From Swami Beyondananda's Newsletter 11-2-06

No Story, No World ...New Story, New World

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In her book, Butterfly, Norie Huddle offers a powerful biological metaphor about the caterpillar' s metamorphosis into a butterfly. Inside the cocoon, new cells -- called, appropriately "imaginal cells" -- begin to pop up. Initially, these cells are recognized as "not the caterpillar" and are attacked. At some point, there are enough imaginal cells that they begin to communicate with each other and cluster together in communities. Although the caterpillar organism is still attacking these cells, the new cells become stronger and eventually and inevitably, the imaginal cells become the butterfly. So, you may be asking as you read or watch the news, where's the butterfly? Or, as the Swami has said, "Will the new age get here before old age does?"

And certainly, on the surface it's all caterpillar out there. But just as there is a moment where the field shifts from caterpillar to butterfly, I can assure you that the imaginal cells are popping up everywhere and beginning to cluster and communicate. And just as sure as a caterpillar never says, "You know, I'm not sure about this flying butterfly thing so I think I'll just go back to being a crawly caterpillar, " the process of evolution is a one-way street leading onward and upward.

In my travels to just about every region in the country over the past two years, I've seen this awakening and "up-wising." On one hand, those who allow themselves to see are facing the awful truth of how we've been betrayed by our leaders and institutions. On the other, people are also embracing the awesome opportunity as they see things as they can be, were we to actualize our human potential. It can be an emotional roller coaster to go from one extreme to the other, wondering how long it will take for a critical mass of citizens to awaken to the "critical mess." One thing is for certain, though. We can't get there from "here" when "here" means continuing to do what we've always done.

We Can't Get There From Here Unless We Find a New "Here"

To paraphrase Albert Einstein, a problem can never be solved at the level it was created. So it should come as no surprise as we shift from the Newtonian world view of force vs. opposing force, that we recognize that the dualistic political parties and cultural forces will only keep us stuck doing what we've been doing. Neither of the dominant dominator stories -- dogmatic religion or cynical materialism -- will be able to help us achieve this new emergent phase. A new story is needed, one that encompasses the spiritual and the material, that celebrates the individual and yet honors community, that anchors us with all that is precious in the past and also points us where none have gone before.

Thanks to a combination of intention and graceful good fortune, I am working with cellular biologist Bruce Lipton (The Biology of Belief) on a book that offers a new story based on the latest understandings of biology and quantum physics, and -- not coincidentally -- consistent with the teachings of the great spiritual masters. Boiled down, the message is this: "Just as our body is a harmonious community of 50 trillion cells, we humans are a 6.5 billion cell community on the surface of the earth. Since nature tells us that patterns repeat at higher levels of complexity -- from cell to organ to organism to planet -- what works under our skin is very likely to work in our human community as well."

On a purely biochemical level, the cell, the organism and the planet all need the same things: Clean water, nutrients and oxygen. Should any of these be compromised on any level, from cellular to planetary, life itself is threatened. On the psychological, social and spiritual level, harmony works better than disharmony. Throughout the recorded history of civilization, we have suspected this is true. It's what just about every religion or spiritual path has at its root, some version of the Golden Rule. Over millennia, we humans have been "content" to -- in the words of Alan Watts -- worship the finger instead of noting where the finger is pointing. But now, the dysfunctionality has gotten so profound and destructive to the entire planet, that we must finally turn to living those truths our teachers have been patiently trying to teach us for centuries. Put bluntly, unless we consciously choose to play "the world game," the "end-of-the- world" game will play itself out.

And the Good News Is ... the Bad News IS The Good News This bad news is good news indeed. It means we humans can no longer survive at this level of consciousness, and must metamorphose into something greater. The good news is that "truth" is inclusive, that Jesus and Einstein were both right, that we are indeed "all in this together, here to re-grow the Garden and have a heaven of a time doing it." Yes, it is easier said than done. However, we must say it before we can do it. And instead of the stories we've been telling ourselves -- either we are helpless children who can only be saved by divine intervention, or that we're even more helpless isolated entities stuck in an uncaring and random universe -- we need an empowering and enlightening story that encompasses science and spirit.

Getting back to those imaginal cells, what finally brings forth the new organism is the growing coherence of a new field. On the human level, the foundation of that coherence is a new story. Think about all the good work and well-intentioned organizations in this country and around the world. Consider those who understand and are working for environmental health, personal wellness, universal spiritual awareness without dogma, social and economic justice, sustainable business, enlightened education of our children, non lethal forms of problem-solving, etc., etc., etc. All of these great causes ...

And yet, it seems like so many of these well-meaning organizations are overworked and underfunded, seemingly in competition with one another for limited resource, and far too often disheartened and discouraged. A coherent and unifying story of what the "butterfly" looks like when it's up and flying can help us see how all of this work fits together, and how we can prioritize and move forward. It's my profound hope and intention that this book, The American Evolution, and the accompanying website will help transform the imaginal field of dreams into reality.