Mysticism & Gospel of Thomas – No. 7 – Overcoming the World

Verse - Overcoming the World

Jesus said, "Blessed is the lion who becomes man by being eaten by man. And cursed is the man who eats the lion and the lion becomes man."

Comment

The lion is the symbol of the bondage to the ego and the world, which prevents man from knowing himself and God. Instead of allowing himself to be devoured by the lion of ego and world addiction, man should eat the lion, that is, he should see through, overcome, illuminate and transform the ego and the world from the spirit. Then the lion becomes man, the world becomes a reflection of the spirit, the kingdom of God. The adversary is not the world, rather he is inside man as his earth-oriented ego, which opposes the higher, God-oriented self.

Overcoming the world is therefore only possible through overcoming the ego. But woe to the man in whom the lion devours man, in whom the ego rises above the self and the inner man falls prey to the outer world and is devoured by it instead of controlling it! He who recognizes and sees through the world has found a corpse. For life comes from the spirit, and only he who lives from the spirit overcomes and masters the world.