“Our seventh struggle is against the demon of self-esteem, a multiform and subtle passion which is not readily perceived even by the person whom it tempts…. The vice of self-esteem, however, is difficult to fight against, because it has many forms and appears in all our activities – in our way of speaking, in what we say and in our silences, at work, in vigils and fasts, in prayer and reading, in stillness and long suffering. … When it cannot seduce a man with extravagant clothes, it tries to tempt him by means of shabby ones. … When it cannot puff him up with the thought of his luxurious table, it lures him into fasting for the sake of praise. …
The person who wants to engage fully in spiritual combat and to win the crown or righteousness must try by every means to overcome this beast that assumes such varied forms.” ~The Philokalia

“This seems like an odd complaint to many of us today because our modern society has pushed the idea of self-esteem as a virtue. Our public schools in particular have pushed the idea that self-esteem is such a wonderful thing that we all need lots of it and every student in their schools is given piles of it for virtually nothing.”

< Read the entire article online at Solar Wind. >

< Visit and bookmark Harold Boulette’s blog Solar Wind at: http://blog.spiritsun.net/ >

contributed by Harold Boulette

Akhenaton and Nefertiti

This magical story begins in the deep south of Louisiana; particularly, the 9th ward of New Orleans. A little boy named Ernesto and his siblings were playing among themselves in the hot summer Sun. While playing marbles with his siblings, Ernesto suddenly stood up and decided to look at the Sun. The moment Ernesto glanced at the brilliant and scintillating light of the Sun, his life was immediately changed forever. To the boy’s surprise, the Sun actually answered him! The Sun told Ernesto that his uncle had just passed away and that he should tell his mother the sad news.

Ernesto quickly ran inside the house to deliver the sad news to his family. Ernesto’s family questioned him as to why he was not playing with the rest of his siblings. Ernesto exclaimed that he had important news to deliver to his mother. All ears were on the boy waiting to hear the important news. Ernesto stated with a sure and calm voice, “Uncle just passed away today.”

Ernesto’s mother was deeply saddened by the news because she believed her brother was still alive in the hospital. She asked Ernesto who told him this news. Ernesto explained that the Sun in the sky told him the news. Suddenly, the neighborlady across the street called Ernesto’s mother to her house because she had had a phone call from the hospital where Ernesto’s mother’s brother had been admitted (during those times, not everyone had a phone in their house). The doctors told Ernesto’s mother that her brother had just passed away about an hour or so ago. The voices in the room fell silent as they could not believe what they have just heard. From that moment on, Ernesto’s life changed dramatically because he had the “gift.”

In New Orleans, it is assumed that when a baby is born with a veil (caul) over his\her face, he\she will have supernatural powers. Mostly in African American culture, it is an omen that the boy will be able to speak to invisible entities. Ernesto happened to be born with a veil over his face but didn’t show signs of psychic prowess until the age of three. Ernesto was able to communicate with the so-called dead and could foretell events before they occurred. Ernesto became an exceptional, gifted child and excelled in any activity he put his hand to. Throughout his life, paranormal activities never ceased to happen to him and actually became stronger as he matured.

Ernesto became very confused about his life and why he was given this “gift.” Christianity couldn’t answer any of his pending questions. He therefore went to find his own path. He studied different cultures who used the Sun and discovered that the Christian Bible did in fact contain truth about a solar culture. Ernesto studied vigorously throughout the night, attempting to break this code for the purpose of inner truth. His bones ached terribly, and his feet began to swell from sitting in the same position for a long time. Ernesto persisted, and he did finally find the answer he was looking for.

Unfortunately, no one would believe the wonderful news he discovered buried in the texts of the New and Old Testaments. Ernesto was viewed by his fellow men and women as a lunatic and false prophet. He was disdained by the same society he grew up in. Although he received resistance from his community, he still persisted, unnerved by their comments. Ernesto believed that the true “Sun God” would reveal himself again as he had when Ernesto was three. Sure enough, the Sun would appear to him in the form of a spirit.

While sleeping next to his wife, Ernesto was approached by a spirit concerning the birth of his third son. The spirit informed Ernesto that the child would be born out of the “word.” The baby’s birth will be mythical since he will be born on the same day as his mother. Ernesto quickly awakened his wife to alert her to the news. Ernesto’s wife, Joanie, could not believe that the dream was really a prophecy. Joanie rubbed her stomach and said, “I believe our next child will be a girl, because I’ve been waiting on this one. I can feel it!” Despite Joanie’s beliefs, she did have a son on the 24th of June, which is her birthday. The child’s birth was normal like any other child’s. His pigmentation was lighter than most African Americans, but that was a common occurrence in Ernesto’s family.

As soon as the new baby was brought home, Ernesto dedicated his new child to the Sun of Righteousness. From that day forward, the child’s life would be directed by the will of “spirit.” Although the names have been slightly altered, the story is true. This is my story and this is how I found the Jamilian University of the Ordained. I was called to this school by unexplainable circumstances that are too difficult to explain because of the limitations of human speech. I am not concerned with how I came into being but more or less how I can further my knowledge about the universe around me. I would rather live in the now than obsess over a divine birth. As most people have come to know, even Jesus (Yeshua) had to learn a thing or two in the so-called “mystery schools” before he could perform miracles. From living on this Earth for such a short time, I have come to find out that we are made up of this divine cosmic stuff. God, for lack of a better word, is in us all. It shines light on all of us, rich or poor, black or white. Of course this is obvious and well-known information. Nothing is new under the Sun, as the saying goes. I look forward to my journey and accept any challenges that await me. With every defeat, there is victory and understanding that emerges from the tears of failing.

I would like to thank the editor of the Community Communiqué for allowing me to publish my thoughts. I would also like to thank all of the readers who took the time to hear the words from my heart. God bless you all.

With the deepest love,

Emanuel Ratliff
(Community member since September 2013)

 “And the third feature we notice about these men and women is that this new power by which they lived was, as Ruysbroeck call it, ‘a spreading light.’ It poured out of them, invading and illuminating other men so that, through them, whole groups or societies were re-born, if only for a time, on to fresh levels of reality, goodness and power. There own intense personal experience was valid not only for themselves. They belonged to that class of natural leaders who are capable of infecting the herd with their own ideals, leading it to new feeding grounds, improving the common level. It is indeed the main social function of the man or women of the Spirit to be such a crowd-compeller in the highest sense; and, as the artist reveals new beauty to his fellow men, to stimulate in their neighbors the latent human capacity for God.” ~Evelyn Underhill

“It is indeed important when we become full of spiritual light, that we share that light with others around us. It is likewise important that we share the divine knowledge that we call information factors found in that light. In short, the path of enlightenment is always the path of a teacher.”

< Read the entire article online at Solar Wind. > 

< Visit and bookmark Harold Boulette’s blog Solar Wind at: http://blog.spiritsun.net/ >

contributed by Harold Boulette

“In a sense one has to pass beyond the ‘symbols’ used in religion to the reality that it represents. The symbols contain and convey something of the reality that they signify. The symbols are therefore to be integrated into one’s spirituality as one moves toward greater realization of the truth, since they are not a ‘false’ reality, merely and attempt t representing the true reality. The symbols of a religion are not to be regarded as the religion itself, but to be transcended in order to discover why the religion exists.” ~Dion A Forster

“Symbols are important in religion and spiritual schools because anyone can understand them. No matter what language people speak, no matter if they are illiterate, they can understand symbols.”

 < Read the entire article online at Solar Wind. >

< Visit and bookmark Harold Boulette’s blog Solar Wind at: http://blog.spiritsun.net/ >

contributed by Harold Boulette

“Fasts and vigils, the study of Scripture, renouncing possessions and everything worldly are not in themselves perfection, as we have said; they are its tools. For perfection is not to be found in them; it is acquired through them. It is useless, therefore,to boast of our fasting, vigils, poverty and reading of Scripture when we have not achieved the love of God and our fellow man. Whoever has achieved love has God within himself and his intellect is always with God.” ~The Philokalia

“Just as some people will treat a national flag as a thing of worship, some people who consider themselves spiritual or religious think they are being holy when they act as if the tools used for spiritual growth are themselves divine. We especially see this in many Christians who treat the Bible as if it is actually God rather than simply a book about God and his prophets. Many Muslims act the same with the Koran, even threatening death to those who deface or destroy a copy of it, a book, as if it were indeed God and therefore of more value that a human life.”

< Read the entire article online at Solar Wind. >

< Visit and bookmark Harold Boulette’s blog Solar Wind at: http://blog.spiritsun.net/ >

contributed by Harold Boulette

1. Awakening
   When you arrive on the physical plane of existence, your soul is in a state that is described as inactive, comatose, egg-like, etc. It needs to be awakened before it can truly function, grow, and guide your life. Sadly, the vast majority of people never bother to do this, either because they don’t believe they have a soul, or they believe that it will awaken on its own without any effort on their part. This simply does not happen. You do have to make an effort to awaken the soul, although you cannot do it on your own. The only one who can truly awaken the soul is God, but he will not do so unless you do your part to prepare for that awakening. If you do follow the practices that only a good spiritual teachers can recommend, then God will send a special energy into the soul to awaken it and make it conscious. This is what is really meant by being reborn.
2. Nourishing
   Once awakened, the soul and spirit need to be nourished and cared for just as the physical body and mind do. The method is different, however, because the nature of the spirit and soul is different than the nature of the material body and the brain-mind. We feed the physical body and brain by consuming animals and/or plants. We feed the spirit and soul with spiritual Light. The feeding of the physical body is not a process that just happens on its own. We need to seek nourishment for it. The same is true of the spirit and soul. We need to seek out the spiritual frequencies of Light that nourish them. Those frequencies are found primarily in the spiritual sun, but they will simply flow through us if we do not attune to them. And this needs to be regularly, not just once or twice a year.
3. Cleansing
   Just as the physical body and mind need to be cleaned periodically, both internally and externally, the soul and spirit need the same. This cleansing of the spirit and soul is done partly on a mental level by visualizing and imagining that negativity and all forms of evil are being cleaned out of us. Sometimes we need to stimulate this process on the physical level by fasting and other forms of self-sacrifice. And when you bathe or shower, tell yourself you are cleansing your mind and spirit as well.
4.   Educating
   You know that your brain/mind needs to be educated, but your body also needs to learn. When you are a baby, your movements are awkward and uncoordinated but after a while they get better as your brain gets better at controlling our movements. Your soul needs to be educated as well, but fortunately if you follow the recommendations for nourishing, you will be educating your soul at the same time because spiritual Light contains embedded information that we call Information Factors. While reading spiritual books is helpful, the most important thing is to take in that spiritual Light with its Information Factors which are never lies and never just opinions, but always truth.
5.  Sharing
   Once you have achieved a certain degree of enlightenment and filled your spirit with the spiritual Light, you must share that Light with others who have not yet learned to get it directly. You are also obligated to teach others so they can grow spiritually as well. If you fail to do this, you will stop growing spiritually.

< Read the article posted online September 14, 2013 at Solar Wind. >

< Visit and bookmark Harold Boulette’s blog Solar Wind at: http://blog.spiritsun.net/ >

contributed by Harold Boulette

Consociate Paul Schmittendorf taking in the sunrise at North Window in Arches National Park, Moab Utah PHTO: Paul Schmittendorf

Academy Consociate Paul Schmittendorf sent us this photo from his trip on the way to Reno to attend the 2013 Convocation. The photo was taken on the morning of Saturday, September 28, 2013 at the North Window in Arches National Park, Moab Utah. Paul told us “needless to say, it was a pretty magical place to see the sun rise.”

For those of you who don’t recognize Paul as the minute human being in the picture above, we are including the close up below to help you recognize him.

Paul Schmittendorf taking in sunrise at Moab (Detail)

< Read the entire article online at Solar Wind. >

< Visit and bookmark Harold Boulette’s blog Solar Wind at: http://blog.spiritsun.net/ >

contributed by Harold Boulette

 “We have already agreed that, if we wish to grasp the real character of spiritual life, we must avoid the temptation to look at it as merely a historic subject. If it is what it claims to be, it is a form of eternal life, as constant, as accessible to us here and now, as in any so-called age of faith: therefore of actual and present importance, or else not at all. This is why I think that the approach to it through philosophy and psychology is so much to be preferred to the approach through pure history.” ~Evelyn Underhill

Of course it is useful to the spiritual student to study the history of spirituality and religion, but that alone is not enough to cause spiritual growth or lead to true enlightenment. If your goal is to become wealthy, just studying the history of wealth or reading the biographies of wealthy people will not make you wealthy. You need to do certain things to become wealthy, not just read about it. You need to practice a great deal to become an Olympic athlete, not just read about the history of the Olympics.

This is even truer with spiritual studies than with other disciplines for the simple reason that only the basic spiritual studies and techniques are ever written into books. The more advanced teachings are not written down, or are hidden in cryptic language that requires knowledge of the interpretation key to understand much like an encrypted file on a modern computer cannot be read unless you have the decryption key that will unscramble it. So much of the advance spiritual training must come verbally from a spiritual teacher who has that knowledge.

 < Read the entire article online at Solar Wind. >

< Visit and bookmark Harold Boulette’s blog Solar Wind at: http://blog.spiritsun.net/ >

contributed by Harold Boulette

 “Samadhi, in the Yoga tradition, is the supreme state of enlightenment, or God realization. Living in samadhi is a choice, but it is a mutually reciprocated choice. When we choose the Divine above all else, the Divine returns the gesture. All the great mystics have demonstrated this level of connectedness, …
I was given a powerful experience of the Divine, almost a revelation. And yet, in the end, I chose not to live full time in Samadhi. There were many reasons for this choice, and the circumstances surrounding it were complex, but ultimately I made the choice because, as I can see in retrospect, I lacked the maturity to handle it. I desired the experience and was granted it, but, in Hindu terms, karmic impressions of previously crystallized ego structures remained to be worked through.” ~Russill Paul

“The supreme state of enlightenment or God realization in the Yoga tradition? But isn’t Yoga an exercise system? No, it isn’t. That is just a small part of what real yoga is and by itself is about as useful and meaningful as a car with one wheel.”

< Read the entire article online at Solar Wind. >

< Visit and bookmark Harold Boulette’s blog Solar Wind at: http://blog.spiritsun.net/ >

contributed by Harold Boulette