The Essential Edgar Cayce (25 page)

What, ye say then, was the purpose for which ye entered in at this particular experience? That ye might know the Lord and
His
goodness the more in thine inner self, that ye through this knowledge might become as a messenger in thy service and thy activity before thy fellow man; as one pointing the way, as one bringing—through the feeble efforts and endeavors, through the faltering steps at times, yet
trying,
attempting to do—what the conscience in the Lord hath prompted and does
prompt
thee to do.

As to thy music, in this thy hands may bring the consciousness of the harmonies that are created by the vibrations in the activities of each soul; that each other soul may, too, take hope; may, too, be
just kind,
just gentle, just patient, just humble.

Not that the way of the Lord is as the sounding of the trumpet, nor as the tinkling of cymbals that His might be proclaimed; but in the still small voice, in the hours of darkness that which lightens the heart to gladness, that which brings relief to the sufferer, that which makes for patience with the wayward, that which enables those that are
hungry
—in body, in mind—to be fed upon the bread of life; that they may drink deep of the water of life, through thy efforts.

These are the purposes, these are the experiences that bring in the heart and in the soul the answering of that cry, “Why—
why
—have I come into this experience?”

Be ye patient; be ye quiet and
see
the glory of the Lord in that thou may do in thine efforts day by day.

Do
that thou
knowest
to do,
today!
Then leave the results, leave the rewards, leave the effects into the hands of thy God. For
He
knoweth thy heart, and He hath called—if ye will harken.

“A SEARCH FOR GOD” AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SOUL

A series of 130 readings given by Edgar Cayce between 1931 and 1942 is the closest thing he offered to a curriculum for spiritual growth. Presented to a small group of his closest supporters who wanted to know more about developing their own intuition and spiritual consciousness, the readings became the basis for small group and individual study and research worldwide.

The curriculum is not as obviously sequential as, say, a math or foreign language curriculum might be. While there are distinct lessons, each with four or five readings to elaborate on the meaning of the spiritual quality addressed, oftentimes Cayce looked at a topic from an unusual angle, as in his notion that
patience
is far more involved than just
waiting compliantly
and instead involves one of the three fundamental dimensions of a soul’s experience in the material world.

It is hard to do justice to “A Search for God” so briefly as follows, but you certainly get a taste, a snapshot of the essence of the first twelve of twenty-four lessons in the series and commentaries that go with them.

1. COOPERATION

Cooperation may seem like a curious place to embark on the path to spiritual growth, but it makes sense if we consider that not much can get done without it. There is no group unless the members of the group cooperate. At a personal level, there is no health—physical, mental, or spiritual—unless the various aspects of ourselves learn to cooperate.

At its most essential, cooperation is a matter of not letting an egotistical sense-of-self control the situation. Not easy, of course, but a good starting point toward self-understanding.

In relationships with other people, drop any feelings of superiority, thinking you know better than other people, that your agenda is more important. As the series lesson on “Cooperation” put it: “In whatever state we find society, let us meet it upon its own level; as we look up, we lift it. That is cooperation.” But even more than meeting people halfway, cooperation is an opportunity to be “a channel of blessings” to others.

Q
Before we can have cooperation, do we not have to offer ourselves?

A
In cooperation IS the offering of self to be a channel of activity, of thought; for as line upon line, precept upon precept, comes so does it come through the giving of self; for he that would have life must GIVE life, they that would have love must show themselves lovely, they that would have friends must be friendly, they that would have cooperation MUST cooperate by the GIVING of self TO that as is to be accomplished—whether in the bringing of light to others, bringing of strength, health, understanding, these are one IN Him.

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2. KNOW THYSELF

The next step is honest self-appraisal. But the ancient injunction to
know thyself
is not just a single step on the path of soul growth but instead is ongoing. Without self-observation, we surely will fall prey to self-deception as we move on to the steps that follow.

Knowing oneself requires being honest. You cannot be true to another person, or to God, unless you can be true to yourself. Without being true to the self, rare is the individual who is capable of integrity.

Edgar Cayce proposes this challenging experiment: “Stand aside and watch self pass by.” This is not an invitation for out-of-body travel but instead refers to an internal process that is accomplished with one’s will and attention, a
witnessing consciousness.
Even more challenging, dare to observe objectively and nonjudgmentally your own inner world of thoughts and feelings, the part of yourself that others cannot see.

Q
How may I learn to know self as I am known?

A
Being able to, as it were, LITERALLY, stand aside and watch self pass by! Take the time to occasionally be sufficiently introspective of that, that may happen in self’s relation to others, to SEE the reactions of others as to that as was done by self; for true—as it has been said—no man lives to himself, no man dies to himself; for as the currents run to bring about the forces that are so necessary to man’s own in these material things, so are those forces in self active upon those whom we act upon. Being able, then, to see self as others see you; for, as has been given, “NOW we know in part, then shall we know even as we are known.” Then, in Him so let thy life be in Him, in thought, in deed, that “Ye that have known me have known the Father also” may be truly said of self. Stand aside and watch self pass by!
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3. WHAT IS MY IDEAL?

Ideals are central to Edgar Cayce’s vision of personal growth, and it’s no surprise that he would place clarifying one’s ideals early in the “A Search for God” sequence.

It’s important to distinguish between an
idea
and an
ideal.
Ideas arise from our experience of physical life and our personality. In contrast, ideals come to us—that is, they are not “man-made,” as Cayce puts it—from deep within our soul as our unconscious life begins to stir and slowly reveal itself to us. As we experience it, an ideal
chooses us
just as much as we choose it. If we pay attention to this awakening, nurture it, and look for it to emerge even more fully, then we have adopted a spiritual ideal.

And what ideal does Cayce especially encourage us to pay attention to, nurture, and invite into our lives most fully? The ideal of wholeness, of oneness, of unity. As unique as the individual soul is, it can never become the whole; in other words, it can never become God. But it can strive to be as one with the divine—we can “attain to such an ideal,” Cayce tells us.

Though there may be many ideas in the approach to the one, the differentiations are lost in the purpose of the ideal. An ideal, then, CANNOT, SHOULD not, WILL not, be that that is man-made, but must be of the spiritual nature—that has its foundation in Truth, in God, in the God-head, that there may be the continual reaching out of an individual, whether applied to the physical life, the mental life, or the spiritual life; knowing that FIRST principle, that the gift of God to man is an INDIVIDUAL soul that may be one WITH Him, and that may know itself to be one with Him and yet individual in itself, with the attributes OF the whole, yet NOT the whole. Such must be the concept, must be the ideal, whether of the imaginative, the mental, the physical, or the spiritual body of man. All may ATTAIN to such an ideal, yet never become the ideal—but ONE WITH the ideal, and such a one is set in Him.
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4. FAITH

Questions of faith, belief, and doubt are vital to spiritual growth, and they have been debated by theologians for centuries. While belief and doubt are two sides of the same coin, faith exists outside their back-and-forth polarity.

As long as we confine our spiritual seeking to what we believe already, we never break out of the box of materiality. The conscious personality has a vested interest in there being certain truths in life in order to hold on to its worldview. Oftentimes, one’s beliefs are so strong and persistent that they take on the appearance of truth.

But belief always attracts its opposite:
doubt.
Doubt drives the analytical mind, and is the basis for the scientific method, and it views life in terms of physical reality alone. The rationality of the logical mind is shaped by doubt.

Faith,
on the other hand, is the
experience
of the unseen reality of life. Faith is a direct, personal encounter with the nonmaterial side of life, and having faith is a crucial step along the spiritual path and a hard step if we don’t feel a connection to some spiritual ideal. When one has experienced the power of faith, belief and doubt become irrelevant.

Q
Please explain by illustration: “Most say they believe, and yet begin at once to explain as to how this means in the mental rather in the material source.”

A
As has just been outlined as to how faith, as an attribute that came into being as the Son—in which the faith is magnified as to make those active forces in will, and the growth of the soul. So, as is seen in individuals as would say, “Yes, I believe—but” “but” meaning there is that doubt, that by the comparison of some individual, individuals or circumstances in their experience, when, where, or how, that individuals spoke yet acted in a manner as if that did not exist! Then, creating that doubt for self, applying to self, brings about that as is the opposite of faith, or else partakes of that within the conscious mind that begins with the lessons that must be answered by the attributes of the physical consciousness, that seek for a demonstration through those senses of the body that makes for an awareness to the physical being; yet, as is seen, these are the manners in which the variations to individuals reach those various conditions or circumstances in their experience.

262-15

5. VIRTUE AND UNDERSTANDING

Virtue
is hardly a popular term in the today’s world, somehow sounding disconnected from reality. Edgar Cayce tries to redeem it, suggesting that virtue is the integrity we bring to our purpose in life once we’ve found it. Without virtue, we never really grow in our understanding of our purpose.

Once we come to know our spiritual ideal, it’s possible for us to truly have faith, to truly perceive the nonmaterial. But what do we do with the capacity to experience the spiritual world directly? We still must live in the material world, afterall, with its practical demands. With virtue, we are able to hold on to the feelings and insights stimulated by faith; we are able to maintain our integrity of purpose and intention. And with integrity, understanding begins to blossom, an understanding of how the material and nonmaterial are both part of the same whole.

Q
Please give us that which we need in understanding and beginning work on our next lesson, on VIRTUE AND UNDERSTANDING.

A
In the beginning of the study of this lesson, would be well that each individual of the group, or students of same, review that as has been the preparation for the study of the attributes that are now to be set before such students. In the beginning was that as would apply to the individual’s cooperation with a group, or concerted effort on the part of individuals with one mind, or aim, or purpose. The understanding, or looking into self, and the preparation of self in the light of that of the cooperation. Then as to become active with that as had been gained. Then the basis with which an entity approaches the forces within each individual, that there may come forth those works, that are through the activity OF that force of faith in the material activities of an individual. Then there begins as in this: Adding to thy faith, virtue and understanding. Virtue, in this study, then, is to be as the criterion with which thine faith is to be put into active service; for without that pureness of the virtue of self’s own mental, material and spiritual self, there can come little understanding.

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6. FELLOWSHIP

Having experienced faith, and embraced virtue, now we can establish a personal relationship with the Creator through fellowship. While some think of
fellowship
in terms of other people, Edgar Cayce uses the term
brotherhood
instead and reserves fellowship for our relationship to God. Cayce was asked in reading 262-22, “Please explain the difference between fellowship and brotherhood.” His answer: “One to God, the other to man.”

These two experiences are closely tied, of course: Fellowship, the personal relationship to God, allows us to express love to others. And that show of love reminds us of the essential relationship we have with the divine within us.

Q
Can brotherhood exist among men without true fellowship?

A
Fellowship is first brotherhood, a pattern of—or a shadow of—what fellowship is; for, as has been given, all one sees manifest in a material world is but a reflection or a shadow of the real or the spiritual life. Brotherhood, then, is an expression of the fellowship that exists in the SPIRITUAL life.