Who is the fraction of the Atom and the Atom Herself?

The Tree of Life beckons and casts many shades.

Surrendering to All-That-Is, we return to the Divine,

Acting and being Divinity Itself.

The Tree of Wisdom, Book 1, excerpt 17

M'alala had taken shape as a woman clad in white garments and a deep grey mantle over her shoulders and back. She was part luminous, but very obviously tri-dimensional in a heightened way.

Gre found himself thinking that should the Moon ever become a woman, it would look like her. M'alala gazed into his eyes and smiled.

And should a Savier, the race renowned for higher logic, ever renounce their ways for higher wisdom, that Savier would think like you, she answered in his mind.

Eyes widened, Gre chose to remain silent.

"Who here comes for Wisdom, and who for Grace?" M'alala said. "Who comes for Knowledge, and who to take a stance? Who's victor over time and space, and who over themselves? Who knows the answer has found their place."

The nine were silent for a while. They observed M'alala, each other, and themselves. Who held the answer? No one seemed to do.

"Afraid you must not be," M'alala said, "for fear casts opportunities away."

Menior stepped forth and bowed. "I am Menior Lem of Planet UX-40 and these are my companions. We come on Recognition Vessel Umbar of Star Bay 10-95, the Hexor Galaxy. We are known to travel worlds and learn about life. Whom do I have the honour of addressing?"

"I am M'alala, the Planet you have labelled a letter and a number."

She seemed not upset.

The team glanced at one another.

"You are a sentient expression of Planet B-17/M'alala?"

"The whole planet is sentient," she replied. "I am essence forming image."

"And this space," Menior looked around, "is your own essence-self forming images as well?"

With a smile, she replied, "You understand."

Gre decided to speak, "You are the world of matter aware of itself." It was a question or an answer, something he had heard or said. It felt that she drew near, albeit she had not moved. "You are the world herself. Awareness in the form of a being."

She nodded, lights in her clear eyes.

"I am Gre."

M'alala smiled to him.

"I am Meknáni Sto," the Oombyr said. "So whenever we interact with an aspect of this planet, we interact with you."

She inclined her head.

"You are the one keeping us here," Meknáni added, "and Mé as well. What has become of her?"

"You are the ones keeping yourselves here," M'alala then replied. "And Mé is well. She's had her chance to knowledge and has evolved well. Now she is back on Umbar."

"How has she managed?" asked Sakna-Sa.

"She has not tried to force her way and has received the guidance at each step," M'alala said. "Íma," she glanced around, "is the place that holds dimension-doors, gateways into becoming. Once you have entered, a learning process has begun."

"We must explore a different dimension to be allowed to return to Umbar," Gre tried.

"Indeed," M'alala answered.

"Which one?"

"The key is found in oneness, not in solitude," the Planet said. "Your common, stable frequency shall open one of the doorways, and there you shall see yourselves in a new mirror. What you shall recognize shall set you free."

"From the crater?" Sakna-Sa asked.

"From falseness of appearance," M'alala replied. "You have learned and believed that which you have learned about yourselves. Now the mirror of Truth shall reveal the essence that you hold inside. There is nothing to fear," she looked at Umbe, "for the bravest are often fearful in disguise."

Umbe dared not look.

"Farewell," M'alala told them, a dance of lights like electrons around an atom's core beginning around her.

"This could take forever," Meknáni called.

"Take as long as you will," came her voice, tiny particles of light trailing like a wave through the air.

"A common frequency unlocks the door into a new dimension," Gre said.

The team began to gather.

"A group frequency," said Menior. "A core stability. No individuality."

"How can there be no individuality," asked Sakna-Sa, "when we are all uniquely ourselves?"

"What if," said Menior, "there's a common link that connects us despite our seemingly diverse individualities, something that when focused upon becomes the stable ground that is our group's core?"

"And on this stable ground, the door is formed," tried Gre.

"Frequency," said Meknáni. "Let's think in terms of frequency. We've tried many avenues of thought and they haven't worked."

"We're listening," said Menior.

"What if each of our individualities is a frequency, a tone?" the Oombyr asked. "There are nine tones in this group."

"Like nine instruments," pondered Sakna-Sa.

"Exactly," Meknáni replied. "Each playing our notes, but so far we haven't paid much attention to the overall sound produced by our tones combined. Maybe that's the link that's missing: fine-tuning our tones into a coherent and harmonious vibrational output. We're creating the music, the pieces of the song that unlocks one of the doorways into a new dimension."

"Interesting," Menior reflected.

"Reveal your truths," said Gre, casting a glance at Uiio.

"And be allowed to pass," the Mái-Ruan completed. "Alright." She glanced at Meknáni. "If truth is our self-frequency revealed, then what are we not saying?"

"That we're covering parts of ourselves, is that what you're implying?" asked Sakna-Sa.

"And by doing that," Sla interposed, "we are leaving out notes in our individual line of song, right?"

"Excellent idea!" said Arít. "Step 1: identify individual line of song. Step 2: harmonize into song. Step 3: get out of this place."

They all laughed, but after a while, Gre said, "Hold on."

Everyone turned to him.

"What if in our rush to leave this place, we are not allowing ourselves to truly be here, to truly play our notes?" he wondered.

"We should focus on this mission and not on its end," agreed Sakna-Sa. "One. Individual line of song. Where are we in the group harmonics?"

"Actions are the evident expressions of our songs," suggested Meknáni. "If we are to bind our roles and our lines of song in order to realize how we can recalibrate our individual roles to unlock the frequency-code of access into a higher dimension, we should first observe our actions."

"You are the forward-moving engine," said Sakna-Sa. "There's a force in you that pushes forward, that elongates platforms."

"But that was illusion," Umbe argued.

"It did not create a portal, that's true," Sakna-Sa retorted, "but his action-oriented behaviour has taken us farther than where we used to be."

"As if Meknáni were a leading instrument in our group," observed Sla.

"Good," said Menior. "Action takes the lead in our advancement. Meknáni is the dynamic way-maker."

They all agreed.

"Now we have to find each of our roles," he added.

"Gre is the intuitive," Sla suggested. "Ever since we've started rappelling into Íma, he was making connections using prior knowledge about Íma's reactions to our signals of light."

"Proposing an emotion-based salute," remembered Arít. "He was attempting to communicate non-verbally"–he glanced around–"which we've been doing all along with each of our thoughts, the words we've spoken, and our actions."

"There have been other instances of intuitive understanding of the fluidity inside Íma," Meknáni said. "Suggesting that our moods reflected the ones of our immediate team members. He'd sensed that in himself."

"And what role does the intuitive play in our group's harmonics?" inquired Gre.

A moment of silence.

Then Arít observed, "You were discussing with Meknáni and standing near him when action moved us forward. So it is fair to say that you have a leading role, too. The action-oriented and the intuitive."

"I partially agree," retorted Gre. "Sakna-Sa, Menior and Sla have been playing crucial roles in understanding our new reality, expressing it in words, making sense of it. Why don't they have leading roles as well?"

"Because too many leaders in one group," Menior answered, "cause disharmony. They would all push and pull according to their wills."

"Thus arriving potentially nowhere," completed Sakna-Sa. "I say we three are the first line of support, keeping the actions of the leaders in check."

"Pointing out potential flaws in thinking or sustaining a course of action," said Sla.

"The reasoning board," said Meknáni. "I like it."

Sakna-Sa continued, "Uiio is the sensitive. She has been able to receive M'alala's message before we could see her."

"It's happened once," Uiio excused herself.

"Don't doubt, don't doubt," said Sakna-Sa. "If there'll be a flaw in your message-receiving ability, either the three of us who form the reasoning board or the intuitive Gre shall point it out, and you can refine your quest for answers from the unseen. You're the communicator with M'alala."

Nods all around.

"Though we all communicate with her on some level, your natural abilities make you suitable to fulfil this role," added Sakna-Sa. "Not a leading one either, because M'alala teaches by letting us observe and choose for ourselves, giving hints, but not interfering with the process we have ventured into without even realizing."

"Alright," said Uiio. "I accept this role."

"That leaves Umbe, Arít and Maýla-i," Sakna-Sa said. "What are your roles?"

"I have an idea," said Menior. "Arít has done more observing and less speaking than the three of us"–he was pointing at Sakna-Sa, Sla and himself–"but he has made observations along the way, at times progressing or questioning some part of our reasoning, so he's the one observing us, keeping the reasoning board in check."

"The observer," said Arít, pondering. "But we've all been observing and making suggestions along the way."

"True," Menior agreed.

"Anyway, it's a back-row role," added Arít. "Based on the degree of intervention so far."

"In music," Sla retorted, "not all instruments are sounded with the same frequency or for the same intervals of time. There's no instrument that plays a lesser role when the reason and purpose is for the musical piece to sound as it should."

Menior was nodding. "It would cause disharmony if it were a battle of who plays longer or has a more frequent intervention."

They all agreed.

"That leaves Umbe and Maýla-i," said Sla.

Fear casts opportunities away, Umbe recalled M'alala's advice, but couldn't bring himself to utter a reply.

"I think it's fair to say the two of us have played more passive roles," Maýla-i admitted.

Umbe looked at his companion, a Boor as well, but slightly more light-hearted, worried about what she might say next.

Maýla-i continued. "And though there are such instruments in a band that are hardly ever heard in a musical piece, maybe the chance to play our parts has not come yet. Or maybe we have missed it, clinging to our roles assigned on Umbar." She glanced at Umbe, then at the rest of the team. "We've been less adaptable – sticking with the group, but being less involved in finding a way out."

Uiio drew near and put her hand on Maýla-i's shoulder. "The way out is the way through. You're valuable enough to be on Umbar," she added in a slightly different voice, sounding more like her own, "thus you, too, have what it takes. Besides, we've been trying and failing and learning lessons and making progress – we've barely redefined our roles – so don't hold back out of lack of clarity or trust, for we're a team making our way through."

Sakna-Sa spoke. "The way-maker, the intuitive, the reasoning board, the observer, the communication facilitator between seen and unseen, and the two mysteries. A more active engagement on your behalf shall reveal more clues about your lines of song."