The path of awakening sensitivity
The progression of consciousness which leads from Cancer (the mass or herd) must pass through the awakening of the self, of individuality, in Leo before group consciousness can be registered in Aquarius. Individualism and intense self-awareness, the major characteristics of the Leo individual, must awaken and create a point of anchorage for consciousness in preparation for the increasing amalgamation, fusion and blending fostered by Aquarius, the polar opposite of Leo. This progression traces the arc of spiritual development, for the seeker has to know the self before it’s possible to recognize the divinity dwelling within, and to see this same essence in one’s fellow human beings. Thus, on its highest level, group consciousness incorporates rather than suppresses individual consciousness; “the individual becomes the universal; man, alone and separative, becomes mankind and yet, at the same time, preserves his individuality”, the writings of Alice Bailey tell us.
The cause of the developing expansion of consciousness is sensitivity. The purpose of our solar system, we’re told, is the unfoldment of consciousness, and the outstanding theme of Leo is the activity of the self-conscious individual in relation to the environment. The image of the sun in relation to its surrounding little universe, radiating its light and life without restriction, expresses the spiritual dimension of sensitivity. While we might think of sensitivity in the personal sense of easily injured feelings, of a defensive posture in regard to the world, true spiritual sensitivity is quite the opposite—not inward in focus but outward-directed, not inhibited or guarded but expansive and open to ever-widening ranges of contact. Sensitivity of this type is aware of and attentive to life on all levels, able to recognize relationships, to perceive and respond to need on all three planes of our planetary life.
“The outstanding characteristic of humanity is intelligent sensitivity to impression”, Alice Bailey wrote; to serve as the “major impressing agent in relation to the three subhuman kingdoms is humanity’s primary responsibility.” We can see indications that this is slowly awakening in the increasing concern for the human impact on the natural world and in the awareness that our relationships and responsibilities extend beyond humanity to the lower kingdoms and the higher, as well. This “chain of hierarchy” which reaches from the highest to the lowest levels of life should form the background of our daily thinking, esoteric teaching tells us, in order to offset the tendency to astral sensitivity.
Spiritual sensitivity concerns every stage of the spiritual path, leading, as divinity is perceived on the highest levels of consciousness, to the realization that the one major Reality is “the fact of Being”, in Alice Bailey’s words. Recognition holds the clue to the mystery of Being, she wrote, and this is the implication of the keynote of Leo: I am That and That am I. “That” is a progressive realization, an unfolding awareness of existence which extends beyond the individual self, beyond the separated form. It cannot be defined, or confined, by words; perversely, it can only be expressed by what it is not: neti…neti…not this, not this, for as the scholar of religions Karen Armstrong pointed out, “You can only define something when you see it as separate from yourself.” Instead, what is searched for lies buried deep within the self, unnoticed for eons yet it is the sole ground of human existence and awareness, she pointed out, and the objective of human life is to awaken to it. In this, the imagination can play an important role, for it creates the path to the intuition, which is a bridge to pure Being. “Your ability to project yourself into the immensity of the universe governs the extent of your knowledge at any given time”, the writings of Alice Bailey tell us. “Think this out, and look through the window of the mind to that Light which reveals the Angel which, in its turn, veils and hides the vast unknown, yet alive and vibrant, Deity.”
