I have written a couple of articles regarding the relationship between the Occupy Movement and the potential evolution of the human species. Based on feedback from readers, I want to take this idea further. To begin, it is wise to speak to the time in our history in which some say we stopped evolving. For example, in the book, Ishmael, Deep Ecologist Daniel Quinn states that humanity has not evolved in the past 6 to 10,000 years. He also proposes this as one of the meanings to the Bible's Adam and Eve story in the "Book of Genesis." Of course, many would argue that since that time we have went from throwing stones to nuclear weapons and from walking to automobiles and airplanes. This is true. However, the fact is we have not evolved. Indeed, in a highly civilized society at the peak of its economy such as the United States, we are more likely to be out of shape and overweight.
One of the interesting movements in the Bible's "Genesis" is God saying to Eve that Adam shall rule over her. Many have taken that to mean women specifically. However, if we consider the female in terms of the inner world of all creatures (i.e., Psyche or Soul); then the educational system that currently teaches to a standardized test extends the external domination of male over female to girls as well as boys. This teach to the test movement is something fairly new. But the motivation is no different than past school systems where we had a "line up, shut up and do as your told mentality." This domineering mentality prepared working class kids to be obedient workers to supervisors on an assembly line or for military duty. Again, the objective is to get kids in line with the business and political desires of the culture instead of helping kids to evolve in body, mind and spirit. Which would be more beneficial in the macroscopic development of humankind and the variety of cultures in which we live? Do we cultivate our own powers within our communities, or do we serve the government, military and corporate empires?
Of course, it could be argued that our intellect has evolved since ancient times. But has it? Our technology has evolved but has our intellect? In my Sophia's Web: Reclaiming Wholeness in a Divided World, I take discoveries in early 20th century quantum physics and relate those speculations and findings to ancient creation myths. Indeed, creation myths mirror the idea that the universe is based in what physicist David Bohm and neurologist Karl Pribram call the Unmanifest Implicate Order (see Michael Talbot's Holographic Universe for a layman's explanation of these findings). Meeting this criteria of mirroring the Unmanifest are Genesis 1:2 of the Bible (and the earth was without form and void and darkness was upon the face of the deep), the Kogis' (a Native American tribe in South America) description of the Goddess Aluna (She was when She was, darkly), the Hindu Rig Veda ("darkness enfolded darkness in the beginning with no distinguishing sign, all this was Water) and the ancient Greek idea of Chaos which is a state of infinite potential and undifferentiated matter. This could be taken further.
Like the Hindu Rig Veda, the Bible's Deep or Tehom is referred to as being comprised of Water, which isn't literally water, but a fluid no-thingness or an undifferentiated ocean of energy or mass. It should be noted that in the New Testament the woman giving birth to Christ is Marie, a name that literally means Ocean. As the Spirit moved upon the face of the Deep, or the Waters in Genesis, the Spirit moved upon Marie in the New Testament. The old and new Testaments mirror one another.
Interestingly, Christian mystics, such as Meister Eckhart, often made comments like, "If that birth does not pertain to me, then what avails it." Zen practitioner and teacher Osho also states that the idea of the virgin birth pertains to a mind that is empty, a condition that mirrors Genesis 1:2. Reaching that state brings us to a point of infinite potential. What Eckhart and Osho are ultimately realizing is that the fluidity of infinity is not separate from anything. Infinity is within us. Hence, the Hindus refer to a Brahmin as "that in which there is no other." Infinity cannot exist side-by-side with itself. This is its limitation. Without becoming a M-Other, there is no self-awareness.
Infinity is within us as we are within Infinity and is perceivable. If the thesis that these states are reachable in the here and now is correct, the ramifications are huge. If we can learn through meditation and other exercises to dive deep and tap into the infinite potential inherent in each centimeter of space within our body, then it could be argued that we can evolve a more developed consciousness and body. Hence, the curse of Adam and Eve could be removed and Quinn's thesis that we have not evolved in the 6,000 or so years since the writing of Genesis can be transcended.
Yet there is a cost. In order to evolve we need to die, or become empty, to what we are now. As the crucifixion story of Jesus Christ reveals, evolution requires first and foremost a death. Becoming virgin in mind and spirit also requires a death, an emptying of thoughts, beliefs and so on. We have to die to who we are either way. Thus, the question we must all pose to ourselves as we are engaging in occupy movements is "are we willing to die to what we are now?" If we are not willing to die in order to create real change, then we will be engaging in a revolution instead of an evolution. The cost of another revolution may well entail another Hitler, Stalin, or Napoleon who are nothing more than different faces on the body of Caesar. Do we risk this or do we change from within ourselves and thus make people like Hitler, Stalin and Napoleon a thing of the past?
References
Hall, Burl B., Sophia's Web: Reclaiming Wholeness in a Divided World, Unpublished Manuscript 2006. Copies or information may be obtained by emailing the author at Email address removed
Osho, Tao: The Pathless Path (Renaissance Books/St. Martin's Press, New York, NY 10010).
Quinn, Daniel, Ishmael (Bantam Books, New York, NY 10022).
Talbot, Michael, Holographic Universe (HarperCollins Books, New York, NY 10022)
