What it means to be (Hu)Man (Transcript)
The Sanskrit root "man" means to think. Therefore, man or a human being is a Thinker, embodying the consciousness of the lower kingdoms in nature through which it has evolved: the mineral, vegetable, and animal.
Likewise, the human being is a 'Son of God' or, stated in a way that may appeal more to secularists, an atom within the body of a living Entity that we call a planet, Which, in turn, is a loving, intelligent atom within an even greater living Organism that we call a solar system.
Consequently, human beings are the meeting place for two lines of endeavor, increasingly recognized by those of us who have become or are becoming self-conscious. Increasingly, through meditation and service, we can recognize and cooperate with the greater Whole of which we are a part.
To a greater or lesser extent, self-consciousness indicates initiation or humanity's emergence from the animal kingdom where we become aware of ourselves: the Not-Self, Self, and the relation between the two or what we term consciousness. Eventually, complete self-consciousness makes an individual self-aware, self-directed, and self-expressing.
Self-consciousness enables us to know ourselves, understand the environment within and without, and eventually become an integrated and fused personality, linking within ourselves the consciousness of the higher and lower kingdoms.
The self-conscious human being is, therefore, the culminating goal for the three nonhuman kingdoms through which we have traveled, having learned to discriminate in the mineral kingdom, resulting in a developed embryonic intelligence; to feel in the vegetable kingdom, leading to a developed embryonic love; and to take action, to "instigate" or act instinctively, learned in the animal kingdom, leading to a developed embryonic will.
Having achieved this, we become aware of still higher states of consciousness that, when rightly contacted, eventually enable us to transmute the lower consciousnesses unfolded through evolution—embryonic intelligence, embryonic love, and embryonic will—into their higher and more sublime reflections.
The three higher kingdoms that have yet to be commonly discussed are sometimes called the Spiritual Hierarchy, the Spiritual Triad, and Shamballa. Just as these higher three kingdoms condition and inspire us, it is the purview of the human kingdom to carry out a similar purpose for the three nonhuman kingdoms.
By these measures, all varied degrees and states of consciousness within the one planetary Life can be known, organized, and brought into line so as to manifest Its divine Plan and Purpose.
On a far lesser scale, the one humanity and each of us hold within us the potential to create in the likeness of God, the Thinker Whose perfected Will, Love, and Intelligence cause all the atoms of Its body and every kingdom to cohere and vibrate to Its Purpose.
We are the transmitters of divine Purpose to the nonhuman kingdoms, and in doing so, we merge our will with the divine Will. Self-consciousness evolves into group consciousness and later into universal consciousness. The authentic Self — the One Self — is revealed stage by stage through experience, striving, and self-initiation from one state of consciousness to another.
A systemic, planetary, and individual leveling up is gradually substituting higher energies for the lower, resulting in individual, planetary, and cosmic perfection. Invariably, the greater stimulates and attracts the lesser, helping to lift it to a higher state. At present, the spiritual Hierarchy, stepping down the higher energies, performs this role for humanity, which in turn is responsible for doing the same for the lower kingdoms. Each transmission from a higher center of energy to a lower provides an electrical charge that expels, coordinates, and renews the form to further release the life or spirit within it. At present, humanity's ignorance, selfishness, and greed prevent us from intelligently cooperating with planetary Purpose, which can delay but never arrest Its ultimate fulfillment.
As this process of give-and-take proceeds, the Hu(Man) comes to know itself to be part of a greater Whole: the One Humanity, One Planet, and One Universe. We can, therefore, think, create, and will in line with the greater Life of which we know ourselves to be a part.