Origins of the Soul
In the beginning the souls resided in their home world. A world filled with ripples of light flowing in all directions. Imagine the full moon had magically gained the intensity to light the entire universe, leaving everything glimmering in its cool rays. This was the mystical world of the souls, and they resided here peacefully.
That sounds nice, except that if everything is made of light, then there is no matter. Meaning, it is a formless world. What did the souls do in such a world?
We, having lived in a world of matter and form, can never come to truly comprehend this world of light inhabited by the souls or the souls themselves which are conscious and luminescent in nature. They find peace and content in purely existing. It is an internal satisfaction that comes from being pure in nature and eons could pass by, but they would not notice a thing. It is like how we find content in deep sleep; it just is.
That is interesting… to find content in simply being. But what happened to the souls? Why do they leave their world and enter the world of Maya?
Nothing ‘happened’ to them. The souls and their world are eternal in nature. There is no destruction or chaos that could spoil their peace. Nor do the souls die or pass away. Nor is there a question of their being too many souls. Instead, the souls chose to leave of their own accord.
Leave? But what would make them leave such a perfect world?
The souls and their world are formless. It is like minuscule plankton inside the grand ocean, they cannot do anything but go with the flow of the currents. Similarly, the souls are unable to do anything in their ocean-like world of light. It is a passive existence and the souls do not know much of anything, except for themselves. They know of each other’s presence but only vaguely. Knowledge or communication with each other is limited. Imagine it like the state of newborn babies. They are very playful and active but completely ignorant of everything around them and unable to do anything meaningful. This is initially the state of the souls.
So then, it was naturally intriguing when a ‘voice’ inspired them and spoke to them of a world filled with matter. The ‘voice’ promised the souls a chance to obtain a form.
The souls, ecstatic to experience an existence with form, jumped to the opportunity. They followed the ‘voice’ as it inspired them forward. On the way, they came across the manifest world, the world of Maya. The souls were overjoyed to find such a world filled with matter and they curiously entered.
Oh no… I know where this is going…
Actually, the souls enjoyed it, being in a world full of matter. They entered it and helped to bring forth life forms. Initially, life was very simple in nature but as the souls ‘played’ in these forms, evolution did its work. Life advanced in complexity and the life forms became ever more capable. Soon enough, all kinds of species came forth, from deep sea creatures to flying birds to even the dinosaurs. For the souls, it was all very intriguing as they took on these forms and soared the skies, roamed the seas or ruled the jungles. Most capable of all these forms was the human form, a milestone in the process of evolution. It allowed the souls to gain knowledge, understand one-another and create monumental works.
If the souls influenced the world so greatly and helped to inspire evolution, why do we speak of leaving the world? Aren’t the souls needed? Aren’t we all needed?
It’s true that the souls are a key component in keeping the universe and life going. The only concern is, to what end? Being here, what do the souls gain? What do they have to achieve? Because of the constantly changing nature of the universe no form lasts forever. No achievement can be eternally kept. Nor can fulfilling joy be had. This is all the work of Maya due to which no one can be truly happy.
If anything, as time passes the souls are losing more than they are gaining.
What do you mean? Isn’t this world of matter more interesting and fulfilling than just merely existing in the world of light? What do the souls have to lose?
As the souls stay in this world allured by all these mortal life forms, they are forgetting themselves.
The souls which once had great vision plus virtue could patiently endeavor any kind of circumstance or difficulty to achieve an enriching experience, monumental work or great movement. But as they stay in these mortal forms, their vision and virtue are withering away. Now, they are caught up in the petty arguments and circumstances of everyday life.
The souls, once pure in nature, would not harm another being and held great consideration for all life. But as they stay in mortal forms, they are losing their purity. Now, they succumb only to satisfying their selfish desires and do not care about the well-being of others.
Those very souls that once found content in purely existing have started to forget their inherent joy. Instead, they now believe joy to be found in satisfying the needs of the ego. The identity they have believed to be their own because they believe their mortal form to be themselves. Like actors who have taken so strongly to their role that they forget their original identity. How foolish indeed…
Their stay in Maya for all this time has made the souls shells of their former selves. They have lost everything that made them ‘alive’ and beaming with ‘life’. Even the memory of their home world has long been forgotten. Worst of all, they have failed to complete their purpose of achieving a true form. The forms found inside of Maya are simply too flawed…
In essence, the light of the souls has faded away into the darkness of Maya.
The soul in me cries when I hear this… We lost everything… We lost our ‘soul’… Will it be like this forever? Is there any return home?
Thankfully, there is a way back. By reversing this process that made us forget our identity, we can once more learn the truth of ourselves. In fact, many of the original souls have made their way back home. But not all… Some stay here knowingly.
Stay? Why would they stay? What is there to obtain in staying? They came to experience existence with form, but they cannot keep it… What more is there to be had?
For the souls it is a critical choice to make.
Their home world is peaceful and mystical in nature, but they are deprived of the abilities found through a form. There is unity among each other but there are no distinguishing factors or true uniqueness. It is like how leaves exist on a tree; they all absorb sunlight, appear identical and even blow in the wind together. They are separate but behave as one and their existence is passive. In this way, it is peaceful for the souls in their world, but it’s not exactly exhilarating.
In the manifest world there is uniqueness and the ability to perform action because all possess a form. However, due to the dark nature of Maya more problems arise than are solved. As such, many souls choose to leave Maya and return home. Though not all souls return, some stay back.
The souls that stay back are hopeful. They believe there is a way to obtain form. They believe in the ‘voice’ that originally inspired them. Not out of blind faith or anything. But because there is something very peculiar about it all that they cannot deny.
Peculiar about it all? What are you talking about?
Peculiar as in very interesting. There are great truths hidden underneath the surface that must be investigated. The souls that stay back are searching, hopeful to find the answers. Hopeful to find true form.
