Exploring Heaven and Hell, the Ego, Karma and the Chakras

In my philosophy, we (as individuals) are not God in its entirety; but embodied (physical) parts of God, much like everything in nature, that have the unique capacity for awareness of this fact.

Like brain cells in an individual human brain functioning to think without the understanding that they are a part of a larger, overall body—we simply cannot see the whole picture of our existence from this separated perspective.

In this post, I dive headfirst into my developing philosophy on:

• The Garden of Eden and the creation of the Ego
• How this relates to heaven and hell as states of being
• How chakra associations can help us balance this dual nature as humans
• How the seasons provide a blueprint for us to study, develop, and deepen this practice.

On Heaven, Hell & the Garden of Eden

The bare bones of my philosophy here look something like this:

• God is Spirit, One, All, Nature, Wholeness. Everything as one.
• The Devil is the Ego, Separation & Shadow: Only exists where conscious experience of God (thought) exists—I.E. In humans.
• Garden of Eden is simply egoless, wild, early ‘human’ life—before conscious thought. The story of Adam & Eve, when humans awakened from animals (fruit/mushroom), illustrates how we were cursed with the ego and cast out of the garden—in mythology this being as animals weren’t supposed to have ‘Godly knowledge’. Because we are embodied spirit, knowing that we are (I think, therefore I am) and that we cannot fully experience God in its entirety, creates existentialism. From naked and unafraid to naked and afraid: early homosapiens were ‘born’.
• Heaven and hell are ways of being that exist right here on Earth during life as a human being living post Garden of Eden.
• Heaven/the path of God/the Godly way of being for a human = Egoless, acting with consciousness, working at our highest nature/way of being.
• Hell/the path of the Devil/the Animal’s way of being for a human = Solely ego-driven, acting without consciousness, personal and material pleasures, working at our lowest nature/way of being.
• Life as a human being requires us to balance these two natures. Our original animal nature and the Godly nature that Adam & Eve awakened. We have to act to maintain balance in these dual natures, and as we do, we create karma for ourselves. This simply the natural consequence of our actions, neither “good” nor “bad”—but some karma may be preferable to the human mind.

Karma as the path of heaven and hell

To dive into a bit more detail, these are my thoughts on karma as the path of heaven and hell, right here on Earth.

If we are too out of touch with our Godly nature (the path of Heaven) we will induce karma of being too attached to the material world and our personal material needs.

For example, we may fall into patterns of greed, narcissism, paranoia, isolation, separation, defensiveness or aggression, and even problems surrounding diet and food intake, which can all have an obvious karmic impact on an individual.

Using the philosophy outlined above, if we become too rooted in the lower way of being (acting without consciousness), the heavenly path (aka acting with consciousness/awareness of all is one) can balance the Ego just by bringing awareness to it. In other words, Gods light can literally shine out the temptation of the devil (Ego.)

But that’s only if we go through that process of illumination in order to shine out the devil. We can’t simply ignore and repress temptations of the ego. That’s where the it—and it’s attached shadow—grows.

We have to learn how to actively bring our own ego into the light of that larger Self/God/conscious nature. We have to ‘confess our sins’, so to speak, and experience our own Crucifixion and rebirth: out of the shadows of the ego and into the light of consciousness.

However, it’s important to remember that we also cannot fully become one with unembodied God or Spirit while still human—we will always also have an animalistic and physical nature that will also need tending to.

This means if we only do the work of God, our physical bodies and material safety will be out of balance. For example, severely malnourished monks that meditate for vast periods of time, loss of individual self through prolonged mystical experiences, loss of relationships through isolation, and manifestations of other mental and physical illnesses due to neglect of the material world.

Where do the chakras fit into all of this?

If you’re a long-time chakra lover like me, you can probably already clearly see the chakra associations above as we move through the karmic path of heaven and hell above.

To look at these associations, I believe a real suspension of our previous ideas of ‘heaven’ and ‘hell’ are needed. ‘Hell’ is naturally seen as a loaded word; a done deal to an eternity after this life spent burning. But if ‘hell’ is simply a life spent in the ego, it becomes easier to pull out the associations here.

We are naturally ‘cursed’ with the ego (Root Chakra)—along with being ‘blessed’ by unplanned human consciousness (Crown Chakra.) As such, the ego is an inherent part of us. And since it only exists where conscious experience of God (thought) exists—I.E. only in humans—we specifically have to align and balance both of these natures in order to live as our divine selves.

How do we do this? The Heart Chakra. The Heart Chakra is the divine human midpoint between these two inherent natures. It is the path between heaven and hell.

By using the Heart to anchor and integrate both the Root (Ego) and Crown (Higher Self/Consciousness) we can live from a divine point of Love/Aum. As I talked about in the chakra associations in my lunar deity practice, the chakras in between these three divine points (I.E. the Third Eye & Throat and the Solar Plexus & Sacral) can be used for even deeper integration.

Does nature give us a timeline for balancing our ego and higher self?

In short: yes, I think so.

We can use solar deity work and mythology and the divine seasons of the Sun as a timeline for balancing these paths. We can even find a timeline for going through this work in these stories of Jesus—the Son, or Sun, of God—in keeping with our Christian symbolism theme:

• Winter/Root Chakra—Birth of the Sun: Trees do not die in Winter; life force returns to the roots of the tree, retreats within, inward, deep, grounded, rooted, once rejuvenated can birth a new sun/cycle. Jesus is born into Earth.
• Spring/Heart Chakra—Death/Rebirth of Sun: In blossom, blooming, flourishing, signs of vitality and growth, the peak of youth. Release to grow—Jesus is crucified and born again.
• Summer/Crown Chakra—Ascension of Sun to Father: What was once a blossom may now become a fruit, ripening and culmination, the heat of life, maturation of capacities & production, vibration and celebration. Jesus rejoins God.
• Autumn/Heart Chakra—Descent of Holy Spirit: Leaves start to change colour, trees begin process of letting go, simplifying, shedding. Release to renew—build faith in the birth of a new sun (or faith in the Holy Spirit.)

So right now—we’re heading from the Autumn, Season of the Holy Spirit (where we hold faith and release in order to renew) and into Winter, the Birth of the Sun (where we retreat, turn inward, and prepare for a new Sun).

In terms of our Egoic and Godly nature, we may be in a season more rooted in the personal and material world, that asks us to turn our life force inwards and let it shine on our personal shadows before we culminate any more successes or bear any more fruit.

This can be a great time in the year for releasing habits, beliefs, relationships, and outdated rules that no longer serve you. Hold faith in your heart for the birth of a new season (and Sun) and allow nature to shed what it will.

Ensure that your physical and personal world is in order before seeking to act outwardly or serve the collective. Remember: there will be seasons for that, too.