We would like to know what the function and effect of ritual is upon the seeker of truth.

(Carla channeling)

Greetings in the love and in the light of the one infinite Creator. We are those of the principle known to you as Q’uo. We bless each of you and thank you for calling us to your circle of seeking. We thank each individual and each individual’s desire for a fuller truth. We see each desire as a kind of tone or color and it is as though we were gazing at a circle of jewels. We are most, most happy to share our humble opinions with you, always with the understanding that we are not incapable of error. We are not an ultimate authority. We are seekers of the One, pilgrims of the mystery that is love. And we follow that love, which we find to be our very essence, in the hope of rejoining all that there is. This journey is far from over for us, and each of you has a few more steps than we to go, but we journey together and truly feel blessed in the company.

The question for the beginning of this session concerns the nature and function of ritual. This is indeed a substantially large subject. There are two types of rituals, the one being more an adaptation from the second-density roots of the vehicle that carries your consciousness about, the other being the creation of humankind in its search for deeper states of clarity in emotion and consciousness. The second density heritage that your bodies carry includes a generous helping of instinctual ritualistic behavior. An example of this kind of imprinting ritual is a favorite of this instrument’s, that example being the cat which, upon hearing its owner at the door, begins to run about the living room, to jump up upon the door, to race from the door to the kitchen and back several times, to jump up on the cabinets, bounce off the refrigerator, go over to the dish, and then the cat is fed. Having once done this [the cat] associates all of the movements preceding the food in the dish as necessary to bring the food to the dish. It does not occur to the mind of a cat that the owner must go get the food and put it in the bowl. To this little mind, this little ritual of movements is quite essential.

The experience of each entity’s life includes a full list of imprinting situations. The instinctual imprinting first shows itself as the mother suckles the newborn infant. There is a deep emotional content to this simple act which has life-long consequences for the mother and for the child. Again, that first experience of intimacy with the opposite sex creates an imprinting so that that first experience is instinctively retained as being the perfect sexual experience, and the rest of the incarnation is affected by those circumstances which were local to that imprinting first experience. As each goes through life experiences…

[R leaves the circle, coughing.]

We are those of Q’uo, and we request this instrument to say, “It’s OK, R.” We shall continue.

There are various times within the incarnation other than the imprinting of parents and the imprinting of sexuality. They largely include those individuals who have been effective in bringing to the surface some hidden desire. This is normally the function of the teacher/pupil relationship and is not uncommon between mates when each may be the teacher of the other. These imprintings are fields of energy which affect one entity for one particular period of incarnation.

The deeper and more typically human kind of ritual has its roots in instinct also, for there is an instinct for repetition of the familiar as a means of feeling no longer isolated, no longer alone, no longer as confused. There are rituals chosen by entities to solemnize changes such as the marriage and certainly each service of what this instrument calls the holy Eucharist or the holy communion is a good example of an effective and powerful ritual. In the use of ritual for the acceleration of changes in consciousness the term magic has often been used as a descriptive term suggesting ritual behavior which has a hidden spiritual significance.

We feel that it is this kind of ritual that the question was sparked by, for there is within this group a sincere and deep appreciation of the power of ritual. Each has experienced that purifying and clarifying effect that is gained through some ritual that is entered into by the self and by others with a common and, shall we say, non-terrestrial desire. The rituals of spirit, those rituals that this instrument would call religious, the many ritual orders of brotherhood within your various cultures, are all examples of collections and arrangements of words, tones and progressively more deeply touched emotions that have been repeated many times.

The reason that the ritual continues becoming more effective through generations and centuries is that within your inner planes, as this group was discussing earlier, there are many entities that are discarnate, that is, [that] do not have the physical vehicle that you enjoy in third-density incarnation. Yet they have, when incarnate, moved through these great rituals of religion, spirituality and religiously oriented brotherhood. When those who are in incarnation move through those same rituals, depending upon the ritual a relatively large group of discarnate entities may be awakened to the energy of this ritual and join in the ritual, creating an unseen—and what this instrument would call angelic—element so that to the individual moving consciously through this ritual comes the combined energy of a great heavenly host as well as those within the group that are participating within the ritual. These so-called magical rituals are very useful to the type of person that will seek a group worship or the cache of hidden things. To some, it is enough to be with the group to experience the movement of emotion that is possible when one participates deeply in the form of the ritual.

There are certainly many, many souls who do not feel the desire to participate in group ritual in order to clarify and purify the magical personality. To this entity comes the opportunity to create rituals for the self, and in many cases this attempt is well thought and well done. Many are the pilgrims whose rituals have to do with very humble ordinary things: the placement of cup and spoon and bread at a simple meal; the cleanliness and order of personal effects; the thoughts that one moves through before meeting another and honoring that entity. These are all examples of personal rituals. And these rituals also are not the terrestrial imprinting ritual. These are the rituals designed to effect changes in consciousness. To effect these changes in consciousness it is not necessary to be in a group. That group experience is available to those to whom it appeals, but to those weary souls who cannot enter into group ritual or group worship those emotions and changes in consciousness yet remain available. They simply do not call forth the degree of angelic assistance that is alerted by group worship.

When an entity has decided to choose the lonelier path of seeking then that entity is as the artist with the canvas washed and ready for the image. Both of these strains of ritual behavior, the solitary and the group, have but one goal, and that brings us to the consideration of what this instrument calls magic, or to be more specific, the white ritual magical tradition of the western or occidental world.

This instrument’s definition for magic which she has read from the author, Butler, is that magic is the creating of changes in consciousness at will. Anyone who has attempted to see things in a spiritual way, to penetrate the outer skin of experience and know the gist and the core and the heart within experience will find ritual quite helpful, for the emotional body and the spiritual body are affected deeply by thought. There is for each entity one particular way, one particular possession of learnings and realizations unique to that one speaker. And yet in common to all seekers who wish to work with ritual is the innate tendency of the consciousness within to flow more easily through the consciousness, the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual bodies, when habit has been chosen carefully and followed persistently over a period of time. This instrument has been told that it takes three weeks to learn a new habit or to break an old one. This is the direction that we are suggesting is useful in ritual.

Take a look at the self and you can see that as the roots of self move through the threshold of consciousness down into the roots of mind there are passageways that are crystalline and regular in shape and function. Each ritual aid that opens those passageways, especially within the emotional body, is helpful in regularizing and enlarging that ability to channel light and love through the deep mind into the roots of mind, securing the self, rooting the self again and again in the deepest truth possible, the deepest truth that is seen, or felt, or sensed by that individual. The deeper mind has a desire to be used, a desire to open, a desire to yield its contents. One could, in terms of computers which have many qualities in common with the mind, one could see these deeper structures of mind as programs that are hidden and are only accessed from within other programs and are never directly accessed. Ritual is a tool which does eventually connect the self more and more with one’s deeper and more accurate programs. The knowledge, shall we say, or inarticulate wisdom of the deep mind which lies beyond word and even beyond concept can be triggered by ritual. Therefore, ritual can be a great aid in becoming more the person that one truly is, for each is well aware of the number and the subtlety of the masks that each has worn within the lifetime. The heart yearns for that which lies behind that mask. And certainly ritual is a resource that aids in revealing the self to the self.

Why do seekers always wish to be able to effect changes in their consciousness? Certainly primary among the reasons for this… we must pause. We are those of Q’uo. This instrument, unfortunately, moved into a trance state which resembled sleep. Consequently, we found ourselves unable to continue channeling. We will attempt to alert this instrument.

We are those of Q’uo, and are glad that we have a good contact with this instrument so that we can continue. As this instrument is somewhat low, we feel it would be advisable to open the meeting to queries. We perhaps have not given you all that we had intended, but perhaps we have given enough so that you can follow up with queries. Are there any queries at this time?

Is there anything that any of us can do to prevent this type of losing contact?

We are those of Q’uo, and we feel that it is not frequently that the channel will fall asleep. There is within this instrument significant distortion towards weariness and discomfort, and it is the energy of this circle that gives this instrument relief from this discomfort. Therefore, we do not see the outcome of losing contact as a bad thing but merely an inconvenience in the context of the group energy waiting for the finish of our thoughts. We cannot think of any particular thing that would guarantee that this instrument would be able to erase weariness. However, my brother, we can assure you that the laying on of hands, the discussion, the social converse, these are things which affect this instrument in a positive way. The sharing between all of love and the gifts that each brings to this circle are what feed this instrument and, indeed, what feed all within the circle. Perhaps it is well to think of that energy as the unity of the group and realize that our communication is coming through the group first and this instrument second, so that the special gift that the one known as B has of having the healing touch, this can be helpful before or after the session. But, in general, the greatest gift is the comfortable and natural flow of love through the group.

May we answer you further, my brother?

No. Thank you.

And we thank you, my brother. This instrument was not in trance. This instrument was merely asleep. Is there another query at this time?

[Inaudible]

We are Q’uo, and are aware of your question. The suppositions of entities within incarnation do indeed have some effect upon their experiences immediately following the passage of the spirit from the physical vehicle and into that form-making or light vehicle that is their body immediately after the process of death and separation from the physical plane. In general, the effects of expectation last a fairly short time after cessation of the life experience, for the majority of entities have little enough certainty concerning the hereafter that they are open to being received by someone familiar to them. This guide, whether it seems to be husband or savior or some other entity, serves as the guide who leads by the hand as the entity is taken to a place of healing and restoration, for most entities tend to leave the incarnation in some metaphysical disarray to the extent that they have been injured spiritually, emotionally or mentally within incarnation. They will have the space and time necessary for full restoration of the true self. Once the entity has come to the realization of that fuller self that one is when one moves beyond that veil of flesh the period of review of incarnation then can begin and in this the entity and its higher self simply move through the incarnation, gazing at what has occurred, what has been learned, what has not been learned, and gradually they develop a plan for what the next step will be.

If that entity finds it has become able to graduate from the density now experienced then the guide takes it to what may be seen as a stairway of light, each stair being fuller of that one great original Thought of Love than the one before. The entity moves up the stairway until the intensity of light becomes uncomfortable. If that stair step is in fourth-density light, the entity goes on to lessons within that density. If the entity stops short of that demarcation and is remaining within third density then the self and its guidance develop a plan for the next incarnation. There is then that time taken to chose the parents, the friends, the mated relationships, and other important and central figures for the life to come. The lessons then are set up, depending most often upon the relationships and where those interactions lead the self.

If an entity has a strong and fixed vision of the afterlife, that afterlife scenario may play for some of your space/time. This entity then remains caught in space and time and hovers in the inner planes living out the expectation. However, this is always a time bound phenomenon, and eventually all entities awaken and move on. Certainly when an entity has been bound to the previous experience for some length of time, once the entity awakens to its true nature it will spend a significant amount of time in the healing mode before moving on.

May we answer you further, my sister?

[Inaudible]

We are those of Q’uo, and, my sister, it is often the case that one cannot infringe upon the free will of another. The key to await is the asking. If an entity asks you for your views or in some other mode of questioning indicates a desire [of] an alternate view, then certainly you may jump in and do your best to share your own vision. However, when an entity has a determined and anchored view, the only level of help available to one who wishes to observe the Law of Free Will is prayer. One may pray that the loved entity may be set free from limiting confusion. One may visualize the entity awakening to a higher way. And in this way one may place about that entity the angelic aid that such prayer alerts. And again, prayer is a kind of ritual, and when prayer is given from the heart it does alert what this instrument would call the angelic host so that when this entity moves through the veil of death there is more angelic light or love around the entity and more opportunity to sense a fuller truth during this transition. We would say, my sister, that it is not a great difficulty in terms of the experience after incarnation for the expectation to be deliberate, codified and incorrect, for the entity has an infinite amount of time to travel back to its source, so time considerations which seem drastic within incarnation become considerably less impressive when seen from the viewpoint of eternity.

May we answer you further, my sister?

No. Thank you.

Is there a final query at this time?

I have a friend who has a very serious illness and seems to be dying. Would prayer be the best thing for her since her illness seems to be a mystery to all of the medical profession?

We are those of Q’uo. My sister, when dealing with those approaching the entrance to larger life one does well to open the self to intuition, for each entity approaching this metamorphosis is wounded and the pain of incarnation begins to crystallize as the entity approaches the end of the experience. It is always new to each entity and unique to that entity what may give it more peace. To one entity it might be the talking, the sharing, the ability to listen to difficult emotional content, to another it might be that the gift of silence is the greatest gift, that support that does not ask for attention, and does not seek any effect, but rather is present. To one entity it would be the sharing of your gift, whether it would be the cooking, the singing, all the gifts that entities have to share with each other.

So there is always the delicacy of listening [with] that purity of attention that is willing to flow into that pattern that is sensed that will be the greatest gift. In general, we would say that the gift of prayer is always helpful because of the alerting of consciousness so that the entity is less and less able to feel alone or abandoned. When entities become ill it is common to those about it that the illness is ignored and there is a lot of pretending that everything is the same. The bare ability to abide in closeness with one who is in distress is a very helpful and healing influence. So we would say prayer and attention and the lack of drawing away would be the most likely avenues of aid.

May we answer you further, my sister?

No. Thank you.

We are those of Q’uo, and we thank you also, my sister. Each has such a power of love within. Each has such beauty to share. Each is so powerful to give assistance or to withhold it. We urge each to love each other, to care for each other, and to take the hand and give it the squeeze that says, “I am with you.”

We would at this time leave this delightful group, rejoicing in the love and in the light of the one infinite Creator. We are known to you as the principle of Q’uo. Adonai. Adonai.