Picture the Nativity Scene. You probably don't even have to use your imagination - chances are you have a model crib set up in your house, or Christmas cards with a picture of this timeless tableau. And you know what it looks like by now, after years of celebrating Christmas.
In most churches you will find a model crib, although usually the baby Jesus is not placed in the manger until the night of Christmas Eve. When he is put there, generally by a child from the congregation, the significance of the moment is marked with carols and prayers.
This is the moment which symbolizes the new birth in Essence, which we may all experience.
What do you see?
Inside a stable, we have the central image of the mother and child. The baby, the Holy Infant, lies in a crib lined with straw, and his mother, Mary, bends over him with a loving gaze. In some versions, Mary holds the baby in her arms, so that all may see him and join with her in loving him.
Behind the mother and child stands Joseph, the stepfather of this child who is of divine origin. Joseph is his father on earth, the one who will protect, support and guide him to maturity; he is ever watchful, looking out for danger, permanently on guard.
In front we have the shepherds, humble peasants in their workaday clothes, perhaps carrying a lamb or two as a gift. Their flocks of sheep are sometimes shown in the background, quietly grazing.
The three kings, or wise men, the Magi, are often depicted in this scene, despite the fact that they arrived last of all. It's important that they are present, as we shall see. They, too, bear gifts; the traditional gold, frankincense and myrrh, symbolizing kingship, priesthood and divinity, and the bitterness of suffering and death.
Angels are usually present, too, sometimes shown on the thatched roof of a stable, sometimes in the background, silently offering their homage to the God-Man who comes in the form of a baby.
And many nativity tableaux show the obeisance of the animals, with the ox, ass, sheep and other farmyard creatures sometimes standing, sometimes kneeling, as the traditional story narrates. It's not in the Bible itself, but we all know of the legend of the animals kneeling at midnight to honour the
newborn king.
This scene, then, is the time-hallowed depiction of the timeless story that is so rich in symbolism that it delights our eyes and our heart, whether we are three years old, thirty, or ninety! The more we contemplate it, the more meaning we can find in it. No wonder that it is universally popular and easily recognized even by those who are not Christians.
In the Work, of course, it possesses an even more significant meaning.
First of all, of course, we realize that the baby, who is both God and man, represents for us our deepest self, our Essence, in which we may one day encounter Real I. That I is already present in us, just as the tiny baby is already God and King of the Universe, but we have to mature and grow in the spiritual life in order to be able to find it.
In the same way, that baby in the manger will have to grow up, to gradually become aware of his mission, and ultimately to experience the greatest possible suffering in order to reign as that divine king which he innately is.
The angels are sometimes called the thoughts of God. Their name literally means "messengers", as you probably know, and their function in the nativity scene is to represent divine inspiration in that part of us which we call the Higher Intellectual Centre. This centre constantly tries to communicate with us, to inspire and guide us, but it is only when we are purified and educated in the spiritual life that we are able to listen to it.
Mary, as I wrote in the previous post, represents here the Higher Emotional Centre. Her role in the scene is to contemplate the majesty and mystery of this holy birth which her assent has made possible, and to portray the positive emotions which we, too, may experience when our emotional centre is purged of negativity.
Joseph begins his role in the gospels as the type of the Good Householder, whose role is to guide and protect the child and to ensure his family are safe. He teaches his divine son a trade, so that he may make a living in this world, but he does not seek a reward in life; he lives from his conscience, and always does the right thing. Gradually, he will come to represent the role of the Deputy Steward, and then, as he grows in understanding, the Steward, who guards the precious Work I's within us.
In the outer circle are the shepherds, representing the ordinary life I's, who do their job diligently. They, too, are Good Householders, because although they fulfil their roles in life they are also aware of higher possibilities. This awareness allows them to respond to the angels' message, so that they find their way to the stable and the child within.
The Three Kings, of course, represent the intellectual centre in us. They have reached the highest level possible for that centre in its life role, but they also have the possibility of receiving communications from the Higher Intellectual Centre. When they do, they understand that their own reasoning, based on human studies, has reached its limits. In worshipping the divine infant they also acquire the possibilities of the Higher Intellectual Centre, so that this role is shared between them and the angels, the evangeloi.
In the background we see the sheep, the I's in emotional centre which must be led and disciplined; and finally, the other animals present represent the instinctive/moving centre I's in us. They, too, have an important role to play, for without them we would not be able to respond to the higher levels. The instinctive centre usually needs no education, unless it has become pathological, and then it may need healing - the divine infant has also come to heal.
The moving centre, however, must be educated so that it serves the needs of the entire human being, including - if we work on ourselves - our higher centres. They may be disciplined in many ways, of course, but in the Work the most important effort here is that which we make in the morning exercise, when the lesser I's must be still so that we may become conscious.
The Nativity Scene, then, in all its elements, pictures the order in which we, as spiritual pilgrims, ought to live our lives. Everything is directed towards appreciating and nurturing the Real I, through the new birth in Essence which we may all experience at Christmas if we have worked for it.
That I deserves our obeisance and our adoration, because it is the opening to the divine.
Only through Essence, which is that part of us that everything in life encourages us to neglect and overlook, may Real I be reached.
All the other I's within us must serve it; we must undergo a long training so that this right ordering becomes possible.
That is the Work. That is the Nativity Scene.
I wish you a Merry Christmas and a new birth in Essence!
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