| | Life's Greatest Adventure!
| | | | | | Hi Friend,
This week I'll address the following question from one of our readers:
"When you have a chance, please expand on the meaning of the Hermetic aphorism “As above, so below” in your future articles. I am still having a difficulty grasping its precise essence."
Thank you so much for asking this question Anh. It is an important principle and not an easy one to get. As we progress on our spiritual journey of awakening, we understand it a little bit more at each stage, as we become more and more aware of the deeper meanings inherent within.
We can look at this question from different perspectives: the physical or material, from the non-physical or spiritual, and from the holistic - where physical and spiritual are one!
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| | Anh first posted this question in February following this article on LCM: "The Age of Aquarius - Evolving Consciousness", where I mentioned that:
"It is the new sciences of quantum physics (nonlocality and superposition) and holograms that are demonstrating how one part, does indeed, affect the whole."
At the physical or material level of reality, it is more difficult to imagine how planets, thousands of miles away can have any influence on matters here on Earth*. For example, as Pluto orbits the Sun it ranges from being 2.6 to 4.6 billion miles from Earth! But even the physical sciences are starting to discover that material objects, no matter how far apart, can and do affect on one another.
The Butterfly Effect
In chaos theory, the "butterfly effect" was a term first used by mathematician Edward Lorenz to describe how small actions can create large results. He used the illustration of a butterfly flapping it's wings causing airwaves that would build up to become a hurricane weeks later. Events like this seem impossible to us because of the limitations of our senses. For example, it is said that once we ring a bell, the sound waves ripple out into infinity. That means they are endless!
The sound only seems to 'end' for us because the sound wave passes beyond the range of human hearing. So waves of energy, undetectable to the human senses, can and do carry over unimaginable distances. Quantum EntanglementOne of the most exciting theories of physical objects affecting each other over distance is that of entanglement, which demonstrates that if two electrons are created together, then even if they are at opposite ends of the universe, if you do something to one, the other responds instantly.FractalsOne of the most clearly visible examples of 'as above, so below' comes from fractals, which are a natural phenomena of repeating patterns. No matter what scale a fractal is viewed at (near or far) the replicated pattern is the same. So we can see that even on a physical (material) level, there is some truth in the aphorism 'as above, so below'. We can see a 'mirroring' of the macro in the micro, and vice-versa. We can travel to distant planets and see the same mechanistic principles at work, as the planets continuously orbit the Sun just as our earth does. Hermes TrismegistusThe aphorism "As above, so below" is attributed to a mystic called Hermes Trismegistus whose exact identity and origin are unknown, but who is known only through the ancient scriptures he wrote which pre-dated ancient Greece. "As above, so below" is a shortened version of a translation from " The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus" which in full reads, "That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above corresponds to that which is Below, to accomplish the miracle of the One Thing." Lost in Translation?One of the difficulties of studying ancient scriptures and commentaries, is translation. Modern scholars often have to rely upon translations into English from ancient languages, so the translations are necessarily therefore dependent upon the consciousness of the translators.
It is very often the case that those yogis who are most proficient in spiritual practice, are not language scholars, and vice-versa. Rarely do we have someone with enough command of language, and spiritual experience, to be able to distill the true meaning. So we are left to discover it for ourselves. This is why our own experience is so important.We have to look to our own experience, then ask ourselves, "what does that really mean?" Kalachakra MastersWell 'as above so below' could be referring simply to something like quantum entanglement theory, which we mentioned above. But it is much more likely that it is referring to a very real spiritual experience, rather than a 'theory'.
In a previous newsletter I mentioned the great Kalachakra Masters who had such mastery of what is known as the ' clear light mind' that they were able to 'see' the Universe and practice astrology without the need for telescopes. A phenomena similar to remote viewing except the Kalachakra Masters were much clearer and more precise in their clear 'vision'. It is said in many scriptures, particularly from the Tibetan tradition, that when we become advanced in our spiritual practice that we will develop 'powers' such as clairvoyance (clear seeing) and remote viewing. This is because our mind becomes crystal clear. Simple TruthFrom this level of clarity, great spiritual masters were able to see 'as above, so below' as a simple truth. In their far-reaching vision they could see a quality of 'sameness' that pervades universes, and that the same energetic principles are playing out on a grand and a small scale, at every level. These 'principles' can be described in material terms - such as fire, earth, air, water, energy, gravity, or they can be described in spiritual terms - such as will, love, compassion, peace, wisdom, life, consciousness, awareness. No SeparationEventually every spiritual practitioner will arrive at the ultimate truth of oneness. Ultimately there is no separation. What we perceive as separate 'things' (through the projection of our human brain) are all just ripples in one fabric of reality. Through deeper meditative or spiritual practices the ancient masters realized that they were inseparable from life itself. Feeling the pulse of life force energy surging through their veins, they knew they were one with the very life force that is moving planets and creating universes. ConsciousnessSilently observing the movement of stars and planets, hearing the chirping birds and the sound of their own heartbeat, feeling the earth beneath them and the blood rushing through their own veins, they knew - they were immersed in one total experience.
One experience in which the observer could never be separated from that which is being observed. Why? Because the whole nature of reality is consciousness itself. Everything was, and is, arising from, and returning to, consciousness. Through direct perception they realized that the universal forces running through them and the Universe were one and the same. Through their own expanded perception and awareness they arrived at the ultimate spiritual goal:“[spiritual] Realization is not knowledge about the Universe, but the living experience of the nature of the Universe” OnenessThrough their own experience they realised that "That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above corresponds to that which is Below" and they accomplished the miracle of the "One Thing", which is total unity with 'all that is'.In that total unity, that oneness, everything clearly has an affect on everything else because, in truth, there is no separation. We are, in reality, all one body of humanity. What one of us thinks, says, or does, affects us all. This is the deepest spiritual truth, we have only to realise it. This is the truth of 'as above, so below'. So, long answer Anh, but the 'precise essence' of 'as above, so below' can be boiled right down to the simplest spiritual truth of oneness.If anyone else has any questions about this or any topics that you would like to see answered here don't hesitate to drop me a line and if the answer will deepen our understanding of Soul Astrology and our spiritual journey I'll consider it for future newsletters!
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That's all for now! See you next week and, in the meantime... happy exploring!
Best Wishes,
Ruth
* Just a reminder that astrology isn't saying that the planets are directly 'causing' events on earth, but that there is an associative relationship. An example of this might be that when it is night we always see stars, so it is still helpful because we can safely say that if stars are visible, it is night. It's telling us something, but we are not implying that the stars are causing the night. I don't want to go too far down this path today, but you can read more in "What Is Astrology?"- part I and part II.
| | | Ruth Hadikin, B.Sc. specializes in the science of Soul Astrology, as applied to living our Soul Path and Life Purpose. She is dedicated to supporting people to live from the Soul in 'Life's Greatest Adventure'.
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