Is There A Stairway to Heaven?... Please Share Your Thoughts...
By Darkwing
@Darkwing (21583)
April 9, 2008 10:20am CST
I was listening to my Launchcast Radio today, and it shows my Buddies what I'm listening to. Led Zepplin came on, with Stairway to Heaven, and a friend popped up asking, "Is There a Stairway to Heaven?"
My immediate reply was that there's a Bridge to the Summerland, and a Bridge to Valhalla, so there's probably a Stairway to Heaven in the Christian World. It's how we see our passage across the Spiritual Planes, to the Otherworld.
It seems to me that we all have similar beliefs, but different names or interpretations of them. For instance, as a Pagan, I shape, in my mind, the energies of the Universe into godesses and gods, whereas Christians shape them into The Almighty God, and Buddhists shape them into Buddha. This all set to thinking about our passage from birth, through life, to the next World, not only from a Pagan point of view, but from other beliefs, and I found it a very interesting subject.
So, I would like to invite you all to share your thoughts about our passage to the Otherworld, if you're willing. I'm fascinated by the subject. Have you learned this from your direction of worship, or have you made up your own mind about it? Please share.
6 people like this
11 responses
@deeeky (3667)
• Edinburgh, Scotland
9 Apr 08
Looking back on the stairway (of which I am on as I think that life itself is a stairway) I have quite a lot of the first rungs missings.
I cannot remember much of my childhood up to the age of eleven, when I was transferred into a care home.
I do not remember having been in a primary school at all! and I do not remember the secondary school teachers at all.
In 2002 my Brother found me after forty years of trying a s he was transferred to a care home as well.
If only I could pick up the missing rungs of that ladder to find out the missings pieces of life but I think I would be too frightened to find out.
Tears fill my eyes now I must go for a walk
2 people like this
@Darkwing (21583)
•
9 Apr 08
Awwwwww, ((((Huggggs)))). I'm sorry to have brought back such sad memories, my dear friend.
You already know what I think about those missing rungs, but I'll reiterate my thoughts. I think you sawed them off, in order to shut out those years, because they weren't good. You probably shut the teachers out too, in secondary school, because they resemble figures of authority, comparable to your parents. Does your Brother have any memories of his early life? If so, he might help you remember. I know he's quite a few years older than you, but he could bring some thoughts back... that is, if you want to remember.
I hope there are many sturdy steps still in your stairway, because you surely deserve a happier and more rewarding climb. From the time I met you, you have been a central figure in my life, caring, listening, acclaiming and encouraging me in all I do, and I thank you for that. May I take your hand and walk beside you up your stairway? I'd be honoured if you accepted my friend.
Brightest Blessings that the eternal light shine on your stairway... always, and forever. x
@Darkwing (21583)
•
10 Apr 08
Thank you for sharing that with us Flowerchilde. I appreciate your story, and also the way you've fought back and found your peace with your deity, and His Son. It's not always comfortable to follow others to each and every word of their beliefs, as I've found. I'm much happier and more comfortable with my spiritual growth away from all that.
I'm sure Deeeky will come back and respond to you at some point, but I felt I needed to thank you, so please excuse me butting in here. Brightest Blessings, my friend.
@Darkwing (21583)
•
9 Apr 08
Yes, I know you believe there's a stairway, my friend. You have very strong beliefs, as do I, and which surely go back to our roots.
Yes, I have noticed the clouds look like steps sometimes, but I hadn't heard the saying. I was once cloud gazing, and I saw a chariot. In the chariot, which was pulled by not a horse, but a slightly smaller animal, perhaps a big cat or something, sat a God, and behind his chariot, walked a Goddess and two Angels. It stayed the same form as it moved slowly across the sky, and I sat watching it for over half an hour. It was amazing. The sun shone on the clouds, forming a gold outline to the whole of the picture. I've never seen anything like that, again, yet.
Brightest Blessings my dear friend, and thank you for sharing. xxx
@ajithlal (14716)
• India
26 Mar 09
I do believe there is a stairway to heaven. I do believe in Judgement day. With every good things we do we make every step to the heaven and with every bad things we do we step one step backwards. It would be great to be in heaven and sometimes I dream to see how it would look and how the stairway of heaven looks.
1 person likes this
@Darkwing (21583)
•
26 Mar 09
That's much the way I believe, except that I don't believe there's a Hell, or a Judgement Day, but that's not to say that I'm right! We shall see, I guess, when the day comes, and whatever our beliefs is probably how it is! Neither of us will be wrong, I feel. :)
Brightest Blessings and thank you for your contribution, my friend.
@Tetchie (2932)
• Australia
16 Apr 08
Stairway to Heaven is such a wonderful metaphor. For me it describes states of consciousness in the pursuit of higher states. Not unlike peeling away the layers of the onion that are our layers of emotions and reactions, scars that hold us back. It was heartwarming to tune into Deeeky as he expressed a layer or two that he was contending with in this life. He is not unlike many who are on a particular step.
I see life as a process of spiritual evolution. Each step climbed represents getting closer to the essence of who we are. That essence being one of Divinity which may mean different things to different people. I sense we are helped by spiritual beings but because we are given the gift of choice, it is up to us individually to climb that ladder, raise our state of consciousness so we can attain the state that is required to remain in Heaven. Heaven on Earth to me means that there is a mass raising of consciousness. It may take lifetimes to get to that. I hope not.
1 person likes this
@SHAMRACK (8576)
• India
10 Apr 08
Dear friend,
Have faith in God and be in the path that God wished us to go the I hope latter with tickling steps will be ready may be a more than that. I hope it might be the door to heaven waiting for one who be in the path of God's wish.
@Darkwing (21583)
•
10 Apr 08
If you wish to have faith in God, my friend, then that's your choice, but do you really think He is the be-all and end-all... do you not have to have faith in yourself, as well? Think about that one, because I believe you need faith that you are doing something about your eternal peace. My deities guide me, but I don't expect them to do it all for me.
Brightest Blessings and thank you for your contribution, my friend. Keep the faith.
@Darkwing (21583)
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10 Apr 08
I'm sorry... reading that back, it sounded a bit harsh, but what I was trying to say was that God helps people who help themselves. He can't be held responsible for every single thing that happens to you. Your beliefs are there, but you have to live your whole life and better yourself in a way that you think befits his care. Do you see where I'm coming from?
@mickeydavis (335)
• Singapore
17 Apr 08
Yes, there is a stairway to heaven, and let us not take it literally. If we fulfill our goals as an individual, we can be able to be with God forever.
@Darkwing (21583)
•
17 Apr 08
I tend to agree with you... I see the Stairway as Life's Path. When we make the right decisions or pass the exams from life's lessons, we take a step forward/up, but if we fail our exams or make a bad decision and do wrong, we take a step back/down.
Brightest Blessings and thank you for your contribution.
@suspenseful (40192)
• Canada
10 Apr 08
The only stairway we have record in the Bible is Jacob's ladder where the Angels went up and down between Jacob and Heaven. So it could have been written in a way that he would have understood. Actually when we die, we who are Christians are immediately transformed there. The nearest equivalent is that we suddenly enter into another dimension. But if you want to talk about it allegorically, the stairway to Heaven consists of the faith we have, and the steps we take to be made perfect. In the Led Zepplin song, the lady was trying to be perfect by her goodness, sort of like the Roman Catholic view that one has to do certain deeds in order to get to heaven. So she must have found what she thought was the right way to get to heaven.
@Darkwing (21583)
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10 Apr 08
Yes, I know about Jacob's Ladder, but in your mind, or beliefs, do you think you may become an Angel and climb that ladder as a staircase, or do you believe that your "stairway" is an indication of your lessons in life... i.e. if you pass an obstacle, or "exam" by completing successfully, each lesson or stage in your life, you take one step up the stairway, until you reach the top? Maybe also, you take one step back, if you don't come to a satisfactory resolve? It's your beliefs in a stairway that I'm interested in and what it is to you.
The actual song is really irrelevant as I know the meaning of it, but it was the question, "Is there a stairway to Heaven", that intrigued me more.
Thank you for your contribution, my friend, and Brightest Blessings.
@naseefu (1607)
• India
16 Apr 08
I think the stairway to heaven is that the good life.Live without more sin.That may lead us to heaven.so we can say it is like a stairway.For the good people the way must be very easy one.But for the bad people,it will be a difficult way or stairs.Thanks
@Darkwing (21583)
•
16 Apr 08
Yes, say if you did something good, you would take two steps upward, and if you did something bad in life, you would take two steps downwards. Then you'd be allowed just one mistake in life and if you did more good than bad, you would reach heaven, as you would have mended your bad ways. Good thinking.
Brightest Blessings my friend, and thank you for your thoughts.
@freethinkingagent (2501)
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10 Apr 08
First you have to remeber that Led Zeplen and Page in perticuler were Golden dawn studtents, and Crowley followers in perticuler. The stair way to heave has two meanings, ('couse you know sometimes words have two meanings') The first meaning to the song is of a nature that is derogitory to the Church of Rome, The woman being the Church of Rome 'read vatacan', She is trying to buy her way into heaven, but still hanging on to her mysteries of Babylon and Gnostics, 'And it makes me wonder'. There are other parts to this song, but instead of givening you verse by verse descriptions I will now just give you the second meaning. The second meaning is Kabalistic in nature, and pertains to the Kabalist Tree Of Life. The tree is made of ten spheres called sephorots, conected by "paths" and three pillers. There are two paths that intersect at points along the assention, the two paths being #1 Magikal, and #2 the mistical wich is the strait path up the center. As stated these paths cross each other as you assend the tree or "stairway to heaven" 'yes there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run there's still time to change the road your on', meaning you could change paths as you climb the stairway. 'and as we wind on down the road' (meaning they are on the magical path) 'our shadows taller than our souls' Play on words in Kabalic text, the shadow is our phisical bodies in the shadow world or sephorot of the first spher of malkut, and is also called the world of souls. Their shadows being taller than their souls means thier shadows bodies have asseneded beyond the world of malkut. The rest of the song is of a nature that I can not say here. But there you have the Two meanings to the stair way to heaven
@Darkwing (21583)
•
10 Apr 08
Yes, thank you for that detailed response, my friend. I am Pagan and know about the Kabbalah and Tree of Life, and have certificates for them, but I was looking at this from a friend's point of view, his question being, "Is there a Stairway to Heaven". I could hardly use this as an explanation, could I? He would have thought I was nuts! He he. So, I thought I would get a few opinions from different areas of belief, because a)he could read them and b) I was interested in the differing opinions.
I'm not saying your explanation isn't very helpful... I thank you for it, and I'm sure a lot of people will be interested to learn the meaning of the song. So, thank you so much for going to great lengths to explain it for me.
Brightest Blessings, always.
@christiyono (172)
• Indonesia
10 Apr 08
yes that is jesus, His not just a stairway but His the real way to get there, try it....
