Thank you Ram.

Just a small exploratory thought on this theme -- of alignment and ascension current. Tell me what you think of this...

More or less, the idea that seems to be coming together for me is:

• All of religion can be understood as an interpretation of a universal spirituality, taking on the garb of a particular culture or historical moment. This is not always so simple (e.g., what is the meaning of the Christian Crucifixion in this context?), but more or less, this is a safe generalization, and is the basic idea behind interspirituality as conceived by Bro. Wayne Teasdale and Kurt Johnson and the broad interspiritual movement.

• Now, given this broad generalization -- the big jump: all of spirituality -- everything about spiritual practice, all its various methods and ideas and visualizations, etc -- can be understood as affecting alignment. Spiritual practice is about shaping/directing/affecting alignment. Alignment IS the path -- and "attunement" is the fruit or consequence of alignment (attunement generally refers to what Starr* has been calling "The Eye of Source" -- perhaps the same thing that Ken Wilber means by "Eye of Contemplation").

• So -- we are now exploring the vastly simplifying claim -- that all of spiritual practice can be understood as affecting or shaping or determining alignment. So -- a question for you, Ram, might be: could you, without compromise to your ideas and your general vision and teachings -- explain or characterize everything you teach and believe about spiritual practice in terms of alignment? Is that possible -- or does it compromise something you believe or are sure of?

• I would ask the same question to Starr*. Can you, Starr*, translate everything you believe about spiritual practice into a body of principles or practices that are intended to affect alignment?

It looks to me like this is probably possible. It doesn't have to be done in rigid terms. Language has to remain flexible. But perhaps underlying the flexible use of language -- would be a few basic core absolute principles -- oneness, straightness, wholeness -- that could be defined in terms that are (or almost are) mathematical.

If we were able to weld together this kind of common vision, grounded in this general simple principle -- of aligning -- or "steering" -- the soul into the sun of pure energy -- that might be an astonishing and very interesting and useful accomplishment.

And maybe (?) not all that hard to do -- given what looks like a steady progress among us on these themes.

???

Let me try my own translation of the suggestions you offer in this message....

***

Ram: Thanks for sharing your focused view points. I am quite enthused to see this refreshed energy as an Ascension/Oneness Current. I am just reminded of an appropriate extract from Harold Becker in this regard:

Harold Becker: When you see yourself as an angel, you also see an angel in everyone else. As a master angel in training, you are ready to embark upon a new journey of love. Let the light of your heart illumine the path before you and walk in joy.

Bruce: Ok -- we are adopting an attitude, and "walking" -- taking a "journey". We are going somewhere -- while "in training". Does this "walk" somehow shift or change or modify who or what we are (are we "realigning" ourselves?) My guess would be "yes" -- and every step we take reinforces that choice to let ourselves illuminated by the light of the heart -- no doubt strengthening that light -- or making it more visible.

Harold Becker: Show the earth your gratitude and love and she will honor your every step.

Bruce: This is about "aligning attitude" -- or "mental posture". Take this attitude -- and let it grow within you until it becomes deeply habitual and ingrained -- as it changes everything about you as you grow in this direction...

Harold Becker: Hold hands with your fellow angels in human clothes and you will always have company. Keep your attention upon your Higher Self and you will have a friend for eternity. Live free in the present moment and you free the world.

Bruce: These are the great consequences of making these choices....

Harold: Deep in the center of your consciousness beats the wisdom, love and power of an eternal spirit. Grasp this awareness and you claim your dominion of infinite potential.

Bruce: This is about -- accessing and opening the deep centers of the soul...

Harold: Open up to the love within and around you and reunite with your whole and complete Higher Self and the collective universe again.

Bruce: And this is what you accomplish by doing this -- for yourself, for all those around you, for the world...

Harold: Share your joy with others and they will dance with you. Love unconditionally and you will know and become love itself. Unconditional love truly is an unlimited way of being........

Bruce: Yes, shift your mind away from self-absorption or selfishness or materialism and into the great central sun -- the "Eye of Source" -- and this practice will transform you....

Ram: JUST BE AN ANGEL! AND SEE ANGELS AROUND!

--- On Mon, Dec 9, 2013, Bruce Schuman wrote ---

Dear Ram --

Just wanted to briefly respond to your question -- regarding any possible "difference" between these emerging ideas on "alignment", and what we have have discussed or reviewed in previous conversations, particularly on the "Oneness" page.

ONENESS AND ALIGNMENT

In very simple terms -- I don't think there really is any "difference". I am just supposing that "the path to achieving oneness" emerges (or can emerge) through alignment. In your below list, I think this approach goes with your concept of "walk into it". For me -- moving forward in life through a gradual/incremental process of "alignment" is how I "walk into oneness". I think it could be said that everyone does that, in their own way.

But let me add -- that we have had some big complex conversations on this Alliance web site -- already, even though we are just beginning. And as Starr* has noted -- it's easy for this good material to get lost. This site is full of nooks and crannies now -- things get scattered and misplaced and hard to find.

COMMENT STREAM NAVIGATION

So -- as a way to counter this confusion -- this new "comment stream" feature offers some options that I think make it much easier to review what we have already done.

There are some sorting features that make it possible to display selected content -- including "all the posts from the Oneness page".

I expect to add a new more features to that framework -- but right now, if you go there, select the "Page" option, then select the "Oneness" page, you will see that 60 messages have been posted there (there's 92 on "What is Integral" and 47 on "Sacred Activism"). You can see them all through the Comment Stream. Select the "full format" option (shows the entire message instead of the first 500 characters), and if desired, select "show 60" messages -- and you can see all the messages we posted during that very busy period. I will probably add a few more features to that system, to make it more powerful and more useful (change the sorting order, change the threading, etc). But if we want to review everything that was said on some theme -- this feature might make it very easy. Using this framework, you can see it all on one page.

AXIAL INTEGRATION

What I am doing now, to advance this general cause -- is gathering up a hundred thoughts on this theme of alignment -- or, more particularly, "Axis Mundi" -- the "Axis of the World" -- which, I suggest, IS "the same thing" as the Hara Line -- the alignment of chakras -- the central energy current of the human spirit -- which when overlapped or "congruent" is the basis of Namaste -- and is the basis of the Oneness that can be developed among individuals in a group -- indeed, in a very large group....

All of this -- proceeds by a process of "alignment". Just keep adjusting your personal energy field, though an incremental exercise of karma yoga -- you move a tiny increment towards your center, I will move a tiny increment towards my center -- you move a tiny increment towards me, I move a tiny increment towards you -- all of this controlled and guided by the single universal standard of absolute truth that is this Axis Mundi -- the axial connection of the individual to the Absolute One.

CONVERGENCE

The power in this "shift" movement -- is that it is or should be possible/feasible to coordinate this shifting process at a large scale --converging many souls towards a common universal (and absolute, since grounded in Oneness) standard.

This is a stunning thing -- if it comes together.

I do sympathize with Peter Daley when he expresses his concern that in this project we might drown in wasteful verbiage. Excessive wordiness IS a problem, that we are all struggling with. Overload is our biggest challenge. So we have to work together to synthesize something simple and clear -- and for me -- it looks like this "alignment" (or "axis") concept is the way to get there. It's a straight-line path, from wherever we are directly to the heart of the Great Central Sun. As we keep inching along, I'm doing what I can to rake all of this stuff in to one neat pile. We might get the entire concept clearly stated on just a couple of pages. Thanks for your patience, and if you get a chance, try exploring the options on the comment stream page.

--- On Sat, Dec 7, 2013, Ram Varma wrote ---

Dear Bruce, et all,

While I am glad to note the crystallization of your efforts towards the " Ascension Current", I am just wondering how does it differ from the Essence of the "Oneness Page" that we started to dialogue about immediately after the establishment of this forum? Ascension simply means ascending the four lower bodies; physical, emotional, intellectual and memories. To me, both of them aim at realizing the Unity-Consciousness and manifesting the Ascended Qualities/Virtues in the living of our lives; individually and collectively. Whatever name we want to give it, let's give it. But let's focus on Peace, I AM Presence and Freedom.....proclaiming our original inheritance of "Eternal Bliss" as the life's true destiny. In over-simplistic way, all it needs is a simple exercise in one's own silence/peace from the perceived reality of body, senses, mind, intellect and Spirit of a human being:

1. What I am NOT from the above combination?

2. What I AM from the above combination?

3. Contemplate on what you really (really) are.

4. Walk into it.

5. Experience it.

6. Just Be.

One can not help but note clearly that in Spirit, we are One, shining forth brilliantly. Distributing Divine Love by way of comforting, protecting, serving, healing, understanding and so on.....; here, there, every where. Ascended and really ascended both in Self-Realization and in its manifestation in terms of abundant life in all respects and for all.

See how it goes with you.

With Love and Gratitude........Ram

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