Many people talk about change and often disagree on whether change is a good thing or a bad thing. Some will argue that there can be no progress without change and without progress, we stagnate and die. Others will argue that we shouldn't always be looking to change things, especially when the way they are now is just fine: the “Don't fix it if it ain't broken.” type. There are pros and cons on both sides of this argument which I wont get into at this time.

    When it comes to spiritual growth, spiritual enlightenment, we are talking about something far more than change, we are talking about transformation. A caterpillar that gains weight has changed. A caterpillar that turns into a butterfly has undergone transformation.

    Unfortunately, spiritual enlightenment usually does not result in dramatic and easily notices physical changes as with the caterpillar, so to others, it doesn't appear that the person has really transmuted or changed in any significant way. To the enlightened one though, he does know that he really has changed in a dramatic, and obviously beneficial way: a transformation. He things differently. He relates to other people differently. He relates to and understands animals, and even plants, in a way that a non-spiritual person cannot comprehend. And he understands our relationship to the planet and to the cosmos, a true environmentalist. Such people are the only ones who can save us in the time of transformation, the period 2012-2014. We should all be doing our best to become one of them and, if we can't, to at least assist them in every way possible.