Who are you?
At some point in your life, you may have asked yourself: Am I my body? Am I my mind? Am I my soul? While the answer may be yes to all these questions, deep down, if you are a seeker, you know the answers are incomplete. You may ponder which part of you was the one created in God’s image. You look all around for an answer that seems elusive, and hidden. The good news is that the answer is simple and reachable, that you don’t need to look far because your Real Self is in you, waiting to be discovered and assimilated so you can become what you were meant to be from the beginning.
What is the Higher Self?
The real you is known by many names: the Higher Self, the Christ Self, the Atman, the Sambhogakaya, the Transpersonal Self, etc. The Higher Self is a concept that is part of multiple belief systems and that is used to describe “an eternal, omnipotent, conscious and intelligent being, who is one’s real self.”[i] In the Hindu religion the Sanskrit word Atman is used to describe this part of man as: breath, soul, Universal Self, supreme Spirit. This inner essence is in everyone, the absolute consciousness that is identical to Brahman and is the imperishable core of man.[ii]
For the Buddhists the Sambhogakaya is one of the three bodies of the Buddha. As the middle body it is the Body of Bliss or Glorified Body, the form the Buddha uses to reveal himself in his glory to the bodhisattvas to enlighten and inspire them. It corresponds to the Higher Self. [iii]
The ascended masters, saints and sages of all ages who has risen from all walks of life and graduated from earth’s schoolroom[iv], teach that the Higher Self/Christ Self is the Universal Christ individualized as the true identity of the soul. The part of you that is real and which you must aim to become. It is the mediator between you and God, your personal Teacher, Master and Prophet. When you achieve the soul-identification with the Christ Self, you will be called a Christed one.[v]
In the world of psychology, psychosynthesis[vi] introduces the concept of Transpersonal Self which is equivalent to the Higher Self. In the book, What We May Be, Piero Ferrucci presents techniques that deal with personal psychology and that guide the individual to reach the ultimate achievement of realizing this Transpersonal Self. He defines it as “the true essence beyond all masks and conditionings”, the sat-chit-ananda: being-consciousness-bliss of man.[vii]
“The Transpersonal Self, while retaining a sense of individuality, lives at the level of universality, in a realm where personal plans and concerns are overshadowed by the wider vision of the whole. The realization of the Transpersonal Self is the mark of spiritual fulfillment.”[viii]
Hence, you may identify yourself with your physical body, mind and soul, but these parts are not permanent, it is only by becoming who you really are, your Higher Self, that you truly become immortal.
How to connect with your Higher Self?
An internet search will show multiple recommendations on how to connect with your Higher Self. They typically involve meditation, yoga and other techniques. The ones I am sharing here are based on the teachings of the ascended masters through the messengers Mark L. Prophet and Elizabeth C. Prophet. They are based on practical spirituality that will help you on your trek through the path of initiation.
Step 1: Depersonalize yourself
If you are serious in your realization of the Higher Self some discipline is required. One of the steps is to consciously shift your focus from your persona to your Higher Self. This process is called depersonalization.
In the book Advanced Studies in Understanding Yourself, Mrs. Prophet teaches that the goal in depersonalization is to replace the human with the Christ. This is accomplished by switching your focus from perfecting your human four lower bodies[ix] to striving to merge with the Christ Self. From being ego-centered to be Christ-centered.[x]
“Your matrix is striving for oneness with the perfection that you already are. …striving to be one with it, striving to outpicture, striving to make your soul and your consciousness the proper vehicle for the mind which was in Christ Jesus”[xi]
Depersonalization is walking away from making your human-self perfect and concentrating on becoming the Higher Self.[xii]
Step 2: Devotion and meditation
You must also focus your devotion and attention to the masters. By doing this you establish a figure eight pattern of energy flow, that becomes a spiritual connection with them (as above so below) and will help you stay focused on your Christ goal.[xiii]
Devotion is exercising the power of the spoken word through prayers, decrees, mantras, fiats, invocations, bhajans[xiv], affirmations and songs that use the energy of sound to “release the energy, the intelligence, and the motivation of your own self-mastery.”[xv] The messengers teach that the goal of effective decreeing is to unlock the energies of your Higher Self.[xvi]
Prayer and meditation work together. Just as prayer contacts God, drawing down into your world the rays of divine intercession, so, meditation lifts you up that you may be bathed in the radiance of the Eternal.[xvii] The masters describe meditation as an aeration of the mind, “a flushing-out of silt and misconception, and a purifying process. “In prayer man makes intercession to God for assistance; in meditation he gives assistance to God by creating the nature of God within his own thoughts and feelings.”[xviii]
Step 3: Service
Service is another way to shift your focus from the human matrix. Service to others becomes a means to self-discovery, finding your life reason for being in service, your dharma[xix]. When you follow your dharma, you have a reason to strive for a perfection that is completely unattached from the self.[xx]
Choosing to become your Higher Self
The decision to become your Higher Self is yours. This is your destiny, the mission you must embark to become whole and achieve soul liberation.
Book recommendations:
- The Science of the Spoken Word by Mark L. & Elizabeth C. Prophet
- Prayer and Meditation by Mark L. & Elizabeth C. Prophet
- What We May Be by Piero Ferrucci
For more information visit The Summit Lighthouse website: https://www.summitlighthouse.org/
[i] Higher Self. (2021). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_self
[ii] Atman. (2016). Retrieved from https://encyclopedia.summitlighthouse.org/index.php/Atman
[iii] Sambhogakaya. (2016). Retrieved from https://encyclopedia.summitlighthouse.org/index.php/Sambhogakaya
[iv] Prophet, Mark L. & Prophet, Elizabeth C. (1985). Saint Germain on Alchemy. pp. 361. California, Summit University Press
[v] Prophet, Mark L. & Prophet, Elizabeth C. (1985). Saint Germain on Alchemy. pp. 383. California, Summit University Press
[vi] Psychosynthesis is an approach to human development initiated by Roberto Assagioli that focuses on achieving the synthesis of the various parts of the human personality into a more cohesive self.
[vii] Ferrucci, Piero. (2004). What We May Be. pp. 39. New York, Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin
[viii] Ibid.
[ix] The four lower bodies of man are four sheaths consisting of four distinct frequencies which surround the soul – the physical, emotional, mental, and etheric, providing vehicles for the soul in its journey in time and space.
[x] Elizabeth C. Prophet. (2015). Advanced Studies in Understanding Yourself. pp. 224. Montana, Summit University Press
[xi] Ibid. pp. 225
[xii] Ibid. 227
[xiii] Ibid. 228
[xiv] A bhajan is a spiritual song as well as group worship through music and song. Bhajans are customarily performed in a soloist-group format.
[xv] Prophet, Mark L. & Prophet, Elizabeth C. (2004). The Science of the Spoken Word. pp.xvii. Montana, Summit University Press
[xvi] Ibid.
[xvii] Prophet, Mark L. & Prophet, Elizabeth C. (1978). Prayer and Meditation. pp. 64. Montana, Summit University Press
[xviii] Ibid.
[xix] Dharma is the holy duty of every individual. This Sanskrit word means “holding” and it is explained in Indian religions as the eternal and inherent nature of reality, regarded in Hinduism as a cosmic law underlying right behavior and social order.
[xx] Elizabeth C. Prophet. (2015). Advanced Studies in Understanding Yourself. pp. 228 – 229. Montana, Summit University Press
Thank you for sharing your insights and for the wonderful reminder of connecting with our Higher Self.
Great article that was enjoyable to read! Your tips on how to connect with your Higher Self are practical and a good reminder to focus on the divine.