In the beginning God created both the spirit and physical components of a single creation. Although we tend to think of these as separate existences, they are ultimately all one. However, for the purpose of discussion, we will make a distinction between the physical world and the spiritual world even though in the whole they are the same thing.

The physical world, all the way from sub atomic particles to the universe as a whole, is very complex, interrelated, and even now not completely understood. The spirit world is every bit as complex, interrelated, and much less understood. The beginning of greater understanding is to realize there is more than one.  In fact, there are many spirits. Christian theology tends to limit the spirit to God, angelic beings, and a component of human beings. It is far more complicated than that and there are many more spirits than they realize – many of which are not beings at all.

The most important thing to understand is that there is a spirit that is everywhere, but it is not God. This spirit was created by God and influences and is influenced by all spirit beings including humans. It is not conscious and does not act of its own volition. Recognizing the difference between effects of Holy Spirit (God) and other spirits can be difficult even when you know there is a difference.

For the purpose of this discussion we are going to make a distinction between animate and inanimate spirits. Animate spirits are thinking, intelligent, created beings which include both those that rebelled and those that did not. They are known as angels, but there are multiple subdivisions and categories. The angels that rebelled are known as dark spirits, evil spirits, demons, devils, and so forth. Their chief is Satan, meaning adversary. It is a name he gave himself and God accepts it as an accurate statement of reality. All angels exist in the spirit but can interact with the physical.

Inanimate spirits, on the other hand, are not conscious. They are active, useable, and range from strong to very subtle. Some are positive, some are negative, and many are a combination. All of them can be influenced or used if you know how. For the most part we don’t know how, nor do we have very much understanding of what is possible. A list of some of the positive spirits is found in Galatians 5:22-23.

Note that God is also spirit (John 4:24) but He is Creator, not created, and is not spirit in the same sense as angels or other spirits.

God calls the universal spirit He created the Satarana. This word, so far as we know, does not exist in any human language. We spell it phonetically and it literally means “everywhere God’s gift”. This spirit was changed through rebellion and became what is now called Sataranee which means “everywhere God’s gift stained or polluted”. However, God tends to use these two words interchangeably. He can do this because in the spirit there is no time, but rather the concept of “is, was, will be” which is a single statement of existence. This is how God can speak of things as completed even though there has not yet been a physical occurrence. Thus He can call the polluted spirit unpolluted because at some point it will be so.

Letting go of time is one of the hardest parts of understanding the spirit. There is much overlap and interaction between the spirit and the physical, but time is 100% physical. There is no time in the spirit but almost all of human thinking is in terms of linear time. This simply does not apply in the spirit. There is progression in the spirit, but it is more circular than linear and it does not involve time as we know it.

The Sataranee can be likened to the earth’s atmosphere. We call it “air” but there is much more to it. Our atmosphere is made up of various gases, principally nitrogen and oxygen with small amounts of many others. It is not static; it is constantly in motion varying from mighty storms to gentle breezes. This movement is influenced by many things, from the tilt of the earth to the tree in your back yard. Weather influences everything in its path to one degree or another, including the humans, animals, and plants which exist within it. The atmosphere is also polluted by all kinds of things in various concentrations and combinations. It contains various odors, some good and some bad, and they are just another part of this very complex reality.

The spirit that is everywhere (Satarana) has many similarities. It too is always in motion, is influenced by many things large and small, and like weather influences everything. Beings do exist within it and use it, but there are also many individual inanimate spirits and lessor currents within the overall reality.

In short, it is very complex, interrelated, and largely not understood.

This is, however, correctable. God is doing something new and a large part of this is a greater understanding of the spirit. There is still a great deal we do not understand, but at least we know we don’t know. We believe a complete understanding of the various spirits and their operation will take several generations, but the process has begun.

In summary:

• God is spirit. Knowing who He is, what He is doing, and why is another topic. See our article God, Angels, and Men for an introduction.

• One aspect or personality of God is Holy Spirit. Separating the influence of Holy Spirit from other spirits can be difficult. It is, as God likes to say, complicated.

• There are conscious created spirit beings which we are calling animated spirits, aka angels. Angels have just as important a part to play in God’s plan as humans do. Unfortunately, some angels rebelled before God’s plan was fully implemented and they now oppose what God is doing. These fallen or rebellious angels are commonly known as demons. For more information see God, Angels, and Men and About Demons.

• There is a vast spirit creation containing many inanimate spirits; good, bad, and in combination. These spirits have great influence on the physical and can also be influenced and even manipulated by humans. Our understanding of this subject is not as good as we would like, but is increasing.

• There is more to come.