Although the son still lacks healthy self-esteem, at the encouragement of the foreman he accepts the position. In time, the son sees how his life has changed, due to his own efforts, from one of poverty and shame to one of responsibility and being able to care for himself. As a result, the son finally acquires self-worth and faith in himself. At this point, the father has become so old and near death that the ruse cannot continue. He declares the truth and makes his son heir to the entire estate.
The dynamics of our deep and literal connection to God is also found in Judeo-Christian scripture, beginning with Genesis, where we are told that God made humankind in the Creator’s image. From this perspective, the body is simply an external wrapping for the soul. Interestingly enough, a New Testament version of the Buddhist parable also exists in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-24), clearly illustrating the journey of the soul and our connection to God. Simply stated, we were with God in the beginning; through the power of our free will, we were able to make choices that were not necessarily in perfect accord with the Creator, enabling us to forget our true identity. However, at some point, we will “arise” and decide to return to God, regaining our inheritance and finally experiencing our rightful relationship with Him.
In discussing the nature of humankind, American philosopher and editor Paul Carus (1852-1919) often sought the interwoven connections among science, philosophy, and religion. In the preface to his book, The Soul of Man, he stated:
What is more interesting to man than his own soul! And what, at the same time is so mysterious, so wonderful, so marvelous! Our pleasures and pains, our loves and hatreds, our hopes and fears, our longings, our aspirations and ideals, whence do they come, what is their meaning and whither do they tend?
For every one the centre of the universe lies in himself. In our soul, if anywhere, must be sought the key to the mysteries of the cosmos.
This same idea that the discovery of one’s purposefulness is ultimately an inward journey is echoed in esoteric and New Thought traditions which state that, although the Divine is everywhere, it isn’t until the search leads within one’s own self that God can ever really be found.
In exploring the nature of humankind, Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961), founder of the analytical school of psychology, believed that the goal of personal development was self-realization or individuation. From this premise, the archetype or universal model of every individual’s potential was clearly expressed in the Christ. Jung called the Christ “the archetype of the self,” for the Christ-figure exemplified the self fully realized: “He represents a totality of a divine or heavenly kind, a glorified man, a son of God . . . unspotted by sin.” (Collected Works, 9ii) Rather than being a message restricted to a specific religion, from a psychological perspective the Christ embodies a universal archetype of the self for all of humankind.
The universality of the Christ is also explored in the work of Edgar Cayce (1877-1945), twentieth-century mystic and clairvoyant. Although Cayce himself was a Christian, his life’s work is deeply ecumenical. From Cayce’s perspective, regardless of an individual’s religious or personal beliefs, the Christ pattern exists in potential upon the very fiber of her or his being. It is that part of each of us that is in perfect accord with the Creator and is simply waiting to find expression in our lives through the use of the will. This Christ pattern was further described as “ . . . the awareness within each soul, imprinted in pattern on the mind and waiting to be awakened by the will, of the soul’s oneness with God” (5749-141); its manifestation is the eventual destiny of each and every soul. With this in mind, Cayce presented Jesus as humankind’s “elder brother,” a soul who came to show each one of us the way back to our spiritual Source by perfectly manifesting the laws of the Creator in the earth.
While exploring the philosophical meaning of life, many individuals have incorrectly assumed that the goal of being in the earth is simply to reach heaven, find enlightenment, or somehow “get out of the earth.” This is a perspective quite different from that contained in the Cayce material, however. In part, Cayce believed that, as children of God, our mission is to somehow bring spirit into the earth, experiencing soul growth and personal development in the process.
Throughout his adult life, Edgar Cayce gave intuitive consultations, called “readings,” to individuals from all segments of society and various religious backgrounds. In addition to his work with hundreds of topics, including health and personal counsel, in nearly 2,000 “life readings” Cayce explored for individuals their soul history and their corresponding development through a series of lifetimes. From a source of information he called the “akashic records,” Cayce could view an individual’s soul development and describe how past-life influences and choices played out over time. Rather than being simply a philosophical discussion of possible past lives and corresponding strengths and weaknesses, the readings detail practical advice regarding what an individual might accomplish in the present, based upon the experiences and influences affecting her or him from the past.
The readings on reincarnation were given to individuals to help them understand soul strengths and weaknesses, as well as their own potentials and challenges. Often, when viewing an individual’s soul history, Cayce commented on how the person had both “gained” and “lost” in terms of soul development in any given lifetime. For example, a fifty-three-year-old housewife was told that, in the present, she possessed innate talents as a teacher and a guide to others. Apparently because of past-life experiences, she had developed the ability to attune herself to the Divine, and she could share that same ability with others for their own personal development. Cayce perceived how some of her strengths and weaknesses had been acquired during an incarnation in Greece when she had lived at the time of Xenophon, the Athenian general.
While Xenophon was away on one of his military campaigns, the woman had found herself in a position that enabled her to provide encouragement and assistance to others. In fact, the Grecian life had been a period when she had truly learned to be of service. At the same time, however, after Xenophon’s return and his elevating her to a position of responsibility, the woman apparently misused her newly acquired power for personal aggrandizement and the pursuit of selfishness. In summarizing her lifetime in Greece, Cayce stated: “Gaining and losing through the experience. Gaining for the faith and service rendered many during the trials of that waiting. Losing in the mis-application of the power gained by being put in an exalted position.” (115-1) In the present, the woman was encouraged to set aside her selfish motives and to focus instead upon cultivating her connection to the Divine and continuing to be of service to others.
The Cayce information stresses the continuity of the soul regardless of an individual’s bodily identity in any given lifetime. All experiences, inclinations, desires, abilities, and shortcomings from the past become a part of the soul’s memory in the present. As to whether a soul is developed or impaired in any given incarnation depends upon an individual’s application and the use of his or her free will. Because past-life influences can be both negative and positive, Cayce repeatedly emphasized the important role played by the human will in each soul’s personal development. As a case in point, in 1929, Cayce told a fifty-one-year-old osteopath that the will plays a greater role in a person’s development than either heredity or environment. It is essentially the will that determines whether a person evolves, grows, and overcomes life’s challenges or regresses, fails, and is overcome by them (101-1).
Just as in the parable of the poor son, Cayce believed that, because of our focus on the material things in life, much of humankind has forgotten its true birthright as a child of a loving God. From this perspective, the material world is simply a faint reflection of a much greater spiritual reality. In fact, the material world might be likened to a purposeful dream that enables each individual to evolve into an awareness of one’s true self through lifetimes of experiences, choices, and interactions with others. Cayce told one person:
For, will is the factor that makes for growth in the soul’s sleep through the earth’s experience. For, with