The Labours of Hercules - taming the 9 headed hydra

By Michael Lindfield

2025 Initiative Scorpio Full Moon webinar, November 2020

"Until we have gained access to the spiritual gold that is the wealth and wisdom of the Soul, we may find it necessary to take out a mortgage with the Bank of Materialism to finance our incarnations. Think of it as a ‘student loan’ for the personality enrolled in the classroom of Gaia. Eventually, all debts and loans need to be repaid. Now is the time when these markers are being called in. Liberation from the karmic debt of matter is our task as we move towards a new sustainable and soular-powered model of living as incarnated souls".

In order to reach the '5th kingdom of Souls' we must battle with and have victory over the 9 headed hydra or 'serpent of desire'. This is what is meant by 'The Labour of Hercules'.

What is the 9 headed hydra?

In the book the 'Labour of Hercules' by Alice Bailey, the 9 heads are distributed over 3 planes of existence: mental, emotional (astral) and physical:

1. Physical: sex, money and physical comfort
2. Mental: pride, separateness and cruelty
3. Astral: fear, hate and ambition

It is the task of the world disciple (collective humanity) to wrestle with and overcome these vices. But fighting them and trying to subdue them alone will not work.

Instead, we must 'lift ourselves up' to the plane of Buddhi, of higher consciousness, where these heads cannot be sustained in the light of the Soul. We must kneel down with humility and pull ourselves up into the light... watch the video for the full story!

Originally published and presented for the 2025 initiative as "Recognition and management of accumulated debts" - Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apKM0GESkUY 

About the presenter Michael Lindfield
Michael Lindfield is a highly regarded international consultant and coach helping individuals and groups unleash the transformative power of the human spirit.

He learned his craft from a medley of experiences that include: a 14-year residency at the Findhorn Community in Scotland as a gardener and Director of Education; small-scale organic farming in western Sweden; conducting seminars on ‘transforming self and society’ and ‘cooperation with the Subtle Realms’ plus working as a senior organization development consultant with The Boeing Company from 1989-2005 on system-wide change projects.

Michael is author of The Dance of Change: an Eco-Spiritual Approach to Transformation (Penguin Books 1986) plus numerous articles featured in psychology, education and business journals. He studies and seeks to apply the Ageless Wisdom teachings in daily life so they become a firm foundation of the ‘new normal’.

Michael is co-founder of The Science of Group Work initiative and currently serves as Board President of Meditation Mount in Ojai, California. He is also a resident member of the Community of Living Ethics in Umbria, Italy.