The Mustard Seed

Posted on April 2, 2019 by Author Richard F Holmes

The disciples said to the master, “tell us what the Kingdom of Heaven is like.” He said to them, “it is like a mustard seed; smaller than all seeds, but when it falls on the tilled earth, it produces a large tree and becomes shelter for all the birds of Heaven.

This parable demonstrates a great paradox. The tiny mustard seed contains the mustard tree, which can grow up to about 25′ high. The shell of the seed represents the line between the unmanifest (consciousness) and the manifest (the world or universe). If the seed falls onto a concrete path it will simply die away, but in the correct (tilled) ground it will develop and grow into a magnificent tree. This aptly describes the human journey. We all start off as seeds in the womb, and as we go through all the stages of life we seek the relevant tilled earth (guru, mentor, teacher etc.) in order that we may grow.

The mother is the first nurturer of the seed; the first bigger tree in which we take shelter. At this stage the seed disappears and dies and is reborn as a sprouting plant. Then there are various stages, where as the plant steadily grows, teachers come and go. These teachers can be in the form of school teachers, peers, partners, friends and even enemies. Then in the same way that the seed must die in order to know itself as the tree, we ourselves have to die (eradicate the ego) in order to be reborn in all our glory (realise the Self)

At some stage the growing plant might decide that it wants to delve deeper and gain greater meaning to its existence, and it will seek shelter in the form of a guru; a Buddha tree, a Jesus tree, a Lao Tzu tree or a Krishna tree. The master, in the form of whichever tree the seeker has chosen to take shelter in, will then nurture the growing plant until it becomes a magnificent tree in its own right.

At this point the newly emerged magnificent tree realises that all along it was itself the very Buddha, Jesus, Lao Tzu or Krishna tree in which it sought shelter, that all the time the tiny mustard seed and the magnificent, fully grown tree were One and the same.

This is the great paradox that is the parable of the mustard seed.

And I Quote…

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Posted on January 21, 2019 by Author Richard F Holmes

I came across this pearl of wisdom from Osho and thought I would share it with you. If you are not familiar with Osho, he is often referred to as a, “brilliant but flawed guru”. He was certainly unorthodox as far as gurus go, so I think we all have to come to our own conclusion. From a personal perspective, I have found certain areas of his teachings incredibly profound and quite beautiful, and they have helped me to gain a better understanding of who I am. The following snippet is from the book, “The Empty Boat – encounters with nothingness”, and I think it is a very apt way to explain a very simple, but difficult to accept, truth. Hope you like it.

Nobody else can destroy you except you; nobody else can save you except you. You are the Judas and you are the Jesus.

We Must Let Go Of Our Attachments To Spiritual Teachers

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Posted on February 4, 2018 by Author Richard F Holmes

This is the third and final piece that I thought would get your brain cells going..

To be free of the false self, we must let go of our attachments to all spiritual teachers and concepts. The concepts and beliefs we have of God, Buddha, Jesus, Mohammad, Rama, Krishna, Sai Baba and others are only mirrors of our false selves that, if we become attached to them, prevent realising Love. We need to release all such concepts and beliefs because holding on to them separates us from the One that is beyond all conception.

Dr John Goldthwait

Hell-Fire And Damnation – Part Three

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Author Richard F Holmes

Another passage from the Bible that has been misinterpreted by Christians over the centuries is “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me”, uttered by Jesus (John 14:6). Here I will endeavour to look at this statement from a different angle, but first we need to break it down.

“I” refers to “God The Father” or the Universal Absolute that exists beyond matter, beyond astral energy; and indeed beyond all forms of vibratory creation.

“I Am” refers to this Divine Entity manifested as “form” in the Universe and beyond.

“the way, the truth, and the life” refers to the fact that God in its subtlest form exists as light energy that permeates every single cell of creation. This guiding light is “the way” to “the truth” (or self-realisation) which awakens us to “the life” (eternal). Most human beings have lost sight of their divinity and therefore endure a living death here on Earth, oblivious to “the life”.

“no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” also has a much deeper and more profound meaning than the one normally perceived. As has been stated many times before “Son of God” refers to the Christ Intelligence or Christ Consciousness that is present within all human beings, and not a man of flesh called Jesus Christ. However, because Jesus was a fully realised soul he had achieved oneness with that Christ Consciousness and this is why he identified himself with it. It should also be stated that as a self-realised soul, Jesus had completely shed all traces of his ego, therefore when he said “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me”, he was speaking from the standpoint of a soul who was “One with the Father” and not as a man speaking from the standpoint of the ego-self. In other words he was simply making a helpful and insightful statement of spiritual truth as opposed to “I’m the big cheese around here and you wont be allowed to find God unless you approach this body”. Indeed directly after making this statement Jesus said “If you knew me you would know my Father too” (John 14:7), indicating that he had come to the realisation that we are all most definitely “One” regardless of race, colour, creed or social status.

Jesus Christ was simply an example of someone who actually lived this Oneness whilst being encased in flesh.

Bodies are many but spirit is One – Sri Sathya Sai Baba