Holi Hai
The most awaited festival of colors in India is around the corner! It is this time of the year that Hindus around the world perform the famous ritual Holika Dahan and the following day splash colors on each other celebrating the victory of good over evil.
Let us connect the tale of Holika’s boon and her destruction to the protective “shield” of our Etheric body that Theosophy talks about!
Story of Holi
The festival of Holi originates from a powerful story, recorded in Bhagavat Purana.
Since the Gods never granted immortality, he used his cunning to get a boon that he thought made him immortal.
Hiranyakashipu then ordered his entire kingdom to worship him as god and punished and killed anyone who did not follow his orders. However, his son Prahlad did not obey his father, and refused to worship his him as a god. He was a true devotee of Lord Vishnu and he continued believing and worshipping his God.
This made Hiranyakashipu very angry and he made various attempts to kill Prahlad. During a particular attempt on Prahlad’s life, King Hiranyakashipu called upon his sister Holika for help. Holika was granted a special cloak garment that prevented her from being harmed by fire. Hiranyakashipu asked her to sit on a bonfire with Prahlad, by tricking the boy to sit on her lap. However, as the fire roared, the garment flew from Holika and covered Prahlad.
Holika burned to death, while Prahlad came out unharmed.
This marked the end of Holika and thus the end of evil thoughts and deeds over good ones.
Now let us talk about an Etheric shield that can protect you from negative influences.
The shield
While Holika possessed a cloak that protected her from fire, we too can be surrounded by a “shield” that protects us from all evil things that can cause harm to us.
Theosophy says, in various circumstances it is possible to form a shell or a shield of etheric matter, to protect oneself or others from unpleasant influences of various kinds.
Would you like to know about this special boon given to us? Read below!
How does an etheric shell or shield protect us?
Here are the 9 ways an Etheric shield can protect you:
- Protects your Prana from being drained by others.
Some people are low in Vitality and they continuously absorb Prana or (life-energy) emitting from others, although unconsciously. The etheric shield protects your prana from being drawn away by others.
2. Keeps diseases at bay.
Certain people are very sensitive and they have a tendency to actually reproduce the diseases and symptoms of others within themselves.
3. Safeguards from disturbing noises.
Some kinds of people are adversely affected by the non-stop multiple vibrations of a loud city.
4. Protects from unhealthy magnetism.
In a huge crowd of people, it is possible that some people contain unhealthy magnetism which adversely affects a student of occultism, if it doesn’t prove injurious.
5. Protects sensitive souls.
Some people are very sensitive and can contact negative energies by simply shaking hands. In such a case, they can build a temporary etheric shield around the hands and arms by using strong will and efforts, to protect themselves from even the slightest unpleasant particles.
6. Protection from fire.
Such specific shields can also be utilized for protection against fire, although creating such a shield for use requires a much high knowledge of practical magic.
7. Protection from negative influence.
When the brain is idle, it allows the flow of illogical and irrelevant thoughts into it. Keeping the brain busy in useful thought processes while awake, to protect it from negative influence of thoughts from outside.
8. Safeguards the etheric brain while you are asleep.
While asleep, the etheric brain is even more vulnerable to external negative thoughts. A shell or shield protects oneself from such unwanted impact.
9. Protection to the physical body from harm and danger
We know that anything that manifests on the physical plane has to first be manifested on the etheric plane. Hence, keeping the etheric body protected from harm will keep the physical body also protected from harm.
Creating the etheric shell requires a lot of effort of will and imagination.
There are two ways to create it:
- The border of the etheric aura can be made inaccessible. The etheric aura is the same shape as the physical body, only a little larger.
- A roughly oval-shaped shell of etheric matter can be created from the surrounding atmosphere.
The second method is more preferred but is also comparatively difficult. It requires arduous efforts of will and a sure-shot knowledge of how the physical matter will be affected by the shell.
We encourage you to keep yourself surrounded with an Etheric shield and safeguard yourself from any negative influence that can affect your bodies.
To know more about the topic “Shells and Shields”, refer our Module 6: Applications on the book The Etheric Double by Arthur E. Powell.
May this Holi add colors of happiness, gaiety, fun, and laughter to your life!
Wishing you and your Family a very Happy Holi!
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