Our Spiritual Relationship With Animals
During my conversation with Animal Communicator, Teresa Wagner, I felt uplifted and reminded of the enormous, unrealized potential we possess. As humans living in a material-centered world, we are admittedly ‘clunky’ in our communications, relying on words, phones, computers, etc. to convey information or feelings. That is, IF we communicate at all. But there is a fascinating world beyond all that – a world of telepathic communication that is heart-to-heart, soul-to-soul, and works for animals and humans alike. It’s not a skill reserved for people with special gifts. Teresa reminded me that her ability to communicate with animals – from insects to rats to cats/dogs to whales – is something that is inside all of us. It’s in our DNA. A lost memory.
We have lived in close communion with animals in our past. Genesis chapters 1-2 tell of a time when the human and animal kingdoms were in harmonious relationship. Adamic man was given the responsibility to care for Creation. The animals were brought to him for naming:
“Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.” (Genesis 2:18-20)
This was a sacred task, and a personal one at that. I envision Adam actually naming the animals – not like ‘bear’ ‘cat’ ‘cow’, etc. but like Tess, Hector, Amalia, Jose, and Barbara .
There was no violence in this Edenic setting. God instructed both humans and animals to eat plants rather than each other:
"Then God said, 'I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.' And it was so." (Genesis 1:29-30)
Now that’s more of what I would expect Divine Love to create -- a world of love, connection and community, versus fear, exploitation and murder. Humanity created the latter world and we convince ourselves that we have evolved from a primitive state, that we are now at some sort of pinnacle of evolution. But this story reminds us that we have fallen from a more advanced state and betrayed the harmony and connection we originally had with all Creation. Whether you consider the story to be historical or metaphysical, I hold Eden up as the ideal for how we are to be on the planet, living alongside the animals, and being their caretakers.
In today’s world, animals suffer horrendously at the hands of humankind. To meet our appetite for meat, dairy and eggs, 99% of farm animals in the United States are raised in large-scale factory farms, which focus on profit and efficiency versus the welfare, purpose and sentience of animals. In the USA alone, we kill cows, calves, pigs, chickens, chicks, turkeys, ducks, rabbits, lambs, and goats at the rate of over one million an hour, when they have lived just a fraction of their lifespans. If you include fish and sea animals, it is in the trillions annually worldwide. Then there are the hundreds of thousands of animals who suffer in zoos/aquariums, and an estimated 100 million who suffer in medical, cosmetic and household product testing labs. That is an extraordinarily massive amount of violence inflicted on the beings we were created to protect.
So often I hear from people that humans are more important than animals, and we should prioritize fixing the suffering of people over the suffering of animals. But it’s all interconnected, and the idea that there is an ‘other’ who must wait, or who matters less, just supports the separation illusion that we have bought into since our fall in consciousness. No one is asking anyone to help an animal instead of a human. We are not in a burning building, having to choose between Grandpa or the cat. Every day we can take action to minimize the suffering of animals, simply by choosing to not take part in their exploitation. And when we lessen the suffering of any being, or when we are not the cause of it, we magnify Good on the planet, and it lifts everyone up.
If we don't spiritually bypass and turn a blind eye to the suffering of animals at our hands, we can often get depressed by the truth. I asked Teresa how we can help animals who are suffering without getting dragged into depression. Obviously, we can stop harming them ourselves by changing many of our consumption habits. We can modify our diet, look at product labels and only buy products that do not harm animals. We can adopt companion animals from shelters and take care of those who cross our paths. I recommend taking all of these steps. It immediately feels good. But if we stay awake to reality, we are still left knowing that so many are in horribly abusive, fearful and anxious situations. The heart can feel helpless. What can we do?
Teresa shared how we can be courageous and send our energy of love and compassion to the hearts of suffering animals. This is hard because we have to squarely face the suffering. That's why it takes courage. But most authentic communication is hard. Quickly it became obvious that everything about human-animal communication also applies to human-human communication. It takes an open heart, a willingness to be vulnerable, and raw honesty. It demands that we feel the feelings, and bear the painful ones. We are powerful beyond measure when dare to do this.
On Tuesday mornings I gather via conference call with anyone who wants to pray for the animals and the awakening of humanity. During this prayer time we open our hearts to their suffering. Sometimes we pray in a general way for all animals. Sometimes we pray for specific animals in need of care or rescue. We always pray for the hearts of all humans to open and be restored to their true natures. We also pray for our own awakening, so that we may see ways we cause harm to animals - ways we cannot yet see. We sincerely seek to restore ourselves to our sacred caretaker role and remember from whence we came: Eden, a world where humans and animals lived harmoniously together and communicated heart-to-heart, soul-to-soul.
I hope you are inspired by listening to Episode 154, and decide to join us on Tuesdays at 7:30 am CT, 716-427-1142, passcode 744661#. We always welcome new travelers on the road to Eden.
© carol saunders 2022