Guest Post by Doug Marman
From: The Silent Questions, pages 129-131, by Doug Marman
I remember waking up from a vivid dream one sunny day, having dozed off in the afternoon. In the dream I had been reading ancient Indian teachings written upon red rock mountain walls. I couldn’t remember the writings when I awoke, but I was left with a deep feeling that there was meaning inscribed upon the Earth itself. It was like a message imprinted from ages of men and women who had crossed the land. Almost as if the planet itself had absorbed the conscious lessons of the lives of those people and was now trying to give back this wisdom to any who would listen.
Do we leave impressions upon the world from the conscious lives we live?
I found a whole new insight after recording the following inner experience:
Prajapati
Bare outlines of a wooded scene filtered into view. My attention locked on and I found myself projecting into a most beautiful world. Trees of bright green, with leaves that flashed in the sun, lined a rushing river. The river filled me with energy and lightheartedness. It flowed with water of blue-green, the lightest hue, like none I had ever seen before. I wondered where it came from.
Then, looking up, I saw the white majestic walls of cliffs and mountains soaring high into the clouds. The rock face fell straight and smooth at least 1,000 feet. I instantly thought of the Hindu-Kush Mountains in Northern Tibet.
I flew upstream searching for some falls where the cold, fresh glacier water crashed from above. I seemed to remember where this might be. But I suddenly swerved right, traveling at a tremendous speed and only half catching images of the changing terrain.
In the distance, I saw a yellowy glow reflecting off the trees. As I approached, a campfire revealed itself. Yet, this was no ordinary fire. Its flames filled me with an expansive feeling, as if it could awaken all the secrets throughout the worlds. It was a mysterious light that drew me to it, and I knew exactly why a moth will fly into a scorching flame. I felt this same desire within me. Like a magnet, it drew me.
And as I approached I noticed that no warmth came from this fire. It spread out only as a feeling as vast as space itself. My vision became crystal clear from this energy, and I knew that all things grew in harmony with this light. Its glow washed through me and eased all my tensions. There seemed to be a soft sound coming from the light, like a babbling brook, which brought relaxation and an increase in understanding. I reached out to touch it.
My hand felt something solid. I jumped back, startled, for the figure of a man stood now where the fire had been.
Bowing at the waist, he introduced himself.
“Prajapati, at your service,” he said with a smile. A merry look sparkled in his eyes that set me laughing at his gesture.
Here was Prajapati, the great Master who guides animals. Watching him before me was like finding the answer to a great mystery I had always longed to know. He walked softly to a stone, placing his hand on the smooth surface as if in some communication. Then he took a seat, pulling his knees up within his arms. He looked off into the distance saying nothing.
After a long period of silence, he turned to me and spoke in a voice that was clear and soft:
Freedom is the law of nature!
Nature exists on the breeze, circulating and touching all atoms. It is the call of freedom, and the world is soothed by its song. Such shame that man lives and dies for civilization. If he put his faith in nature, I would show him his true kingdom.
Man is heir to the throne, but his world is paced too fast. Whirlwinds of energy, like invisible tornados, dizzy the minds of billions. Where do they all hurry to? I have no idea.
Yet I marvel at Man. Look what he has done! Man brought the smile to Dolphin. He brought softness to Cat. Loyalty to Dog. He has the gift of God! In days of old I walked openly with Man.
Do you remember when we met in that glorious empire of Mu? That was the soft rolling land where all things grew without seed, for Life awoke spontaneously in the water and air. Cat was invited into Man’s temples there.
I stood by the side of fishermen in Atlantis when they built that great bond with Dolphin. Then, in the Northern land of Europe, shepherds led Dog out of the woods to tend their flocks. Look, time has whisked by since then, but what has changed?
Everything in your world is your kingdom. It is yours to uncover and awaken, for you can see its True Form. No others can see it for you.
Forget not even the smallest one by your side, and even Rock and Stone will await your shadow when day’s work is done. Perception is your gift of creation!
If you give freedom to all things, then you have the secret of nature. I can give you no more. Look to the Inner Master for all else!
Prajapati stood up again and looked far away toward the horizon. His form gradually faded into a golden light, which grew and grew until there was no saying where it ended. This was truly his world!
Epilogue
I first published this story in a small newsletter in Sedona, Arizona, in 1976, the year Karen and I were living there. I was surprised how warmly it was received by people in Sedona. I remember one man, he was a well-known landscape designer and gardener in town who came up to thank me.
He explained why the story meant so much to him because he had felt the same kind of feeling with plants from time to time, when working with them. He wondered if that, too, could be Prajapati’s presence he was feeling.
A few months later, an international magazine published the story, and I received comments and questions that were similar. It touched them, and it awakened a feeling for them, just as it did for me. This was all unexpected because I had thought, at first, that this was only a personal inner experience. But after seeing the responses of others, I realized that Prajapati’s words were not just for me.
However, there was one question people asked me that I didn’t know how to answer: “What does Prajapati look like?” For some reason that question left me speechless. I wasn’t sure why. I just couldn’t answer it. But why did I feel an inner resistance that held me back from describing how he looked?
The only way I could make sense of it at the time was that this was part of my personal experience that I shouldn’t share, perhaps because each person should find it out for themselves through their own inner experiences.
This impasse just struck again, as I tried to create images for this booklet. The first pictures captured the background and scenery well, but Prajapati’s face and body didn’t seem like him at all.
The image took a lot of editing before I could get his face and hair to capture the sense of humility and the timeless wisdom he carries before it felt anywhere close enough to work as a picture of him.
But something still bothered me. Going through this process of trying to create images showed me that I was missing something.
Then, while trying to fathom the lesson behind this problem, Prajapati’s presence came to me. He was suddenly there, and I felt again his incredible love for all of life.
Seeing him and being with him again, I finally realized what I had missed. It suddenly hit me.
I remembered when I first met him, long ago. I saw him only as a fire radiating a light that drew me towards it. He then manifested a form for my sake, so that I could relate to him. But this time I could see it clearly—that was not his true self.
Prajapati’s true nature is faceless and formless.
Animals and plants don’t need to see a face or a body. They feel his presence when he is near. What more do they need?
If a herd of wild animals gets spooked, and this triggers a stampede, Prajapati doesn’t need to take the form of a man to run around and corral them. His presence touches the whole heard and calms them all. Animals respond instinctively.
This is the secret of nature Prajapati was trying to show me. It is life itself that brings the sense of freedom because it frees us from limitations. It lifts far beyond the limits of faces and forms.
His message is that we, too, as human beings, can be involved in this flow of life that frees us. We can find that secret of nature if we only spend more time with the formless and faceless side of life itself.
With this new realization, I changed the images. I kept the first picture of Prajapati [standing on a precipice] as close to what I had seen when he manifested himself for my sake. I only added a subtle yellow light around his body.
The Feature image of Prajapati with the animals evokes a sense that is closer to how he feels to animals. And the last image [of a semi-transparent Prajapati] gives a feeling of how he transforms into his true self—a part of nature’s secret side that calls all of life.
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Please visit Doug’s website for more information about this book, his other books, and his recent interviews: www.spiritualdialogues.com