SEVEN PSYCHIC CIRCLES
By Kaye Cooper
Arlington, Texas
The really significant work of our lives on this world boils down to two sides of a single coin: coming to know God and striving to be like him. The seven psychic circles is a way of measuring our progress in the latter of those twin goals.
Preparation for the work of circle attainment begins early in life. The baby who struggles to guide his hand toward an object he wants is working to bring his body (the material) under control of his mind (the intellectual). The child continues to perfect that control of mind until, when he is approximately five years old, another element is added. The child decides on an action motivated by his spiritual faculties. In that moment, his spirit is controlling his mind and his spirit-led mind is controlling his body. He has stepped into the seventh circle.
From that time on his real progress will be measured by his success in using that chain of command: spirit to mind to body. Said another way: he will be striving to unify his own spirit, mind, and body under the over-control of personality. How is that striving to be like God? Because God does precisely that—he unifies spirit; mind, and matter (Goodness, Truth, and Beauty). In fact, the experiential God, the Supreme, is even now striving to unify the spirit, mind, and matter of the grand universe. (See THE URANTIA BOOK, p. 1274.)
The unification process within each person is inevitably expressed in that person’s relationship with the rest of the world. And that relationship reflects how balanced the person’s growth is. Balance is significant because circle progress is only achieved by balanced growth – proportional progress in the spiritual, intellectual, and material aspects of a person. (See p. 1209.)
We can hypothesize a person of balanced growth with some confidence because we have a superb example of such a person in Jesus. A hypothetical balanced personality would provide the material necessities of life for himself and his family without allowing material possessions to become the primary goal of his life. Nor would he neglect those necessities because he is too busy with intellectual or spiritual affairs. That personality would depend on his intellect to serve him well without tying intellectual knots around every idea, situation or person entering his life. He would not go to the other extreme in rejecting rational thought for exclusively “gut” reaction. This balanced person would have a personal one-to-one relationship with his Father. He would not be found hidden away engaged in nothing but communion with God, nor would he be a person who knows about prayer and worship but does not engage in them.
Coming to know God on a personal basis is the core of our maturing process, but in order to become like him, we must go a step further. We must make our decisions based on the divine chain of command: spirit to mind to body. When we do, we will see ourselves emerging as beings of balanced growth. And while we may not know which circle we are in, we may be sure we are making progress.
(5 min.) by Kaye Cooper