EPUB Ebooks: Free ebook sample of "The Key to Eden" by Aankh Benu (powered by Smashwords)

"So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the Tree of Life."

-~ Genesis 3:24 ~

Preface

When I first got the Idea for this book it seemed at first, off the wall, and even a little dangerous. Let me explain. As a student, teacher, and priest of Ausarian Spirituality (Ancient Egyptian), it seemed out of the blue, off the wall, and even dangerous for me to write a book for the average, rank and file church going Christian. So where did this thought come from? As I thought over it, I became aware of a deep subconscious longing to see people free. It was strange for I, like many others, had left the church to pursue other spiritual knowledge and insight. Through my travels I came across many different spiritual systems and could say that I was very fascinated, to say the least, by what I uncovered. I learned and experienced so much in my years away from the church that I can honestly say that I had no intention on turning back. In fact, after stepping away I began to see the church in a negative-light. It was that light that kindled a fire within my spirit.

Growing up the son of a well known pastor, I was able to see from an early age some of the issues in the church, some of which I will deal with later. To be frank, the politics sickened me. Also my mother, being a female pastor, endured some of the deepest hatred and hypocrisy one could fathom, even to the point of having her life (and our family's) threatened on multiple occasions. However, being a strong woman, she never let it deter her from her path. I myself grew up a musician in the church, and would find my place there playing for different conferences and conventions etc. Honestly speaking, whatever another's reason for being there was, mine was music.

As I matured, I began to see problems in the “religion” as taught by the majority of self proclaimed ministers of “Christian” doctrine. I was always one to read the Bible for myself, and would notice things that contradicted what was being taught. Understand, my issue was not with the Bible, but with the way it was taught. I saw hatred when love was being preached. I saw an institution that was more concerned with finances and politics rather than the spiritual upliftment, fulfillment, and empowerment of its followers. And I saw a system carefully crafted to use fear mechanisms to keep the people’s hearts, minds, and pocket books on lock down. I understood why the book says Jesus chased them out of the temple. Interesting enough I became aware of more parallels between myself and the enigma called Jesus. Before you run off and throw the book away (smile), let me explain what I mean.

Like Jesus I saw the problems with the teachers of the Law (Doctrine). Like Jesus I saw the temple as a Den of Thieves. Like Mary with the baby Jesus I fled into Egypt. While in Egypt, I became learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians; and now like Jesus, I am back, not to break the law (destroy the church, religion) but to fulfill it (restore and renew it).

My spiritual travels would ultimately lead me to the Tree of Life. When I learned that the tree was mentioned in both the book of Genesis and Revelations, I began to look back into my bible with a stronger hunger to find truth in it; not for myself, but for those in the church following that same old, empty routine. (Come, listen to the hype, pay your tithes, and be blessed). It is this routine that I watched suck the life energy out of my family. So to help facilitate healing for my family and others whom have been drained by life in general, I am here to share my insights.

Today I am renewed, and the pain of the past is no more. I have come to realize that the purpose of life is to be enjoyed. The Bible I have come to find is a magical book, and if properly utilized, can be used to free, instead of enslave. I can say that I am no longer angry with the church for there is no one to be angry with. All is a manifestation of the Divine and therefore all is one. All I feel is love, and this book is an extension, and expression of that love.

Within this book is a key to unlock the spiritual and psychological chains, and open the way to a greater understanding of the scripture, ourselves as man (male and female), and our direct connection, oneness in fact, with the Ultimate Reality we call GOD. This book, the first of two volumes, can be considered "The Purification," whereas the second volume is "The Creation." I am well aware that this work will not be received well by the majority, but those of you who are ripe, longing, and knowing there has to be more to this life than what meets the eye, than what we’ve been taught; you will find an answer to that subconscious question “Is this all? Is that it?” Also, though the book was thought of with Christians in mind, the principles taught in this book are universal. So if you look through these pages with an open mind you will realize that what is in your hands right now is not just a book. You are holding The Key to Eden.

**~~~**

Introduction

Searching for the Garden

Eden. How can we get back to Eden? Where is Eden? There have been many theories presented as to where Eden was geographically. India, Iraq, Ethiopia, and Tanzania are just a few of the locations that have been proposed as a probable Eden, yet speculation still runs rampant. Be that as it may, we want to settle this issue, and solve this mystery once and for all. In spite of all the theories the question must be asked "What do we actually know about Eden?" to answer this question we must turn to the Bible.

It is written in the Bible that Eden is the place where the Supreme Being created man. That’s pretty good. What else do we know? Well according to the etymology of the word, Eden is derived from the Hebrew Edhen meaning “Delight”. Now that is interesting. Delight means, according to most sources, enjoyment, pleasure, happiness, joy etc. Now that’s even more interesting. Taking this in to account one could replace the word Eden and say that God made man in delight, in pleasure, in joy, happiness, peace. Some people even refer to Eden as Paradise.

We were created to exist in paradise. Then something happened. We got kicked out, and “cut” off. I know most are familiar with the story but I’ll run through it briefly. The Supreme Being, created this World and everything in it. One of the creatures of which he took special interest in, was man. He made man in His Image and after His Likeness, and gave them dominion over creation. But there was one stipulation--don’t touch that tree!

There were many trees in Eden of which man was allowed to eat the fruit from but two trees in particular were of special mention. The first tree is the Tree of Life, and the other is the Forbidden Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. To make a long story short there was a “serpent” that tempted man to eat of the forbidden tree, God punished them, and kicked them out of Eden. That’s how we got here, and we are well, .we’re somewhere alright, but it is surely not Eden… or is it?

Many will answer that question with an emphatic no. However, after close examination of the story, its origins, the Hebrew language, and knowing that there’s always more than what meets the eye, I must beg to differ. The very ground on which you are standing right now is Eden. If you’re thinking I’m crazy, please hear me out. "How could this be paradise? How could this be delight? Look at the world outside; full of violence, decadence, greed, terror, fear, insecurity, poverty. There is no way in hell that this is the place where God made man. I hear you. You are right, if what is outside is all of the aforementioned, then it is not the Eden. It is not the place where God created us. I give you that.

However remember this one thing: the world outside is a reflection of the world within. Let me say it another way. It is your "insperience" that creates your experience. How could there be violence in the world outside, if there were no violence in our minds, in our hearts? Well most ministers will answer this by saying it is the nature of man. They will say “Man is sinful by nature”. However I peacefully disagree, and argue that it is this teaching that is used as an excuse for our folly. Excuses such as "I'm only Human”; “I’m not perfect” I’m just a man” are just a few of the unacceptable cop outs that we use to indulge in our misery. "I’m just a man”, Yea, well who is man? What kind of being is man? Let us look at Genesis for the answer to those questions.

Genesis states that God (Elohim, Eloheim), made man from the soil of Eden. It says He (God) made man in His image and after his likeness. "Male and female created He them". (Why refer to God as He?) Okay so we have a foundation to build our answer upon. Man is the Image and Likeness of God. So what is the Image of God? Well look around at this marvelous creation; Galaxies upon galaxies, worlds within worlds. If you look in the earth, you find a world in the earth. If you gaze into the water, you find a world within the water. If you peep into a microscope you find a world under the microscope. What kind of being could create something as extraordinary and complex as this? Well first of all in order to make something you have to have “the know-how”. You have to be extremely intelligent. You also need to have the ability to do, the power to show forth your intelligence and make it manifest. Lastly, in order to make a universe which we have yet to find the ends of, you have to be able to be everywhere. So through logical deduction we can ascertain that: God is Omnipresent, Omniscient, and Omnipotent; All knowing, All powerful, and Ever present, everywhere. So if God made us in His image than there are three things that we must first know about ourselves:

We have the ability to know whatever we need to know about our lives; to intuit; to know from within, and receive infallible guidance.

We have the power to achieve everything that we set out to accomplish.

We are not limited to this vehicle we call our body.

Furthermore, if man is the Image of God, than his nature is not sinful, but divine. Man is a god. “Blasphemy!” you say. That’s what they cried while attempting to stone Jesus when he rebuked them with the reply “Where have I lied? Doesn’t it say in your Law ye are Gods?” Close examination of the scriptures will reveal the true message of Jesus was to teach man how to be God again. We'll deal with that a little later. Interesting to note, however, that if there was nothing in existence but God prior creation, what material was used for the project? Himself. So what else could man be?

But, “man was taken from the soil.” you say. Yes, the soil of Eden, of Delight. The nature, essence of man is peace, happiness, and joy. This can be seen clearly by reflecting on fact that everything that we do, from the person that we marry, career that we choose, clothes that we buy, where we live, who we associate with, is ultimately to bring us to a state of peace. Even in our rage, the end goal is gratification. The problem comes in the manner, the means through which we seek that peace, that happiness. Are you seeking that peace as a divine being; the image of God? Or are you seeking peace as a limited, impotent, ignorant something else, I don’t know an evolved ape maybe? (Smile). It all starts with our image of Self. It is from the pi point, the center, the “I”, that all thoughts, emotions, and actions stem. It is our image of Self that determines how we seek peace and happiness in life. Let us look back at genesis again to expound on this point.

Back in the Garden there was a designated food for us to eat, and a food that was forbidden. It states there were trees in the garden and "the fruits thereof we should eat for meat." However, there was the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil that was forbidden to us. It was said that in eating from it, we would die. Now before I continue let me state that all of this is figurative. It is not meant to be taken literally. I know you have been taught that there was once a time when snakes talked and had legs, and that women are the reason the world is in the shape it’s in (Eve’s sin in the garden). There is no more time for fairytales in the name of God, at the expense of Mankind. History is filled with violence, and bigotry because of the zealotry caused by the literal interpretation, and teaching of the scriptures; All of them; Bible and Quran. Every holy book has been misunderstood, and misused to take at advantage of the people.

Now back to this “evil tree”. It is said that a serpent tricked Eve (the woman) and Adam (the man) to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree. Immediately their eyes were opened and they became aware of their nakedness. Apparently they had been nude all along, but why didn’t they know it? Simply put, their attention was not on it. We are dealing with a decline in awareness, a switching of attention.

The Hebrew language is very fascinating. Every single letter of every single word has a depth of meaning attached to it. One such word is the word translated here as serpent. The word is translated from the Hebrew term nâchâsh (pronounced naw-khawsh) meaning serpent (because of the “hiss”) which is derived from the word nâchash (pronounced naw-khash) which has a variety of meanings, a few which are as follows: to hiss; whisper; prognosticate; observe diligently; learn from experience.

The last two meanings are quite elucidating. Man is born into the world innocent, with a clean slate. An infant does not have a concept of hatred, or prejudice. It does not know right from wrong. All it knows is gratification. It feels urges and it cries until that urge is satisfied and peace is restored. As it grows older, it learns by observing diligently, what is going on its environment. We learn from experience. Now our interpretation of what we are observing and experiencing is colored, filtered through the concepts, ideas, conditionings (appetite, style of dress, attraction, religion etc.) that has been imposed on us. From this experience, we begin to become aware of the good, and the evil, and most of us, due to improper teaching and an improper image of Self (lack of Self-Knowledge), began to gravitate towards the evil.

Now there, doesn’t that make sense? This is why it is important to study the history, origin, culture, and language of any religion, philosophy, everything that we will ever study, to gain a proper understanding of it. This is especially pertinent if we are going to base our lives upon it.

Now the scripture does mention another tree: The Tree of Life. This was the tree designated for us to eat from. In fact according to the story the entire reason we were kicked out of the garden was to keep us away from the Tree of Life, which granted Godly powers, one of such was immortality. So we were “clothed with skin” according to the story, a Cherubim, and a flaming sword were placed at the gate to keep man away from the Tree of Life. The last term I want to delve into is Cherubim. Many of us were taught that it means Angel, however it comes from the Hebrew term Keruwb (pronounced Keroob) meaning, imaginary figure. With that said I will sum up this part of our discourse with the following proposition. We are born into this world clean, pure, and holy. Because we are born without an idea in our heads, we have no concept of limitations thus we, are infinite in our potential to know, to achieve, and to be. We learn from experience and observation, as well as being taught, what is good, and what is evil. We then begin to perceive the world through the lens of the ideas and concepts we’ve taken in (all Ideas are foreign objects). We are conditioned and we begin to identify with what we have observed, the things we’ve been taught, experienced, our emotions, urges, etc. We take on an Imaginary Identity (Cherubim), we pursue peace and happiness to please this imaginary identity through following its low desires, and we are cut off from our true knowledge of Self, power, and the abundance of life that was destined for us (Flaming sword). In fact this is the true meaning and purpose of religion (literally re; again, ligion; connect); to reunite us with the Divine Source we call God.

Religion is not ritual although ritual may be a part of religion, nor is it myth being taught as historical fact. It has the exact same meaning as yoga (to yoke), and at-one-ment (atonement). Implicit in all these terms is unity, oneness. The failure to realize this has led to the separation of spirituality from logic, science, reason, education, health, government, nature, and the Divine Source. All of these when properly understood, are not separate unrelated entities, but integral parts of one whole. In fact, the more we understand science, mathematics, logic, nature, etc. we deepen our understanding of GOD and ourselves. We’ve been eating the wrong fruits, from the wrong tree (physically, mentally, and spiritually).

It was said that in eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil that we would surely die. If our lives were meant to be enjoyed (Eden), then a life that flows from good to evil, from pleasure to pain, happiness and sadness, is a life of chaos and confusion. It is a stress filled life full of pain and misery that drains and depletes our life energy. This disharmony in our spirits is a death. It is death for a life that flows from pleasure to pain, is a life that becomes trapped in the past. Our every action, thoughts, etc, are simply geared towards repeating our past, and short lived pleasurable experiences. In fact, when we do think about the "future" it is based on a fear of re-living the pain of the past. This is not living for both of those extremes in thought are distractions that cause us to miss out on the now. What did Jesus really mean by the statement "This day you shall be with me in paradise?" You see, when we eat of Good and Evil, Pleasure and Pain, we miss out on the bliss of our Immortality, for all that exists is the ever present moment. Everything else is a theory.

In the following chapters the proper foods will be presented, from the Tree of Life. We’ve tried that other tree, it’s not working. We need a revolution in spirituality; which is exactly what will be presented in the following pages; a complete path, guide, and way of life. As it stated in the book of Revelations “The Tree of Life’s fruit and leaves are for the healing of nations.” Can't we use a healing?

**~~~**

Chapter 1

Bible Study 101

Many of the fundamentalists will take issue with my usage of the Biblical text in this work. I will not be taking a literalist approach to many of the scriptures, which has been the order of the day for the mainstream Christian clergy. Some may make the accusation that I’m taking some scriptures out of context. However, most of those that will do so really don’t understand what the Bible is. So allow me to make it plain. First things first the Bible must be understood for the type of work that it is. It is not a book, but rather an anthology. It is a host of books written by several different authors over a span of thousands of years (being extremely generous). Many of the authors are of different backgrounds, ethnicities, and have opposing philosophical perspectives. This is the reason for its many contradictions, of which we won’t go into detail. Next we must understand that the Bible is not a history book. Most of the characters within it cannot be shown to have existed even in relationship to those that can. For instance, one of the most documented nations in history was Ancient Egypt. There is a substantial amount of evidence in regards to the life of King Ramesu II (so-called pharaoh or Ramses), but no historical proof of the exodus story or Moses. The list of examples goes on, but it does not take away from the fact that within the Bible is a tremendous amount of wisdom. It is essentially, a compilation of traditions (most of which are mythological) used to impart spiritual knowledge on those that adhere to it. As stated in my preface, the issue is not with the Bible itself, but with the way that it is being taught. Just like any literary work it is open for critique, and must be placed within the context of time, language, and culture of origin, all of which played a significant role in molding it. In fact, the literal interpretation of the bible, as well as many other spiritual books, have led to some of the greatest wars, acts of genocide, and misogyny known to history, all in the name of “god”. We need to look no further than Genesis to see what taking scripture literally leads to. For instance Eve, the first woman according to the story, is the cause of sin entering into the world. As though that was not bad enough, her menstrual cycle is to remind her of her sins! This myth has been used as one of the greatest weapons against women, breeding chauvinism in men, and causing the suppression of women within the church and world at large. In fact it is an extremely new and rare phenomenon to see women that are allowed to preach, even step foot into the pulpit, in spite of the fact that they make up the majority of its constituency. This has got to go!

It is this same poor understanding of the scripture being taught as doctrine that has left the church in absolute shambles. Sure it is one of the most powerful and wealthiest institutions in the world, but it has left many of the people in the church powerless, and poor. They attend service week after week, performing the same rituals which have lost their true significance and are empty, only to become zombies listening to the preachers mythological hype about a pie in the sky. In the mean time they are here suffering. To be frank, the preacher teaches the poor members that they will enter into their paradise after they die, while he himself builds his on earth from their contributions. "A prophet is worthy of its hire", and "God loves a cheerful giver" are just a few examples of ministers misuse of the scriptures to rob the people. However, the most disturbing example is the usage of Malachi chapter 3 verse 8, which reads "Will a man rob God?" Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say where have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings," in which the preacher inserts his or herself as the "me". This scripture is read every Sunday in some churches while the collection plate is being passed around. Such brainwashing and thievery will no longer be tolerated, It's time to cut out the middle man.

Who made it a law that we need an intermediary to get to the Creator? This is an absolute fallacy. There is no one closer to the Divine than we are right now. In fact, we are so close that we are almost inseparable from God. If we could get any closer we would become totally absorbed in Divinity, and the only thing preventing this from occurring is our own ideas of separateness.

It has always intrigued me how on one hand, most of the Bible is taught literally, and then on the other there are those few scriptures that are taught as allegory when convenient. There are scriptures that, if taken literally would rock the very foundation of the “religion”. Psalms 82, John 10:34 and Luke 17:20 are just a few of the examples of the many powerful keys contained within the Bible. Truly reading the Bible, without our perception of it being filtered through the broadcaster (preacher), would reveal that it is not through a building or intermediary that we must seek God; nor should we be looking to the sky for the return of the Master. We should set our gaze into the true temple, ourselves, because it is within where God’s Kingdom resides.

For the past 2000 years, every year has been the “last days” for those who proselytize the faith, preying on the insecurities of the masses. Every year has proved a disappointment. It’s time to stop waiting to die to be with God. True religion will reunite us while we yet live. Now don’t misunderstand me as a disbeliever in the afterlife. Life is eternal. However, our actions throughout every second of life determine where we end up tomorrow. Unite with the Divine in this life and you’ll be with It in the next.

So what must the people be taught? People should be taught how to live. In the book of Matthew chapter 5 verse 48, Jesus tells his students to” be perfect even as their Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Why would he say it, if it were not possible? Man has will, the ability to choose. Imperfection is an option, but so is perfection. All it takes is for you to recognize who you are. Greater is the Being that is within, than that which is in the world. This is the reason Jesus said that his students would perform greater works than he did, because he knew that the same Infinite Potential that resided within him resides in each and every one of us, and that, my friends, is the key to Eden.

Perfection, however, is easier said than done. Many of us look in the mirror, into our eyes and we are not able to see the Divine. We are not able to look past our circumstances, our past, what we’ve been taught about life and about ourselves. We can’t see past the junk within our heads. So what must we do? As Paul said, it is time for us not to conform to the present order of things, but transform ourselves through renewing our minds, our spirits. We have a spiritual problem. The solution resides within the problem, our spirits. For this we turn to the Tree of Life.

It must be added at this time that just because the Bible is what one would call a compilation or anthology, does not mean that the various angles within it don’t converge toward a single point. In fact, when the bible is viewed in its progression from the Genesis to the Revelation, one can come to a realization that is quite profound. What is referred to as the Old Testament is about law. It is about discipline and the Creator is even cast in the role of a disciplinarian. When we look at this in relationship to our own personal genesis and development we see a parallel. Our parents prescribe a parameter for our actions to teach us discipline ultimately to guide us as best as they could, along a straight path and in many cases when we deviated from that prescribed path they may have come down as a disciplinarian or a punisher. However, once we have grown in reasoning capabilities we begin to understand the purpose of such discipline, recognizing that it was out of their love that they did so. We begin to understand why we should follow the law, and we choose to do so, without the fear of chastisement. This is exactly where the New Testament takes up in relationship to the Old. It is more philosophical. It is about love and understanding. It is more concerned with the mind and spirit, versus the physical actions. This can be seen clearly in the case where Jesus says that the thoughts of committing a wrong act is just as sinful as committing the act itself. It is easy for one to obey the law out of fear of punishment, however it takes development in mentality and character, to choose to follow it out of understanding, and love for ones fellow man. Once the mind is cleansed and transformed, the actions will follow. All of this ends at a point or capstone so to speak, in which one comes to their own personal revelation, in which the “mystery of God shall be revealed.” So what we see is a gradual progression from birth, development, acquisition of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, ending in revelation of the Knowledge of God. Interesting to note is that up until that point, God is said to be a mystery.

**~~~**

Chapter 2

The Tree of Life

So what exactly is the Tree of Life? It has to be of great importance for it plays a major role in the very first book of the Bible, Genesis, and the very last book, Revelations. The question was raised earlier as to what materials the Creator used to make all that is and the answer was brought forth that it was Himself. That is exactly what the above diagram symbolizes. The Tree of Life is a model that depicts the process through which the Supreme Being created the world from out of itself. “In the beginning God created the heaven and the Earth” using the only material that existed prior to creation, Itself. That’s right--the very fabric of our being is the Supreme Being.

Some "scholars" make the suggestion that the Creator made all of this out of nothing, however this isn't properly understood. By nothing it is not implying that there wasn't any substance in existence, but a state of No-thingness. It is not correct to think that there was absolutely nothing in existence for science shows us that energy/matter is neither created nor destroyed, but it changes form. Meaning the same energy/matter that is here now, that we are made of, has always existed, just not in this form. There is no such thing as an Absolute nothing. Some may argue that this statement has nothing to do with religion or God, but as stated earlier, true religion is about unity. We do not seek to separate Religion from science. Both when properly understood say the exact same things, in different ways; they verify one another.

What is meant by No-thingness is a state in which there are no separate things and form. This is the chaos that preceded the order of creation This term Chaos speaks to the absence of separate things for the word itself contains the Greek root Chos/kos meaning order and contains the cleverly inserted (a) to negate it. For there to be order there must be separate things, for Order is based on relativity or relationships. Evidence of this is in the scriptures in which it states that the "earth (matter) was without form and void," in which both terms are synonymous with chaos. Another example is in the very first verse of the Bible. Genesis 1:1 reads "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." Now the term that is translated as "created" is the Hebrew term bara (pronounced baw-raw) which literally means "to cut down (as in wood), From this it can be understood that the "creating" of "heaven and earth" are referring to the separation of the two. Also "to cut down could be a direct reference to the Tree of Life.

This tree, however, is not your ordinary tree for its roots are above, in heaven. Starting with the Nothing-ness (above the tree), then the One raising Itself from out of the Chaos to further divide itself, until ultimately the multitude of things are created. The act of creation was an act of division. Just as the cells in our bodies reproduce by dividing themselves (mitosis, meiosis), the Supreme Being existing in and as this unformed energy /matter divided himself into the multitude of forms that we see. Now is a good time to interject the purpose of creation. The fact that God was alone speaks volumes to why creation took place and in the manner that it did. It was alone. It was everything and No-things. It was just an Infinite Intelligence (consciousness) existing in and as energy. However, although He himself was consciousness, there were no-things for It to be conscious of. For instance, if you close your eyes, all you will see is darkness. That’s a close example, but It couldn’t even perceive darkness because It was the darkness Itself. Everything was It and where there are no distinctions, no separateness, there can be no, perception, experience, and thus no knowledge. He wasn’t even able to experience the knowledge of Himself as God, he just was (I AM, but what am I?). You get the point. So in order to become acquainted with Himself and his infinite potential to be, to know, and to do, He created differences within Himself. The purpose of creation was to create a vehicle through which the Supreme could come into the world and experience Himself as God. This is why the book of 1st Corinthians, states “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” It is through us that the God comes into the world to experience, learn, of His infinite potential. He perceives the world through your eyes. So knowing this, it is not what God can do for you but what can you do for God. What kind of experience will you give Him?

Looking back to the tree of life we see 10 spheres (in reality there is 11, 0) however each sphere (called sephiroth in Hebrew) is nothing more than the different ways through which the One expresses Itself. The diagram itself was popularized by the practitioners of the Jewish mystic tradition (Kabbalah) which was reserved for the longest, for the priesthood. However, careful study and research will reveal its origins to belong to the Ancient Egyptian Priesthood (mysteries). Each sphere contains an order of what the religious traditions call angels, which have never been properly understood by the masses. Angels are not separate entities from God, but the different mediums through which He manifests. This is the great secret behind the plurality of God (Eloheim) in Genesis 1:26 “…let us make man in our Image and after our likeness…” This fact will be understood by noting how each and every angel’s name ends in “El” (i.e Raphael, Michael, Gabriel, etc.), which is the name used for God in the Old Testament. Each one is nothing more than a variation of El, the one GOD. Volumes can and have been devoted to the subject. Delving deeper into the subject is beyond the scope of this particular book; however, I will give the essential keys to it and plan on dedicating a second volume to it in totality. To be simple, the tree of life is a depiction of the emanation of the spirit of God, the variations, (Angels/Angles) through which He manifests, and governs creation. It depicts the various angles (called Angels) the Creator took in bringing order to its chaos.

The Science of the Creation Story

So what was it that caused the differentiation? The Bible says something that is actually quite profound scientifically. It was when God "moved over the face of the waters" and said "let there be light." The profound thing about this statement is the fact that the "motion" preceded the sound that caused the light. This is a reference to sound as the creative force. This is evident in physics' wave-particle duality. This motion caused friction and sound, which in turn caused light (heat, big bang?). To be more concise, we can actually say that these events do not take place one after the other, but simultaneously, for motion causes sound and friction which creates heat or light all at once. Also, the whole creation story can be summed up in the statement "God said, let there be light," for every act of creation mentioned afterward, follows the same scheme. God "said," and the thing appeared, speaking to sound as the cause of solidity or "soundness," and the ability to perceive the thing (light).

This light however, is not just the physical light. There is a dual meaning to this statement. It was at that very moment that the Creator became aware. The darkness is a metaphor for the inability to perceive due to the undifferentiated nature of the original Chaos, and the light is not only the initial separation, but bringing with it the ability to observe something (just like when you turn the lights on). The separation of the "light and darkness" is the Creator making the distinction between the chaos and order, the subjective and the objective, as well as the observing of essential qualities of its Being. Careful contemplation over this can reveal the fact that creation still takes place in the same manner, for it is also via the word that our "lights" come on (how'd you get so smart?), and our persona is a combination of the ideas (words/sounds) and images (light) that we observe. As stated a little earlier, delving deeper (and it gets deeper) into the subject is beyond the scope of this particular volume, and I don't want to make this extremely complex.

If one were to attempt to sum up the tree of life in a nutshell one could refer to it as the God's thought process. All of this is happening within the mind of The Creator. Now man, being the Image and likeness of God, and existing within God, follows the same scheme. In fact for man, the tree of life is a means, to not only bring order to her chaotic mind (and life by extension), but to also fall in line with the Universal Order of things and thus, be in harmony with the Divine.

Universal (GOD’s Spirit)

Sphere One: The seat of God’s Consciousness within the world (creation). The "All Seeing Eye." Omnipresence.

Sphere Two: The seat of God’s Omniscience (mind) within the world, the intelligence within matter.

Sphere Three: The seat of God’s Omnipotence (spirit) within the world. All of the energy/matter making up creation

Sphere Four: The seat of God’s Law within the world; the laws by which the energy/matter of creation shall be regulated. Cosmic Order; how things come together relatively, based on form and function.

Sphere Five: The seat of God’s Law enforcer in the world (cause and effect/karma), potential of chance.

Sphere Six: The median/unifier of Heaven and Earth*. Balances and harmonizes all opposites. ("Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven, the son that is the father")

Sphere Seven: The medium through which God makes things similar (in form) as in general types of beings. Divine Harmony

Sphere Eight: The medium through which God makes things different (in form) as in specific types of beings.

Sphere Nine: The medium through which God gives everything its individuality (personality, temperament etc.)

Sphere Ten: The manifestation of all in the physical (gross) Form. The end result.

Particular (The spirit of Man)

Sphere One: the seat of God’s consciousness within the spirit.

Sphere Two: the seat of God’s Omniscience (Intuition) within the spirit, the Divine Will.

Sphere Three: The seat of Gods Omnipotence (Power) within the spirit.

Sphere Four: The seat of Gods Law within the Spirit. The ability to see the interconnectedness of all things. Love

Sphere Five: The Seat of God’s Law Enforcer, within the spirit. The ability to be just, to not get by at the expense of another.

Sphere Six: The seat of man’s will within the spirit.

Sphere Seven: The seat of man’s Imagination within the spirit. Joy and Pleasure

Sphere Eight: The seat of man’s Intellect within the spirit.

Sphere Nine: The Seat of mans’ Personality (ego) within the spirit. Learning (indiscriminate) and memory.

Sphere Ten: The Gross Physical Body and its animating principle (life force).

The distinction made above must not be understood as being two separate trees of life. In other words, there is no separation between the spirit of man and the spirit of God, for as stated earlier; all has its origins in God’s spirit (energy) including the spirit of man. A good analogy to explain it further would be that of an Icecap and the sea. Although the sea (God’s spirit) is by far greater in its volume than the icecap (man’s spirit), the icecap is nothing more than a solidified portion of the sea. Contemplation on this will reveal the profound truth that in reality there is no Icecap, just the sea; or at least that they are both the same (water). I know this may be hard to swallow for we have been taught that God exists out there somewhere, far away, but by the end of this work hopefully you will begin to realize that you are in the Father, and the Father is in you. You are One.

One of the most important things that must be noted is the fact that God manifests as a plurality. Since man is made in the Image of God, man’s spirit as well manifests as a plurality. The various spheres (properly understood as spheres of influence), motivate man to satisfy the urge that is unique to each sphere. Every single thing that we ever do is to satisfy a particular desire from our spirit. It is akin to a gravitating effect. Also, as it relates to Spheres of influence, every single thing that happens in life is controlled by one of these spheres. This brings us to the most important part of our discourse. As stated earlier we have a spiritual problem. Each sphere has a law or principle that corresponds to its proper maintenance, and nourishment. It has been the absence of this knowledge of our spirit that has led to its degeneration (fallen angels).

Understanding God’s Being

God's Identity is Consciousness, the indwelling intelligence found within all physical phenomenon. The intelligence itself cannot be seen directly but its existence can be ascertained through deduction, by its effect on what can be seen. In other words, God is the intelligence dwelling within all energy/matter; however he Is not the energy/matter itself. The Energy/Matter corresponds to the Spirit of God. The mathematical precision behind the workings of the atom of life, the cell of life, etc., are just a few examples of this intelligences presence. God works through energy/ matter (Spirit), to manifest its Will, and Intelligence. This same Consciousness dwell’s within man.

Understanding Man’s Being

It is evident that man’s physical vehicle is made of energy/matter. However, man is not his physical vehicle (body) but dwells within. Man is Consciousness. Let's try something. Close your eyes and imagine your favorite television show. Could you see it? You saw it didn't you? Yet your eyes were closed. Now I want you to imagine your favorite song. Can you hear it? Yet there is no music playing. You saw and heard the things within the mind. This means that there is an aspect of you that sees and hears beyond the gross physical eyes and ears. This witness that we speak of is the self, it is consciousness. Note I did not say it is conscious, but consciousness itself. That's what you are. You are consciousness. You are not your mind, you are not your thoughts, you’re not your body, you're not your spirit, and you are not your emotions or feelings. You are that which perceives all of these. Notice how we use the words my body, my mind etc. The word my is a possessive pronoun. This means that all the things mentioned above; mind and body etc. are things that we own, possessions of ours, yet are not us. Let us look back at the perception of our favorite song or television show. We saw and heard them in our minds. The very fact that there was perception denotes differentiation once again, no differentiation, no observation. So Consciousness, the eternal and objective witness, is who and what we are indeed. It is our identity. It is that which is us and in us that says “I”. Consciousness is ever present, always watching, aware, and observing. Whether we're dreaming, awake, thinking, daydreaming etc., consciousness (awareness) is always there. Even when there's pain in the body, you (consciousness) perceive that pain. Consciousness is that which perceives yet cannot be perceived. You are consciousness itself. Understanding man’s Self as consciousness gives us the following revelation. If Self control is the reason we have not been able to overcome sin, then the solution is taking control of our attention (awareness). We must change what we pay attention to. As consciousness, our main function is to either pay attention, or ignore. How often do we give attention to negative thoughts, and feelings about ourselves and others? The other aspect of our being is spirit or energy; everything that we are conscious or aware of falls into this category. This includes our bodies, our emotions, our feelings, as well as our thoughts.

It should be understood that these aspects of being are indivisible. What would be the purpose of consciousness, if there were no things to perceive? What would be the point of the Will, if we did not have the ability or power (energy/matter) to manifest its aspirations? This principle should be applied to all things considered opposites. Understand that opposites are nothing more than opposing poles of a single unit. They complete one another. This is the beginning of wisdom.

Due to this dualization of our Being, we must become aware of the distinction between the Will to do, and the Power or ability to do. How often do we will, (focus) or want to do something, but it doesn’t get done? You can will to be healthy, but if you don’t focus the energy (spirit) to think healthy thoughts, to improve your diet, to exercise, etc. you will not improve your health. How about drug addiction, alcoholism, sex addiction? We know many people who suffer from these that will to give them up, but lack the power, the energy to put behind that will. This is because the spirit must be in harmony with the will. Most of these problems are registered in the life force. Every single thought, thing that we eat, drink, smoke, etc, has a bio-chemical dimension to it, and is registered in the spirit. This is one of the main reasons why the spirit will not cooperate with our will to overcome these ills. Spirit is a creature of habit. It is the real animal (animating force), and like an animal it is trained (programmed), fed, and sets up an appetite. All energy moves on momentum. If it is headed in a particular direction it will continue unless acted upon by another force. As consciousness, it is our attention that keeps our lives (energy/spirit) moving in circles, recreating the “same type” of situations to feed the addiction of our inner animal. The spirit must be brought under our control, cleansed, cultivated, and directed. But how do we know what program is in our spirit?

Although we have come to the recognition of ourselves as consciousness, the truth is that most of us still identify with the myriad of things that we are conscious of. We think that we are our bodies. You think that you are a democrat or republican. You think that you are your feelings and emotions. You think that you are ugly or beautiful, and every other concept that you’ve been conditioned to believe in. This brings us to the greatest of our problems, and solution,” The Word.”

Purchase this book or download sample versions for your ebook reader.
(Pages 1-19 show above.)