By Gerrit Gielen

Introduction

Money is important in this world. It is not only necessary in order to acquire needed goods, it is also a symbol of status and outer wealth. The latter is unfortunately often considered much more important than inner wealth. This obviously indicates that money is usually seen not as a natural part of the flow of giving and receiving, but as something to have as much of as possible.

Apparently, something has gone wrong in our world that has disrupted the flow of giving and receiving. Money often no longer “flows”: some accumulate money, while others experience a chronic shortage. The gap between rich and poor is widening, the wealth of the rich is increasing, while that of the poor is decreasing. Oxfam Novib recently calculated that the 26 richest people have more money than the poorest half of the world’s population, 3.8 billion people.

This article is about what went wrong, what role money plays in it, and what we can do to fix the problem.

The natural cycle of giving and receiving

To understand what is wrong, we must first look at how things should be. The natural cycle of giving and receiving is a cycle of mutual love that brings forth growth and flowering.

How does it work?

In the universe, there is always an energetic exchange between a single being and its environment. This being can be a star, an ant, a planet, or a human. The possibilities are infinite.

The cycle starts with the inner core, which wants to radiate. That radiating is both giving and creative.

The energy of the universe works in a way that tries to bring every being to its full potential; for example, it tries to make a star shine. The radiance of the star is what the star returns to the universe. You could compare this to the relationship between a mother and a child; the child wants to blossom and the mother longs to help the child blossom,  and doing that makes her happy.

This is the natural cycle of giving and receiving in the universe.

The universe strives for every being to blossom to its fullest potential. When this has happened, this being manifests its inner self through the outgoing energy flow in the universe.

So everything wants to blossom, to outwardly manifest its inner core, while the universe wants everything to blossom. This is not a static cycle, but a dynamic one, comparable to a dance that takes the participants to new places again and again.

This means that there are two forces living within us: on the one hand, we are like a child who wants to blossom within the universe, and on the other hand, we ourselves are part of the universe that wants all beings to blossom. You could call the first force masculine, the second feminine. The first makes us unique, the second makes us part of the universe – individuality and unity. We are both male and female. We are children of the universe and we are the universe. The first means that we want ourselves to blossom; the second that we want to cherish, care for and beautify, the world around us.

By fully embracing both aspects of ourselves, we become part of the cycle of giving and receiving.

This is the basis of creation; the dance of all living things.

The disruption of the human cycle

Humans should also be part of the natural cycle of giving and receiving.

In abstract terms, a human radiates his inner light and receives from the universe what he needs to do so. In practice, this means that he is in touch with his soul – with himself – and feels inspired. He follows the flow of his inspiration, expresses it in the world, and receives back what he needs to follow his inner flow.

That is usually not the case with humans, because the natural cycle has been disrupted. How did that happen?

Let’s start at the beginning, that the universe is trying to make a star radiate. What does this mean for a person? A person radiates an inspired life when he is in contact with his core, his soul. This is what the universe is trying to achieve for a human being: that he is in contact with his soul, and thinking and acting from there, thus becoming a loving and radiant human being.

However, things have gone wrong. Man is brought up in such a way that he resists contact with his soul and also the natural urge of the universe to bring him into contact with his soul.

And this happens in various ways. To begin with, the focus during childhood is placed on the outer world; we learn all sorts of things about it, but almost nothing about our inner world. And so we are forced to shift the focus of our consciousness outwards, away from our inner world, because the outer world is what we are taught is real. And so we lose contact with our soul.

We also learn that we are not whole. For example, a boy learns that he must become a man. To achieve that, he must suppress his feminine side. He has to be tough and strong, and make a career. By suppressing his feminine side, he also suppresses his inner wholeness, the contact with his soul. For a girl, the opposite often happens, she learns to suppress her masculine side and the qualities that go with it.

Another problem is the world view. Because people have lost touch with their souls, they no longer see the soul in everything that surrounds them. The Earth is no longer Mother Earth who takes care of them and helps them, but a dead thing that must be mastered and controlled. The universe is seen as cold and indifferent, even a cruel place.

As a result, the natural cycle of giving and receiving is disrupted because man loses contact with the natural starting point of that cycle – his soul. In practice, that lack of contact with the soul means a lack of self-love.

The natural cycle begins with self-love and stalls with self-condemnation. From self-love, love for the other, love for the world, also becomes possible. Love is more than a feeling, it is also a way of seeing. Love makes you see the soul of the other; love makes you perceive and honor life in everything. Without love, the natural cycle of giving and receiving is not possible.

Money and the disrupted cycle

So it’s about love. Without love fear arises, out of fear man wants to acquire power and possessions. Specifically, a lot of money. This money is then essentially frozen fear and forms a block that will disrupt the natural cycle even more. Money is then no longer what it should be: a flowing part of the cycle of giving and receiving.

Below are some examples.

• Safety
  The anxious person usually thinks about the future in black scenarios. Money in the bank offers security. So if things break, new things can be bought. If there is illness, healthcare can be paid for. The loss of a job can be accommodated – as long as there is money.
  In practice, the need for security is often a resistance to change, making it is at odds with the cycle of giving and receiving that brings about flowering and change.
  
  
• Power
  Money means you can exercise power over poor people. By offering them money, you can make them do things they don’t like, don’t want, and in some cases even reject. Think of things like heavy and unhealthy work, child labor, and prostitution. These are not only problems in third world countries; here in the west, many people also work for money at jobs they actually do not like.
  It goes without saying that the energy of power is not compatible with the cycle of giving and receiving based on mutual love.
  
  
• Freedom and happiness
  Because lack of money leads to a feeling of captivity and powerlessness, having money is associated with freedom and happiness. If you have enough money, you can do whatever you want.
  To the question: “Would you still work if you had enough money?”, many people answer with “no”, because they are not happy with their work.
  Spiritually, they are stuck in a situation where their soul cannot shine, so they are not part of the natural cycle of giving and receiving.
  I once read a study about people who unexpectedly won a large amount of money through a lottery. It was examined how long they were happy with all that money. The staggering answer was: 11 days on average! Then it was over. It soon became apparent that money was not the ideal solution.
  Ultimately, it is not money that brings freedom and happiness, they come from an inner contact with the soul. Once that contact has been made, a natural flow of giving and receiving can begin that will often yield money. This is, however, a by-product. The primary source of wealth, and of freedom and happiness, is contact with the soul.
  
  
• Prestige and Recognition
  Lack of self-love results in a strong need for recognition from others. You can, of course, achieve this in a positive way by performing something special, but that is not for everyone. Showing off property and money is then seen as an alternative. Not everyone knows the difference between jealousy and appreciation.

It is clear: lack of money – poverty – is a major reason why many people feel unhappy. Imagining you won’t have the money to buy food for your children.

The problem is that money perpetuates the disrupted cycle of giving and receiving by keeping the focus of consciousness away from the real solution: self-love. As a result, fake solutions are sought that usually amount to acquiring money outside the natural cycle.

Money is often frozen fear within this disrupted cycle. If the money disappears then the fear is released. We don’t want that fear, so we cling to our money.

Recovery from within

The core of the problem, for which people see money as a solution, is not the lack of money, but the lack of contact with the soul. People therefore experience an inner void, and think that the solution is to fill that void with external possessions. Of course, that solution won’t work for long; it is only the wealth of the soul that can restore it.

Once contact with the soul is restored, a natural cycle of giving and receiving can begin, and the universe will immediately respond by nurturing.

An outer prosperity can then arise that reflects the inner wealth. The outer prosperity in most cases will not mean having a lot of money, but that you do have things like a beautiful environment, great friends, rich life experiences and time to do fun things. This outer wealth means that the environment helps you to be happy, it is not about having a lot of possessions to worry about. There is often a difference between what people think will make them happy and what actually makes them happy. True happiness often lies hidden behind the fear.

The key to restoring contact with the soul is to accept yourself as you are. Say “yes” to yourself, have compassion for yourself, and learn to put yourself into perspective. Face your fears, and stop letting your fear keep you from the life you truly desire deep down: a life that nourishes your soul.

The moment you accept yourself unconditionally and lovingly, you restore contact with your soul. That becomes noticeable through the love you feel for yourself.

Recovery from the outside

The universe, for its part, tries to restore the cycle by bringing man into contact with his soul. Usually, it does this by creating crises which force man to go within.

The problem is, of course, those crises are not interpreted as such: an invitation to go within. People frantically try to find solutions in the outside world and try to return to the old situation: a life with money and without a soul.

Those solutions don’t work because they go against the will of the universe and the soul itself.

The result: the crisis intensifies until a so-called “dark night of the soul” arises. A “dark night of the soul” is a deep awareness of the lack of contact with the soul, the experience of total inner darkness. There is then no other solution than to surrender, than to stop fighting. When that state is reached, the light of the soul can slowly flow in again.

Such a crisis is often accompanied by the loss of money. The reason is that money that is not flowing in a natural way is frozen fear. As long as that fear is not faced and lived through, contact with the soul is not possible. People who like to sit on their money are essentially people with a lot of fear. In order to release the fear, the money has to disappear. Only then, in the midst of fear, can the light of the soul shine.

For the person undergoing this, such a “dark night of the soul” is, of course, a turning point in their life. It is the discovery that everything that seemed important was not really that important. It is often the switch from being lived, to living from yourself. It is the discovery that a life without certainties can often be very rich, nourishing, and adventurous. It is not for nothing that people often afterwards write books about these periods.

The restoration of contact with the soul is accompanied by the discovery that the universe around us takes care of us in a miraculous way.

When it is happening, a “dark night of the soul” is a terrible experience, but afterwards many people are grateful that they experienced it.

Money and the natural cycle

Once the natural cycle is restored, people will start to care less about money, much less. Because then the fear disappears, as well as all the money that was held only to control that fear. The loving exchange of energy is then experienced as the basis, and money as a by-product. As the focus of consciousness becomes less and less on money, money becomes less important.

The more people are in touch with their souls, the better they sense what they really need, and others give it out of love. The moment people ask only for what they really need, and money no longer has a value beyond itself, others are willing and able to give it out of love,.

Eventually, in the distant future, money will be abolished.

Finally: a world of love

The natural cycle of giving and receiving is based on self-love and love for others. This is the foundation of a good cycle. Both self-love and love for one’s fellow man arise from a deeply felt contact with the soul. Out of fear, you think you need everything. Through love, you realize what you really need and what others really need.

The natural cycle is also based on balance between the masculine and the feminine. Man is both individual and cosmic; in the soul, both come together. The masculine provides awareness of one’s own needs and the urge for self-expression, and the feminine provides awareness of the needs of others and the sense of belonging.

In a world of love, the focus is no longer on outer wealth, but on inner abundance. Outwardly, people will live much simpler lives. Harmony with nature and fellow human beings has been restored.

Large cities  will have disappeared, and there will be small communities which form an organic whole with the landscape. Nature is once again fully present and, in part due to the loving relationship with people, more beautiful than ever. The Earth is healed.

For a long time, the Earth was the mother of man. But when man has restored contact with the soul, cosmic humanity is born. And then it is man who brings the Earth to unprecedented bloom.

Inside, man becomes greater than ever, aware of his place in the cosmos, and intuitively able to make contact with distant worlds and other dimensions.

A world of love is an adventurous world. It is the adventure of the endless voyage of discovery through the cosmos, the encounter with other civilizations, the adventure of our inner journey of discovery. It is the adventure of creating. the adventure of friendship, and, ultimately, the adventure of love: discovering love in all its forms and facets.

Let’s welcome this world. It is time.

Gerrit Gielen

---