What is life really all about?
Most of us, at some stage in our lives have wondered "What is it really all about?", "Why am I here?", "Does life have any meaning?", "Is it really all just some giant Cosmic accident?"
Especially when young and still fired up with the youthful passion of how we are going to make our own mark on the world, driven by a deep, inherent urge to fulfill our natural potential and 'be all that we can be'. Of course that urging is a profound mystery in itself isn't it? If we have evolved simply to survive and breed the next generation, why the deep instinctive urge to achieve so much more? Why are we drawn to study the stars and the origins of life and the Universe, or to even ponder if there is a meaning to life at all? Strangely enough the desire to seek answers to these great questions shouldn't even exist if we began by chemical accidents and evolved by random genetic mutation should it? |
Would you live long enough to study everything on the subject?
If you Google 'The meaning of life' - the search comes up with 387,000,000 results. Combine that with all the millions of books and articles on the subject that now exist in the world, and If by some miracle, or via a super advanced speed reading course you managed to get through it all - then what?
All the different traditions, philosophies, religions, and branches of the sciences all contradict each other, intensely disagree, and in many cases literally went to war to annihilate all those who had a different view of what it was "all about". East verses West, Ancient verses Modern, one religion against another, even one generation in conflict with another in more recent times. It would seem to be a hopeless conundrum - and yet there is a way through this maze of confusion and contradiction toward something that is not only sane and reasonable, but also fosters and promotes the best of what a human can be. |
Is there a way through the maze?
The fact is that we are not the first people in history to seek answers to these great questions. There is a very rich and valuable heritage that has been passed down through the ages from the many 'searchers' and deeply intuitive thinkers that have gone before us.
Not all prospectors find gold, not all musicians turn out to be Mozarts and not all searchers are successful in their quest. However some rare few individuals have been successful in their endeavours and were unquestionably the 'geniuses' and spiritual pioneers of their times. As a whole their discoveries could be summed up under the idea of "The Perennial Philosophy" which is an understanding that at core, each of the world’s religious, esoteric and sacred science traditions share a common, universal set of fundamental truths. It is only the different historical and outer expressions of these inner truths that have caused them to appear to be different and conflicting. |
The Laws of Life
At the very heart of these common universal truths is the knowledge that just as there are fundamental laws governing what is possible in the realms of physics, chemistry, music and even economics for example, there are also fundamental natural 'laws' that govern what is possible for human life and the development of its full, natural, inner potential.
For example the law of, "You become what you think about". This has been true for anyone that has ever lived on earth and is just as true for anyone living today. It is the knowledge of these very core life principles that has been hidden and kept secret throughout the centuries–by those in power and control–simply because they are so empowering and spiritually emancipating for all those who might come to understand and embody them. Fortunately for us, due to the internet and the increasing worldwide interest in reassessing these ancient wisdoms and sacred traditions of the past, vital information is now available that has literally been inaccessible for hundreds, if not thousands of years. As these natural laws were not created by humans and are behind how the universe and nature themselves actually function, they can be discovered and connected to by anyone prepared to put in the time and effort. |
The source of all knowledge
Although we have become used to the idea of having to rely upon specialists and experts in all the diverse fields of knowledge in the modern world, it is important to remember that in the beginning there was only one topic of study and that was the study of life itself.
It was once taught that all the subjects of study on earth were like the spokes of a wheel. At their perimeter they may seem to bear no relation to each other, but at the hub they all converge into the one central location. Hence in the pursuit of the deeper questions of life it is essential to build a broad range of knowledge, as life itself is a multi-dimensional, multi-faceted phenomenon and therefore requires experience and understanding of a wide range of knowledge to build a comprehensive picture of it. It is also a simple fact that many of the important 'breakthroughs' and discoveries occurring today are coming about because of the increasing flow of information between the different branches of science combined with a newly emerging appreciation of the validity of Ancient Wisdom. |
Esoteric knowledge
There are three levels or dimensions of knowledge available to us in the world. Exoteric, or 'outer' knowledge is readily available and easy to acquire. For example via a quick demonstration we can easily learn that mixing blue and yellow paint together will produce green paint.
Mesoteric, or mid level knowledge can be seen in the many years of study, effort, and research in the fields of chemistry and physics needed to understand why blue and yellow make green. This knowledge clearly requires a much higher degree of practical and intellectual effort, but is eventually stored and contained in ones memory and habit much like the data on a computer hard drive. However the Esoteric or deep 'inner' level of this study would penetrate into what colour actually is, why it exists in the universe and what its significance for human life in spiritual terms would be. This is a lifetime's study–for Just as matter condenses from energy and an entire cathedral can manifest around a single vision, Esoteric study always seeks to understand and connect with the true unseen causes behind the outer manifestations of life and the world. This level of understanding can not be acquired through common facts and ordinary experience. It must be connected to directly through ones own higher intuitive faculty and emotional intelligence. What the Gnostics would have referred to as the 'Gnosis' experience. |
Learning to drive
No one in their right mind would think of getting behind the controls of a commercial airliner and flying it safely without any training. Yet we are brought up with the idea that we somehow automatically know how to be an 'expert' pilot of our own human system, which is a million times more complex than any machine ever produced.
The training exists to become a doctor, scientist, artist, musician, sportsman etc, but where is the training to develop our human system to its full potential? All the great, ancient wisdom refers to the human being much more than just flesh and blood and if the 'machine' we are born into was no accident then surely it was created to do something, to achieve something, to be something? It is obvious what a car is for, even a hammer or a pop up toaster, because their purpose and function are inherent in their design, constitution and construction. Therefore learning to 'fly' involves a deeper study into what the human system is actually capable of, and how to unlock its 'dormant' and hidden, inner capacities. This quest was sometimes referred to in the past as the study to become,"The master of ones own chariot". "Know thyself" was the inscription above the doorway to the Temple of Delphi. It is still the great master key to all locks! |
A demonstration of method
The majority of works in the Articles section were published in New Dawn magazine during 2014 and 2015. Each has been carefully designed, written and illustrated around a particular subject to demonstrate how a combination of the elements of perennial philosophy, natural law, new science and esoteric knowledge, allow for a greater penetration into the profundities of life's mysteries and their relevance to the greater possibility of human existence.
Each article overlays and connects with the others in the series, within the spirit of the 'spokes on a wheel' idea. They have been written from the accumulative experience of 30 years in depth research and practical experience in these subjects and methods of study. It is my intention that making the results of this concentrated study available may help anyone newly interested in the quest for answers concerning the deeper questions of life. That it may also save them time and provide some useful benefits from a wide range of 'tried and true' techniques that cut through the overwhelming confusion and sophistry surrounding these topics. The Awe section lists some ancient wisdom thought patterns for quiet contemplation or meditation and the Try section has a series of short, practical exercises that anyone can try for themselves in order to get a first hand personal experience of some of these laws and principles of human life at play. 'Seeing' may lead to believing–as they say–but actual experience leads to 'knowing' for oneself. The Art section contains a gallery of art work and graphic design produced over the last few years, that is based upon an ongoing research into finding ways to express and preserve these deeper, natural law principles and esoteric insights, via a compositional framework of sacred geometry, visual archetypes, symbology and the deeper meaning of colour. The Music section has a number of tracks produced from various researches into the unseen worlds aspects of the 'essence' of certain places, ideas and qualities. The References section contains a list of knowledge sources from gifted people who offer extremely useful research into these great questions. They are sources that have been selected on the basis that they may save a person from having to wade through perhaps a thousand other works on the subject. The Contact section provides some background information about me, a summation of my research, core views and of course contact details. Hence the idea of the site name, 'Silver Keys'–tried and true, natural ways to open the 'Golden Locks' of our self limiting, preprogrammed perceptions of general life. |