In the Aquarian Age to come, there will be a great restructuring of the role of the individual versus society. For peace and harmony to truly manifest throughout the world, all people must be aware of the intricate web in which we are all part. Further, they must realize that all other beings are their brethren in consciousness, and that all beings together are one whole existing one planet, Earth. The time has come to move from a loose collection of independent self-centered individuals, to a true society of cooperatively interdependent Self-realized beings. Until we do this, the Age of Aquarius will remain only a dream; for the very essence of this foretold age is founded on the Unity that comes from individuals aligned with each other and acting as one.
What is Society?
Society is a group of human beings, held together by agreement for reasons that are mutually beneficial to the individual members. Societies operate as a whole, as a collective body, chiefly in ways that look out for the highest common good of all. Members have specific roles and responsibilities within the society. One of the best direct analogies is with the human body itself. The cells are all alive, independently, yet they group together and establish roles, responsibilities, and relationships that allow a greater whole to exist that is more than just the sum of the parts. The cells gain from the specific roles they play because they are allowed to be what they are more effectively. Further, they are given a limited awareness of the whole that their efforts aid in creating.
Similarly, when individual human beings group together to form societies, an organization is created in which the members are the cells. Subgroups of the members may form organs through which higher level functions can than manifest. If the relationships are loose, the body created has limited functionality over that of any individual member because there is little synergy. When the relationships are close and founded on a basis of love, the body thus created has significant functionality over that of the individuals. When the group is small, few organs can be created so there is limited complexity or functionality. When the group is large, many organs can be created, resulting in highly increased complexity and functionality.
Countries, regions, states cities, and neighborhoods could all be considered to be societies as could teams, groups, and any other organizations of people. For our purposes here, the most important society is The United States of America since it is the one established to set up the New Order for the Ages, Novus Ordo Seclorum.
Society is more than the government, however. It also includes all the economic and social infrastructure necessary to provide people with what they need.
The Contract Between Individuals and Society
Currently, we do not sign a contract with society. All that is asked of us is that we abide by the laws of the land. If we do so, we are free to go about our own business as we will. If not, and if we are caught, we pay the applicable penalty which may include restriction of our freedom. Society does not owe us anything, nor does it expect anything from us. If we become extremely needy, society may help via some social program. We pay taxes to provide some basic common services such as security, roads, law enforcement, and various social programs.
The economic system part of society has no overall contracts with us either. It does not guarantee us jobs, as evidenced by the current high levels of unemployment. When we do find jobs, we are either hired by the month, the hour or the piece. The job is worth what the employer is willing to pay and the employee is willing to take. The contract is for the employee to put in time and effort in return for wages. In many cases, there is no guarantee of continued employment by the employer, and the employee is expected to provide two weeks notice for termination. The bottom line is that getting work and keeping work is up to the individual. One exception is that unions are established to enable individuals to bargain collectively.
From this, it is obvious that at very basic levels, our society is still functioning as a very loose collection of individuals. Only basic services are provided by the government, and the free market economy is driven by profits, not by supplying the needs of individuals. As a result, we see massive problems all over the country in nearly every area of life: education, health care, crime, employment, etc. We've grown past the point where individuals or small groups can take care of themselves. Modern life has too much complexity for that. However, even though our lives have grown much more complex, our infrastructures and organizations within society have not evolved to meet the changing needs. We still have no real contract with society. This has to change, and soon -- or, our problems will literally bury us.
Pure communism offers a contract of cooperative interdependence between and among its constituent citizenry. It says:
- From each in accord with their abilities.
- To each in accord with their needs.
The human body is clearly set up in a cooperatively interdependent manner. Individual cells do not have to worry about whether their needs will be met. Various body systems take care of getting food, air and fluids into the body. Other systems break the raw materials down. Other systems ensure that the proper nutrients are distributed where they are needed. Still others ensure waste is carried away. Systems cooperate to ensure that the needs of each individual are met. In return, the cell is only asked to do what it was designed to do, to function cooperatively in accord with it's abilities, taking directions from higher levels of organization as needed for the beneficial operation of the whole.
Nature itself operates in this same manner. Each individual organism is adapted to perform a unique function in its particular environment perfectly. It's simply amazing to see the beauty and diversity that arises from each being operating in this manner. Further, throughout the natural world, each individual is asked only to do those tasks for which it was designed in exchange for getting what it needs to exist. It is allowed to take whatever it needs for as long as it lives, but it may be taken itself to be consumed by another at any time. The end result is a system of incredible richness, wonder, and natural beauty.
In the Aquarian Age, this type of contract will be essential. But, it is not a contract between individuals and the government. It is a collective contract between individuals as equals choosing to create a new type of society between, among, and around them. The basic contract must be as stated before:
- From each in accord with their abilities.
- To each in accord with their needs.
However, for this to work we need a few terms defined -- in particular, abilities and needs. In addition, we need to be clear about how the from each and to each parts of the contract are to be executed. We'll leave both of these things until a bit later in the chapter. Also, it is interesting to note that cooperative interdependence by itself says nothing about the nature of the economic system that might be employed.
Questions of Private and Public Good
Before we go much further, we need to explore issues related to private and public good. We would prefer to preserve individual privacy and private good, yet the public good is equally important. Private good involves ensuring that each individual is provided a means for getting that individual's needs met. Needs are more than food, clothing, and shelter however. Needs encompass all areas of an individuals well-being: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. Many of the problems we see in this country today stem from the lack of any responsibility on the part of society for various aspects of these needs. For the most part, meeting one's needs is an individual responsibility. The national government was only given responsibility for overall security, laws and justice, international relations, and things that impacted the whole country. State and regional governments were given similar responsibilities for more limited areas, plus education. In very few cases are there any specific responsibilities for ensuring that individual needs are met. In fact, in most cases, individual rights and freedoms are specifically called out simply to ensure that the government doesn't overstep it's bounds.
In general, what is for the public good, has higher priority than private good, by the sheer power of numbers. Majority rules is the name of the game, except in the rare exception when specific guaranteed individual rights are involved. The current governmental structure does not ensure the common good is maintained either. Political power, and the sway of industry- backed lobbyists ensure that many decisions are made in a manner that is not necessarily for the largest public good, but instead is for the good of a few companies and a few specific localities.
The economic system within society provides the primary means by which individuals exchange their labor for the goods and services that they need. It does not guarantee anything, it simply provides an opportunity. For most of the history of the United States, this has been an unequal opportunity. The medical system is a key example of where the system does not work. The costs of care have risen unceasingly over the last few decades, making many people unable to afford medical care or even the cost of medical insurance. In addition, though we have high productivity and per capita income, we still have people that are homeless and starving; and, we have many people below the poverty level.
One key reason for this is that we don't look after each other very well. All the focus on the individual has placed nearly all responsibility there as well. The limited infrastructure set up by the government doesn't ensure that individual receive what is needed to discover and develop their talents and abilities. Further, even if this does happen, the economy doesn't ensure that there will be a job within the area in which one lives that can use those talents and abilities.
Emotional needs are rarely addressed at all, unless they become large enough problems to require psychological help. School is focused on educating the mind, primarily the logical left brain. It pays little attention to emotions or to the intuitive right brain modalities of thinking and knowing.
Spiritual needs are a matter left to the churches or to the individual. An individual is free to believe and practice in any way that individual chooses, so long as the method of practice does not break any laws. For most people, this involves being indoctrinated into the religion of their parents as kids. As adults, many people leave religion altogether. As the momentum behind the New Age builds, metaphysics presents people with various spiritual principles and ideas related to the nature of reality creation. Out of this core spring forth much of the information on which a foundation for the coming Age of Aquarius can be built.
On Freedom and the Pursuit of Happiness
The Declaration of Independence includes these powerful words:
- "We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
The next few statements deal with inalienable rights. Inalienable means that these rights cannot be taken away by anyone or transferred to anyone, PERIOD.
The first of the inalienable rights is life. How can this be? Everybody dies eventually. The key is that death is not the end of life, only a transition. This is true of sleep as well. Sleep is not considered to be the death of waking conscious only a transition that we go through each night, to awaken when we arise in the morning. Our Founding Fathers were some of the brightest men on the planet -- most of them were involved in various mystery schools such as Freemasonry. You can bet they knew what they were building and that they picked their words very carefully. Remember, they were founding a New Order of the Ages, carrying out a task of great importance to the entire world.
So, the only meaning there can be for this is that we were created in a manner that allows us to live forever. Since bodies are born and die, the essence that is being referred to must be our true natures, outside of our form in time and space. We are in truth infinite beings in potential, created in the image of our creator, endowed with the potential to learn and grow and become co-creators with our own creator.
The second inalienable right is liberty. But, what is liberty? Are any of us truly free in this existence? One definition of freedom is the ability to access and act upon information. Another definition would have us be able to do that which we want to do. National security severely constrains the first. Economic and legal considerations severely constrain the second. Again, this is neither self-evident nor inalienable. To get to the real meaning we must again resort to metaphysics. As souls, we are free to do as we will, and further, we have access to all information and are free to act upon it in any manner we choose. The bottom line is equal access and equal right to free choice. The only limitations we experience are those we create for ourselves.
The third inalienable right is the pursuit of happiness. Again, looking around, it is not clear that all people in the country, or worse yet, on Earth, have the right to pursue happiness. I guess some people might find happiness in the midst of poverty and squalor, but clearly they do not have a very good opportunity to pursue happiness. The ways and means should be easier.
For the Aquarian Age, the goal is to allow spirit to be enfleshed as fully as possible on this planet. As spirit-in-flesh living in this world, the rights called out by our founding fathers become our birthright and the objective becomes to live in a manner consistent with these self-evident truths. Society's chief task then becomes one of creating the environment that allows this to be realized in flesh by all individuals on Earth, HERE and NOW.
The Rights and Responsibilities of the Individual
Before we get to rights and responsibilities, let's first consider what an individual needs in this day and age. Also, we need to discuss the difference between wants and needs.
To begin with, needs come in four areas: physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual.
- Physical needs are such things as food, clothing, shelter, and health care.
- Emotional needs are such things as relationships, safety, job-satisfaction, happiness.
- Intellectual needs are right and left brain education, creative expression, challenging work.
- Spiritual needs are ethics, meditation, self-realization, samadhi.
Needs are those things which an individual must have to be able to function effectively. Wants are those things which an individual desires that are above and beyond what is needed to function effectively. A form of transportation may be needed. A car may be the most effective form for providing the transportation under the specific conditions. A new Mercedes or BMW however is clearly a want, not a need. Need satisfies function. Want satisfies function + other tangible and intangible desires. As another example, a college education may be required to prepare a person for a particular job in line with that persons talents. Wanting to go to an Ivy League college to get that education is above and beyond the need. The bottom line is that society should be concerned about ensuring that needs are met where possible. If individuals want more than this, it should be up to them to do something extra to earn the privilege.
Where possible that extra should be in terms of doing something valuable for society, either by making themselves more valuable to society through additional effort, or by providing additional service to society above and beyond that required in their contract.
The primary right of an individual is to have ones needs met, through entitlement as a child, and through being provided with a satisfying means for providing one's service in exchange for the things and services or money needed to procure the things and services that one needs.
- Each individual has the right to nutritious food throughout their life. Whenever, for any reason, they cannot afford it, it should be provided for free.
- Each individual has the right to sufficient clothing. This should be clean, comfortable, fashionable, and warm.
- Each individual has the right to housing. This should be safe, clean, warm, functional, and aesthetically pleasing. As an adult, the housing should be provided so that it is close to work yet close to family and friends as well. In general, the environment should be conducive to providing a lifestyle that allows an individual to be happy or at least pursue happiness.
- Each individual has the right to health care. This should be free and readily available. It should be holistic, treating body, mind, and spirit; and should include a blend of what works best from the East and the West.
- Each individual has the right to education. This should be tailored to maximize the development of the individuals unique gifts and talent. Education should include left and right brain components and should include basic spiritual instruction as well. Further, education should continue throughout the individuals life.
- Each individual has the right to be employed in a manner that allows that individual's unique skills and talents to be used in a way that is satisfying to the individual and in a way that is in alignment with that individuals purpose. Employment should pay an amount that allows the individuals basic needs to be met plus includes a discretionary income to cover other needs and wants. Where possible, individuals should be allowed to work at home or in their own local neighborhoods.
- Each individual is responsible to treat others with kindness and compassion and to avoid hurting them where possible.
- Each individual is responsible for exercising discipline in their life by keeping their needs within bounds set by society and exerting reasonable control over their wants.
- Each individual in school or training is responsible for enthusiastically and steadfastly applying energies to studies so that lessons can be learned effectively and efficiently. In addition these individuals shall devote at least 20 hours per week to community service.
- Each individual not on training status is responsible for applying their energies and talents enthusiastically to achieve their purpose and to benefit society. Each individual shall on average apply 60 hours per week to some combination of working at an assigned job, developing their skills and talents, and providing service to others.
- Each individual shall abide by the laws of the society, living in peace and harmony with others at all times. Any grievances or disagreements shall be brought to mediators for resolution.
The Rights and Responsibilities of Society
Once again, before we discuss the rights and responsibilities of Society, it is useful to understand the needs or society as distinguished from the needs of individuals.
The needs of Society are:
- Love: Mystics, Saints, Humanitarians, Light Workers
- Wisdom: Philosophers, Poets, Wise Ones
- Peace: Peaceful Warriors, Peace Officers
- Harmony: Musicians, Decorators
- Beauty: Artists, Designers, Evaluators
- Elegance: Efficiency Experts, Effectiveness Experts, Evaluators
- Inspiration: Master Poets, Master Artists, Priests
- Tolerance: Counselors, Evaluators
- Justice: Judges, Mediators, Arbiters
- Government: Executives, Diplomats, Negotiators, Planners, Administrators
- Economy: Economists, Executives, Leaders, Managers, Planners, Laborers
- Education: Teachers, Facilitators, Evaluators, Psychic Workers
- Housing: Architects, Construction Workers, Maintenance Workers
- Environment: Master Ecologists, Architects, Planners, Ecologists
- Transportation: Engineers, Designers, Maintainers, Transportation Workers
- Health: Food Workers, Nutritionists, Health Care Practitioners, Doctors, Mental Health Practioners
The whole purpose of a society is to enable individuals acting together to do more than they could do as individuals alone. When two or more people are united in this manner there is an added synergy that allows energy to flow through the union to do its works. For a society of many, this additional energy is phenomenal -- creating changes and efficiencies of effort that are wondrous to behold. However, we have not yet seen a society of many constructed in this manner on a grand scale. Individuals have been reluctant to constrict their freedom in a manner necessary for entering into a binding contract with one another. Contracts are typically relegated to business matters only. On rare occasions groups of individuals have bonded together to jointly pursue their greater good. Here, we are talking about doing this on a scale of an entire country or the whole world. Such an enterprise has never been undertaken.
The goal is to create a new entity, a body that is composed of whole individuals instead of just cells. The result of such a creation is a physical body for cosmic consciousness itself. No one body would be sufficient for allowing its physical expression. It is only a large group of individuals united and aligned in the proper manner that creates a suitable physical vehicle. The entire group would be partitioned into smaller groups or organs, each responsible for its assigned function. Further, individuals would have their assigned functions within the various organs, systems, or parts of the body infrastructure.
One of the key requirements, however, is that each person does the very thing that person was designed to do. This is revealed in the person's purpose. A core group of beings already know their purpose. It is that group that will start the revelation necessary to build the global body -- the ONE. The birth of this body will mark the beginning the Aquarian Age.
Given this new understanding, what are Society's needs?
- To get a sufficient number of individuals aligned and working harmoniously together to provide a form that allows cosmic consciousness to express physically.
- To enlarge the society over time so that the new entity main gain in consciousness and eventually encompass the entire planet.
- To stop acting in a manner that does damage to the environment and to correct damage done to the environment by man's actions.
- To operate in Peace and Harmony.
In return, what are Society's responsibilities?
- To assure that the needs of each individual are met.
- To provide each individual with challenging and meaningful work that employs that individual's talents and abilities.
- To assist in creating an environment in which all individuals are allowed to experience their inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness in flesh as true equals.
Declaration of Cooperative Interdependence
We hold these truths to be self evident: that all souls are created equal, that we must through determined action create the conditions that allow souls to be fully expressed in flesh, that cosmic consciousness must be expressed in a physical vehicle to enable souls to be fully expressed in flesh, that individuals form the cells of the physical vehicle required by cosmic consciousness, and that only by establishing a cooperatively interdependent society will cosmic consciousness have the vehicle it needs to be embodied on Earth.
Further we freely choose to declare our cooperative interdependence to allow for the creation of this physical vehicle for cosmic consciousness to be put into motion. To achieve this end, we establish the following contract between and among us:
- From each individual according to that individual's purpose and abilities,
- to each individual according to that individual's needs and desires.
- Always we act in peace and harmony, and as true brethren.
We are all One People
We realize that we are all one people, that whatever happens to any one of us happens to all of us. We choose to treat one another with dignity and respect, and to assist and help one another when in need. Further, we choose to live in peace and harmony, resolving any and all conflicts among us in ways that are peaceful and just. We call to cosmic consciousness to assist and guide in our endeavor so that the vehicle for the expression of the ONE can be created in the most effective and expeditious manner possible so that the Age of Aquarius can be brought forth with the least turmoil and suffering to our fellow beings.
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beyond@redshift.com
Copyright © 1995, Wayne Hartman, Revised -- (16 Sep 95)
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