When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here (Mark 16:1-7).
The above passage from the Gospel of Mark depicts the resurrection of Jesus. Mary Magdalene, Mary mother of James, and Salome were secretly on the way to the tomb where Jesus lay after his crucifixion. It was a customary Jewish practice to cleanse and anoint the body of a deceased loved one with oil and spices and then shroud the body in linen cloth. As the beloved of Jesus were on the way to the tomb they discussed their concerns about how they would be able to roll away the heavy stone that blocked the entrance to the tomb. When they arrived, to their dismay they discovered that the stone had already been moved and upon entrance into the tomb they beheld a white robed young man, who they soon discovered was the resurrected Jesus. What a jaw-dropping scene of bewilderment and awe.
Let us take a deeper look at Mark 16:1-7 through the metaphoric and metaphysical lenses. The crucifixion, burial in the tomb, and the resurrection correlate to the cyclical nature of our lives as we move through endings, release what has come to pass, and step into new beginnings. In order for us to move through the seasons of our lives, we must be willing to awaken in consciousness and claim a greater embodiment of our Divinity. If we truly desire to be resurrected to new life we must go through all 3 stages continuously throughout our lives or we risk moving through life sleepwalking.
The words crucifixion, death, and tomb have a negative, morose, and morbid connotation for many of us. We think of death as final and not as a stage in the ongoing evolution of our soul. Additionally, we do not have the metaphysical understanding of a “tomb” as a time of pause, rest and reflection. During “our time in the tomb” we have the opportunity to muster the willingness, strength, and courage, to roll away our “heavy stone” which stands in the way of our Greater Good. The stone represents a state of mind that is plagued with resistance, stubbornness, doubt, guilt, and/or blame. In order to transcend victim consciousness, one must invoke Mary Magdalene, Mary Mother of James, and Salome from within, for no one can roll away the stone for us. These three women represent being a devote of Truth as one harmonizes and unifies his/her thoughts and actions to be in alignment with our Divine Nature and Power. From a consciousness that is lit up with willingness, possibility, courage, strength and Wholeness, the stone will roll away on command allowing each one of us to emerge from the tomb resurrected to new life. I Am the resurrection and Life!
