1 In the beginning Gods created the heavens and the earth.
The heavens and the earth began as a collective idea generated by various forces.
2 Now the earth was without shape and empty, and darkness was over the surface of the watery deep, but the Spirit of Gods was moving over the surface of the water.
The earthly thought was not yet clear. Harmony of form had not yet come into expression. "the watery deep" represents the capacity of the earth idea to bring forth. "the surface of the deep" represents its intelligence. Understanding has not yet come into expression, and there is no apparent action. "The Spirit of Gods" or Divine Intelligence moved upon "the face of the waters." "water" here represents unexpressed capacities, the mental element out of which all is produced. Man is conscious of unexpressed capacities within himself, but only as he moves upon mind substance with intelligence are his inherent spiritual qualities molded into forms.
3 Gods said, “Let there be light.” And there was light!
"Light" is Intelligence, a spiritual quality. It corresponds to understanding and should precede all activity. At the beginning of any of our creating we should declare for light. Our declarations of Truth are instantly fulfilled in Spirit.
4 Gods saw that the light was good, so Gods separated the light from the darkness.
Perceiving what is understood (Light) as preferable to work with, as opposed to what is not understood (Dark).
5 Gods called the light “day” and the darkness “night.” There was evening, and there was morning, marking the first day.
The first step in creation is the awakening of the mind to spiritual consciousness, the dawning of light, the perception of Truth through the quickening of Spirit. Light is Wisdom; and the first day's work is the calling of Light (or Wisdom) into expression. Light represents Intelligence, and Darkness represents undeveloped potential. Symbolically these are "day" and "night."
6 Gods said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters and let it separate water from water."
The central idea in this day's creation is the establishment of a firmament in the "midst of the waters" dividing the "waters from the waters." "Waters" represent unexpressed possibilities in mind. There must be a "firm" starting point or foundation established. This foundation or "firmament" is faith "moving upon" the unformed capacities of Spiritual Consciousness. The Divine Logos--God as Creative Power--gives forth the edict, "Let there be a firmament." The first step or "day" in creation involves "light" or understanding, and the second step, Faith in the Knowing quality of Mind.
7 So Gods made the firmament and separated the water under the firmament from the water above it. It was so.
The word is instantly fulfilled in Spirit. "And Gods made the firmament." This does not refer to the visible realm of forms but to the mental image in Divine Mind, which deals only with ideas. In every mental state we have an "above" and a "below." Above the firmament are the unexpressed potential ("waters") of the conscious mind, resting in faith in Divine Mind. Below the firmament are the unexpressed capacities ("waters") of the subconscious mind.
8 Gods called the expanse “Heaven.” There was evening, and there was morning, a second day.
The word "Heaven" is capitalized in this passage because it relates directly to Divine Mind. Faith ("firmament") established in consciousness is a state of perfect harmony, therefore "Heaven." Another degree of mental development has been attained.
"Evening" represents completion, and the "morning" following represents activity of ideas.
9 Gods said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place and let dry ground appear.” It was so.
The third step in creation is the beginning of the formative activity of the mind called imagination. This gathers the unexpressed capacities of the conscious mind and those of the subconscious mind and produces a foundation for Manifestation. This foundation is symbolized here by "dry land." Then the imagination begins a great multiplication of forms and shapes in the mind.
10 Gods called the dry ground “land” and the gathered waters they called “seas”. Gods saw that it was good.
In this proclamation "land" is the mental image of formed thought and does not refer to the manifest world. "Seas" represent the unformed state of mind. We say that a man is "at sea" when he is in doubt in his mental processes. In other words he has not established his thoughts in line with the principle involved. Gods are aspects of Divine Mind and deal directly with ideas. The sea is capable of production, but must come under the dominion of the imagination.
11 Gods said, “Let the land produce vegetation: plants yielding seeds according to their kinds, and fruit trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.” It was so.
Divine Mind images its ideas definitely and in every detail. The idea precedes the fulfillment. "Let the land produce" represents the perfect confidence necessary to demonstration.
12 The land produced vegetation—plants yielding seeds according to their kinds, and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. Gods saw that it was good.
Ideas are productive and bring forth after their kind. They express themselves under the law of divine imagery. The seed is within the thought and is reproduced through thought activity until thought habits are formed. Thoughts become fixed in the earth or formed consciousness. In Divine Mind all is good.
13 There was evening, and there was morning, a third day.
"Evening" represents completion, and the "morning" following represents activity of ideas.
Thus, the formation of the imagination is completed.
14 Gods said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them be signs to indicate seasons and days and years,
15 and let them serve as lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.” It was so.
The fourth step in creation is the development of the "two great lights," the Will and the Understanding, or the Sun (the Spiritual I AM) and the Moon (the intellect). These are but reflectors of the true light; for Gods had said, "Let there be light: and there was light"--before the Sun and the Moon were created.
16 Gods made two great lights—the greater light to rule over the day and the lesser light to rule over the night. They made the stars also.
The "greater light," in mind, is understanding and the "lesser light" is the will. The greater light rules "the day," that realm of consciousness which has been illumined by Spirit. The lesser light rules "the night," that is, the Will; which has no illumination ("light" or "day") but whose office is to execute the demands of understanding. The Will does not reason, but in its harmonious relation acts easily and naturally upon the inspiration of Spirit. Divine Will expresses itself as the I AM in man. The "stars" represent man's perceptive faculties, including his ability to perceive weight, size, color, sound, and the like. Through concentrating any of the faculties ("stars") at its focal point, one may come into an understanding of its action.
17 Gods placed the lights in the expanse of the sky to shine on the earth,
18 to preside over the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. Gods saw that it was good.
Understanding rules the awakened parts of consciousness (Day) and the Will rules the undeveloped capacities (Night). All is Good to the Divine Mind.
19 There was evening, and there was morning, a fourth day.
"Evening" represents completion, and the "morning" following represents activity of ideas. This marks another step in the development of consciousness. This step is the formation of Understanding and Will in consciousness.
20 Gods said, “Let the water swarm with swarms of living creatures and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.”
The fifth step in creation is the bringing forth of sensation and discrimination. The "creatures" are thoughts. The "birds in the expanse of the sky" are ideas approaching spiritual understanding.
21 Gods created the great sea creatures and every living and moving thing with which the water swarmed, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. Gods saw that it was good.
"water" represents the unformed substance of life, always present as a fecundating element in which ideas ("living creatures") increase and multiply, just as the earth produces a crop when sown with seed. The "birds" represent the liberated thoughts or ideas of mind (heavens). All is in order, and thus Good according to the Divine Mind.
22 Gods blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.”
In connection with the body, "water" represents the fluids of the organism. The "sea creatures" are life ideas that swarm in these fluids. Here is pictured Divine Mind creating the original body idea, as imaged in the 20th verse.
The blessing means that the life ideas and the spiritual understanding (ideas of mind) are supposed to continue to increase throughout life. Always be learning.
In the fifth day's creation ideas of discrimination and judgment are developed. The fishes and fowls represent ideas of life working in mind, but they must be properly related to the unformed (seas) and the formed (earth) worlds of mind. When an individual is well balanced in mind and body, there is an equalizing force flowing in the consciousness, and harmony is in evidence.
23 There was evening, and there was morning, a fifth day.
Another orderly degree of mental development is fulfilled.
Another step in spiritual growth is worked out in consciousness when the individual enters into the quickening of his judgment and seeks to conform his ideas to those of Divine Mind.
24 Gods said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: cattle, creeping things, and wild animals, each according to its kind.” It was so.
On the sixth day of creation ideas of life are set into activity. "Cattle" represent ideas of strength established in substance. "Creeping things" represent ideas of life that are more subtle in their expression, approaching closer to the Physical. They are the micro-organisms. The "beasts" stand for the free energies of life that relate themselves to sensation. Divine ideas are always instantly set into activity: "and it was so."
25 Gods made the wild animals according to their kinds, the cattle according to their kinds, and all the creatures that creep along the ground according to their kinds. Gods saw that it was good.
Underlying all these ideas related to sensation, which in their original purity are simply ideas of life functioning in substance, is the divine idea of life. When life is expressed in divine order it is pronounced good. What is termed "Sense Consciousness" (also called "Material or Body Consciousness") in man, later in this book, is not to be condemned but lifted up to its rightful place.
26 Then Gods said, “Let us make mankind in our image, after our likeness, so they may rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move on the earth.”
Wisdom and Love are the two qualities of Being that, communing together, declare, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." This is the mental image of man that in Truth we call the Anointed One. The Anointed One has dominion over every idea emanating from Divine Mind.
27 Gods created mankind in their own image, in the image of Gods they created them, male and female they created them.
Wisdom is the "male" or expressive side of Being, while Love is the "female" or receptive side of Being. Wisdom is the father quality of the Divine Mind and love is the mother quality. In every idea there exist these two qualities of mind, which unite in order to increase and bring forth under divine law.
28 Gods blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply! Fill the earth and subdue it! Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that moves on the ground.”
Divine Mind blessed the union of Wisdom and Love and pronounced on them the increase of Spirit. When Wisdom and Love are unified in the individual consciousness, Man is a master of ideas and brings forth under the original creative law: Man is given authority and dominion over all ideas.
29 Then Gods said, “We now give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the entire earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. There will be yours for food.
Provision is made for the sustenance of all the ideas emanating from Divine Mind. The primitive forms of life are fed on "herbs"; they have a sustaining force that is food to them, even as the appropriation of divine ideas is food to man.
30 And to all the animals of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—We give every green plant for food.” It was so.
Sustaining force (symbolized by the plants) is given to every idea. At this stage of development all these are Divine. Divine ideas are always instantly set forth into activity.
31 Gods saw all that he had made—and it was very good! There was evening, and there was morning, the sixth day.
Divine Mind, being All-Good itself, sees only its own creation as good. As Man cooperates more fully with Divine Mind, imaging only that which is good, he too beholds his production with the "single eye", seeing them only as good.
The sixth step in creation is the concentration, in man of all the ideas of Divine Mind. Man is given authority and dominion over all ideas. This is completed another step in the development of the mind.