The touch of Shamballa
Taurus is the symbol of desire in all its phases. So powerful is desire that it mobilizes the will to live, to draw the next breath. But, when this innate urge is directed to personality fulfillment, it can become a source of heartache. This the Buddha well understood, for he said that “self-affirmation is the cause of all sorrow”. Yet this same compelling power contains within it the lowest reflection in human consciousness of the will aspect—the highest divine aspect—and thus spans all levels, from ambition and craving for personal ends, to aspiration and, at its highest level, the will to cooperate with the divine Plan. The influence of Taurus is so potent today, we’re told, and its impact is so pervasive, that it behooves all spiritual seekers to deepen their understanding of the nature of desire and its results.
This compelling power expressed in Taurus was the essential message of the Buddha, who was born in Taurus and achieved enlightenment at the full moon of Taurus. Esoteric teaching tells us that each year, at the full moon of Taurus, the Buddha returns bringing the “touch of Shamballa”, the center where the Will of God is known. The impact of this dynamic force is increasingly stimulating the will aspect in human beings, inevitably producing both undesirable as well as desirable effects, and these are now startlingly visible throughout the world. They underlie the stimulation of the will-to-power demonstrated in all dictators and they’re widening the already existing divisions between groups and nations. However, from the esoteric point of view, which endeavors to perceive the underlying conditioning energies behind all outer manifestation, the Shamballa force is pursuing its spiritual task of destruction in order to clear the way for the incoming energies of Aquarius to condition the new age. Thus, the great question confronting humanity is whether these Aquarian energies will stimulate the influence of Taurus to produce the floodlight of illumination, of which Taurus is the custodian, or if they will simply strengthen the lowest expression of desire and thus increase selfishness.
The writings of Alice Bailey compare the influence of Taurus to an anvil. This gives us an apt symbol for the effects of Taurus upon the human will, especially as it impacts the “little will” of desire, of personal ambitions and urges. An anvil is a device upon which the densest, most impermeable matter can be hammered into new forms for new uses. The use of an anvil as a forging tool for the purpose of forging new relationships and conditions is an especially appropriate image for preparing humanity to respond positively, with creativity and wisdom, to the inpouring energies of Aquarius, strengthened by the influence of Taurus and Shamballa.
In this intense process, all thinking people must examine the effects of these energies upon their most cherished goals, values and world views. Wherever separateness, personal biases, and resistance to impending change exist, there will the inpouring forces strike with greatest impact. All is being brought to light, submitted to the blaze of dawning awareness, as the keynote of Taurus affirms: I see and when the Eye is opened, all is light. How human beings respond will make all the difference, for as Ken Wilbur put it, “Authentic spirituality does not console the world, it shatters it.” The effects of the Shamballa force as it streams into the world are removing the hindrances, in governments, religion and society, as they seek to impede the new age. In the Buddha’s words , all “composite things” are being synthesized into new, more appropriate forms for human living. The convergence of the full moon in Taurus, which releases the “touch of Shamballa” into the world, and the tide of Aquarian energies steadily growing in power offers a powerful moment for the major task of group service: to force the energy of the will to good into the world. We must trust this process, holding in mind, as Alice Bailey wrote, that the secret of the will is closely tied in with the recognition of the unconquerable nature of goodness and the inevitability of the ultimate triumph of good.
