The Manifestation of the Unresponsive Guides
For double the vision my eyes do see,
And a double vision is always with me:
With my inward eye ’tis an old man grey;
With my outward a thistle across my way.
William Blake (In a Letter to a Friend, 1802)
Blake speaks in this work of the “Double Vision” that he lives with, a vision that at times haunts him. We are developing what came to Blake naturally.
Where are we then in our excursion into this new world. Let us look at the next chapters of American Book of the Dead. We have left the realm of the Friendly Guides and are now in the Realm of the Unresponsive Guides. When I first read that phrase many years ago, I thought to myself that I knew exactly what was meant. Most people around me are unresponsive… that must be what the author is getting at. However, over the years I have allowed my Self to Wonder at that phrase. I have allowed my Self to bathe in the readings.
As we read the words presented in these chambers we are being counseled to NOT give way to panic. We are told “If I allow my feelings of fear to give way to panic…” Okay that is a huge clue about how to practice this part of the voyage here and now.
We are always looking for the one special ‘silver bullet’ that takes care of it all. That one thing that catapults us into clarity or enlightenment. It is not going to happen that way quite yet. Sometimes it is possible, but highly unlikely. Therefore, what can we do now. We can take the small constant but certain steps forward.
One reason we are not catapulted forward is simple. When we are in the higher realms there is more energy there, a great deal more energy. Are our present structures able to handle the higher voltage? Probably not. When we are giving the higher voltage, what we typically do is … PANIC! What does that mean. It actually means we revert to the ‘way of the machine.’
So, we can learn small ways and means of discovering how one allows fear to give way to panic. Do not look for the HUGE event, but rather, the small daily feats that emerge all the time. Study those fears and develop strategy for side stepping panic.
After all what is Courage? It is NOT an absence of fear, but rather the skill and grace to proceed in spite of our fears.
Audio File for ABD_Class 25_July 09 2014
Log for ABD Class 25 July_09_14
CHAMBER 13
During this part of the Voyage we encounter the wrathful deities. We are challenged, almost beyond our abilities. But as we encounter these deities we are told, once again NOT TO PANIC.
In chamber 13 we are told that Strong identification with the primate self is the source of what is URGING me to seek some refuge from these dissolving radiations.
BUT – I am not drawn down – I recognize this apparition to be the embodiment of my own sleeping attention.
We ask ourselves how do these readings from the ABD relate to our everyday life. THIS IS HOW. We will be bombarded within this part of the voyage with the results of our own Sleeping machine. What can you do TODAY to ease the grip of the machine upon the Essential Self.
First NOTE that the machine is NOT gripping the Essential Self, but rather the Essential Self is identified with the machine. The Essential Self has no where to go… but, by gradually awakening the machine one moment each hour, by taking the stand for the SELF, we can truly stand in the place called “I AM NOT THAT” … and as the writing in the Chamber concludes.
I am Free.
Audio Recording for ABD_Class 26_July 16 2014
Chat Log for ABD Class 26 July_16_14
Chamber 14
As we enter the Fourteenth Chamber – we observe. We see… Now, in this Low Place
We are watching the fruits of our organic life. We see that during life we had ALLOWED the habits of Primate Life to dominate our existence. We therefore fall prey to reactions of fear and dismay.
At this point we make the conscious decision to enjoy the apparition. We see that this phase is a reflection of our own expectations, through training, I know NOT to react… no matter how startling. When, I see that the root of the apparitions is my own projection my own thought forms. As this clarity dawns upon me…
Liberation Comes
It is essential that we learn to avoid reaction and panic. If the process of not panicking is an essential tool in the Bardos, does it not make sense to begin to learn how to NOT panic in the here and NOW of everyday life? To begin, we will learn how to recognize the forms in which Panic takes in us throughout the day. Through an intense and sustained process of a special form of self-observation, we are able to begin to develop a foothold for our future liberation.
Audio File for ABD_Class 27_July 23 2014
Chat Log for ABD Class 27 July_23_14
Chamber 15
In this, the 15th chamber, we are once again challenged by the unresponsive guide “superimposing its form and visage upon the beloved.” The impulse is to run and hide is powerfully upon us at the moment. The weight of the impressions may be crushing. Pause for a moment. Resist the urge to run and hide.
Rather, recall, that “through the teachings” we have learned that all the manifestations coming forth are the illusions of phenomena. But, nevertheless, they are imposed upon our own World right here and now. What must we learn? We must learn to pause. Resist for a moment. Do not deny the manifestation, but embrace it as the emanation that is upon you now. It is the profound lesson before you now. It maybe despair, or it may be a fountain of joy… but, resist the impulse to run and hide. These manifestations have come to you NOW, let these manifestations in for a moment. See what you may see.
Audio File for ABD_Class 28_July 30 2014
Chat log for Class 28 July_30_14
The Sixteenth Chamber
As the eight forms of the chaotic feminine emerge before me, we are assaulted with intense feelings of fear and betrayal. I let these forces pass through me as a cleansing radiation. Gradually these shocking presences are recognized as emanating from my own consciousness. The powerful feminine will present itself into my space. I know now that the divine presence of the Great Mother has descended upon this space.
Hold and do not react. For you are now surrounded by the deep mystical presence of the Divine Feminine. Host this presence and allow it to penetrate you. Allow yourself to be lifted up.
However, to receive this gift you must first be willing to surrender to that divine sense of the feminine. This act of surrender this, Dynamic Surrender, is actually the portal. Surrender itself is the KEY to open the door before you at this time. It is an actual key.
Beyond the door of this surrender is a taste of the Divine Love. Great gifts cost a great price. But, long after the price is forgotten, the gift will persist.
The Seventeenth Chamber
The reading for the chamber opens with:
“NOW, the four female gatekeepers and the four keepers of the keys will spring out of my deepest, most unreachable consciousness, appearing in solid image projection over the form of the beloved.”
Continuing:
“I recognize these forms … as just the hallucinatory part of my deep consciousness, and their significance fades away as they dissolve gently into the swirling patterning shadowshow of the empty void.”
We are reminded over and over that the manifestations before us are from our own human consciousness, we fail to recognize the power of the human biological machine. I am reminded of the header to Chapter 20 of HBM:
“The relationship between the essential self and the machine is based on a seduction, an affinity – electrical in nature – between their electrical fields. Evolution thus means the transformation of the electrical field of the essential self in such a way as to free it from its affinity.”
We are reminded of this path toward freedom each day as the manifestation of the chambers becomes apparent to us. Look about you, what do you perceive as your manifestation today? Can you see it as a projection of you deep consciousness? Small steps at this point yield huge gains.
Audio File for ABD_Class 29_Aug 06 2014