So much has been written and continues to be written about human beings interacting with the other kingdoms, yet I still decided to join the crowd to present my take on the matter.

What I want to do is describe what I sometimes experience when paying attention or actually looking at the interrelationship of ourselves with our environment; in this case, the “other” kingdoms of which we are aware.

Please imagine a huge, multi-dimensional web, usually called “etheric or web of life,” which permeates our Earth universe. All beings are interconnected with all other beings. The strands create a complex energy interaction that goes way beyond our personality’s understanding. These labyrinths or mazes exist on all our physical-etheric, emotional, and mental levels of consciousness. There are others at other levels, of course; but they are of a much more delicate nature.

The Animal Kingdom

Humans’ interrelationship with the animal kingdom is one that can be extremely distorted. These distortions are experienced as pain and suffering. On the other hand, there is immense love that can be expressed between these two kingdoms that is easily witnessed and palpable. In other words, the polarities of the interrelationship are enormous.

The interconnecting threads exist mainly at the emotional level, although there are definitely links at what I call the practical mental level (which is not so complex as the concrete mental, much less the abstract mental level).

Depending on the animal, the connection will be at the power level, the sacral level, the root level, or if the animal is lucky, at the heart level. I am speaking, of course, of companion pets and the working species that interact with human beings. Wild species, for survival of identity with their group mind and soul, will try and avoid human connections of the individual kind.

If, however, any animal consciousness is progressing towards greater individual awareness, no matter what the species, a connection will be established in a being-to-being way. This allows far greater “information” to flow through the link in order that the animal consciousness learns a completely “strange” and new (as in holding individual awareness) way of life. I wonder how much loneliness and isolation there is in separating from the group awareness of the species’ overlighting Entity. Animals that are attempting this seem to do it so eagerly. As eagerly as we do in entering our Path.

A philosopher of my acquaintance has said that karma between animals and humans is so heavy because of how many human beings were killed by animals so long ago. I would extend this to say that “so long ago” human beings were much closer to being part of the animal kingdom, and thus at the effect of its interplays. Now the tables have been turned on the animals. Humans have carried that interplay to extreme polarities, and karma is trying to rebalance.

Whether we want to admit it or not, we are so intimately connected with the animal kingdom because, in effect, we have animal bodies; so that our relationship with other species of animals is a faithful reflection of our continuing, and hopefully evolving, relationship with our physical-etheric and emotional bodies. It is an inescapable legacy. Animals—any animals, domesticated or not—are committed to serving as a healing medium for the Earth universe emotional field. Their mandate is to express joy, moment by moment.

An organization that is dedicated to the rescue and assistance of companion animals or wild animal species, or the struggle to clean up our foul animal factories and feed lots is of equal validity with one committed to helping human families and individuals in distress and great need. The work—the work behind the façade of what the organizations are ostensibly doing—is the same: the healing and smoothing of the unbearable tangles of interconnecting links between humans and animals. This disentangling will help our brother species to continue their journey into greater and greater consciousness, just as we are trying to do.

(Next installment: the Plant Kingdom)