When Mary tells Jesus at Cana that the wine has run out, his reply—“Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come” (John 2:4)—can sound almost rude. Yet, for Neville Goddard, this is a symbolic dialogue between two levels of consciousness: the subconscious, which doubts and looks outward, and the higher consciousness, which knows the power of imaginative assumption and divine timing.
Mary as the “Virgin” Awareness
Neville teaches that Mary is not merely the historical mother of Jesus but represents our subconscious mind or “mother consciousness.” She is the awareness of being—ever-virgin, yet continually impregnated by desire. In her concern for the lack of wine, she embodies the part of us that believes in external limitation and seeks solutions outside itself:
“Mary is the awareness of being that ever remains virgin, no matter how many desires it gives birth to. [...] Look upon yourself as this virgin Mary—being impregnated by yourself through the medium of desire, becoming one with your desire to the point of embodying or giving birth to your desire.”
In this context, Mary’s request for Jesus to address the lack of wine can be seen as the subconscious mind looking outside itself for a solution to an external problem. The subconscious, anchored in physical reality, is often unaware of its own creative power, so it reacts to circumstances as though they are beyond control.
The Sharp Reply: A Lesson in Divine Timing
Jesus’ words to Mary are not an insult but a pointer to higher law. He speaks from the standpoint of imaginative assumption—the part of us that knows the fulfilment is already accomplished in consciousness. His “hour” refers to the appointed moment when imagination gives birth to reality. As Neville explains:
“The vision has its own appointed hour, it ripens, it will flower. [...] Every conception has its own appointed hour; it ripens and it will flower. If, to you, it seems long, wait, for it is sure and it will not be late relative to its own nature.”
This teaches us that manifestation is not about rushing the process or trying to manipulate the outer world. The moment of fruition is determined by divine timing—when consciousness is ready to embody the wish fulfilled. Jesus is reminding Mary that her request cannot be answered by the outer world or by her own attempts to control time. Instead, it will unfold in the divine moment of her own inner awakening.
Water into Wine: From Psychological Truth to Lived Experience
In Neville’s teachings, water represents psychological truth—the spiritual teachings we learn—whereas wine is the experience of that truth: its joy, abundance, and power made manifest. He says:
“Stone represents the most external and literal form of spiritual truth, and water refers to another way of understanding the same truth. Wine or spirit is the highest form of understanding it.”
The act of turning water into wine is a powerful metaphor. When Jesus transforms water into wine, he demonstrates how assumption—imagination held as truth—converts mere information into living reality. The water, symbolic of spiritual truth or knowledge, is elevated and transformed into the wine of experience.
“Do Whatever He Tells You”: Surrender of the Subconscious
Notice that after Jesus speaks, Mary turns to the servants: “Whatever he tells you, do it” (John 2:5). Symbolically, the subconscious surrenders to the higher consciousness, trusting its instructions. This is Neville’s core instruction on manifestation:
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Assume the feeling of the wish fulfilled.
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Persist in that assumption, regardless of outer circumstances.
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Let your subconscious carry out the creative process without interference.
The moment Mary instructs the servants to follow Jesus’ direction, she is acknowledging that her role as the subconscious mind is to obey the direction of the higher consciousness. She surrenders her reliance on external solutions and trusts that the creative power of imagination will bring about the desired result.
Practical Take-Away
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Recognise when your “mother consciousness” worries about lack. The next time you face a perceived limitation or lack in your life, identify how your subconscious mind is trying to solve the issue by relying on external circumstances.
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Affirm instead that your desire is already fulfilled in imagination. Just as Jesus did, refuse to acknowledge the power of external conditions and embrace the power of your inner assumption.
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Trust the “appointed hour” by persisting in the felt reality of your wish. Understand that the manifestation is in divine timing, and it will come to fruition when you align with the truth of your imagination, not when you demand it according to your own timeline.
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Surrender anxious thought; let your higher consciousness guide action. The servants were instructed to obey Jesus without question, just as we must trust the inner guidance that directs our actions in alignment with our assumed reality.
Conclusion: Water into Wine as a Metaphor for Imagination
In this profound story, Jesus’ seemingly sharp response to Mary is not about disrespect but about challenging her reliance on the outer world and external solutions. Mary, as the subconscious mind, looks to external circumstances to fix the problem, while Jesus, representing higher consciousness, reminds her that the true solution lies within—the solution of imagination and assumption.
The transformation of water into wine is a metaphor for the creative process itself. When we assume the feeling of the wish fulfilled, we turn the ordinary (water) into the extraordinary (wine). Our desires, rooted in spiritual truth, come to life when we embody them in consciousness and trust in the divine timing of their manifestation.
This story teaches us that true manifestation comes when we stop looking outside ourselves for answers and start relying on the power of our imagination to create the reality we desire. Just as Jesus transformed water into wine, we too have the power to transform our lives by changing our assumptions and aligning them with the inner truth of our desires. The miracle lies not in the outer world, but in the shift within consciousness that brings the wish fulfilled into physical reality.
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