taijasi
Gnōthi seauton
Andre,
As far as I'm concerned, feel free to ask away on this thread. We have been discussing the idea of a Spiritual Hierarchy in Theosophy in particular ... especially as that relates to planet Earth. This alone, is a pretty big topic, but it stemmed from a discussion about just Who or what `God' is - relative to Earth Humanity, or say, our Solar System - vs. the ABSOLUTE ... etc.
Yeah, we tackled the Mother of all Mysteries!
Anyway, please share something of your interest and background, and feel free to ask any questions that you might have.
Theosophy actually teaches something familiar to certain schools of Hinduism. The term `Devachan' is used for a Heaven-world, which is kind of an in-between Heaven, or a place of great spiritual bliss and rest. Every single one of us is said to reach Devachan, normally, and to spend several hundred years there before we reincarnate.
Some teachings suggest that there are two main groups of human Souls: one which spends ~700 years in Devachan between lives, the other which spends ~1200 years. This is by no means believed by all Theosophists, however.
Teachings also suggest that disicples, or advanced human Souls, will sometimes reincarnate immediately, or very soon after passing on. H.P. Blavatsky, for example, though not a high Initiate, was certainly an advanced soul, and she returned to incarnation just a few years after she died. Her lifetime before HPB was as Alessandro Cagliostro, whose death is given as 1795. HPB was born in 1831, so there again, just ~36 years ... and clearly no time spent in Devachan.
For the average person, anywhere from several months to several decades might be spent in the astral world, equivalent to the Catholic purgatory, and also to the Tibetan Buddhist bardo, beginning soon after physical death. A person progresses through these intermediate realms, and while the lower astral can be very hellish and frightening, the higher astral is a wonderful, pleasant experience ... even to the point of becoming almost a sidetrack. Souls have been known to remain in the astral or lower mental realms for centuries, researching, exploring, etc. - instead of moving on with their evolution.
Sooner or later, we return to the Higher Mental world, or Devachan. A Master or Initiate would not be "satisfied," or remain in this condition, although for most of us it is so blissful that we might "think" we were already in Nirvana. We would know our inherent Unity, the bonds that connect us, and would experience the very real spiritual Presence of all our friends and family.
The choice that an Initiate or Master makes not to remain in this state, is not because there is anything wrong with it ... certainly not `deceptive.' It's just that there is a higher Purpose for our being here (I believe it can be summed up in the term `Loving Service'), so eventually, all of us return from Devachan back into physical incarnation.
This is the Will of the Soul, and the Soul seeks a Perfection which can only come while we are physically incarnate, accomplishing all that Deity has intended for us. The Plan and the pattern (or blueprint) for all of us is impressed upon the Soul, yet each of us must work this out on our own, as part of a truly unique Journey. When we have accomplished all that God intends for us, we will enter Nirvana, and move on.
Theosophists do not define Nirvana as a state of rest. It can thought of as being at rest, or eternally abiding in perfect Peace, a calm that cannot be disturbed, yet the Masters characterize it as a state of greatest tension, and ceaseless spiritual activity. It is even beyond Bliss, utterly unimaginable, yet it is not the end of our spiritual evolution and Journey. It is the beginning! In this sense, could we really even describe Nirvana as Highest Heaven?
Theosophists, like Hindus, believe in pralaya. At the end of our Planetary Spirit's evolution, and also when our entire Solar System is complete, and all the lives contained therein return to the Source, there is a period of complete inactivity ... just as each of us typically experiences sleep each night. Really this involves preparation for the next `Day' of Cosmic (or Solar, or Planetary) activity, but from our point of view, it is perfect bliss, or perfect sleep. So I sometimes think of this as being Highest Heaven, even though it's pretty far off into the future ...
I think I might have dodged the idea of Seven Heavens, so let us know if this wasn't what you were thinking. Did you by chance, mean the Seven Planes of Being?
Cheers ... Love and Light,
~Andrew
As far as I'm concerned, feel free to ask away on this thread. We have been discussing the idea of a Spiritual Hierarchy in Theosophy in particular ... especially as that relates to planet Earth. This alone, is a pretty big topic, but it stemmed from a discussion about just Who or what `God' is - relative to Earth Humanity, or say, our Solar System - vs. the ABSOLUTE ... etc.
Yeah, we tackled the Mother of all Mysteries!
Anyway, please share something of your interest and background, and feel free to ask any questions that you might have.
Theosophy actually teaches something familiar to certain schools of Hinduism. The term `Devachan' is used for a Heaven-world, which is kind of an in-between Heaven, or a place of great spiritual bliss and rest. Every single one of us is said to reach Devachan, normally, and to spend several hundred years there before we reincarnate.
Some teachings suggest that there are two main groups of human Souls: one which spends ~700 years in Devachan between lives, the other which spends ~1200 years. This is by no means believed by all Theosophists, however.
Teachings also suggest that disicples, or advanced human Souls, will sometimes reincarnate immediately, or very soon after passing on. H.P. Blavatsky, for example, though not a high Initiate, was certainly an advanced soul, and she returned to incarnation just a few years after she died. Her lifetime before HPB was as Alessandro Cagliostro, whose death is given as 1795. HPB was born in 1831, so there again, just ~36 years ... and clearly no time spent in Devachan.
For the average person, anywhere from several months to several decades might be spent in the astral world, equivalent to the Catholic purgatory, and also to the Tibetan Buddhist bardo, beginning soon after physical death. A person progresses through these intermediate realms, and while the lower astral can be very hellish and frightening, the higher astral is a wonderful, pleasant experience ... even to the point of becoming almost a sidetrack. Souls have been known to remain in the astral or lower mental realms for centuries, researching, exploring, etc. - instead of moving on with their evolution.
Sooner or later, we return to the Higher Mental world, or Devachan. A Master or Initiate would not be "satisfied," or remain in this condition, although for most of us it is so blissful that we might "think" we were already in Nirvana. We would know our inherent Unity, the bonds that connect us, and would experience the very real spiritual Presence of all our friends and family.
The choice that an Initiate or Master makes not to remain in this state, is not because there is anything wrong with it ... certainly not `deceptive.' It's just that there is a higher Purpose for our being here (I believe it can be summed up in the term `Loving Service'), so eventually, all of us return from Devachan back into physical incarnation.
This is the Will of the Soul, and the Soul seeks a Perfection which can only come while we are physically incarnate, accomplishing all that Deity has intended for us. The Plan and the pattern (or blueprint) for all of us is impressed upon the Soul, yet each of us must work this out on our own, as part of a truly unique Journey. When we have accomplished all that God intends for us, we will enter Nirvana, and move on.
Theosophists do not define Nirvana as a state of rest. It can thought of as being at rest, or eternally abiding in perfect Peace, a calm that cannot be disturbed, yet the Masters characterize it as a state of greatest tension, and ceaseless spiritual activity. It is even beyond Bliss, utterly unimaginable, yet it is not the end of our spiritual evolution and Journey. It is the beginning! In this sense, could we really even describe Nirvana as Highest Heaven?
Theosophists, like Hindus, believe in pralaya. At the end of our Planetary Spirit's evolution, and also when our entire Solar System is complete, and all the lives contained therein return to the Source, there is a period of complete inactivity ... just as each of us typically experiences sleep each night. Really this involves preparation for the next `Day' of Cosmic (or Solar, or Planetary) activity, but from our point of view, it is perfect bliss, or perfect sleep. So I sometimes think of this as being Highest Heaven, even though it's pretty far off into the future ...
I think I might have dodged the idea of Seven Heavens, so let us know if this wasn't what you were thinking. Did you by chance, mean the Seven Planes of Being?
Cheers ... Love and Light,
~Andrew
