Admin/Kath   09/16/2025
To start, to examine choices:  are they being made out of fear or love?  Because if you recognize that these are choices under your own control you can move into love and leave fear behind.

Alexandra Server  09/23/2025
Something that might not be too hard to do:  Approach every individual with kindness and love.  I do think, though, that you have to love yourself first.  Since we are all one - we're here on Earth to experience separation - if we don't love ourselves, we cannot truly love someone else (or our other self).

Terri   09/23/2025
For me, the first step would seem to be the acknowledgement that there is more to reality than what my five senses can feel....that I am more than just a body.  Next, I would ask, then what am I?  Am I my thoughts?  Or as Eckhert Tolle says, I am the consciousness between the thoughts.  
But, before we even go there, we have to define enlightenment.  Is it just being in the NOW, or something else?
It seems that there is a character limit, so I didn't get to say that I don't know if we defined "enlightenment" in our meditation call today, since I was absent during most of the discussion.

Marian  09/23/2025
I have reminders around about who I want to be….idea of being a bringer of the light. Also do things like widening peripheral vision which creates a relaxation response and reminds me of being up high like like on a scenic overlook, That  helps me remember who I really am/ who we really are, spiritual beings having a human lifetime.

 
Mike H.   09/23/2025
A small part of enlightenment for me is to become aware of how I might be impacting others in a negative way without my realizing it. 
Haven’t seen a definition of enlightenment I like. Another small part of enlightenment for me is getting rid of beliefs.

 
Admin/Kath   09/23/2025
I will put a little compilation together tomorrow which reviews original group on enlightenment.  But here's a relevant quote:  

Liz: Growth doesn’t occur in a vacuum. One must immerse himself in something — relate with someone — in order to grow, right?
A:  Spiritual growth is an extremely active process, but many times, it isolates you from the mainstream — this is what we are saying. Spiritual enlightenment, which is indeed a byproduct, is an ecstatic experience to which nothing can possibly compare.

I think the original question might be more the spiritual growth component.
 
LOL Mike you are hitting all the key concepts.  You are on fire!  How about: Beliefs -- there are the beliefs that are imprinting that need to go, but then there is the need to keep beliefs mutable, flexible, without attachment, in order to grow spiritually imo.

Added to the Forum, a Compilation on Enlightenment.  

Compilations from the transcripts of the original Michael Teachings group.

• The transcripts of the original Michael Teachings group have been determined to be in the public domain. Any content or commentary added by the author/compiler is copyright: CC by NC-ND and please attribute kathryn appliedunity.com .

A small compilation of the term "enlightenment" as used in the original group transcripts.  Ultimately I would say that enlightenment as it is used here is the final goal of the process of spiritual growth.  See separate compilation on that subject.

Also within this compilation is a small bit about the difference between beliefs and knowing.  K.

…………….

July 7, 1973 w/Soleal

Dick: Would you please elaborate on that one?

There is a deep-seated fear that you will choose the wrong path and be inadvertently left behind. The Synthesis is always, is always, there for those who are willing to search beneath the surface. The readings are good; the confusion is not . That takes conscious effort on your part.

Dick again meditated on his question.

No. I cannot advise you unless I strongly receive the one question.

Dick: Okay then, I’ll meditate on the one question.

Just be patient. You cannot achieve enlightenment by any route in one day or by any method without first making the decision to establish this as the goal for the present lifetime and then making the decision to devote the rest of the life to that pursuit.

The devotion must be there, no matter which path you take ultimately. The path can take you through the mainstream of life on your world, or you may eventually decide that you must have the seclusion. A communal setting would offer this in many ways. You need people around by whom you can measure your progress and this is not bad for you. Self-confidence, and I mean in your own spiritual strength, must be developed.

November 22, 1973

Sue: Any hint in the direction I might take?

Should we go through it all over again, Sue? Meditation, concentration, fasting, study, right-thinking — this is the magic enlightenment formula, like E = MC^2.

December 20, 1973

…aving your Role manifest and searching for enlightenment are quite different. Baby Warriors do not search but they do manifest . There is no magic age for beginning to search ….

December 30, 1973

It is your lack of courage of conviction that does not permit you to point out the utter nonsense in the hope for instant “enlightenment”. The path is long and steep. The difference in the teachings is, of course, the fact that this is a living teaching; many of those are not.

January 27, 1974

We would point out to you at this point that there is a vast difference between spiritual growth and “enlightenment”. We would expect all of you, without exception, to grow from this experience; we would not expect you all to achieve “cosmic consciousness”.

September 14, 1974

Loving is Higher Emotion and that requires Balance . The person who is “conscious” is not a doer anyway. Most who have reached that exalted state of physical being prefer not to do; they are content merely to be with the present — that feeling you have glimpsed when you were in those states briefly. (paraphrased) This is something we have asked you to consider before: what is it you wish to do, learn to be more fruitful and happier in life? Or go onto spiritual enlightenment? The goals are very different, and the methods of approach, therefore, would have to be quite different. Living in life requires what you are calling self-image and ego strength. Spiritual acceleration does not require this; it requires negation of the cultural facade.

September 28, 1974

Liz: Growth doesn’t occur in a vacuum. One must immerse himself in something — relate with someone — in order to grow, right?

Liz, spiritual growth is an extremely active process, but many times, it isolates you from the mainstream — this is what we are saying. Spiritual enlightenment, which is indeed a byproduct, is an ecstatic experience to which nothing can possibly compare.

September 30, 1977

That state that Dick describes is, of course, that which this Entity chooses to call Agape. That is, “love.” This state cannot be achieved romantically by the Overleaves. In no way can the Personality abandon itself for even one moment. The ego never relaxes its vigil. It is anti-ego to even consider this, for after all, that is when the devil — or as we choose to refer to it — the mass societal ego, can rush in and influence.

We have expressed before the frustrations encountered when one tries to reach this state alone. Aloneness is the single most important obstacle to reaching that state of perfection or rapture called Agape, or love. We have stressed friendship as a preliminary stepping-stone — not the superficial friendship of the Overleaves, but the sometimes harsh and unremitting friendship of those in your own pathway who will Photograph your Overleaves in both their Negative and Positive Poles, and this must be an almost constant phenomenon or it will not be successful.

Of course, we will not tell you who will be successful as a student; we cannot. All we can do is look at the potential of the Overleaves to allow the Teaching to be heard. We cannot safely predict that any particular Fragment will absorb , only that it has the ability. This is on the basis of past experiences as well as the present life experiences. Presented at the proper moment, this Teaching is palatable to about thirty percent of the world’s population, but for most to absorb it, it must be presented in that jargon that the Fragment already believes to be meaningful. No one of you is skilled enough to go forth and preach to the multitudes, but to individual students, yes. But we ask that you exercise care in that you know that the Fragment is asking ; a Teaching given against the will of the student never is absorbed.

This Entity has no other function but to teach, and could be considered enraptured. Within this state, it is no longer possible to render the judgments that you sometimes request. We are unable to consider the narrow perspective that a subjective judgment requires, and this would be true of you also if you were to reach this state.

Closeness physically with another compatible Fragment can sometimes produce an environment suitable for spiritual evolution, primarily because if there is considerable honesty and, therefore, trust between those involved, the vigil can be relaxed. Positive Poling is required for this relaxation to occur, and in most physical relationships there is too much Negative Poling .

For instance, spiritual evolution cannot occur in the presence of jealousy, envy, or greed. As long as the Chief Feature rules you, there will be no change. Perhaps you may wish to look at the way the Chief Feature rules each of you in this room.

Please do not underestimate the importance of the state of vigilance that the Overleaves maintain. This is perhaps the most important concept that you as students must absorb. You must verify this in your own Overleaves and begin to consciously relax this vigil before any evolution can occur.

The process of seeking the King is not synonymous with changing Roles — it is rather an inner seeking of the highest spiritual value. Within each of you is the potential of kingliness. To seek this is to seek the throne, which is, of course, euphemistically describing that state of enrapturement or Agape. Because of the peculiar religious values of your cultural experience, that expression is simply a little more palatable, as is “the devil” a more readily accepted term for the allurement presented by the culture. Let us reemphasize that spiritual evolution is anti-cultural and, therefore, threatening to the majority of all — not only on this planet, but in all the universe as well.

If one feels the presence of the God spirit, why does it matter whether it is within or without? For that matter, when this presence is truly felt and acknowledged, there is a oneness that can no longer be destroyed. There is a knowing at that point and the student then enters “the kingdom”, which is freedom.

The transition between believing and knowing is incomparably difficult. There is nothing more difficult, believe us. We have made much of that transition, for in order to “know,” you must abandon your beliefs, and that is the most painful of all abandonments; they are what hold you to the Physical Plane.

We have never told you that this is anything but difficult. You pay a magnificent price for that freedom that is enlightenment. It is freedom in the truest sense of the word. Paradoxically, all human life yearns to be free, while it expends tremendous energy developing mind prisons for itself. The yearning for God is that same state.

It is sad, it is wistful, and to those of us who no longer yearn, it is tragic, for the tendrils of frustration and anguish traverse the entire physical universe. If any one of you could hear the screams of all the thousands of civilizations, you would abandon many of your personal dilemmas, for you would realize that life problems are largely insoluble, and this is a part of the drama that you are starring in. Each frame that you play creates a new opportunity for you to tire of the charade, but seldom is this recognized, and the play goes on. Within this room is gathered a group that at least can be angry about its imprisonment.

There is danger in the stuck-ness that the Centers provide, for most of you are enamored of the particular Centering from which you operate. This happens over and over again, for the desire for enrapturement is strong in all of you. It is only your objects that get you into trouble — especially your “love objects” — for these are loved mostly by your Centers and, therefore, reinforce the notion that your stuck-ness is right.

Love from the higher Centers cannot even be made by the part of the lower Center from which the Overleaves operate. It can be glimpsed in those rare moments when the Overleaves are vanquished, either by mind expanders or by religious ecstasy or by application of the Work — that is, either through meditation or concentration that is diligently pursued.

The group high that is experienced by the student is, oddly enough, an excellent stepping-stone. This is why this Entity emphasizes group Work rather than solitary struggle. What you are seeking, dear students, is a high and it is the highest high that you can possibly imagine, and however you get there is not nearly as important as the thing itself. What do you think that word (Agape) means? Agape is the highest high.

November 4, 1977

No, Cynthia, the material is obviously not all there, as you — and we mean that collectively — are not satisfied and still search. When enlightenment occurs the quest is over, at least insofar as the Physical Plane is concerned. We have been so far unable to instill in you the permission, or give you the permission to seek that ecstasy or joy that is the end product of all that you seek. However, at least all of you are experimenting with the possibility that there may be such a state as ecstasy.

This meditation takes deep concentration, you visualize, you describe it at the same time, and very often hands move in the process.  Instead of allowing a visualization to morph on its own, this exercise holds a unified focus very tightly.  It also allows the ego/CF the opportunity to get used to including others directly in the meditative state and to stay conscious, connected and speak throughout.  Each speaker can also add to the experience  the environment in which they are, the emotions being felt and the effect of energy  -- so this viz would get more complex and integrated with practice.

Edit to add:  I had discussed the different methods for the new wave of teaching to manifest and thought of a Whiteboard that everyone colored in.   Jan suggested that at the next gathering that we put up a large board with all kinds of fabrics, ribbon, paper, stickies and etc.   It would be the "Me and Higher Self helped make this board"  area where everyday you stop by, connect to higher self and see what they are given to add to the board.   Every day you can stop by a couple of times and practice this tactile and active form of channeling.

After the viz, and we all shared our impressions, I asked the question of, "If we wanted to teach channeling at a Gathering, and we were to set an hour aside for that, for 5 days, what would that look like?  Particular as Emotion/Energy based, for beginners to experienced students, and to use voice channeling up front."   We came up with:

Day 1:  Feeling the Energy 

Day 2: Connecting Heart Chakras

Day 3: Allowing that we CAN, Inviting Imagination

Day 4: Pass the Energy Ball around the Circle.  Conscious meditation handing the energy ball from one person to the next in the circle.

Day 5: Tell the story.  We meditate a little and then break to consciously contribute a word, or words we feel moved to say, around the circle and build a story, or message.  Probably record this and then play it back.  .

We discussed whether large or small groups would be efficient for this work, how essence contact would be key.

I had also shared that I felt the infinite soul presence and an invitation to carry that presence and do verbal intuitive work.  CF is currently self-depping its buns off.   But the idea of teaching verbal channeling and doing so from the beginning of the learning process and not the end is what developed the 5 day scenario.

Kath

This also gives us more experience in energy based concentration exercises.

You are sitting in a field. You see the sunlight. You see it and feel its effect on you. You also feel and see its effects on the trees. You can see and feel its effects on your entire physical environment at once: the sunlight filtering through the trees, the sunlight calling the bees to action, the sunlight on your back, the sunlight as radiant energy, the sun as a source of light and heat. You can hold all of these impressions separately and yet recognize them as an integrated whole. To do this requires separation from maya.  

We added at the end:  Transform these images into energy constructs.

Approach this visualization from the emotional center, from the heart chakra.  Ground yourself in love that is unconditional, let it draw you into the light, a white light that is softly diffuse.  Call in all that can sense us, hear us, those that know the light/love of infinite creation, from every plane of existence to share this experience.  Around you perceive the movement of waves of light, beautiful fractals of brilliant hues of light, roiling, restlessly moving around the s/Self.  Perceive with your emotions, walk through the field of chaos energy and call it to you, give it a direction, hold it in your heart and in your hands… and begin to create with it. 

Together we build the base of light that supports new lines of probabilities based firmly in love:  acceptance, tolerance, inclusion, uplift, whatever speaks of agape to you, and you can express through your gifts; do not hesitate, do not question.  Simply create it as art, music, poetry, or something entirely different and unique to you — constructed with light.  Follow your heart.   Place in this new form all those qualities of love that bring us together as One and will become the new standing wave, the new paradigm, the new base.   We do not seek to control or to guide it, only to create and offer it with no conditions to the All – our gift to ourselves, to all others.

Compilations from the transcripts of the original Michael Teachings group.

• The transcripts of the original Michael Teachings group have been determined to be in the public domain. Any content or commentary added by the author/compiler is copyright: CC by NC-ND and please attribute kathryn appliedunity.com .
  
  

This is a small compilation on the nature of chief feature.  With the subtlety of CF never far away from the day to day lives of students on the path, this is one of the more critical subjects to review.

…………….

09-27-1973

Would Reichian Therapy help me in overcoming my chief feature? I see it making changes in some of my friends.

• No. It would not be of assistance because you have within yourself the answer and can find it for yourself. They can only help those who are enmired in the world of false perceptions.

I down myself or else give expert advice. It seems like it’s a monad.

• The advice-giving-mothering complex is a part of false personality. This can be counteracted only be realizing that the solution to a “problem” resides only in the one involved. You cannot solve anything for anyone but yourself. Your chief feature of self-deprecation stems from karmic ribbons.

Do I resent this?

• You cannot divorce knowledge of the hats you have worn from your present role. The feeling is not bad work. In fact, it shows considerable evolution. A younger soul would not perceive this at all and would merely choose not to understand.

01/03/1974

• Can you now see a correlation between the chief feature and the goal?  Vanity and arrogance are both chief features found in dominant souls.

02/27/1974

• We are here with you. That is close, but was not the one we would give next. We would tell you tonight that there are primarily seven negative outlooks, or what you have been calling “chief features”. All variations are merely permutations of these.  

May we have the next overleaves?

• These chief features can be stated as: impatience, arrogance, greed, stubbornness — which includes tenacity — self-deprecation, martyrdom, self-destruction.

Half are outwards and half are inwards.  Can these be changed in our lifetime? Can you get rid of them?

• You must grow to extinguish this.

In other words, we must go through our chief features to arrive at agape.

• You must grow to the point where this is no longer a barrier to agape. The perceptions of the transcendental soul can be used as a guide for “consciousness”, at least, subjectively so. Objective consciousness can be compared to the perceptions of the infinite soul.

What function does chief feature have and what role does it play?

• We would say an enormous part. Often it alone prevents the soul from operating out of the role in essence.

How does it come to be in our lives? Do we choose it?

• It is chosen, yes, as is everything.

It was said my chief feature was vanity. Is this so?

• Vanity is a part of arrogance ; we agree with that. Self-pity is a part of self-deprecation .