Analogue 43: A Vision of Fire and Beauty

Analogue 43 

A Vision of Fire and Beauty

In a vision, one of the Apostles saw some who were shut up in a house on fire crying out with loud and fiery voices. They had been cast into the fire, but there was water there and they said to themselves, “Is not the water here meant to save us from death?” Misled by their desires, death, which is called the “outer darkness,” was their punishment.

Our enemy, therefore, comes to us from out of the waters with fire. And we ourselves have also come forth out of the waters with soul and the spirit and full of light, which is possessed by all the sons and daughters of the Bridal Chamber. Fire is also in the oil of anointing and light is within the fire. I am not speaking here, however, about light without form, but rather of the light whose appearance takes the form of a brilliant whiteness and full of beauty, and whose glory gives beauty to everything else.

SYNOPSIS

• This is an apostolic vision or dream about fire and those dwelling in fire and light. It needs to be treated like a dream sequence. 
• When humankind is led astray by its desires, the result is a state of death or of “outer darkness”.
• Is this a description of hell but told in a different mode—an interior and personalized hell because there is no inner light? 
• The enemy of humankind arises from the waters bringing fire. The disciples also come forth from the waters but carry soul, spirit, and light. What fire and what water is not specified, but it may be that different forms of water and fire are experienced inside and outside the Bridal Chamber. 
• Inside the Bridal Chamber there may be  the living water of inspiration and holy fire which takes the appearance of pure light, giving glory or beauty to everything else it touches. 
• What are the sources of these forms of fire and light? The following analogues provide a more detailed description of the Bridal Chamber and the sacramental mystery of the the anointing oil.
• Water and fire are also the basic elements in the Temple’s outer court, the place of communal gathering. Might the structure of the Temple itself be a guide to our inner landscape?

https://youtu.be/kK_w2bDgTbQ  (Link to YouTube video recording)

COMMENTARY

Dreamscapes

What are we to make of this visionary recital said to be that of one of Yeshua’s Apostles (apostoloi or “sent ones”)? We know little about either the apostle or when this visionary experience occurred, but it concerns the extraordinary energies that affect and flow through a human being or, more largely, the Spiritual Body of humanity. Water, oil, fire and light connected to baptism and anointing with the Sacred Spirit are all brought together into one visionary telling to describe patterns of relationships, some of which are extraordinary and difficult to understand. At their core is the horror of a conflagration—a house on fire. This nightmare experience is juxtaposed with its opposite, a peak experience of rapturous beauty that sweeps one entirely out of their normal perceptions.

We do not expect logical consistency in a dream narrative, and perhaps we should not expect it here. The rational mind approaches nightmares, dreams and visions with its own logic, insisting that everything should hang together to make linear sense. That, however, is not the way dreams or visions work. They are metaphorically rich but often logically poor. That richness, however, is what gives them symbolic value and depth. We might imagine this to be a multi-dimensional template rather than a linear or two-dimensional map. We need to see if there is a connection between the metaphors, linking our observations across many dimensions without insisting that these be parallel to one another or exist in a single domain. 

Metaphoric Geographies

The geography of this dreamscape is difficult to determine. Are these interior states of consciousness or do they describe realms beyond us, perhaps both above and beneath us? If one were to use the template of the first Temple (which will be referenced in coming analogues), then the various places (areas, rooms and chambers) within the historical Temple complex might also mirror an inner topography. The “outer darkness” could be understood as the outer court where people milled about. In that space there is indeed external water in the laver of cleansing and fire on the altar of sacrifice. Are these the literal correlates to which the metaphors belong? Perhaps, and it might be possible to meaningfully (and hermeneutically) place this vision in that Temple space. In addition to each being described as a “temple space,” one could explain the “outer darkness” as the exteriority beyond the physical body in which our consciousness might find abode. This externality, however, is without the light of the soul nor the spirit in the holy of Holies, the Bridal Chamber. 

We might reimagine, then, that in one dimension or domain the elements (water, oil, fire and light) act in one way differently, perhaps even in an opposite way, in another. This dream or vision could be giving us different symbolic representations about human experiences that reference only the external world. At the egoic level, in the domain of normal human desire, an encounter with these energies leads toward death and outer darkness—darkness without light on the outside of things. This appears to be the case for there are those who are led astray by their desires into the shadowlands of what we call externalized human existence. In that state, one is metaphorically shut up in a house that is on fire, darkness and distress descend (even hysteria) creating experiences inner torment, where one cries out desperately. Water in that dream-state (however we might imagine it, literal or metaphorical) means that individuals are desperately seeking relief from these fires. The truth is, however, they are using water (or relief) in the darkness only for personal comfort without understanding so there is no alleviation from that form of burning—in the vision, it has no healing effect.

Might this be referring to the institutional use of baptismal water as a means of salvation in the western tradition? In this case it would represent a rite in name only, not touching the soul or the spirit deeply enough, and in actuality only applied to the body in the physical world. Philip could be making the point that this is a strategy used by an Enemy of truth to deceive the Church spiritually. 

Light and darkness each have their distinctive signs existing differently in various domains. Forms in the darkness of the outer world indeed know fire, but such fire does not create beauty, only agony. 

Forms and images created by fires in the inner world, however, often become sources of Light expressing an opposite: transcendent beauty.

Experiences of the Bridal Chamber

In contrast, there is another a domain (plane, level or dimension) where a human experiences these elements in a completely different way. This Gospel calls the place the Bridal Chamber, and it is the deep interior space where Presence resides, often hidden away from the rational mind, and in where intimacy create by the Sacred Spirit are achieved. The human soul and spirit are enlightened there when an anointing with Sacred Spirit occurs. Then, there is indeed fire: fiery energies that produce even more luminescence in a form that produces more and more light, beauty and glory. In that place, water produces not an enemy with fire but an opening for soul and spirit to merge into light and beauty.

Light and darkness each have their distinctive qualities acting differently in various domains. Forms in the darkness of the outer world indeed know fire, but such fire does not create beauty, only agony. Forms and images created by fires in the inner world, however, often become sources of Light expressing transcendent beauty. Both can be known by a human being; the experience depends on the level or domain in which these elements are encountered. One may wonder if even the fiery experience in the outer (exoteric) darkness, as difficult as it may be, might in the end pave the way (or prepare a soul) for the Bridal Chamber, and later analogues will hint that this is so. This vision, in that case, is but a brief snap-shot of an ongoing process. God knows the passageways between these different realms, the progressions through them, and the experiences of humankind all along the way.  We will perhaps necessarily experience each of these states of being and consciousness as we make our sojourn here.

 

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION

• How do you interpret this passage? What makes most sense to you as you try to understand it?
• The places and elements described in this passage seem to relate to places both inside and outside of the Temple in Jerusalem. Use the image below (or go online to find more images of the first Temple complex) and visually explore its many parts. Imagine the dream and the elements of the dream (water, fire, oil and light) in relation with the different places within the historical, ancient Temple. What emerges for you?
• This analogue has nightmarish and also beautiful qualities. If this were your own complex dream, what would its meaning be for you?
• The passage speaks of an indescribable beauty that is palpable with form and full of light. Many Near Death Experiences report Light appearing with form in a way almost impossible to put into human words. We might use the analogy of a gorgeous sunset. The beauty in the form of a sunset typically includes clouds and sky, but it transcends the clouds, the sky, scenery such as mountains or waters, and even the colors. Combined, they form an experience that one knows intimately and deeply but which is beyond words. You might listen to someone describe a NDE or some peak experience on YouTube and see what you can learn about such experiences of Light and transcendence. 
• If these two visions are both states of human consciousness, then in some sense they are universal. Sacred elements like water, fire, light, and oil come into them in a metaphoric or archetypal way. How do you relate to these sacred archetypes? What symbolic meanings do they hold for you?
• Have you ever had a dream or nightmare (or perhaps even a vision) that was in some way similar to what is narrated here? If you have, describe it in a journal entry. If fire, earth, water or storms were involved, how did they affect you? Terror in nightmares is a vivid reminder of our inward vulnerabilities and states of consciousness. How have these states have felt to you when you are having a nightmare or having the opposite experience of dreaming in ecstasy? How do these relate to your waking experiences and states of consciousness?

NOTES FOR FURTHER STUDY 

AND REFERENCE

1. The type of Visionary Recital which arises in this analogue has a long and vibrant history in the Abrahamic traditions. Starting in the era of the prophets, visions of all kinds were reported and transcribed, some in which human beings were selected to enter and ride a “chariot” as the vehicle of ascent into the heavens or other dimensions along the vertical axis. These accounts fill the pages of the Hebrew Bible (Genesis 7, I Kings 22, Ezekiel 1-3, 11:24, 12:27, 47:1, Daniel 7:1, Isaiah 1:1, 6, Amos 7:7-9, 8:1-13, Jeremiah 1:-19, 24, Nahum 1:1). The Christian Scriptures are likewise replete with visionary accounts. Starting early at Yeshua’s baptism, they continue throughout his life and into the visionary experiences and recitations of his students (Matthew 1:20, 3:13-17, Mark 1:9-11, Luke :4-23, 3:21-22, John 1:29-34, 2:13, Acts 9:10, 10:1-6, 9-15, Revelations). Similarly in Islam, the prophet Muhammad’s recitation of the Qur’an was the result of a series of life-long visions revealed through the Archangel Gabriel (Qur’an 96). Descriptions of visionary experience continued into later centuries within Sufi tradition from which much of the standard teaching and practice of Sufism has been derived. To name one important example, Jalaluddin Rumi’s vast volumes of poetry are said to have been dictated to several of his students while in a state of vision as he listened, turned, and spoke through direct seeing and revelation.  
2. The floor plan of the Temple in Jerusalem is very instructive. It has also been used metaphorically to describe the full form of a human being seeing the outer courts as the body, the holy place as the soul, and the Holy of Holies as the spirit. The various objects and furniture in each section symbolize aspects and dimensions or levels of human awareness, divine interactions, and the ongoing relationships between heaven and earth. A basic cutaway diagram is found below taken from the Internet (the website: Year in the Bible). 
3. Dreams are a daily part of human life. We see “night visions” and at times have nightmares which haunt our day-time thoughts and emotions. Dreams are an active visionary space for us. Whether or not we understand them to be significant and meaningful, they often affect our waking thoughts and perceptions. If we pursue them as story-lines expressing inner relationships within the human psyche, they become instructive, giving us insights into ourselves, our intentions, motivations, and concerns. This text treats visions as meaningful aspects of spiritual concern which can give us guidance and understanding along a spiritual path. It also warns that these can become gateways where evil influences may enter in, leading us astray. This danger can be balanced by the activities of Spirit understood as Light leading us from darkness into beauty. Humans have an active inner life, one, however, that may not necessarily represent the personal psyche alone, but also the activities and impulses coming from elsewhere in the spiritual world. These influence the journey of Spirit we are making through this physical world. The analogues of Philip give great weight to their manifestations throughout our lifetime on earth. 

Notes ON the Translation

• The first paragraph is difficult to recreate and translate since there are a number of gaps in the text. The precise location of the water is not clear but it is either available or at least in sight.
• The word “punishment” could also be translated as “chastisement” or even “sentence.”
• There is also a missing piece at the beginning of the second paragraph which most reconstruct as “the Enemy” but it could be otherwise.
• The phrase “sons and daughters” translates the single word “son” which is understood to be a person or individual coming from the Bridal Chamber. These individuals can perhaps be seen to be those birthed or produced by the Bridal Chamber.
• “Form” and “appearance” are translations of the same word.
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