COLLEGE OF METAPHYSICS, accessing inner wisdom in today's world

from Thresholds Magazine, Vol. 17 No. 3 & 4,

The University of the World

by Greg Hoeflicker

In a moment of contemplation, have you ever wondered just what it is you need to do to live a fulfilling life? Have you ever wondered what it would be like to surrender your life to God? Life is about a constant push for a greater sense of fulfillment. So many are reaching for a greater sense of freedom.

We start businesses, to make money, to look good, to be more accepted by the acceptable. We live, we consume, we spend and all we are left with is a bunch of 'stuff.' Many look to be intellectually stimulated. They read books about art and music. They study great philosophers like Plato and Aristotle, and more recently, Sartre and Nietzsche. We flock to see great musicians, seeing them as more complete than ourselves. Many of us our intelligent beyond belief and we just don't know it yet. People need a place to direct their mind and energy to productive means. People are longing to learn to know how to surrender to God's Laws.

It has become time in mankind's evolution for an organization/vehicle that can help man make the most of his time on this earth. Times are changing and man's spiritual urge cries louder than ever, demanding to be heard. Many are listening. The College of Metaphysics was created for those who are choosing to heed the call from within.

With the inception of the School of Metaphysics, people had a place to develop our true greatness. The School of Metaphysics became the answer to the prayers of so many. The coursework in applied metaphysics gave people a way to answer life's profound questions. It was and is a way for people to learn how to think, not what to think.

Shortly after the birth of the School of Metaphysics came the idea for the College of Metaphysics. The vision of the college began to form in the mid 1970's. Because of the growth of the Schools and the love for what was being shared through the classes in Applied Metaphysics, thoughts and ideas began to flourish about how metaphysics could be lived and practiced on an all-the-time basis. The initiators imaged that the College of Metaphysics would serve as a vehicle for those who desire to dedicate their time to spiritual growth. They saw a need within mankind to do more than exercise physical skills. They saw that there were needs that were not being addressed. Many of the original visionaries had graduated from traditional college and recognized that people needed more than a four year university could offer. The College of Metaphysics was envisioned as a place where artists, tradesmen and professionals could apply metaphysical principles with their skills. They would learn to understand how the mind works, the universal abilities within their skills. For instance, a master carpenter might learn how he was using visualization to craft a replica of an image in his mind. He would discover how his love for wood, nature and using his hands enhanced the gifts he had. Then he could learn to love everything he does and shape his whole life to reflect his mastery of his trade.

People imagined the College of Metaphysics as a place for kings, queens, statesmen, religious leaders, educators and influential people to learn how to live in harmony with Universal Law so that the whole world to be guided with wisdom. They imagined a creative community with people of all ages, backgrounds, religions, and talents learning to live in harmony with one another through understanding bonds of divine love.

The vision of the College of Metaphysics began as a campus with a pyramid having the same dimension as the Great Pyramid at Giza. The pyramid would be surrounded by geodesic domes in clusters of three in which a teacher and eighteen students would live. The vision was and is one of full time teaching and learning. Each student would be guided to spiritual, intuitive man by his enlightened teacher. The campus would be filled with buildings. An octagon building would house students and faculty, a health and healing center would teach people the dynamics of mind-body relations. An intuitive health analysis would be the basis of wholistic healing and counseling. The Interfaith Church of Metaphysics chapel would serve those who desire to worship. The Art center would teach how to create beautiful pieces of work by mastering the Kundalini energy. This and many more dreams will be fulfilled over the course of time.

The dream manifested quickly. By 1982, the original purchase of 712 acres of land provided a physical place to begin building. The actual college was built, however, from the collective thoughts of its creators long before the land appeared in the physical. One of the basic principles of metaphysics is that "thoughts are things" and the students put this into action! Everyone visualized the college changing the world with its spiritual education. Students and teachers dreamed about how powerful it would be for people united with a common ideal to live, study, and create together 24 hours a day. Each SOM center contributed money to the College Fund. Individuals from all over who wanted to build the dream gave donations.

Each School of Metaphysics center also had a "Pennies for the College" jar. It was a way that anyone and everyone could be a part of the dream of having a college for spiritual man. Teachers in the School of Metaphysics taught their students to visualize the College of Metaphysics with all its buildings as they dropped the pennies in the "pennies for the college" jar. Many centers had an artist's depiction of the college, just above their "penny" jar. Everyone who gave a penny also gave something equally as valuable - a thought. Imagine, that as each time one of those 700,000 pennies were put in the jars, a thought was created of college for spiritual man.

All of these thoughts had a powerful effect, for it was a dream that was shared by many. Resumes from professors in all fields of study were being sent to the College of Metaphysics. This was highly significant because no buildings had yet been created on our new campus. Those professors were responding to the powerful thought that had been created by thousands of people. It was obvious that the seed idea of the College of Metaphysics very well formed in the Conscious Mind and planted in the Subconscious Mind. Metaphysicians learned the power of a single penny. Every time someone saved a penny or picked up a penny from the ground to give to the COM, they broadcasted a thought about the College to the universe. Imagine this occurrence happening thousands of times over the course of a decade.

For years, pennies from all the centers were brought to the Springfield, Missouri SOM. Many pennies eventually equals many dollars. On December 1, 1986 over 700,000 pennies were brought in a truckload to a nearby bank as the final payment for the College of Metaphysics land in Windyville, MO. It's appearance was like walking into a medieval cave and finding gold, jewels, goblets and pearls.

The college land was initially purchased with a loan that was paid in full within a few short years through using the Laws of Abundance and Tenfold Return. Financially speaking, it is quite an accomplishment in today's society to be free of debt. This reflects the mental ideal of the students of the School of Metaphysics. SOM students learn early on that a free life means a life of fulfilling your karmic debt. Debt keeps a person's thoughts trapped in the business of the physical. Being debt free is part of how man's consciousness will be freed to be one with the Creator.

Since the first class came in 1982, 56 School of Metaphysics students have spent a year in Windyville and graduated from the College of Metaphysics. Most of those graduates have chosen to use their education to teach others the structure of mind, of Universal Law and of living a spiritual existence. The College of Metaphysics is most attractive to those people who are visionaries. Prospective COM students can envision the benefits of a life spent in search of truth. These students realized that a life well spent means a life of helping others to be happier and more enlightened. Since the birth of the COM, class after class has been added to the curriculum. When first beginning, college students had class each morning, studying holy scriptures and how to teach metaphysics. Students also learned how to apply metaphysics in classes like Publishing and Culinary Arts. As the students moved on to the college land, new classes were added like Horticulture and Animal Husbandry. As the College and School took on greater form, new classes were added like Computer Science and Advanced Healing. New classes are being developed and added year after year. Classes are added to the college curriculum based on the talents and skills of the individual student. Students with architectural backgrounds are taught the metaphysics of carpentry. Students with sound engineering backgrounds are taught the universal truths of how vibration manifests in the physical with audio and film productions. These talent-stimulated classes aid students to master their skill on more expansive levels. They learn to understand how mind works in practical application.

A student who chooses to spend a year at the College of Metaphysics transforms. His consciousness evolves to a higher state of being than he or she has ever experienced before. The natural setting in the country is a perfect environment to dedicate the Self to knowing the soul and spirit. The daily contact with all forms of nature gives the student the perspective needed for growth and expansion of consciousness. In a natural setting we can clearly see all the ebbs and flows of nature. We can see nature's stages of infancy, adolescence, adulthood and wisdom. It gives the student a clearer understanding of his own stages of growth.

With an entire year spend developing the Self spiritually, massive Self transformation is inevitable. A year spent in spiritual training at the College of Metaphysics is a year learning to make the most beautiful music known to man, the evolution of the soul. One College of Metaphysics graduate used his year to learn the ebb and flow of life cycles. He could see that vegetables were born, raised and eventually consumed. The cattle are born, raised and prospered. Some cattle didn't live because of disease and circumstances. Trees grow over a longer life cycle and eventually return to the earth. He learned that birth, infancy, adolescence, wisdom and finally death are all a part of life. From this awareness, he released his fear of death and was, for the first time, able to truly live. He saw for the first time that death is a part of life. One COM graduate said that she learned to see motherhood as a wondrous spiritual duty, which transformed the way she raised her child. One woman said that after spending at year at the COM, she handled challenging situations by saying, "I can handle this!" Students who receive spiritual training at the College of Metaphysics learn in one lifetime what takes most people a hundred lifetimes.

The College of Metaphysics today

The College of Metaphysics is currently a one year program for students who have completed the first cycle of lessons offered at the School of Metaphysics. The COM students intensely study how the Universal Laws of creation apply to every area of their lives. They receive instruction several times a day as to how they can think and be more productive. Students study dream interpretation every morning, the universal language of mind in the afternoon and applied metaphysics in the evenings. Instructors at the College of Metaphysics constantly aid the student to see how their thoughts and attitudes affect their health, their life experience and their general state of happiness. Students learn how to create. The following laboratories give them a place practice creation: Applied Metaphysics, Health and Healing, Universal Language of Mind studies (which includes dream interpretation and holy scripture interpretation), Animal Husbandry, Carpentry, Desktop Publishing Horticulture and Culinary Arts, among others. At the College of Metaphysics, instructors teach students to use resources already within their environment to create. Students have used rocks from the COM land to build beautiful rock walls. Organics from the land are used to produce greater yields of tomatoes, squash, watermelons and dozens of other fruits and vegetables. Students give back to nature by planting hundreds of trees along beautiful riverbanks and throughout the mountainous terrain that makes up the College of Metaphysics campus. They also correspond with people all over the world who request information about our courses of study.

Since 1989, the College prepares young people to live a wholistic and spiritual existence at the college preparatory camp. Children and young adults learn how to develop their minds with spiritual disciplines like concentration and meditation. They practice undivided attention in everything they do. They develop their natural genius by creating art, woodworking, music, drama, writing, and dance. They participate in caring for plants and animals, learning how to love and nurture life forms that are dependent on them. They learn how to interpret dreams, to develop intuition, and to listen. The children of campus faculty have the advantage of learning from some of the most active minds on the planet 365 days a year. There is an acute awareness on the parts of those in the college community that these souls have purposefully chosen this environment for what it affords. All children gather the fourth Sunday of each month for Young Souls Day, a wonderful time of communion with the Creator, nature, and each other. A time of fun and learning about Interfaith around the globe.

The physical structures on the college campus are continually changing. The building currently in place on the campus of the College of Metaphysics is the first step of the construction plans. It now serves as a residence quarters, World Headquarters for the School of Metaphysics and the offices of SOM Publishing. Since the initial 712 acres, a great deal more land has been acquired The land known as Shamballah has served as student housing and the Agricultural Department. Dream Valley serves as a "bed and breakfast" as well as a home for staff and faculty. The Moon Valley Ranch house, where the Spiritual Renaissance Weekends are held, was bought in 1995.

The College of Metaphysics is an ever growing, expanding and evolving vehicle that molds to the needs of each student, aiding them to mature rapidly. Instructors teach the student to sculpt his or her own growth, based on their understanding of their own life's assignment. Those who have graduated would agree that their year spent at the College of Metaphysics was one of their most productive and growth-filled ever. (copyright 1998, SOM)

©2002 SOM

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