Letter Forty-Five “Oneness Does Not Manifest” (conclusion)

“Yes. I’ve been waiting for it to come up. And you’ve been very patient. Go ahead. Restate the question from where your awareness is right now.”

A burst of rain surges down. “All right. You said early on, that ‘Oneness does not manifest’. That shocked me. It sounds controversial and even hopeless in a way—especially, when you think so many new age teachers are preaching the opposite. Some of them are saying we’re about to move into a dimension of Oneness, and leave duality behind altogether. Their hope is that through unity we can solve all the problems of the world. Haven’t you yourself said that we need to see ourselves as one?”

“I’m not contradicting your teachers in essence. Humanity is indeed moving into a realm of connection with pure essence. This is a state of openness to Oneness. Vigilans experience this continuously. But we are not about to abandon the world of duality. In fact, your very understanding of Oneness is based on duality; it is a reflection in the mirror. And duality/Oneness is yet another duality. Oneness, as humans understand it, is a form. It is a representation and symbol for the Absolute.

“The Absolute does not manifest. It never does. It cannot. It is the Projector. Imagine an image of a projector; say in one of your movie theaters, projecting itself onto a screen. This would be theoretically feasible, would it not?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“But even if it did this, it would still be nothing but a projection. It would not be the real source of images. The Projector metaphor we’ve used many times is the Absolute, the indefinable state of formlessness and true Oneness. It can and does project a representation of itself onto the screen of your experience. It projects an image of Oneness. You may interact with it, engage it, be inspired, even awakened by it. But that image still remains only a representation and a metaphor.”

The rain is beginning to slow. Strange, how the rain ending always makes me feel a bit melancholy. The patter of rain is so peaceful, unifying—like a state of Oneness. I don’t want that gentle sound to stop. But it does; and the world of multiplicity abruptly returns.

The last droplets are trickling down the window beside you. You smile softly. “What do you think people mean when they use the word ‘Oneness’?” Then you answer your own question. “I think what they mean is an inner bond of essences, uninterrupted by separate, differentiated desires. They are, in effect, saying that one overarching will dictates the awareness and behavior of all creatures. This is valid, of course, in the formless realm. But I ask you, is this what you truly want in the world of form?

You lean forward and look through the windshield, covered with tiny droplets. Out there are the woods, the bridge and the gray, overcast sky. A light breeze rustles the leaves. You look down at the rippling stream, the rocks and splashes, as if absorbing all the elements into a singular vision.

“Humans also had other views about the matter. John Lennon might have said, ‘Oneness is a concept by which we measure our pain’. It is a concept that mirrors all the hopes and dreams of your species—utopia, nirvana, or universality. But you only know of it by reference to the pain, struggles and separateness of duality existence. You measure it because you don’t have it, not in the physical world. You don’t have it here, because it would not fit.

“I submit to you that Oneness is not what we want in the physical world. We want and need differentiation and diversity, the wide array of perspectives and opinions, the give and take of expression and realization. If we did not have duality, we would have no contrast, no distinction between our consciousness and what we make ourselves conscious of. If Oneness were uninterrupted, we would not be able to move within the stillness. Duality gives us the power to move and explore, to know and embrace the unknown, the great ever-compelling mystery of Life. Duality—and ‘many-ness’—is what makes us alive on this Earth—able to realize and appreciate the underlying Life of Oneness.

“Certainly Oneness, as a reference point and concept, is eternally important to us. Literally, it imports to us the mystery of being connected to Source, the Absolute. It is the bridging form for that. It is the one thing we can say regarding That About Whom Naught May Be Said.

“Conceptual Oneness is our sense of belonging to one species, one nature, one Cosmos. In all the differentiation we observe on this planet, we innately know there must be a context for it all.” You inhale slowly, deeply, as if holding all these concepts inside your breath.

After a long moment, you resume, “We are ever moving toward unity. But we will never achieve it. Not totally. Not here. As your human poet-politician, Vaklav Havel wrote, ‘Search out those who seek the truth. Run away from those who have found it!’ The same may be said of Oneness. It is an ideal, a motivator toward perfection.”

After another respectful silence, you continue. “But if we achieved perfection on Earth, all would be finished—a ‘done deal’. It would be stasis, leaving no room for further development and exploration. If Oneness could manifest on Earth it would rob us of our intimate intercourse with the unknown. We all are in love with the process of exploring mysteries. That is why we come to Earth. That is why we love our dual nature.

“Now, those who preach the movement into a state of Oneness are not misleading you. They are holding the torch high for evolution into awakened consciousness. What they may not realize is that their goal will never be achieved on Earth. But as you know, it’s the journey that counts, not the destination. Yes, come together. Find mutuality, compassion and trust amongst yourselves. Seek ever to build common goodness and equality, based on the underlying Oneness of Source. But do not defeat your ambitions by generating unrealizable expectations. Formlessness cannot be form in your world.

“Look around you at that world. See beyond the strife and conflict, beyond the fear and manipulation. Look at the victory you have all achieved. Look at the unity you have already evolved into, the wholeness your species has. It is all around you.

“Acknowledge the wonders of your own creation. In most of your world today the highways and the skies are safe from pirates, your landscapes are teaming with agricultural abundance, the ideal of democracy is inspiring people everywhere. Sharing and ‘humanitarian’ acts are even quite common among you, in spite of the ego’s contrary tendencies.

“Women and men are freer to express themselves and to re-create themselves than ever before in your history. The feminine archetype is reborn triumphant and rising strong. This force is serene and seductive, interwoven throughout all cultures—even in the most repressive. This feminization is wholeness on the move. Why would you want to stop it in its tracks with sudden Oneness?”

“What a funny thought! But aren’t wholeness and Oneness the same thing?”

“Yes, you’re right. But I refer to their movement, and the principles directing their destiny. To institute Oneness—and halt duality—by divine fiat would force immobility upon the whole. It would shut off the flow of evolution through diversity.

“Conscious Evolution is nevertheless ever mindful of its underlying Oneness. This is the motive force driving the interplay of atoms and molecules, nations and philosophies, species and families. You are in the midst of its creative energy and manifestation. All the great unity movements of your history are important. But not in the way you have conceived. Their importance lies not in their achievements. They typically fail! Their value lies in the motivation within, the ideal that pulls them onward into the unknown. It is indeed the value of realizing there is truly only one being of consciousness, even though that being manifests itself in multiplicity.

“Some would have you feel disappointed at the lack of unity in your politics, your species and nations. I would urge you to see the movement toward unity as a great blessing. Accept that blessing. Do not denigrate it with dismay. Do not despair that you never see it, arm-in-arm across the masses of workers and managers, warriors and pacifists, rich and poor. These are just the elements of the shared, differentiated world you possess, as one. And it is the same in our world. For us, the separative and dominating ego is gone. But the values of diversity, uniqueness and duality-in-Oneness remain.”

Between the parking lot and the water, there is a strip of grass. A small rabbit has appeared there and is nibbling something, looking nervously around. Does it feel the Oneness? If so, why is it afraid?

You follow my gaze. “I sense your question. The rabbit exists within the field of shared instinct. She feels the fear because of that connection. It is necessary to her manifestation. The instinct provides both elements of consciousness for her—the fear of exposure in duality, and the destiny inherent in Source. For animals functioning on pure instinct, there is no separation. It is quite different for the human animal, however.”

“OK. I’m almost finished with my questions about Oneness.”

“I doubt that.” You tilt your head, smiling, and raise an eyebrow.

“So instinctual animals are working with both sides of the equation as one. Humans have it divided. What then is the relationship between Oneness, duality and three-ness, or whatever you call it? You said before, that manifestation comes in threes, right?”

“Yes. Let’s call it ‘triality’. The third aspect of the projected world might also be called ‘relationship’. It is the space within duality, between the polarities. In terms of perception, there is the conscious being, there is the object of consciousness, and then there is the link of awareness between. This or that becomes this and that. Three is an expression of one, shone through the aperture of two.”

“Whoa. You lost me there.” My confusion is abrupt, and yet I immediately sense you are about to wipe it away.

“Unity integrates. Duality divides. Triality re-joins what has been divided. Imagine that Oneness is the Projector; duality is the lens; and triality is the screen. All three are necessary to manifest the image. That is the root of it all—these three functions, or images, move us out into the world of form. That is why imagination and imaging are our instruments of choice for communication. It is closest to the heart of our project, our projection.”

You take my right hand between your two hands. They’re warm to the touch. You look me in the eye, playfully, and direct my gaze down at our three hands. There is an electric glow around them now, radiating out in flowing waves. The waves form petals, like a flower, and then come together in a bubble of light. The globe immediately bursts, and the light dissolves. You laugh happily at your little creation.

“Imagination is the initial impulse of manifestation. The projection is the image appearing, that is, manifesting. Through the sequence of three levels, all the infinity of dimensions is generated. This is why we may sense Oneness while immersed in the world of form—if we know the code. We merely look backward through the lens, and into the mirror.”

“How do we do that?”

“That which manifests as multiplicity reveals its Source in simplicity and singularity. Look at the many to see the one. Look at the space, not the objects. Look within. We are one, because we are many. We are the one Life that is living itself out through trillions upon trillions of forms, over all the eons of time. This is Oneness living through many-ness. That is a key. The projection guarantees the Projector. If you hold this awareness in your heart—not mind—when you look at the diversity, you will see the underlying unity. It cannot be otherwise.

“All that appears to be real in your experience is a necessary illusion—that is, if there is to be any manifestation at all. Take comfort in this. Illusion, on this side of the Veil, guarantees reality. That is why, if we want to have any world to experience, we require the illusion, the projection. And in the end—as well as in the beginning—it is why Oneness cannot manifest.”

I shake my head. “How does this fit with what you’ve said about separateness being the core problem of the ego? It sounds hopeless if Oneness can’t ever manifest. I thought you had gotten over that in your society.”

“The impulse to separate is built into duality. But it can be rendered transparent. Vigilans see through the form and resonate with the formlessness beneath it. At the same time, we also experience the differentiation we need for incarnate life. The human ego used separateness under the influence of the Veil of Forgetfulness. This was a destructive combination in the end. It closed off your deeper vision of reality. Without the Veil, however, in our world, separation is merely a matter of distinguishing; it opens our realization to opportunity, integrity and equality.”

A childish question comes to me. “O, why is this important? Why do we need to know about it?”

“Because Oneness is the vehicle of passage through the portal. To build it and to access it, you will need all the keys and codes of your being, from all the accumulated experience of your times on Earth. This is the time of the great revelation within your being—your personal and species’ Apocalypse. It is your time to move beyond all the previous limitations, time to lift the Veil. And it is time to reveal all the secrets!

“Your species will all move with the flow of the times. But many are entering the Storm with little awareness of who they really are. This will be painful and disorienting for them. What we are doing—the portal builders of your time and mine—is facilitating the passage; we are opening a more benign way through this mutational process. Recall that we spoke of the vesica as a bridge to Oneness. It is the bridging lens of duality, interfacing with Oneness. It is the essential aperture into which we have placed our conscious imagination to reach you in these letters. Likewise, it will be your means to reach us, and indeed to become us in the new universe.”

Copyright ⓒ 2011 Robert Lee Potter