Good evening, everyone and welcome to the Festival of Cancer. The actual moment of the full moon is tomorrow morning at 4:00 am, so we are working well within the floodtide of spiritual energies that pour in when the Sun, the source of light and life for our solar system, and the Earth stand in open, direct and unimpeded relationship with each other at the moment of the full moon. At this time of year in the northern hemisphere, the Sun shines most brightly, and its ancient symbolism as a source of life for our planet seems especially understandable. One of the most ancient prayers known to mankind, the Gayatri, expresses man’s sense of the sacred nature of the Sun, so let us say this mantram as we link up with our fellow meditators throughout the world, meeting as we are in service to humanity.

The Gayatri

O Thou Who givest sustenance to the universe,
From Whom all things proceed,
To Whom all things return,
Unveil to us the face of the true Spiritual Sun
Hidden by a disc of golden Light
That we may know the Truth
And do our whole duty
As we journey to Thy sacred feet.

With the culmination of the Festival of Goodwill in Gemini, the higher interlude of the spiritual year has been completed and we are now embarked upon the "outbreathing" phase of energy direction, in preparation of the lower interlude of the year which is timed with the Festivals of Libra, Scorpio and Sagittarius. In breathing exercises, the phase of the "outbreath" or exhalation is the moment when the meditator "drives the thoughtform from him". The form, vitalized by the one who breathes in correct rhythm, is sent forth to do its work. If we think about the fact that our soul views this incarnation as an act of exhalation in which it seeks to "drive forth" a particular thoughtform that it has been creating, developing through a long cycle of incarnations, we get some idea of the significance of the sign Cancer in the spiritual evolution of the soul.

Each incarnation is intended to be a clearer, more correct expression, in the three worlds of human living, of the soul's intention - of the idea, the thoughtform, it has been developing. Perhaps it's an idea of sacrifice or intelligent creativity or spiritual sensitivity or service or selflessness which the soul has been fine-tuning, lifetime after lifetime on earth. Through meditation the disciple becomes aware of that aspect of the Plan and the general purpose of the Hierarchy in which the soul seeks to cooperate, and with growing awareness the disciple "builds a lighted house and therein dwells", as the significance of life on earth dawns on his consciousness.

Just as in repeated practice of a breathing exercise the meditator becomes increasingly aware of the subjective side of existence – the inner life behind outer appearances, so in the cycle of reincarnation the returning disciple becomes increasingly aware of the meaning and purpose working out through incarnation. This too is implied in the keynote for Cancer: "I build a lighted house and therein dwell". The house is a frequent symbol for the concept of the self, and as it becomes lighted through conscious awareness, a sense of purpose and direction begins to overcome past eons of aimless drifting into incarnation after incarnation, suffering, struggling, and dying, only to return again.

I’m always surprised by people who declare that they intend to accomplish all that they have to in this one particular lifetime so that they won't have to come back again. That's not a realistic hope from what the Ageless Wisdom tells us about the long cycles of the soul's evolution, building a conscious instrument for purposes of service. That's why the soul returns – not to learn lessons, endure punishment or gain perfection, for the soul on its own level is already perfect, we are told. It comes into incarnation to serve. And most of us probably have only a dim idea of our soul's intended service.

Esoterically, Cancer is said to be the gate or door into the physical plane expression of spirit, so its focus is rightly directed outward to the three worlds of earthly living. Cancer therefore is closely linked to the form nature. Both form and life, matter and spirit, are necessary and both are of divine origin. Without the form and without the ability to respond sensitively to the environment and to circumstances, the soul would never awaken to knowledge in the three worlds and would therefore never know God in manifestation. We see the distortions created by the worldview of some religions that regard "heaven" as perfection and earthly life as "hell", when in fact the goal is to see heaven manifested on earth through man's intelligent cooperation. Perhaps this is one reason why the third Ray of Active Intelligence is such a powerful influence in Cancer. And for our hope, the incoming seventh ray, which fosters the fusion of spirit and matter, and which also finds an inlet through Cancer, will increasingly stimulate mankind's recognition of the purpose of life in form.

For a very long time the light of Cancer is the diffused light of substance, the "dark light" of matter, awaiting stimulation which comes from the soul light. The soul is consciousness, and as conscious awareness gradually dawns in the mind of the incarnated individual – as he becomes gradually aware of the meaning of life and gains some inkling of the purpose of existence – he begins to respond to the substance side of the form rather than to pure matter. He begins to work with the matter available to him – with money, with all the material assets in his possession and under his influence – in terms of their potential to channel energy and force. This is the subjective or, substance aspect of matter. Those who understand this can work with money, for example, purposefully, intelligently and – we hope – unselfishly, for money can be an agent for great good when it is shared wisely and distributed freely for the common good.

Clearly, something is developing which must be a concern to the department of Hierarchy that governs economics and finance, for we see an increasing concentration of vast wealth in the hands of a tiny portion of the population, which is a dangerous condition for many reasons. At the same time we are seeing the growth of philanthropies, non-profit groups and charities, as well as the commitment of some people who have extreme wealth and who are endeavoring to apply their wealth to specific global problems. We shouldn’t under-estimate the significance of money as an indicator of spiritual values, for we are told that in the distant future when the planetary centre Humanity take its place along with the other two planetary centres, Shamballa and Hierarchy, in a fully functioning triangle, it will demonstrate its readiness in three fields: government, religion, and economics and finance. These will be the three areas of conscious creative activity, but this will only come about in the final root race of men on our planet, so we are speaking of a very distant goal but one which, already, people of goodwill can recognise as legitimate and necessary for humanity's evolution.

Emergence into "conscious creative activity" occurs slowly over eons of time and experience, and not all people are at the same stage. The description of the undeveloped man in Cancer is as "the blind unit is lost" – enfolded within the mass experience of countless millions of human beings who live, struggle and suffer blindly, with no awareness of why or of direction towards any light. Sometimes people complain that the reference in Alice Bailey's books to "the masses" is derogatory and elitist, but it’s always seemed to me perfectly correct, if one looks around one in a huge city and sees the range of human behavior. And if one has a little self-awareness, it's not too hard to see moments when one falls into alignment with the masses too. We should remember that, when we find ourselves succumbing to fads and to the manipulations of the media and advertisers and to the sudden shifts that occur in crowds.

The next stage out of mass consciousness is that when "the unit awakens to that which is around" but which is symbolized by the House: four walls up and a roof overhead, nicely encased within the larger environment, of which it is aware, but separated from it. We see plenty of examples of this self-centred, self-assertive consciousness too. Again, perhaps we recognise it in ourselves when we try to beat out the next person to a place in line or a seat on the subway or to the one remaining cookie on the plate.

Finally, the advanced man in Cancer is at that stage in which "the whole is seen as one". The individual at this stage is symbolized by and merged with Humanity, but this time in full consciousness. One fine example of this might be Nelson Mandela, born in Cancer 90 years ago tomorrow and whose magnanimity of spirit has held the many differing groups within South Africa in enough unity to survive the end of apartheid, truth and reconciliation hearings and the emergence into a wider democracy. The Agni Yoga books speak of the "pan-humanity" of the heart, and this is the highest expression of the Cancer individual – one who sees himself in all human beings and who sees every human being as a reflection of himself.

Cancer symbolises the will of the mass, we are told. This will is expressed as public opinion, and today with the spread of the Internet and other technologies, public opinion can be mobilised and directed with unbelievable speed - rather like a flock of swallows sweeping across the sky and making a sudden U-turn

for no apparent reason - beautiful to see but a flock of birds can bring down an airplane. Similarly, aroused but uninformed (or misinformed) public opinion can be a scary thing, as witnessed in the

unfounded rumors that dog some political candidates no matter how much the actual truth contradicts those rumors.

For our hope, the Tibetan says "Out of public opinion (the focused expression of the growth of mass consciousness) will emerge the mass will-to-good, inherent in every individual." Perhaps we have already seen evidence of this in the immediate and mass response of compassion and aid for the victims of the tsunami and Hurricane Katrina and other disasters. The people respond more quickly than the governments do. In fact, it is said that governments are always about ten years behind the will of the people. If so, that means that governments, in free societies at least, take the form that the people deserve. This again can be understood through the experience of Cancer.

The Tibetan sums up the general range of consciousness today as follows: "Speaking generally, we have, therefore, in the world today the unintelligent masses who are rapidly becoming self-conscious under the pressure of modern life and our modern educational systems. We have secondly, the truly self-conscious thinkers or individuals who have assumed world control and prominent place in world affairs, through the power of their thoughts and the emphasis and magnetism of their personality. By the clarity of their thinking in their chosen field, they dominate the masses, but they are dominant in a separative sense. These masses whom they control can be divided into two divisions:—A restless, alert, discontented and intelligent minority (a minority of about forty per cent of the whole). The remaining sixty per cent is formed by the unthinking masses, who are little more than emotional animals. They live, work, suffer and fight, but have no real idea of what it means, or of where they, as a race, are going. With these latter there is little yet to be done. With the forty percent, however, much can be achieved when the New Group of World Servers is sufficiently coherent. Notice should be taken also of the world idealists and workers, who are pledged to the working out of some ideal which seems to them to embody all that is desirable and to solve the problem as they see it around them. Under this group could be placed the leaders and dictators of the world at this time, no matter by what name they call themselves. That their methods may not be desirable, is of course often true but is relatively immaterial. Rightly or wrongly, they are working under the inspiration of an idea; they are bringing about definite changes in the minds of their fellow men and in world conditions; they are evoking a mental response from the public and the world. They are, therefore, placing the world in their debt, by inaugurating those changes which are altering the world rhythm and speeding up its tempo. They are thus preparing us for the still more revolutionary changes of the new age."

Those changes will require the activation of the human will. The objective of Hierarchy's decision to permit the free flow of Shamballa force into the world was to stimulate the free will in the masses of humanity, for the evolution of the human soul can only take place through the opportunity to become self-directing. This freedom means, inevitably, some wrong choices, but as a very wise person once said, "Men learn by means of evil that good is best." The stimulation of the mass free will has led to the creation of the great ideologies, such as Fascism, Communism and Democracy. All are problematic, but all are fostered by the desire of the masses for the betterment of living conditions. And the result, in the eyes of Hierarchy, "has been relatively good".

We build, we create, then we tear down and build anew. That is the creative nature of the form-building experience in Cancer. And each time we are judged by the quality of our creations, whether as individuals or as the collective species Humanity; and whether speaking of ideologies, religions, communities, institutions, programs, or material objects. All are forms and all have been created, whether unconsciously through the force of unthinking desire, or with increasing consciousness of what we are doing and for what purpose. We are urged by the Masters to build with increasing awareness and commitment to the good of the whole, as this passage from A Treatise on White Magic puts so beautifully:

"Every human being who reaches the goal of light and wisdom automatically has a field of influence which extends both up and down, and which reaches both inwards to the source of light and outwards into the ‘fields of darkness’. When he has thus attained he will become a conscious centre of life giving force, and will be so without effort. He will stimulate, energise and vivify to fresh efforts all lives that he contacts, be they his fellow aspirants, or an animal, or a flower. He will act as a transmitter of light in the darkness. He will dispel the glamour around him and let in the radiance of reality.

"When large numbers of the sons of men can so act, then the human family will enter upon its destined work of planetary service. Its mission is to act as a bridge between the world of spirit and the world of material forms. All grades of matter meet in man, and all the states of consciousness are possible to him. Mankind can work in all directions and lift the subhuman kingdoms into heaven and bring heaven down to earth."

Let us work in meditation with our keynote, " I build a lighted house and therein dwell." [-]

Sarah McKechnie

Festival of Cancer
New York,
July 17, 2008