by Duane Elgin
3. See: Note 20 in Chapter 2, page 208.
4. Tsele Natsok Rangdrol, Erik Pema Kunsang, trans., The Mirror of Mindfulness: The Cycle of the Four Bardos, Boston: Shambhala, 1989, pps. 10-11.
Chapter 7
1. Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, New York: Meridian Book Edition, 1956, p. 30.
2. See Chapter 2 of Elgin, Awakening Earth, New York: William Morrow, 1993.
3. See: http://www-geology.ucdavis.edu/~GEL134/ambrose.pdf.
4. For a more extensive exploration of driving trends, see Elgin, Promise Ahead, op. cit., Chapter 2: “Adversity Trends: Hitting an Evolutionary Wall.”
5. Robert Bly (trans.), op. cit., p. 11.
6. See: Karen Thompson, The Great Transformation, New York: Knopf, 2006.
7. D. H. Lawrence, Apocalypse, 1931.
8. These three stages are explored in depth in Elgin, Awakening Earth, op. cit., Chapters 5, 6, 7.
9. See, for example, Chang, The Buddhist Teaching of Totality, op. cit., p. 39.
10. It is important to differentiate the flow consciousness described here from the far more restricted definition of flow experience described by Mihaly Csikszenthmihalyi in his book, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, New York: Harper & Row, 1990.
Chapter 8
1. Mihail Nimay, Book of Mirdad, Baltimore: Penguin Books, 1971.
2. Quoted in: Stephen Oates, Let the Trumpets Sound: The Life of Martin Luther King, Jr., New York: New American Library, 1982, p. 226.
3. Pitirim Sorokin, The Ways and Power of Love, Chicago: Henry Regnery, 1967 (orig. 1954), p. 71.
4. This description is drawn primarily from: Sorokin, op. cit., p. 67, and Eknath Easwaran, The Compassionate Universe, Petaluma, CA: Nilgiri Press, 1989.
5. Gitanjali Kolanad, Culture Shock!India, Portland, OR: Graphic Arts Center Publishing, 1994, p. 23.
6. Ibid., p. 69.
7. Arnold Toynbee, A Study of History (abridgement of Vol’s I-VI, by D. C. Somerville), New York: Oxford University Press, 1947, p. 198.
Chapter 9
1. Another useful resource for appreciating a sense of the human scale: Go online and look for “powers of ten” videos; they provide a fascinating look into the realms of the very large and the very small relative to the human scale.
2. See Chapter 1 of Elgin, Promise Ahead, op. cit., “Is Humanity Growing Up?”
Index
Note: Page references in italics denote illustrations
Abil-Kheir, Abu-said, poetry of, 106–107
Aborigines (Australian), view of the universe, 77
agape, teachings of Jesus, 106
ages, the axial, 144–147
al-Arabi, Ibn, the Beloved, 106
Al-Ghazali, Islamic theologian, 66–67
aliveness, consciousness, 119
Almaas, A.H., modern day Sufi teacher, 68
American Indians, lore of the three miracles, 19
amoeba, rudimentary consciousness of, 45
animals, elements of human-like consciousness in, 45–46
Arabi, Ibn, thirteenth century Islamic leader, 67
Aristotle, living by the golden mean, 172
atheism, vs. theism, 201
Atman, Hindu cosmic spirit, 68–69
attitude, indifferent or welcoming, 12
Aurobindo, Sri, Hindu philosopher on the substance of the universe, 70
awakening
co-creating our story of, 160–166
compassionate understanding, 127
completeing our journey of, 186
enlightenment, 113
flow consciousness, 153–155
into the living universe, 147–149
oceanic consicousness, 151–153
our collective, 140–142
reflective consciousness, 149–151
society’s journey of, 131
the three major stages of, 149
Awakening Earth (Elgin), 6, 29
awareness
scope of our conscious, 95
self-recognition, 113
Beethoven, Ludwig von, on music, 104
Bergson, Henri, elan vital life force, 79
Berry, Thomas
bearing the universe, 83
communion and community, 1
Bhagavad-Gita, Hindu view of the universe, 69
Bible
references to the creation of the universe, 61–65
the Word, 103
Big Bang, theory of the, 24–25, 27
biophilia, connection between humans and other life forms, 10
black holes
doorway or wormhole into a new universe, 86
reproduction, 53–54
Blackmore, Susan, living in a dead universe, 7–8
Bohm, David
calculating energy in empty space, 38–39
continuous creation, 42
description of matter, 98
theory of non-locality, 36–37
Book of Mirdad (Nimay), 166–167
Born, Max, the living universe theory, 40–41
Brahman, Hindu supreme cosmic spirit, 68
Brahman, “sound body” of OM, 104–105
Bruno, Giordano, philosophical teachings of, 78
Buddhism
clear light, 100–101
core practice of metta (lovingkindness), 108
encouraging a lifestyle of simplicity, 172
existence of a soul, 215
flow of life force within us, 126
the Golden Rule of, 145
interdependent co-arising and co-origination, 71–72
Japanese practice of, 72–73
self recognition, 111
unbounded love, 107–108
view of the universe, 71–73
Campbell, Joseph
Duane Elgin, et al., Changing Images of Man, 5
the hero’s journey, 132
wisdom traditions, 86
Carver, George Washington, wisdom of, 51
catastrophe, the Toba, 135–136
Catholic Church, creatio doctrines, 65
centered, becoming, 72–73
centering, self-organizing systems, 122
Central Project, Humanity’s, 125
Cernan, Gene, the view of earth from the moon, 11
Changing Images of Man (Campbell, Elgin, et al.), 5
ch’i, life energy in Taoism, 74–75
Children of the Light, Quaker view of the universe, 99–100
choice
freedom of, 52
of simplicity, 176
Christianity
foundation of love, 106
the Golden Rule of, 145
view of the universe, 61–65
wisdom of simplicity, 172
CIA, psi research, 48
circles, conversation, 195
cities, creating “eco-cities,” 178
civilization, creating a sustainable world, 141–142
clear light, practice of the, 101–102
climate, disruption, 139–140
co-arising, Buddhist teaching of interdependent co-origination and, 71–72
common sense, finding, 141–142
communication
between plants, 45, 209
instant non-locality, 36–37
single cell creatures, 44
using the power of electronic, 182
communion, era of spiritual, 147
community
the “eco-village,” 177
new levels of, 176–179
self-organizing systems, 123
concentration, balance between mindfulness and, 150
conflict, facing, 13
Confucianism
the Golden Rule of, 145
view of the universe, 74–75
connections
biophilia, 10
cosmic, 3
cosmophilia, 10
intuitive, 25–26
with a living universe, 12
new level of, 9–10
with ot
her living things, 14
connectivity, nonlocal, 108–109
consciousness
aliveness, 119
cosmic, 108
the deep ecology of, 167–168
feeling, 137
from reflection to communion, 149
Humanity’s Central Project, 125
Kabbalah view of light as the carrier of, 100
level basic to life, 43
the mirror of, 148
properties of, 46–47
on the quantum level, 43
self-organizing systems, 122
sending and receiving potential, 47
sensing, 136–137
slime mold, 44–45
thinking, 137
validating, 51
conversations
about sustainability, 181–182
authentic inquiry, 166
Do we make a difference?, 196
the effects of mass media on our species, 197–198
integrating simplicity in your lifestyle, 199
Is the universe dead or alive?, 195–196
our place on the hero’s journey, 197
personal cosmic connections, 198
scenarios for the future, 198
self-reflection, 197–198
What are your talents and true gifts?, 199
What is the current life stage of humanity, 196–197
Cosmic Feminine, evolution of the universe, 143
cosmophilia, relating to the universe, 10
cosmos
continuous creation of the, 40, 204–208
flow of the living, 153
the “great awakening,” 124
life energy, 31
requirements for building a, 27–29
creatio continua, doctrine of, 65
creatio ex nihilo, doctrine of, 65
creation, continuous, 40, 128–129, 204–208, 211
creationism, vs. continuous creation, 211
crisis
the emerging world systems, 140–142
the global systems, 182
resolving the world systems, 161
whole systems, 3
culture, wisdom, 143
Dalai Lama
preparing for death, 111
Tibetan Buddhist perspective, 72
dancing, to our internal music, 104–105
death
enduring aliveness, 112
recognizing the existence of our soul, 109–110
design, intelligent, 27, 203
dimension, going beyond the third, 127
dimensions, invisible framework of the universe, 24
discoveries, recent scientific, 34
doctrines
creatio continua, 65
creatio ex nihilo, 65
Sufisim, 67–68
Dreamtime, Aboriginal teachings, 77
dynamics, at work in the universe, 128
Dyson, Freeman, consciousness on the quantum level, 43
Eastern Orthodox Christianity, view of God’s energy, 63–64
Eckhart, Meister
creation of the universe, 65
intimacy with the sacred, 89
eco-communities, creating, 177–178
ecology
of consciousness, 167–168
sustainable harmony for future generations, 169
economics, narrowing the disparities in wealth and opportunity, 168–169
ecosystems, creating sustainable, 29
Einstein, Albert
existence of a vastly superior spirit, 33
question for God, 2
space vs. matter, 41
time as the fourth dimension, 24
elan vital, life force, 79
Elgin, Duane
about the author, 227–229
Awakening Earth, 6, 29
and Joseph Campbell, et.al, Changing Images of Man, 5
personal perspective, 3–7
Voluntary Simplicity, 6
emergence, self-organizing systems, 123
empathy, between animals, 46
empires, built on war and violence, 171
energy
dark, 22–24, 202
flow in living systems, 38–39
life, 31, 74
particles, 103
shortages, 139–140
zero point, 38–39
ephemeralization, Buckminster Fuller’s process of, 173–174
era
the agricultural, 137–138
the industrial, 78–79, 137–138
of spiritual communion, 147
eternity, preparing for, 112–113
etherialization, Toynbee’s process of becoming more efficient, 173
ethics, fostering a new level of, 166
ethnic cleansing, healing the wounds of, 168
evolution
from dead matter to consciousness, 8–9
goal of, 126
self-organizing systems, 123–128
self-reflective life forms, 29
existence, maginitude of the mystery of, 118
experiences
awakening, 148–149
mystical, 11, 202–203
experiments
intuitive knowing, 48–49
with psychokinesis, 49–50
receiving and sending potential, 47
Father Giovanni, the journey home, 131
feedback, and meditation, 48–49
feminine archetype, expanding on a cosmic scale, 151
flow-through, sustaining life, 119–120
framework, invisible, 24
freedom
of choice, 52
self-organizing systems, 122
Fromm, Erich, biophilia, 10
Fuller, Buckminster, process of ephemeralization, 173
future
retrofitting for a sustainable, 177
visualizing the, 2–3, 161, 180
galaxies
engineering, 28
the Milky Way, 35–37, 216
Gandhi, Mahatma
essence of Hinduism, 70
principle of simple living, 175–176
Gautama, Siddartha, founder of Buddhism, 71
gender discrimination, healing the wounds of, 168
genocide, healing the wounds of, 168
geometry, dimensional, 27–28
giants, humans in the cosmic scale, 20–21
gifts, “near” vs. “true,” 184–185
God, Judeo-Christian view of, 61
golden mean, simple lifestyle of the, 172–176
Govinda, Lama, writings of Tibetan Buddhist teacher, 72
Gribbin, John, black holes, 53
Haisch, Bernhard, quantum light, 98
Hanh, Thich Nhat, on “near gifts” and “true gifts,” 184–185
harmony
flow consciousness, 154
living in greater, 142
Harvey, Andrew, Divine Light, 101
Hegel, Georg, relationship between spirit and matter, 78–79
Heraclitus, philosophical teachings of, 78
Hinduism
bhakti (sacred love), 107
cosmology views, 87–88
the Golden Rule of, 145
view of the universe, 68–70
home, our place in the cosmos, 185–186
Homo sapiens sapiens
human consciousness, 43
potential for double knowing, 124
housing, the “eco-home,” 178
Humanity’s Central Project, a simple visualization of, 125
humans, position in the cosmic scale of existence, 20, 21–22
Hume, David, evolution of our universe, 54
identity
ego development, 137–138
exploring our cosmic, 96
our soulful, 94–96
Indigenous (tribal) peoples
connecting with the spirit through music, 104
view of the universe, 75–77
infrastructure, retrofitting the existing urban, 179
initiation, time of, 138–142
injustices
reconciling, 168
using technology to expose, 170
inquiry, authentic conversations, 166
insight, magnitude of mystery of existence, 118
interactions, personal, 3
Internet, world events reported over the, 181
introspection, who are we, 3
intuitions, psychic functioning, 95–96
Islam
celebrating Ishq (love of God), 106
the Golden Rule of, 145
Light of Lights, 100
music in, 103–104
occasionalism, 66–67, 212
view of the universe, 66–68
wisdom traditions from the Koran, 66–68, 86
Jain, the Golden Rule of, 146
James, William, religion and acceptance of the universe, 59
Jaspers, Karl, the axial age, 144
Jeans, Sir James
non-locality, 37
origin of material objects, 39
Jesus
the Last Supper ritual, 211–212
light in the teachings of, 98–99
mysteries of Light, 215
regarding our place in eternity, 111
teachings of “agape,” 106
teachings of the living, 64–65
on The Kingdom of God, 108–109
journey
the Hero’s, 132–135
home, 19–20
Humanity’s heroic, 133
Humanity’s return, 142–143
our evolutionary, 26
of the separation of humanity, 135–138
Judaism
the Golden Rule of, 145
view of the universe, 61–65
See also Kabbalah
Julian of Norwich, love from the beginning, 106
Kabbalah, teaching of divine light, 100
Kabir
becoming “a servant for life,” 142
self-awareness before death, 112
“Sound,” 103–104
Kalahari Bushmen, Dreamtime, 77
King, Martin Luther, Jr., exposing injustice, 170
knowing, intuitive, 48–49
Koran (Quran), teachings of Muhammad, 66–68, 86
Kornfield, Jack, love and awareness, 107–108
Koyukon Indians (Alaska), central beliefs, 77
Lakota (middle western U.S.), view of the universe, 76
Lanbkavatara Sutra, Zen wisdom traditions, 88
language, animal use of, 46
Last Supper, ritual of the, 211–212
Laszlo, Ervin, reality of the quantum vacuum, 85
Law of Progressive Simplification (Toynbee), 173
Lawrence, D.H., on the first axial age, 144
life
compassion for life, 167
connection between mindfulness and concentration, 150