This
article is a continuation of the article on the meaning of how the
universe is expanding at the speed of light from all points. The value
of the correspondence we spoke of in that article has not only to do
with science but also in the encouragement they offer in caring for our
souls and the meaning of life. It is a deeply held value that every
person that ever
lived is gifted with unique use and attributes and talents to serve
life, and the correspondence in that article deeply supports this. It
affirms a view of
the cosmos many cultures value, a view that is full of wonder, intellect
and
wisdom. The ancient and modern practice of astrology that sees meaning
and
character in all of the planets is a good example. It is a well
developed practice, full of
detail, and connects people lives to the heavenly bodies. The vision of
‘The Music
of the Spheres’, began with pythagoras, and was developed through
history,
especially during medieval times. It incorporates a geometrical and
mystical
meaning to the movement of the planets. The Hopi Indians see the
universe with
great wonder and a deep metaphysic of their own.
Astrology
tells us that the personal attributes of a person
are influenced by the formation of the planets and sun at the exact
moment of
their birth. It believes that the position of the planets in their orbit
at the time of a new born baby on earth forms a unique constellation
according to the moment
and place of birth, and the result is that the attributes of the
person’s soul
and personality are reflected in this constellation. Astrology doesn’t
speak of
God but the whole philosophy of its science melds with the idea that
everything
in the universe is orchestrated by the infinite love and wisdom of the
Lord. At
the moment of birth there is a need in the universe, (or a use to be
filled), and
the person born is imbued with unique character by God to contribute to
that
need. Swedenborg expresses this on a cosmic scale in a very beautiful
way when
he says: “The more people who enter heaven, the more complete it
becomes”. It
is inherent in this statement that every person born has unique meaning
for the
whole, and that if they seek this in good faith and use, they will enter
a
fulfilment of greater use in heaven. For instance, Swedenborg writes
that
there is a providential reason for each persons time of birth and death,
it
could be that they still need to learn something here, or they have some
use
for others to learn here, or it could also be that they are needed in
heaven
for a purpose to people there, and this use somehow balances
equilibrium.
Lets look further at how the
scientific knowledge of the planets is imbued with meaning by correspondences.
Every object has gravity based on its mass. The planets are so enormous that
their gravities are dominant in our solar system, though less than the sun, but
they are also much closer to us. Here we often say that a person ‘gravitates to
their love’, which speaks to a great truth. In the spiritual world gravity
corresponds to the attractive force of love. In the spiritual world like attracts
like; ‘gravity’ (love, affection) is the force that draws people to the society
they belong to and holds them there based on the quality of love they possess.
This is made more understandable when we see that every society in heaven has
its own atmosphere. Atmosphere’s are composed of the spiritual substance of
love and wisdom, particularly how these two are married together in a unique way
in each society. Swedenborg tells how each society has its own breathing
pattern, and someone not from a soceity who enters it finds it difficult to
breath unless they can come into harmony with the affections of that society,
because breath and speech correspond to affection. The practice of
astrology, the Music of the Spheres, the cosmology of the Hopi Indians - each of which give distinct
qualities to the planets, movements, and their atmospheres - are examples of
these qualities bleeding through to us.
Because gravity corresponds to the
attractive force of love I think it is important to reflect on the nature of
love. Love and wisdom proceed from the divine heart of the Lord in the
spiritual sun; they are the source of life and sustain all life. Swedenborg
says there is a cosmic pulse from the spiritual sun that extends throughout the
universe and governs living hearts. Love from the Lord is married to wisdom
and contains infinite things, but we receive it according to our love. Love is
a container that holds innumerable particulars of knowledge and wisdom. For us
love is a desire and yearning that seeks an end and all the wisdom necessary to
achieve the end is contained in that love and desire. This is difficult to
grasp in the abstract so lets give an example. Swedenborg tells the story of a
man he knew in the world who was simple and who had little education, but who
was pure of heart and loved the Word. He met this man again in heaven and was
amazed that the man was able to discourse greatly on the nature of things and
the Word with great wisdom. The reason being that in the spiritual world his
love expanded to its fruition, for love opens our internals and the wisdom that
comes with it becomes our own. In common language we say it this way: to love
is to know, and to know is to love. Love by nature is deep affection not only
for the beloved but also for wisdom. Both increase and elevate each other.
Gravity corresponds to love, and so it makes sense that the unique quality of love
and wisdom in heavenly societies corresponds to the unique qualities attributed
to planets in the solar system by humnaity. It also makes sense that the constellation of
planets at the time of a person’s birth form distinct qualities that are part of God’s expression of that
person’s potential gifts.
This also melds beautifully with the
medieval conception of “the music of the spheres”. In ‘The Narnian’ Alan Jacobs
describes C.S. Lewis love of the spheres and their nature: “Among the ‘old
lore’ of our world there is one tradition that Lewis found especially
fascinating, and that turns up repeatedly in his fiction…The spheres are in
medieval astronomy the abodes of the planets. These spheres surround the earth,
moving outward from us in concentric circles; beyond them is the Empyrean, the
heaven of heavens, where God’s presence dwells most fully. But what is there
music? That music is made by the friction of their contact as they
ceremoniously rotate at their various speeds; it is of extraordinary beauty.”
This kind of system engages a deeper view of the universe than science, and
intuitively engages the universal principles Swedenborg witnessed in heaven. The spheres
surrounding the planets are like the atmospheres of the spiritual world and the
planets correspond to societies in heaven that have character, use, love and meaning.
Whether astrology or the sphere of
the planets can be scientifically proven is not the point. The universe is full
of wonders in very particular ways that we can endlessly learn. Astrology, the
sphere of the planets, the Hopi Indians express how some of the spiritual
qualities of the universe bleed through into nature and into our mind and
soul’s perception. And the wonders we will some day see in the spiritual world
far far outshine what we know now.
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