FROM THE BEGINNING

Somewhere back at the beginning of what we know and understand, when everything came into being and the energies in the universe began to interact, individual consiousness was born. Although the consciousness energies were all interconnected (as are all things in the universe) they lacked a physical medium through which they could receive stimuli and experience sensory input, and therefore, could not learn, grow or evolve.

And so it was decided that the individual consciousnesses (which I will refer to in the remaining sections as our "spirits" or "higher selves") would experience a variety of physical realities, each of these realities or stages spanning numerous cycles of death and rebirth, and with each stage being slightly more advanced (on an evolutionary scale) than the previous one. (Please note that the word "evolutionary" as it is used here does not refer so much to a physical or intellectual change as much as a spiritual one.) Within each stage, the spirits would have a set of lessons to be learned if you will, (or goals to achieve if you prefer) that encompassed the particular abilities and skills of that physical form within that physical reality. Once these lessons were achieved, the consciousness would be able to move on to the next stage.

To take this a little further, when in the physical form, the spirit is much more limited than it is when in the spirit state. (Not in the physical form.) These limitations are based primarily on the "laws" or rules of that reality. (Humans ((mistakenly)) refer to this as the "Laws of Physics" etc...) One of the primary lessons within each reality is to learn to live at the highest possible levels of that reality. (i.e., to use all the tools available and to "push the boundaries" so to speak.) This ensures that each stage provides the maximum stimuli and sensory input to the spirits. However, if within each stage a spirit were to go from death to rebirth, and from death to rebirth again with no time in between to assess and reflect, the spirit would experience very little growth. Therefore, each spirit is given a time in between each cycle for this reflection and assessment.

This seems like a good point to (briefly) address the issue of "spirit guides". In the time before spirits began their journey into the first stage, it was realized that although each spirit was an individual per se, it was vitally important to maintain the concept of interconnectedness with others. In addition, the journey would not be an easy one, and a connection to the spirit plane would be both beneficial and welcome. So each spirit was allowed to choose another spirit with whom to share their journey. What is interesting to note here is that no spirit chose another who did not also choose them. The spirit pairs were "attracted" to each because of the vibration of their frequencies as well as more subtle similarities. Each pair was a perfect match. These spirit partners travel through time together indefinitely, helping each other through their lessons and providing both an anchor to the spirit plane as well as a constant reminder that "we are not alone (separate)." While one spirit is in the physical form, the other remains in the spirit state, assessing and reflecting on their own past life while guiding their partner as best they can and are allowed. (They can not interfere with the "laws" of that reality.)

I want to make it clear that when I describe spirit guides, I am not talking about what some people call spirit mates. Spirit mates are two spirits who share a sort of higher love, and the subsequent attraction vibrates strongly enough to enable them to align their cycles of death and rebirth in order to exist in the physical form at the same time. This does not always work, and the spirit mates may "miss" each other or not be able to "find" each other every cycle. However, it is somewhat amazing at how often they do seem to achieve it. Where or how spirit mates originated seems to be a bit of a mystery, but a best guess theory is that during one of the physical cycles of the spirits, they met and shared love. The depth of this love reached all the way to the spirit plane and developed the bond that exists between them. With each subsequent meeting, the bond is strenghtened. There is another legend that states that in the beginning....the spirits were split into halves. The two halves forever seek each other out, and only when they come together do they feel whole again.

We do not know "where" we started our journey. We only know that the human stage or realm is not the first, nor is it the last. Actually, it is irrelevant what came before as well as what will come after. The point is to learn the lessons of the realm in which you currently exist.

(NOTE: Interestingly enough, we are familiar with the realm into which we are evolving but only because many of our spirit guides have already moved on to that stage. PLEASE SEE THE SECTION ENTITLED "SPIRIT GUIDES" FOR A MORE DETAILED EXPLANATION.)


WHO ARE WE?

Right about now you may be asking , "..and so just what is an Advocate?" I'm glad you asked. Below is a list of general beliefs held by Advocates, followed by a more specific list.


GENERAL BELIEFS

- typically follow a pagan path (notice I said typically)
- belief in the cycle of death and rebirth (reincarnation)
- understanding and acceptance of archetypal energies as deity
- understanding and acceptance of the interconnectedness of all things
- understanding and acceptance of Gaea as a "living breathing entity" to whom we are connected
- the use of what others refer to as "supernatural powers", but that we understand simply to be tools available to all to enhance this physical experience


SPECIFIC BELIEFS

- understanding and acceptance of the general classifications of spirits as White, Gray, or Black
(please see the section entitled "THE ADVOCATES" for an explanation of this concept.)
- understanding and acceptance of the concept of triads to optimize each spirit's journey
- understanding and acceptance of the other concepts described within these pages to include spirit guides, spirit animals, spirit rooms, and working with energy


The word "Advocate" has a variety of meanings or definitions, all of which describe to some degree, those beliefs listed above. Adherent, patron, and espouser are words that show the "understanding and acceptance" of the particular path that we follow. Supporter, defender, upholder, ally....show our active "involvement" with those same beliefs.

I think it is important to note that we often see instances of people "espousing" to be a "patron" of a particular path, religion, belief system, etc. However, to simply state that you ARE something does not make it so. An old, but appropo cliche is, "You talk the talk, but can you walk the walk?" This does not mean that every Advocate MUST be a member of a triad at all times, nor does it mean that Advocates need to be standing on a street corner with a sign trying to attract new "followers." It does not mean that once a week you must get together with your triad and perform a spell, and then the rest of the week you need have little or no contact with them. It simply means that Advocates live the path as a lifestyle rather than "practice" it as a religion. It is part of who we are, not so much something we do. For instance, when a question or issue comes up in our lives, we do not hesitate to turn to our triad members, spirit guides, spirit animals, and/or "visit" our spirit room. It does not matter where we are or what we are doing. We need no special tools or ceremony with which to communicate with them, nor do we need to be in a special place or in a particular state of mind. Something people seem to have a difficult time grasping about the Advocate Path is that many Advocates consider themselves Wiccan, Asatru, Saxon, Strega, etc... We have no problem accepting this because again, Advocacy is a lifestyle that seems to overlay very nicely onto many of the pagan paths prevalent today. In fact, many of the general beliefs are very similar. Others simply choose to work within the path, but still adopt individual practices that appeal to them from a wide variety of sources.


MORTALS

Occasionally you will hear an Advocate use the term "Mortal" when referring to a particular human or group of humans. Within the Advocate path, the term Mortal refers to those individuals who are in a sequence of lifetimes in which they generally do not remember past lives or accept the concept of the cycle of death and rebirth; do not understand nor accept the idea of archetypal energies as deities or of multiple deities; do not believe that the vast majority of humans have at their disposal a wide variety of "powers" (we call them tools) to enhance their own lives; do not accept the existance of things such as spirit guides or spirit animals (with some minor exceptions); seem to have no particular connection to each other or to Gaea; and basically seem to follow a path of isolationism (which to them is individuality) in which all other things, people, and even their deities exist completely outside of themselves. These people often turn to the monotheistic religions for comfort and fellowship, but which can breed fear and disaproval of polytheistic groups, and even prove to be discriminating, intolerant and violent against those who do not believe as they do. I want to emphasize that this is not always the case, and that not all Christians, Muslims, Jews, etc...are Mortals. Along those same lines, there are those people who call themselves pagan that are as "Mortal" as they come. The thing to remember is that we will ALL go through a sequence of lifetimes as a Mortal. It is one of the lessons of the human realm. (The reason it is a sequence of lifetimes and not just one is that the more primary or serious lessons take numerous cycles to both experience and work through. Smaller, more individual lessons can typically be completed in one lifetime.)


ASCENTIONISTS

One additional term I would like to discuss is that of "Ascentionist". Although the term itself may seem somewhat misleading, it represents another of the primary lessons that each human will have to learn. Ascentionist literally means "A person who progresses or rises to a higher degree." The interesting thing is that the progression or higher degree is actually achieved after this lesson is completed. (Which is actually the case with most lessons.) Like Mortals, the Ascentionist lesson occurs over a sequence of lifetimes. The characteristics that mark an Ascentionist's life include a knowledge and typically an acceptance of the general beliefs of most pagans; a (potentially) higher ability to use energy or magick as well as travel in other planes; appear to be more "in tune" with other living things on this plane (and actually in others as well); often seem "out of place or time" which can manifest as very bizarre or unusual behavior or extreme calm and benevolence; and cannot "link" with others in a triad situation. Actually, one of the principal points of the Ascentionist lesson is to have the knowledge and understanding that an Advocate would, however, the frequency at which the individual vibrates shifts slightly for the duration of this sequence of lives preventing the individual from linking with others. (This also makes it more difficult to communicate with their spirit guide and spirit animals. However, such contact is not impossible.) The best way to explain this is that as a Mortal, a person will live a life of isolationism (I use the term isolationism here primarily to mean "not linked") based on their lack of acceptance of the things that Advocates take for granted and the nature of their beliefs. Ascentionist, on the other hand, are "forced" to live a life of isolationism because of their frequency, despite their understanding and acceptance of Advocate or other similar ideology. They can live with, love, and work along side their Advocate brothers, but they cannot link with them. Often though, you will find Ascentionists to be "loners" or at the least, very cautious about getting close to others. If you think back to stories you may have read about the earliest shamans, (not what people call shaman today) but the people who lived away from their village, talked to spirits from other planes, shapeshifted with animals, performed amazing feats of healing and other magick, and were often feared and awed....they were Ascentionists.


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