Let There Be Light (Written By: Book of Thoth)

1:1 - In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
1:2 - And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
1:3 - And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
1:4 - And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
~Genesis

The above passage is undoubtedly one of the most memorable and universal grouping of words ever to be assembled. For millennia we have given a special precedence to “light” as being the epitome of goodness, of “God”, of the creative source - ever opposed to darkness and the forces of evil. It is the representation of Gilgamesh fighting Humbaba, Horus in eternal battle with his brother Set, the light of Jesus battling the dark influence of Satanic forces (or the “Luciferian” principle, in which Lucifer is masked in light, albeit a counterfeit version according to Christian traditions).

Yet, after five-thousand years of using this analogy for the purposes of spiritual enlightenment and wisdom, how many people truly understand the scientific mechanisms behind light itself, what makes it work, and why it’s so important? Just how important is it? After all, without the entwining darkness to counterbalance the radiance, we would all be blinded by the sheer luster of an all encompassing void.

Despite the mystical and metaphysical applications that have been established over the millennia, resulting in countless quotes and parables, light itself is merely a visible wavelength stemming from a root source which most times comes in the form of electromagnetic radiation. The term ‘light’ can oftentimes be used to describe the entire electromagnetic spectrum of visual interpretation, and consists of three basic properties: Intensity, Frequency, and Polarization. Optics, the study of light’s interaction with matter and its relation to physics, states that light exhibits duel characteristics of both waves and particles, forming in a variety of ways, from background radiation to the simple components of an open flame. From rainbows to the aurora borealis, shadows, eclipses and much more, all of these visual occurrences are categorized under the study of optic phenomena. In living things, such as “lightning bugs”, some species are capable of generating their own glow through a process called bioluminescence which is used not only as a homing device, but also as a glimmering mating call on the twilight of a summer’s eve.

While plants need light to grow, at least on Earth, it’s actually the UV radiation they are craving and not necessarily the light itself, which is why normal light bulbs won’t not help a plant to flourish, but instead special “grow lamps” which can provide the proper dosage of ultraviolet radiation critical to ensuring good health. While the biological production of vitamin D is beneficial to the health of humans and animals alike, caused by UV wavelengths, excessive sunlight exposure has been linked to various types of cancer and skin diseases, and can easily kill any plant life if other elements (such as water, and appropriate period of nightfall) isn’t properly regulated. A little bit of sun exposure is good for every living thing and has even been known to heal a variety of ailments, but as we all know, too much of a good thing can cause serious and irreparable damage. Light from the sun arrives at the pinnacle of the earth’s atmosphere at a power level of about one kilowatt per square meter. It is this warmth and light from a modest star (with a surface temperature of 5500 degrees C), that all life processes on earth are inevitably driven. Without the sun’s constant energy input our planet would quickly radiate away its dormant heat and freeze us and everything else solid within a very short period of time. Make no mistake, without the sun and the benefits stemming from light reaching the Earth, we would be extinct in no time and would never have existed in the first place. However, there are other elements as well which have driven the emergence of life on Earth, fundamental components equally as important as the Sun, and the heat which radiates thereof.

The speed of light is precisely 186,282.397 miles per second, and can vary depending on a variety of circumstances, including gravitational effects, thick clouds of dust particles, and even other light sources. Studying the myriad functions of light is known as quantum electrodynamics (quantum field theory), and has excelled in leaps and bounds in the early part of the 20th Century, surpassing the works of such luminaries (no pun intended) as Isaac Newton. Just as light can effect the gravitational flow of other light beams, so too does light correspond with objects, though more subtlety, as would a breeze as it passes over the blades of a wind mill. Consideration is even underway for the production of “solar sails” which might aid in maintaining course and speed during manned space flights. While the technology has yet to be perfected, the implications for harnessing light as an energy source and vehicle propulsion system is vast and increasingly beneficial in a world of wasteful consumerism.

While Christian traditions, in their pagan heritage, have opted to take a very “black and white” approach to the elements of light, it’s always been held in greater scientific relevance to the religious traditions of India and the Orient. For here, despite their vast pantheon of bizarre multi-headed gods and demons, science and spirituality have merged in ways which are unique when in comparison to all the other worldly religions. Though they’re in no way exclusive (the Greeks, Persians, and Romans too all studied the effects of light in great detail), it’s hard to deny the prominence placed on such ideals as the harmonious Yin Yang, which symbolizes that the nature of universal duality is often much more important than just taking sides in an endless war between light and darkness. In Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Taoism (and early Gnosticism by many degrees), we are encouraged to look at the concept of light and dark from a more philosophical understanding instead of purely literal religious underpinnings.

A concept known as Extramission is classical philosopher Plato’s theory of optics, and the source of what has since been dubbed “Dionysian light metaphysics”. This teaching implies that the light reflecting off of physical things actually hides the true nature of “God” from us, and that only by shedding the necessities of light might we find the calm darkness where “God” is truly alone and at the seat of all creation. In his work ‘The Timaeus’, Plato proposes that “What we perceive is not God, but His effects: Rays of light in the first instance, and the thick Darkness-Beyond-Being in the second.”

In ‘Mystical Theology’, claimed to have been written by a theologian who professed to be St. Paul’s Athenian convert, Dionysius the Areopagite, we see a heralded revival of Neo-Platonism. However, translator of the work, C.E. Rolt, places the original author somewhere within the time of Proclus, in the 5th century A.D. These early works of Neo-Platonic Christian mysticism had a highly important influence on the early church and other Western esoteric orders and continues to provoke thought and the philosophical nature of many things, including the spiritual perception of light.

Mystical Theology begins by saying:

“Unto this darkness which is beyond Light, we pray that we may come and may attain unto vision through the loss of sight and knowledge, and that in ceasing thus to see or to know that is beyond all perception and all understanding (for this emptying of our faculties is true sight and true knowledge) and that we may offer Him that which transcends all things the praises of a transcendent hymnody.”

This implies that by giving up on our trivial pursuits and literal interpretations of religiosity, that we might rise up intellectually, as well as spiritually, and come to a perfect Plane of Darkness where “God” is Alone, where all things disappear but the presence of the “Creator” and we become one with the source, not the humanized conceptualization of that source (ie: Light).

“… in proper truth we do but use the elements and syllables and phrases and written terms and words as an aid to our sense; inasmuch as when our soul is moved by spiritual energies unto spiritual things, our senses, together with the thing which they perceive are superfluous when our soul, becoming God-like meets in the blind embraces of an incomprehensible union the rays of unapproachable light.”

In comparison, writing to Timothy, Paul the Apostle states that God, “alone has immortality, [and that He] dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see.” (1 Tim 6:16). The Book of Revelation compares the face of Jesus to that as “shining like the sun in full strength” (Rev 1:16). “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” (John 8:12). Many Christians explain the “unapproachable light” of God through the following passage: “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.” And the LORD said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.” (Exodus 33:18-23) In this case the point of God’s being directly associated with Light is that the majesty and radiance of His immediate presence is so intense that it must be shrouded within impenetrable mystery. Otherwise mere mortals would be burned to a crisp if they came into the unveiled presence of His transcendent power.

For more on Dionysian light metaphysics please see the following link: http://www.luc.edu/publications/medieval/vol2/james.html

Added into this equation, we often associate light with heat, and darkness with the cold, light represents the heavens above, while darkness is the hell below. Yet, logically we know that going “up” isn’t necessarily any more beneficial than stepping “down”, it all depends on our human perception and getting to where we need to go. Sometimes we need the heat, while other times the coolness is preferable, and it’s all necessary for a proper equilibrium of not only Earthly ecology, but also the processes of cosmic evolution and the formation of stars, planets, and galaxies. Entropy without order is ultimately a self defeating proposal, as is order without chaos. Both are made impotent without the correct balance of elements and forces, and when it all comes down to it, aren’t these all really the SAME force, the SAME motion, just on two varying ends of the spectrum? The concept was well understood by the ancient Egyptians with the symbol of the ouroboros, twin serpents eating each others tails in a loop of infinity. Yet still today, modern philosophy (or lack thereof) continues to portray a flawed paradigm of the endless battle between light (goodness) and darkness (evil) without fully taking into account the deeper mystical and scientific implications. After five-thousand years of religiously motivated uniformity, isn’t it time that we saw passed the notion that “light equates to truth” and “darkness equates to ignorance”?

Just think, what if we were all had night vision? That is, humanity could see in the dark like a leopard or night owl, which we currently can’t because we don’t have the extra tapetum lucidum in our retina which makes it possible. How would our perception change due to such a minor tweak of our natural abilities? Might we finally be able to break free from the mental confines of a world where everything is a black and white issue of two forces in perpetually diametric opposition? Human vision is amazing in its ability to receive and process a wealth of information concerning levels of light intensity, colors, motion, height, width, and depth. However, human beings are only capable of viewing electromagnetic frequencies between 400 and 700 nanometers (4 to 7 x 10-9 m) in wavelength. Two things to remember, firstly, there is nothing there in the darkness (usually) that isn’t there in the daylight. Secondly, maybe next time you turn on a light switch, remember that the light itself is just an extension of an internal process within the glass bulb, further driven by the wires and circuitry, the ground work, which creates the electrical current, all leading back to a power plant run by a team of engineers and technicians who make sure everything is working smoothly. LIGHT COMES FROM AN ENERGY SOURCE, it’s not the light itself we should be so concerned with. I don’t proclaim that this is how “Heaven” and the “Angelic Hosts” work through “Godly technology” and an endless series of messengers, but hopefully this article has shed a little light on the concepts and misinterpretations of light in the realms of spirituality and metaphysics. Light is merely the arms of an octopus, forever reaching through the window, but not the ultimate driving force. We sometimes honor the art, while forgetting the artist.

“One more thing.
Thank you oh lord
For the white blind light.
Thank you oh lord
For the white blind light.
A city rises from the sea.
I had a splitting headache
From which the future’s made.”
~Jim Morrison - The Ghost Song