“The full mystic consciousness attains to what is, I think, its really characteristic quality. It develops the power of apprehending the Absolute, Pure Being, the utterly Transcendent: or, as its possessor would say, he can experience ‘passive union with God.’ This all-round expansion of consciousness, with its dual power of knowing by communion the temporal and eternal, immanent and transcendent aspects of reality—the life of the All, vivid, flowing and changing, and the changeless, conditionless life of the One—is the peculiar mark, the ultimo sigillo of the great mystic, and must never be forgotten in studying his life and work.
“As the ordinary human is the meeting place between two stages of reality—the sense-world and the world of spiritual life—so the mystic, standing head and shoulders above ordinary people, is again the meeting place between two orders. … On the one hand, he knows, and rests in, the eternal world of Pure Being, the ‘Sea Pacific’ of the Godhead, indubitably present to him in his ecstasies. On the other, he knows—and works in—that ‘stormy sea’ and vital world of becoming which is the expression of its will.” … There, the Divine Unity dwells and calls them.” ~Evelyn Underhill
Full Mystic Consciousness
What Underhill is here calling “full mystic consciousness” is what other spiritual writers have called Christ Consciousness, or Ultimate Consciousness. It is the highest level of consciousness that we can reach. It is the level at which we become one with the All, one with God. It is the Level of complete Gnosis. Few achieve that level while still living on the material plane, but some come close. Those who get close to that level are deservedly called mystics.
Apprehending Pure Being
At the higher levels of consciousness, one can apprehend Pure Being, even if only at that level briefly, which is how it usually happens. By continuing to practice advanced spiritual growth techniques, the mystic reaches higher and higher states of consciousness and stays at those higher levels longer. It is more than just apprehending Pure Being, it is a process of slowly becoming Pure Being. It is the process we must all follow to get into Heaven, for Heaven is a place of Pure Spirit, and only a Pure Being can be there; otherwise, it would no longer be pure.
Knowing the Temporal and Eternal
The advanced mystical adept knows the temporal or material world as well as the spiritual. They are able to function well in both worlds. They understand how things work in the material world, yet choose to emphasize the spiritual, for they know that the physical is always temporary, while the spiritual is eternal. This is as it must be today when the spiritual cannot easily withdraw from the world and live away from the problems of the world. In addition, it is the duty of the spiritual student or mystic to help others free themselves from the traps of the physical world, so they must understand that world better than most other people.
Divine Unity
The Divine Unity found in the world of Pure Being does call to mystics and they answer that call and do their best to be a part of that world. And when the mystic passes out of the physical world and into the spiritual realm, the search for that Divine Unity continues until it is permanently achieved.
The call to seek Divine Unity is sent to all of us, not just the mystics, but few hear it. Many of us sense that there is something more to life, but don’t quite know what it is, so seek it in material pleasures that take us in the wrong direction. Divine Unity and Pure Being can be found only in the spiritual realm and by each of us developing our own spiritual Self.
From the SUN TALK collection by Harold Boulette