Tree of Life — Nazirene

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Crucial to the development of mystical vision and the recall of the Soul's previous lives, is the Light that emanates from the beard -- and connects the physical to the mental bodies that surround the physical form. That the person's diet and hair and beard in a man are crucial to developing deeper spiritual vision -- which is why it was written of Jacob/James, the Brother of Yeshua/Jesus by Eusebius Pamphilius regarding Jacob/James: This apostle was consecrated from his mothers womb. He drank neither wine nor fermented liquors, and abstained from animal food. A razor never came upon his head [Eusebiuss Ecclesiastical History, p. 76]. St. Augustine wrote: St. James never ate animal food, living on seeds and vegetables, never tasting flesh or wine [Ecclesiastical History, 2 Vols. Translated by H.J. Lawlor and J.E.L. Oulton]. An explanation of the purpose of the beard and its connective links into the mental bodies that surrounds our physical form is seen in the below article.

Kabbalah On The Beard As A Sacred Conduit Of Light: Quoting the article: Like the Dew of Mount Hermon

Segment 2

Now, the light that issues from the beard, via the hairs, is called mazal, because it "flows" drop by drop. A mazal is a spiritual conduit of divine life-force The word "mazal" in Hebrew is derived from the root letters nun-zayin-lamed, which spell the Hebrew word meaning "to flow". A mazal is a spiritual conduit of divine life-force, which flows from it to some other level. To explain: The light of the Infinite One [first] becomes manifest in the head of Arich Anpin, in which are situated the brains. When it then seeks to be manifest [further down] through the throat, which is narrow, the light bursts forth [through the skin] as hair. This is the origin of the beard. The transformation of divine consciousness from the mental to the emotional state is a drastic change, and involves a tzimtzum, or contraction, of the light. This is the spiritual mechanics behind the anatomical phenomenon of the neck being such a narrow connection between the head and the torso. Despite this contraction, the light descending from the mental faculties is still too intense to be completely funneled through the passageway of the neck/throat, and therefore, the residual aspects of it exude through the pores of the skin as the beard. This is the mystical meaning of the verse: "[the sound of] the mighty/adirim [waters] that break the sea." (Ps. 93:4) These [waters] are from the hairs, as in the expression "he was entirely [covered] with a cloak/aderet of hair." (Gen. 25:25) When the vessel is pierced and the light issues forth as a hair, this is the cloak. The word "adir" carries both the meaning of "mighty" and that of a magnificent "cloak" or "mantle", as a symbol of royalty and power. Hair is like the letter vav, and the light within it is like the letter yud, which depicts the point of light within it. The form of the letter vav represents an elongated channel, similar to a hair. The form of the letter yud symbolizes the particle of light that issues via the hair. The beard of Arich Anpin extends down to its navel, which is opposite the head of Zeir Anpin. The light that manifests and pierces via the beard originates in the three brains The navel demarcates the division of the torso into its upper two thirds and its lower third. The top-most part of the head of Zeir Anpin enclothes Arich Anpin from this point, the lower third of tiferet of Arich Anpin. [The lights of the beard issue] in thirteen parts.

Segment 3

This is because the light that manifests and pierces via the beard originates in the three brains. These [states of mentality] are three names Havayah, which together possess 12 letters. These together with the 13th level that encompasses them all are 13 states of rectification. Therefore, all these 13 states [are channeled] through the beard of this male. Each of the three "brains" or mentalities (chochma, bina, and daat) is a different manifestation of G‑d's creative energy, which is expressed in the name Havayah. Arich Anpin is considered a male partzuf, and there is no corresponding female partzuf that shares its mental states. These can therefore be entirely channeled through its own beard. But below, there are only nine parts of the beard of Zeir Anpin. For above, in Arich Anpin, there is no feminine principle. The three final letters hei in the three names Havayah are for the female, and what is left [for the male] is the three letters yud-hei-vav in each name. This is why there are nine parts of the beard of Zeir Anpin and 13 parts of the beard of Arich Anpin. When the three names Havayah in the three brains of Arich Anpin descend into its torso, there is no feminine principle to absorb the residual light from the final hei's of these names that pierces through the skin of the jaw and neck. Therefore, all this light can be manifest as a beard. When the similar process occurs in Zeir Anpin, however, there is the partzuf of Nukva to absorb the feminine energy from these letters. Thus, there are only 9 letters left to manifest in the beard. There is no kolel here (as there is in Arich Anpin) since the full array is not present. Of these thirteen [parts of the beard of Arich Anpin], two are referred to as a mazal, in that divine beneficence flows downward through them. These are the attributes of "storing kindness" and "and acquits." His robe was like white snow As we have mentioned previously, the thirteen tufts of the beard of Arich Anpin are synonymous with the thirteen attributes, or aspects, of divine mercy:

Segment 4

Exodus 34

beard

1

mighty

sideburns

2

merciful

mustache

3

and gracious

the lack of hair in the middle of the mustache

4

long-

the hair under the lower lip

5

suffering

the lack of hair in the middle of the hair under the lower lip

6

abundant in kindness

the hair of the jaw bone

7

and truth

the lack of hair on the cheeks

8

storing kindness

the upper layer of the beard

9

to thousands

the short hairs between the upper and lower layers of the beard

10

bearing iniquity

the small hairs near the throat

11

Segment 5

and transgression

the fact that these small hairs are all of equal size

12

and sin

the lack of hair in the mouth

13

and acquits

the lower layer of the beard

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It will be noted that these two (#8 and #13) are the upper and lower layers of the beard proper. As opposed to all the other parts of the beard in this table, these two extend downward. These two mazalot couple and bestow beneficence on Zeir Anpin and Nukva. This is why it is said that these hairs reach the level of the navel [of Arich Anpin], for they impart beneficence to Zeir Anpin and Nukva, which exist from the level of the navel and downward. The word for "storing [kindness]" ["notzer", spelled nun-tzadik-reish] may be permuted to spell the word for "will" ["ratzon", spelled reish-tzadik-vav-nun]. There is an implied vav in between the nun and the tzadik of notzer. This affords an association between this attribute of mercy and Arich Anpin, the partzuf of will. This is because bina is termed "will," and it is the attribute of chesed. For this reason the high priest was robed in eight vestments. In general, the beard of the high priest is associated with bina, the eighth sefira. The eighth attribute is "storing chesed," and we have just noted that "storing" is a permutation of "will." There must, therefore, be a connection between "will" and chesed. The connecting link is bina. When Isaac and Rebecca were praying, they were addressing these two attributes In the verse, "like the beard of Aaron, cascading down over his garments" (Ps.133:2), we see that the beard is associated with Aaron, the first high priest. The word for "his garments" in this verse ("middotav") also can mean "his middot" or "his emotions". Thus, we have the image of Aaron the high priest with his beard flowing into the middot. In light of what we have seen above, this makes us identify Aaron with Arich Anpin, whose beard flows into Zeir Anpin, the partzuf of the middot. As we said, middot can mean both emotions and garments. However, the high priest wore eight garments, while we usually speak of only seven middot. The eighth midda, then, is the next sefira in the series, which, if we begin with malchut and count upwards, is bina. In Aaron, or Arich Anpin, we may thus consider bina together with the middot. The priest in his service elicits divine goodwill, as is seen in many verses throughout the Torah. As we have also explained previously, the priest (Kohen) expressed the divine attribute of chesed, while the Levite (Levi) expressed the attribute of gevura.

Segment 7

The beard moreover is a garment, as it is written, "His robe was like white snow, [and the hair of his head was like pure wool]" (Dan. 7:9) and the beard is the attribute of "and acquits." The verse quoted is a description of "the Ancient of Days", which, although usually as a term refers to the partzuf of Atik Yomin, is evidently taken here to refer to Arich Anpin (which, after all, enclothes Atik Yomin just as the other partzufim of Atzilut enclothe it). The "robe" in this verse is understood to be a white, flowing beard. The second half of the verse speaks of the hair of the head being like "pure wool". The word for used for "pure" or "clean" here is naka, Aramaic for nakeh (the whole verse, like most of the book of Daniel, is in Aramaic), the word for "acquits" in the list of the 13 attributes of mercy. These two mazalot couple as one, [as mentioned above]. Now, these two mazalot are the two drops [of anointing oil] that hung at the end of Aaron's beard, as our sages have said. (Horayot 12a) This is the mystical meaning of the verse: "It is like the precious oil upon the head, cascading down upon the beard." (Ps. Ibid.) The oil is the light of chochma, as the sages say, "whoever is accustomed to use oil merits chochma." (Menachot 85a) And as we have explained previously, chochma is the seminal drop of insight that enters the conscious mind as a concentrated essence from the super-conscious. This is similar to oil, which is the concentrated essence of the olive. All the brains are receptacles for chochma and are called by its name. This is the mystical meaning of [the phrase from the above-quoted verse,] "like the precious oil." The meaning is as follows: The order in which the partzufim enclothe Arich Anpin is that Abba enclothes his right arm and [the right] half of his torso, while Imma enclothes his left arm and [the left] half of his torso. [Both extend downward and enclothe him] as far as his navel. This is the mystical significance of the tefillin that we put on our left hand, for we elevate thereby the Nukva into Imma, which enclothes the left hand of Arich Anpin. Zeir Anpin enclothes the right thigh [of Arich Anpin] up to his navel, while Nukva of Zeir Anpin enclothes his left thigh up to his navel. This is the meaning of [the statement in the Zohar:] "he is with netzach, and she is with hod." Netzach and hod correspond to the right and left legs, respectively.

Segment 8

The beard of Arich Anpin extends down to his navel, where is found the head of Zeir Anpin. This is the mystical meaning of the expression "upon the head" [in the verse quoted above], for the divine beneficence flows onto the head of Zeir Anpin. The verse thus reads, mystically: "Like the precious oil - i.e., chochma, suspended as drops on the end of the beard of Arich Anpin, which is on top of the head of Zeir Anpin." But before it reaches the head of Zeir Anpin it "cascades down the beard," meaning that it ascends to [the eighth part of the beard,] "storing [chesed]." For this attribute of divine mercy corresponds to the upper layer of the beard proper. This is the mystical meaning of the [continuation of the verse quoted above:] "running down over his garments". The word for "his garments" [midotav] can be read as "the middot of [the letters] vav-yud", meaning the hairs, as mentioned above. That is why the word "over" [al] is used here, for it refers to the hairs themselves. The vav signifies the hollow channel of the hair, and the yud signifies the light pulsing through it. Thus, the verse describes the light of chochma flowing down the beard. [Once it has received the influx of chochma from Arich Anpin via its beard,] Zeir Anpin then gives it in turn to Nukva. This is the mystical meaning of the verse: "Open for me, my bride, for my head is full of dew". (Song. 5:2) The dew refers to the light which flows from the hair of his head, whose numerical value is the same as that of the word for "dew" ["tal", tet-lamed = 39]. [This verse continues:] "my locks with the drops of the night." These [locks] are the hair on the back of the head [of Zeir Anpin], which hang down until they reach the head of Nukva, behind him. This is the mystical meaning of "the drops of the night," i.e., the drops [of chochma] that reach "night," i.e., malchut. Day and night are masculine and feminine images, and therefore correspond to the male and female archetypes of Zeir Anpin and Nukva. Now, when Isaac and Rebecca were praying [to G‑d for children], they were addressing these two attributes [of divine mercy]. This is why the expression "entreated" is used [instead of the more usual "prayed"]. As our sages say: "Why are the prayers of the righteous compared to a pitchfork?

Segment 9

To indicate that just as a pitchfork turns the grain from place to place in the barn, so do the prayers of the righteous turn the mind of the Holy One, blessed be He, from the attribute of judgment to the attribute of mercy." (Sukka 14a ) The root of the word for "entreat" (in Hebrew, "ayin-tav-reish") also means "pitchfork". Isaac was directing his prayers [to G‑d] via the [thirteenth] mazal, "and He acquits", for from there he [emulating Zeir Anpin] had to direct divine beneficence [in this case, fertility] to his wife. Rebecca, on the other hand, directed her prayers [to G‑d] via the [eighth] mazal, "storing [chesed]" which is the male of the two. This was in order to elicit divine mercy upon her husband. Each one prayed opposite to the other. This is why it says "opposite his wife".

Segment 10

Translated and adapted by Moshe-Yaakov Wisnefsky from Likutei Torah; subsequently published in "Apples From the Orchard."

When you cut the hair and beard, what you are doing is severing the higher nerve endings that connect man's physical consciousness with his Higher Mind. This is especially important in the development of the Intuitive Spheres of Mind that connect the person we are in this world with our Higher Soul-Self (see SoulSelf.org ), and ultimately the Indwelling Logos/Son of God. When we cut the hair, it is as if we sever the nerve endings into the Higher Mind as manifest in the theric Field that surrounds the physical body. Allegorically, when Samson explained to Delilah the source of his super-human strength, he said to her: "No razor has ever been used on my head, he said, because I have been a Nazirite set apart to God since birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man. When Delilah saw that he had told her everything, she sent word to the rulers of the Philistines, Come back once more; he has told me everything. So the rulers of the Philistines returned with the silver in their hands. Having put him to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him" (Judg 16:17-19 NIV).

A Nazir, Nazirite or Nazirene, is one who takes a vow to abstain from the things of this world -- to be set apart -- to be in the world and not of it -- and consecrate himself to God. A Nazirene has always been used in reference to a Holy Man who possessed the gift of spiritual vision, knowledge, prophesy, psychic perception and ecstatic insight into man's higher reality. Another important element in the term Nazir is its linguistic relation to the words Nezer and Netzer -- meaning one of whom it can be said that they represent a militant message of freedom from "worldly Kings" and their secular wickedness.

Segment 11

In order to be a Nazirene one must so purify and consecrate their physical body and mind so as to be set wholly apart for the Lord. Thus, the Nazirene must become the very definition of the requirement to be in the world and not of it. A Nazirene cannot hold allegiance to manmade doctrines, traditions, or religious institutions. A Nazirene knows that there is only One True teacher (see The True Prophet) of the true meaning of the scriptures -- and he lives in such a faithful way and contrite manner, that he receives instruction directly from the Lord. Thus, a Nazirene must so live their life that the inner door of utterance from the Holy Spirit will be opened, and they will be taught directly from God -- "And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:4 NKJ); "praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints--and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak" (Eph 6:18-20 NKJ); "Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving; Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds: That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak" (Col 4:2-4 KJV). And it is this necessary abandonment of the elementary teachings of Christ ( "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal" [1 Cor 3:1-3 NKJ] ) that Paul noted was necessary to embrace the stages of mental expansion and deepening in order to comprehend the higher reality of the Soul -- i.e., "Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity..." (Heb 6:1 NIV). But to bring about the necessary "maturity" of mind that Paul makes reference to, the seeker/disciple MUST live and embrace the Consecrated Life in TheWay that transforms the body-mind into the Living Spiritual Temple.

An Important Article On A Man's Hair And Beard

Quoted from The Truth About Hair

Segment 12

Why Native Americans Kept Their Hair Long By C. Young

"Each part of the body has highly sensitive work to perform for the survival and well being of the body as a whole. The body has a reason for every part of itself." -- C. Young

This data has been hidden from the public since the Vietnam War.

Segment 13

Our culture leads people to believe that hair style is a matter of personal preference, that hair style is a matter of fashion and-or convenience, and that how people wear their hair is simply a cosmetic issue. Back in the Vietnam war however, an entirely different picture emerged, one that has been carefully covered up and hidden from public view. In the early nineties, Sally (name changed to protect privacy) was married to a licensed psychologist who worked at a VA Medical hospital. He worked with combat veterans with PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Most of them had served in Vietnam. Sally said, "I remember clearly an evening when my husband came back to our apartment on Doctors Circle carrying a thick official looking folder in his hands. Inside were hundreds of pages of certain studies commissioned by the government. He was in shock from the contents. What he read in those documents completely changed his life. From that moment on my conservative middle of the road husband grew his hair and beard and never cut them again. What is more, the VA Medical center let him do it, and other very conservative men in the staff followed his example. As I read the documents, I learned why. It seems that during the Vietnam War, special forces in the war department had sent undercover experts to comb American Indian Reservations looking for talented scouts, for tough young men trained to move stealthily through rough terrain. They were especially looking for men with outstanding, almost supernatural, tracking abilities. Before being approached, these carefully selected men were extensively documented as experts in tracking and survival. With the usual enticements, the well proven smooth phrases used to enroll new recruits, some of these, Native American trackers, were then enlisted. Once enlisted, an amazing thing happened. Whatever talents and skills they had possessed on the reservation seemed to mysteriously disappear, as recruit after recruit failed to perform as expected in the field. Serious casualties and failures of performance led the government to contract expensive testing of these recruits, and this is what was found.

Segment 14

When questioned about their failure to perform as expected, the older recruits replied consistently that when they received their required military haircuts, they could no longer 'sense' the enemy, they could no longer access a 'sixth sense', their ' intuition ' no longer was reliable, they couldn't 'read' subtle signs as well or access subtle extrasensory information. So the testing institute recruited more Native American trackers, let them keep their long hair, and tested them in multiple areas. Then they would pair two men together who had received the same scores on all the tests. They would let one man in the pair keep his hair long, and gave the other man a military haircut. Then the two men retook the tests. Time after time the man with long hair kept making high scores. Time after time, the man with the short hair failed the tests in which he had previously scored high scores. Here is a typical test: The recruit is sleeping out in the woods. An armed 'enemy' approaches the sleeping man. The long haired man is awakened out of his sleep by a strong sense of danger and gets away long before the enemy is close, long before any sounds from the approaching enemy are audible. In another version of this test the long haired man senses an approach and somehow intuits that the enemy will perform a physical attack. He follows his 'sixth sense' and stays still, pretending to be sleeping, but quickly grabs the attacker and 'kills' him as the attacker reaches down to strangle him. This same man, after having passed these and other tests, then received a military haircut and consistently failed these tests, and many other tests that he had previously passed. So the document recommended that all Indian trackers be exempt from military haircuts. In fact, it required that trackers keep their hair long." --

Segment 15

The mammalian body has evolved over millions of years. Survival skills of humans and animals at times seem almost supernatural. Science is constantly coming up with more discoveries about the amazing abilities of man and animals to survive. Each part of the body has highly sensitive work to perform for the survival and well being of the body as a whole. The body has a reason for every part of itself. ( Sikhs consider body hair to be a special gift from the Creator.)

Hair is an extension of the nervous system, it can be correctly seen as exteriorized nerves, a type of highly evolved 'feelers' or 'antennae' that transmit vast amounts of important information to the brainstem, the limbic system, and the neo cortex.

Segment 16

Not only does hair, including facial hair in men, provide an information highway reaching the brain, hair also emits energy, the electromagnetic energy emitted by the brain into the outer environment. This has been seen in Kirlian photography when a person is photographed with long hair and then re-photographed after the hair is cut. When hair is cut, receiving and sending transmissions to and from the environment are greatly hampered. This results in a numbing-out. Cutting the hair is a contributing factor to the unawareness of environmental distress in local ecosystems. It is also a contributing factor to insensitivity in relationships of all kinds. It contributes to sexual frustration. In searching for solutions for the distress in our world, it's time for us to consider that many of our most basic assumptions about reality are in error. It may be that a major part of the solution is looking at us in the face each morning when we see ourselves in the mirror. See also If Your Dad Doesn't Have A Beard .

Native Americans respected their hair.

"Some native tribes even scalped their live enemies. It appears this practice held much more significance than just a bunch of 'savages' committing acts of barbarism." -- H. S. Khalsa

Segment 17

The story of Sampson and Delilah in the Bible has a lot of encoded truth to tell us. When Delilah cut Sampsons hair, the once undefeatable Sampson was defeated. More About Your Hair . See also Concerning The Tradition of Long Hair and Beards .

Ask yourself, "Why does my hair keep growing back, cut after cut?" And, "Why is it so difficult to stop hair from growing?" Answer: Hair is more important than you think!

Segment 18

The Consciousness of what Paul calls "natural" man -- or, organic level of the consciousness of mankind -- is portrayed as being of an "animal-soul" level of mind and being (see Organic Man Ruled Over By His Lower Animal Nature). But what exactly does this mean? The physical body of man has been formed out of the lower three kingdoms -- i.e., mineral, vegetable with an animal-consciousness -- and having emerged out of the initial womb of his physical mother, few people understand that man has then entered the secondary womb of Mother-Earth (see Mental Womb ) -- holographically, as a Cosmic Sperm Or Ovum (see When Man Meets Woman http://TheRealFactsOfLife.Ebionite.com#WhenManMeetsWoman ). The analogy of Plato's Cave (see Cave) which is synonymous with the "outer darkness" of mind and being in the Gospels (see The Outer Darkness Of Mind And Being http://OuterDarkness.Nazirene.org#OuterDarkness ), portrays this realm as a "shadow-world" of illusions that have been generated from a higher unseen Source (see The True Facts And Realities Of Life ) -- which reality has been confirmed by modern physicists (see The Scientific Revolution http://TheLawOfOctaves.com#ScientificRevolution ), where they portray what man with the limitations of his organic senses perceives as a "blemish" created by invisible forces which exist in an unseen theric Field. Which is why in the Gospel of the Nazirenes which preserves many of the important teachings which were removed from the canonical Gospels by the Church, organic "natural" man is portrayed as a beast who walks in the form of man: "Love you one another and all the creatures of God, Yet I say to you, not all are men, who are in the form of man. Are they men or women in the image of God whose ways of violence, of oppression and wrong, who choose a lie rather than the truth? No, truly, till they are born again, and receive the spirit of love and wisdom within their hearts. Then only are they sons and daughters of Israel, and being of Israel they are children of God..." (see Organic Man). And in the same way that the first stage of birth provided you a physical body which was made up of the lower three earthly kingdoms, when you emerged out of your physical mother's womb, you entered the secondary womb of Mother-Earth in order to bring about the next stage of mental-birth as that of man in the fourth-kingdom -- i.e., "...Yet I say to you, not all are men, who are in the form of man" (see Entering The Kingdom Of Man ).

Segment 19

When Paul states that organic "natural" man is incapable of comprehending his own higher reality because he is of an "animal-soul" level of consciousness that is not only incapable of comprehending the true spiritual meaning of the Gospel teachings, but also incapable of comprehending his own higher Soul-Reality, he was making reference to the reality that the mind must be matured and evolved in order to bring about the next stage of birth -- therefore enabling a person to enter the Kingdom of Man -- thereby fulfilling the Gospel teaching on receiving the Kingdom as a Child at the next level of development (see Children). But, as explored at the link on Children, this ultra-important teaching was corrupted and suppressed by the gentile Church. When a person of a "natural" mind portrays himself as a man or woman, this is synonymous with a fetus being portrayed as an infant. While it is true that a fetus has the potential to be born and become an infant, until the fetus is actually born, the fetus is in the process of developing enough to experience birth and become an infant. The same is true when we are born into this world as a Cosmic Ovum Or Sperm (see The Cosmic Ovum And Sperm) -- which is holographically on the next level of birth within the process of the Laws of Creation. In the same way that the fetus has an undeveloped human body that is in the process of physically developing in accord with the Laws of Nature, when we are born into this world we dwell in a mentally-infantile condition that through the interaction of the Natural Laws, we have the potential to bring about the next stage of birth -- i.e., Jesus answered him, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God (see Mental Womb). Where the development from fetus to our physical body can be portrayed as a cookie-cutter process, this would not be true with respect to the process of mental development. Why? Because the development of mind requires choice, freewill, and the living out of the choices we have made in order to learn through our experiences. Therefore, there can be no cookie cutter interaction with the Natural Laws that bring about the next stage of mental and spiritual birth.

Segment 20

While the Laws of Nature can provide a physical body for the Soul to inhabit, the development of mind requires a very different and complex interaction of the Natural Laws in order to respond to our choices, exercise of freewill, and the mindset and lifestyle we have chosen to live out.

Segment 21

Just because we are born in the image of man, that does not mean that we have attained the Kingdom of Man. And this is seen in the statement in Genesis: "Then God said, Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground" (Gen 1:26). Which is followed by: "So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." (Gen 1:27). While man is portrayed as having been created in the " image" of God, the Genesis account does not portray man as existing in the term "likeness" , because this is a higher reality that each Soul must achieve. When Jesus stated the requirement that "You must be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect" (Matt 5:48), what he was stating was that having been created in the " image" of God, each Soul must achieve the evolved reality of existing in the "likeness" of God.

Segment 22

When Jesus taught in the parable of TheCall to the Wedding Feast that those who did not put on the required "wedding garment" would be cast into the "outer darkness" (of mind and being) -- i.e, "So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' For many are called, but few are chosen" (Matt 22:12-14 NKJ) -- and again: For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matt 25:28-30 NKJ). The "outer darkness" is the womb of mother-earth -- and the requirement to bring about the next stage of birth is the "wedding garment" of spiritual maturity. When rightly understood, what the Gospels portray as the outer darkness is parallel to the analogy of Plato's Cave of Illusions.

The Gospel of Thomas opens with the profound statement: And [Jesus} said, "Whoever finds the interpretation of these sayings will not experience death." Which means that to "find the interpretation of these sayings" , the seeker/disciple must overcome their own divided male/female nature -- and like an embryo that has been brought into existence through the combining of an ovum and sperm, upon entering this world must bring about the next stage of birth by (quoting Gospel of Thomas saying 22) "...making the two one, and when you make the inside like the outside and the outside like the inside, and the above like the below, and when you make the male and the female one and the same, so that the male not be male nor the female female; ...then will you enter the kingdom." Only when the inner division of mind that is represented in the above and below, the left and right, the outside and the inside, and the male and female, can the next stage of birth be achieved. Which means from a holographic perspective, if you as a Cosmic Ovum or Sperm succeeded in becoming a Cosmic Embryo, you must then evolve into a Cosmic Fetus and mature to the level where you can enter the Kingdom of Man.