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A Model for Understanding the Nature of Man

Introduction

The study from the human standpoint, of subconscious, subliminal, psychic, soul forces, is and should be the great study for the human family, for through self man will understand its Maker when it understands its relation to its Maker... 3744-4

From the viewpoint of the Edgar Cayce readings, the greater study of self should be the major project of individuals, groups, classes and nations. Although the ultimate agenda for all mankind is the great commandment, we can love fully neither God nor our fellow man without a deeper understanding of ourselves. In the readings, we find an understanding of the nature of man that is equaled in few other places, either in depth or in beauty.

Foundations

A proper understanding of ourselves must be built on a solid foundation. We must start with primary premises which are for us givens, assumptions with which we are comfortable and to which we are committed. For any system of thought, the assumptions upon which it is based can never be proved; however, subsequent observations should provide confirmation.

The primary premise of the Edgar Cayce readings is the oneness of all force. The One Force is the Spirit of God and all that we know or experience is a manifestation of that force. A second premise is that we, all mankind, are children of God and thus are spiritual beings. A third given is that the primary condition of being is consciousness and, as a corollary to this, that we are presently projecting into a three-dimensional consciousness.

There are many other dimensions in reality; however, since we are in a three-dimensional experience, it is fruitful for us to try to understand reality in terms of three-dimensional, or triune, concepts. For example, we may work meaningfully with the premise that God is one; however, we may more deeply understand His nature by working with the triune concepts of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. As children of God, made in His image, we are likewise aided in a better understanding of ourselves by seeing the same triune pattern of Father, Son and Holy Spirit within ourselves as physical, mental and spiritual beings.

Model of a Dream

Using a model as a framework for our thinking can afford us an invaluable tool. The purposes of a model are to help us organize what we already know, to help us see new relationships, and to keep us from being dazzled by the full-blown complexity of the subject matter. A model is not intended to be a picture of reality but a tool for thinking.

Here is a model based on a dream of Edgar Cayce. He saw himself at first as a tiny grain of sand and then, with a growing expansion of consciousness, as a spiral, a cone, a funnel opening out, as it were, from the finite to the infinite as a "trumpet of the universe" opening "an access to the Thrones themselves." In the interpretation of this dream, the source said, this should be a helpful illustration to those working with this information.

Let us try to deploy this model in an effort to come to a better understanding of the array of experiences with which we may become concerned in the study of the self.

We may visualize man, then, primarily as a point of consciousness which may focus on the finite or which may become attuned to the infinite. And let us visualize a model which shows the oneness in the triune. There is perhaps no more suited three-dimensional representation of the relationship between the infinite and the finite which defines the nature of man than is found in that of a cone or funnel.

In the beginning as spiritual beings, we were in the mind of God as focal points of individual awareness yet with an open access to the infinite. The fall in the spiritual plane may be seen as a movement away from the dynamic awareness of both finite and infinite to the orientation of an awareness only of the self with the accompanying separation in consciousness which would follow.

Now, through thoughts, experiences and investments in consciousness, we have cut ourselves off from that immediate access to an awareness of the Divine. We may conceptualize our present levels of awareness as the conscious, subconscious and the superconscious potential. These are, as it were, processes for which there are corresponding structures: the physical body (conscious), the mental body (subconscious) and the spiritual body (superconscious). The spiritual body is the soul, having the attributes of Spirit, mind and will.

...and I will make an everlasting covenant with you...

With our understanding that the body is the temple, we may draw a direct parallel between ourselves and the construction of the Tabernacle of the Old Testament. These relationships are: the conscious and the outer court, the subconscious and the Holy place, and the superconscious and the Holy of Holies. Now we may see how the ark of the covenant which contained the law and was placed in the Holy of Holies is symbolic of that law written within the depths of our own inner being. This pattern is not only the image of God but also that through which the Spirit may be given full expression in our own awareness.

We are told that at the moment of the death of Jesus on the cross, the veil in the temple was rent. This may be interpreted psychologically to mean that with the completion of His living out the life of love, there was established a new access within us (remember, all subconscious minds are in contact with one another) to this perfect pattern and thus an enhanced possibility of the Spirit being given expression in our own lives.

A Model for Karma and Grace

When we turn away from the external world toward an awareness of our inner processes, we confront the subconscious in many forms and patterns. These are both our own creations from personal experiences and deeper patterns of the collective unconscious which may be called archetypal. Any flow of energy or information from the infinite finds its expression in our consciousness through the patterning given it by the structures of the unconscious.

In a study of the patterns of our unconscious, we may come to an understanding of the way in which the law of karma works within us. As a motivation is quickened within us, the life force flows through a pattern which will give expression to that motivation. This, in turn, is manifested in our external behavior as a talent, a quality of personality, a habit or a disease. When we experience the manifestation of such patterns, we call it karma.

Because we were made in the image of God, there is also a pattern within us which is perfect and whole. If God is law and God is love, then the archetypal pattern of the Divine within is a pattern for manifesting the life of love. Then the law, which the Bible says is written within us, is this pattern of love. When we choose to set this pattern as an ideal and awaken it with both the choice of the will and the imaginative forces of the mind, we may begin to be a channel for the highest purpose of the life force. In turn, any or all karmic patterns in the subconscious may be mobilized as the stepping-stones for learning and service instead of as the stumbling blocks of karma.

Let us consider an example. I once saw a newspaper headline which said, "He does magic for Christ." It was a story of a stage magician who visited hospitalized and institutionalized young people, entertained them with his feats of magic and closed with a testimony of the meaningfulness of life in the spirit. It occurred to me that it might be possible in one incarnation to develop an extraordinary talent for negative purposes such as special finger dexterity for the purpose of being a pickpocket. Such a talent then might be referred to as a karmic pattern. However, this pattern could subsequently be mobilized for either selfish or selfless purposes. When mobilized for the purpose of service (as in the work of this talented magician), it becomes a stepping-stone. With this example, we may understand how we may "meet" our karma yet move from karma to grace.

A Model for Reincarnation

Let us consider the relationships between the physical body, mental body, spiritual body and the conscious, subconscious, superconscious as applied to the processes of reincarnation. (We experience a shadow of this in the dreaming state.) When our physical body (consciousness) is put aside as in death, our mental and spiritual bodies remain intact as the essential qualities of the entity. Through them we have experiences or consciousness in what are otherwise the subconscious and superconscious dimensions.

Later, when there is the appropriate opportunity for an incarnation, the spiritual and mental bodies are projected again into an infant body which has all of the hereditary and other attributes for meshing the spiritual and mental patterns of the entity with the physical vehicle. Then the physical becomes truly the manifestation of the mental and spiritual bodies. Just as a teaspoon of sugar or salt is dissolved in a glass of water (the water being the vehicle for the substance), just so does the physical body take on the distinctive flavor of that soul which has been drawn into it.

A Model for Psychic and Religious Experiences

Although we have conceptualized three bodies, there is truly only one. The principle of oneness requires that the activities of the spiritual body and the mental body be reflected in the physical body. At the level of the physical body, conscious processes are experienced through the cerebrospinal system, the mental body through the autonomic nervous system, and the spiritual body through the endocrine system. Here are the points of contact between the individual entity and the infinite.

The interaction of the glands of the endocrine system and the seven spiritual centers or chakras, is the basis for understanding different kinds of psychic and religious experiences. When we turn within, we are initially confronted by our own personal subconscious. However, all subconscious minds are in contact with one another. When we open ourselves without direction to these levels of consciousness, we are sensitive to or even vulnerable to the thoughts of others. As we go deeper, we find levels such as the spirit plane and other planes of consciousness to which we may attune or which may intrude into our awareness if we are not properly directed.

Through attunement of the spiritual centers to these planes, we may communicate with discarnate entities, spirit guides, and even archangels. Our goal should always be to seek the attunement with God alone. We are to meet Him in the temple of our own bodies. If He, in turn, sends a messenger, which on occasion He surely does, that is well; however, if we seek from the outset to relate to such messengers rather than God Himself we may receive less than what He wants to give us. We may indeed become misguided, we may become idolatrous, and we may even become subject to possession.

A goal of our experience is to have the physical, mental and spiritual to be truly one and in accord with the whole. However, these may on occasion function separately. This is sometimes a desirable and sometimes an undesirable situation. The experience which is referred to as astral projection may be conceptualized in this model as a functioning of the mental body apart from the physical body. Astral projection may occur as a normal part of our activities during sleep and on occasion may even be used as a modality of being of service to others. However, it must be kept in mind that our goal is to be whole and one and to seek an integrated functioning of these structures. On one occasion when asked about his ability to conduct his work, Edgar Cayce replied that it was "the application of the harmonious triune." Oneness and attunement to the One should always be our motivation.

A Model for Meditation

This model may be helpful in understanding the process of meditation. Meditation is attuning the physical and the mental to the spiritual. As the conscious mind is quickened by something which may have come to it externally, such as an affirmation of love, which is true to the pattern of the Divine within, the imaginative forces of the mind may select this same high pattern as the ideal to be energized by the spirit within. Since the pattern of love is consistent with the nature of the one force, the spirit of love, there is an affinity to such a pattern. When we attune to that pattern and make application consistent with it, we truly become channels for the Spirit. This not only brings creative and healing energy to others, but also in the process, it becomes the source of healing and transformation within ourselves.

Summary

The readings, as well as other great teachings, indicate that the greater study of mankind should be the study of self. A model, based on a dream of Edgar Cayce, has been presented with the functions and purposes for the use of such a model. Several illustrations have been given to show how the model may be employed for a better understanding of some of the major concepts and experiences in this study of ourselves. It is suggested that working with such a model may be helpful and applicable in understanding any question which may be raised regarding our nature and experiences. Begin drawing cones like this to help you think through a specific question! Even when we find that it does not seem to be applicable, the process of inquiry with respect to the model may, in itself, become instructive. Remember the model is not a representation of reality but rather a tool to enhance deeper study of ourselves and the multitude of experiences we all encounter.

If you have questions about this lesson, please contact me

Yours in peace and fellowship,

Herbert Bruce Puryear, Ph. D.