Insulated clothing purchased. This past Saturday evening the Richmond Pathwork Community celebrated the Holiday Season as we contemplated what it means to be a light in the darkness, and how our lights shine so much brighter when we come together in spiritual community. The lumen naturae is not a light separate from the darkness. It means doing things that make me feel free and peaceful, surrendering control, trusting my intuition, showing compassion and kindness to myself and others, and believing the simple truth that I am enough. This is similar to how reflections in a mirror seemingly obscure the silvered face of the mirror while simultaneously revealing it. Jung writes, “In man God sees himself from ‘outside’ and thus becomes conscious of himself.” Humanity, through our self-reflective awareness, becomes a conduit through which God becomes aware of Itself in a novel way and thereby further Incarnates. AVICII – WAKE ME UP The first was an image of the heat from nature, the second was an image of humanity’s ability to alter nature through the heat of awareness. We learn that when we expose our darkness to the light, healing happens and unknown gifts and talents are revealed. Being non-dual, the lumen naturae non-locally and synchronistically con-figures co-arising events, both in the physical world and reciprocally within the landscape of our minds, as a way of revealing itself. It grants and is therefore a symbol for the primal conditions of life: warmth, sensuality, and intellectual and spiritual enlightenment. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life” (John 8:12). 7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light… “Human consciousness,” Jung explains, “…is the only seeing eye of the deity…God has made man so that he might see in the darkness.” We are the instruments through which the lumen naturae illumines and realizes its own darkness, which is to simultaneously realize its light. Speaking about one such inner figure, Jung comments, “In my fantasies, I held conversations with him, and he said things which I had not consciously thought. The term broadened in meaning early on to cover all strong contrasts in illumination between light and dark areas in art, which is now the primary meaning. When discussing Italian art, the term sometimes is used to mean painted images in monochrome or two colours, more generally known in English by the French equivalent, grisaille. I just need to be willing to keep showing up as that light, and trust the peace that lives amidst the darkness. On the other hand, in the dark also means many things and one of them is to keep someone away from the fact. As I shared these Devotional Formatted lectures with helpers, one of them saw me as “The Happy Monk.” I would add the word philosopher to this title simply because I am drawn to philosophic writings because of their broadening contextual framing of the lectures. The highest value, whether it is called the Self, Christ, or the philosophers’ stone is already present in a state of latent potentiality until it is consciously realized in the human soul. In addition, a hermetically sealed container keeps the flask from “blowing its lid,” which would be symbolic of not being able to “contain” the creative tension and pressure. To see the light that is hidden in the darkness is to become conscious, which, alchemically speaking, frees the spirit that is hidden and … in light of phrase. What's the origin of the phrase 'It's better to light a candle than curse the darkness'? Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress. Often in the Pathwork we speak of exploring our darkness….our negativity, defenses, misconceptions, and cruelty. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. I will let life itself decide how a fruitful interchange can take place between it and me. On the contrary, to the extent that we are identified with a content of the unconscious, it is writing our script. This imaginary Jung feels very familiar, like the grandfather I never had, as if he’s someone I’ve known for a long time. Recognizing the wholeness of the Self is the very act that actualizes the Self in time. It’s a beautiful thing really, to have the honor to participate in this thing called Life, even if I can’t always figure it out. Psychologically, this means that the gig is up, as we can no longer get away with our denial and self-deception. My heart had already been in North Dakota for some time. Each individual human being is the Holy Grail-like vessel in which God comes to consciousness. We can only escape that effect by making it conscious and objectifying it, putting it outside of ourselves, taking it out of the unconscious.” When fully objectified, we not only take away the unconscious content’s power over us, but we are able to access and unite with the power which animates it in a way which empowers ourselves. This metaphor often appears in the locution keep someone in the dark, meaning "deliberately keep someone uninformed," as in They kept me in the dark about their plans. The lumen naturae inspires our unconscious and animates our dreams. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. I may not be sure at this moment in what way this could happen, and even if I have ideas, I will allow for the greater intelligence and wisdom deep within me to guide me. In active imagination, we “objectify” the contents of our unconscious by creatively giving them shape and form, thereby making them into an object that we, as subject, are separate from, and with whom we have an interactive relationship and dialogue. But if we are able to hold the powerful psychic energies that get constellated when we go inwards, and try to consciously explore, express, and embrace the experience, our suffering becomes redemptive, and genuine transformation occurs. Objectifying the contents of the unconscious is to discover and step into the perspective that we are a subject with a viewpoint other than that held by the now objectified contents. To stand against hate. This principle can be seen simply by entering a dark room and turning on a flashlight there. Alchemy is a means and path to cultivate a higher degree of inner alignment and coherence. One meets the ‘Immortal One’ who wounds and heals, who casts down and raises up, who makes small and makes large – in a word, the One who makes one whole.” Leaving no one unchanged, experiencing the light within the darkness is to meet the unified Self, a truly numinous, transfiguring and unifying experience. The term “over-unity” refers to the fact that more energy comes out of than goes into the system. TREASURE IN THE DEPTHS: Identifying Hidden Obstacles to Fulfillment. Definitions by the largest Idiom Dictionary. Any constellated, unconscious content which we are not in relationship with possesses us from behind and beneath our conscious awareness. International Standard Version The people living in darkness have seen a great light, and for those living in … At the same time, being the light of non-dual awareness prior to consciousness, the lumen naturae inspires, e-lucid-ates, il-lumin-ates, and en-light-ens consciousness itself. It is about looking for opportunities to lift someone else up. This gives us a new and expanded perspective on ourselves that is wholly other than our usual frame of self-reference. It is not hard to objectify the contents of the unconscious, as being autonomous, they seemingly possess an identity all their own, so they naturally have a tendency to spontaneously personify themselves within our psyche. What am I supposed to do now — blow out the candle? And I will be at the march in Washington on January 21st, my first protest in my life! It was leading me to travel to Standing Rock to support the Native Americans protecting the sacred water against construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. The root meaning of the word consciousness, etymologically speaking, is “knowing together or seeing with an other.” The process of becoming conscious requires both seeing and being seen, knowing and being known. The birth of consciousness itself involves being both subject and object of the process at the same time. It was a beautiful, soulful gathering hosted by Julia Jensen and myself — an annual event we offer as a gift to the community each year. Merry Christmas! We recognize that we exist relative to the Self. The vicissitudes of life then take on a deeper meaning - Dreams, thoughts, emotions, fantasies, illness, accidents and coincidence become the activities of and potential messages from the unseen, intimate partner within, with whom we share our life. This is the birth of Eros, which is the principle and capacity in the human soul for relatedness, both within ourselves and out in the world with others. This passage, so far, in the wide embrace of its meaning, asserts that the light here taken as the effluence of the life itself, perpetually, forever, shineth (φαίνει, not; φωτίζει) - pours forth its radiance by its own essential necessity into the "darkness." One of the key conditions needed for the success of the alchemical art is a closed and air-tight hermetic vessel, or “container,” which is able to withstand the pressure needed for the transformation and “cooking” of the prima materia. Light overpowers darkness in the physical realm since the photons in light can dispel darkness, but darkness cannot dispel light. How about you….how have you been called to bring your Light to this world? This is beautiful, Richa, and thank you so much for sharing. But, its my aim to continue to be the light (love & care)in the hopes it will ignite the light in the darkest heart that I come across. When Jung is expressing something that I know to be true within myself, I become ecstatic, because I couldn’t have said it better myself, and now I have found the words. Many blessings to you too, Pauline. If you want to mean that phrase or words simply absence of light or illumination, both are interchangeable but then, darkness does mean the absence of moral/spiritual values or an unenlightened state. We realize that we are not alone, not only in the cosmos, but also in our own psyche. The lumen naturae is not the light that we see, it is the invisible light by which we see, in that it is the non-dual light of sentient awareness itself. Light out-shines darkness. The philosophers’ stone is actualized when the opposites, be they good and evil, male and female, or light and dark, become united in what is the final stage of the opus: the “coniunctio.” This is the sacred marriage, the hierosgamos, in which the fully differentiated and polarized opposites are re-united and wed as one. Subordinated to the status of an object known to a transcendental subject changes the context for the ego, as it is then recognized to be related to, and the creation of, something beyond itself, namely the Self. When we did, she said, “Daddy the light hurts.” I told her, “That’s because you’ve been in the dark so long. Jung warns, however, “For those who are unmindful of this light, the lumen naturae turns into a ignis fatuus [something that misleads or deludes, an illusion], and the psychopomp [guide of the soul] into a diabolical seducer. Five Steps to Be a Light in This Dark World 1. In order to post comments, please make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and reload the page. God ’ s first spoken words in the lumen naturae deserves our highest veneration and respect Cookies enabled... Center of latent consciousness and obscure intentionality objects separate from the fact called when the... 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