Franklin Merrell-Wolff
(Continued from part 1)
Left in the Ashes
As the fire purifies, Franklin writes, the limited self is left in the ashes while the true Self floats gently to full consciousness.
“Only the ash of the personal nature is left behind, while the rest, the best of the personality, is taken up to be conscious, in airy spaces.
“The ultimate state is one of a far, far greater Joy. It is possible for the man passing through the ordeal so to shift his center of self-identity that the pain, instead of being strong, becomes but a shadowy undertone of a Melody that is Joy.” (1)
To identify with the fuel (a.k.a. the limited self) is to suffer when it burns; to identify with the fire is to discover joy and bliss unlike anything the ego can create.
“He who identifies himself with the fuel predominantly suffers much and keenly, but if, on the other hand, he unites himself with the Fire, all is changed.
“The Flame of the Fire is a dance of Joy. There is no pain on this level of Consciousness. The transforming man does not then wait until after the Burning to Know the Joy, but feels It through and through while in the midst of the ordeal, which now has almost completely ceased to be an ordeal at all.” (2)
Free from Pain
The fact that it’s free from pain is perhaps the most important part of the level of awareness the fire unlocks.
The fire effectively brings you to a space free from the internal suffering that prevents the exploration of consciousness, and once the pain is burned away through often difficult circumstances, you’re free to rediscover all the things you’ve been missing.
You’ve only been unaware of them for the blink of an eye compared to how long you were aware before this life and how long you’ll be aware after, but regardless, they’ll be an incredible discovery and you’ll have the fire to thank for it.
“I Clearly Felt the Fire”
Franklin describes his experience with the fire immediately after a transformative spiritual experience involving ambrosia (bliss) and the Current. He also writes about a ‘throttle’ that helps control the Current so it doesn’t overwhelm you and cause fatigue or depression.
“In the days immediately following the Transition, I clearly felt the Fire; and because I did identify myself mostly with this Fire, those were grand days, despite the fact that there were brief periods of reaction when life seemed low in the physical body and it was difficult to assert the will-to-live.
“But now, these periods of reaction are growing less, both in that they are shorter in duration and are less intense.
“There exists a throttle, command of which gives to man the power to control this Current. It is but a due exercise of wisdom so to adjust the flow of the Current that Its action is balanced to meet the strength of the personal man.” (3)
A Balanced Approach
This is another revealing quote that brings awareness to the importance of taking a balanced approach to enlightenment. As much we all want to be overwhelmed with bliss and experience an immediate cessation of all of our problems, too much of this bliss at once can overwhelm us and cause us to feel low at first.
Approaching the fire, as well as the enlightenment it brings about, in a balanced way will allow you to gradually withdraw your attention from what prevents spiritual growth while accessing higher planes of wisdom and bliss.
Or, you can soar into the heavens without a care and you might not have the same results as Franklin. I recommend moderation even with spiritual activities, but as we continue developing these higher senses, the need for moderation will fade.
The bliss we seek will become a constant aspect of life, and one day, we’ll look back on a time when we were just beginning to access it and life seemed dull and void of purpose.
We’ll laugh at the minuscule amount of time we spent in that ‘low’ state of consciousness in comparison to the infinite amount of time we’ll spend in bliss, and we’ll never forget that the fire helped us return home.
Conclusion
As usual, Franklin’s writings have helped me deepen my understanding of a crucial concept that could help a lot of spiritual people who don’t understand why they’re dealing with so much adversity.
Credit: pinterest.com
I learned more than I expected about the fire today, and we have this force to thank for the difficult but necessary experiences that bring us closer to the Source.
Everything is here to help us grow, and one day, the troubles that are so common now will be destroyed in the fire along with the habits and tendencies that often cause them.
We’ll finally let the spirit into every aspect of our lives, and Source will provide all of the inspiration we need to get out there (while routinely going within) and improving the world in some way.
Knowledge of the fire will spread to those who are unknowingly being purified, and the result will be an awakened society and a global revolution of consciousness.
Footnotes:
- Pathways through to Space. A Personal Record of Transformation in Consciousness. New York: Julian Press, 1973, 38-9.
- Loc. cit.
- Loc. cit.
By Wes Annac, Culture of Awareness, April 6, 2016 – https://tinyurl.com/hgdca8h