His light may be compared to a niche
wherein is a lamp the lamp in a glass,
the glass as it were a glittering star kindled from a Blessed Tree,
an olive that is neither of the East nor of the West
whose oil would almost shine forth though no fire touches it
Light upon Light
Allah guides to His Light whom He will.
- Qur’an 24:35

WORKING WITH THE SOUL OF THE WORLD

Our souls are made of a quality of light, a light that be-longs to God and carries a knowing of its source. Through this light the soul sees its way, the path it follows, the destiny that needs to be lived. Without this light there could be no evolution, no meaning to life.

Spiritual life is a means to bring the light of the soul into the world. Spiritual practices give us access to our light and the teachings of the path help us live it in our daily life. The more our light shines in this world, the easier it is to follow a spiritual path and be guided from within. Through this light the inner meaning of the soul comes into our life, and the wonder of God becomes visible. In this light we see the oneness that belongs to God, that is a direct expression of His nature. Without it we only see the reflections of our illusory self, the shadows of the ego.

The world also has a soul. The world is a living being, of which an individual human being is a microcosm. The soul of the world is the spiritual heart of the world, a spinning organism of light and love that exists at its core. Without this light the world would fade away; it would be just shadowy images without purpose or meaning. The light of our own soul brings meaning to our lives, and turning away from the needs of our soul brings darkness and despair. Similarly, the soul of the world makes the world sacred, and our mistreatment of the world is a desecration.

The light of the soul of the world is everywhere. Just as the soul of the individual is present throughout the body, the soul of the world permeates every cell of creation. Because we can access the soul of the world through our own higher nature, we can access it wherever we are, in any situation. And there are specific ways to work with it, to bring its quality of light into life. There are ways for its light to interact with the darkness of the world and transform the darkness, to reveal hidden qualities within humanity. And there are also ways to help its light flow around the world. When the light of the soul flows around the world, it can open and activate energy centers in the energy structure of the planet, energy centers that are needed for the next level of human evolution, which is also the evolution of our planet.

On one level the light of the soul of the world is the light of humanity, both individually and collectively. It is made up of the light of the souls of all of humanity and a substance that belongs to the very being of the planet. It comes into existence through us and through the physical body of the planet. But it does not belong to the physical dimension. It is fully alive in a different dimension where its light is clearly visible. In this dimension it can interact with other similar bodies of light, other celestial energies that are invisible to us. And the soul of the world is itself part of a vast living organism, a pulsating body of light we call the Milky Way.

In the inner worlds, the light of the soul is guided by the masters of love; in the outer world it needs our attention. The contribution of the mystic is to be open to the inner energy structure of life, to the light of the soul of the world. We can learn to work directly with this light, to become a conscious node in its organic web. Then our higher consciousness can directly participate with the light of the whole—we will no longer be isolated within our individual aspiration, but can make a direct contribution to the way the light moves around the planet.

Every human being can participate in this unfolding. This light is not other than us, and yet it needs to live through us. It comes into life through the core of our being, where we are directly connected to the divine. We need to bring this energy into the outer flow of life, into the places of darkness and the shadows of misunderstanding. Once we step out of the sphere of self-interest into a real concern with the whole, we have access to the energy of the whole. We are open to the light of the world and can use it. Without the light of the soul of the world to guide us, life cannot fulfill its larger purpose; its real destiny cannot unfold.

But there are many forces in the world that deny the world its light. On an individual level the darkness of our own greed or selfishness inhibits the flow of our own light into life. Similarly, our collective darkness covers the world with patterns of greed and desire for power. These are the forces whose stories we read in our newspapers, whose ambitions cause suffering. This darkness is visible all around us. With global news coverage we see how it creates suffering around the world. We see the hungry and destitute and the damage of war. We know the pollution caused by corporations and read stories of their corruption and greed. We recognize how the politics of power care only for more power and wealth, rarely for the well-being of the whole.

What we do not see so clearly is how the light of the soul of the world works, how its energy flows through the hearts of individuals, how it brings hope where there is despair, joy into the midst of suffering. Our eyes are so attuned to the darkness that we miss light’s power and beauty. But we can begin to recognize the ways light flows through the world, and learn to work with it. We need to guide the light of the soul of the world into the centers of worldly power. This light needs to show the whole world the way, bring meaning back to the mass of humanity.

Bringing the light of the soul of the world into the collective consciousness of humanity requires perseverance and patience. There are forces of self-interest that resist the light. There are patterns of control that can only exist in the darkness or the shadows, and these do not want the light to affect them. They are often constellated around fears or desires that are based upon illusions. When the illusions are revealed, they lose their control. In the bright light of the divine many forces of darkness lose their power or simply dissolve.

We know how this happens in our own journey: how the light gained through aspiration and given by grace helps us to see the patterns that constrict us, the darkness that binds us. Seeing these patterns with the clear light of consciousness can often cause them to lose their power so that they no longer dominate us. Working with the light of the world can have a similar effect on collective patterns. First one has to break through the resistance to real light—not the reflected light of the ego and the mind, but the pure light of the soul. Then one has to move the light around, so that it can flow with the energy of life, follow the riverbeds of creation. In this way it can nourish the whole of humanity and bring meaning back into the deserts we have created.

Part of the wonder of the energy of the soul is its quality of oneness. In this oneness the energy and the knowledge of how it works are one. In each moment oneness reveals to us how to work with it: how to guide its flow and how to overcome or work around the obstacles that impede it. What is required of the servant is an openness of heart and purity of intention. If we want something for ourself, we cannot have access to the light or learn how to work with it. If we are in service to the whole, we are given what we need to help with the work.

How do we begin this work? In order to work with the light we must accept the darkness, for in His oneness everything is included. We must recognize that darkness—greed, suffering, selfishness—is also a part of our world. The darkness is part of our nature, part of our heritage. We are the fallen angel and this world is our home.

Light and darkness appear to be simple opposites. Like any opposites they can be in conflict with each other or come together in a way that is creative. Our scriptures speak of the battles of light and darkness, good and evil. But our psychology tells a different story, of light hidden in the depths of darkness, and how darkness can be trans-formed, lead turned into gold.

The time of polarizing light and dark is over. It was a dynamic of the past era of duality. For hundreds of years we have lived within the paradigm of duality, of opposites that are in continual conflict. This was the era of the warring brothers in which the primal forces of life appeared in opposition. So many battles have been fought, so much blood spilled. Another paradigm is now constellating; another era has begun. In this new paradigm the opposites can come together in a new way. We can work with the light of the soul of the world and the darkness of the world in a creative relationship.

BEYOND THE OPPOSITES OF DARKNESS AND LIGHT

How can light and darkness dance together? How can we work with the soul of the world in the density and confusion of everyday life? How can we bring this light into the places of worldly power and help it guide the destiny of nations?

Since the individual is a microcosm of the whole, we can use the model of working with the light of our own soul to understand how to work with the light of the soul of the world.

The light of the soul is not a foreign substance. It is a part of our own nature, but usually remains hidden beneath the coverings of our lower self. Our darkness hides us from our light. But what many don’t understand is that the darkness is also needed to engage the light, just as suffering often lifts our face towards God. We may think that our suffering and the divine are opposites, that God is goodness and light while our suffering comes from the darkness. But this duality is essentially an illusion. Suffering is an aspect of life energy being restricted by matter, being caught in its darkness. Often suffering comes from resistance to change, and change is fundamental to life. Even the miracle of birth brings the pain of childbirth. Energy and matter work together; for example, our breath follows the deeper rhythms of life, which is why conscious breathing can lessen our pain and help us go with the flow of life.

There is a flow of life that belongs to the miracle of creation, and the darkness is part of this miracle. Accepting our darkness, accepting the suffering of life, we are taken into the crucible of transformation in which the opposites come together. A deeper oneness is revealed, not as an ideal but as a lived reality. Knowing this oneness, we can participate in life in a new way, no longer thrown between the opposites but recognizing and working with life’s deeper patterns, its underlying energy. This is a part of the initiation of the mystic and the shaman, whose journey through suffering gives them access to life’s hidden powers. Traditionally such a journey has allowed them to work with the energy of the soul of the world. They know the meaning of the darkness and the purity of light, and how they can come together for individual and collective healing and transformation.

One can only have access to the light of the soul if one lives in the present, accepting what is. At this time in history, this means to accept a certain degree of darkness that is present. One of the reasons that in the West we have so little access to this light is that we are conditioned not to live in the present. We are either chasing our desires or trying to escape our fears. We are rarely content with what is. A Pueblo Indian described this quality of the white man in talking to Carl Jung, “Their eyes have a staring expression; they are always seeking something. What are they seeking? The whites always want something; they are always uneasy and restless.”(1)

We are conditioned to pursue an illusive happiness, while being bombarded by the media with images that manipulate us into continual dissatisfaction and desires. The simplicity of living in the present moment has become a spiritual ideal rather than an ordinary reality. If we are to reclaim our heritage of light, we first have to reclaim the present moment. This means to accept the combination of light and darkness as it is. Only then can we work towards a better future.

It may sound contradictory that in order to work for a better future for humanity we have to accept life as it is, but a real future is built upon the present. Only in the present moment can we have access to the energies that can heal and transform us. Living in the past and future, we are caught in our fantasies. In the present we are open to the light of the divine.

In each moment as we watch the breath, we see how energy flows from the inner to the outer, and we consciously participate in this cycle of creation. Being present in our own lives is the doorway to participating in the miracle of divine revelation. The soul of the world needs to be born in every moment, to participate in the constantly changing creation. “God is upon some new task daily.” Through simple awareness we connect the higher with the lower, the inner plane of pure awareness with the outer world of events, and our own consciousness with the consciousness of the whole.

When we are fully present in the midst of life, we connect the worlds together, and through this connection the light can flow. We are the gateways for love and light to pour into the world and awaken the world to its own sacredness. Just as prana, or life energy, follows thought, the light of the soul of the world is guided by our attitude and attention. It follows the orientation of our heart, the way we participate in life from our depths. The more we are oriented towards what is real within ourselves and our own lives, the more easily the Real can flow into the world.

FIGHTING THE FORCES OF FORGETFULNESS

Light is present everywhere, yet hidden and unused. It is covered over by the denseness of our desires and a collective consciousness that has little space for the divine. Working with the light of the soul will open us to a new level of interconnectedness, a knowing of oneness. This knowing is necessary for the evolution of the planet. It contains the knowledge of the future, a knowledge that is based upon oneness rather than duality.

An awareness of global oneness has begun to constellate. The idea of the unity of life, that “we are one,” no longer belongs just to a spiritual or ecological fringe, yet is becoming part of the mainstream. But this awareness is lacking an essential ingredient—it is still an idea, it is not fully alive. When it becomes alive, the heart of the world will open and we will hear its song, the song of the oneness of life. The unity of life is a direct expression of the divine and it is our lived connection to the divine that gives us meaning. This song will remind us of our true nature and why we are here.

This is like the process of our own awakening. Over many years we might be given glimpses of our true nature, the wisdom and love within us. We work to purify ourselves, to contribute in service to life and love. And one day something comes alive within us. Our heart awakens, and we experience a greater power and knowing beyond ourselves. This is the potential of the moment in the world. Our world’s soul can awaken, and all humanity can come to know its true nature.

The world has to awaken from its sleep of forgetfulness—it can no longer afford to forget its divinity. More than any pollution, it is this forgetfulness that is killing the earth. The awakening of the soul of the world can redeem what has been desecrated, heal what has been wounded, purify what has been polluted. Collectively we are dying—we have forgotten our purpose, and a life-form that has forgotten its purpose cannot survive. Its fundamental reason for existence fades away. The awakening of the soul of the world will remind us all why we are here and the whole of life will rejoice.

Forgetfulness is not just an absence of remembrance. The cloud of forgetfulness that covers so much of our world is not just an absence of light. Our forgetfulness of our divine purpose is like a sticky substance that draws life into its web, where it devours any meaning life may have. This cloud is not just the maya of illusion but a density that ensures that we remain slaves to our lower nature. Our collective forgetfulness will stop us from hearing the song of the world and deny us our future.

There is much work to be done to prepare the world stage for this awakening; otherwise the dawn will come unnoticed, and once again humanity will have missed an opportunity. We have to bring the light of oneness to the places of forgetfulness. We have to create a network of light within the planes of creation. This network is a container for the awakening of the heart of the world so that the meaning of this event can become known, so that we can hear its song.

But the potency of forgetfulness is such that we have to force open some of the gateways of light. We have to drag the light down into life and fight with the darkness. Once again the battle of light and darkness has to be fought, and once again the darkness has disguised itself in the forms of worldly success. This could be the last real battle at the end of the era of opposites, and much of it is hidden, fought by individuals who dare to lift their faces to the light. Our remembrance of what is real, of the divine that is the essence of life, is countering the forces of forgetfulness and their dynamics of worldly power and corruption. And as always, what happens on the outer stage is a distorted reflection of the real drama of the soul.

When the oneness of life becomes fully alive, it will activate energy centers in life that belong only to oneness, that cannot be accessed through the consciousness of duality. The energy of oneness can link us together; the light of the soul of the world can give us access to these places of inner power that are needed to overturn the entrenched positions of worldly power. This is a work that we are doing individually and together.

There is an urgency to this work, to free the world of certain patterns before the heart of the world opens. And we have to be prepared to fight for what we believe, to commit ourselves to the light of the soul and the awakening of the ways of oneness. This may seem like a spiritual ideal, but anyone who has confronted the darkness of the world knows the intensity and demands of this fight. Unfortunately this work cannot be done just through love and acceptance. Just as there are forces in our own psyche that must be confronted and disarmed before they can be integrated,(2) so are there forces in the world that will not respond to compassion or kindness, but must be confronted with a sword of light.

The potency of spiritual light must be brought into the marketplace of life. In this light we can see things as they really are and so disarm the forces of darkness. The forces of darkness need subterfuge and deception to win us over. Spiritual light will strip them of these coverings and reveal their true nature; we will see how the forces of greed corrupt us, how they deny us our freedom and joy, and how the ideology of consumerism is a plague that sucks the nourishment away from life. But first we have to confront these forces, and although we have to do this individually we cannot do it alone. They are too powerful.

Part of the wonder of the ways of oneness is that we are linked together through our unique individual nature. When we make connections through oneness, we will discover how we support each other in ways that enhance our individual contribution. The ways of oneness give us freedom rather than codependency. And the ways of oneness move faster than the forces of the world. They belong to the next era of our evolution and spin at a higher frequency. If we can connect together through the ways of oneness, the forces of darkness can be stripped of their power. These forces do not need to be destroyed, only disarmed. Then they can be transformed, their darkness integrated into the whole.

CONFRONTING THE COLLECTIVE DARKNESS

Stepping firmly into the darkness of the world, we will confront many of the sins of our fathers, the depths of our collective desecration, pain caused by patriarchal power drives, and the repression and abuse of the feminine. Joy has been stripped from life and our spiritual nature abused and corrupted. Just as our individual journey confronts us with the darkness of our shadow and the pain of our rejected self, this encounter with the collective will force us to acknowledge the anguish caused by our Western culture. And we will have to accept that we are the perpetrators of this suffering. We cannot blame anyone else, neither governments nor corporations. It is our collective shadow we are confronting.

Only when we confront the darkness with honesty and humility can we hope to transform it. Denial and arrogance subtly pull us into their web where we forget what is real. We need to accept our responsibility, to acknowledge that both individually and collectively we have created this dark monster which devours our light. We carry in our blood the sins of the culture we are born into—the people of the United States still carry the violence of the slaughter of the Native Americans. If we do not accept our collective responsibility, our light cannot penetrate the darkness; we cannot fully engage in the fight for our future. Inwardly we remain on the sidelines, spectators rather than full participants.

There are many ways to avoid and escape the darkness, many patterns of denial. But if we are sincere we will be taken to the places in the collective darkness in the inner and outer worlds where it is our duty to work, where our light can be used most effectively. Many mystics now live in the center of worldly life. Faded memories of spiritual seclusion may haunt us, but instead of living in the monastery we may find ourselves on Wall Street; instead of living in ashrams, we bring our remembrance to the inner cities. And in our meditation, or during the night when the soul is free from physical restrictions, we are guided to places of darkness where our light can help untangle webs of greed, penetrate clouds of ignorance. Sometimes we awake from a dream half-remembering or dreaming of the denseness, the heaviness that has been around us. One friend dreamed of walking city streets between vast sinkholes full of people caught in unconsciousness and forgetfulness. Another friend was present in a desolate, arid desert she knew to be caused by our culture.

On both the inner and outer planes we can help to create pathways of light where others can follow more easily. We can bring our integrity into the places of deceit and duplicity. We do not realize how these collective forces distort our general perception, how difficult it is to see clearly in this collective darkness. We breathe an air that is polluted and it subtly corrupts and contaminates our natural way of being. And we hardly recognize that this is happening.

It is important to understand that darkness is waiting to be transformed; its time of oppression is waning. While on the surface the darkness may appear to be strong, its structures of power belong to the past. At the end of any era there are forces that dissolve the passing age. This reflects the underlying laws of creation. In the organic wholeness of life even the darkness follows the cycles of creation and dissolution.

Just as our belief systems appear to be changing, so are the ways the darkness is held. The underpinnings of our whole collective way of life have been removed—which is why we sense a fundamental instability and insecurity. And this affects our collective shadow as well as our conscious relationship to life. In fact it is in the unconscious that changes first happen, as deep archetypal shifts take place.

Living at the end of an era is exhilarating and demanding. The archetypal patterns that give a sense of meaning and stability to life change. This is part of the pattern of evolution. Many people try to hold onto past ideologies and values, while others are drawn into the new currents of life. This creates tension and conflict, and can even evoke repression as those in power try to retain their positions. This too is a natural part of the cycle of change. But the new forces of life cannot be stopped; they are too primal and powerful. Working against them will simply provoke antagonism and unnecessary conflict, and yet this is also part of the process. Some people cannot help but hold onto the past; those most fixed in their ideas have the most to lose.

Working with the energy of the future is dangerous because there is no map. But there is a quality of joy and excitement that belongs to new life. Staying within the confines of the past may give the illusion of security, but it is countered by a growing sense of insecurity easily projected into the fear of terrorism or other forces outside of our control. On a physical level our present life is far safer compared with past centuries; we have conquered many diseases and have greater material comfort. But we do not feel any more secure in this safety, rather it appears to constellate greater fear. We sense there are shifts that we cannot understand or control, that the very fabric of life is changing.

This new life needs the darkness; otherwise it will not be whole. In the drama of life there have to be both light and darkness. But we need to work with the darkness in a new way: our collective denial and forgetfulness have created a powerful global monster of greed and abuse. The servants of life are working to change the way the darkness is constellated, so that it too will flow with the new energy of life. Fully confronting the darkness, they are sowing seeds of light in its depths, bringing sparks of remembrance into the centers of forgetfulness. There is a resistance to this work, but one cannot stop the flow of new life. This is not some minor event, but a primal shift in the spiritual and organic structure of the whole of creation.

CONNECTIONS OF LIGHT

At this time of transition the light of the soul of the world has a new vibration; it carries the consciousness of a new era. Certain places on the inner and outer planes where this light used to be directly accessed have been hidden; certain new places are to be revealed. And the work requires a new attitude. It can no longer be performed in seclusion, in places separate from the flow of outer events. The soul of the world can now be most directly accessed in the marketplace of life, where the dense energies of everyday life give a body to its higher frequencies. The light can now be spun into a fine thread that is indestructible and can be woven into the most ordinary clothes.

Because it functions on the frequency of oneness, this thread of light has the capacity to link together people of all different walks of life. And it needs these links to flow more freely. As these connections are made, the light of the soul of the world can flow where it needs to go. The prostitute on the street corner, the banker in his office, the poet with his phrases can all be directly connected, just as the internet can connect people of all types and all countries. There are no borders or boundaries to the work of this light, and the darkness is also included. To work with this light requires an openness of mind and a freedom from conditioning. We cannot afford to be constricted by past forms or barriers. There is a great joy in this coming together, in being connected through oneness and the light of the world.

In the light of oneness everything is included and life itself will celebrate this coming together, this linking without boundaries. Life is longing to be made whole, to have its essential nature recognized. Through the connections made by this light, life can flow in new ways, and expand our consciousness.

At first individual connections are made, from person to person, from soul to soul, and then these connections come alive and work with their own purpose. We think that a connection is a static line between two points, but a real connection brings a third function. It links the meanings of two individuals to create a new meaning, beyond that of the two individuals, a meaning that belongs to the moment of meeting. This third function has a life of its own beyond that of the two individuals and can relate directly to the whole. This is how something comes alive in a new way, through a meeting that takes us into a new dimension.

One of the limitations of our present understanding of the internet is that we have not fully realized the new dynamic created by the many new connections that are being made. We do not recognize that it is the connections themselves that are most important, not the information or goods that are exchanged. When these connections come alive, then the internet will wake to its real potential.

Part of our problem is that the nurturing and meaning of relationships traditionally belong to the feminine, and we have not included this understanding that is natural to women in our technological progress. We are still working primarily within a masculine analytic paradigm, rather than fully integrating the wisdom of the feminine. The feminine kind of knowing has a crucial role to play in the development of this technology.

The soul of the world has the blueprint for the connections that need to be made. These connections are not random, but follow a particular pattern and purpose. In our own lives we know the sudden potency of a meeting that seemed “meant to happen,” whether with a teacher, a new love, or an old friend. There can be a shock of recognition, a feeling of wholeness, or the sense that something was given or received.

These connections need to be experienced consciously and with attention; otherwise their purpose will be lost. We must recognize them as important opportunities, even if we don’t fully understand them. Some connections will work easily, while others may require persistence. Some individuals who are too identified with a particular mind-set will be resistant to certain connections. But through these connections the light of the soul of the world can flow into new places and awaken individuals to its work. As the pattern of connections grows, it will constellate new patterns for life, for the evolving consciousness of the planet. It is through the connections of individuals and groups that the consciousness of oneness will penetrate our collective consciousness and give form to the future.

This blueprint is not static or preordained, but reflects the organic nature of life. However, certain principles need to be followed, certain energies brought together. For example, over the last few years specific spiritual energies have been connected on the inner planes. This has been part of the creation of the web of light around the world. Some of these inner connections have been brought to the surface, making outer connections. Such connections are a real energetic exchange, a linking of the spiritual energies of specific spiritual traditions. This linking does not dilute the individual nature of each tradition, but creates a node of power that can facilitate further connections.

The transition from an inner to an outer connection is not always easy—in the outer world there are the problems caused by misunderstandings and ego dynamics that do not exist on the inner planes. As the transition takes place from the inner to the outer, more groups and paths can be connected. Many groups and individuals do not have conscious access to the inner planes and therefore can be connected together only in the outer world. The inner planes and their workings have been hidden from most people in the West; even many spiritual paths do not know how to work directly in the inner planes. So either their consciousness needs to be attuned to this inner connection or the connection can be made solely in the outer.

If spiritual groups or individuals are receptive, it is possible to give them a quality of light that can connect them to the inner web of light. Otherwise a simple human connection can be made. Often this connection needs to be made from person to person. Although e-mail and the telephone offer wonderful means of communication, on the physical plane something can be exchanged from person to person, from heart to heart, that cannot be communicated over distance.

Through these connections the light of the soul of the world awakens a new consciousness in those who are accessible. And this light is the connection—these connections are an aspect of its nature. As the light comes alive in humanity, it awakens the connections that belong to oneness. What is fascinating is how this light has a life of its own, making the connections it needs. There are guardians of the light, and helpers who work with its unfolding. But the light itself knows where it needs to go, the connections it needs to make.

UNDERSTANDING THE FLOW OF LIGHT

Working with the light of the world is an underlying aspect of our shift towards a global awareness. This work is global, and yet it also includes the potential to interact with energies beyond our world. This is a hidden aspect of the next stage of our evolution. Global awareness means taking responsibility for our planet as a single living organism, which then means we will have the capacity to relate to other celestial organisms. Our world is a small part of a vast unfolding whole, each part interacting and affecting the whole. The predicament of our planet is our pressing concern, but as we step out of the image of separation into unity, we will emerge into a very different experience of our world. These changes we are experiencing are far more fundamental and far-reaching than we envision.

Part of this transition is an understanding of how different levels of reality interact. Even to acknowledge the existence of the light of the world is to accept an inner reality beyond our physical senses. Learning how to work with this inner energy, how to participate in its unfolding, will bring together the inner and outer world. We will experience how the light flows from the inner and nourishes the outer before being reflected back into the inner. The symbol of the number eight, with the two circles flowing into each other, is an image for this next stage of human awareness. Understanding the way that the energy flows is essential to our development. Many forms of healing are based upon an understanding of how energy flows in the body. There is less understanding of how the life force originates beyond the physical and comes into the physical plane, although forms of healing and energy work that work with the etheric body function at the intersection of the physical and non-physical plane.

But the first step is to be open and receptive to this inner light, and to work with the connections that it needs to make within the world. As these connections are made our consciousness will expand—these connections are the pathways of our global consciousness. The connections will open us to a larger understanding and the knowledge that we need in order to function at a global, multidimensional level. Humanity is the consciousness of the planet; we carry this divine gift in our individual and collective awareness. Linking together, we connect centers of awareness within our global brain, and this enables the energy to flow in new ways and a new level of awareness to develop. The internet is a part of the development of our global awareness, which is why its ability to make connections is so important. It is a web of connections being woven within the fabric of the world, although it does not exist at a solely physical level, but on an energy level we call cyberspace.

The way that the internet has developed reflects the way that oneness can work exponentially, without being constricted by past patterns of development. It follows the blueprint of the future, which is based upon oneness. In just a few years we have been given a new tool for relating globally and also directly from individual to individual. What is exciting is how it bypasses so many of the restrictions of the past, the power structures and “red tape” that try to control or limit any new development. It is alive in a new way. And this is just the beginning of this new stage of evolution.

We are now being asked to participate in life on different levels: on the interconnected plane of the soul, where we are all one, and on the outer stage where this oneness needs to be brought into our collective consciousness and our everyday life. Without the light of the soul of the world, this work cannot happen—the light carries the knowledge of oneness and the energy of oneness that we need. The light of the soul needs to heal and redeem what has been desecrated, penetrate places of darkness and worldly power. And it has to make many new connections as it helps the world awaken.

It is important to remember that this light is not other than our light. In the patriarchal era we focused on a transcendent God, which limited our direct access to this light. The light of the soul belonged in heaven with God. Now we have to embrace the light and bring it into life. We are the connections that need to be made, the pathways of the future. In our relating we carry the seeds of our collective development, which is why women have such a central role to play. Women understand more fully the importance of relating, how we are all connected together and form part of a whole. They carry these connections in their physical and spiritual bodies in a way that is foreign to men. On a higher level some women are able to magnetize these interconnections with a spiritual energy or substance, which enables the connections that are being made to directly communicate at the level of oneness. This means that when these human connections are made, the individual can awaken more quickly to the consciousness of oneness.

The light of the soul of the world needs the participation of all who are open to this work. But part of our redemption of the feminine is to acknowledge that certain work can only be done by women. The interconnections of life belong to the wisdom of the feminine and a woman’s body holds the knowledge of how the worlds interrelate. Masculine consciousness imaged a transcendent divinity—the feminine knows how the divine is present in every cell of creation. Women know this not as abstract knowledge, but part of their instinctual nature—in the womb the light of a soul can come into physical form. Life is standing at the edge of an abyss of forgetfulness waiting for the light of the world to be born. This birth needs the wisdom of the feminine, and women must take their place in this time of great potential.

© 2005 The Golden Sufi Center

FOOTNOTES

Chapter 3: The Light of the Soul
1. C.G. Jung, Memories, Dreams, Reflections, p. 276.
2. In Islam this fight against the nafs or “lower nature” is called the Greater Jihad. The fight against the unbeliever is the Lesser Jihad.