On a hill, under a great oak treeoutside of town, sits a youngman and an old man. The youngman speaks ...

Master, is there Truth, or are there only subjective truths thatmay be truth for one and not another?

That puzzling question has been debated since man firstdiscovered reason. It is not, however, a difficult questionto answer. The difficulty is found when the questioner isso overwhelmed with what he thinks is true, that the viewto the answer is obscured, and the puzzle remains. Forpurposes of understanding only, we will speak of layersof Truth.

Of course, there may be many things that are true. Scienceis based on being able to do something repeatedly and getthe same result. It is true, for example, that two hydrogenmolecules and one oxygen molecule will produce water,or that two single digits, plus three single digits equal fivedigits, but I feel this is not what you are getting at. Youwonder, is there Truth? Yes, there is Truth; that Truth isthe basis for all Truth.

In the past, we have gone to religion in our quest, forwe considered Truth must be wrapped in the mantle ofGod. This was a mistake, for Truth became confused withdoctrine and belief. Each religion contains what it believesis true, but Truth is not found in religion. Let me restatethat for accuracy. Truth may be found in religion; it issimply hiding and is not easily recognized by its seekers.

I have stated that there is what we might think of as layers ofTruth. This is only a way of clarifying, because onecannot say everything at once. These layers are notvertical layers. Think of them as wrappings. I will giveyou a wrapping to ponder. Realize Truth has always beenwith us. It is known to all. Man simply chose to overlookTruth in favor of superstition. Superstition brings rulesof conduct, judgment, guilt and fear. For believers rulesare comforting. Children require parameters for theirsafety and security. Truth however, requires none of these.This is Truth:

LIFE IS PERFECT

Oh, Master, life does not seem perfect to me. All aroundme I see bad things happen to people. There are still peoplebeing tortured and enslaved. Still there is murder, rape andinjustice everywhere. It seems at times that God has forsakenus and Satan rules man's actions. I do not at all see that lifeis perfect.

Of course you do not. You cannot see Truth, for you havebeen led to believe things that are not true. If you are tosee Truth you must force out your superstitious beliefs.All religions are based on a false premise, no matter howplausible it may seem to believers.

You have been told the truth will set you free. If what youbelieve is true, then you are now free. Are you free?

No, I am not. I'm confused.

That is a sign that you are maturing. The first thing a childlearns is, "No!" Fear dictates that a parent protects thechild with parameters. "No, don't do that!" "No, don't gothere!" But the child is undaunted, for the little one willinquire, "Why?"

"Because."

"Because, why?"

Man comes into this world with a curiosity that isirrepressible. The question, "why," has led to all of man'sdiscoveries and inventions. Isn't it strange to you that youmay question and advance in all areas, save one, yourreligions? Because, as you said, it leads to confusion.

The so-called religious Fathers did not understandLife. They did, however, understand money and power.Religion created a way to perpetuate itself by offering fear,and safety from that fear. "There are good and evil in theworld," it says. "God is good. Satan is evil. Come to us forGod's sake, and we will protect you from Satan. And, bythe way, this is the offering plate; we think ten percent ofwhat you earn is about right to give to God, don't you?"

Let me unwrap another layer of Truth for you:

THERE IS NO BAD

Oh, Master, again I do not understand. All of my life I havebeen taught there is good and bad, right and wrong. I can seeit every day of my life. The news is full of stories of good andevil, people killing each other, children dying of abuse andstarvation. Certainly this is bad. How can one hurt anotherand it not be bad?

You believe there is good and bad, right and wrong,reward and punishment, God and Satan, because youhave been taught this by those who wished you to see noother view. When you understand Truth, you will be setfree. Religion will no longer hold sway over you. Therewill be no more guilt, no more fear, and eventually, as itbecomes clear in your understanding, you will discoverthat life is always in balance.

What is good? What is bad? What is bad for one maybe good for another. What may have originally seemedbad may turn out to be the best thing that could havehappened, and what seemed to be the happiest momentof one's life, may be even happier when it is over. "Good"and "bad" are subjective decisions you make. You decideif something is good or bad.

I will show you how to avoid making these decisions.

I think I am beginning to understand. Good and bad, andevil doesn't exist except in how we perceive them.

Yes.

But how does this relate to God and Satan? God must allowthings to happen that Satan makes us judge as good or bad.

I know it is difficult for you to see through the dark glassesyou are wearing.

But I don't wear glasses.

Do you remember in your reading about seeing throughthe glass darkly? You are trying to understand somethingthat sits there in front of you to pick up, but you do notrecognize it. Your glasses are your beliefs, and thereforeyou do not see the Truth.

But I have been taught that one's beliefs are important.

What is a belief, but an opinion, a hope? It was oncebelieved the sun revolved around the earth. Your SacredBible, the so-called "Word of God," tells you that theearth was created before the stars, making the earth thecenter of the universe! Those who reasoned otherwise wereput to death. "God's Word would not lie!" Whenever youcome to an impasse in your questioning you will knowyou have simply asked the question improperly. There areanswers, not mysteries.

Let's approach the subject from what you have been told:God is all powerful, has all knowledge, and is everywhereat once. Would you agree?

Yes, I agree, but also include that God is love.

Yes, "God is love." But we also read that God is a jealousGod and vengeful, who has enemies and kills them, andwho has a chosen people, who wants us to worship Him,and pray to Him. This is not a God. This is an imperfect,egocentric, personification of man himself.

Your God is called a Supreme Being. A being is a man.You are a human being. A Supreme Being is a Super-Man.Those who were rulers over men believed themselves to beSupreme Beings, or Super-Men, or Man-Gods.

It was not intended that your God be thought of as anentity. It was a spiritual concept, a principle. What iscalled God is Pure Spirit - The MATRIX.

What about the Bible, Master?

Your sacred book is but a library of smaller books, orpages. It was a committee that declared which pageswould be included, and which would be omitted. Thecommittee was made up of many self-serving men whohad their own agenda. It was the committee that decidedwhat would not be sacred, and what you were to believeforever. Your religion did not come from God. It camefrom men. That is why you believe and do not know.

But Master, you seem to be saying that God does not exist.

The God of religion does not exist.

Then where did we come from?

That is one of the improper questions, for it leads to nohonest answer. Still I will answer that question in due time.Keep in mind that no one really knows anything aboutthe beginning of things. The stories are only myths. Allcivilizations attempt to solve the puzzles of life throughtheir religions. Your Creation Story tells why man is theway he is, and why snakes don't have legs. There is moreto it, of course, but anyone who believes the story literally,is more than a little naïve.

If our religions did not come from God, why were theycreated at all?

Your religions are the invention of man to create a hopedfor, more orderly society; to create a class within thatsociety; to create an income for that class; and to create areason for man to contribute to that social order. Becauseit is based on power and greed, it completely missed thepoint.

Did anyone know the truth, Master?

Long ago there were the Mystery Schools taught byMasters, like Pythagoras, Socrates and others. Theseschools taught their Truth to a select few. Only thoseselected, the Initiates, were taught the meaning of thesymbols found in the stories. All great Masters taughtthis way. Remember, Jesus taught in parables, whichonly his disciples were to understand. Few were educatedto read or write, so they learned through story telling,and through allegory. Because the stories came fromthe Masters' schools, the stories became important inthemselves. The uninitiated, hearing the stories, believedthey were hearing Truth. In many ways your Bible is sucha work. The believers have come to believe in the stories,and have missed their meaning.

You mean the Truth was hidden within the stories?

Exactly. Allegory was very important, for only inunderstanding the symbols was Truth revealed. Asan example: Symbolically, Male represents Spirit.Symbolically, Female represents Matter. That is why yourGod is addressed as He. God represents Pure Spirit. Spirit,without a body. Mankind is Spirit, with a body.

To honor matter would have been repugnant to theAncients who understood, though those who did not,worshipped female gods. When you think of symbolismit is important you not confuse gender with symbol. It isnot men who are to dominate women; that is a corruptionof religion. The symbols clarify: Matter is to be controlledby Spirit.

The story in Genesis indicates that Spirit and Matter werecommingled to create humanity. Even the sex act tells asymbolically true and revealing story. Spirit (male) goesinto Matter (female), out of which comes Mankind. TheBible story tells us that the woman came from the side ofman, meaning that men and women are equal, and of thesame stuff. That is, a union of Spirit and Matter.

It seems so clear the way you explain it. The Bible sometimesseems so confusing.

That is because the story of Genesis was not intended tobe taken literally. The first born human could not killthe second born, and then go on to marry a woman inanother land. It is allegory: symbolism. But the story ofthe Garden of Eden tells much more. And as it becomesunderstood, it leads to Truth.

Remember the story: Adam and Eve are in the garden.There seems to be nothing that is not supplied. They aretold that they can eat of anything in the garden, save theone tree. Now, only two trees are identified, namely the`Tree of Life,' and the tree that was forbidden. The Treeof Life gave eternal life, while the tree that was forbiddenoffered only death. Think for a moment. If you were inthe garden, and you were told not to eat of this particulartree, or you would surely die, and you found yourselfalone, would you rush to eat of that which was forbidden,or would you browse through the garden, eating ofeverything else, until you finally thought, everything elsetasted good, might the forbidden also be good to eat?

Yes, but I don't think I would eat what I was told not to eat.

Of course you wouldn't. But this is a story to learn from,not one to believe. No one really ate of anything. It isallegory. The story suggests, without saying it directly,that man is immortal. The story, as it is now told, says thatthe couple were sent out of the garden before they becameimmortal. The Church does not want you to believe youcan do without it. It is only a matter of time until youunderstand, and the Church, as well as all religions, areno more and man will be truly free.

What was the meaning of the forbidden fruit?

It has been mistakenly called, The Tree of Knowledge,and those who believe this, shun all knowledge except theBible, which they believe is from God, the true knowledge.It has also been called The Tree of Good and Evil, andthey believe in duality, and that man disobeyed God. Butthe story is clear, Man was not to eat of, take on, accept,believe in the knowledge of good and evil. The knowledgeof something is not the same as the something itself. Theknowledge of a cool cup of water does not quench thethirst.

Dear One, are you ready for another key toTruth? Anotherwrapping?

DOES NOT, AND NEVER CAN EXIST!

Master, you are confusing me again. Please explain.

The story tells us that it is only your acceptance of duality,good and evil, that makes it so. Yet, the story tells us that ifduality is accepted man's awareness of his spirituality willdie. Allegorically, man dies to the spirit when he acceptsthe belief in duality. Perhaps I can prove the point. Doyou believe you have a spirit, a soul?

Master, I see that as a trick question. I do not believe it, Iknow it!

Yes, and that proves the point. In truth you do not havea Spirit. Man has taken on the belief in duality, good andbad, God and Satan, reward and punishment, right andwrong, Spirit and Material. Then man identified himselfwith the material. That was the original concern, that whenman took on the belief in duality, he would surely die. Dieto the Spirit. You have demonstrated this concern. In fact,you do not have a Spirit. You have a body. You answeredthe question from the viewpoint of the material.

Oh, Master, I hadn't realized that. I look in the mirror andsee myself. But that is only my body; the vehicle, so to speak.The real me, the driver, I cannot see. We think that what wesee is the real, and what we can't see, doesn't exist.

You have grown a great deal in such a short time.

I think I'm getting to understand this. Tell me more.

There has been one concept that has found its way intomost all religions. It is what I call "the ribbon of partialtruth." It is what we have come to call, since 1762 or '63;The Golden Rule. Stated in different ways: "Do untoothers as you would want others to do unto you." Or,"Do not do to others what you would not want done toyourself." Or, "Do as you would be done by."

You call it, partial truth, Master?

The Golden Rule could be used to someone's advantagetoday. There are some who would want to do to you whatyou wouldn't want to be done, and want you to do tothem what you wouldn't want to do to them. Think of asadomasochist, for example. It is a warm, fuzzy statementthat sounds good, until you analyze it.

Master, I always thought it was a good way to live.

It is a partial truth. Your Jesus gave you the real Truth,but the Church rejected it.

What was it that Jesus said that the Church rejected?

The partial truth of the Golden Rule was clarified andbrought to full understanding, when Jesus described theGolden Law: The measure you give, will be the measureyou receive. What you sow, you will reap.

I don't understand the difference, Master. If I do unto otherswhat I want done to myself, isn't that the same as giving whatI want to receive?

The statements are similar, but at the same time, polaropposites The Golden Rule is a nice saying, but it isclarified by stating it as a law. It is one thing to say benice to others the way you would like to be treated,and - what you do to others will be done to you. Do youunderstand?

Oh, I see what you mean by the Golden Law. There areconsequences to one's actions.

Yes. The Hebrew's were harsher when they declared, an eyefor an eye, and a tooth for a tooth, though it essentiallymeans the same thing. However, it is not man's law, butthe Law of Life.

I'm confused again, Master. You say there is no God, andthen you say we will be punished for what we do to others.Who will punish us?