The human spirit oscillates between two paths: exploring the dream, seeking meaning in the world of forms, and returning to the truth, remembering its unity with God. The Red Path, rooted in shamanic practices, dives into the dimensions of the dream, exploring both light and shadow, deep emotions, and the density of material existence. The White Path, on the other hand, transcends the dream, teaching that only the Absolute is real. These two paths illustrate the stages of awakening: from the exploration of illusions to their complete transcendence.
The Red Path: Diving into the Dimensions of the Dream
Red Path and White Path
The Red Path honors nature, ancestors, and the visible and invisible mysteries of the world. Through rituals, ceremonies, and sacred medicines such as ayahuasca, peyote, San Pedro, and psilocybin, it explores the deep layers of consciousness, including the exploration of shadow, intense emotions, and the material density of existence.
A Quest for Unity in the Material World
This path seeks an apparent unity in the interconnections of nature and the subtle dimensions:
Ceremonies foster communion with the Earth and the elements.
Sacred medicines unveil multidimensional realities where entities, cosmic visions, or soul memories can be perceived.
Exploring shadow and deep emotions helps integrate repressed aspects of the self, offering inner healing.
However, as long as the spirit searches in this world – through practices, visions, or subtle dimensions – it affirms that love and unity are outside of itself. It places its power in what changes, in ephemeral forms, without realizing that true unity can only be found in what is eternal.
Red Path and White Path
The Madness of the Separation Idea and Smallness
The Course in Miracles explains that the world was born from a mad idea: the belief that separation from God was possible. This instant, known as "the veil of forgetfulness," created a universe where the spirit seems small and vulnerable, projecting a world to escape the guilt it believes is real.
Chapter 15, Section III – "Smallness Versus Grandeur":"Every time you choose to do something to appease your sense of lack, you affirm the idea that smallness is your identity. In reality, your grandeur calls to you, but it cannot be heard as long as you continue to search in the illusion for what cannot be found there."
A Shock for the Ego
This perspective, which affirms that everything sought in the world is an illusion, can seem radical and deeply confront the ego:
The ego clings to its idols – relationships, practices, experiences – because they reinforce the idea that it can "do something" to find unity.
When presented with the idea that nothing in the world can satisfy this need, the ego feels existentially threatened. It reacts with rejection, doubt, or anger.
"Every thought you accept either reinforces the truth or buries you deeper in illusion." (T-14.VII.5:2)
This statement highlights the significance of every choice, revealing that the ego, when faced with the possibility of its dissolution, resists intensely.Yet this rejection is natural, for the ego cannot conceive of a reality where it has no role to play. It is precisely by releasing the illusion that the Spirit can reclaim its grandeur.
The White Path: Transcending Fear and Returning to Grandeur
The White Path teaches that true unity cannot be found within the dimensions of the dream. It invites one to go beyond all forms, not by rejecting them but by recognizing their unreality.
Recognizing the Grandeur of Spirit
"Grandeur is what you are. Smallness is what you have made. But what you have made has no power over you unless you choose to give it."
The Fear of Letting Go of Idols
Letting go of idols – practices, relationships, spiritual experiences – can bring up deep fears:
The fear of losing what gives life meaning.
The fear of emptiness, of no longer knowing who one is without these attachments.
The fear of the unknown, as the ego thrives on what is familiar, even if it causes suffering.
This fear is a necessary step because it reveals the attachments that keep us in the dream. The Course invites us to look at this fear with gentleness and without judgment:
"Do not be afraid to look at the ego with the Holy Spirit. There is nothing it cannot dispel in the light of truth." (T-11.V.1:2-3)
An Uncompromising Choice
The moment the spirit chooses the White Path is when it decides to:
See that all quests in the dream are futile.As long as the spirit believes peace and unity can be achieved through practices, experiences, or relationships, it remains trapped in the cycle of desires and expectations. Only by recognizing the unreality of it all can it begin to let go.
Lay down its idols.Idols – whether visions, spiritual practices, or emotional attachments – can never lead to truth.
The spirit must come "empty-handed before God" (T-14.X.8:3-4), in total surrender, ready to receive unconditional love and peace.
Choose God.
"Every decision you make is for God or for hell." (T-15.I.10:7)
This choice is simple in essence but requires one to look honestly at where they still place their faith – in the unconditional love of God or in the illusions of the ego.
From Shadow to Light: Integrating the Red Path Experience
The Red Path, although it explores illusions, is not useless. It allows one to:
Face the shadow with courage, exploring repressed emotions and unconscious fears.
Recognize the complexity of the dream, unveiling subtle dimensions and illusory interconnections.
Prepare the spirit to let go, by showing the limits of attachment to matter and experiences.
When the spirit is ready, even the practices of the Red Path can become stepping stones toward the White Path, offering clarity on what is unreal and opening the door to the complete surrender of illusions.
The Final Leap: Choosing the Absolute
The transition from the Red Path to the White Path is a leap into the unknown. It does not require rejecting the experience of the dream but rather seeing it for what it is: a tool to remember what lies beyond.
The truth is simple: nothing in the world can give you what you seek, because what you seek is already within you.
The choice is uncompromising: to keep searching in illusions or to lay down all idols and embrace the grandeur of the Spirit.
コメント