Part II: The Spirit of Wisdom (and the Corruption of Madness)
The Way of Wisdom
Opening oneself up to the spiritual realm, and the great depths of wisdom found therein, has the potential to be both a richly rewarding, but also a deeply disturbing experience. It is rewarding in the sense that it allows us to see more clearly the harmony shared between all the good in the universe and our place among it, but it is also disturbing because it makes us more aware of the evil which is present in the universe and inside ourselves. It is this evil that tarnishes the beauty of true life by creating disharmony, via the tools of madness and self-destruction.
Every one of us has our own unique sphere of understanding, which we can choose to live comfortably within for our entire lives, never pressing its limits, or we can, through the pursuit of wisdom, seek to deepen and expand our sphere--thereby embarking on our own personal journey to the source of all peace, love, purpose, and understanding found at the heart of the Way.
This perfect wisdom is freely given to all who truly desire it, but most of us choose to allow very little wisdom into our sphere of understanding. Everyone acquires a certain level of knowledge because this is unavoidable, but wisdom is not stumbled upon; it is sought after. And when wisdom is found, if it is hated and not loved, it gives way for madness.
Every one of us has our own unique sphere of understanding, which we can choose to live comfortably within for our entire lives, never pressing its limits, or we can, through the pursuit of wisdom, seek to deepen and expand our sphere--thereby embarking on our own personal journey to the source of all peace, love, purpose, and understanding found at the heart of the Way.
This perfect wisdom is freely given to all who truly desire it, but most of us choose to allow very little wisdom into our sphere of understanding. Everyone acquires a certain level of knowledge because this is unavoidable, but wisdom is not stumbled upon; it is sought after. And when wisdom is found, if it is hated and not loved, it gives way for madness.
| Knowledge, Wisdom, and Madness |
Knowledge is merely an accumulation of facts and experiences that we gather over the course of our lives, it allows us to understand things more fully within our sphere of understanding, but it only broadens our sphere of understanding it does not deepen it.
To make sense of these facts and experiences and comprehend them to ever-deepening levels of truth requires wisdom. The Spirit of Wisdom is good and lives in harmony with All-That-is-Good. It is not its own distinct being, but arises from the source of truth and all creation—the One Great Spirit.
Madness is the evil perversion of wisdom, and it doesn’t have a spirit unto itself. It contains no information, or insight, that is exclusive to itself, but rather it operates by creating something false, or evil, from that which is true. Madness is only able to exist for as long both wisdom and evil exist, but when evil is eliminated madness will be no more and there will only be truth made known through wisdom.
To make sense of these facts and experiences and comprehend them to ever-deepening levels of truth requires wisdom. The Spirit of Wisdom is good and lives in harmony with All-That-is-Good. It is not its own distinct being, but arises from the source of truth and all creation—the One Great Spirit.
Madness is the evil perversion of wisdom, and it doesn’t have a spirit unto itself. It contains no information, or insight, that is exclusive to itself, but rather it operates by creating something false, or evil, from that which is true. Madness is only able to exist for as long both wisdom and evil exist, but when evil is eliminated madness will be no more and there will only be truth made known through wisdom.
| Waves of Understanding |
Like a wave washing over us, new depths of wisdom arrive to us suddenly, heightening our consciousness, and then settling for a time to give us opportunity to fill our enlarged sphere of understanding with greater knowledge. When we apply wisdom to our knowledge we are able to not only comprehend these facts and experiences more fully but also to better understand wisdom itself. As such, the time between these waves of understanding should be appreciated as a time of enrichment.
Most of these waves that reach the shores of our consciousness are quite small, each one revealing just a little bit more about the truth of reality, but sometimes a wave will come along that is much larger and quite illuminating.
People who have felt such a pronounced outpouring of wisdom may refer to the experience as awakening, ascending to a higher vibration, or attaining enlightenment. When such a wave hits us we are characteristically filled with the surprising joy of more deeply comprehending the harmony that exists between All-That-is-Good. For a moment, it is as if everything makes sense, colors are more vibrant, textures appear sharper but at the same time softer; time seems irrelevant, and peace abounds. Without fail, though, this awareness is soon followed by the tragedy of seeing more clearly the stain of evil on our universe. How we respond to these bittersweet revelations will determine if we will continue along the Path of Wisdom—that leads to the Way and travels along the entire length of the Way—or if we will abandon it entirely, choosing instead to trade our wisdom in for madness.
Most of these waves that reach the shores of our consciousness are quite small, each one revealing just a little bit more about the truth of reality, but sometimes a wave will come along that is much larger and quite illuminating.
People who have felt such a pronounced outpouring of wisdom may refer to the experience as awakening, ascending to a higher vibration, or attaining enlightenment. When such a wave hits us we are characteristically filled with the surprising joy of more deeply comprehending the harmony that exists between All-That-is-Good. For a moment, it is as if everything makes sense, colors are more vibrant, textures appear sharper but at the same time softer; time seems irrelevant, and peace abounds. Without fail, though, this awareness is soon followed by the tragedy of seeing more clearly the stain of evil on our universe. How we respond to these bittersweet revelations will determine if we will continue along the Path of Wisdom—that leads to the Way and travels along the entire length of the Way—or if we will abandon it entirely, choosing instead to trade our wisdom in for madness.
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When we are more astounded by the good we have been made aware of than we are by the evil we now see, we will continue to journey on in pursuit of greater wisdom, but when we let evil overwhelm us, all growth is stopped and slowly the wisdom we have acquired gets transformed into madness.
In order to prevent this from happening, care must be taken to not only apply the wisdom we receive to the world around us, but also to use it to test the contents of our own soul. This is important because whatever evil we have residing inside of us naturally works to convert wisdom to madness—to distort the truth in order to make it more palatable to its self-destructive tastes.
When we neglect this honest self-evaluation, our hidden evils go unnoticed until they become a great problem. This is dangerous because when madness takes hold of our minds its ultimate purpose is to convince us that it is wisdom, and that true wisdom is madness. It is a favorite device of evil spirits seeking to destroy that which is good, and a companion to the evil dwelling inside of us that also hates what is good.
Purge the evil out if you can, but to those who are weak, fear not. For there will come a day when all will be made new, when every willing soul will be cleansed!
In order to prevent this from happening, care must be taken to not only apply the wisdom we receive to the world around us, but also to use it to test the contents of our own soul. This is important because whatever evil we have residing inside of us naturally works to convert wisdom to madness—to distort the truth in order to make it more palatable to its self-destructive tastes.
When we neglect this honest self-evaluation, our hidden evils go unnoticed until they become a great problem. This is dangerous because when madness takes hold of our minds its ultimate purpose is to convince us that it is wisdom, and that true wisdom is madness. It is a favorite device of evil spirits seeking to destroy that which is good, and a companion to the evil dwelling inside of us that also hates what is good.
Purge the evil out if you can, but to those who are weak, fear not. For there will come a day when all will be made new, when every willing soul will be cleansed!
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Be diligent making every effort to discern wisdom from madness and to remove the latter from the patterns of your thinking. Do not presume to know too much because this is unwise and leads to madness. Think deeply on how limited your understanding of infinite truth really is, and in this way, you will comprehend the truth more fully.
When you are in doubt the Perfect Guide is always ready to show you the right way to go, if only you are willing to follow.
When you are in doubt the Perfect Guide is always ready to show you the right way to go, if only you are willing to follow.
| Be Humble and Wise |
Wisdom and humility are close friends and both are inseparable from the One Great Spirit.
Pride and madness go hand-in-hand, skipping down the road to evil’s open grave.
Wisdom and humility are close friends and both are inseparable from the One Great Spirit.
Pride and madness go hand-in-hand, skipping down the road to evil’s open grave.
Consider how small is the fraction of the truth that has been revealed to you and let your ignorance bring forth humility, which in turn will attract wisdom. In this way, you will become wiser than the person who thinks he knows much.
The One Great Spirit gives generously to those who do not believe they are better than anyone else, but leaves the arrogant to bless themselves. This is not because the humble have earned their blessing, but because they have prepared themselves to receive it. Good will not hesitate to put down roots and grow anywhere a place has been prepared for it.
The One Great Spirit gives generously to those who do not believe they are better than anyone else, but leaves the arrogant to bless themselves. This is not because the humble have earned their blessing, but because they have prepared themselves to receive it. Good will not hesitate to put down roots and grow anywhere a place has been prepared for it.