Elisha (Rabel)

Elisha

Elisha is the next important character; literally, he appears as just another character in the narrative, but really, metaphysically, he symbolizes but a further step in the same factor in us for which Elijah stands. Elisha symbolizes a step in a more interior direction of expression, rather than exterior, as Elijah did. This occurs in most truth students, where they begin to diverse so much of their dedication, so much of their intensities, so much of their zeal and commitment away from externalizing what they're dedicated to, committed to, although there's still a lot of that, but the emphasis begins to shift in a more interior direction. More emphasis is given to being what one believes in and is teaching and demonstrating rather than so much proving of its validity, the more being the thing, the more realizing the thing, getting nearer and nearer to the divine source, purpose of it all, rather than so much successful doing out here.

Elijah, in II Kings, second chapter, ninth and tenth verses, turns his work over to Elisha, after conferring on him a double portion of Elijah's spirit. I love the way Charles Fillmore explains that in the MBD. The double portion of Elijah's spirit, for which Elisha asked, is the positive and negative, yes and no of truth.

There's another thing I have been blasted for is my teaching on the necessity for polarity in expression and manifestation. "All is one; oh, no, there is only oneness!" Only in the absolute, absolute is all total oneness. In expression and manifestation, you must have polarity or duality or nothing can happen! Here's Charles Fillmore, the double portion the positive and negative, the yes and no of truth, or the polarizing of substance.

Elisha, the tender, retiring one, needs the ability to say yes and no with all the positlveness of Elijah. He can have this only by perceiving the true character of the change that is taking place in consciousness. Elijah is not taken away; aren't we glad? We will never lose our enthusiasm and our ability to demonstrate the truth we love and are teaching. That isn't taken away; Elijah is not taken away but is translated to a more interior plane, that's all. It has a more interior basis than motivation. There is open to the one who goes through this change, a conscious unity with spiritual energies of which he has been heretofore ignorant.

The chariot and horses represent the vehicle and vital forces that attend the transformation. I want you to notice something here, folks, that Mr. Fillmore says: "There is open to the one who goes through this change, a conscious unity with spiritual energies of which he has been heretofore ignorant." Now, he's speaking there of Elisha. Elisha, before he receives this blessing, would represent a truth student who is still trying to function in the total absolute. He's unaware, as yet, that the total Absolute, the Source, the divine reality can only be brought into environment through yes and no aspects of energy. Jesus repeats it in many different ways, notably when he says, "Be sure you let your speech be yea, yea, and nay, nay." We have to have this power of how and when and why to say "Yes" and how and when and why to say 'No" on all levels of us, that is in the sense of spiritually as connected with our work, not as spiritually in the absolute, but spiritually related to our world. Then mentally, emotionally and physically, we have to know that the power and the value of the "yea, yea and nay, nay," or the yes and no divine ideas.

Now, in man, the divine ideas of yes and no have faculties to carry out their work. Faith carries out the divine yes idea. Renunciation and elimination carry out the divine no idea. In Unity we teach these two great kindergarten exercises to quicken these two faculties to do their job, and we call these techniques, these conditioners is called divine imagination. We have all the preview of this in the OT, and remember that the OT had previews of it in other religions, scriptures. These are eternal verities. Charles Fillmore identifies this double portion of Elijah-spirit as an increased ability to express yes or no as they are needed. This is very important. Some persons have not yet attained this ability; they may know a great deal about spiritual truth, but without the ability to know how and when to express yes and no, there is a weak connection in them, which has to be rectified or corrected. So the blessing of the double portion in Elijah's spirit symbolizes the conscious gaining of that ability.

Then in the 11th chapter, we are told about the translation of Elijah, "And there appeared a chariot of fire and horses of fire and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven." This translation of Elijah could symbolize a lot of things, but certainly one of the meanings could be how our more earthy and aggressive expressions of spiritual power and understanding are being illumined and defined and raised to higher and finer modes of expression. Now, remember that when we say higher, we mean more interiorized rather than higher away from, higher in the sense of more and more internal.

Then the Bible narrative describes Elisha continuing the work begun by Elijah but not one thing negative connected with it as was the case of Elijah. Elisha, in his metaphysical symbolism, becomes a very strong link in the chain of ever progressive stages of growth in consciousness, leading to that highest of all Biblical symbols of human attainment, which is Jesus Christ.

Transcribed by Margaret Garvin on February 8, 2015.