| Edgar Cayce on Psychic Development |
|
| Written by admin | ||||
Page 2 of 2 Understanding Psychic Development From Cayce's perspective, the true source of psychic powers is God. Not many parapsychologists-who make scientific studies of ESP-would be bold enough to make a claim like that. But it's exactly what the Cayce readings proposed. Furthermore, that true source can be found within ourselves. If we're interested in psychic guidance, we don't have to look very far. Cayce was especially fond of quoting the Bible on this very point: "...look not as to who will ascend into heaven to bring him down..." (5752-6). The focus should be on the abiding presence of the Spirit-within ourselves and immediately surrounding us. But our attunement with that Spirit is almost invariably imperfect, and it comes in degrees or shades of reliability. This was mentioned earlier in terms of the subconscious mind's capacity to draw from either the physical conscious mind or from the spiritual superconscious mind. But the problem of understanding and evaluating psychic experiences is really more complex than this. Even within the spiritual realm, there are levels or degrees of truth and reliability. The highest possible psychic realization, according to Cayce, is to know that God will communicate directly with us. Put another way by Cayce: Spiritual "awakening" means becoming conscious of the relationship between the finite and the infinite. But this is not to say that other beings in the spiritual world should always be rejected or ignored. For example, what are we to do if we think we've been contacted by a recently deceased individual (someone from "the borderland," as Cayce called it)? The readings' caution was more often against directly seeking (or even being obsessed with) contact with such spiritual beings as deceased relatives. They may well approach us-even with very helpful messages-but Cayce warns about focusing our attention on that sort of experience as opposed to appreciating it if and when it arises spontaneously. Often the Cayce readings draw a sharp distinction between spirituality and soul development on the one hand versus spiritualism and contact with disembodied beings on the other. We all have psychic talents simply because we all are souls. But with that exciting promise comes a catch. We must "eliminate self" if we want these potentials to blossom. What did Cayce mean? The annihilation of our sense of individuality? If we study the readings in their entirety, it becomes clear. What's to be eliminated is selfishness-the impulse to look out for our own self-interests alone. God honors and respects our individuality; but when we take our independence to an extreme and begin to harm others, then we've fallen out of attunement with the source from which psychic awareness originates. Clearly, the spiritual discipline of meditation is one key to Cayce's psychic development program. By the daily practice of meditation, we attune ourselves to the highest levels of mind within ourselves. We can even use the few minutes at the end of our meditation period as a time to be open and receptive for specific psychic guidance. Closely related to the subject of meditation is the process of balancing and attuning the physical body. For example, Cayce often makes reference to the spiritual centers of the body, those seven contact points at which spiritual forces especially flow into the physical body. Another important principle about psychic development and the physical body is the vital necessity to get the body into optimal fitness. First, we should recognize that physical health and vitality are part of the attunement of body, mind, and spirit. Furthermore-and a special insight by Cayce in regard to disturbing psychic experiences-when there are imbalances in the body, it can open the subconscious mind in such a way that very disorienting paranormal occurrences take place. When people reported to Cayce their accounts of upsetting voices, troubling dreams, or other forms of frightening psychic events, more often than not the problem was identified as some sort of physical imbalance. Therefore, any sound approach to psychic development cannot ignore the need to get the body fit. Sleep and dreams are other productive areas for pursuing our psychic sensitivity. When we're asleep and the subconscious mind is directly active and accessible to our awareness, we're in a "nearer condition" to a contact with God and the higher selves of those we care about. Closely related to sleep is that in-between state we experience as we lose consciousness at night or as we begin to awaken in the morning. The hypnagogic or hypnopompic states are fruitful areas in which to explore psychic awareness. But Cayce warns against playing around with these altered states of consciousness. They're best used in conjunction with a regular prayer and meditation life. That way, we're more likely to get reliable psychic information. In summary, how would Cayce have answered those skeptics who say that it's far better not to explore the psychic realm? The readings clearly agree that we shouldn't get distracted or obsessed with psychic phenomena. Instead, these experiences are a natural part of human life and are offered to us as assurances that we are connected to one another and to a God who cares about us. It's an aspect of life worth paying attention to and worth understanding-what Cayce calls "the great study for the human family." Copyright: EdgarCayce.org |
||||
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
