected to all living things with all being brother and sister. Man also no longer realises that he creates his own reality and hence his own world. This pattern has been taken to its greatest learning potential and its learning could be considered by many to be complete.
Earth's agreement
Earth agreed to this joint learning with man and had a deep understanding of the various possibilities that could happen. This Being operates from a place of love and does not feel she is a `victim' or feels anger about the apparent destruction of areas upon her form. Everything in the universe is done by agreement. Everything. She watches with love and perceives the struggle within man to overcome all the barriers he has set himself.
The Earth now needs to bring all the energy within her structure back into a perfect ball and raised in frequency in order to make her Ascension. She is quite capable of doing this. The way she does it is dependant on the amount of Light she receives in. She tries to release these areas as gently as possible and we can assist this by focusing Light in and across the Earth, creating positive and healing patterns around the world.
The power of unified prayer
Prayer also has always been a form of connection to the Divine Source of all and we know this links to the power of God.
Some feel they wish to help the Earth in a more practical way and this is also helping greatly. She is grateful for all these forms of help.
If sufficient Light is taken into help this transmutation, she does not then need to correct the energy imbalance in a geophysical manner, such as through earthquakes, floods, etc.
In her love and compassion for all life upon Earth and for her own comfort, she would naturally prefer to have a pain and trauma free transition. As we know most mothers would choose the gentlest birth possible. She is no exception and doesn't enjoy the pain of cracks and upheavals in her structure or the added trauma of human suffering.
Let go and let God
Everyone on Earth is special and unique and each has their own role to play in the overall scheme of things. If each one follows that which feels right to say or do, then each will be carrying out their part in that plan. If instead, you permit yourself to do that which you `should do' often through guilt, you are quite liable to be stepping outside of your agreements. It is time to Let Go And Let God. By doing this, you will be truly taking responsibility.
If it feels right for you to help the dolphins, save the rainforests, increase awareness of child abuse, or do nothing...the range is endless...understand that because this is right for you, it does not have to mean that it is right for others also. Each has their own task to do and if you permit yourself to be talked into what you should be doing' you will not therefore carry out what you are really meant to be doing in that moment. If you do what feels right in the heart from a place of love and not from fear or guilt then you can trust that you are in the flow of Divinity. From that place you can intuitively sense the next move.
The power of positivity
Another way to assist the Earth is by keeping our own auric field (aura) clear and free of negativity. We can then allow Light to pass through the energy centers (chakras) of the body, down into The Earth. You can keep this field clear through a discipline of only permitting positive thought, pure intent, use of affirmations, non judgment, moving from the `head' to the `heart', realizing that all are brother and sister and becoming more loving. There are various products available that assist in raising vibration and help clear the lower bodies. There are color, sound, crystals, oils and many natural essences in use for these purposes such as Bach Flower remedies, Aura Light and Avatar Harmony essences. As regards any assistance via products or indeed from any source, take only that which resonates and feels right for you. Each of us have different needs and whereas one may find that aromatherapy produces miracles, another may simply need more peace or to look at the area of self love. Many paths are available for there are many different people with as many different needs. By following our intuition we can lead ourselves to increased awareness and higher levels of evolution.
A time of choice
It is time on this planet for everyone to make a choice about the sort of world they wish to live in. One of peace and love or the current world we see now upon the Earth.
In the current third dimensional reality on Earth, one learns compassion, understanding and love through experiencing every conceivable situation in life, ranging from poverty and struggle to wealth and power. This involves learning to rise above the limitations set by ourselves prior to the incarnation, thereby gaining strength and wisdom. Finally, as one ceases to judge and realizes `I am my brothers' keeper' and that in truth, everyone is a brother - he or she moves to a place of peace and unconditional love.
Many now feel that they have learned sufficiently in this realm and would choose to release the various patterns belonging to limitation learning and move on up to higher levels of learning.
Learning goes on through higher dimensions, but it is through greater harmony and less solid types of experience. Whilst joy and peace are obtainable on the third dimension, these things are a matter of course on the higher dimensions.
The Golden Age
Choices are being made across the Earth by everyone. As the planetary vibrations continue to increase; all old rigid structures and systems across the Earth either change their basis of operation to one of love, or they crumble and cease to be. All buried thought and emotion is being released individually - nationally - internationally and planetary. All remaining karma is being balanced out across the face of the Earth and everyone who chooses Love, is Light-ening up, as their vibration moves into higher frequencies.
It is time to step free of fears and the myriad of belief patterns that keep us so boxed in our world of structure and control. Time to move forward in trust and faith knowing there are worlds beyond that which we can see with our eyes.
We now approach the new millennium, the Golden Age of peace and love, predicted by so many philosophies and religions for so long. It is shown on the ancient Mayan Calendar and known deep within the heart of many, many millions working in the Light of God.
A wonderful new world dawns on the horizon, bathed in the splendor of the Gold Ray of the Christ Consciousness, as we who choose it so, come home.
What is the Awakening? 
We incarnate with no memories or direction, everyone reawakens at the right time for them.
Some Symptoms Of Energy Shifts
Headaches
Flu-like symptoms
Nausea, loose bowel movements, diarrhea
Muscle aches and joint pain
Depression
Crying for no reason, and feeling emotionally vulnerable
Fluttering, pain in the heart area, or breathing problems
Hot flashes and night and day sweats
Extreme tiredness
Excessive energy
Weight gain
Losing your memory or feeling spacey
Extreme sensitivity
Blowing light bulbs and electronics
Animal reactions
Food changes
SYMPTOMS OF SPIRITUAL AWAKENING
1. Changing sleep patterns
2. Activity at the crown
3. Sudden waves of emotion
4. Old "stuff" seems to be coming up
5. Changes in weight
6. Changes in eating habits
7. Food intolerance's, allergies you never had before
8. Amplification of the senses
9. Skin eruptions
10. Episodes of intense energy followed by periods of lethargy and fatigue
11 Changes in prayer and meditation
12. Power surges
13. A range of physical manifestations
14. Looking younger
15. Vivid dreams
16. Events that completely alter your life
17. A desire to break free from restrictive patterns, life- draining jobs, consumptive lifestyles, and toxic people or situations
18. Emotional and mental confusion
19. Introspection, solitude and loss of interest in more extroverted activities
20. Creativity bursts
21. A perception that time is accelerating
22. A sense of impetuousness
23. Impatience
24. A deep yearning for meaning, purpose, spiritual connection, and revelation
25. A sense that you are somehow different
26. "Teachers" appear everywhere
27. You find a spiritual track that makes sense to you
28. You are moving through learning and personal issues at a rapid pace
29. Invisible presences
30. Portents, visions, "illusions", numbers and symbols
31. Increased integrity
32. Harmony with seasons and cycles
33. Electrical and mechanical malfunctions
34. Increased synchronicity and many other small miracles
35. Increased intuitive abilities and altered states of consciousness
36. Communication with Spirit
37. A sense of Oneness with all
38. Moments of joy and bliss
39. Integration
40. Living with purpose
41. Feeling closer to animals, rock, and plants
42. Seeing beings of other dimensions
43. Seeing a person's true form
44. Physically manifesting thoughts and desires
45. Left-brain fogginess
46. Dizziness
47. Falling, having accidents, breaking bones
48. Heart palpitations
49. Faster hair and nail growth
50. A desire to find your soul mate or twin flame
51. Memories surface
52. Other chakra openings
Signs of Your Awakening Divinity
Body aches and pains, especially in the neck, shoulder and back.
Crying for no apparent reason
Sudden change in job or career.
Unusual sleep patterns.
Intense dreams
Physical disorientation.
Increased "self talk."
Feelings of loneliness, even when in the company of others.
Loss of passion.
A deep longing to go Home
Are you feeling the Quickening?
Ancient prophecies predicted it. Indigenous traditions honor it. Changes within the Earth are affecting our sleep patterns, relationships, the ability to regulate your immune system and your perception of time. We are living a process of initiation that was demonstrated over 2,000 years ago, preparing you to accept tremendous change within your body. That change is happening now.
SOME POSSIBLE EFFECTS OF THE CHANGES
� Migraine headaches, tiredness
� Electrical sensations in the limbs and spinal column
� Cramps in the muscular networks
� Flu like symptoms
� Intense dreams.
� The human body will become more sensitive as a result of the new vibrations.
� The resonance of Earth (Schumann Resonance) has been 7.8Hz for thousands of years. Since 1980 it has risen to over 12Hz. This means that 16 hours now equate to a 24 hour day. Time is speeding up!
� The physical body has already begun to change. A new light body is being created.
� Our DNA is being re-programmed from the Universe (as predicted in the Mayan Prophecy). .We are going from 2 strand back to 12 strand DNA.
� Greater intuitive and healing abilities will emerge.
� Eyes will become cat like in order to adjust to the new atmosphere and light.
� All newly born children will probably be telepathic at birth.
� All plagues of the 90's, including AIDS will be gone.
ARE YOU GOING WITH THE FLOW?
There is a flow and cycle for all things including life itself: birth, death and rebirth. Emotions, creativity, and our bodies all have their own cycle, too. In the world, signs direct us on our way in life. Traffic lights tell us to walk (or not), geese fly south ushering in the coming winter, and our soul urges us to follow its calling in any given moment. We know how to read these signs of nature, weather and spirit; they help to guide us on our journey. When you allow yourself to sink into the natural rhythm of life, you know it.
12 Signposts Of Spiritual Development
1. A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than on fears based on past experience.
2. An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment.
3. A loss of interest in judging other people.
4. A loss of interest in judging self.
5. A loss in interest in interpreting the actions of others.
6. A loss of interest in conflict.
7. A loss of ability to worry.
8. Frequent overwhelming episodes of appreciation.
9. Frequent attacks of smiling.
10. An increased tendency to let things happen, instead of making them happen.
11. An increasing susceptibility to the love extended by others.
12. The uncontrollable urge to extend love to others yourself.
~ Author Unknown
We Are The New Civilization
We are here.
We are waking up now, out of the past, to dream a bigger dream.
We are friends and equals, we are diverse and unique, and we're united
for something bigger than our differences.
We believe in freedom and cooperation, abundance and harmony.
We are a culture emerging, a renaissance of the essence of humanity.
We find our own guidance, and we discern our own truth.
We go in many directions, and yet we refuse to disperse.
We have many names, we speak many languages.
We are local, we are global.
We are in all regions of the world, we're everywhere in the air.
We are universe being aware of itself, we are the wave of evolution.
We are in every child's eyes, we face the unknown with wonder and excitement.
We are messengers from the future, living in the present.
We come from silence, and we speak our truth.
We cannot be quieted, because our voice is within everyone.
We have no enemies, no boundaries can hold us.
We respect the cycles and expressions of nature, because we are nature.
We don't play to win, we play to live and learn.
We act out of inspiration, love and integrity.
We explore, we discover, we feel, and we laugh.
We are building a world that works for everyone.
We endeavor to live our lives to their fullest potential.
We are independent, self-sufficient and responsible.
We relate to each other in peace, with compassion and respect, we unite in community.
We celebrate the wholeness within and around us all.
We dance to the rhythm of creation.
We weave the threads of the new times.
We are the new civilization.
~ unknown author
Merkabah: The Chariot of Ascension
The Merkaba Field is a permanent and highly ordered Merkabic structure of inter-connected
electro-magnetic counter-rotating energy spirals that exist as an integral part of ALL CREATION.
Mer-Ka-Ba Meditation
"Mer" means Light. "Ka" means Spirit. "Ba" means Body.
MerKaBa is a Hebrew term meaning Chariot. Prophet Ezekiel described the Chariot of Light in the first chapter of the Book of Ezekiel. When he first encountered Lord, He was riding a four wheeled chariot driven by four evangelists each of them having four faces, four wings and calf The vehicle had Beryl colored wheels. This description is an imagery and the evangelists described are analogies. It should not be taken literally.
Various are the ways in which God reveals Himself in this world.
Mer-Ka-Ba means counter rotating fields of light or energy surrounding body and Spirit. Merkaba meditation activates the spiraling energy fields of consciousness that moves us from one reality to another. It shifts our awareness to heightened state of awareness. Merkaba field is made up of 2 star shaped tetrahedrons. Each tetrahedron rotates in opposite directions. These tetrahedrons are divided into male tetrahedron and female tetrahedron. Male tetrahedron has its apexes facing upwards and front respectively. Female tetrahedron has its apexes facing downwards and back.
We all have a Merkaba energy field around us. While activated, they spin around our body at the speed of light. It can extend as far as 55 feet from the body. As a result we experience expanded state of awareness. Such higher rate of vibrational frequency connects us with the other dimensions of reality.
When Merkaba meditation is performed correctly, male and female aspects of our selves are balanced and integrated. Intuitive and receptive aspect of self merges with the active and dynamic aspect of self. As a result we feel whole and complete.
Merkaba, also spelled Merkabah, is the divine light vehicle allegedly used by ascended masters to connect with and reach those in tune with the higher realms. "Mer" means Light. "Ka" means Spirit. "Ba" means Body. Mer-Ka-Ba means the spirit/body surrounded by counter-rotating fields of light, (wheels within wheels), spirals of energy as in DNA, which transports spirit/body from one dimension to another....
Wheels Within Wheels
In medieval Judaism, the beginning of the book of Ezekiel was regarded as the most mystical passage in the Bible, and its study was discouraged, except by mature individuals with an extensive grounding in the study of traditional Jewish texts.
Jewish biblical commentaries emphasize that the imagery of the Merkaba is not meant to be taken literally; rather the chariot and its accompanying angels are analogies for the various ways that God reveals Himself in this world.
Maimonides in his 13 principles of faith emphasizes that God is not limited to any particular form, as this prophesy might seem to imply.
Chassidic philosophy and Kaballah explain at length what each aspect of this vision represents in this world, and how they in no way imply that God is made up of these forms. The danger of understanding these passages as literal descriptions of God's image likely accounts for the opposition among Torah scholars towards learning this topic without the proper initiation. Jews customarily read the Biblical passages concerning the Merkaba in their synagogues every year on the holiday of Shavuot.
History
The earliest merkabah speculations were exegetical expositions of the prophetic visions of God in the heavens, and the divine retinue of angels, hosts, and heavenly creatures surrounding God. The earliest evidence suggests that merkabah homiletics did not give rise to ascent experiences - as one rabbinic sage states: "Many have expounded upon the merkabah without ever seeing it" (Tosefta' Megillah 3[4]:28).
The Talmudic interdictions concerning merkabah speculation are numerous and widely held. Discussions concerning the merkabah were limited to only the most worthy sages, and admonitory legends are preserved about the dangers of overzealous speculation concerning the merkabah. The sages Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakkai (d. ca. 80 CE) and later, Rabbi Akiva (d. 135) were deeply involved in merkabah speculation. Rabbi Akiva and his contemporary Rabbi Ishmael ben Elisha are most often the protagonists of later merkabah ascent literature.
Beyond the rabbinic community, Jewish apocalyptists also engaged in visionary speculations concerning the divine realm and the divine creatures which are remarkably similar to the rabbinic material. A small number of texts unearthed at Qumran indicate that the Dead Sea community also engaged in merkabah speculation. Recently uncovered Jewish mystical texts also evidence a deep affinity with the rabbinic merkabah homilies. Recently, considerable scholarly attention has been paid to the use of merkabah themes in early Jewish-Christian circles.
The merkabah homilies eventually consisted of detailed descriptions of multiple layered heavens (usually seven in number), often guarded over by angels, and encircled by flames and lightning. The highest heaven contains seven palaces (hekhalot), and in the innermost palace resides a supreme divine image (God's Glory or an angelic image) seated on a throne, surrounded by awesome hosts who sing God's praise.
When these images were combined with an actual mystical experiential motif of individual ascent (paradoxically called "descent" in most texts) and union is not precisely known. By inference, contemporary historians of Jewish mysticism usually date this development to the third century CE. Again, there is a significant dispute amongst historians over whether these ascent and unitive themes were the result of some "foreign," usually Gnostic, influence, or a natural progression of religious dynamics within rabbinic Judaism.
The Biblical Merkaba in Depth
According to the verses in Ezekiel and its attendant commentaries, the analogy of the Mekaba image consists of a chariot made of many angels being driven by the "Likeness of a Man." Four angels form the basic structure of the chariot. These angels are called the "Chayot".
The bodies of the "Chayot" are like that of a human being, but each of them had four faces, corresponding to the four directions the chariot can go (north, east south and west). The faces are that of a man, a lion, an ox (later changed to a child or cherub) and an eagle. Since there are four angels and each has four faces, there are a total of 16 faces. Each Chayot angel also has four wings.
Two of these wings spread across the length of the chariot and connected with the wings of the angel on the other side.
This created a sort of 'box' of wings that formed the perimeter of the chariot. With the remaining two wings, each angel covered its own body.
Below, but not attached to the feet of the "Chayot" angels are other angels that are shaped like wheels. These wheel angels, which are described as "a wheel inside of a wheel", are called "Ophannim" - wheels, cycles or ways).
These wheels are not directly under the chariot, but are nearby and along its perimeter much like the wheels of a car. The angel with the face of the man is always on the east side and looks up at the "Likeness of a Man" that drives the chariot. The "Likeness of a Man" sits on a throne made of sapphire.
The Bible later makes mention of a third type of angel found in the Merkaba called "Seraphim" (lit. burning) angels. These angels appear like flashes of fire continuously ascending and descending.
These "Seraphim" angels functioned somewhat like pistons in that they powered the movement of the chariot. In the hierarchy of these angels, "Seraphim" are the highest, that is, closest to God, followed by the "Chayot", which are followed by the "Ophannim".
The chariot is in a constant state of motion, and the energy behind this movement runs according to this heirarchy. The movement of the "Ofanim" is controlled by the "Chayot" while the movement of the "Chayot" is controlled by the "Serafim". The movement of all the angels of the chariot are controlled by the "Likeness of a Man" on the Throne.
A Chassidic Explanation
Chassidic philosophy explains that Merkaba is a multi-layered analogy that offers insight into the nature of man, the ecosystem, the world, and teaches us how to become better people.
The four Chayot angels represent the basic archetypes that God used to create the current nature of the world. Ofannim, which means ways, are the ways these archetypes combine to create actual entities that exist in the world. For instance, in the basic elements of the world, the lion represents fire, the ox earth, the eagle wind, and the man water.
However, in practice, everything in the world is some combination of all four, and the particular combination of each element that exist in each thing are its particular Ofannim or ways. In another example, the four Chayot represent spring, summer, winter and fall. These four types of weather are the archetypal forms. The Ofannim would be the combination of weather that exists on a particular day, which may be a winter-like day within the summer or a summer like day within the winter or whatever.
The Man on the throne represents God, who is controlling everything that goes on in the world, and how all of the archetypes He set up should interact.
The Man on the throne, however, can only drive when the four angels connect their wings.
This means that God will not be revealed to us by us looking at all four elements (for instance) as separate and independent entities. However, when one looks at the way that earth, wind, fire and water (for instance) which all oppose each other are able to work together and coexist in complete harmony in the world, this shows that there is really a higher power (God) telling these elements how to act.
This very lesson carries over to explain how the four basic groups of animals and the four basic archetypal philosophies and personalities reveal a higher, godly source when one is able to read between the lines and see how these opposing forces can and do interact in harmony. A person should strive to be like a Merkaba, that is to say, he should realize all the different qualities, talents and inclinations he has (his angels).
They may seem to contradict, but when one directs his life to a higher goal such as doing God's will (the man on the chair driving the chariot) he will see how they all can work together and even complement each other.
Ultimately, we should strive to realize how all of the forces in the world, though they may seem to conflict can unite when one knows how to use them all to fulfill a higher purpose, namely to serve God.
Key Texts
The ascent texts are extant in four principal works, all redacted well after the third but certainly before the ninth century CE.
They are: 1) Hekhalot Zutartey ("The Lesser Palaces"), which details an ascent of Rabbi Akiva; 2) Hekhalot Rabbati ("The Greater Palaces"), which details an ascent of Rabbi Ishmael; 3) Ma`aseh Merkabah ("Account of the Chariot"), a collection of hymns recited by the "descenders" and heard during their ascent; and 4) Sepher Hekhalot ("Book of Palaces," also known as 3 Enoch), which recounts an ascent and divine transformation of the biblical figure Enoch into the archangel Metatron, as related by Rabbi Ishmael.
A fifth work provides a detailed description of the Creator as seen by the "descenders" at the climax of their ascent.
This work, preserved in various forms, is called Shi`ur Qomah ("Measurement of the Body"), and is rooted in a mystical exegesis of the Song of Songs, a book reputedly venerated by Rabbi Akiva.
The literal message of the work was repulsive to those who maintained God's incorporate reality; Maimonides (d. 1204) wrote that the book should be erased and all mention of its existence deleted.While throughout the era of merkabah mysticism the problem of creation was not of paramount importance, the treatise Sefer Yetzirah ("Book of Creation") represents an attempt at cosmogony from within a merkabah milieu.
This text was probably composed during the seventh century CE, and evidences influence of Neoplatonism, Pythagoreanism, and Stoicism.
It features a linguistic theory of creation in which God creates the universe by combining the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, along with emanations represented by the ten numerals, or sefirot.
7 steps is all it takes
Here are seven suggestions to
help you transcend ingrained ideas of self-
1.
Stop being offended.
The behavior of others isn’t a reason
to be immobilized. That which offends you only weakens you. If you’re looking
for occasions to be offended, you’ll find them at every turn. This is your ego
at work convincing you that the world shouldn't be the way it is. But you can
become an appreciator of life and match up with the universal Spirit of
Creation. You can’t reach the power of intention by being offended. By all
means, act to eradicate the horrors of the world, which emanate from massive ego
identification,
2. Let go of
your need to win.
Ego loves to divide us up into
winners and losers. The pursuit of winning is a surefire means to avoid
conscious contact with intention. Why? Because ultimately, winning is impossible
all of the time. Someone out there will be faster, luckier, younger, stronger,
and smarter-and back you’ll go to feeling worthless and insignificant.
You’re not your
winnings or your victories. You may enjoy competing, and have fun in a world
where winning is everything, but you don’t have to be there in your thoughts.
There are no losers in a world where we all share the same energy source. All
you can say on a given day is that you performed at a certain level in
comparison to the levels of others on that day. But today is another day, with
other competitors and new circumstances to consider. You’re still the infinite
presence in a body that’s another day (or decade) older. Let go of needing to
win by not agreeing that the opposite of winning is losing. That’s ego’s fear.
If your body isn’t performing in a winning fashion on this day, it simply
doesn’t matter when you aren’t identifying exclusively with your ego. Be the
observer, noticing and enjoying it all without needing to win a trophy. Be at
peace, and match up with the energy of intention. And ironically, although
you’ll hardly notice it, more of those victories will show up in your life as
you pursue them less.
3. Let go of your need to be
right.
Ego
is the source of a lot of conflict and dissension because it pushes you in the
direction of making other people wrong. When you’re hostile, you’ve disconnected
from the power of intention. The creative Spirit is kind, loving, and receptive;
and free of anger, resentment, or bitterness. Letting go of your need to be
right in your discussions and relationships is like saying to ego, I’m not a
slave to you. I want to embrace kindness, and I reject your need to be right. In
fact, I’m going to offer this person a chance to feel better by saying that
she’s right, and thank her for pointing me in the direction of truth.
When you let go of
the need to be right, you’re able to strengthen your connection to the power of
intention. But keep in mind that ego is a determined combatant. I’ve seen people
end otherwise beautiful relationships by sticking to their need to be right. I
urge you to let go of this ego-driven need to be right by stopping yourself in
the middle of an argument and asking yourself, Do I want to be right or be
happy? When you choose the happy, loving, spiritual mood, your connection to
intention is strengthened. These moments ultimately expand your new connection
to the power of intention. The universal Source will begin to collaborate with
you in creating the life you were intended to live.
4. Let go of your need to be
superior.
True nobility isn’t about being
better than someone else. It’s about being better than you used to be. Stay
focused on your growth, with a constant awareness that no one on this planet is
any better than anyone else. We all emanate from the same creative life force.
We all have a mission to realize our intended essence; all that we need to
fulfill our destiny is available to us. None of this is possible when you see
yourself as superior to others. It’s an old saw, but nonetheless true: we are
all equal in the eyes of God. Let go of your need to feel superior by seeing the
unfolding of God in everyone. Don’t assess others on the basis of their
appearance, achievements, possessions, and other indices of ego. When you
project feelings of superiority that’s what you get back, leading to resentments
and ultimately hostile feelings. These feelings become the vehicle that takes
you farther away from intention. A Course in Miracles addresses this need to be
special and superior: Special ness always makes comparisons. It is established
by a lack seen in another, and maintained by searching for, and keeping clear in
sight, all lacks it can perceive.
5. Let go of your need to have
more.
The
mantra of ego is more. It’s never satisfied. No matter how much you achieve or
acquire, your ego will insist that it isn’t enough. You’ll find yourself in a
perpetual state of striving, and eliminate the possibility of ever arriving. Yet
in reality you’ve already arrived, and how you choose to use this present moment
of your life is your choice. Ironically, when you stop needing more, more of
what you desire seems to arrive in your life. Since you’re detached from the
need for it, you find it easier to pass it along to others, because you realize
how little you need in order to be satisfied and at peace.
The universal
Source is content with itself, constantly expanding and creating new life, never
trying to hold on to its creations for its own selfish means. It creates and
lets go. As you let go of ego’s need to have more, you unify with that Source.
You create, attract to yourself, and let it go, never demanding that more come
your way. As an appreciator of all that shows up, you learn the powerful lesson
St.Francis of Assisi taught:”…it is in giving that we receive.” By allowing
abundance to flow to and through you, you match up with your Source and
guarantee that this energy will continue to flow.
6. Let go of identifying yourself
on the basis of your achievements.
This may be a difficult concept if
you think you are your achievements. God writes all the music, God sings all the
songs, God builds all the buildings, God is the source of all your achievements.
I can hear your ego loudly protesting. Nevertheless, stay tuned to this idea.
All emanates from Source! You and that Source are one! You’re not this body and
its accomplishments
7. Let go of your reputation.
Your reputation
is not located in you. It resides in the minds of others. Therefore, you have no
control over it at all. If you speak to 30 people, you will have 30 reputations.
Connecting to intention means listening to your heart and conducting yourself
based on what your inner voice tells you is your purpose here. If you’re overly
concerned with how you’re going to be perceived by everyone, then you’ve
disconnected yourself from intention and allowed the opinions of others to guide
you. This is your ego at work. It’s an illusion that stands between you and the
power of intention. There’s nothing you can’t do, unless you disconnect from the
power source and become convinced that your purpose is to prove to others how
masterful and superior you are and spend your energy attempting to win a giant
reputation among other egos. Do what you do because your inner voice always
connected to and grateful to your Source-so directs you. Stay on purpose, detach
from outcome, and take responsibility for what does reside in you: your
character. Leave your reputation for others to debate; it has nothing to do with
you.Or as a book title
says: What You Think of Me Is None of My Business!
© 2008 Dr.
Wayne W. Dyer.
*note:
As I read the
list and his brief explanations of each step, I smiled in agreement.
Over the years, I’ve
discovered I am the master of my own happiness and my own misery.
This is a powerful
discovery because it tells me I am never a victim.
It also means I have to take responsibility
for my choices and cannot blame others for my perceived
problems.
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