Indwelling Light by Glynda-Lee Hoffman

Author of The Secret Dowry of Eve: How She Rescues Adam with the Knowledge of Wholeness

Science cannot detect it and religion hardly acknowledges it, but each of us is endowed with a substance that is completely non-material, mysterious and wonderful: indwelling light. This indwelling light is with us whether we are rich or poor, beautiful or plain, smart or slow, funny or sad, lucky or unlucky. It is very difficult to define or describe, just as the properties of light are difficult for science to explain and define. Yet it responds to desire, the desire to know. As Sat Prem said, "If you are thirsty, the river comes to you. If you are not thirsty, the river doesn't exist."         I learned of this indwelling light at a very early age, through several mysterious experiences that simply descended upon me without my bidding, or at least it seemed that way at the time. Today I think that I must have been searching for something in order to invoke the light, because I know now that it responds to our own desire, the same desire that Eve had in Genesis when she desired wisdom and ate the forbidden fruit. It also responds to intent, which may be another form of desire.         As an adult, I was "led" to the study of this light through the ancient wisdom teaching of Qabalah. Though I have now studied Qabalah for some twenty-five years, I cannot say that I know any more about indwelling light than what I have already mentioned, for it is new each time I meet it, yet it builds upon itself a foundation of wisdom that keeps expanding.                 The Secret Dowry of Eve is both a story about indwelling light and a retelling of the first story about indwelling light: Genesis. It has been written so that you, the reader, can begin to grasp the magnificence of that which is within you.         In order to activate this magnificence, you are not required to engage in any ritual, to invoke any special prayers, to belong to any special religion, or to adhere to any special belief or creed. You are not required to be pure, or be special in any way. All that is required is a question, and remaining open for the answer.         Though we cannot do anything special to invoke indwelling light, other than desire its wisdom, we can, and often do, engage in activities which prevent its activation. The customs of our education system, and many of the ways in which we socialize our children, work directly to prevent the activation of indwelling light. When education is administered as a series of disciplines and memorisations, indwelling light is lost. When education is administered as an exploration involving questions and how to find their answers, indwelling light is activated. When children are taught to obey, indwelling light is rejected. When children are taught that play is healthy, that curiosity is rewarded, that being helpful is desired, that being thoughtful and kind are ways in which humans naturally interact, indwelling light shines bright. When children are punished, or made to feel guilty, or ashamed, indwelling light fades. Whenever we acknowledge an authority outside ourselves, whether it be God, Jesus or any other form of spiritual or social authority, we are rejecting our own indwelling light and the autonomy we are meant to attain.         Indwelling light is something we discover through experience, what Christian de Quincey terms, "participatory epistemology." It cannot be taught, but it can be recognized. It can be witnessed. So open your eyes, get the logs out. Indwelling light is yours. Own it.