Map of a Human Being
The Person (Soul)
7 States of Consciousness (Soul)
All creatures have the first three states: feeling, awareness and intellect; but humans have an additional four: discernment, wisdom, divine discerning wisdom and divine luminous wisdom. However, being born human does not guarantee their use.
Once we realize that the creatures have the capacity of intellect, it shouldn’t surprise us that crows can make tools by bending wire with their beaks to extract food from hard-to-get places.
Sometimes humans do not function above the level of intellect. However, because our choices can have overbearing effects, we need discernment to decide the right and wrong of our decisions. Wisdom will further inform us so that wise, moral judgments, not just selfish ones, can be made. Using divine discerning wisdom to further analyze we will remove illusion and karma from the puzzle, coming to great clarity. If the following states have been correctly utilized we will see from the totally objective untainted view of divine luminous wisdom. Now we will be making decisions aligned with the will of God - a very exalted state, and very rare.
Discussion:
Those of us who have spent a lot of time in close contact with animals, instinctively know that they have an intelligent life all their own. Of course we know that many animals have higher degrees of skill in some areas than us. Take the dog for instance, its smelling power is said to be a thousand times stronger than ours and we know it can find a needle in a haystack as it were. Occasionally I have had the honor of a wild animal dropping the veil between us, usually when they are desperate. One night in Spring I was sailing with friends down the west coast of Wales and a small bird came alongside. Everyone else was below deck asleep. I had the sense that the swallow-like bird was exhausted as it looked over at me. I moved a jacket off the cabin top and moved back toward the stern. It promptly landed with a bit of a clunk and lay there with its wings outstretched. I figured it was returning from migration. I found a jar lid and put some bread soaked in milk in it and pushed it carefully toward the bird. Concentrating on the wind and trimming the sails I forgot about it for a while in the moonlight. When I looked back it had hauled itself forward and was gingerly sticking its beak into the bread. About two hours later it pruned itself a little as we stared at each other. Then it stood still and sprung into the air gliding back behind the boat and into the darkness. I don’t know what it thought of me, but in those moments I realized its needs were so much like mine. As animals we were connected in all the basics of survival. It would also likely pick a partner, build a house, raise children and live in a bird community of some kind.
Contemplating these seven states over the years with Bawa’s expanded explanations has given me a greater appreciation for all life about me on every level. Not least of which it shows us the incredible value of a human being and makes us less likely to trash our exalted birth. That is why we should never imbibe intoxicants because they prevent us from living at a higher consciousness. To keep these states open to us we also need the subtlety to prevent our behavior from becoming gross. That is where (M, R, P, P) below come into their own.
Golden Rule (Soul)
See all lives as our own: God knows the exact balance of soul and mind life of each creation, and the good and evil thoughts and actions that stem from that over our entire lifespan.
The Absolute does not acknowledge race, religion, color, education, class, caste, nationality, or culture and does not listen to the tongues of the creations, but knows our inner intentions.
Surrender-Attention-Balance-Wisdom (S,A,B,W) (Soul)
These four, kept at the forefront of our awareness, show us the necessary progression to attain wisdom. We cannot simply ‘get’ wisdom. It is something received from the correct preparation. First, we surrender to the process, like making the commitment. But then we cannot sit back and wait we have to be attentive. Having accepted the need for change, we observe in ourselves what needs to go and what needs to be nurtured. This brings us into balance - fertile ground for wisdom to take root.
Modesty-Restraint-Prudence-Propriety (M, R, P, P) (Soul)
I call this the formless immune system. The behavior of these qualities are not popular today. In fact many would consider them to be fun-spoilers. Their opposites will be praised on radio and television tonight, teaching the next generation to abandon them. Although they are seen as boring, their purpose is to protect us from worldly ‘accidents.’ Discarding these four opens us up to calamities. Without modesty, the base desires will rule, letting the dog of desire off its leash. This allows the monkey mind to turn us into fools. Without restraint, addiction will run rampant, not just with intoxicants, but also food, negative moods and qualities. These four good qualities protect us from physical and emotional self-abuse. This in turn frees us to go toward a higher state of consciousness.
Patience, Gratitude, Trust in God, Praise of God (P,G,T, P) (Soul)
The progression of these four can help us in times of difficulty. When things get rough we must move from one to the other for solace and peace. Of course this is not a minor maxim - all of everything is contained within these four. It could even be said that this is the journey into God. When these four are ignored, the mind goes free and the soul is imprisoned. When you apply these four, the mind is imprisoned and the soul goes free. In this way we do our duty, while giving all responsibility to God for whatever happens. The degree to which we are able to do this gives us access to the “peace that passeth all understanding,” showing us how to fulfill the injunction: “be not afraid.”
Discussion:
The Fast of Ramadan: The Inner Heart Blossoms book (Fellowship Press) contains this essential part of the core teachings. (Available from Map of a Human Being Bookstore). Or (Google books)
5 Angels (Soul)
5 Archangels: Gabriel, Mikael, Israfel, Izrael, Ruquael. In the transformed human being everything serves a higher purpose, not worldly desire. Therefore, through the alchemical process of understanding the illusory makeup of the 5 elements of earth, fire, water and air and ether – while embracing the formlessness of God and Its qualities – we become Man, and then the elements become the serving archangels.
