Dictionary of all Scriptures & Myths

Understanding Global Symbolism


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BIBLE VERSES

GENESIS 1:2

"And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

In biblical symbolism, this verse describes the primordial condition of the soul before the Higher Life begins its work. It is the inner state prior to regeneration, the unshaped, unillumined substrate of consciousness.

“The earth” symbolizes the lower nature, the unformed personality, the field of future manifestation.

To say it is “without form and void” means the qualities have not yet been organized by Spirit; the soul has not yet awakened to its divine pattern.

“Darkness upon the face of the deep” represents the ignorance of the lower mind, the absence of spiritual perception.

The deep is the undifferentiated psychic substance, the ocean of potential where nothing yet has taken shape.

This darkness is not evil; it is simply the absence of illumination, the condition of matter before Spirit permeates it.

Then comes the turning point:

“And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”

This is the first stirring of the Higher Self within the soul.

The “waters” symbolize the primordial soul‑substance, receptive, feminine, awaiting fructification.

The movement of Spirit is the brooding, overshadowing, vivifying action of the Divine Life, the first impulse that will bring order, light, and form.

In symbolic terms, this is the moment when:
- The Higher Self begins to impress its pattern upon the lower
- The soul becomes responsive to spiritual influence
- The formless becomes capable of form
- The void becomes capable of fullness
- The darkness becomes capable of receiving light

It is the dawn before the dawn, the silent beginning of the soul’s evolution.

The Esoteric Message…..
Before light appears, Spirit must first move within the depths; the soul awakens when the Divine stirs its waters.

 

See Also

BIBLE VERSES

GENESIS 1:1
GENESIS 1:2

GENESIS 1:11

GENESIS 1:15
GENESIS 1:16

GENESIS 6:19

 

Related DOASAM

CHAOS