Abode of Light - Manzil-e-Noor

Let life enjoy eternal happiness,

Let the flame of wisdom and faith be lit in the soul,

Let God's Name flow in our veins,

Let each human being find relief from ego.

One who drinks from your cup and becomes oblivious

to one's self

Merges in God and becomes the Cupbearer.

(Sant Darshan Singh, Abode of Light - Manzil-e-Noor)

Abode of Light — Manzil-e-Noor is a collection of mystic poems reflecting upon the life and teachings of Guru Nanak composed by Darshan Singh.

Seeing Beyond the Material Realm Reuniting With the Supreme Being

Seeing Beyond the Material Realm Reuniting With the Supreme Being

"If we look at human life we shall have to admit that man has a limited scope of existence, limited power of thinking, limited bodily strength and intellect. With limited life, body and every thing limited it is difficult for him to know the Ultimate. Every individual knows his limitations and finds himself surrounded by forces which limit his activities. Such a helpless man is unable to know the Supreme Father. Looking at his limited resources, the Supreme father comes down on this planet and awakens the unlimited potentialities inherent in man. Man possesses the atom of spirit which has unlimited powers. Unfortunately there are too heavy coverings over it. Man is unaware of this potential power. The Supreme Father sends Saints and Seers for those who pine for awakening this power. The moment such an individual comes in to contact with messengers of God, his spirit power is ignited. With little effort from his side and with the help of the Master of the Time, he is able to cast aside the coverings over his soul. As the coverings go off, he feels lightness and develops power of penetration into the past and the future. When all the coverings are thrown off, he becomes one with Supreme Father. There is no difference between him and the Supreme Father. Attainment of this state is real salvation. Salvation is not attained in a dream or just before or after death. It is a process which takes place gradually.

"As the lids and coverings over the spirit are removed, the devotee is able to sense spiritual light within and enjoys spiritual bliss and happiness. Such experiences are constant and vivid. They generate in the devotee a firm faith in the Grace of the Supreme Father and about his spiritual development. This knowledge makes him fearless. He knows that the Supreme Father is watching him all the time as his Saviour and Guide. His attitude towards life changes. He does not while away his time. He cannot run after things material. Whatever he does, is in accordance with the will of the Supreme Father. Lives of Saints and Seers and Messengers of God bear testimony to this fact. Whatever they did was charged with spirituality. The result was elevation of the soul of the devotees, the recasting of their minds in the spiritual mould. Thus those who admit their helplessness are blessed. They have realised the truth about their existence. They will pray for help from the deepest corners of their hearts. Their sincere call, will never go unheard." 

-- Dayal Sahab, Dayalpuri Radhasoami Satsang, A Spiritual Seekers Guide (Recommended Reading For An Introduction to Sant Mat): https://archive.org/details/ASpiritualSeekersGuide/page/n1/mode/2up

सतगुरु दया करि पार लगाइहैं"

This translates to:

"With the mercy of the Satguru, one is ferried across."

The Gnostic Gospels Community at Discord

 

The Gnostic Gospels Community at Discord

There is a Gnostic Gospels community, a forum at Discord with much content about Gnostic spirituality with access to all the key Gnostic texts and the world of apocryphal writings.

Invite Link to Join the Gnostic Gospels Server at Discord:

https://othergospels.com/discord

Gnostic Gospels is dedicated to the study and practice of books missing from the Bible. Join our community of heretics, mystics, and other spiritual wayfarers in our discussion of ancient texts!

Explore lost Gospels like Thomas, Nag Hammadi, the Apocrypha, and more!

Our focus centers squarely on scripture and the spiritual insights offered by extra-canonical sources. Become a "heretic" today!

The Lost Religion of Jesus, A Collection of Resources

 

The Lost Religion of Jesus, A Collection of Resources 

Christians have inherited a rather anachronistic interpretation of Christianity based on viewing the tradition solely through the "lens" of Paul. It is said or believed by some that Paul became a convert maybe between 34 and 36 A.D., roughly 4 to 7 years after the crucifixion of Jesus. The full canonical corpus of Paul's letters seems to burst upon the scene sometime well into the Second Century A.D., but certain letters are assigned by some dates of composition in the mid 50's and 60's of the First Century. It should be obvious that the Jesus movement doesn't begin with Paul. Paul arrives after the time of Jesus and the establishment of his spiritual successors, the first apostles, and that Jesus along with his disciples never had a "Pauline theology". This begs the question, what is salvation, the spiritual practice, and ethical code to be followed according to Jesus and his actual disciples? This original Jesus movement, sometimes called the Hebrew Christians, Ebionites, Nazoraeans, and by other terms, is the 'Christianity Before Paul'. Have always been quite curious about this Jesus Movement so marginalized in the canonical New Testament and seemingly edited out of the timeline.

Reconstructing an Ebionite or Nazorean Collection of Scriptures; Also What We Can Learn About Their History

Reconstructed Q Gospel found in, The Complete Gospels, by Robert J. Miller: 

https://archive.org/details/complete-gospels-ed.-robert-j.-miller/page/253/mode/2up

The Q Thomas Reader - The best and most readable one-volume introduction available to the Sayings Gospel Q and the Gospel of Thomas-the very earliest collections of the sayings and parables of Jesus: 

https://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Reader-English-Coptic/dp/0944344119

https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780944344118

Gospel of the Ebionites: https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/gospelebionites-panarion.html

Gospel of the Hebrews:  

        https://othergospels.com/hebrews

Gospel of the Hebrews: https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/gospelhebrews-throck.html

Gospel of the Hebrews: https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/gospelhebrews.html

The Gospel of the Nazoreans: https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/nazoreans-ogg.html

The Gospel of the Nazoreans: https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/gospelnazoreans.html

Surviving Quotes from the Jewish-Christian Gospels: Gospel of the Ebionites, Gospel of the Hebrews, and Gospel of the Nazoraeans: https://web.archive.org/web/20210223222109/http://www.textexcavation.com/jewishgospels.html

Hebrew Gospel of Matthew (Shem Tov’s Hebrew Matthew), George Howard: 

https://archive.org/details/Hebrew.Gospel.of.MatthewEvenBohanIbn.ShaprutHoward.1987/mode/1up

Another Copy:

https://archive.org/details/gospelofmatthewa0000unse/page/n5/mode/2up

Early Christian Psalms: The Book of the Odes (a.k.a. The Odes of "Solomon"): 

https://othergospels.com/odes

https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/odes.html

The Didache [earliest sections: 1, 2, and 3]: 

https://othergospels.com/didache

Letter of James: 

https://othergospels.com/bible/james

Letter of Jude: 

https://othergospels.com/bible/jude

Acts and Teachings of the Ebionites: The Vast Treasure-Trove of the Clementine Literature

Epistle (Letter) of Peter to James:

https://compassionatespirit.com/Books/Homilies/Epistle-Peter-to-James.htm

Epistle (Letter) of Clement to James:

https://compassionatespirit.com/Books/Homilies/Epistle-Clement-to-James.htm

Also See: 

https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/080800.htm

Kerygmata Petrou (Preachings of Peter Reconstructed):

https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/kerygmatapetrou.html

The Ascents of James: History and Theology of a Jewish-Christian Community, by Robert E. Van Voorst:  

https://archive.org/details/ascentsofjameshi0000vanv/mode/2up

The Clementine Homilies and The Clementine Recognitions (Ebionite Book of Acts)

Acts and Teachings of the Ebionites: The Recognitions of Clement, from the Greek and Latin Manuscripts: 

https://compassionatespirit.com/Books/Recognitions/Recognitions-TOC.htm

Acts and Teachings of the Ebionites: The Clementine Homilies, from the Greek and Latin Manuscripts:

https://compassionatespirit.com/Books/Homilies/Homilies-TOC.htm

The Clementine Homilies (English translation) Ante-Nicene Christian Library, Vol. XVII, T & T Clark, 1852: 

https://archive.org/details/clementinehomil00donagoog/page/n8/mode/2up?view=theater

History

I do agree with the scholar Robert Eisenman that finding the historic James the Just (brother and spiritual successor of Jesus) is the most logical way to locate a historic Jesus. 

The Research of Robert Eisenman

Robert Eisenman @ Amazon: “James the Brother of Jesus: The Key to Unlocking the Secrets of Early Christianity and the Dead Sea Scrolls”; also, “Dead Sea Scrolls & The First Christians”; and, “James the Just in the Habakkuk Pesher”: 

https://www.amazon.com/Robert-Eisenman/e/B000APV2U2

James The Brother Of Jesus And The Dead Sea Scrolls, by Robert Eisenman: 

https://archive.org/details/JamesTheBrotherOfJesusAndTheDeadSeaScrollsI/page/n14/mode/1up

The Research of Keith Akers

I highly recommend two books by Keith Akers on the original Jesus Movement (Christianity-Before-Paul), the Ebionites: "Disciples": 

https://www.amazon.com/Disciples-Jewish-Christianity-Shaped-Shattered-ebook/dp/B00J48GAJE/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=keith+akers&qid=1586786123&sr=8-1

And by Keith Akers..."The Lost Religion of Jesus": 

https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Religion-Jesus-Christianity-Non-Violence-ebook/dp/B003KTNBMM/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&qid=1586786168&refinements=p_27%3AKeith+Akers&s=digital-text&sr=1-1&text=Keith+Akers

Read for free online, The Lost Religion of Jesus: Simple Living and Nonviolence in Early Christianity, by Keith Akers: 

https://archive.org/details/lostreligionofje0000aker/mode/2up

The Research of James Tabor

Forgotten Christians: Who Were The Ebionites?

https://youtu.be/dBSuapNMQXU?si=6UnXILusW8w2rM6K

How James [Yaaqov] Beloved Brother of Jesus Was Written out of Early Christianity: 

https://youtu.be/2n5Qg_ekQ_E?si=AQz_H68TWVYpj7N8

The Jesus Dynasty: The Hidden History of Jesus, His Royal Family, and the Birth of Christianity, by James D. Tabor: 

https://archive.org/details/the-jesus-dynasty-james-d.-tabor_202301/mode/2up

The Fading of the Jesus Family--Phase One: 

https://youtu.be/FquOk6wpPr8?si=Cci8eP2bMMlUPbDj

The Fading of the Jesus Family: Phase Two:   https://youtu.be/FU8gF8VPH2Q?si=qXaeRYobgV5kIDiQ

Reclaiming Primitive Christianity Part 2: Exploring the Historical Jesus with Dr. James Tabor:  

https://youtu.be/WJNACLcWuLE?si=v3zURHTnrm7Dbfii

Were the Ebionites Heretics? Or Our Best Witness to the Jesus Movement? 

https://youtu.be/HLQ97erL1gc?si=eDWHzX0gQjIVVjKf

The Research of John Davidson 

The Gospel of Jesus: In Search of His Original Teachings, by John Davidson: 

https://archive.org/details/gospelofjesusins0000davi/mode/2up

The Research of Gerard P. Luttikhuizen

The Revelation of Elchasai, a scholarly book by Gerard P. Luttikhuizen, exploring the Elkesaites, a Jewish-Christian sect originating in the Transjordan, their connections to the Ebionites, Nazarenes, Gnosticism (Sethians, Mandaeans, Manichaeans and the Prophet Mani);

The Research of Dr. Samuel Zinner

Jewish-Christian Influences in Nascent Islam:  https://vimeo.com/182671329 

Evidence That Jesus and The Original Aramaic Christians Were Vegetarians, By James Bean (Veg Passages, Expanded, Updated): 

@ Medium: 

https://medium.com/sant-mat-meditation-and-spirituality/evidence-that-jesus-and-the-original-aramaic-christians-were-vegetarians-b8784ac42506

@ Blog: 

https://santmatradhasoami.blogspot.com/2019/04/evidence-that-jesus-and-original.html

Selections from the Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry of Soami Ji Maharaj

 

Selections from the Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry of Soami Ji Maharaj

"You will not find any trace or sign of the Master in pilgrimages, fasts, rituals, or temples. The poet Rumi says: 'The mosques and temples are within the saints. That is where God resides.'"

"Seek the Beloved within yourself. If you are anxious to meet your Beloved, do not stray in the world."

"When your eye turns inward in the brain and you see the firmament within, and your spirit leaves the body and rises upward, you will see the Akash in which is located Sahas-dal-kanwal, the thousand petals of which perform the various functions pertaining to the three worlds. Its effulgence will exhilarate your spirit."

"Realize your real form within, and then proceed further with your Surat.*"  (* attention-faculty of the soul)

"My dear, listen to what I say. Turn within yourself and behold light."

"Behold the marvellous Jyoti (flame) within yourself. Radhasoami* has opened the spring of Bhakti."

"Shabd* is ringing within you. Hear it with rapt attention."   (* sound current)

"Listen to Anhad Shabd within, says Radhasoami."

"Slowly and gradually you will gain stability. There is no other remedy but to perform Bhakti*.  (* bhakti, love and devotion) 

One day your imperfect Bhakti will become perfect. Give up hypocrisy and engage in Bhakti.

Insincere Bhakti will not do. Perform true and sincere Bhakti, no matter if it is imperfect.

Radhasoami graciously declares that you should perform Bhakti in whatever manner you can."

"Therefore, perform Bhakti and make your life fruitful."

*Radhasoami (Radhaswami), The Lord of the Soul