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Word Gems 

exploring self-realization, sacred personhood, and full humanity


 

A Course In Miracles

Certainty

 


 

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See how the conflict of illusions disappears when it is brought to truth! For it seems real only as long as it is seen as war between conflicting truths…

The stillness of your certainty of Him and of yourself is home to Both of you, Who dwell as one and not apart… You are not a stranger in the house of God…

There is no life outside of Heaven. Where God created life, there life must be. In any state apart from Heaven life is illusion. At best, it seems like life; at worst, [it seems] like death… Life not in Heaven is impossible, and what is not in Heaven is not anywhere. Outside of Heaven, only the conflict of illusion stands…

Brother, take not one step in the descent to hell. For having taken one, you will not recognize the rest for what they are. And they will follow. Attack in any form has placed your foot upon the twisted stairway that leads from Heaven. Yet any instant it is possible to have all this undone. How can you know whether you chose the stairs of Heaven or the way to hell? Quite easily. How do you feel? Is peace in your awareness? Are you certain which way you go? And are you sure the goal of Heaven can be reached? If not, you walk alone. Ask, then, your Friend [i.e., the Holy Spirit, the Universal Inspiration, the internal teacher, the inner light; see more discussion on these concept on the main-page] to join with you, and give you certainty of where to go…

Think what is given those who share the Father’s purpose, and who know that it is theirs. They want for nothing. Sorrow of any kind is inconceivable. Only the light they love is in awareness, and only love shines upon them forever. It is their past, their present, and their future; always the same, eternally complete and wholly shared. They know it is impossible their happiness could ever suffer change of any kind. Perhaps you think the battleground can offer something you can win. Can it be anything that offers you a perfect calmness, and a sense of love so deep and quiet that no touch of doubt can ever mar your certainty? And that will last forever?

Those with the strength of God in their awareness could never think of battle. What could they gain but loss of their perfection? For everything fought for on the battleground is of the body; something it seems to offer or to own. No one who knows that he has everything could seek for limitation, nor could he value the body’s offerings. The senseless conquest is quite apparent from the quiet sphere above the battleground. What can conflict with everything? And what is there that offers less, yet could be wanted more? Who with the Love of God upholding him could find the choice of miracles or murder hard to make?

 

Editor's note: Notice the many references to the reality of a sense of certainty. But, how to achieve this sense of inner assurance?

Let’s begin our discussion by stating that any present sense of doubt will not automatically flee from us when we cross over to Summerland. Our state of mind does not change simply because we leave behind the mortal shell. People in Summerland, without something more, are afflicted by existential questions just as they were on Earth. We discussed this in the “500 taped testimonies from the other side” article.

Then how shall our certitude be won? Not by an exertion of will-power, trying very hard to be good, or anything of that sort. Our certainty, and this of the unshakeable kind, will come to us in a natural way, almost as an after-thought, a by-product of something else.

A number of years ago I took part in an online discussion, after which I was asked a question – but first here’s what I said, reprinted from an article on the "Reincarnation" page:

 

 

Editor's update: By invitation of Grahame MacKenzie, editor of "Spirit Today," I took part in an online discussion regarding reincarnation. The participants, from many countries, included some of the most noted afterlife researchers in the world. I offered the following, an assessment of "R" that must include a sensitivity to our own deepest intuitions:

 

It is midnight; Thanksgiving Day, here in the US. I am very tired but, having read this chain of discussion, felt compelled to rise from my bed to write some things; for whom, I’m not sure, maybe, primarily, for myself.

This issue of reincarnation is a contentious one. I have been an afterlife researcher for almost 20 years, have read nearly 200 books, possess my own extensive bank of stories, not only about visits with psychics, but other very personal encounters with the Spirit world. And this is what I know: The scientific method, empirical investigation, while critically important – especially, in terms of presenting information to “newcomers” - will take us only so far down the road of certitude.

In this world and the next, people debate the reality of reincarnation! I remember when I first began looking into these things - I was surprised to learn of this lack of settled opinion. How could this be? Surely they, over there, would know about these things. But no. We on Earth, using the services of a psychic-medium, find that the answer one receives depends upon the “neighborhood” one visits. To make matters even more confusing, as Michael Tymn has pointed out, semantics muddies the waters with non-standard definitions of “reincarnation” offered by Silver Birch and Frederic Myers. Their version of reincarnation is no reincarnation at all; at least, nothing we would recognize or need to worry about.

I have come to see this: People here and over there debate reincarnation because this whole area subsumes another, even more uncharted, foundational domain. Allow me to offer an analogy.

Professor Daniel Robinson of Georgetown University once gave a lecture on the ancient Greeks and their concept of government. He said that we can’t answer the question regarding how men should be governed until we first establish what kind of life is the right kind of life for us to live; and we can’t answer that question until we first settle what kind of beings are we! And until we do that, we can’t have much of a position on the problem of ethics, which means we are flying blind to know what the polis should be. In other words, there is an interconnectedness of these questions, each one, a particular facet of a larger problem.

And I submit that, before the problem of reincarnation can be credibly addressed, we must first explore its foundations; that of, what is its purpose? We are instructed to accept, by some, that it is a kind of “salvation theory” that leads men to higher ground. But before we can answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ here, we must decide, what kind of beings are we, anyway? How do we learn? How do we progress and is it discontinuous? Is it possible to lose one’s hard-won enlightenment? Why would a Dark Realm exist if one could simply deposit oneself into the existential hopper, like new sausage, and be spit out the other end as who-knows-what? Are we beings-of-love? If so, which one of us, thus afflicted, would move a micrometer toward attainment of a new identity, as this would surely mean losing a dearly beloved. Do we have any measure of free will? – some say it’s the “prime directive” over there. What kind of self-respecting person, possessing such divine gift, would agree to lose his personhood? And if, as some say, we are involuntarily sent back to the Earth, then, what becomes of free will? There are many such questions that might be asked, but I will leave those for the moment.

In my meditations of these mysteries, I have not abandoned the scientific method. Science, here and there, will always be important. But I have come to see that it cannot compete with something else. I am reminded just now of Elizabeth Fry’s testimony (via Leslie Flint); she was also speaking, in a sense, of “the concept of government.” She said that, in her "neighborhood," so to speak, there is no competition; that no one wants to overrule another; that each person intuitively knows within him or herself what needs to be done and where to fit in. And I will strongly suggest to all that this mystical sense of the “inner oracle,” a profound subliminal knowing, but not by the scientific method, is where our future lies. I have begun to taste – so briefly, but the perception grows - of this method of accessing knowledge. And this, I sense, is our future. When we get to the other side, unless we begin to access this inner true self of ours, we shall still be endlessly debating reincarnation. No one will pass out a leaflet and say, here it is, here’s the truth, believe this. Unless we learn to do what Elizabeth and her friends do, we will be stuck on the lower levels of Summerland until we figure this out.

After reading all that is worth reading and hearing the interminable debates regarding reincarnation, I will tell you why I have utterly rejected it as a fairy tale. It is anti-humanistic and loathsome to my deepest person.

It is a deluded invention of the ego, the “false self,” that has not come to terms with who we are and how we work. Enlightenment does not require endless lives, but only one sacred moment of clarity. And many people are confused “over there” because many are still operating on the “false self” and have not yet discovered the real person, the “cosmos within.”

I completely reject reincarnation because it is repulsive to my soul and offends my every sensibility regarding my most heartfelt desires and aspirations. Therefore I know it is a lie. How do I know it? I know it because I trust myself and my own inner guidance system. And this inner knowing is all I have, it’s all you have – it’s all that each of us will ever have, without which, we shall never gain a sense of absolute certitude about anything.

Best regards to all,

Wayne Becker

 
 
Wayne, you were certainly compelled by inspiration (inspirers) to rise from your bed and write this wonderful response. It fits perfectly with my own understanding and I hope others will also get that same feeling. I would like to keep a copy of it and send it on to others (with your permission.) Many could certainly do with it!
 
Warmest best wishes

 

 

But how do you know?

After this discussion, I was asked a question, to the effect: “You say you ‘know’ reincarnation is a lie. But Wayne, how do you know? How can you be sure when there are so many other voices saying the opposite?”

The Course In Miracles tells us, essentially, that some things will not be affirmed as right and true via the scientific method. In fact, all of the biggest existential questions of life cannot be addressed in this manner. But, if this is correct, how then shall we ever come to terms with life’s meaning and purpose, the nature of God, the right way to live, and many other pressing questions?

The answer is – it will come to you. God will teach you, will give you the answer, directly and without mediation. This private tutoring is offered to everyone because God has no favorite kids. As we defuse the influence of the ego in our hearts and spirits, a sense of certainty automatically begins to fill our beings.

This means that the answer, when it comes, is just for you. A mystic revelation is non-transferable. Others are not allowed to read your mail and will be required to seek for their own.

 

 

Editor's last word:

I would also direct you to my homepage major article on "Certainty," along with an essay concerning Jesus' mode of teaching, "but I say to you..."

Concerning "how can we know," also see:

Editor’s Essay: After 30 years of investigation, here’s what I’ve found as the most convincing evidence for post-mortem survival.