A Critical Mass: The Coincidences That Shape Our Lives 11:07 AM
~CELESTINE PROPHECY~
The Mystery Begins
In The Celestine Prophecy the main character has an unexpected meeting with an old friend jusst at the moment in his life when he is feeling disenchanted and thinking about changing directions. Charlene, newly arrived from a trip to Peru, where an ancient Manuscript has been discovered, is able to shed some light on the cause of his restlessness. Our character, who remains nameless, is introduced to the First Insight: becoming conscious of the coincidences working in his life. Skeptical of the idea of a Manuscript explaining the secret of human existence, he is nevertheless intrigued by the mystery. That night, after returning home, he has a ddream about the nature of coincidences and how they always involve the appearance of a person with information. Buoyed by his inceasing interest, he books a flight to Peru.
The First Insight
Slowly, with little fanfare, a global transformation is taking place. As described in the ancient teachings of the Manuscript found in the Celestine ruins, the first sign that we are awakening to this deep inner call is a profound sense of restlessness. This restlessness may be described as dissatisfaction (even after reaching goals), vague uneasiness, or a sense that something is missing. Once in a while a chance event surprises and intrigues us. It's as if some higher purpose is being revealed, and for a moment we feel connected to a mystery that nevertheless eludes our grasp. The combination of inner searching ("There must be more to life") and an occasional cosmic jostle ("Wow! What a strange coincidence. I wonder what that meant?") is a powerful process. Mysterious and exciting, coincidences are purposeful in moving us forward in our destiny. They make us feel more alive, as if there is some greater plan at work. As more and more of us (critical mass) become conscious of this mysterious movement of the universe in our individual lives, the more quickly will we discover the nature of human existence. If we open our minds and hearts, we will be part of the evolution of a new spirituality.
What is Coincidence?
The First Insight in The Celestine Prophecy tends to capture our attention and fire our imagination because it taps into what our mythic reality has always taught - that there is a Golden Key, magical stranger, a meaningful dream, or an unexpected clue that appears to guide us effortlessly to the treasure or opportunity that we seek. Swiss psychologist, Carl Jung, called it the archetype of "magical effect" and claimed that it was a universal trait in humans. Recognizing important rule that coincidence plays in moving our lives along takes us back to the instincts of the alert, poised hunter praying for the emergence of quarry, and the deeply attuned receptive state of a powerful shaman or medicine woman. Coincidences are the stuff of stories by firelight, and laughing memories at weddings, and tales of inordinate success and sublime irony. Life stories are studded by the mysterious by-products of chance meetings, missed trains, books opening to a significant passage, ajar doors, overheard conversations, a meeting of the eyes across a crowded room. Most of literature and theater wouldn't exist without such premises as two people meeting accidentially in a corridor or while waiting to board a ferry to Hong Kong. Much of the sometimes higgledy-piggledy nature of employment resumes can be explained by the effect of coincidental job opportunities that were not part of a career plan. For example, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, the famous expert on death and dying, describes in Women of Power (by Laurel King) a turning point while workiing in a residency with Dr. Sydney Margolin: "... one day, while I was putting together a polygraph machine, he came in and said he had to go somewhere and I would have to take over his lectures. This was like replacing God! I died a thousand deaths... He said (the lecture) had to be about psychiatry, but I could pick anys subject. I went to the library to see if there was anything written on death and dying because I thought the students really needed to know about it." Perhaps her choice of subject was unknowingly shaped by her early experiences in war relief in Europe, from which she still carries the images of those who perished in the death camps. Or perhaps this was a point of divine intervention. Whatever guided her choice of subject that day, Kubler-Ross's initial lecture on death and dying started a chain of events that changed the direction of her life and opened up what turned out to be a life's mission. The First Insight has us start at the beginning, at that very point of convergence where life's mystery stares back at us, outside our logical expectations and experience. Becoming conscious of the reality of coincidences and aware of their message and meai ning is the first step to evolving consciously and more quickly. When was the last time you experienced someting out of the ordinary? Perhaps this morniing you were thiniking about someone and then got a phone call from that person. how many times have you said, "I was just thinking about you?" Was there a significant message from this person? Did you consider why this coincidence might have happened? What followed it? We tend to take for granted may of the subtle, ordinary chance occurences, and often it is only the really startly events that make us shake our head in wonderment.
to be continued...
