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17 DAYS OF SPIRITUAL WISDOM
How to escape the matrix
If you would burn up your lower Karmic aspects, you would serve.
If you would, at this very moment, begin to build tomorrow’s temple upon the sure foundations of today’s right action, you would serve.
If you would be free from the materialistic prison cunningly devised to enslave you, you would serve.
If you would be detached from your own petty worries, you would serve.
If you would enjoy better health, you would serve.
If you would prepare yourselves for the New World, you would serve.
Self-help is a massive industry – and a massive subject in the media. Here we have a being from another planet giving humanity facets of the ultimate self-help manifesto. Here we have the most important advice we could possibly be given to get out of our current problems, and to grow as individuals.
And the line that I’d really like to highlight here is this absolute gem:
If you would be free from the materialistic prison cunningly devised to enslave you, you would serve.
There’s a lot of talk on social media about “Leaving the Matrix”, about sinister control by an elite either in government, or controlling government from behind the scenes. There’s talk of how we are being brainwashed en masse, lied to, weakened etc.
Some of what is said is true, and some goes a bit far, and some doesn’t go far enough, but the real point I’d like to make is not the details of what the problem is – but what the solution is.
The problem is summed up by Mars Sector 6 as a “materialistic prison”. Obviously we are not physically in prison, so what is this prison? It is a mental prison. A prison of our own minds. If it is in our own minds, it means that we have accepted it. If we have accepted it, it means we can reject it.
How do we reject it?
One growing trend is to believe that escaping the matrix can be achieved through becoming wealthy – especially through becoming an unconventional – outside the box – businessman – and then leading this very appealing life of fast cars, private jets, beautiful women and so on.
This is not escaping the matrix, this is just being in a nicer part of the matrix – but actually more imprisoned than ever.
The way to escape the matrix – to free ourselves from the materialistic prison – is not the accumulation of vast wealth for our own selfish purposes.
The way to escape the matrix is to help others. This is freedom. You can’t be controlled by anyone if your only allegiance is to helping others. The way we are controlled is through the promise of ease, comfort, popularity, and the fulfilment of all our basic desires. If we take these things off our priority list, and instead focus on helping other people – on building a better world – for everyone – we might not be rich, we might not have an instagrammably enviable lifestyle – but – mentally – we will be free.
You might say, what if a guy makes hundreds of millions of dollars and uses it in service to others – well that of course is totally different. That’s not being a slave of the matrix – of the materialistic prison – that is using the matrix to subvert the matrix. It’s showing that you have control over it, not that it has control over you. And using money to genuinely help the world is definitely a great way of being of service. Not the only way, by any means, but certainly a great way.
But, by “helping the world” I don’t mean just taking in a handful of stray dogs – or giving 0.0000001 percent of your income to charity – like… token “nice guy” behaviour – I mean really dedicating your focus, your energy, your wealth, into making a difference on as big a scale as you possibly can.
This is the secret of freedom. This is the key out of the materialistic prison. This is the secret door out of the matrix.
Materialism is the belief – the lie – that the meaning of life is the accumulation of things and pleasure brought by the senses. This is the great lie. If we believe this lie – we are enslaved. It’s that simple.
Whereas if we believe we are Sparks of God – that everything is a Spark of God, and that therefore everything is one – then we know that the meaning of life is not wealth – but wisdom. What is wisdom? Wisdom is love – true selfless love – in practical action. This is freedom.
This post is based on Mark Bennett’s contribution to the Spiritual Freedom Show with Richard Lawrence. This episode was released on September 17th, 2022, and is entitled ‘How to escape the matrix‘. You can listen to the episode here and subscribe to the show here.
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Also listen to our related podcast ‘How to escape the matrix‘, hosted by Mark Bennett with Darren Ball.
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About the author
Mark Bennett is the co-author of two books, both of which he wrote with international bestselling author Richard Lawrence, namely Prayer Energy and Gods, Guides and Guardian Angels, which was voted “best book on spirituality 2007” by readers of Kindred Spirit magazine. He is the youngest International Director of The Aetherius Society, whose teachings he chose as his spiritual path at an early age.
All the blogposts written for aetherius.org are written by experienced Aetherius Society personnel and approach themes relating to the teachings, practices and ideals of the Society. However, they also contain personal opinions, insights and interpretations that are not necessarily representative of the Society as a whole, or all of its Members as individuals.
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A very slow awakening is currently happening globally at national and international levels. It will continue for at least another decade but the next two years will show exponential increase in humanity’s awareness.
The fact of the matter is simple, the AETHERIUS SOCIETY is well ahead of most organisations be it Spiritual, Corporal, or Religious and almost 90% of humanity are stuck with those systems.
The shift to near or below 50% can happen anytime between now and ten years time.
Organisations will spring up to aid awakening but some will be false with ulterior motives. However, the Aetherius Society will increase in followers as well as the new organisations that demonstrate, credibility, accountability, transparency, etc, will also increase their followers ” by their seeds, you will know them”. I remain a true friend of the Aetherius Society.
Great article. A welcome reminder not to get get caught up with conspiracy theories, but devoting that time to service
Thank you Mark. In relation to your article, can you please also tell us about the mental revolution?
Thank you, Mark, for your excellent points. Your point about “Leaving the matrix” as seen on social media, resonated. We know that conspiracies exist on this planet; they always have. It is certainly good to be aware of what is going on. I don’t believe as some in the self-help movement do, that we should only focus on the positive and turn a blind eye to all the bad things happening in the world. However, I believe that the problem with wholeheartedly embracing conspiracy theories as many seem to do now is that they stimulate the lower, conscious mind and become addictive. This important but lower part of our intellect is then stimulated so much that it can also block the higher intuitive mind, As you so rightly say, the answer to find freedom is to give service. I think it’s because it’s also a response of the heart and so not only helps others but frees us in a way that an overly stimulated, obsessive conscious mind cannot. Thanks for all you do, Mark; you certainly are an example of someone who has dedicated his life in service, and so your words carry a lot of weight in my book.
My personal feeling is that materialism in general manifestation in the world is a great deal more subtle than merely a desire for wealth accumulation, or the ostentatious display of ‘prestigious’ consumer goods such as top of the range Mercs, Audis or BMWs, though admittedly Britons in gentler and less narcissistic times took pride in the appearance of their gardens rather than what model of car they currently drive.
In the mainly secular western world there is pretty much a consensus on what the average human being should aspire to in life, and it’s a narrative which is constantly drummed into our conscious and subconscious minds by the media and through societal and family pressures and expectations. In a way, people police each other so as to ensure social conformity with cultural ideals. So I would argue that ‘ the Matrix ‘ is not so much defined by a relatively small percentage of businessman or woman ‘ pursuing unconventional – outside the box -ways of making fortunes, ‘ or even people obsessed with ‘ conspiracy theories ‘ but rather its more the all pervasive and suffocating societal narrative which Mr and Mrs average have chosen to adhere to in life, as it accords with a broader societal conditioning which they will have been bombarded with from cradle to grave.
Central to this narrative is that we have one life, and that effectively we are walking lumps of meat driven by electrical activity in the brain. Clearly with only a few meagre decades to live our lives before we snuff out of existence for good, it’s logical to deduce that the best approach to life is to seek happiness.
In fact the belief that life is mainly about seeking fulfillment through the attainment of ‘ happiness ‘ took root in the 18th century, when the values of the Enlightenment ushered in the notion that happiness was the barometer of a fulfilled life. Since then the pursuit of happiness in the western world has gained momentum and spread to every aspect of behaviour, from religion and politics to work and parenting.
And of course the belief that life is all about achieving the holy grail of ‘ happiness ‘ fits hand in glove with that other cultural invention of the 18th century – the ideal of ‘ romantic love. ‘
Up to that point in human history people had married so as to cement alliances between families for their survival – a means of negotiating and exchanging land and monetary wealth. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution however – and the vast movement of human beings from villages and towns into cities – people attained a sudden independence ( including financially ) from their familes. Therefore the ideal of attaining happiness cross-pollinated with the ideal of ‘ finding a partner through romantic feelings and living happily ever after. ‘ Over time the commercial world developed and exploited this ideal so as to generate immense fortunes through extolling this ideal through movies, novels, magazines, TV programmes, pop music etc.
One cultural ideal then spawns further ideals. So for example in the west the ideal of attaining romantic love fulfillment has caused an obesssive promotion of the cult of physical attractiveness in the media due to it being considered the most important factor in attaining romantic fullfillment – particularly for young people. This in turn has created severe mental health issues amongst western youth.
Today in the secular west I would say that the materialistic narrative of ‘ mainstream society ‘ runs broadly along these lines ;
1) We have one life – and we nothing more than the body. Therefore as youth diminishes – and the aesthetic appeal of the body diminishes – our sense of self-worth declines accordingly.
2) Consciousness is merely the result of electrical activity in the brain ( even though science does not yet understand how this process magically happens )
3) Our purpose on Earth is to attain ‘ happiness.’ To some extent this constitutes a kind of duty in liife.
4) Happiness can best be achieved via romantic attachment through randomly meeting a stranger who will become ‘ the love of one’s life ‘
5) Family life is the ultimate fullfillment – a reward for attaining the ideal of romantic love. It is the path to ‘ living happily ever after ‘ which is the holy grail of the materialistic life, despite the one life only lasting a few decades.
6) The diligent and single minded pursuit of domestication ( having attained the romantic love ideal ) is a human being’s greatest responsibility and societal duty in life. Failure to to attain this ideal would be tantamount to short-changing society, and is indicative of a type of shortcoming in one’s character.
7) A citizen’s primary moral and civic duty is to achieve material and financial comfort and security for his or her family – ‘ charity begins at home ‘ as the saying goes. Wider social duty and service has no place in this worldview – after all we are all individualised beings and ‘ strangers ‘ are somehow external to ourselves and therefore irrelevant.
8) Being ‘ single ‘ or alone is a type of ailment which needs to be cured so as to avoid social stigma. Spending too much time in solitude and inner reflection is indicative of being a social failure in some way – something that people should pity and try to help resolve. Introversion has no place in a society dominated by the extrovert ideal.
Buddah leaving behind his great wealth and family life to wander alone in poverty would be considered a scandal in today’s highly materialistic western world – a juicy story indeed for the newspapers and celebrity magazines to cover with the headline ; ‘ The Tragic Story Of The Prince Who Had It All But Abandoned His Family To Live As A Weird Recluse.”
Some quotes ;
“I live in that solitude which is painful in youth, but delicious in the years of maturity.” ~ Albert Einstein
“If you’re lonely when you’re alone, you’re in bad company.” ~ Jean-Paul Sartre
“I am never less alone than when alone.” ~ Cicero
“We live, in fact, in a world starved for solitude, silence, and private: and therefore starved for meditation and true friendship.” ~ C.S. Lewis
“A man can be himself alone so long as he is alone … if he does not love solitude, he will not love freedom; for it is only when he is alone that he is really free.” ~ Arthur Schopenhauer
One last point – it’s interesting to note that The Master Aetherius was asked about His opinion of human marriage in a question and answer session back in the 1950s. What He stated about this subject was then recorded in one of the very early Cosmic Voices. In fact He was actually extremely scathing about the whole concept of human marriage – and from what I remember He stated that if you have to get married then try to give each other a good deal of independence.
I deduce from this that a spiritual aspirant perhaps need to carefully examine and question ALL the beliefs and values which ‘mainstream society ‘ has so deeply impressed into his or her conscious and subconscious minds.
Further to my previous post, I thought this selection of quotes to be quite thought-provoking ;
“Our culture made a virtue of living only as extroverts. We discouraged the inner journey, the quest for a center. So we lost our center and have to find it again ” – Anais Nin
“Those who know do not speak. Those who speak do not know ” – Lao Tsu
“Ordinary men hate solitude. But the Master makes use of it, embracing his aloneness, realizing he is one with the whole universe ” – Lao Tzu
“But we make a grave mistake to embrace the Extrovert Ideal so unthinkingly. Some of our greatest ideas, art and inventions – from the theory of evolution, to van Goch’s sunflowers, to the personal computer – came from quiet and cerebral people who knew how to tune in to their inner worlds and the treasures to be found there ” – Susan Cain
“Essentially it is the spiritual dimension to our existence that has been dangerously neglected during the modern era – the dimension which is related to our intuitive feelings about things. The increasing tendency in mainstream Western thinking to ignore this spiritual dimension comes from a combination of the growth of cynicism during the latter half of the twentieth century and the wholesale dismissal of the big philosophical questions about our existence….so we end up with two fundamentalist reductionist camps that oppose each other. On the one side, a fundamentalist secularism and on the other, fundamentalist religions ” – HRH King Charles
“Our culture takes pride in being scientific, our time is referred to as the Scientific Age. It is dominated by rational thought, and scientific knowledge is often considered the only acceptable kind of knowledge. That there can be intuitive knowledge, or awareness, which is just as valid and reliable, is generally not recognised. This attitude, known as scientism, is widespread, pervading our educational system and all other social and political institutions ” – Fritjof Capra
“All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone ” – Blaise Pascal
“Loneliness is the poverty of self ; solitude is the richness of self ” – May Sarton
“Your inner voice is the voice of divinity. To hear it, we need to be in solitude, even in crowded places ” – A.R Rahman
“The more powerful and orginal a mind, the more it will incline towards the religion of solitude ” – Aldous Huxley
“Religion is what an individual does with his solitariness ” – Alfred North Whitehead
“In the midst of winter, I found there was within me, an invincible summer ” – Albert Camus