I want to cover the idea of being a Seeker For Truth. These are people who search for meaning in symbols or in the old religious texts. I'm not talking about the parts of the stories that speak to the materialistic side but the deeper 'mysteries' or truth. I have no doubt that there was, as Laird Scranton suggests and finds plenty of empirical evidence for, an original language and one original belief system. This belief system has many layers so that every story told as a parable has many layers of meaning that apply to various layers of existence (dimensions, for example the Material Plane and the Spiritual Plane). For some reason or another it has been hidden for a period of time from the common person and only the seeker can uncover it after passing through trials (The Hero's Journey). I believe that this is the road less traveled that Yeshua mentions in Matthew 7:13:
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it." Robert Frost further illuminates this less traveled road in his "A Road Not Taken," which I will post as a you tube video. Frost traveled the road less taken because it was not the common road that was chosen. Our life path is for us to choose. We can choose if we want Spiritual Enlightenment, if we want to be of Service To Others or if we choose the most commonly taught and direct life of the material world. The road to service to others and 'spiritual enlightenment' is a tough one. It requires being humbled. I never perceived when I was a child and chose this road in this life what that would entail. This is, however, the path I saw when I read the bible so many years ago as a teenager searching for some explanation for the suffering I saw in the world. I never went to church and learned the formal ways, so instead, I saw in Yeshua so much more than what the average Christian can conceive. I saw the New Testament as a challenge to the reader, an invitation, "Come with me, let us take a journey together." I wanted to have the "ears that hear and the eyes that see" to know the hidden meanings and teachings so delightfully hinted at in the bible. I do want to write a word of caution to the Seekers of Knowledge. The key to this work, is to have the right heart. You don't have to lay aside the love of a significant other or all worldly possession as the priests do. I don't think that's quite being in touch with the human experience to sacrifice so much in the name of the pursuit as to alter the experience of life completely from our fellow man. In some ways, I think the monks are hiding from the world in their little pockets of piety and wisdom. As in all things, you have to wonder why you are trying to know things most people don't understand. Why are you pursuing the Mysteries? If you pursue these ideas in a way that is negative, that bears down on another, or anything of the kind it is a dangerous path. I think it is far better to pursue a very materialistic path then to impart fear on others without a solution. Even if it is well meaning, and you fully believe that fear and hate are the correct path, it will lead to very unhappy consequences. The only way to travel a path through spiritual mysteries, in truth, is to do so with selflessness and in the name of Service to Others. As a servant you will be bowed low. There will probably not be triumphant waving of palms at your arrival at enlightenment, even Yeshua rode into Jerusalem on a donkey (not the most graceful mount) and the people of Israel were disappointed. They wanted the wrath of God to strike down their enemies and they received a lamb. Self-glorification or the glorification of objects will only lead to a falling away from the path of Spiritual Truth. Because, the path of Spiritual Truth, is the path of the servant. So, one of the most important things to do when seeking spiritual knowledge is to remember that it's the heart of the humbled servant that is needed to truly understand the mysteries. Without the right heart the door will not truly open. I find that often times I have to check my heart, and be wary for those who would pass their wares off as Truth of Spirit, because the truth of the self is sometimes hard to discern or interferes. However, when people are self-serving they always reveal that's how they are and in some way hatred begins to seep from their speech like so much sewage. The best reason to seek Spiritual Truth and Enlightenment is to help others, to ease others burdens and to really help the world become a more positive loving place. If you're heart is not in that place then you are going to find Spiritual Truth and Enlightnment to be as elusive as trying to capture a ray of light with the palm of your hand. I apologize for the overly Christian overtone for this post. I do try to remain unbiased regarding religion when posting on spiritual matters but the New Testment and Yeshua's words in particular are what tend to be how I can measure other peoples teachings because I believe what he taught was true. As, I also said before, I believe that he was a student of many schools and had influences from outside of Israel as he traveled a lot during a time when there was a lot of trade from East to West. I also apologize for the color change in text. I'm not able to undo that for some reason. Anyways, I hope you gain some wisdom from this insight that I have had into the journey of being a Seeker for Truth.
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I remember what it felt like during my childhood. Unlike other children I never had imaginary friends. I always imagined an older version of myself keeping me company and offering wisdom. In that vein I have decided to write a letter to myself during the darkest days of my life when I was the loneliest.
I had just moved from Bakersfield California to Fountain Valley California. This was the second time I had moved, I had lived in Bakersfield for only three years, and I had to start all over again making friends but this time it was really hard. The culture shock alone was tough but in addition to that I was bullied. I was called a hippy because of my long hair and an Oakie because I had lived in Bakersfield- I would not learn the meaning of that latter insult until I read the despicable book Grapes of Wrath. Further, for the first time I was placed into Special Education Classes that held me back in the areas of Math and English because of my dyslexia leading to further bullying. The other kids in the special education class had terrible attitudes, probably an adaptation for their academic shortcomings, and were (in my mind) somewhat dangerous. At least one of them was a drug dealer which is not something I had encountered in Bakersfield. Finally, my parents had just under gone a traumatic issue in their relationship. I will not divulge the details but they were not getting along well and it was traumatic for me. We had moved during what was a family crisis that was not spoke about and lay in our subconscious. __________________________________________________________________ Dear Bridget, I know that you feel alone and that no one understands you. I will not tell you that it gets better right away. I know that you have a rough road ahead. This is not to intimidate you, I just want to be honest that it does not get any easier. Things will get better but life is a process of building an idea of yourself that is then broken down and rebuilt anew. I do have some advice for you. Being Unpopular Is Awesome! You might think that the popular kids somehow have it better than you. I will tell you that they do not. You are an introvert and that is perfectly normal. That just means that you don't need a big group of friends but a few meaningful relationships to find value in your life. You are blessed in this because extroverts have a harder time dealing with people judging them and they don't experience the depth of the relationships that you will have as you progress in life. Further, for the popular kids their 'best time of their lives' are within their childhood. Once they are out of High School they are no one and struggle with their identity. Those six years where they were popular in school define your their life. That means a mere 1/7th of their life was good and the spend the rest of it trying to recapture their glory days. That's sad. Don't look at the popular ones with jealousy but some sadness. For them, this is the best their life will ever get. Once you're free from the misery of school you will have decades of wonderful years to experience because the best times, for you, lay ahead. Keep Reading and Playing Video Games I know that people seem to think your weird and your parents can't understand that you disappear into your books or video games. I know that you will even have a teacher call a parent teacher conference when she finds out that you are engrossed in reading The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice. They think you're being lazy and can't understand why you're doing this but I understand. I know that for you this is an escape and I tell you this is a healthy one. Ignore the people who will tell you contrary. By reading and playing video games you are learning skills that will aid you later in life during jobs and relationships. Further, you're vocabulary and reading skill will surpass anything that the teachers could have taught you. You're also releasing stress and dealing with the exceedingly tough psychological situation that you are in. Keep it up, this is a healthy vent for that stress. All of your best and long lasting relationships will be forged from people who read the same books, play the same video games, listen to the same music and watch the same movies as you (including your soulmate). Do not settle for what everyone else does because those few rare gems of friendship you will find when your older will be worth it! Dyslexia Isn't The End Of The World The condition isn't really a learning disability and doesn't mean that something is wrong with you. You'll learn that your brain is just wired a little differently. There are dyslexic people who are physicists and they are a special kind of brilliant. While you'll never be the best at math you'll eventually master the basics enough to earn three college degrees and you can mop the floor with people regarding English. The teachers in public school are simply holding you back because they don't understand how dyslexia works and don't know how to teach you. You'll be fine. Don't Hurry To College College in some ways will become highly overrated. Major firms will discover that a college degree doesn't make a good employee. There will be so many people with degrees that many will end up in minimum wage jobs owing a lot of money to people they can't afford. Further, some spend nearly a decade in college changing their minds on degrees several times and then can't get a job so it's a waste of time to go there directly after school. Work A Few Jobs Before College Instead, take your time and learn what you do and don't like. Get a job, actually get a few of them. Try to stay a year at the jobs that you hate so that it looks good for other employers but try a variety. When you find one that you like and you like the people stick with it. If a degree can help you with that job then get one to climb the ranks. There are a lot of options, including online college, that you can do while working at which you will thrive. You don't have to walk the same path that everyone else does and I discourage you in doing so. You're not a cow to be herded, you're an individual with the will and intelligence to forge your own path. You're still learning who you are and it's way too early to start talking about what job you'll hold for the rest of your life. At the same time, do not be afraid to be a lifer. If you like a job then stick with it because people who stay in one job for a long time (especially union) do benefit. People will come and go as you work at different places, you'll make good friends and it will help you build a strong foundation for life. Have A Few Boyfriends Relationships are like hats. Sometimes you have to try a few on to see if they fit before you find the right one. They do not need to be forever. That other person doesn't need to complete you. You should be a complete and whole person on your own with your own personality and interests before you date. I encourage you to be opinionated and share those opinions with your significant other. If they disagree vehemently know that it is not going to work and they are definitely not a keeper. Don't stay with someone that does not have the same values or interests as you just because you're comfortable. That will only spell misery for you both. When you break up with someone it is not the end of the world. You will never have a love exactly like that one. If you learn why it didn't work, which will take some time and distance from the breakup event, you will eventually find the right one. You will meet a lot of interesting guys. A few of them will break your heart. Eventually, you will find your soulmate and strangely it will be because of one of your favorite books, Ender's Game. By dating quite a few and moving on you'll find what works best for you that way you will know which one to keep forever. What's the Point? This is a big one. What is the point of all of this sorrow? What is the point of such heartache and feeling so alone? The meaning of life is to have experiences, whether they are good or bad. That is where the beauty of life exists. All we have are an endless strings of moments strung together by our awareness. So don't hurry to the next one or try to escape the current moment too much. Revel in that moment, Enjoy that moment. Seek the depth of the experience in all of it's layers because that is where we find the deepest meaning in our life. Each moment is made ever sweeter, as well, in that you will never have it again. So enjoy the highs and respect the lows. Everything Breaks Things Break, there are time limitations on things including a mode of life. You will gain great wisdom from overcoming the obstacles that you find in your way and overcoming your heartache. You will, many times, find your life is taken apart quite suddenly, and that you will have to rebuild yourself anew. You will make a treasure trove of friends in that process. After each cycle of being broken down and rebuilt you will come back stronger, smarter and wiser. Change is Constant Everything changes. Life is transient in nature. This moment will pass, the current depressing situation that you are in will come to an end. This is the way life works. Always remind yourself what a Sufi poet once wrote when going through a difficulty, "This too shall pass." Also remember in the sublime moments of happiness are also temporary so savor them and enjoy it while it lasts. You will always face a new challenge. This is what keeps life interesting and gives us the variety of experiences through which we can grow our unique expression of self. You will not be miserable forever. You will have some incredibly high points in the future and some incredibly low points. There is no sorrow in a moment passing, just the savoring of it and the joy of approaching a new experience. For now, you are all alone in your struggles but I promise one day you will find many others like yourself. Take heart that there are far better times ahead. Not all of them will be easy but it is what we do in our darkest hours that define us the most. Sincerely, You're Older Self This is rough because I haven't really perfected this and combed through it as I have done with the original story of Manifestation. Indeed, I have not named these but here I go...
Book Two: A mysterious boy named Dai or Daimion who does not have his memory appears in Merosis. He happens upon Zepher. He appears in goo, a sort of stasis, and is awoken by a magic word. He happens upon a man who once traveled with Zepher and remembers the words to undo the stasis. He then goes to a place where he is supposed to meet Zepher but in the process Merninok's show up. They kill the old man and he barely escapes. He eventually travels alone into the winter woods filled with zombies. There he finds as young girl who tries to eat his heart but, with great sadness and regret, he kills her. He continues onward with his journey. Brittany battles with the presences of the foreign mind within her. Meanwhile, Kaldorian manages to impregnate her in a fake garden he has created. Mortified that her body has been woefully abused in such away she fights the presence within as much as she can. Kaldorian has left the tower because the last of the Lake Guardian's is dying and he will be there to seal himself to the land of Merosis. A scientist Azkath, who had been turned by Kaldorian and was secretly in love with him helps to deliver Brittany's baby as the Tower starts to become unstable because of Kaldorian's lack of presence. Demond, meanwhile, is planning a way of storming Kaldorian's tower. Kaldorian has not been shy that he is with Brittany although she looks different, her blonde hair now black and her eyes black voids. Demond swears he will undo whatever Kaldorian has done to her. With a blue haired Azkath named Redio, he travels to the land of Volnia to one of the last capital cities with all of the technology. People travel in round shaped vehicles that travel along a magnetic strip with a computer that guides itself. There are view screens everywhere. Demond arrives just in time to witness the wedding between Kaldorian and Brittany (the former not knowing of their secret marriage beneath the tree in the Valley of Souls). Redio betrays Demond and he is captured by Kaldorian. Meanwhile, Ryia has traveled to an island where the Shirkla, a stone placed in her forehead, falls out as she's by a river. The shirkla, it turns out, was a living symbiotic entity that was falsely her 'soul mate' and had enhanced her powers. She discovers during this process that the Shirkla is actually Ifricante and that the Council of Elders, who never should have existed, were Ifricante Priests. Ryia then finds the crashed ship of the cyberonic Tempest...sent by a foreign planet Tempest, Linksia and Elhari had been sent to gather data and returnn to the home planet. However, as they traveled the planet they lived upon stopped sending signals, they rescued the Kameronians and the Volnians (the destroyed planet). They had gathered all of them on Merosis along with the humans. The Volnians and the Kameronians were rare with the Kameronian's openly enslaved and killed by Kaldorian's men. Book Three: Brittany's daughter, Faith, is stolen by the engineer Azkath as the whispering Spiked Tower continues to falter. She has regained herself by realizing that Kaldorian's one true love is also her. They are the same soul from two different planets. The planet where that soul comes from is a desert planet of lizards. On that planet she was the voice, guided by her vision her Hand worked for her. Demond was her true hand, but he was sent by her father on a quest from which he would never return. Kaldorian meanwhile, thinking to unseat Demond as the Hand had tried to steal her. She had realized the treachery. The world was dying, as the others sought to run away on rocket ships she remained behind determined to go down with the ship, as it were. Kaldorian, knowing that this could happen, had distilled their souls into rocks that he called Bloodstones. Those Bloodstones were dispersed when the original home of that race died. Upon recalling all of this she understands herself and she is free of the Bloodstones grasp, a false self that need never existed at all if Kaldorian had not been trying to thwart Fate. As the tower drips with blood and the dead that Kaldorian had to subdue to steal the tower from it's former scholarly inhabitants of Sorcery struggle to return to life. Brittany travels down the sidways hallways as they shake and she hears the moans of the dead. She is looking for her daughter. What she finds instead is Demond at the bottom center of the tower. He is within a glass cylinder floating in water. Kaldorian had planned on using his magical energy, his essence, as a weapon against the world. Kaldorian, it turns out over the course of the book is actually born of a Blood Stone. He is not real. He buried himself deeply into Demond's mothers womb and organized himself based on Demond's genetic blue print. Demond is the real Azkath of Merosis, Kaldorian is an imposter. Kaldorian had been seeking to recreate that first failed world. Dai encounters his father at the gates of the Tower of Time. Demond had, relunctantly, finally entered the Tower that had been appearing to him since he was a child. Little did he know that in an upper room he and Brittany had lived together. They had a son, who they named Daimion, who studied in the Tower of Time and journeyed to Merosis to find his parents. Brittany realizes all of this on the Battlefield as her daughter, Faith, leads the army of the undead against Kaldorian's army of enchanted undead men and animals. Faith is battling against Linksia who has been invoked into the body of an 'empty vessel' and in such is an abomination, she is Zephers daughter. Kaldorian and Demond are squaring off against each other not realizing they are one and the same. They are one, so if one dies, the other will die. Brittany meanwhile is bleeding out watching the entire thing unable to tell Demond that if he kills Kaldorian he will die too because they are bound together as twins. In a forest, the Huntress, a myserious assassin with a hidden past from the island of Shwaii, a heart shaped island is with her Dark Knight fighting against Kaldorian's monstrosities. (She is a character from another book and a short story that was published and widely read in the ezine Midnight Magazine). The Huntress, had rescued the Fates Crystals before Kaldorian could use them to form a gate that would allow him to travel to other worlds. That is as far as I have gotten with the story. The ending is that Brittany returns to Earth. Everything is as it was before only she has changed. She decides to go out to a bar, something she would never have allowed herself to do before and hang out with people. Then she hears someone says her name that sounds like Demond. She turns to that voice and that's the end. In the distant mountains of Airin Ryia has said goodbye to the elderly Priestess. She travel's under the sworn protection of a smaller band of Red Priests. The group travels beyond the point where the shorelines of AIrin have ended according to their maps and in thesci unknown they search for the origin of the mysterious White Knights.
Brittany find herself upon the stairs of the Tower of Time once again with Bryor in close proximity and no recollection of what happened in that room. As she darts out of the door do the tower of time Bryor stabs her in the heart from behind. Stunned by pain and shock she loses her consciousness as she stumbles into the alley between the pharmacy where she works and Al's Liquor Store back on Earth. Seated, now, wearing a bloody hospital gown in Kaldorian's expensive penthouse on Earth, Brittany fights to keep sanity. With a smile he dismisses the illusion of Earth and explains he did not pull Brittany into Merosis by accident nor did he intend to summon the Lost One. That was a mistake. He explains that her blood has confirmed that she has the precise genetic lineage he has been looking for. As Bryor holds Brittany Kaldorian forces a strange black rock with a red sheen, the BLOOD STONE, into her hand. The rock digs within her flesh and Brittany is again trapped within her own mind. An alien entity, whom Kaldorian calls Illena, takes control of her body. The creature changes Brittany's physical appearance into its own lacy black scales beneath pale white flesh, raven black hair, and solid black eyes identical to Kaldorians when he transforms. Long after the destruction of the Valley of Souls and Brittany's disappearance Demond wakes within the Stone Tower. His dream consists of memories. He and Kaldorian were but children on the day which Brittany's mother was found dead, Kenan, was the last person who saw the Azkath alive was hiding beneath a hay car sobbing. The Lost One had been ripped from the gaping bloody womb of her Azkath mother. Kaldorian stopped to pick up a reddish hued rock before turning to blame Demond, the second born Akzath and his twin, for the event. As Demond stares over the darkened destroyed remnants of the Valley of Souls he vows vengence upon his brother. Demond does not visit Brittany as she fights to reclaim her consciousness. The months roll past as Zepher visits telling comatose Brittany of the mortal engineer he once loved. Kenan comes by to perform an occasional treatement during which she discovers that the Trials represent past lives.
As winter deepens the High Priestess is lead by a power calling her ever ownard even as their food supply is exhausted. Finally, they reach a dilapidated cottage outpost long forgotten by the Silver Spire inhabited by a lonely elderly priestess. TO the surprise of the battalion of Red Priests the elderly lady announces she has been waiting for them with enough supplies for them to spend the winter. The elderly Priestess explains that a mysterious group of White Knights are suspected to be from the Silver Spire gave her the information and food. Relunctantly, the High Priestess agrees to spend the winter at the way station. Spring beings and Demond enters Brittany's room to say goodbye. He informs her unconscious body that he has promised Kenan that he will take Crystal away from the Valley of Lost Souls. He confesses is ignorance of the Ritual of Unification and as he cries she awakens at last. Zepher sets the snares to trick Crystal into lowering her defenses. Seducing her he steals Kaldorian's blood filled pendant. The next morning he wakes to Demond pounding his chamber door demanding to know Crystal's whereabouts and if they are having a realtionship. he rebuffs Demond's strange attempts to take the pendant and a naggig suspicion persists after his fellow Azkath departs. Coming upon Demond in Kenan's study he discovers that it was Kaldorian, sheathed in illusion, that attempted to swindle the pendant from him. After a brief search of the Ston Tower they discover that both the White shield and Crystal are gone. Kenan confirms that the pendent is filled with Brittany's blood allowed Crystal to enter the Valley of Souls. A grim silence falls upon the trio as they realize that the Valley of Souls days of freedom are numbered. Sensing that their time together is growing short Demond takes Brittany hiking into the valley. Brittany is on the edge of anticipation that Demond will acknowledge that past lives together. On a cliff over looking the Valley of Souls Demond proposes. Brittany says yes, citing her memories as the reason, and Demond recalls no such memories. As evening falls they talk late into the night and speak their vows beneath a red flowered Fellum Tree. Brittany and Demond wake from a magical sleep to find that the Valley of SOuls is burning. Kaldorian's Lancers dispens Merninok's into the valley below as Brittany pleads with Demond to break the Fates Pact and flee, but he will not retreat. They descend into the valley, but become seperated in the city surrounding Kenan's Tower. Brittany fights for her life against Kaldorian's Azkath agent, Bryor, as Demond enters the Stone Tower. Amidst the remnants of the battle Demond discovers Zepher lying wounded in the hall outside of Kenya's study. Inside he finds Crystal torturing Kenan while demanding to know the Lost One's whearabouts. Horrified Demond lures Cyrstal away from the injured Azkath into the Ston Tower's Gymnaisium and defeats her in battle. Realizing that she is one of Kaldorian's thralls and never be freed Demond watches as she bleeds out. Then Zepher burns the remains ensuring she cannot regenerate. Brittany entered the wandering Tower of Time to escape Byror. Strange stairways zigzag randomly up the walls of the hollow tower. She chooses a random stairway and dodges into the first doorway then her vision darknes. Within Kaldorian's spiked Tower, Crystal is lead to the ruler Azkath's chamber by her elder sister, Sephia. Filled with hatred Crystal agrees to be Kaldorian's pawn and accepts a ring that will b ind her to him forever. To her bewilderment after the painful process is completed Kaldorian commands her to rejoin Demond in the Valley of Souls. Crystasl protests fearing she will not be able to find or penetrate Kenya's magical protection of the Valley of Souls. Kaldorian gives her a powerful talisman that he believes has the ability to break Kenan's magic.
Kenan and Zepher, aided by Forest Knights, find Demond not far from the Valley of Souls. After Kenan places temporary blocks in Brittany's mind keeping her from slipping further into a coma they travel into the magical valley. Descending the Weeping stairs into the valley flanked by granite walls with plentiful waterfalls they travel straight to the valley's heart- Kenan's stone Tower. The Stone Tower rivales the Wandering Tower's structure, but it's a stationary building wrought by the magic of Kenya's mother, Setra. Despite d efforts Brittany falls deeper into a slumber from which he fears she may never wake. Crystal gains entry into the Valley of Souls, confounding Kenan. Demond however defends Crystal and Kenan grudingly, allows her entry with the restriction to stay to the Stone Tower. Kenan takes Zepher aside and asks him to steal the pendant necklace Crystal wears for it bears traces of Kaldorian's magic. HIgh Priestess Ryia delves ever deeper into the forbidding mountains of Airin. Mutiny arises and two of the Red Priests attack the High Priestesses. Ryia kills one of the men in self-defense and the other escapes. During an inquiry into the incident Commander Rhys uncovers that one of the Elders plotted her assassination by assigning two dissidents in the Red Priests ranks as they departed the Silver Spire. |
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Brave Soul! May Your Journey On The Path Of The Seeker Bring You Joy and Peace! I'm currently posting every Saturday. With a new addition the family I have pre-scheduled most posts through December 2022. Full Moon Posts will contain up-to-date content when I can get to them. Thank you so much for your support and understanding! This is a place where you can encounter new spiritual ideas that have helped me develop as an Individual On The Path of the Seeker. Take or Leave this information as you see fit. Archives
April 2024
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