This article is based on a podcast I recorded as part of my Esoteric Wisdom series—a raw, unfiltered exploration of spiritual truth as I discover it in real time.
What you’re about to read is a condensed, fortified version of that recording. The full podcast contains all the raw emotion, the spontaneous discoveries, the moment I first connected these dots and realized that everything I’ve been piecing together on my own was already laid out 2,000 years ago in 114 sayings they chose to hide.
If you want the complete experience—the unedited journey, the pauses where it all clicked, the complete unfiltered reaction—become a paid subscriber to access the podcast archive.
But the article below will give you the core revelation: How the Gospel of Thomas contains the original teachings on attention, manifestation, and creating heaven on earth—and why they had to suppress it.
I just finished the hour-and-a-half podcast of Tom Speaks by clif high—his interpretation of the Gospel of Thomas—and I’m still reeling. This gospel contains 114 sayings of Jesus, and what I discovered in those phrases has fundamentally shifted something in me.
These are just my raw thoughts, fresh from the experience, but ones important to discuss.
A Rebirth in Christianity
I’m not quick to say this, but I yearn to say it: it’s almost as if there’s a rebirth in Christianity happening for me. I think that’s a good thing.
I left the traditional faith years ago, but I’m rediscovering an appreciation for the spirituality within it. And oh my goodness gracious, this was an amazing book to experience.
I’m going to go back and read it again, but just to listen for an hour and a half—which stretched into three hours over the entire day—to hear the Bible at this mythical level?
Phenomenal work.
Everything I’ve Been Piecing Together
Here’s the second thought that hit me: this is literally everything I’ve been putting together and piecing on my own.
I’ve been on this journey looking for truth. You come across Gnosticism, psychology, and philosophy. You start putting together your own framework, your own understanding of reality.
And then you discover that these 114 sayings have literally assembled everything in such a clear, crystalline way.
Heaven on earth. Perception. Attention. The robbers and thieves. Everything I’ve been talking about for years—all laid right here in this one book.
Now you see why it was banned.
Heaven on earth. Perception. Attention. The robbers and thieves. Everything I’ve been talking about for years—all laid right here in this one book. Now you see why it was banned.
It puts together every single piece. And this is just one gospel. One of four that we know were removed from the canon. Because there’s a very different tone here.
For example, did you know that the disciples asked Jesus, “Should we be circumcised? That’s what the Pharisees say we must do.” And Jesus responds: “If you needed to be circumcised, you would have been born circumcised.”
Logion 53: His disciples said to him: “Is circumcision useful or not?” He said to them: “If it were useful, their father would produce children already circumcised from their mother. Rather, the true circumcision in spirit has become profitable in every respect.”
How has no one ever heard this? This is mind-blowing.
So much of the work I’ve been doing—that we’ve all been doing—is now being confirmed by the source of the source that many recognize: the Son of God, Jesus Christ.
And it validates what we’ve been saying all along.
It’s a phenomenal piece. I’m going to read it again and again and again because it’s just beautiful.
The Three Points That Hit Hardest
1. The Animal Piece
The first thing that struck me was the animal metaphor—something about a lion becoming a man. The way Clif interprets it is this: you have a man, but you also have the animal within. You have to control those urges.
You have to take those urges and infuse them into something else. They are fuel. That primal energy is fuel.
Logion 7: Jesus said: “Blessed is the lion which becomes man when consumed by man, and cursed is the man whom the lion consumes, and the lion becomes man.”
This passage concerns emotional power. Blessed is the lion points to the power of the emotions, but that they must be made into man when consumed, or tamed, by the man, by his mind. Emotional power is required for altering the event-stream. The emotions must be tamed, and focused, in order to manifest.
A warning of the reverse, that is, the emotional lion consuming, and taking over the man, is also provided. Unless the emotions are controlled, and focused, they form internal barriers to manifestation.
2. Emotion Must Be Aligned
This connects directly to the second point: emotion is such a factor. I had no idea how central emotion was until this piece.
This entire gospel is presented through the framework of manifestation and creating reality. And the idea is that heaven is what we’re meant to make here on this earth. That’s what we’re supposed to do—but due to forces working against us, we’ve been diverted.
Now, I need people to understand what manifestation actually means, because the term has been co-opted by New Age culture. It’s been watered down into “manifest your dream car” nonsense.
“Manifestation—It’s been watered down into ‘manifest your dream car’ nonsense.”
But no—this is about living life. Manifestation is about living life aligned with the virtues of God and the fruits of the Spirit. It’s about how you’re supposed to live your life as a Christian.
Christianity is a very active religion. It’s not passive. It’s not just Sundays. It’s literally every moment of your life. You should be in it. And the gospel talks about this beautifully.
I had no idea how much emotion was part of that equation until this piece. Your emotions must be aligned. You cannot lie—because when you lie, you’re lying to yourself. You’re throwing yourself off balance.
So speak the truth.
3. Love as a Unifying Force
Another piece that stood out profoundly: love is a unifying force. It’s not just mushy-mushy feelings. Love is powerful. It reverberates in the atmosphere, in the frequency of reality itself. When things are done with love, the energy changes.
That’s why your words are so powerful when you speak. Are you speaking from love?
These concepts sound New Age, but as Clif says, this is the original secret. This is manifestation from Jesus Christ himself.
The Same Stories, Different Perspective
When you read the Gospel of Thomas, it’s literally the same stories you’ve read in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. But oh my goodness—the parable of the farmer and the seeds takes on a completely different perspective in Thomas than it does in the canonical gospels.
Once you read it, you understand why they had to suppress it. They had to say, “Yeah, no, this book is not going in the Bible.” This book is way too powerful. It makes a Christian way too powerful—and the Pharisees, the church hierarchies, cannot control that.
It’s a fascinating revelation.
I hope more people read the Gospel of Thomas. It’s a tremendous work.
Attention: The Greatest Unit
One of the biggest themes—and if you’ve listened to my work, you know this is my obsession—is the immense emphasis placed on attention.
It is the most critical element. It is the greatest unit of anything. If you’ve read my book, I say: first you have attention, then you have intention (the will).
And here is Jesus Christ, in the Gospel of Thomas, speaking about this in parable form. The parable of the farmer and the seasons—where you sow your seeds, where you place your attention. Watch out for the distractions. The robbers and the thieves that come to steal your attention.
Oh my goodness, it’s phenomenal. It’s moving.
The Robbers and the Thieves
When we talk about the deadening—I could call them the archons, I could call them demons, you could call them the jinn, whatever—it’s the exact same thing.
And they have infiltrated our lives. They have infiltrated our thoughts. Our world is built on this system.
You have the robbers and the thieves that come to take away your attention, to pull you away from intention, to divert you from truth, from love, from the virtues we’re supposed to be living.
This is what we’re supposed to do. But the deception is amazing. When you see the deception clearly, you almost have to admire it.
But it’s phenomenal.
More to Come
These are just the top three things on my mind as I finish this work. I’m going to go back and read it again, but if you have some time on your hands—the listening time is an hour and a half, the reading time may be faster—I highly recommend experiencing this.
Again, these are Clif’s interpretations of the phrases of Jesus, but they give you a completely different perspective on Jesus, on man, on God, on Source, on the Pleroma. Oh my goodness, all of it.
It’s no secret why this was hidden. The deception is masterful—they flipped the script, told the story, but gave it to everyone in a different light, from a different angle. (Check out my work on angles and angels, by the way.)
Without any further ado, I’ll stop here.
As always, thank you for the time and the attention.
Have a great and wonderful day.
—Ashe,
Franklin O’Kanu
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Summary:
Franklin O’Kanu reflects on The Gospel of Thomas, one of the most profound and banned texts attributed to Jesus. Through Clif High’s interpretations, he explores how the 114 sayings reveal the original spiritual blueprint of manifestation, attention, emotion, and divine alignment — exposing why institutional religion suppressed it. The conversation bridges ancient truth with modern awareness, showing how Jesus taught the same metaphysical principles that Unorthodoxy has long decoded.
Key Points:
Introduction + Revelation (00:00 – 01:15)
Reaction after listening to Clif High’s full commentary on The Gospel of Thomas
Describes it as a rebirth of Christianity — a return to pure spirituality
Notes how it aligns perfectly with Unorthodoxy’s work on truth, attention, and perception
Why the Gospel Was Hidden (01:15 – 02:52)
The 114 sayings unveil Heaven on Earth as a matter of perception and awareness
Shows Jesus teaching direct self-realization without middlemen
Banned because it made Christians spiritually powerful — beyond control of Pharisees or Church hierarchy
Lesson 1: The Animal Within (03:09 – 03:55)
The parable of the lion becoming man — symbolizing mastery over instinct and desire
Urges transformation of primal energy into higher consciousness
Connects to the “beast within” theme from earlier Unorthodoxy works
Lesson 2: Emotion and Alignment (03:55 – 05:36)
Emotion is the driver of manifestation — it must be in truth and love
Lying throws inner harmony off balance
True manifestation means living life aligned with divine virtues, not material wishes
Lesson 3: Attention — The True Currency (07:00 – 08:27)
Attention as the most sacred energy; thieves and robbers (archons, demons, distractions) steal it
Jesus’ parables of the farmer and the seed reinterpreted as lessons on focus and will
Echoes Franklin’s recurring theme: “First comes attention, then intention”
The Deception and the Deadening (08:27 – 09:16)
Forces of distortion infiltrate thought and culture — the same “deadening” spoken of in prior works
Awareness and love are the only defenses against these spiritual thieves
Angles, Angels, and Perception (09:16 – End)
Hints at a deeper link between “angles” and “angels” — how perception shapes truth
Previews the next Unorthodoxy exploration connecting linguistic symbols to spiritual forces
Ends with gratitude and the reminder that awareness is sacred
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