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In This Article:

• The paradox of life’s journey and why the traveler never arrives
• The Esoteric Field and its role in personal and planetary transformation
• How self-awareness connects to the evolution of consciousness
• The influence of universal consciousness on human awakening
• Why individual transformation contributes to the greater collective shift

The Joy of Discovery: Seeking Purpose in the Unknown

by Gopalakrishnan TC, author of the book: The Journey into Oneself

“A good traveler never arrives.”
                                         -- Laozi (Lao Tzu)

It is said in Chinese philosophy that a good traveler never arrives. In this journey of life, the participant goes on taking part in the travel while also progressively detaching oneself from it inwardly. One is both on it and not on it. Thus, the traveler never arrives! It is a paradox.

Therein lies the beauty of the journey of life. It is more a matter of changing circumstances, rather than one of movement in time.

When we become interested in the cosmological significance of our existence, life moves us on to the joy of discovery. Otherwise, our minds circle within a limited cocoon dominated by ego-based self-centered activities.

The Esoteric Field

The Esoteric Field is not a field isolated from the mundane life. It is a comprehensive zone in which the mundane life is a subset.

When a subset tries to usurp the place of the whole, there is disharmony and unhappiness. Once we become aware of this, the mundane life takes its rightful place and all is well.

As a child grows up in the present world, the atmosphere is one of success worship, success in the matters here or in the hereafter. Education does not give much importance to the cosmological significance of life and the child is lost in the thicket of competition and self-importance. The difference between self-care and selfishness is not made clear to the child.

My aim is to draw the attention of the reader to the relatively less explored areas of living that can add richness to our lives, richness in a comprehensive sense of the word. The associated expansive awareness is a matter of joy.

The word richness here includes financial well-being too, but it will come up in wholesome and harmonious ways; not through cutthroat competitions, by stepping on others’ toes or similar selfish ways. In the Esoteric Field, barriers due to nationality, religion, language and the like disappear. There is no groupism. Aloneness and its purity shine forth.

There are no chance happenings. When we remember this as we go about our daily chores, our minds develop wide elbowroom. The freedom arising out of it helps us conduct our life with sublime austerity.

The Immensity of Ultimate Reality

The Masters say that when the mind is free and liberated, it enters the Consciousness that fills the whole Universe! Victor Solow (Solow, 1974) says, after his near-death experience (NDE), that this wonderful world of light and shadows, children, flowers and lovers, this deadly place of evil and suffering, is only one of many realities through which we must travel to distant and unknown destinations.

Belonging to this world is one rung in many on the ladder towards the ultimate Reality. However, the Masters say that one can jump off from any rung on the ladder to that Reality.

Some Shakespearean lines give a supportive drumming to the above aspect: There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy. To ignore all those cosmological immensities and to let one’s life be guided merely by thoughts of personal salvation can only be considered a deplorable degradation.

The other intriguing feature is the long journey of the soul across many incarnate and discarnate periods through which the Entity around a soul evolves. It is to be noted that, according to that process, all souls cleanse themselves and return Home and there is no such thing as eternal damnation for any entity.

Collective Consciousness and Conscious Evolution

The individual evolution is also linked to the evolution of collective consciousness on the planet. In this connection, the book Conscious Evolution by Barry McWaters makes for interesting reading (McWaters, 1983). Its subtitle is: Personal and Planetary Transformation.

Sir George Trevelyan’s preface to that book contains a spirited appeal to all of us towards taking part in the evolution of consciousness on this planet. He says that in a dramatic way, present scientific advancements are rediscovering the great truths known to the ancient mystery traditions of the West and, of course, to Oriental wisdom. He adds that we should see the history of Earth as a story of the evolution of consciousness. His emphasis is on the fact that the spearhead of evolution now turns inwards into the individual. Each one of us is offered the opportunity of taking conscious direction and control of oneself so that we become the stewards of the planet.

Sir George Trevelyan is convinced that the energies of transformation are now being flooded into our planet and that an operation for revitalizing the planet has been launched from the cosmological intelligence. He points out that what Barry McWaters brings up in his book is not merely an intellectual plan for improving society but a vision of the human task and challenge for redeeming the planet.

We should become aware of the great opportunity offered to us at the threshold of the Aquarian Epoch to participate in the evolution of Universal Consciousness here on the Earth. There is no doubt that to be born as a human being on this blue marble in space at the present period provides an intriguing as well as an exciting scenario. Those who feel drawn to the Esoteric Field are sure to have a deep chord struck in them by what Sir George Trevelyan has put forth. For them, the book by McWaters can be quite inspiring.

Contributing to Profound Transformation

The Masters tell us that when we direct our attention inward, what we are doing is a contribution to the profound transformation that is taking place in the collective consciousness of man, perhaps beyond the planet too! It is a waking up of consciousness from mistaken identification with form and the resulting individuation. We are stepping out of the rut into which human beings have fallen for untold centuries.

The silent energy that goes forth from a person, whose mind is quiet due to self-awareness, is potent and tends to harmonize conflicting forces to produce a world of happiness and peace. Positive forces are already at work on this planet; it is not so apparent because the negative forces are making a louder noise. That should give us enough encouragement. We cooperate.

There is openness in the psychology of a person who shows interest in understanding the deeper issues of life, body and mind. With that openness, one becomes a channel for higher energies to descend on humanity. You may remain unknown to the public and media because there will be no hankering after social fame on your part. One understands that basking under the social image can create obstruction to self-awareness and the inner dive.

Liking the Idea of Doom?

There are those who have developed attachment to some prophesies and believe that the world is doomed to come to an end soon. They seem to like the idea. If you are not one among them, you can help produce a transformation in the collective consciousness towards bringing about a world of happy and caring human beings. That situation can also prevent the impending environmental doom.

Treating each day as an honored element of life on this planet brings about a wholesome joy. It enriches one’s individual life while also giving momentum to the evolution of consciousness on Earth. The journey of life becomes venerable and it reflects in the sacredness of our relationships. What triggers interest in that direction is the serious questioning of accepted norms created by conventional approaches and sectarian religious practices.

Years ago, a despondent Oliver Goldsmith wrote, “Harken, O Posterity, to thee I call!” Alright, we are not despondent. Nevertheless, we take the cue from Oliver and blow the trumpet to say, “Harken, O Reader of these lines, to thee we call!”

Calling for What?

It is a call to indulge in the fun of self-awareness and to bring about a transformation towards self-discovery and the discovery of Divinity. In the process, we would have participated in the permeation of Universal Consciousness on this planet. We wouldn’t be thinking of using the Supreme to our own selfish ends.

When we pay attention to the larger purpose, our own little corner is enriched too. Transformation in collective consciousness takes place only when it takes place in the individual; indeed, the two are simultaneous. Thus, attention to the Esoteric Field elevates both the individual and the whole of humanity at the same time.

In the Indian heritage, all ceremonies end with a fervent cosmopolitan prayer that means, “May all people of the world be happy and well.” We end the journey of these writings with the same line: Lokah samasta sukhino bhavanthu.

Copyright 2024. All Rights Reserved.

Article Source:

BOOK: The Journey into Oneself

The Journey into Oneself: An Exploration of Universal Spirituality
by Gopalakrishnan TC

A wayside companion to help you lead a progressively more peaceful life, The Journey into Oneself explores the spiritual path of self-awareness that lays bare the root causes of our mental disturbances: Chasing happiness isn't as important as having a peaceful mind. Once this is understood, happiness follows of its own accord.

Along the way, the author exposes paranormal phenomena aimed at taking the reader out of the conventional mindset, telling us that messages from those who've undergone such out-of-the-way experiences can transform our lives towards streamlined harmony. One needs only to look in that direction.

For more info and/or to order this book, click here.  Also available as a Kindle edition.

About the Author