Plant Medicine of the Mind
Cultivating Your Inner Garden: Science of Mind Part 2
As the second part of these proceedings, this essay branches out from a Science of Mind Lens. I want to encourage readers to start from the beginning. Although this post stands apart from the first one, you will be rewarded by reading from the start.
I cannot emphasize enough how these teachings have influenced my being, and after many years of study, this series is a demonstration for all of you.
I hope to entertain as much as I seek to inform.
My work is to seek patterns so that we may destroy illusions with inclusive intelligence at the center. I might as well replace the word ‘illusion’ with the word ‘ignorance.’
Deny ignorance, question authority, and remain ever so stead-fast in your energetic impulse or intention to contribute to the greater good.
And when I say Good, I also mean Harmony. Harmony is always Good! Let’s go… 11.20.2024
The Seed, the Soil, and the Plant: Uncovering the Divine Trinities in The Science of Mind
“The seed of freedom must be planted in the innermost being of man, but, like the Prodigal Son, man must make the great discovery for himself.” — Ernest Holmes (1938)
The metaphors of the seed, soil, and plant beautifully illustrate the creative process of the Divine, where Spirit flows through the Law and takes form in the physical world.
There is a growing reverence for plant medicine in our culture, and yet we often tie this wisdom to the ingestion of substances and psychoactive ingredients that open doors to new perceptions.
But let us consider: “What if medicine is already within us, and true alchemy is one of intention and awareness rather than chemistry?”
In the same way that a seed holds within it the blueprint of life, we hold the potential to heal, transform, and grow. Ernest Holmes' teachings on the descent of Spirit into form align beautifully with this concept of inner plant medicine, a process of spiritual healing and growth without the need for external substances.
The seed, the soil, and the plant become symbols of a higher transformation, one where the mind and heart are the active ingredients.
The healing power of plant medicine, in this metaphorical sense, requires more than intention. It requires the nourishment of both mind and heart. An intimacy (Into Me See).
Think of the seed as your thought, your belief, or your intention. These elements are planted in the soil of your consciousness, and your internal alignment nurtures the growth it experiences.
”When a farmer plants a seed, he invokes the law.” — Ernest Holmes
The Science of Mind teaches that our thoughts shape our reality. “What if we expand this to include the idea that our inner landscape (our spiritual soil) requires care in the same way that a plant does?”
If you plant a seed in barren, neglected soil, it will struggle to grow. If you tend to your inner garden with love, attention, and care, the seed of your intention will thrive. This is the deeper essence of plant medicine: a conscious cultivation of your inner world.
What Holmes calls Law, we can see as the nurturing process. Like the soil that allows the seed to germinate. “What if that altered state could be achieved through a shift in consciousness rather than chemistry?”
“What if the soil we tend is our awareness/intention, and the transformation that follows is the natural growth of spirit?”
The metaphorical plant medicine Holmes offers through his philosophy is one that asks us to ingest new ideas, new beliefs, and new patterns of thought. The true healing, the real transformation, comes when we allow our heart to be the gardener, tending to the seeds of intention with love and patience.
Consider this, “The real medicine is in the way we nurture our own growth.” Through the Science of Mind, we find that perception can shift by simply realigning with the laws of the universe. Here, the heart becomes the healer, the mind the tool, and the body the manifestation.
This is not to dismiss the power of traditional plant medicine but to broaden its scope. The plant in this metaphor is our potential. It is the manifestation of Spirit through the Law of Cause and Effect. And while psychoactive substances may offer shortcuts to insight, they are not required. What is required is the conscious tending of our inner garden, the careful nurturing of our thoughts, and the full engagement of our hearts.
We are the plant.
We are the seed.
We are the soil.
The medicine is in the way we consciously align with Spirit, allowing growth to happen naturally.
This reimagined understanding of plant medicine aligns with Holmes’ metaphysical teachings and offers a contemplative way to connect the metaphor of the seed, soil, and plant to personal and spiritual growth. The medicine lies in our ability to cultivate our inner landscape.
To affirm anything is to state that it is so, and to maintain this as being true in the face of all evidence to the contrary. Human thought can only affirm, for even at the time of denial, it is affirming the presence of that which it denies! Repeating an affirmation is leading the mind to that state of consciousness where it accepts that which it wishes to believe.
–The Science of Mind, Glossary – page 575
The teachings of The Science of Mind offer insights into the relationship between the Spirit, the individual, and the Universal Law. At its core, his philosophy invites us to understand how we, as individuals, are expressions of the Divine, woven into the fabric of something much larger than ourselves. We are seeds planted in the fertile soil of Universal Law, growing into the manifestation of Spirit in our lives.
This process is an invitation to participate in the unfolding of our highest potential.
Let’s explore how this idea, combined with key trinities from Holmes’ teachings, can illuminate our path toward greater self-realization.
“What Is This Symbol, and What Does It Truly Mean?”
Designed by Ernest Holmes, this symbol reveals the creative process. A process that governs all Life, universal and individual. It is the blueprint of existence, echoing the idea that we are made "in the image and likeness of the ONE."
“But what does this mean?”
It is the descent of Spirit, through the mechanism of Law, into the realm of form. What you see is more than lines and forms. It is a reflection of a greater truth. A truth that bridges both the intellect and the Spirit.
Pause for a moment, and gaze upon this symbol with your heart…
The Circle, as the boundless representation of Spirit, the ONE, the Infinite, is where it all begins. Within this infinity are the seeds of possibility. This circle, complete and unbroken, contains the three sacred aspects of Divine Reality, a trinity of Life itself.
This trinity is more than an abstraction. It is an ever-present cycle. It moves within us, whether we realize it or not.
At the top of our symbol, we have Spirit, the absolute, the ineffable impulse. Spirit is the first cause. It is the seed of all that will come. Here, love desires to manifest, to create, to express.
From this place, we plant seeds of thought, of belief, of intention. It is the beginning of all that is, the potentiality before it becomes actual.
Reflect on the seed…
A seed, left alone, is inert. It needs more than potential; it needs soil.
The soil (middle section of our symbol) represents Law, and the second aspect is that great creative ‘medium’ that takes what we plant and brings it to life. Here, mind and heart meet. You see, Law is not just the cold mechanization of thought. The Law is the rich and fertile soil of the soul, receptive to all we bring forth. What is planted with intention grows. Thoughts become things, but only when we give them our heartfelt attention!
There is an elegant simplicity in this truth.
That which we believe, we manifest!
And yet, behind this simplicity lies a profound responsibility.
The soil, though neutral, will grow whatever seed we plant. Our heart’s desires and our deepest fears all find their way into this Law.
It does not discriminate.
It simply responds.
And so, we must ask ourselves: “What are we planting?”
Now, follow this symbol downward to its final expression: Body. The third aspect is the form, the physical universe. What once existed only as an idea or an impulse in Spirit, nurtured by the Law, has now taken its shape. This is the plant, the living expression of all that we once held in thought and belief. It is here that Spirit becomes incarnate, where the unseen becomes seen.
The seed planted in the soil has come to life.
We are thus reminded of the continuous process of creation. The “V-shaped symbol” points downward, representing the movement of Spirit through Law into form. Then it opens upward again, signifying the cycle's never-ending nature. Life is not linear—it is cyclical. As we create, we are also being created. As we manifest, we are also learning to plant new seeds.
But herein lies the deeper wisdom, the wisdom of the Heart. While the Mind concerns itself with planting seeds, plotting thoughts, and designing our future, the Heart reminds us to nurture, trust, and love.
The mind is the architect, but the heart is the gardener.
Without the heart, the soil remains barren, and the seeds cannot thrive.
Thus, the real questions arise:
“What are we nurturing?”
and
“What are we watering with our attention?”
and
“Are we feeding only the desires of the mind, seeking growth for growth’s sake, or are we listening to the quiet urgings of the heart, where the truest form of creation resides?”
For it is the heart that knows the soil’s richness, that understands the patience and care required to see a seed grow into its fullest potential.
“Knowledge is of the intellect; wisdom and understanding are of the heart.”
― Ernest Holmes, 365 Science of Mind: A Year of Daily Wisdom from Ernest Holmes
In the Science of Mind, we are taught to consciously use the Law of Mind, but we must never forget the power of the Science of the Heart. When we balance these two, we become creators of a new way of being. When we plant with both intention and love, we manifest a world where the mind and the heart work together. We help to manifest a whirled where the seed and the soil become one.
”Today, I realize that my body is the temple of God, that there is the Divine Pattern of perfection at the center of my being. I will not think of my physical body as being separated from this spiritual Presence. The Presence is the Cause, the body is the effect, and the two are one.” — Ernest Homes
As we stand in the face of creation, we are reminded that for every form, there is a cause.
For every cause, there is a thought.
And for every thought, there must be a feeling, a knowing, a love, held deep within the soil of our being.
“What will you create today?”
and
”What will you allow the Law to manifest through you?”
and
”Will you trust the seeds you plant and let your heart tend to their growth?”