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ANALYSIS OF THE THREE SENTENCES - Part 1

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ANALYSIS OF THE THREE SENTENCES

This rule is, as you know, the last of those governing work on the astral plane and the magical task of motivating those thought-forms which are to be the expression of some type of energy. We have considered the various energies with which men work and the power a man can wield through building thought-forms. We have seen also how a man can manipulate the various grades of matter until the embodied idea has clothed itself with mental matter and with astral matter. It is therefore a vital entity, on the verge of materialising upon the physical plane. Nothing, it should be noted, can now stop its emergence into objectivity except the expressed act of the will of its creator, for the form, being vitalised by that creator, is subject always to his will, until he has severed his connection with it by the utterance of the "mystic phrase". We will assume that emergence into effective existence is the decision and that the creative work is carried forward.

It will here be noted that this work is either conscious or unconscious. In the unconscious building of thought-forms such as is the case with the average human being, many never produce the desired physical plane effects, and fail in their intended purpose. As long however, as man is animated by selfishness and by hatred, this is a beneficent thing. Fortunately for the human race, few people as yet work in mental matter. Most of them work with astral or desire matter and these forms are fluidic and changeable, and are powerful only through the faculty of persistence. There is an occult basis for [448] the statement that if one desires a thing for a sufficiently long period of time one will possess it. Such is the law governing the return to incarnation of the average human being. Lacking the one-pointedness of the mental plane matter as it is influenced by a concentrated mind, these desire forms fail to do the damage they otherwise might. Their effect is felt largely by the creator of these kama-manasic forms and not by his environing associates. The moment that the mind factor enters in and becomes dominant, that moment a man becomes dangerous or useful as the case may be—dangerous not only to himself but to those around him, or useful in the working out of the plan of evolution. He can then create thought-forms, capable of producing outward manifesting results and tangible effects. Given aspiration, however, and spiritual impulse, a man can become a true occultist, and produce organised results, and functioning organisms upon the physical plane. I use the word "organism" deliberately, for it will serve to convey the idea that any thought-form is regarded by us as a subjective and existing entity, clothed in subtle matter, and capable of manifestation. This is called popularly sometimes "the working out of an idea", or the "carrying through of a project"; it is termed at other times a "discovery", or an " invention", or something of that nature. All the time, quite unrealising it, man is talking in occult terms and evidencing an inner appreciation of the methods whereby all that has been thought (by God or man) comes into existence.

The embodied idea or thought (the former being potentially far more potent than the latter) has worked its way through to the verge of physical manifestation. Its creator who, in the case of a "white magician" is not an emotionally centred person, is consciously bringing it to the stage when its inner purpose and plan can be demonstrated. He holds the thought-form in his consciousness [449] and gives it shape and energy through the power of his own one-pointed mental focus.

We are told in the rule under consideration that the aspirant has three things to do:

1. Ascertain the formula which will crystallise the form he has built, much in the same way that we find architects and bridge builders reducing the desired form to a mathematical formula.

2. Pronounce certain words which will give the form vitality and so carry it forth on to the physical plane.

3. Utter the phrase which will detach the thought-form from his aura and so save the drain upon his energies.

It will be noted that the formula has relation to the thought-form, the words of power to the objective for which the form has been constructed, and the mystic phrase concerns the severing of the magnetic link which binds together the creator and his creation. One therefore concerns the form, another the soul embodied in the form (whose lowest characteristic is desire, the reflection of love) and the last the life aspect with which the creator has endowed the creation. We are consequently face to face again with the eternal triplicities of spirit, soul and body. It should be remembered that the Rules for Magic, as understood by the true esotericist, are as true of a created universe, solar system or planet as they are true of the tiny thought creations of a chela or aspirant.

The first reaction of the average student on reading the above is to think immediately of the body nature as it expresses some type of energy. Thus duality is the thing noted and that which employs the thing is present in his mind. Yet one of the main necessities before occult aspirants at this time is to endeavour to think in [450] terms of the one Reality which is Energy itself and nothing else. Therefore it is of value to emphasize in our discussions of this abstruse subject the fact that spirit and energy are synonymous terms and are interchangeable. Only in the realisation of this can we arrive at the reconciliation of science and religion and at a true understanding of the world of active phenomena by which we are surrounded and in which we move.

The terms organic and inorganic are largely responsible for much of the confusion, and the sharp differentiation existing in the minds of many people between body and spirit, between life and form, have led to a refusal to admit the essential identity in nature of these two. The world in which we live is regarded by the majority as really solid and tangible, yet possessing some mysterious power lying concealed within it which produces movement, activity and change. This is of course putting it crudely but it suffices to sum up the unintelligent attitude.

The orthodox scientist is largely occupied with structures, relationships, with the composition of form and with the activity produced by the component form parts and their interrelations and dependencies. The chemicals and elements and the functions and parts they play, and their mutual interactions as they compose all forms in all the kingdoms of nature are the subject of their investigation. The nature of the atom, of the molecule and the cell, their functions, the qualities of their force manifestations and the varying types of activity, the solving of the problem as to the character and nature of the energies—focalised or localised in the differing forms of the natural or material world—demand the consideration of the ablest minds in the world of thought. Yet the questions—What is Life? What is Energy? or What is the process of Becoming and the nature of Being? remain unanswered. The problem as to the why and the [451] wherefore is regarded as fruitless and speculative, almost insoluble.

Nevertheless, to the pure reason and through the correct functioning of the intuition, these problems can be solved and these questions answered. Their solution is one of the ordinary revelations and attainments of initiation. The only true biologists are the initiates of the mysteries, for they have an understanding of life and its purpose and are so identified with the life principle that they think and speak in terms of energy and its effects, and all their activities, in connection with the work of the planetary Hierarchy, are based on a few fundamental formulas which concern life as it makes itself felt through its three differentiations or aspects:—energy, force, matter.

It should be noted here that only as a man understands himself can he arrive at an understanding of that which is the sum total that we call God. This is a truism and an occult platitude, but when acted upon leads to a revelation which makes the present "Unknown God" a recognised Reality. Let me illustrate:

Man knows himself to be a living being and calls death that mysterious process wherein that something, which he commonly designates as the breath of life, is withdrawn. On its withdrawal, the form disintegrates. The cohesive vitalising force is gone, and this produces that falling apart into its essential elements of that which has hitherto been regarded as the body.

This life principle, this basic essential of being and this mysterious elusive factor is the correspondence in man of that which we call spirit or life in the macrocosm. Just as the life in man holds together, animates, vitalises and drives into activity the form and so makes of him a living being, so the life of God—as the Christian calls it—performs the same purpose in the universe and produces [452] that coherent, living, vital ensemble which we call a solar system.

This life principle in man manifests in a triple manner:

1. As the directional will, purpose, basic incentive. This is the dynamic energy which sets the being functioning, brings him into existence, sets the term of his life, carries him through the years, long or short, and abstracts itself at the close of his life cycle. This is the spirit in man, manifesting as the will to live, to be, to act, to pursue, to evolve. In its lowest aspect this works through the mental body or nature, and in connection with the dense physical makes itself felt through the brain.

2. As the coherent force. It is that significant essential quality which makes each man different, which produces that complex manifestation of moods, desires, qualities, complexes, inhibitions, feelings and characteristics which produce a man's peculiar psychology. This is the result of the interplay between the spirit or energy aspect, and the matter or body nature. This is the distinctive subjective man, his colouring, or individual note; this it is which sets the rate of vibratory activity of his body, produces his particular type of form, is responsible for the condition and nature of his organs, his glands, and his outer aspect. This is the soul and—in its lowest aspect—it works through the emotional or astral nature and in connection with the dense physical, through the heart.

3. As the activity of the atoms and cells of which the physical body is composed. It is the sum total of those little lives of which the human organs, comprising the entire man are composed. These have a life of their own and a consciousness which is strictly individual and identified. This aspect of the life principle works through [453] the etheric or vital body and in connection with the solid mechanism of the tangible form through the spleen.

It is not, of course, possible to give the mantric words and phrases which are mentioned in Rule XI. They would be profoundly incomprehensible to all but the initiate, and therefore need not engross our attention. It should be noted that much in these Instructions is in advance of modern thought and both these Instructions and the Treatise on Cosmic Fire will only be fully understood towards the end of this century.

Let us consider this rule sentence by sentence, and arrive at that one of the interpretations which is the easiest for the average aspirant. All these rules can be read from the standpoint of intelligent man, and will mean but little; they can be read from the standpoint of the aspirant, and will then convey certain practical ideas which are susceptible of daily application and can be wrought out in the crucible of life experience. They will achieve meaning as the aspirant learns to handle energies, to work in mental matter and to cooperate creatively with the Purpose underlying the evolutionary plan. From the angle of vision of the disciple, these Rules carry certain potent instructions and will lead him to an understanding of the process of the creative work in nature, which is necessarily sealed to the mind of the aspirant. As to the comprehension of the initiate, these words convey definite commands which only his illumined intuition can rightly interpret. With the higher grades of intelligences we need not concern ourselves. We will consider this Rule therefore solely from the angle of vision of the average aspirant, leaving other interpretations to those individuals who have the internal equipment which will enable them to understand.

I. Ascertain the formula which will confine the lives within the ensphering wall.

All forms in nature, as we well know, are made up of [454] myriads of tiny lives, holding a certain measure of awareness, of rhythm, and of coherency according to the force of the Law of Attraction, utilized by the builder of the form. This is true both of the Macrocosm and of the infinite world of microcosmic lives, which are contained within the greater whole. Embryo solar systems, coming into being under the impulse of divine thought, are at first fluidic and nebulous, are shifting in outline and are held together loosely by the central nucleus of energy—another way of expressing the embodied idea. As time progresses, they pass on to other conditions, they take more definite form, they enter into peculiar relations with allied and neighbouring forms, and adjust themselves to varying relations of an internal nature with those forms, which in the earlier stage was not possible. Eventually we find a solar system such as ours and myriads of others—a solar system functioning as a sun with its revolving and rotating planets, preserving their differing orbits, holding their stated and relative positions, active as independent and inter-dependent organisms, and yet presenting, to the eye of the astronomer, a coherence, a unity and a structure that is unique in each case and yet which functions under cosmic law. It measures up to some vast purpose, conceived and held steadily in the Universal Mind, which is in its turn an aspect of that group-conscious and self-conscious entity who is the author of its being and the creator of its form.

This one intelligent Life may be posited as creating in his meditation (or its, if you prefer, for what do words matter when all is futile to express reality as it is!) and consequently in his reflective mind, that which we call a thought-form. This thought-form has four main characteristics:

1. It is brought into being through the conscious use of the Law of Attraction.

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2. It is formed of an infinite number of living entities who are attracted by the mind of the divine Creator and thus enter into relation with each other.

3. The form is the externalization of something that its Creator has:

a. Visualized.

b. Built intelligently and "coloured" or "qualified", so as to meet the purpose for which it was intended.

c. Vitalized by the potency of his desire and the strength of his living thought.

d. Held in shape as long as it is needed in order to perform its specific work.

e. Connected to himself by a magnetic thread—the thread of his living purpose and the strength of his dominant will.

4. This interior purpose, which has clothed itself in mental, astral and vital substance, is potent on the physical plane just as long as:

a. It remains consciously in its Creator's thought.

b. It "keeps its distance" occultly from its Creator. Many thought-forms remain futile as they are "too close" to their Creator.

c. It can be directed in any desired direction, and under the law of least resistance, can find its own place, thus performing its desired function and carrying out the purpose for which it was created.

The "formula" therefore might be regarded as the idea emanating from the divine Thinker; it might be defined as the dynamic purpose, the "thing" as the Thinker sees it and externalizes it in his mind, and visualizes it as the carrier of his intent. The mathematics which underlie the construction of a bridge, such as any of the great spans which signalize human achievement, convey [456] naught to the uninitiated, but to those who know and understand, they are the bridge itself, reduced to its essential terms. They are the bridge in latency, and in these mathematical formulas lie hid the purpose, the quality and the form of the completed structure and its eventual usefulness. So it is with the concepts and the ideas which give birth to a thought-form. These occult formulas exist on the archetypal plane which (for the aspirant) is the plane of the intuition, though in reality it is a state of consciousness far higher still. These formulas underlie a world of forms and must be contacted by those who are duly equipped to work under the Great Architect of the Universe. There are, symbolically speaking, three great books of formulas. Note the words "symbolically speaking", and forget them not. There is first the Book of Life, read and eventually mastered by initiates of all degrees. There is the Book of Divine Wisdom, read by aspirants of all degrees, sometimes called the Book of Knowing Experience, and there is the Book of Forms which is compulsory reading for all in whom the intelligence is awakening to functioning activity. It is with the Book of Forms that we are now concerned.

Patanjali speaks in one place of the "rain-cloud of knowable things" of which the soul is consciously aware. The aspirant, weary of the eternal round of his own futile and unimportant thoughts, seeks to tap the resources of this "rain cloud" and so precipitate upon the earth some of the thoughts of God. He seeks to work so that he can further the manifestation of the ideas of the Creator. To do this he has to fulfill certain initial requirements, which might be briefly stated as follows:

1. Know the true meaning of meditation.

2. Align with facility the soul, the mind and the brain.

3. Contemplate, or function as the soul on its own plane. It then becomes possible for the soul to act [457] as the intermediary between the plane of divine ideas and the mental plane. You see how this matter of participation in the divine creative process works out as the objective of all true meditation work?

4. Register the idea, received by the soul intuitively, and recognize the form which it should take. These last seven words are of vital importance.

5. Reduce the vague and misty idea to its essentials, discarding all vain imaginings and the formulations of the lower mind, so equipping oneself to leap readily into activity, and, through steadfastness in contemplation, receive accurately the vision of the inner structure, or of the subjective skeleton, if I may so term it, of the form which is to be.

6. This, as recorded consciously by the soul upon the mind, is as consciously registered by the mind, held steady in the light, and might be regarded as the reduction of the formula to the blue print. It is not the formula itself, but the secondary process. According to the strength, the simplicity and the clarity of the embodiment of the formula in a simple outlined structure, so will be the finally furnished building and the consequent form, which will confine within the periphery of the outer form itself the lives used in its construction.

This, in reality, resembles the stage of conception. Latent within the germ (the result of male-female interrelation) lie all the potencies and capacities of the finished product. Latent within the idea which has been materially conceived, but which has been inspired by the Spirit aspect, lie hid the potencies of the finished thoughtforms. The matter aspect, represented by the mind, has been fecundated by the Spirit aspect, and the triplicity [458] will eventually be completed by the created form. But in the early stages there is as yet only the "formula"—the conceived idea, the latent yet dynamic concept. It is potent enough to draw to itself the essentials for growth and form, yet who shall say whether it will prove an abortion, a mediocre and feeble product, or a creation of real beauty and value?

Every externalized idea is, therefore, possessed of form, animated by desire, and created by the power of the mind. The desire plane is the one upon which the mind imposes its conceptions in order to produce the "idea incarnate", to clothe the idea in form. It is therefore the gestation ground. The mind previously has been the recipient of the archetypal idea, as grasped and visualized by the soul. In its turn the soul is the recipient of the formula as presented to it in the world of ideas. You have thus the "presented-idea", the "perceived-idea" and the "formulated-idea", and the idea working out into manifestation.

It is well to bear in mind that the following factors govern the emergence of the idea out of the Universal Mind into the world of tangible forms. These are:

1. The energies emanating from the archetypal plane. This plane is the focus of the attention of the highest group of Intelligences on our planet. Their consciousness can respond and be inclusive to this sphere of activity whereon the Mind of God expresses itself, free from the limitations of what we understand as form. They are the custodians of the formula; they are the mathematicians who prepare the blue prints of the great Plan; they calculate the effects of the forces with which the work is carried forward, and the energies which must be manipulated; they allow for the strains and stresses to which the forms must be subjected under the impact of the life force, they deal with the cyclic impulses to which the evolutionary process must respond; they concern [459] themselves with the relation between the form aspect and the life urge.

2. The intuitional state of awareness. On this level of consciousness, we find the Masters of the Wisdom carrying on Their work, and it is in this sphere of influence that They work with the greatest ease and facility, as much so as does normally intelligent man work on the physical plane. Their minds are constantly in touch with the archetypal minds, who are the custodians of the formulas, and They—taking the blue prints (I speak again in symbolic fashion), deal with the specifications, look for those suitable for the control of the work, and assemble the needed personnel. Among Their disciples They search until They find the one most suited to be the focal point of information on the physical plane, or the group most eligible to carry into manifestation the desired part of the Plan. They work with those so chosen, impressing upon their minds that eternal triplicity of idea-quality-form until the details begin to emerge, and the work of what is literally a "precipitation" can go forward.

3. The activity of the mental state of consciousness. It is on the mental plane that much of this work is necessarily done, and here is reason sufficient for the development, on the part of the aspirant, of a trained intellect. The "rain cloud of knowable things" precipitates first of all on the mental plane, and a further precipitation goes forward when disciples and aspirants are the recipients. These latter, in their turn, seek to impress and guide the lesser workers and aspirants, who, karmically or by choice, lie within their radius of influence. Thus the "idea" presented is seized upon by many minds and the formula aspect of the great work has played its part.

It will be seen how this work is consequently and essentially group work, and is therefore only truly possible for those who have somewhat mastered the meditation [460] process, and can "hold the mind steady in the light". This light in reality streams forth from the Universal Mind and is of varying kinds and was (esoterically speaking) generated in a previous solar system and must be used and developed in this one.

In the words "the light of the intuition" we have conveyed to our minds that type of energy which embodies the purpose, the will of God, the Plan, as we regard it. In the words "the light of the soul", we have an expression which sums up the purpose, the plan, the will of those entities, who, incarnated in human form, and at times functioning out of the body, have the responsibility of materializing the divine concepts in the four kingdoms in nature. The human kingdom is, par excellence, the medium of expression for the Universal Mind, and when the sons of God in human form are perfected, the problems of the natural world will be solved in a large measure. The fully conscious sons of God, aware of themselves whilst in the human form (and they are few as yet), constitute literally the brain of the planetary life.

There is a truly occult significance to the words "to throw the light" upon a problem, a condition, or a situation. In its essential meaning it connotes the revelation of the presented idea, of the principle which underlies the outer manifestation. It is the recognition of the inner and spiritual reality which produces the outer and visible form. This is the keynote of all work in symbolism. The work of ascertaining the formulas, of drawing up the subjective charts or plans of intuitive impression and of intense activity on the mental plane is the sole work of the organized planetary hierarchy. The second phase of the work is carried on by those workers, who, co-operating consciously with the hierarchy, demonstrate the reality of that work in the three worlds of human evolution. They bring the germ of the idea, and the embryonic concept into outer and completed existence, [461] through the process of right thought, the awakening of desire, and the nurturing of right public opinion. They thus bring about the needed physical activity.

Aspirants, group leaders and thinkers in all parts of the globe can be available for this work, provided their minds are open and focussed. According to the simplicity of their approach to truth, according to the clarity of their thought, according to their group influence and state of inclusive awareness, and according also to their power for long sustained effort will be the approximation of the outer form to the inner idea and the spiritual subjective reality.

The point I seek to make is that the average reader of these Instructions has nothing to do with the formulas. They are grasped and understood by the great Knowers Who stand back of the evolutionary process and are responsible for its functional activity. The hierarchy of Masters, of the senior initiates, and disciples is proceeding steadily with that work but is dependent, under the Law, upon those on the physical plane who are to produce the outer forms. If they fail to respond, there will be delay or incorrect building; if they make mistakes, there will be lost time and energy, and again delay; if they lose interest and cease to work, or are primarily interested in their own affairs and personalities, the Plan will have to wait, and energy which would otherwise be made available for the solving of human problems and the guidance of humanity will have to find its outlet in other directions. There is never anything static in the creative process; energy which is flowing forth in the pulsation of the one Life, and its rhythmic and cyclic activity—never ending and never resting—must be somewhere utilized, and must find its way in some direction, often (when man fails in his duty) with catastrophic results. The problem of cataclysms, the cause, for instance, of the steadily increasing insect peril, will be [462] found to be related to the inflow of unused and unrecognized energy which is capable of right direction and right purpose and for the furthering of the Plan, if the aspirants and disciples of the world will shoulder their group responsibilities, submerge their personalities, and achieve true realization. Humanity must be more diligent and more intelligent in the working out of its true destiny and karmic obligations. When men are universally en rapport with the custodians of the plan and their minds and brains are illumined by the light of the intuition, of the soul and of the universal mind, when they can train themselves to respond intelligently to the timely impulses which cyclically emanate from the inner side of life, then there will be a steady adjustment between life and form and a rapid amelioration of world conditions. It is an interesting point to bear in mind that the first effect of the response of the more advanced of the sons of men to the formulas as translated and transmitted by the Knowers will be the establishing of right relations between the four kingdoms in nature, and right relations between units and groups in the human family. A step in this direction is being made. Relations between the four spheres of activity which we call human, animal, vegetable and mineral are now badly adjusted because the energy of matter is primarily the governing factor. In the human kingdom, the working of this energy demonstrates in what we call selfishness. In the animal kingdom, it demonstrates in what we call cruelty, though, where the sense of responsibility is nonexistent and only instinctual and temporary parental responsibility is found, there is no criticism to be given. In the vegetable kingdom this maladjustment expresses itself during this planetary period of misuse as disease.

This surprises you? Disease has its roots primarily in maladjustments and misdirected force in the vegetable kingdom; this affects the animal and mineral kingdoms [463] and subsequently the human. It is too far ahead for this to be demonstrated, but when this condition is understood, it will be in that kingdom in nature that the attention of the investigators must be focussed, and the eradication of disease will eventually find its solution.

II. Pronounce the words which will tell them what to do and where to carry that which has been made.

Let us remember in connection with this Rule that it is only potent in so far as the "worker with the Law" is en rapport with the inner reality within himself, with the soul. It is essential that through him, in full waking consciousness, the soul should be functioning. It is the soul who pronounces the words. It is the soul who utters forth the mystic phrase, but it is the soul as controller or ruler of the mechanism, of the form-apparatus. This control is only possible where there is alignment of the brain and mind and soul. Again, it is necessary to remember that this Rule, being an expression of the creative work, applies to all creative process, whether macrocosmic or microcosmic, whether we are dealing with God as the creator of the solar system, with the soul as the creator of the human mechanism, or with the man as he attempts to master the technique of the magical work and so become a creator of forms in his own little sphere. All have to work out the true significance of the Rule, for God works under the law of His Being, and this Law demonstrates to us as the laws of nature.

The ideas of ordered activity and of a conscious and purposeful goal are bound up in the phrase we are considering. The builder of any form is first of all a controller of lives and the arbiter of the destinies of certain entities. In this thought we have light thrown upon the subject of free will and upon the Law of Cause and Effect. It must not be forgotten however that the mystery of causes lies hid in past universes—all, in their day, the "forms indwelt by God". For us there can be no such [464] thing as pure cause, but only the working out of major effects. Just as for us such a reality as pure reason is totally incomprehensible and unattainable, so with pure cause. These factors antedate our solar system and therefore speculation about them remains unrewarded, except in so far as it tends to develop the mental apparatus. This solar system is a system of effects, which in their turn generate causes. Only in the human family and only among those human beings who are consciously using mind power are any causes of any kind being generated. All causes, being initiated by a mind of some kind, functioning consciously and thinking clearly, posit a Thinker, and this is profoundly the position of the occult sciences. Our solar system is a thought-form but one having real existence just as long as thought persists. All that is forms part of the current of ideas emanating from the divine Thinker. All thoughts are part of a divine stream. The mass of people think not, and so do not generate causes that must in due time produce their effect.

You ask, where then the truth of the statement made in many occult modern books that the trend of life or cycle of lives indicates necessarily the future, and that the causes initiated in one life work out as effects in another? Where lives are predominantly emotional and are physically oriented, it is not a particular life that sets the pace but the group of lives, simultaneously interacting with each other, predisposes the future along certain lines. This is eternally true of all human beings at a certain level of conscious development where they are swayed by mass ideas, moulded unthinkingly by tradition and public opinion, are frankly immersed in selfish interests, and are not "taking hold" of conditions themselves but are being carried forward on the tide of evolution. It is a form of group activity (groups governed by the vibration of physical and astral forms) which produces the [465] characteristics and tendencies which cause the situation and environing circumstances. In this realization lies hid the secret of racial and national karma and conditions. In these groups, the ordinary feeling, active man is immersed, and out of this immersion he must find his way by discovering and using his mind. Instinct must give place to intellect. For cycles of lives, groups of souls incarnate through the pull of the material forms towards which they are attracted. These attractive energies have earlier been utilized by the soul—finally being discarded and disintegrated. It is the potency of form which in the first case draws the soul into incarnation, for in the first half of the evolutionary process matter—highly organized in a previous solar system—is the dominant factor. Later, we know, spirit mounts on the shoulder of matter. The mass interplay of spirit and matter is now so potent that one of the major experiences that a soul undergoes is the achieving of the stage wherein the pull of matter begins to wane and the soul learns to detach itself. This is the experience through which humanity is now passing—again a group activity on a higher turn of the spiral.

Large generalizations are indeed safer than the detailed and oft erroneous information anent the rules governing the taking and relinquishing of form, found in much of our puerile literature, but e'en these generalizations should be regarded with much distrust. All that can be posited is that, under the Law of Cause and Effect, spirit and matter coalesced and the worlds were made. Governed by the same law, forms were created and became material expressions of the life urge. They were swept in and out of manifestation according to a rhythmic cyclic beat, initiated in still earlier solar systems, than the one immediately preceding ours. Groups of forms appeared and disappeared, and were governed [466] almost entirely by their group coherence and vibration. So the life progressed through the elemental or involutionary kingdoms, through the three lower kingdoms in nature and on into the human kingdom.

In the lower human stages and in the stage of animal man, the same group activity reigns, only (as in the involutionary kingdoms) becoming smaller and smaller groups as the individual units achieve—one by one—the status of truly self-conscious individuals, and begin to work as souls. Then they not only become creators, with the power of standing alone, with the faculty of clear thinking and accurate visualization, but demonstrate also that they are the possessors of the creative art or faculty of creative imagination. They pass through life after life of self-sufficiency in which the personality is developed and used; then they begin to find their subjective group which will eventually take the place of the outer material groups in their consciousness. Thus they regain again group existence, only this time in full awareness and control.

In the group with which they find themselves subjectively affiliated, will be found those who have worked with them in the earlier mass state, so that they work in close association with those who have been nearest to them and who have been linked with them in the great life cycle.

There are certain names given to these stages in the occult archives which are suggestive and illuminating; they are of course symbolic. It might be of interest if I gave some of these ancient cryptic utterances which convey three items of information, namely, the name of the stage, its esoteric colour, and its symbol. I would like to point out, however, that these intriguing pieces of information which I at times convey and which some of the students seem to regard as of vital importance are of [467] far less importance than the injunction to live kindly, speak words of gentleness and of wisdom, and practice self-forgetfulness. The occult data is read and noted, the familiar instructions are skipped and overlooked. We, who work with aspirants, smile oft at the foolishness and lack of judgment evinced by those we teach. Say to a student: Practice with steadfastness the law of loving-kindness, and he will say that indeed he will attempt to do, but within himself the very familiarity of the injunction palls and is deemed, at best, a needed platitude. Say to the student: I will give you some occult phrases or some items of information anent the Great Ones, and with keenness, with excitement, and with smug self-satisfaction and with a pleased curiosity, he prepares for the important revelation. Yet the earlier injunction is the conveyer of occult information and indicates a law which—if rightly followed—leads to release and liberation. The latter concerns phenomena and the knowledge of it leads not the weary pilgrim to the gates of heaven. Some of you need this reminder.

Those stages which precede the human are omitted as none who will read these words possess the equipment to comprehend their inner sense. We will begin therefore with the stages in the human kingdom.

Stage I

The life has climbed the stairway long through daily use of form. Through the lesser three, with progress slow, the long path has been travelled. Another door stands open now. The words sound forth: "Enter upon the way of real desire."

The life, that only knows itself as form, enshrouds itself in vivid red, the red of known desire, and through the red all longed-for forms approach, are grasped and held, used and discarded, until the red changes to rose [468] and rose to palest pink, and pink to white. Forth flowers then the pure white rose of life.

The tiny rose of living life is seen in bud; not yet the full blown flower.

Stage II

The picture changes form. Another voice, coming from close at hand utters another phrase. The life continues on its way. "Enter the field where children play and join their game." Awakened to the game of life, the soul passes the gate.

The field is green and on its broad expanse the many forms of the one moving Life disport themselves; they weave the dance of life, the many patterned forms God takes. The soul enters "the playground of the Lord" and plays thereon until he sees the star with five bright points, and says: "My Star."

The star is but a point of light, not yet a radiant sun.

Stage III

The way of red desire fails. It loses its allure. The playground of the sons of God no longer holds appeal. The voice which has twice sounded from out the world of form sounds now within the heart. The challenge comes: "Prove thine own worth. Take to thyself the orange ball of thy one-pointed purpose." Responsive to the sounded word, the living soul, immersed in form, emerges from the many forms and hews its onward way. The way of the destroyer comes, the builder and again the tearer down of forms. The broken forms hold not the power to satisfy. The soul's own form is now the great desire, and thus there comes the entering of the playground of the mind.

But in these dreams and fantasies, at times a vision comes—a vision of a folded lotus flower, close petalled, [469] tightly sealed, lacking aroma yet, but bathed in cold blue light.

Orange and blue in some more distant time will blended be, but far off yet the date. Their blending bathes the bud in light and causes future opening. Let the light shine.

Stage IV

Into the dark the life proceeds. A different voice seems to sound forth. "Enter the cave and find your own; walk in the dark and on your head carry a lighted lamp." The cave is dark and lonely; cold is it and a place of many sounds and voices. The voice of the many sons of God, left playing on the playground of the Lord, make their appeal for light. The cave is long and narrow. The air is full of fog. The sound of running water meets the rushing sound of wind, and frequent roll of thunder.

Far off, dim and most vaguely seen, appears an oval opening, its color blue. Stretched athwart this space of blue, a rosy cross is seen, and at the centre of the cross, where four arms meet, a rose. Upon the upper limb, a vibrant diamond shines, within a star five-pointed.

The living soul drives forward towards the cross which bars his way to life, revealed and known.

Not yet the cross is mounted and therefore left behind. But onward goes the living soul, eyes fixed upon the cross, ears open to the wailing cries of all his brother souls.

Stage V

Out into radiant life and light! The cave is left behind; the cross is overturned; the way stands clear. The word sounds clear within the head and not within the heart. "Enter again the playground of the Lord and this time lead the games." The way upon the second [470] tier of stairs stands barred, this by the soul's own act. No longer red desire governs all the life, but now the clear blue flame burns strong. Upon the bottom step of the barred Way he turns back and passes down the stairs on to the playground, meeting dead shells built in an earlier stage, stepping upon forms discarded and destroyed, and holding forth the hands of helpfulness. Upon his shoulder sits the bird of peace; upon his feet the sandals of the messenger.

Not yet the utter glory of the radiant life! Not yet the entering into everlasting peace! But still the work, and still the lifting of the little ones.

Here in symbolic form we have pictures of human life and progress, of life in form and growing through the building process which marks the creative work. It is only a bald translation of some mantric phrases, and of some basic symbols, and must in no way be considered to be anything except indicative of a process, veiled and couched so that only those who know can understand. Esotericists will understand that these five stages cover the life period of every form, no matter whether the creator is cosmic, planetary or human.

Every form is built by an impulsive spark of life, emanated by a creator, and growing stage by stage under the law of accretion—an aspect of the law of attraction, which is the law of life. This law cooperates with the Law of Cause and Effect, which, as we know, is the law governing matter. Cause, attraction or desire, accretion and effect—these four words govern the construction of any thought-form. When the latter is a completed entity, it is an effect built by accretion under the power of an organized cause.

The race has evolved now to a point where we think of effects primarily in terms of quality rather than in terms of matter. A thought-form exists for us in order [471] to produce an effect. The raison d'être of all forms we have come to feel is to express some subjective quality which will give us the key to its creator's purpose. Ponder on these words. Hence, we find in this Rule XI that the purpose of the word pronounced is to tell the lives which constitute the form "what to do and where to carry that which has been made." Thus we find the idea of purpose, activity and goal.

There is no need for me to add to the vast amount of literature which has been put forth or to emphasize the significance of purpose in connection with such a thoughtform as a solar system, a planet, a kingdom in nature or a human being. In some respects this subjective triplicity of purpose, activity and goal is well known and in others it is of too high and too inscrutable a nature for us to deal with in these Instructions and wander into the realms of speculation. With the goal, religion has long sought to deal; with the activity aspect, the scientist is now attempting to deal; and with the Will of God the most advanced thinkers and philosophers are constantly speculating. Only when man submits himself to the discipline of his own spiritual will and controls the activity of the lives within his form nature and so orients himself to the goal as it progressively makes its appeal to his vision, will he arrive at a true understanding of the plan, which constitutes the will of God as far as human beings can grasp it.

But with the thought-forms which he is beginning to create as he daily learns to think, we can concern ourselves for it is the first lesson soon to be learnt in the magical work. The creator in mental matter has:

a. To learn to build intelligently.

b. To give the impulse, through right speech which will animate that which he has built, and so enable the thought-form to convey the intended idea.

[472]

c. To send out his thought-form correctly oriented to his goal, and so truly directed that it will reach the objective and accomplish its sender's purpose.

The necessity for clear thinking and the elimination of idle, destructive and negative thoughts becomes increasingly apparent as the aspirant progresses upon his way. As the power of the mind increases and as the human being differentiates his thought increasingly from mass thought, he inevitably builds thought substance into form. It is at first automatic and unconscious. He cannot help so doing, and fortunately, for the race, the forms constructed are so feeble that they are largely innocuous, or so in line with mass thought that they are negligible in their effect. But as man evolves his power and his capacity to harm or to help increases, and unless he learns to build rightly and correctly to motivate that which he has built he will become a destructive agency and a centre of harmful force—destroying and harming not only himself, as we shall see shortly, but equally hurting and harming those who vibrate to his note.

Granted all this you might appositely inquire: Are there some simple rules which the earnest and sincere beginner could apply to this science of building and which are so clear and concise that they will produce the needed effect? There are, and I will state them simply so that the beginner will, if he follows them, escape the dangers of black magic, and learn to build in line with the plan. He will, if he follows the rules I give, avoid the intricate problem which he has himself blindly constructed and which will indeed shut out the light of day, darken his world, and imprison him in a wall of forms which will embody for him his own peculiar great illusion.

These rules may sound too simple for the learned aspirant but for those who are willing to become as little children they will be found to be a safe guide into truth [473] and will eventually make them able to pass the tests for adeptship. Some are couched in terms symbolic, others are necessarily blinds, still others express the truth just as it is.

1. View the world of thought, and separate the false out of the true.

2. Learn the meaning of illusion, and in its midst locate the golden thread of truth.

3. Control the body of emotion for the waves that rise upon the stormy seas of life engulf the swimmer, shut out the sun and render all plans futile.