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Theosophy
In the hot summer of 1989, I moved from Nashville, TN to Chicago, IL, looking for a new beginning, a new job, and the life after college. The days seemed long, hot, boring. It took me two months to find a job there, two arduous and depressing months.

During that time, between sending out resumes and anticipating a phone call for that all important interview, I took one day to go find bookstores. It was a goal, a direction when I had none.

On my journey that day, in one of those coincidences which is not really a coincidence, I came across the Quest bookstore and the American headquarters of the Theosophical Society in Wheaton, Illinois (just down the street from the fundamentalist Wheaton College).

Once I had set foot into the bookshop, I knew something was going to be different. There was a hint of incense in the air, and racks of books for every religion, every paranormal, supernatural and occult topic. I spent a few hours, slowly perusing the books, not wanting to miss anything, but knowing that I really couldn't afford to buy anything in my unemployed state.

Since I had plenty of time, I wandered down to the main building - all turn of the century wood and grandeur (at least that's how I remember it, I was just awed, I suppose). At the end of the main hall was the library - time for more books! Two floors, balcony viewing, a massive fireplace, and plenty of chairs and tables for reading.

I read all their pamphlets and brochures with great interest. It had been several years since I had left the Catholic church, citing not only some difference of opinions, but also a lack of fulfillment, answers, knowledge.

I had been raised Catholic, did all the good catholic boy things, like being an altar boy, joined the Neuman group and the Knights of Columbus in college. It seemed like I was finally really connecting with the faith, until one day when I woke up, just minutes before mass was to start, and thought - "eh, whatever". It was then I knew that the catholic religion was not the answer for me. My spiritual path lay in another direction.

And so it was the Theosophical Society where I found resonance, my answers. It began with reading the three Objectives, and the three Principles, and finally in knowing that each person must find their own path. The right path for one, may not be the right path for another , and no one has the right to impose their path on another.

Before I had consciously set out on my spiritual quest, I had already been interested in the supernatural, the unknown, and things that good catholic boys shouldn't be interested in. In tentatively taking baby steps in learning about those things, and about myself, I had wanted to be "cool", special, unique. When I was a freshman in college, there was a guest speaker session about Tarot cards. one of my friends had a deck and she and I would pratice readings with one another. During this session, I focused on a question about the connection of the number "23" in my life. When the cards were laid out in the Celtic Cross pattern, most of them were Major Arcana. It seemed unusual to my friend and I, but it kind of freaked out the speaker. She asked what my question was, and then said "Ohhh" in that sort of knowing, sort of hidden meaning way., and she went on to explain that when asking questions about "Big Mysteries" and such, this kind of card result would be likely. Essentially, I was asking about something bigger than could be explained in a tarot reading.

I was thinking, that was cool, what else can I do? And so, early on, when I was younger, I had wanted the external, visible trappings of "spirituality". I wanted phychic visions and powers of esp, to be "chosen" to be one called from the many...

In some ways, that phase passed pretty quickly. I came to realize that spiritual people don't always have those gifts, and some who have the gifts aren't necessarily spiritual or teachers. Some who have gifts are driven crazy, literally, by them. Some ignore them. It would be kind of neat to have some gift, as long it could help me in my journey, or be helpful to others, otherwise, it's just a trapping which is useless. What good is levitating if it doesn't do something useful?

Have I found gifts, or learned what I already had? Possibly, I'm not sure. There are plenty of times when I am sure I know "something" is going on, or when people are lying, or have a glimmer of what might happen next. Maybe it's a psychic insight, maybe it's just strong intuition. Sometimes, it seems that animals like me, or at least don't fear me. Birds land nearby, dogs will often come up to greet me, even cats, which i'm allergic to, always find me and seek me out. Maybe they just sense I'm a nice person.

What is Theosophy?
Timeless Theosophy, also called by many names such as the "Wisdom Tradition" and the "Perennial Philosophy," is a tradition found in human cultures all over the world and at all times in history. It is the basis of the inner or mystical side of many philosophies and cultures. Modern Theosophy is a contemporary statement of that tradition as set forth through the Theosophical Society. Theosophy is a way of answering the �big� questions of life by trying to reconcile the varied approaches of science, philosophy, and religion, without limiting itself to any of their particular assumptions or ways. It relies on its own assumptions and ways, while embracing all that is true and valuable in other approaches.

Theosophy is old because it embodies principles that have been known and taught by the sages of the past all over the world. It has been called by many names. In India it is called Brahmavidya �The Wisdom of Ultimate Reality� or San�tana Dharma �The Eternal Teaching.� In Judaism it is called Kabbalah �That Which Has Been Received.� In China it is called Tao Hsueh �The Teaching of the Way.� In Islam it is called Sufism �The Way of Those Who Wear Wool� (the �pure� or the �wise�). In Christianity it has been called Prisca Theologia �The Ancient Thought about Divine Matters.� It has also been called the Wisdom Tradition, the Perennial Philosophy, the Secret Doctrine, and the Ancient Wisdom.

But Theosophy is not a religion. It does not claim to be a complete and final statement of wisdom and truth, nor does it offer a single interpretation of what Divine Wisdom includes. Theosophy holds that all things, including the human mind, are evolving. We are in the midst of an unfinished world and are ourselves unfinished. Therefore the accumulated knowledge of any subject at any time is necessarily incomplete and can be added to. We are only in the middle of our development, so we still have a great deal to discover.

It does not seek to convert any persons from the religion they hold, but rather to explain and interpret on a rational basis the inner meanings of various creeds and ceremonies. Annie Besant, the second international President of the Society, has stated the Theosophical attitude succinctly: �Theosophy asks you to live your religion, not to leave it.�

H. P. Blavatsky,the founder of the modern Theosophical Society, says Theosophy is "the sub-stratum and basis of all the world-religions and philosophies, taught and practised by a few elect ever since man became a thinking being. In its practical bearing, Theosophy is purely divine ethics; the definitions in dictionaries are pure nonsense, based on religious prejudice and ignorance."


What is the Theosophical Society?
The Theosophical Society is a nonsectarian, undogmatic, worldwide organization devoted to human solidarity, cultural understanding, and self-development. It seeks to bring people together; to reconcile the religions, philosophies, and sciences of both East and West; and to increase awareness of the inner reality inherent in every human being.




The Three objects of the Theosophical Society are:

  1. To form a nucleus of the universal brotherhood of humanity, without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste, or color.
  2. To encourage the study of comparative religion, philosophy, and science.
  3. To investigate the unexplained laws of nature and the powers latent in people.

A more modern version of the objectives and the statement of the Theosophical Society's motto: "There is no religion higher than truth":

  1. To form a nucleus of planetary, multi-cultural, multiracial, interdependence and mutual responsibility between all sentinent beings, absolutely regardless of any kind of distinctions between individuals.
  2. To encourage and facilitate the comparative and evaluative study of religions, philosophies, and the sciences, on an inter-disciplinary basis.
  3. To experiment and research the reality of the life experience, the inter-relationships between the physical and the extra-physical, and the paraphysical abilities which are latent in all sentient intelligence.

Another version of Theosophical Objectives:

  1. To diffuse among men a knowledge of the laws inherent in the Universe.
  2. To promulgate the knowledge of the essential unity of all that is, and to demonstrate that this unity is fundamental in Nature.
  3. To form an active brotherhood among men.
  4. To study ancient and modern religion, science, and philosophy.
  5. To investigate the powers innate in man.

The three principles found in the prologue of the Secret Doctrine are:

  1. There is One ubiquitous, boundless and unchangeable Principle, 'The Great Breath', pure subjectivity and abstract motion, which is beyond human understanding.
  2. The entities of the Boundless Universe, which is the stage of countless universes that manifest and disappear in a cyclic pattern. The law of periodicity is considered fundamental as is easy to understand: life and death, sleep and being awake, day and night, etc. are common facts of life, to give just a few examples.
  3. The essential identicality of all souls with the Universal Oversoul, which is itself an aspect of the Boundless ('The Rootless Root).

Every Theosophist creates his/her own path:

The Theosophical Society is non dogmatic, and Theosophists are encouraged to accept nothing on faith or on the word of another, but to adopt only those ideas that satisfy their own sense of what is real and important.  Theosophy is a way of looking at life rather than a creed. Theosophy, however, presents ideas like the following for our consideration, and many Theosophists hold these ideas, not as fixed beliefs, but as a way of looking at life that explains the world as they experience it:



A number of religions start off their official writings with the "Big Picture" of how Life, the Universe and Everything (thanks, Douglas Adams) works at a high level. In the Catholic Church, this start of with "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness [was] upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that [it was] good: and God divided the light from the darkness. "

H.P. Blavatsky also writes about the Big Pictures and the beginnings, as well as where things are headed. It's also not as succinct in The Secret Doctrine as Genesis in the Old Testament, which is a good thing when looking for details. From what I've read and discussed with others, this is how HPB and Theosophy view it:

First there is this all encompassing "unknown and unknowable" entity, or The One, which sleeps for a gazillion years, during which there is no Life, Universe or Anything. No space, no time, nothing. But then it awakes, there is awareness and a new cycle of incarnation has begun. From this One comes Spirit Matter (not the physical matter we experience in our world now, however) which becomes the substance the universe is created from. Then comes the Thought, which ripples through the Spirit Matter, infusing it with life and purpose. This is similar to the above noted " the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters" and the other quote about "First there was the Word, and then the Word was made Flesh". Same idea, first there is matter but then what really creates everything is having the conscious thought of creation to put that matter in motion and make things happen.

The One, having started to create the universe, further creates the life in that universe, although the irony is that everything is just a facet of the One. The analogy told to me is that of the sun - there is the sun, singular, and we often portray the sun as having individual rays coming out from it. The One become Two, Matter and Thought, and those further divide to become, eventually, the univers and everything in it. Another analogy is the human zygote, initially a single cell which divides and multiples and specializes to become a single person with many differnt things inside the body. Our universe is like that - One becomes many.

In the middle of this Beginning story, HPB tells us the grand plan of this incarnartion of the One. In a large nutshell, there are seven planes of existance, and within each plane are seven layers of development, for lack of a better word. The universe and everything in it go thru each layer in each plane. It isn't until the beginning of the Fourth Plane that the Big Bang and matter and energy as we know it is created. Mankind as we know it today is the fifth layer of development on that Fourth plane.

As other religions and philosophies have presented, it's all about us returning to "God" or the Source, or the One. We move through each layer, learning and growing as a spiritual entity, performing our dharma, creating and resolving our karma, perfecting ourselves repeatedly (reincarnation) within a layer until we are ready to move to the next layer and eventually the next Plane, ultimately returning to the One.

Angels, Guardians, Elohim, etc, these are all beings who have preceeded us in this long journey away from and back to the One. They are the ones who have evolved a bit faster than us, but they still have gone through the same steps,a nd one day we will be where they are now. And when the last being, has gone through all 49 steps (seven layers in seven planes) then all will have rejoined the One and this incarnation will be over; The One will return to sleep until the next incarnation

Well, that's just great and very grand, but how would that really matter in our everyday lives? The Judeo-Christian faiths have the Ten Commandments (a take off on earlier laws by others) and then a host of other rules and guidelines in a host of sacred writings, not all of which are accepted by one religion or sect or another. It's an entirely separate discussion, but it's interesting to read how much editing, rewriting and censorship has occurred over the centuries to the "Official Word of God", all to suit very human and petty desires. Christmas and Easter didn't originate with Jesus Christ, they were pagan holidays and the Church usurped them to fit into their own celebrations.

Anyway, what does this mean for us daily? Basically, I think it comes down to what we already know and say every New Year's - be a good person, think of others before ourselves, stop bad habits, develop good habits, and basically, be the best person we can be, do not harm other living creatures in any way. And then once we get to be like the Dali Lama, Ghandi, Bhudda, etc, then maybe we will be able to move on to the next layer of development.

And just how does that happen? Another nutshell explanation says that we, the entity, the individual, have seven layers to the being that we are. When we "die", the lowest layer, our physical body, loses its energy and falls away. The sixth layer, the astral self, looses its energy in a few days and disappates. The fifth does the same, and then the top three layers take the best lessons and knowledge of the fourth and separate. At this point, the triad of who we are decides either to enjoy its karmic rewards and enter Nirvana or Heaven, or it can "bank" those karmic credits and essentially get back to work by reincarnating. When reincarnating, the triad of ourselves reviews its karma, the things left to work on in our journey to perfection, and then incarnates in physical form to begin again.

Ok, great, so we're back to daily life stuff. What does that mean we are supposed to do? I can't speak for anyone else except for myself, and for me, that means being nice to everyone, although sometimes that translates as not being mean even though the other person fully deserves it, and sometimes that actually means being an instrument of karmic justice. It means that I should do what I can to help others, when and however I can. It means not being selfish, and being considerate, being vegetarian, working on my own shortcomings. I try to let go of things, not let things worry me or consume my thoughts. And so much more...

There was a time when I just wanted life to be over, it held no pleasure or fulfillment for me. I was content to be a rebellious and petulant child, thinking I would just sit and do nothing until life was over. I would be apathetic about every day until the final darkness came. But at some point, inch by inch, step by step, that gave way to at least doing things I enjoyed. Spending time with people I liked. Eventually, that became actively pursuing things that made me happy and fulfilled, and in doing so, found my own unique spiritual path. Things that bothered me were dealt with, sometimes head on, sometimes by ignoring them.

Through the journey, I have found several phrases to be most apt, helpful and insightful, although sometimes it took years to understand what they really meant:
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you
Judge not, lest you be judged
You create your own reality
If you love something, let it go, if it's yours, it will come back, if it doesn't, it never was (yours to have)
Grant me the courage to change the things I can, the serentity to accept those I cannot, and the wisdom to know the difference
Everything works out for the best, even if it seems like sheer hell in the meantime, and the ending isn't what was desired

And during my time, I have had phrases, or stanzas, come to me.
Once during a time of questioning and doubt, I heard/wrote this, and it became a mantra of sorts:
Peace of Mind
Calmness of Heart
Strength of Will
Clarity of Purpose


As a Guardian Angel, my motto and goal was
To Help
To Guide
To Protect


This one was a riddle-like statement, which came slowly, maybe a phrase a year, and the answer took several years to determine:
Coming of the Ages
Wisdom of the Ages
Destruction of the Ages
Product of the Ages

If you know what the ages are I would like to hear from you. I had the answer once, it seemed to clear but then faded back into the shadows, but what I recall was that the Ages were actually a group of people, foretold, then creating and recording their teachings, but the group was dispersed for some reason, in some manner, and ultimately, I am a product of their efforts.

Oh, sure, it seems easy and simple now to see all of that, but it wasn't so easy at the time, and it took a lot of reading and researching to find any reference to "The Ages".

So, that's my story at very high level without much of the filling detail. Want to know more, just ask. :)


O hidden Life, vibrant in every atom,
O hidden Light, shining in every creature,
O hidden Love, embracing all in oneness,
May all who feel themselves as one with thee,
Know they are therefore one with every other.



Thesophical Society in America
Thesophical Society in Seattle
Camp Indralaya
Theosophical Radio

The Theosophical Society American Section
Thesophical Society, Pasadena
Thesophical Society, Pasadena, NW

Theosophical Enquirer
Intro to TS
Thesophical Society, Adyar


Seth

"Seth Speaks" had been a title I had heard of for years before one of my best friends, Randy, gave it to me as a Christmas present. It was not something to be rushed and so I read it before going to sleep each night. Sometimes a full chapter, sometimes only a few paragraphs, but each bit of reading was one more step on the path to understanding something more, to knowing a little more of what my life was to be like.

          Experience is the product of the mind, the spirit, conscious thoughts and feelings, and unconscious thoughts and feelings. These together form the reality that you know. You are hardly at the mercy of a reality, therefore, that exists apart from yourself, or is thrust upon you. You are so intimately connected with the physical events composing your life experience that often you cannot distinguish between the seemingly material occurrences and the thoughts, expectations, and desire that gave them birth.
          An examination of your conscious thoughts will tell you much about the state of your inner mind, your intentions and expectations, and will often lead to a direct confrontation with challenges and problems. Your thoughts, studied, will let you see where you are going. They point clearly to the nature of physical events. What exists physically exists first in thought and feeling. There is no other rule.
          You see and feel what you expect to see and feel. The world as you know it is a picture of your expectations. The world as the race of man knows it is the materialization en masse of your individual expectations. As children come from your physical tissues, so is the world your joint creation.
� from "Preface by Seth," The Nature of Personal Reality, by Jane Roberts.

Seth and his offspring
About Seth
Seth Pages
Reality Creation Project
Kimberly Hiles
Seth comments
Kathleen's Seth page
Jim Schutte
Edge of Grace


Rosicrucian
Rosicrucian


Celestine Prophecy
Celestine Vision
Summary of the 9 Insights
Celestine Vision


Shamanism
What is Shamanism?
A truly cross cultural, world wide practice, differing mainly only in regional details
Over tens of thousands of years, our ancient ancestors all over the world discovered how to maximize human abilities of mind and spirit for healing and problem-solving. The remarkable system of methods they developed is today known as "shamanism," a term that comes from a Siberian tribal word for its practitioners: "shaman" (pronounced SHAH-mahn). Shamans are a type of medicine man or woman especially distinguished by the use of journeys to hidden worlds otherwise mainly known through myth, dream, and near-death experiences.

Shamanism.org
Shamanism
Shamanism Webring Index
Power of the Shaman
Airyn's Shamanic Path
Shaman Speaks
Spiritwinds MSN group closed but people still contribute
Medicine Hut
Animal Spirits




Wicca
What is Wicca?
Wicca, sometimes called "The Craft" or "The Craft of the Wise" is one of many earth-based religion. The religion which is closest to Wicca in America is probably Native American spirituality.

"Neopaganism" refers to a group of many religious belief systems that are reconstructions of (or patterned after) ancient Pagan religions. Wicca is one Neopagan religion, as are Asatru (Norse Neopaganism), Druidism, Shamanism, and ancient Egyptian, Roman, Greek and other religions.Wicca is a recently-created religion, partly based on the concepts, deities, symbols and seasonal days of celebration of the ancient Celtic people.

The Wiccan Rede says as long as an action harms no one, including yourself, one is free to do what they wish. A Wiccan carefully reviews the implications of each action or non-action in her/his life. Domination, manipulation and control are particularly prohibited by the Rede. This is quite similar to various Christian mottoes like "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." The Wiccan Rede and Christianity's Golden Rule both emphasize kindness to and consideration of others.

Biblical witchcraft and Wicca are not only unrelated, they are completely opposite from each other. Biblical witchcraft involve spoken curses or poisoning in order to kill or injure others. The Hebrew and Greek words that are translated "witch" in English versions of the Bible refer to people who engage in black magic or use poison for the purposes of harming people. Wiccans are prohibited from harming others.

Some people assume that the imaginary witchcraft in the Harry Potter books is similar or identical to Wicca. Again, the two forms of witchcraft are unrelated. This author has read the first Harry Potter book. The book contains no usage of Wiccan beliefs, rituals, tools, symbols, practices, principles, or sayings. There is absolutely no Wiccan content in Harry Potter at all.

Witch and Witchcraft have so many different meanings, it's almost impossible to use it without defining it first. People are liable to make incorrect assumptions and link things which are totally unrelated, like Wicca. Of the six types of defined witchcraft, four are related to satanism - evil sorcery in the Old Testament, Poisoners in the New Testament, Gothic Satanism during the Renaissance, and religious Satanism - and the other two are Wicca (Wicca Craeft) and the imaginary/fantasy kid found in literature and stories. Still, stereotypical witchcraft isn't related to Wicca in any way.


Celtic Connection
Church and School of Wicca
Religous Tolerance.org
Witchway
Sacred Texts
Religious movements
Wicca for the rest of us
Witch school


Book of Shadows
Sacred Texts
Sacred Texts GBoS
Book of Shadows
Free BoS
Branwen's
BoS




Entertainment and Harry Potter emulation aside, the wand has historically been a tool for focusing thought or energy. It's component parts have their own significance and strengths. Stones, crystals and woods all have their own meanings and uses. The magic wands is one of the most recognized tools of the druid, magus, wizard, or witch. Usually consecrated to the Element of Fire, the wand is used to direct the user's Will or Intention. The power of enchantment is built up in the astral energy of the user like the pulling of a bowstring; when the energy is released, like an arrow leaving the bow, it is directed with the wand. Like a bow too, the magic wands acts as an amplifier of the magician's intention, giving strength as well as direction. Wooden magic wands carry within them the life energy that is Elemental Fire, and this makes them especially effective as instruments of Will.

Alivan's
Bard Woodcrafts
The Witch Shop
Capricorn's Lair
Azure Green




How Color Works in Your Life
Try wearing a different color each day, remember what each color stands for and see what happens!

Red - Health, vigor, sexual love, danger, charity, increases your connection to the earth and gives strength to the basic life-force urges such as the will to live in the physical world. Charges, protects, shields, good for all organs in the first chakra area.

Maroon - Brings passion and will together.

Rose - Brings strong active love for others, helps you love. Very healing for heart and lung problems.

Pink - Brings soft yielding love for others.

Peach - Brings soft, yielding, expanding light spirit.

Orange - Encouragement, adaptability, stimulation, attraction, plenty, kindness, charges your sexual energy and enhances the immune system. Good for all organs in the second chakra region. Increases your ambition.

Yellow - Persuasion, charm, confidence, jealousy, joy, comfort, Gives more mental clarity, a sense of appropriateness. Good for all organs in the third chakra region. Clears the mind.

Green - Finance, fertility, luck, energy, charity, growth, Brings balance and a feeling of fullness: I'm OK, you're OK, and the world is OK. Good for all organs connected to the fourth chakra, like the heart and lungs.

Blue - Tranquility, understanding, patience, health, truth, devotion, sincerity, Brings peace, truth, and quiet order. Helps you speak the truth, increases sensitivity, strengthens the inner teacher. Good for all organs in the fifth chakra area, like the thyroid. Used to cauterize wounds in spiritual surgery.

Dark Blue - Brings a strong sense of purpose.

Indigo - Changeability, impulsiveness, depression, ambition, dignity, Opens spiritual perception, brings the feelings of ecstasy. Helps you connect to the deeper mystery of spiritual life. Good for any organ near the sixth chakra.

Purple - Helps you integrate and move into spirituality, brings a sense of royalty. Helps increase a sense of leadership and respect.

Lavender - Brings a light-hearted attitude toward life. Clears and purges invading microorganisms, brings a feeling of lightness.

White - Helps you connect to your purity and expands your field. Brings spiritual expansion and connection to others on the spiritual level; gives outward flow of energy. Reduces pain. Good for the brain.

Gold - Enhances the higher mind, understanding the perfect pattern, brings a sense of great power. Helps you connect to God and to the spiritual strength in you. Strengthens any part of the body.
Silver - Very strong purging of microorganisms, used directly after lavender in cleaning out debris. Helps you move faster and communicate better. Used to cauterize in spiritual surgery.

Platinum - Clears and purges invading microorganisms, even stronger than silver light.

Brown - Enhances a rich connection to the earth and grounding.

Black - Helps you draw within and stay centered. Brings complete peace. If you use it well, it will help you enter into deep internal creative forces. Brings you into the void, the source of teaming unmanifest, waiting to be born into manifestation. Brings you into Grace. Good to help deal with death. Good to heal bones.


Sources: Light Emerging by Barbara Ann Brennan and Practical Color Magic by Raymond Buckland








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