New Thinking for the New Age Part II

New Thinking for the New Age: Part II

Introduction

Since 1989, I’ve been waiting for a spiritual shift of humanity. Now that shift is quickly approaching. Soon people will recognize that the future will not be what they expected. Soon there will be a resignation that society is about to undergo dramatic changes.

The purpose of this book--both Part I and Part II--is to inform the public about that shift. I’m not talking about changes twenty years from now, but before the end of this decade. Many of the topics in Part II, I’ve written about before. But to add emphasis to these topics, I’ve decided to use other authors’ own words, and share their valuable contribution to humanity.

Chapter One: A brief overview of where we are spiritually as a society―how we got here, and where we are going.

Chapter Two: The spiritual philosophy of Krishnamurti.

Chapter Three: Why religion will fade away.

Chapter Four: The spiritual philosophy of Dr. David Hawkins.

Chapter Five: The spiritual philosophy channeled by Neale Donald Walsch.

Chapter Six: An exploration of reincarnation.

Chapter Seven: An exploration of the Indigo Children.

Chapter Eight: An exploration of the Bible Code.

Chapters Nine through Twelve: A look at the formation of Christianity and the implications of Gnosticism.

Chapter Thirteen: An overview of the spirituality of the future.

The focus of my writings is two-fold: first, to prepare people for the coming end, or more accurately, the coming transformation of our current civilization; second, to explore the prospective spirituality of the next civilization. I believe we are on the threshold of dramatic changes, and the outcome of those changes will be a new civilization, based on new beliefs.

My research is directed towards the future: prophecy, earth changes, spiritual philosophy, and metaphysics. My goal is to understand why we are going to change . . . when . . . how . . . and into what. The fact that we are going to change, I believe, is a given. It’s just a matter of when. And time is short.

Chapter One
The New Age

We are living in the end times, meaning the end of our current civilization. Social, political, economic, and religious systems are about to transform. Get ready; nothing will remain in its current form. The degree of change will be incredible.

Institutions that we take for granted soon will no longer exist. Our national government will wither, followed by state and local governments. Next, the mighty corporation--our business bellwether--will fall. Lastly, religions will fall. These institutions will be replaced by a simplified society, which will be the basis of a new civilization.

To understand what will replace our current institutions, we must look at why they will fall. The answer is personal spiritual development. Our spirituality has outgrown our current institutions. We have evolved spiritually to the point where we need true freedom--the ability to make choices without external pressures. Our current institutions are stifling our freedom, with governments and corporations dictating our choices. Government regulations and laws control our behavior, as do corporate and company rules. The average day for an ordinary citizen is dictated by one institution or another.

Without personal freedom, our spiritual development is stymied. This is no longer a tenable situation. We also need to be empowered individually, which personal freedom also provides. Today, the opposite is true. Corporations and governments hold the power. For personal freedom to flourish, individuals must regain their power.

You may ask, “Is spiritual development so important that our institutions must fall?” The answer is yes. Let me explain. In recent decades, spirituality has been advancing on this planet at a dramatic pace, and a small percentage of people have been evolving rapidly. As a result, the vibration of the planet has been increasing. This vibration has reached a level that is now affecting more and more people in a spiritual manner. We are approaching a point where people will require more personal freedom to continue their spiritual evolution. The constriction of our personal freedom is no longer suitable.

Our spiritual state has evolved to the point that society is about to radically change. For instance, we are about to give up our representative democracy. We will abandon it because it is based on conflict. Representative democracy is based on political parties competing with each other. We will recognize quite clearly that institutions based on conflict cannot meet the needs of humanity.

What are these needs? Peace, harmony, cooperation, equality, fairness, and personal freedom. For the first time, we will take these needs seriously. Our current institutions will fall because we will decide to create a new civilization based on these needs. The focal point will be personal freedom that empowers the individual. This will lead to a complete transformation of our civilization.

Where does spirituality fit into the new civilization? It becomes individualized. Each person assumes his or her own spirituality. Organized religions will steadily become irrelevant as more and more people become unaffiliated. Instead of a society based on the interpretation of God’s will and God’s morality, we will use our own ideas of what constitutes the needs of humanity. Religious dogma will become marginalized.

Societal Changes

Initially, the changes will be omens of things to come, such as large natural disasters, rising oil prices, new diseases, a weakening dollar. When the economy collapses and the stock markets crash, people will recognize the frailty of our institutions. When the United States government declares bankruptcy, people will recognize that society will never be the same. That recognition will put into motion a reformulation of society, one based on a more harmonic foundation.

Everything about our way of life will be rethought. We will decide that. to make a lasting civilization, major changes will be required. The concepts of capitalism, materialism, and individual freedom will be widely debated.

When the bankruptcy of America occurs, the world will already have been embroiled in economic decline for several years. Many people will already have begun living in small groups, living off the land, and becoming self-sufficient. These initial groups will have little need for governments or corporations. Such groups will heartily accept the concept of individual freedom. They will want to be left alone and free. In many respects, they will be the examples that many follow.

Before and After

I’ve described why our current institutions will fall, so that we may understand what will replace them. One reason I gave was the need for personal freedom. Another reason will be spiritual truth becoming widely known (Part I).

What is spiritual truth? Simply put: We are one. There is no single soul. There is only one soul, one body of God, of which we are all a part. Everything and everyone is part of the one thing that is God. Life is an integrated whole that is literally connected by consciousness. Every piece, every aspect of life, is integrated and connected. Thus, to perceive ourselves as separate is to perceive an illusion. We are not separate from each other. We are connected. Even scientists are now recognizing this fact. See several examples in chapter three.

The truth that we are all connected exposes the fallacy upon which our current global society has been based. The belief in separation created the division and conflict that exist today. By perceiving that God is separate from us, we automatically believe that God requires something from us, such as obedience. How we have interpreted obedience has been the grand drama of the world’s religions--all of which are based on the fallacy of separation.

False Beliefs

The concept of achievement is closely related to obedience to God. The need for achievement comes from believing that God requires something from us--which is the basis for our materialistic society. Achievements and possessions prove our worthiness. Is it any coincidence that we honor achievers and celebrities? Do we not equate our highest achievers with God?

Another false belief is the concept of morality (discussed in detail in Part I). If life is truly an integrated whole, then all is perfection. If life is perfection, then there is no right or wrong. Individuals will always choose what they think is right, given their model of the world. People choose what they think is right for them at any given moment. Only our own judgment of another’s behavior deems something wrong. In other words, nothing has meaning . . . except the meaning we give it.

We are not only part of the integrated whole, we are literally God . . . and eternal. As everyone on the planet is a manifestation of God and a divine being, the concept of morality will be re-thought. We will begin taking Jesus seriously and stop judging others.

This concept of oneness will change everything. For instance, racism and other forms of discrimination will no longer make sense to us. We will literally stop doing it. We will see how such false beliefs have created our social problems and how new beliefs will solve them. Once we change our false beliefs, our major social problems--such as racism, war, discrimination, and inequality--will be solved. Too utopian? Stand back and watch. It’s coming.

A third false belief is the concept of death. Currently most people are afraid of their own death. This fear creates intense issues about death and dying. The whole concept of death evokes negativity. For instance, when a life is cut short by criminal behavior, there is an outcry for justice. Forgiveness is usually not even a consideration. We focus on retribution. Instead of celebrating eternal life, we focus on the illusion that we live only one lifetime.

Thankfully, many people are evolving past the concept of death. Millions of people are beginning to accept their own divinity and eternalness. We are losing our fear of death and beginning to recognize ourselves as eternal souls. However, the fear of death is one more factor that is stressing society and affecting our institutions. These false beliefs are leading to a transformation--because false beliefs create disharmony and destabilize society.

Earth Changes

Another reason for the fall of our institutions will be earth changes--natural disasters. Major earth changes have only begun, with the 2004 Florida hurricanes and the 2004 Indonesian tsunami as signs of things to come. It is as if the planet itself hears our cries for change.

One change we have brought upon ourselves is global warming. The ice caps are melting at a frenetic pace and weather changes are becoming more apparent. Soon, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions will impact society. I expect earthquakes in California to have a very negative impact. Earth changes will spur social change.

Modern day prophet Gordon Michael Scallion has predicted a global earth shift whereby the continents will reform . . . as they have before. The result will be a new geography, with California surviving as a series of small islands. The future map of the world was also foreseen by Nostradamus and, more recently, by Lori Toye, known for her “I AM AMERICA” future maps. This earth shift is predicted to occur in a series of steps between 2012 and 2029. The first step will be the inundation of the tip of Florida. Next a small section of southern California will be taken by the sea. It will soon be time for people to pack their bags and move to a safer area.

Another looming natural disaster is a meteor striking the earth. In fact, Lori Toye predicts a meteor strike in Nevada, which sets in motion the huge earth changes that will realign the continents. She is one of many who foresee coming meteor strikes. Of all the threats to our way of life, meteors may pose the most dangerous risk.

Energy Crisis

I think an energy crisis is inevitable because of Peak Oil. We are nearing the moment in history where oil production begins to decline. Once this occurs, energy prices will soar and there will be shortages. There are a variety of possible alternative to oil, but none of them are as efficient, especially as a transportation fuel. Currently we use 550 million gallons a day of transportation fuel in the United States. Ninety-five percent of this fuel comes from oil. Once oil begins to decline we are going to have a big problem: an energy crisis that may last a generation.

Shortages of natural gas and electricity are also going to be a problem, but not nearly as limiting as transportation fuel. Without cheap transportation fuel the airline and automotive industries will wither. Air travel will eventually be limited to the affluent. Automotive travel will be expensive and curtailed significantly.

Disease

The last reason for the fall of our institutions will be disease. SARS, West Nile, the Bird Flu, and AIDs are only the beginning. With the coming wave of new diseases, our current medical institutions will prove inept. This will lead to huge advances in alternative healing and a turning away from the medical establishment. In fact, alternative healing centers that provide Reiki (energy healing through the hands) and other forms of spiritual healing will spread across the country.

Past Influences

Before I describe what will replace our existing institutions, here is a brief overview of how we got to this point:

From the early days after Jesus’ life until the thirteenth century, Gnostics studied metaphysical doctrines from the Essenes, ancient scriptures of Atlantis and Egypt, and the Gnostic Gospels of the apostles. This led to the Cathars, Knights Templar, and other early Gnostic groups--all of whom were ostracized for their heretical views and eventually were eliminated by the Catholic Church. For example, the Holy
Inquisition was devised to remove them as influences in society, and many were burned at the stake. From the thirteenth century until the advent of spiritualism in the nineteenth century, metaphysical spirituality was relegated to a select few who kept the Gnostic beliefs alive.

Spiritualism in the late 1800s led to the beginning of the modern day New Age movement. As the founder of the Theosophical Society in 1875, Madam Blavatsky could be considered the mother of the New Age. She published The Secret Doctrine in 1888, one of the first channeled books, and it is still read widely today.
Her organization resulted from spiritualism--a mixture of Eastern religions and Western mysticism. Much of the Western mysticism knowledge came from channeling. Madam Blavatsky and many others would go into a trance and channel spiritual teachers from the spiritual planes. Master teachers such as Saint Germain, Kuthumi, Sandanda and Djwhal Khul would share their metaphysical spiritual knowledge. This form of spiritual communication continues to this day, and is considered by many to provide the highest level of spiritual teachings.

In the early twentieth century, Annie Besant and Charles Leadbeater carried on Madam Blavatsky’s vision and expanded Theosophy throughout the world. Annie Besant lectured in America, and Theosophy became the first New Age movement.
During that time, Krishnamurti was groomed by Charles Leadbeater to be the new World Teacher. Krishnamurti’s presence added legitimacy to the Theosophical Society, which expanded worldwide and still exists today. In chapter two, I expound on Krishnamurti’s life and spiritual philosophy.

Rudolf Steiner left the Theosophical Society in the 1920s and started the Anthroposophical Society. Anthroposophy was the term Steiner used to encompass his own metaphysical spiritual philosophy. He defined it as a path of knowledge that guides the spiritual in the human being to the spiritual in the universe. Steiner was a Gnostic and his philosophy focused on the spiritual connection of the soul to a higher consciousness. Much of his philosophy is taken for granted today by New Agers. For instance, he espoused reincarnation, that intuition is a spiritual connection to the soul, that individuals can only find God through themselves, and that the physical and the spiritual are two distinct realities.
All of these have become common topics in New Age material.

Steiner wrote dozens of books, including Philosophy of Freedom in 1894 and Mysticism and Modern Thought in 1901. His writings have impacted millions, and he is considered one of the fathers of the New Age movement. The Anthroposophical Society started the Waldorf schools, which today encompass 800 schools worldwide and 100 in North America. Like Krishnamurti, Steiner’s influence is stronger today than during his lifetime.

Florence Scovel Shinn, who wrote The Game of Life in the 1920s, was another metaphysical writer who paved the way. Her books are still bestsellers to this day. She popularized metaphysical ideas that today are beginning to take hold, such as: belief creates reality, how karma works (the natural law of cause and effect), and how an unseen spiritual force impacts our lives (the law of nonresistance). She was one of the first self-help writers, whose metaphysical-based writing taught hundreds of thousands how to find prosperity, faith, and love.

The Great Depression and World War II slowed the New Age movement. There were no new great metaphysical writers at that time (although Edgar Cayce’s life work of over 10,000 trance readings was being recorded; he died in 1945). The Theosophy movement, the only worldwide New Age movement, saw its membership decline substantially after Krishnamurti left the group in 1929.

In the early 1960s, with the embers of modern metaphysics smoldering, the fire roared back to life. Jane Roberts released a series of channeled books by a discarnate soul named Seth. These revolutionary books revealed knowledge about consciousness that was previously unknown to the public. For those old souls who resonated with the Seth material in the 1960s, it was life changing.

The depth of this new metaphysical knowledge placed many people on a new spiritual path. As modern metaphysics became more tangible for hundreds of thousands of Americans, Gnostic beliefs were revived after a nearly 700-year hiatus. The Seth material, along with the rise of Eastern religions in the West, created a huge expansion in the New Age movement.

The 1960s was also the time when the Human Development Movement originated in the United States. At first, it was an academia discourse on developing human potential. However, the focus soon turned to a political agenda of alleviating chronic poverty and living conditions throughout the world. In 1990, the Human Development Movement was commissioned by the United Nations Development Program with the formation of The Human Development Report. Today they release Human Development Reports that focus on the needs of humanity throughout the world. This group is controversial, as they strive for gender equity, healthy living conditions, and political freedom for people across the globe. This humane focus could also be considered part of the New Age movement.

The 1970s and 1980s saw the slow, steady growth of modern metaphysical spirituality. Then on August 16, 1987, the Harmonic Convergence occurred and the field of modern metaphysics blossomed. A call went out by Jose Arguelles, author of Mayan Factor, that this date could be the beginning of a new era of peace--if it would be taken seriously. It was a call to arms to the New Age movement. He requested that 26,000 people gather at sacred sites around the world and meditate for peace. This event had a profound effect on those who took part and on the New Age community in general. It seems like everyone I talk to can point to 1987-89 as the years when metaphysical spirituality became more prevalent in their lives.

Today, metaphysical thought is a ubiquitous part of American culture. Alternative healing is now commonplace. Teachers such as Deepak Chopra, James Twyman, Gary Zukav, and Marianne Williamson are household names from their television appearances. Movies with metaphysical themes, such as Dragonfly with Kevin Costner, and Ghost with Demi Moore, have touched the hearts and minds of millions.

This subtle movement is having a huge impact on all of humanity. The public has generally accepted the New Age movement, as evidenced by the popularity of Crossing Over, a television show with psychic medium John Edward, and the plethora of metaphysical book titles in the New Age section at major booksellers, as well as the huge increase in alternative healing modalities.

Conscious people--those who know they are a soul and not their body--are aware of the oneness of all humanity. From this awareness, their vibration (everyone is vibrating at a certain frequency) has increased. One of the effects of this heightened consciousness is the resilience against rampant diseases. Thus, New Agers will not be getting sick from these new diseases, and they will be respected for their lifestyles and spirituality.

I’ve always felt that healing and health would be the doorway for the New Age movement. When people start getting sick from new diseases, the solutions will come from alternative healing. Most of these healers will also be known for their metaphysical spirituality. From this first step, it will only be a matter of time before metaphysical spirituality will blossom throughout the world.

Metaphysical spirituality as a way of life is really quite simple: It is the belief that we are all one and, consequently, all God. Divinity itself. Immortal. We believe that physical life is just an experience, a blip at that. This life isn’t Home. This life is an incarnation, one lifetime, spent in a physical body. Our soul incarnates into an illusionary body on an illusionary planet. None of it is real; thus, the term metaphysics--the study of reality beyond the physical. The physical that we perceive as matter is nothing more than an illusion.

If the planet is an illusion and our bodies are an illusion, then what is real? Our soul and the consciousness of All That Is--which are the same thing. Thus, only consciousness is real. If everything is an illusion, why are we even here? To experience, so we can create a grander version of our Selves. We are here to expand our consciousness, thereby adding to the consciousness of All That Is. How we choose to do that is up to each individual. This is not group growth. It is individual growth. That’s why an individual needs personal freedom more than anything else.

The Future

What are we going to create for this New Age? Simplicity and harmony. Our lives today are complex. We are inundated by insurance, college funds, retirement funds, investments, cable, cell phones, computers, ISPs, children, pets, cars, vacations, transportation, sports, shopping, work, health, exercise, technology, ad infinitum. The list only seems to grow and complicate our lives further.

That is why we will choose simplicity and harmony. It will start with the break up of the United States. According to modern day prophet Sean David Morton, Texas will be the first to secede--with the intention of leading themselves out of economic decline. The result will be revolutionary changes that no one has yet foreseen.

After Texas, the rest of the states will follow. Many will join together to form small countries. The federal government and the United States will be no more. In its place will be something called the North American Union, which will consist of the newly independent countries. According to Morton, this will begin to manifest before the end of this decade. I agree, although other prophets expect the United States to remain intact.

Because the future is difficult to predict, here is another possible scenario: The federal government could last longer, and according to Morton, fight one final battle with China in about 2016. This battle will be fought in Colorado, the future home of the federal government. Time will tell. I, for one, hope this battle never happens.

After the states secede, people will change their lifestyles. During the time of secession, the economy will be devastated, with unemployment rates reaching thirty percent in some states. People will be forced to live together. Small communities will form and produce their own food and energy, sharing everything and working together. These self-sufficient communities will produce barter goods, and trade with other communities. This simplified way of life will create a new social order that will allow for spiritual development and personal freedom.

Conclusion

Many people will see this societal collapse negatively and strive to hold on to the old way of life. However, those who have anticipated social and cultural changes will see this experience as positive, and as an opportunity to get away from the conflicts of the past and into harmony.

Visionaries perceive a transition: the birth of a new civilization, one based on love, peace, harmony, equality . . . and personal freedom.

Transitions are not easy, but this one is eagerly pursued by New Agers. As you read the following chapters, you will see why I make this claim.

Chapter Two
Krishnamurti

Annie Besant, Charles Leadbeater, and the Theosophical Society proclaimed that a New Age was imminent at the dawn of the twentieth century. They proclaimed that a world teacher would appear to usher in this grand New Age of spiritual enlightenment.

In 1908, Charles Leadbeater saw Krishnamurti from a distance and was amazed by his profound aura. Leadbeater immediately announced to the Theosophist leaders in Adyar, India, that Krishnamurti was the chosen one, and that a messiah would inhabit his body when the time was right.

Krishnamurti was thirteen in 1908 and a poor student. Leadbeater’s friends thought Krishnamurti was dimwitted and an impractical choice. However, Leadbeater immediately began teaching Krishnamurti the metaphysical spirituality professed by the Theosophists. Within two years, Krishnamurti advanced to the point where he was recognized by the Theosophists as the coming world teacher.

In December 1910, Krishnmurti’s first writing, At the Feet of the Master, was released and he spoke to 1,200 Theosophist delegates in Adyar. Shortly after, he was announced to the world press as the coming world teacher promised by Annie Besant. From then until 1929, as he gave lectures to the Theosophists and traveled the world, his stature grew.

However, Krishnamurti was never proclaimed the world teacher--because as he matured in the 1920s, his message became more and more anti-Theosophy. He had developed his own spiritual philosophy. In 1929, he broke from the organization. With a speech at a Theosophy convention, he declared that truth can’t be found within any organization and that organizations are nothing more than cages that prevent truth. Krishnamurti went on to say that truth cannot be imposed on others but must be found within each individual. His spiritual philosophy focused on a pathless journey: not following any system, religion, or belief. He taught that individuals must find truth for themselves.

Krishnamurti left Theosophy, and the opportunity to be a worldwide spiritual figure, to teach on his own. Ironically, he created his own semblance of an organization, albeit without members. He founded and supported several schools and created a publishing empire from his works. He made Ojai, California, his home; the Krishnamurti Foundation still exists there today and publishes his bestselling books. He published more than fifty books and lectured to thousands of people around the world, until 1986, when he died at the age of ninety.

Krishnamurti was ahead of his time. His philosophy is for us today. He indeed was a world teacher and brought a beautiful spiritual message. I wasn’t exposed to Krishnamurti until after I had already accepted his basic premise myself: that organizations trap us from Truth. So when I read that Krishnamurti was teaching this in the 1920s, I was intrigued. Who was this man, so ahead of his time? Few people of his own era knew his name. During his life, Krishnamurti was quoted as saying no one understood his teachings. But until the day he died, he never lost his passion for being the world teacher he knew he was and he never doubted that he was right.

Krishnamurti wanted people to question everything, to never accept any idea or belief just because someone else did. He wanted individuals to decide for themselves what they believed; not for a parent, priest, or society to tell them what is truth. Krishnamurti pushed this concept even further and proclaimed that beliefs literally block truth. He said we should approach each moment with a clear mind, void of any beliefs. He argued that our experiences create beliefs and positions that lock us into conditioned responses. He said that to live by truth we have to free ourselves from our conditioned responses. This is a lofty objective.

Krishnamurti said we are tied to our pasts, which blind us from truth. And that if we approach each moment with a clear mind (what he called a “quiet mind”), we are then free to recognize truth. By truth, Krishnamurti meant enlightenment: the awareness that we are part of the oneness we call God. For, when we are aware that we are one, we naturally love each other and live in harmony, compassion, understanding, and gentleness.

Krishnamurti said the ego’s pursuit of identity relies on the past as a means of validation. In other words, the past keeps our ego-identity alive and becomes our security blanket. Instead of letting go of the past, we hold on with vigor.

According to Krishnamurti, our fixation with the past is our downfall. He said that conflict is the result of a position based on one’s past, and that an argument can result only from our past experience. When we recognize that truth is not in the past, conflict is eliminated and we can approach the next moment with a clear mind; thus, we need to discern that our positions are only an illusion, based on conditioning.

Krishnamurti taught that the brain is limited because it is based on past conditioning. He believed that thought could only cause conflict. And thus that truth, freedom and peace, could never be found using thought.

We are slaves to our conditioning. For instance, the brain is always up to mischief. Habits, addictions, fears, just to name a few, are all products of the brain. If the brain could be silenced for one day, our behaviors would change dramatically.

We think that our personality exists as a separate entity. In fact, our personality has been created by conditioning. It is an illusion. It does not exist apart from something much bigger. All of our problems stem from our fixation on our personality and our perceived separation from everything else. Our attachment to this separation creates a division between the observer and the observed. This, according to Krishnamurti, is the source of all misery.

In essence, Krishnamurti is telling us that if we want true happiness, true freedom, we have to know God. Not an easy achievement. For, how do you observe without seeing a division? According to Krishnamurti, you have to come to the realization that thought can only lead to conflict and disorder. If this is realized, you will live with a silent mind and with the awareness that the observer is the observed. This awareness of oneness is enlightenment.

I submit that as more people recognize the oneness of life, conflict will diminish and more people will understand what Krishnamurti taught. People will begin to live by truth and the past will lose its influence. This will have a huge impact on how we live. For one thing, we will be gentler with each other and more compassionate. Love and peace will flourish on a massive scale.

How can this happen? For one thing, we will stop voting for political parties. These are organizations and, like Krishnamurti said in 1929, all they do is put us in a cage, locking us into beliefs we don’t really want.

We will also stop affiliating with religions and following other people’s beliefs. To create a civilization based on harmony, love, peace, compassion and understanding, we will find the truth for ourselves. It will happen. It is inevitable.

Today, Krishnamurti is better known than when he lived, and many people think his ideas are worthy of being revered as dogma. He would recoil at this premise. The last thing he wanted was for people to accept his beliefs as their own without thinking for themselves. In fact, the concept of having beliefs was anathema to him. Leading ourselves--without any outside influence--was the focal point of his philosophy.

Freedom

Krishnamurti believed organizations define for us what to believe, and that by joining an organization we give up our ability to think for ourselves. A good example is political organizations. When we identify with a political party, we inevitably accept their beliefs. I’ve always felt it’s easy to be a Republican because they believe so strongly in many things: small government, low taxes, business-friendly laws, patriotism, nationalism, patriarchal dominance, against abortion, gun rights, and a strong military. Likewise, they generally believe strongly against the opposite issues, so for most Republicans (to a large degree) issues are black-and-white.

Generally, Democrats are not as single-minded, although they too exhibit the quality of accepting beliefs. With both dominant parties warring over beliefs, how can that be a positive development for humankind? All it does is reverberate conflict throughout society. But the most negative side-effect of conflict-oriented politics is a loss of personal freedom. Organizations control beliefs, which inevitably controls freedom. We literally give our freedom away to organizations. Our allegiance allows them to tell us what to do and how to live.

We have outgrown conflict-oriented politics. Humankind has evolved to the point where we need to be truly free. It is time for individuals to make their own choices . . . without being influenced by organizations. This is all about personal development on a spiritual level. No longer are organizations more important than the individual. Representative Democracy is dead. We have outgrown it.
About freedom, Krishnamurti wrote:

It is man’s pretense that because he has choice he is free. Freedom is pure observation without direction, without fear of punishment and reward. Freedom is without motive; freedom is not at the end of the evolution of man, but lies in the first step of his existence. In observation one begins to discover the lack of freedom. Freedom is found in the choiceless awareness of our daily existence.

In essence, Krishnamurti stated that freedom can be found only when our choices are not selected for us. He called this a “choiceless” existence, in which society has very little, if any, influence on us. He further stated that we must be free of authority and stand alone in our decision-making. He believed observation is the key to enlightenment and anything that impedes observation impedes freedom. He believed that any system, or organization, impedes us from free observation; that only in being “choiceless” is there the possibility of true freedom. He said our motives for our own choices must not be impinged upon a system. If a system is directing our choices, we are not free; the very conditioning by the system limits and restricts our freedom.

Although the people of Krishnamurti’s time discounted his ideas on freedom as philosophical nonsense, today such thoughts are beginning to ring true. More and more people are realizing that freedom is restricted by government and corporations. Many today recognize that how we live is more and more controlled. Instead of being able to choose freely what to do at any moment--what Krishnamurti meant by choiceless--our choices are dictated to us.

It is ironic that, in a country that claims to be the bastion of freedom to the world, our way of life is about to implode because of a lack of personal freedom. We are evolving to the point where we will no longer desire a national government. Our aspiration for personal freedom will change everything.

Beliefs

Another part of Krishnamurti’s philosophy that is relevant today is how he perceived beliefs. He taught that beliefs literally separate us and create conflict. All we need to do is look at the antagonism between religions to see the truth in this teaching.

Krishnamurti said the solution to conflict was to be free of beliefs. Being free of beliefs will lead to the recognition of truth and create harmony in our lives. However, is it even possible to be free of beliefs? I can’t imagine not believing that I am one with God. Perhaps this is not a belief but a knowing. Even Krishnamurti spoke of his oneness with everything.

Krishnamurti believed it is impossible for everyone to believe the same thing. Thus, our only recourse is to be free of beliefs. I disagree. I do not believe it is possible to be free of beliefs.

Where I think we are headed as a people is keeping our beliefs to ourselves; and I believe we will be free of group beliefs. We will have a secular civilization based on the needs of humanity. Spirituality and beliefs will be relegated to the individual.

This may appear to be utopian and too dramatic to occur in the near future.
However, I submit that we will recognize the only way to create harmony is by eliminating what creates conflict. First, national governments. Then corporations. Then religions. When religions begin to fade, we will realize that spirituality needs to be individual-based.

We will soon realize that religious beliefs have no place in the organization of society. Instead, everything will be based on humanity’s needs: freedom, compassion, peace, equality, fairness. These are not religious beliefs, these are ideas, and they can be implemented without trying to interpret God’s will. We don’t need religions to interpret God for us. Thus, at the societal level, we will be humanists and secular.

Humanity

I believe that the transformation of our global civilization is at hand, that it is time to change the mess we have created. Society today does not exist for the individual. It no longer serves the needs of all humanity, individuals are exploited.

This is no longer tenable. We have evolved to the point where individuals require spiritual freedom. People can no longer be denied their rightful place as the focus of society.

Krishnamurti lectured extensively about why civilization is not serving the needs of humanity. He concluded that conflict was one of the major culprits, and that we need to find a means to resolve conflict. However, today civilization has accepted conflict as a way of life. We need look no further than education. Instead of attempting to find harmony based on everyone’s needs, we compete. When children begin school, they are forced to compete with one another. This is actually seen as healthy. The result is greedy adults who seek prestige and achievement in endless competition. No wonder the world is violent and aggressive.

Fear

Fear was one of Krishnamurti’s most spiritual topics. Fear is a spiritual concept because it is the opposite of love. Many people believe there are really only two thoughts: love and fear. Krishnamurti taught that fear is a product of our thoughts. In other words, fear does not have to exist. It is the result of thinking.

Fear is an attitude and can only exist if we create it. Also, fear can only exist if our mind fixates on the past or future. Fear cannot exist in the now. Fear exists only from expectation. The next time you are fearful, stop and ask yourself, are you creating your fear?

Most of the time we don’t recognize when we are afraid. For instance, when we are aggressive, angry, even ambitious, we are often afraid. Thus, we accumulate out of fear. We seek security out of fear. Many people literally live in fear and make every decision out of fear.

Krishnamurti said fear is always about losing something: our freedom, our family, or our possessions. And from fear comes anger. This is why we get angry when we are robbed or lose something we value. What are we afraid of that leads us to anger? It’s simple. We’re afraid that we are on our own--alone--and that no one is watching out for us.

Krishnamurti taught that fear does not lead to harmony or happiness. In fact, the very existence of fear reveals a lack of harmony. Fear leads to anger and violence and is the antithesis of peace. Conversely, he taught that without fear there is peace. Thus, the solution for peace is the elimination of fear, which creates peace by eliminating negative behaviors, such as crime, violence, and aggression. Small communities in the future will prove this to be correct. It may not be utopia, but a higher degree of peace and harmony of which we have only dreamed.

As more and more people recognize the validity of metaphysical concepts, fear will lessen, and negativity on the planet will diminish. We are approaching a time when war will no longer be considered an option and peace will emerge.

As fear lessens in each population, countries will lose their aggression. As fear lessens, love will increase and proliferate. That time is quickly approaching.

Shortcomings

Although Krishnamurti’s philosophy was beautifully elegant, it was not complete and was full of contradictions. He gave us ideas to ponder, but he was not a messiah with all of the answers. Krishnamurti himself was a contradiction. He claimed that he was enlightened, but he rarely talked of God. He focused on topics such as virtue, truth, mind, understanding, freedom, peace, creativity, happiness, fear, belief, confusion, conflict, relationships, emotion, and world problems. He focused on the here and now and constantly talked about “what is.” He did not discuss spiritual matters such as reincarnation or spirit guides. In fact, he spoke negatively about spirit guides, and his lectures rarely sounded like spiritual treatises.

Krishnamurti, like all of us, had only part of the answer. In my opinion, he was missing a spiritual ingredient. And that is why, in his personal life, he constantly upset the people around him with his vanity and callousness. When he was not teaching, he was not a gentle man and could be obnoxious. He was nothing like Jesus, who resonated love. In fact, Krishnamurti rebelled against thoughts of love and feelings of affection. He was adamant that love is not a product of thought, and this philosophy constantly caused him to have divisive relationships throughout his life. He invariably drove a wedge through practically every close relationship he had. Only Annie Besant seemed to avoid this calamity; I think this was because she was his surrogate mother, after his real mother died when he was a child.

I believe Krishnamurti contradicted his elegant philosophy in order to show the world that his teachings were not worthy of becoming a religion. In fact, Krishnamurti demanded that people question what they believe and never stop questioning. His favorite form of teaching was dialoguing with individuals, pressing each other back and forth, though he always narrowed the conversation to his own point of view. He truly believed in his philosophy and never questioned whether he could be wrong. In effect, his truculence had the effect of making his philosophy into a dogma. Thus, he popularized the one thing he taught against.

Krishnamurti denied the human side of spirituality: ego and emotions. However, as humans, we crave emotional contact; and the means for emotional contact is our personality, or ego. Our past experiences create our personality and emotional relationships. Krishnamurti said the ego is not real, so forget the past. He wanted us to live each moment anew, with an “empty mind,” clear of thoughts, including past emotional relationships.

In some respects, Krishnamurti was teaching us how to be mystics. To a mystic, everything is one presence and the material world has little validity. Thus, to a mystic, love is not a feeling, but is who we are. For the rest of us unenlightened people, love indeed is a powerful feeling of connection, whether with a family member, a friend, or a pet.

I believe Krishnamurti missed the key of life, which is sharing love with others. He always had trouble in his personal life, and love is lacking in his philosophy. Jesus showed us, by example, how important it is to love all with whom we interact. In this, Krishnamurti failed in his own life.

Nevertheless, he was definitely one of the greatest spiritual philosophers of the twentieth century and truly one of the greatest thinkers who ever lived. His ideas will impact generations to come and will be influential in the coming New Age.

Chapter Three
The End of Religion

To create a new world, we have to change our beliefs. Since religions are the purveyors of belief, they have to go. This is the only course that can lead to peace on earth and the attainment of the humane goals toward which we aspire: peace, harmony, equality, compassion, cooperation, fairness, and personal freedom.

Religions are based on group belief: a set of doctrines that a group accepts. This inevitably creates friction and conflict, where no two groups can agree. There is always a subtle undertow of conflict between religions, and there can never be harmony.

Religion is pervasive throughout this planet, yet peace eludes us. The answer is not more religion. Religion has not given us peace. Quite the opposite is true. War in the name of God has always been a rallying cry. The biggest threat to peace today--terrorism--is the result of religion.

Religion has not served humanity because the core message of most religions is false: that we are separate from God. This core message has created religions based on a fallacy. For instance, most religions perceive God as a being who judges our behavior. This has led to religious doctrines that dictate how we should live.

Judaism

Judaism encompasses only fifteen million people worldwide, yet this small group impacts most of civilization. The Old Testament from the Hebrew Bible is even recognized by the world’s two billion Christians. Thus, many ethical beliefs held by Jews, such as the Ten Commandments, are also held by Christians.

The core belief of Jews is that God is a separate being from humans and demands a moral life. Like other religions, Jews have separated themselves from society by their doctrines. The Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament) dictates the behavior of Jews and is considered the word of God given to Moses by divine inspiration. In addition to the Torah, the Talmud (post-Biblical commentaries on the Torah) and Midrash (ongoing commentary on Jewish scriptures) further codify how Jews should live a moral life in honor of God. There is a degree of choice. But by and large, the choices are limited.

The Jewish people have integrated their religion with their identity. This has tended to isolate them from other religions and cultures. This is a major reason for the numerous historical pogroms of genocide against the Jews. The Torah has 613 commandments. These numerous do’s and don’ts have created a cultural heritage that distinguishes Jews. It doesn’t matter which form of Judaism a Jew prefers; their cultural heritage is invariably a part of their lifestyle. Thus, being a Jew is as much an ethnic trait as a religious trait.

Jewish cultural conformity to their proud heritage plays a large role in Jewish life. Jews feel a strong unity with one another, which tends to isolate them even further from other groups. Also, Jewish spiritual leaders and most Jews believe they are God’s chosen people and that they follow the one true religion.

Islam

Islam came into existence in approximately 610 A.D. when Mohammed began preaching on social justice and equality. As a socialist, he raged against the wealthy elite and the power brokers of his hometown, Mecca, banished him. After moving to Medina, his message gained large acceptance and Islam proliferated.

Mohammed preached for twenty-three years; his sermons are recorded as The Koran. Like Jesus’ words, they were not written down until years after Mohammed’s death.

The core message of Islam is much like Judaism. Muslims believe in one God, Allah, the supreme being. The five pillars of faith focus on honoring Allah: (1) Belief in Allah as the only God. (2) Ritual prayer to Allah five times daily (generally recitations from the Koran). (3) Giving alms to the poor (Mohammed’s admonishment). (4) Fasting during the month of Ramadan (honoring the month in which the Koran was given to Mohammed by Archangel Gabriel). (5) Traveling to Mecca at least once during one’s lifetime (to honor the birthplace of Islam and, most significantly, to receive absolution for sins).

The word Islam means surrendering to the supreme power, Allah. Being a Muslim means acting in such a way as to define Islam. Thus, to be a Muslim, one must surrender to Allah. More specifically, one must honor the five pillars of Islam.

Another central tenet of Islam is Al-Qadar, which is loosely defined as Allah controlling the destiny of our lives, whereby nothing can happen without Allah’s will. For instance, a common saying among Muslims is “all depends upon the divine will of Allah,” or “if Allah wills it.” The interpretation of the Al-Qadar varies among Muslims, but it has a profound affect upon their philosophy of life.

Islam is the ultimate religion of feeling separate from God. Muslims literally put their foreheads to the ground five times a day in a gesture of surrender. Every time they do this, they are confirming a feeling of separation from the supreme being--Allah.

Many Muslims, especially fundamentalist Muslims, also feel separate from other religions. To them, a Jew, Christian, or Buddhist is an infidel who prays to the wrong God. Thus, they have no affinity with people of other religions. In fact, for many of them there is antagonism--which is the root of terrorism.

Mohammed preached living a simple life of the highest virtue. Fundamentalist Muslims believe modernization, materialism, and immorality are sins against God. They believe Mohammed proclaimed a jihad or “holy war” against these sins. This is the impetus for terrorism. To fundamentalist Muslims, fighting against such behavior is a requirement of their faith.

Islam is the most stringent religion when it comes to ethical living. In addition to the five pillars, a Muslim must live a pure and moral life. Those who stray from this requirement are often labeled a mulhid, a derogatory term for a sinner. Thus, there is pressure to adhere to a moral way of life. This is why Muslims are forbidden from many experiences Western citizens take for granted. In many Islamic countries, the expansion of technology and modernity has impinged upon the Muslim way of life.
Many fundamentalists view this change as a threat to their religion. With 1.2 billion Muslims throughout the world, the rise of terrorism was inevitable. From their viewpoint, they are defending their religion and way of life.

Stopping terrorism by hunting down all of the extremists won’t work. There are simply too many of them. The only answer for peace is to end religion. This may seem improbable, but the world is going to transform. Instead of perceiving separation from each other, we will see oneness. There will be a spiritual awakening. We will love each other too much to consider war as an option for settling our differences.

Most of us in the West can identify with Judaism, Christianity, even Islam. However, the religions of the east--Hinduism (India), Buddhism (India), Daoism (China), and Shintoism (Japan)--appear distant and ambiguous to most of us. These religions, however, are less divisive and dogmatic than those of the West. Moreover, they offer a more direct path to the Divine. Many of the great spiritual teachers (too numerous to mention) have come from India.

Buddhism

Of the Eastern Religions, Buddhism has had the most impact in the West. The Dalai Lama of Tibet is the spiritual leader of Buddhists. The current Dalai Lama regularly travels to the United States and has written several bestselling books, including The Art of Happiness. His popularity is the direct result of the expansion of the modern New Age movement.

Buddha was an enlightened being, which is the goal of everyone on a spiritual path. Whereas Jesus spoke of the kingdom of God and living a moral life, Buddha spoke of how to attain enlightenment. Buddha was born into a royal family as Siddhartha Gautama in 563 B.C. and was heir to the throne. At the age of twenty-nine, he left his wife and family for a spiritual journey to find enlightenment. He chose renunciation of any comfort or security. He led an ascetic life without possessions, except for the clothes he wore, and practiced an intense ritual of meditation. Six years later, while meditating under a Bodhi tree in Bodhgaya (Northeast India) he came to several realizations, which he called the basic truths of human life. He taught these truths during the last forty-five years of his life.

The core teaching of Buddhism is the “middle way,” meaning that renunciation is one extreme, wealth and materiality are the other. Although Siddhartha found enlightenment through renunciation, he said it isn’t “the way.” He said the key is to avoid extremes and stay in the middle: achieve equilibrium. We can see his wisdom today, liberals of the political far left and conservatives of the political far right only lead us astray.

I can understand Buddha’s wisdom for everyday life. Instead of being an extremist, such as a hermit, he recommended living a well rounded life of many different experiences. He did not recommend joining a monastery. He taught that people should live and have relationships, while avoiding becoming unbalanced.

Most Buddhists do not live in monasteries. Those who do are attempting to find enlightenment in the same manner as the Buddha. Some monks do find enlightenment, but they are rare.

Buddhists believe in reincarnation. For instance, they believe the Dalai Lama is the reincarnation of a previous Tibetan Buddhist. Buddha himself was considered to be the result of many lives spent refining his virtue. He taught that everyone is on a “wheel of life.” The foundation for this metaphorical wheel is reincarnation, or many lives required for enlightenment. Everyone has their own journey and must find the hidden truths to exit the wheel. Thus, there is not a doctrine for how to be Buddhist. Buddha said that if a doctrine existed, it would only distract people from their goal.

Buddha also redefined (spiritualized) the Hindu concepts of karma and dharma. He said our intent creates karma, so we need to have a pure intent. Thus, wanting gain for selfish motives leads to negative karma . . . and more lifetimes of futility.

Buddhism, like the other eastern religions, does not focus on a single all-encompassing God. The eastern religions have many Gods. Buddhism is not so much about salvation--given by God--as about liberation from human suffering. Buddha taught that the final liberation is the cessation of craving. He called this final freedom nirvana.

Buddha taught the Eightfold Noble Path, which aims for balance in life and the elimination of suffering: right effort, right speech, right livelihood, right mindfulness, right intent, right concentration, right view, and right action. Each of these “ways of living” is defined in detail in Buddhist scripture. Buddha literally taught a method for living, as opposed to a method for devotion to God. For this reason, many consider Buddhism to be a philosophy rather than a religion.

Buddhist scripture is vast and has been produced in many languages. Although the Pali Cannon is considered the starting point and includes the essential teachings of Buddha, it is not identified as the bible of Buddhism. Unlike the Koran and the Christian Bible, Buddhism does not rely on a single holy book, nor any sacred scripture. Buddhism relies only on interpretations of Buddha’s teachings.

Buddhism is a combination of wisdom and ethics that lead to a life of equilibrium, thereby not adding negative karma to one’s wheel of life. Since Buddha’s teachings lead to enlightenment (the end of suffering), they are, in essence, a spiritual journey. This “spiritualness” is what has led Buddhism to be called a religion.

While Buddhism does promote a “good” way to live, it also implies that living by the Eightfold Noble Path is the only correct way to live, moreover that God (or their Gods) disapproves of greed and other negative forms of behavior. In the end,
Buddhism is also the result of a belief in a judgmental God . . . and just one more religion telling people how to live. Buddhism, like other religions, includes a part of the truth, but no single religion will ever fully encompass spiritual truth.

Conclusion

We all have created a society that reflects the God we believe in: revengeful, judgmental, and intolerant. Our lives are based on conditional love because that is how we perceive God. We believe that God loves us only when we adhere to religious doctrines; otherwise, we will face the wrath of God’s judgment. This mindset is widespread--and a fallacy--and the result of religion.

Women are still second-class citizens in many nations of the world . . . because of religion. In many Islamic countries, women are literally under the auspices of men. For instance, in Saudi Arabia, women still have very few rights and can’t even travel without a male family member. Fundamentalist Jews still require women to be separated from men during religious services. Catholic priests can only be men, and nuns are perceived as inferior by the church hierarchy. Many Christian women obey their husbands in direct response to scripture. Such deferences have filtered throughout society and created gender discrimination and patriarchal dominance.

Religion is why women do not have equality with men. Women have fought for equality in the wrong places; they should be protesting outside of churches, temples, and synagogues. If true gender equality is ever to occur, the only solution is the elimination of all religions.

Instead of instilling freedom, religions tell us how to behave, what to wear, what to eat, what to say, who to marry, what to enjoy. Religion is at the heart of our lack of personal freedom. God supposedly gave us free will, but religions take it away. Religious leaders even define our enemies during times of war, going so far as to sanctify our side with God’s blessing.

Religions focus on controlling behavior and instilling conformity. This fosters a message of shame and leads to guilt for those who do not comply. Every religion has its own ethics that imposes a mode of behavior. Instead of a message of free will--which God supposedly gave us--it is a message of conformity.

When religions were created (thousands of years ago), our ancestors could not conceive of a God that loves us unconditionally. Instead, they perceived God as a strict, demanding dictator. For example, the biblical Hebrews perceived that God demanded covenants. The most famous is the Ten Commandments. But there were many others: 613 in total. The covenants were perceived as directives from God on how we should live, and one’s abstinence from these directives would result in a reprisal from God. Thus, the formation of a judgmental God. This belief carried over into Christianity and is called the Judeo-Christian ethic. The Church was placed “in charge” of defending and promoting moral virtue, which required condemning sinful behavior.

Today, many of us in the modern New Age movement have come to understand that God is not judgmental. The bestselling book, The Journey of Souls, by Michael Newton, is one of the better confirmations of this philosophy. New Agers realize that we have been released from these old covenants and can choose our own spirituality. Also, new revelations of the twenty-first century have invalidated the world’s religions. (See Chapter Five, “The New Revelations”.)

As a civilization, we need a new spirituality that supports the goals of humanity: peace, harmony, cooperation, equality, fairness, and personal freedom. This new spirituality will not be religion. Today, religion is group-based spirituality, based on doctrine. In the future, spirituality will be individual-based, without the need for hierarchical organizations. Individuals will have their own spirituality, based on their own beliefs. Spirituality will become a personal matter.

Soon religion will begin a descent into obscurity. How will this happen? We will change our beliefs. We will stop believing that we are separate from God. We will recognize the oneness of life . . . and the reality of reincarnation. These will not be new beliefs that will replace our current beliefs. Individuals will know by exposure to metaphysical knowledge and personal experience. Knowing that we are one will have a dramatic effect upon humanity. Religions will falter and wither.

Gary Hardin, author of The Messengers, wrote that angels speak of our imminent acceptance of oneness. This is occurring involuntarily and without human effort. In fact, belief is not even required. The angels say this is occurring because of changes in the mass consciousness and is expected to continue until it eventually reaches critical mass. Soon, we will look at each other and realize our connectedness.

Already, many children are aware of oneness. (See Chapter Seven, “The Indigo Children.”) Some Indigo children can even communicate mentally (telepathically) across vast distances with other Indigo children. They say they can do this because they are “consciously connected.” Telepathy will be a trait for many of us in the future. This kind of change in human consciousness is why religions will lose significance. Religions will no longer be relevant, once enough people feel at-one with God.

People are already leaving religions in large numbers. Fewer and fewer people are attending religious services (especially in Europe). People are recognizing that religion does not solve their problems nor provide true spiritual sustenance. We are recognizing that only by changing our beliefs can we solve our problems--including war, discrimination, racism, violence, crime, and inequity.

We are humans first--not Jewish, Christian, nor Islamic. When we eliminate our feelings of difference, we recognize our oneness. Then we see each other as equals and as incarnate souls. Recognizing others as incarnate souls eliminates divisiveness and acknowledges divinity. This is the new path for humankind: away from religion and toward spiritual awareness.