A JOURNEY TO THE B E G I N N I N G O F T H E E N D L E S S DAY 2: Your Creator-Nature We are now on Day Two of our Journey to the Beginning of the Endless. Throughout this journey, I will be having conversations with spiritual leaders from around the world about what the Endless means to them in their practice, but today let s explore what Kabbalah says on the topic. The Endless World is the wellspring of the Creator s beneficence, which I discussed yesterday. It is a place where all peace, love, health, sustenance, and true fulfillment reside. But something happened there at the beginning of time that has relevance to the lives of each and every one of us today. Before the dawn of time, there was one omnipotent and omnipresent Entity: God, the Creator, a Higher Power, Lightforce, the Light call it what you will. This Entity had only one desire to share of Its beneficence. However, the Entity (whom we will refer to as the Creator) and Its sharing nature was all-encompassing, which meant that there was no one or nothing for It to give to. So the Creator thought to create something that could receive the Divine Energy. This thought brought into being a giant receiver, known as the Vessel. For a time, there was a harmonious balance: total perfect Light (that is, God s beneficence) and a perfect receiving of that Light. But then a profound transformation took place. Page 1
We know that every creation contains the essence of its creator. For example, we know the difference between a Monet and a Van Gogh because there is a spark of the essence of each painter in his painting. So, too, did this original receiver hold a spark of the essence of its Creator, which was the Desire to Share. Because of this Desire to Share that was inherent in its nature, the Vessel approached the Creator and said, Allow me also to share. Grant me a space to give. I don t want to just receive. To be truly fulfilled, I also need to be a creator. In response to this request, the Creator, inclusive of everything that could possibly exist and therefore unable to receive anything, withdrew Itself, and as It did, the Divine Energy it was sharing was also withdrawn. What ensued was a terrible lack for the receiver. The situation can be likened to a baby s experience of being born. In his mother s womb, he s satisfied: He has the food that he needs, and no matter what, he is utterly taken care of, regardless of the needs of the mother. But when he is born, he loses this total satisfaction and enters the world of now I need, now I want, now I must have. So, too, was it with the original receiver or Vessel. When the Creator withdrew, the Vessel now felt the magnitude of its once-fulfilled Desire to Receive, a desire that was no longer being fulfilled. Seeing this giant lack, the Creator rushed in to fulfill it again, but the Vessel was unable to handle the awesome magnitude of this Divine energy and shattered into countless pieces. The fragmented pieces of the Vessel then entered into every living thing that exists on our Earth: human beings, animals, trees, and so on. Why do I tell you this story? The reason is so that we can understand the big picture. Our universe came about as a result of the Vessel saying, I want to share, too! I need to express that part of my nature. I don t just want to get something for nothing. Creating in our life and Page 2
learning to share unconditionally is the key to quenching the deepest desire of our soul. The physical world was created to give us an opportunity that we did not have in the Endless World. It is within this framework that we can understand that striving to become a creative, proactive, sharing person is our whole objective for being placed here on Earth. When we speak and act from our Creator-nature, we open the flow of Divine energy back to us. We all contain within ourselves an aspect of the Divine Force that we need to express. When we are revealing our internal essence, we feel happy, inspired, and connected to that power. EXERCISE: Today, take a few moments to answer the following questions about the ways you tap into your Creator-nature. These don t have to be heroic actions of sharing. It s about noticing how your creative essence expresses itself in your day-to-day life. Before you start writing, we are going to try something that may be a little different for many of you. It s an ancient practice that has been used for thousands of years in cultures around the world to encourage self-expression and give people access to that unlimited potential within. It s called meditative coloring, and to do it you simply color and allow that essence inside of you to express itself. We ve attached a diagram (see page 5) that you can use as your template to color. You might enjoy listening to the link of the meditation music we ve attached as well. The point is to just give yourself the space and time to connect with yourself. Page 3
Then, when you are ready, write down concrete examples that you now recognize as arising from the Creator-nature within you. Where in your life do you create? Where in your life do you share? Where in your life do you practice kindness? Where in your life do you initiate? Where in your life do you extend tolerance, human dignity, and care to those around you? The point of this exercise is not to give ourselves a pat on the back or to build our ego about how good or righteous we are. The point is to start to recognize our own Divine Creative Essence, the truth of who we really are. Page 4
A JOURNEY TO THE B E G I N N I N G O F T H E E N D L E S S DAY 2: Meditative Coloring Page 5