In this paper, edited from old blog posts of mine, I deal concisely and informally with the fascinating route from wish to reality. There have been quite some authors who have been writing and lecturing about this, especially in new age circles (the law of attraction hype). However, I draw my material from other sources: Roberto Assagioli, the Italian psychiatrist who laid down the foundation for psychosynthesis, and also from the perennial tradition. This lays the foundation for healing of one's broken self, and also for the world at large, if enough people will follow this route. At the concluding remarks, I will say a bit more on this topic.
I am especially interested in Assagioli's work “Act of Will” in which he presents the steps or phases of the process of active will.
Note that I am not dealing with the law of attraction stuff, because it is far too egocentric of a nature: it is all about satisfying personal, often materialistic goals.
Precisely stuff that is killing our habitat. The question that is often forgotten in this respect is: are my wishes good for society as a whole? Do they help to make the world a better place (sustainable, to say the least) or am I merely indulging in fantasies and wishful thinking? Not to mention the fact that some wishes may not be very healthy for the individual concerned or not in alignment with the deeper layers of the psyche.
On a deeper level, one could say that wholeness of mind, and psychosynthesis, has to do with a natural process of bringing one's capabilities to expression and realizing one's potential for the greater good. Integration of elements of the psyche/self are involved here. Will is one of the forces that are involved in that.
Will is a most interesting topic to research. Everyone of us has to some degree experience with the act of will and can do experiments in this field.
The process of active will is very complex. It has been described by Roberto Assagioli in his book "Act of will". I cannot deal with it here at length.
I will mention the steps or phases involved in the will-process, however.
Note that some fluidity is involved in this process, as stages or phases may overlap somewhat, and may transition into each other gradually. There will be some loops between stages, going back and forth. The point of decision is usually a clear point in time, however.
Reversely translated from my Dutch copy of Assagioli's book, we have: 1. Goal or purpose, based on valuation, motivation and intent.
2. Deliberation.
3. Choice and decision.
4. Reinforcement: command or fiat of the will.
5. Planning and elaboration of a program.
6. Steering of execution.
This is the process of will in it's complete and ideal form.
Remarks, based on Assagioli's treatment of the subject: 1. There is a goal to be reached. One has to clearly define a goal or purpose to be realized. (Some authors mention desire or wish as the starting point. I interpret that as a deep-felt desire for accomplishing something worthwhile. Simple needs are of a more biological nature and are not dealt with here.) The faculty of Imagination (ideation, vision, giving form to a seed-thought) is involved in this.
This is not enough to get things going. A general vision is just a starting point.
An evaluation or valuation of the goal is necessary ending in a judgment.
Then a motive must be generated that provides a drive and intent for one to realize this purpose/goal.
A motive is a dynamic thing. It is generated by the values we ascribe to the goals we want to reach.
We perceive or believe the goal to be lofty, necessary, etc.
2. As there are many goals, we must choose between them. This establishing of a preference is the result of the function of deliberation where we have to investigate or research several goals, our skills to realize these goals (our belief in our capabilities), the consequences of our choice, social desirability, acceptability, etc.
Discrimination, clarity of mind, is necessary! Communicating our wishes and ideas to others may provide some feedback to us, sometimes leading to an adaptation of goal and preliminary plan.
3. Deliberation should lead to choice and decision.
One has to wrap up, integrate, all the points mentioned at phase two, and come to a decision.
4. Then follows reinforcement of the choice and decision. This activates the creative and dynamic energies necessary to accomplish one's goal/purpose. The image of what is to be becomes dynamic now. It has been charged or colored by our intentions and values.
Compare this with J.G. Bennett's "commitments", described in his tome "The Dramatic Universe".
5. Planning and a program are needed. Methods of execution come into play as are considerations of time, circumstances , conditions.
6. At last there is the steering of the execution.
Will is like a director of a play. It is the supervisor of the whole process.
It looks to me that the whole gamut of human functions is concerned in this process: from will to imagination to motivation to discrimination to planning all the way down to the physical act itself.
Quite impressive! The physical execution itself, sensori-motor function, is not a function of the will, but the steering of that part is.
Note: adaptation of a plan will often be necessary as conditions and circumstances may change during the implementation of that plan. Perseverance and improvisational skills are a must. The final phase, not mentioned by Assagioli, consists of receiving the fruits of one's work, appreciate what has been done, relax, rest, and let go.
The Dutch author Marinus Knoope , the discoverer of "the creation spiral", which
consists of twelve steps, mentions these three steps (out of twelve) or phases in his book. His work is now being used to help children and adults help to formulate their dreams or wishes at schools and in communities in the Netherlands. It is also used by some consultants in transformation work in the business environment.
Knoope also mentions briefly, that there can and will be blockages, potentially at every step, called "negative" emotions (but these can be a source of power), and deals, to some degree, with these in his latest book. He states that these emotions fulfill an important role as paradoxes surround the creative process.
People often have difficulties with discovering or acknowledging their deepest wishes, giving form to it, and often lack faith in their own abilities or in support of their network. As to other blockages one can think of people who can't decide; people who cannot persevere; people who cannot share and communicate. It occurs to me that his circle of twelve steps, as well as Assagioli's steps or phases can be used as a diagnostic tool. A questionaire could be developed in this respect. Assagioli deals with some of this issues in his work “Psychosynthesis” and gives a number of therapeutic exercises as well.
Bringing a vision into manifestation
The following diagram summarizes the process of active will. One can see how the human being, through active will, connects the spheres of vision, thought and action in the act of creation (form-giving). Example: a well-developed vision of a harmonious world to be realized, connects the two poles of goal and need or necessity. A link has been made between the realm of possibilities and the here and now, especially so, when concrete steps are being taken to bring the vision into realization.
In other words, what can be or should be (and already exists as an idea, or seed-thought, in the mental sphere) has now a pathway to the here and now through the formative and physical plane(s). It is the magic of creation! It is contemplation and consequent plan and action combined. It involves the grounding of spiritual forces to allow them to do their transformative work here on earth. That work can be anything: from developing alternative systems of money to establishing a healthy ecosystem, etc.
Naturally, one will encounter resistance in society in the process of lofty work.
Established interests will try to counter one's work. The necessity for building a
base of interested co-workers seems obvious to me.
The above diagram concerns primarily the work of Roberto Assagioli. Here, I have conceived a model, consisting of four layers nested as shown in the picture, with a preliminary mapping of the six stages of the active will. The picture shows the interpenetration of levels or spheres in which psyche/mind operates. It is not a layered cake! It can be interpreted as follows: the human being desires something (evoked by some thought); this is the first stage, where also imagination takes place. It is internal to the human psyche, interacting with the world of ideas, thoughts, etc. The way I have formulated this, means that in this diagram I do not
discriminate between lofty aspirations that reach the higher, transpersonal strata of the mind and more personal desires which act only in lower strata.
The second layer shows communication, networking, deliberation, valuing and choice. This concerns partly an interaction with the "outside world", the social environment in a broad sense. It also entails a valuation and decision process.
Feedback and input from the environment play a role here.
This has been described above. For all the levels subsequent to level (or layer) one, there is an overflowing of forces from one level to the next. The levels interpenetrate and resonate to some degree!
The positive choice (go for it, do it!) concerns the fiat of will. Fiat means "let there be. ".
This fiat activates, motivates, organizing vital forces [called pranas in Hindu lore]
which flow as it were to the next (third) layer and phase of the creative process: planning, organization, etc., which have to do with making scripts or blueprints (structuring the executive act). It is very easy to recognize this phase: we all have had ideas for which we made plans. If you have some sensitivity, you will have observed the flow of energy that comes with the planning. Managers often display a lot of vital energy, busy as they are with organization.
Form giving and structuring or planning events require flexibility of mind. "Steer and follow", so to speak. One has to see the opportunities that exist or rise and gather the means necessary for accomplishing one's goals. That starts already on the second level, where one has to weigh the pros and cons of the cherished ideas, and is becoming urgent and actual in this phase.
The fourth layer concerns the steering (control) of execution. Supervision of tasks to do is needed. This phase combines the previously prepared and planned parts and stages of the execution.
Feedback arises where corrections in execution and plan are deemed necessary.
This phase combines the influences of all the previous levels. Resistance and inertia on this level (as well as in the planning/organization phase), due to many factors, can cause a lot of headaches. Flexibility is needed. If you can't do something in one way, try another way. Learn to see different possibilities to do something and realize your goals. If one realizes a goal (or part of a purpose), one will get some satisfaction out of that. If it doesn't work out quite the way one has expected, there probably is a lesson to be learned.
Much could be added to the above sketch of the process of active will.
To begin with, an elaboration of what the will consists of, its ontological status.
It certainly looks like a directive force, so it must be of a substantial nature.
This would lead me to speculate on the nature of consciousness, mind and thought, something I have done in my book on “the mysteries of the human mind”, available at archive.org and academia.edu. It includes some exercises that can help one to become clear in one's mind as to purpose and goal in one's life.
The perennial tradition has a lot to say on these topics, including the nature of thoughts as presentations rather then representations, the observation of the stream of consciousness and how to direct one's mind to deeper or inner strata of Being.
Resonance with the Self can be reached by conscious effort. That is a whole chapter on itself. It involves the use of the faculties of imagination and will and often includes focused group work as well to form a dynamic field of thought. It certainly involves a fuller manifestation of one's inner characteristic pattern.
It is the road to becoming aligned with one's inner Self (a goal of psychosynthesis), and thus becoming a force for bringing wholeness into and onto this world. This important theme is dealt with at length in my book (in the second article). Today, this knowledge is as vital as ever, and probably more urgent than at any other time in human history.
Appendix A
A monadic model of the human being
The composite constitution of the human being
The purpose of this section is to present in shorthand a 'model' of man, which can greatly enlarge our understanding about the relationship between 'us' and the Universe. If we get a feeling for this, it is easier to grasp the wholeness or interconnection of all life, because 'what is above, is below' (the Hermetic axiom).
The theosopher G.de Purucker has presented a model of the human being in the form of the egg-scheme. See figure.
Figure: egg-scheme: a monadic model from G. de Purucker Important Sanskrit names in the eggscheme are:
kama: desire (a neutral force, which can be used in a selfish or selfless way: see the section on the seven aspects of thinking in chapter two) prana: vital energy
manas: faculty of thinking; in the personality it is mixed with desire (kama) and typically active in the chasing to fulfill 'dream pictures' of possessions, position, power, 'romantic' relationships, etc., etc. which are all soap bubbles of course, bound to vanish into thin air sooner or later.
buddhi: spiritual soul. Light-substance (not ordinary light, which is but a modification of the primordial Light)
atma(n): universal spirit. Also: the divine monad, a ray of the supreme Self.
The esoteric tradition, in this case by word of De Purucker, presents a kind of spiritual-material model of man. Matter is viewed as crystallized spirit and spirit as rarefied matter. Spirit and matter are ultimately states (manifestations) of One Principle that is the One Life-force. Science recognizes the fact that matter and force are convertible into one another. The perennial wisdom adds that this fact also applies to the psychic and spiritual realm. Old forms of thought can be dissolved and the frozen energy can be liberated and used in new forms. More on this topic can be read in chapter two.
The circles within the eggscheme symbolize so-called 'monads': sparks of the universal lifeforce. These are pure Spirit. The monads act as foci or knots or centers for the stream of consciousness, that flows from the Supreme Spirit or Logos (the
"Word") at the top of our hierarchy (= most spiritual level in our hierarchy) down to the 'grosser' states of consciousness-matter.
We all have a ray of the Supreme Spirit in us, and this provides a way to find the path within, a way to place one's consciousness in more subtle states of matter within our hierarchy (sphere of life). See lit #1, where the topic of the Supreme Spirit or Supreme Self or Silent Watcher is treated in the context of the eggscheme,
the seven jewels of wisdom, and initiations.
Let me add here, that all this stuff has nothing to do with escaping reality since the spiritual planes or spheres are already present in us here and now, and it is only a matter of recognition of this fact that will help us to open our mind to these spheres, influences, within ourselves and learn to give expression to these energies!
In order to manifest themselves, these monads need to make use of a dual pair of organized consciousness-matter. This dual pair is split up in the eggscheme at the left-hand side (vehicular aspect = 'soul', carrier of consciousness) and at the right--
hand side (Ego or center of consciousness).
Each ego in this scheme expresses the evolved faculties and qualities of the corresponding ego emanating monad. The divine ego expresses far more faculties than the personal ego. Likewise, we as persons have evolved more qualities of consciousness than the animal monad, which forms a necessary part of our constitution. We need it and, of course, our body in order to express ourselves in this world. The arrows pointing to the various monadic centers indicate the fact that these centers have developed self-consciousness. The animal soul has not yet done that. It follows blindly the impulses and suggestions given to it by the personality.
One's personal consciousness is centered in one's personal ego. The following enumeration shows in a nutshell some of the developed qualities of consciousness of the diverse monads. See also lit. (1,2)
Divine Monad: Inspiration, Unity consciousness
Together with the spiritual monad: our inner god or Higher Self. The range of consciousness of this monad is said to encompass all the planes (inner and outer) of our galaxy, the Milky Way. Sanskrit corresponding name: atma(n).
Spiritual monad: Enlightenment principle (understanding, intuition; Sanskrit term: buddhi). Also known as the (holy) Guardian Angel. Range of consciousness: entire solar system.
This monad is the vehicle for the divine monad. It partakes in the heavenly world and to some extent in the world or sphere of the human being. It seems to warn us in times of danger, but its voice is not easily heard because we are not used to listen to the voice within, totally absorbed as we are by affairs of the world. These two
monads are part of the spiritual line of evolution of a human being.
(Higher) human monad:
Vitality, emotion, desire; also higher aspects of thinking, and part of the understanding faculty. It is the parent of the personal monad. Range of consciousness: all the planes/spheres pertaining to the earth (far more than the physical earth alone).
The higher human ego and the higher human soul together can be called a 'son of Mind', or manasaputra, because of the fact that this being has developed noetic mind (higher manas, higher thinking capacity) to a large degree. This being is the one that kindled the human thinking faculty by projecting a ray of its manas (some of its fiery essence) into the embryonic thinking organ of the human being, generations ago. Keep in mind that the Element of Fire is something quite different from ordinary, terrestrial fire, though in that fire too there is the subtle essence of Fire at work.
This event in human prehistory has brought a strange condition to bear on the human race. The Prometheus myth of the ancient Greeks is reminiscent of this event. He stole the sacred Fire from the Gods at the Olympus, gave it to humanity and was severely punished for this. This is a clever parable that is full of hidden meanings! You will have to study it thoroughly, together with the theosophical teachings, in order to extract the carefully veiled meanings.
Prometheus is a symbolic figure for the higher human ego or Self which becomes crucified upon the cross of matter and spirit.
This myth is a symbol for the second line of evolution of the human being: the evolution of the manas (the thinking faculty).
Think about this and you may begin to understand the reality of this event. After all, there is a great mystery in that the human being can think (and be self--
conscious), a thing that cannot be said of an animal. A wide gap exists between the animal and the human being (although their physical bodies have many features in common). No biologist will ever be able to explain this fact of self-consciousness along a materialistic line of thinking. The Neo-Darwinian theory of evolution is incorrect in many respects as is known by all true spiritual teachers, since they know that evolution starts by the impulse of spirit given unto matter. ( An
increasing number of biologists see the shortcomings of the Darwinian theory as well)
The beings of spirit and matter work together in order for the first to get experience in the relatively denser worlds of matter (and develop the faculties of the mind) and the latter for being gradually spiritualized or etherialized (evolution of spirit, inherent in all beings).
Noetic mind is a state of mind far above cortical thinking or brain-mind, and it is transpersonal, of course. It can be equated with the Christos energy, the 'Father in heaven', a lofty state of consciousness, characterized by impersonal, transpersonal, love.
I added the label 'Radiant Mindstuff' as a descriptor for the higher human soul, because to us ordinary human beings this level or state of mind is seen as luminous (when one happens to see, or temporarily be united with, one's higher soul this last event being an example of epiphany: result of exertions for the well-being of the human race ), due to the fact that the higher Self has developed buddhi: spiritual discrimination, love, empathy, etc., to a considerable degree. The radiance of buddhi (the spiritual soul) makes the mind radiant because of its union with buddhi (the light of understanding). This union is designated as: "buddhi-manas"
and it is a state of enlightenment (a goal of the natural order process, but not the end of spiritual evolution or unfoldment).
I have added the label 'solar ancestor of the human being' as a description for this ego because it is the ancestor of the human being: the Self was a human being, not necessarily with a body as we have now, in a previous cycle of development and the human being was then an animal forming part of the constitution of the Self that was a human being then.
Personal, or lower human Monad
Developed aspects: vitality [prana], emotion, desire [kama], lower aspects of thought [lower manas]. This is the monad that reincarnates or sends out its rays into matter. The personality is like a mask that is put on during an incarnation. It is not the personality that reincarnates but the 'personal' monad that sends out a ray, forming a new vehicle in the composite stream of life-energy-substance-consciousness. It is the parent of the animal monad as the higher human monad is
the parent of the lower human monad.
I added the description : 'higher part of psyche' at this position in the eggscheme because aspects as cortical thinking and aspirations are usually attributed to the (higher) psyche by philosophers like Plato, Pythagoras and also Vitvan. The personality, or little ego, thinks: I am I, separated from others. The Self knows: I am, unique, yet an integral part of the whole that is the Supreme Self. The Self shares some of the psychological characteristics with his ray or emanation (the lower human monad). It shares to some extent in the karma of his emanation, so when his child monad in incarnation suffers, it suffers too. A mystery indeed, but easier to understand when you draw the analogy with a child and its parents on the physical plane.
Animal monad: Vitality, Emotion, Desire
Part of the third line of evolution of the human being: physical/emotional/desire--
mind.
The soul (kind of a psycho-electromagnetic 'field') which is associated with this monad is called: the vital-astral soul. This is the field or state of being in which our consciousness is active most of the time. I labeled this soul 'the lower (aspect of the) psyche'. A further clarification is this: this soul or field of awareness is centered in the lower chakras, beneath the diaphragm. Typically under the influence of the phase of the life-force that is called the libido, the drive for sex, etc.
Part of the process of spiritualizing lies in bringing (part of) the life-energy (the libido) to the higher centers (chakras) by focusing on spiritual creative work. Don't force this too much. Strike the golden mean as Pythagoras is said to have advised.
Freud talked about the 'sublimation of the libido', which phrase expresses the same idea.
Keep in mind, however, that we need the impulse of our desires in order to evolve.
We can't do without emotions or desires, but as is often stated in our literature, use the energy of emotion, desire, thinking, etc., in a constructive way.
The development of consciousness by the spiritual seeker and worker will bring him/her ultimately into contact with the 'baptizing fire [or light]' of the Christos, the inner manasaputra, which will open a new field of awareness ("noetic or spiritual octaves of consciousness"). Some interesting information concerning the development of consciousness can be found in William Quan Judge's booklet
"culture of concentration". See also the reference to Vitvan below.
This 'baptizing' (better: an absorption of spiritual energy-light) must or will be followed by an integration process of this energy in the sphere of action on this earth, in order to bring more light to one's fellow beings. Cooperation for establishing a healthier world becomes a strong urge after this baptism (a kind of initiation). In this regard I can add that no extraterrestrial or master, etc., can or will save humanity from its follies. We ourselves have to clean house [the body and our contaminated ecosystems]! How else can we learn the necessary lesson of compassion, love, cooperation and respect for nature and one's fellow brother/
sister?
Physical Soul: The physical soul consists of the model-body (a template), also called 'linga sharira' in Sanskrit. Sharira means envelope or body; Linga can be translated as 'model' and has also a connotation of creative energy. It is the carrier of the pranas or vital forces that express themselves in the physical body through the chakras. It is also the formative cause of the physical body (sthula sharira) and it contains the astral senses, the necessary intermediaries between the outer senses and the mind. These astral senses are also involved with telepathy, clairvoyance, etc.
The connection between the Human Monad (Self) and the Personal Monad has been sketched in a previous chapter as being a relation between parent and child.
Note that we have in the recesses of our constitution a divine core that is sometimes called: our 'Spiritual Self' (=Inner God). This makes the notion of theurgy in the Gnostic literature a bit more understandable. Iamblichus ("De Mysteriis") writes interesting stuff about this. The working of the Divine in man (theurgy) is possible, just because there is a Divine element in man's constitution.
This requires a highly pure and selfless life as will be easily understood.
Our responsibilities towards the animal ego and the body are great, but are completely unknown to our world. Yet, we can imagine that we have a great influence on this ego within our constitution whether we think negatively or positively. This influence is 'stamped' into the fabric of consciousness of the animal ego. Further elaboration of this and kindred subjects can be found in lit. 1, 2 and 7, 8, 9.
Gnostics speak of the Aeons (Angels, Archangels, etc.), Kabbalists of the (Sephirotic) tree of life, Indian Purana's of the Prajapati's. These are all names for the same hierarchical emanations from the One Principle and are all involved in the formation of our Cosmos.
If one progresses in consciousness by one's own [and collective] effort, then one will transform oneself from being a personal soul-ego-monad to a real human soul-ego-monad, taking along the animal ego towards the stage of personal ego! This example shows the karmic inter-connectedness of the monads. See lit. (1,2) for further development of these thoughts. The student of the Kabbalah may be able to map the tree of life onto the eggscheme.
We will not concern ourselves further with these often very metaphysical (though important) subjects and confine ourselves to something more tangible: our personality (= lower human ego) and its relation to the (higher) human ego. See chapters two and five of this book. It will pay off to reread these chapters and do the exercises.
Bibliography
Note : many books are now available free online at: TUP online books
1. Fundamentals of the esoteric philosophy.
G. de Purucker. TUP-press.
