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HEART, THROAT AND EYE

Later, when the knowledge here conveyed is assimilated, the aspirant will come to an understanding of the true meaning of the heart, the throat, and the eye—which it is the object of the Guides of the race to stimulate into functioning activity at this time.  We will therefore consider now:

1. The heart centre, the throat centre, and the centre between the eyes.

2. Their awakening and co-ordination.

3. To what uses they will be put in the coming world cycle.

This subject is of vital importance to the modern aspirant, for the mechanism of the heart, the throat, and the eye—constituting part of the inner structure which he must learn to use—has to be mastered and consciously employed by him before any true creative work is possible.  When I use the words 'creative work' I am speaking esoterically and am not referring to the valuable work [190] done by the artists of the world in their many lines of expression.  Their efforts, to the seer, are indicative of an inner stirring, of an inner co-ordination and a motivated activity which will lead to true esoteric endeavour and to creative work on the subtler planes.

I am assuming in the student an elementary knowledge of the vital body and of its force centres and I am assuming that these seven centres or lotuses have, theoretically, a place in his imagination.  I use the word imagination with purposeful intent, for until there is knowledge and clear vision, imaginative assumption is a potent factor in bringing about the activity of the centres.

Let us, for the sake of clarity, list these lotuses with their petal numbers, and their location.  Their colours are immaterial at present from the standpoint of the student, for much that has been given out is erroneous or in the nature of a blind, and in any case, the esoteric colours are widely different from the exoteric.

1. The base of the spine..................................

      4 petals.

2. The sacral centre.........................................

      6 petals.

3. The solar plexus centre...............................

                                Diaphragm.

    10 petals.

4. Heart centre.................................................

    12 petals.

5. Throat centre...............................................

    16 petals.

6. Centre between the eyebrows....................

      2 petals.

7. Head centre.................................................

1000 petals.

Next, let the student remember two important facts, which may be regarded as elementary and preliminary but which nevertheless have to be worked out into conscious realisation and become part of the purposed intent of the aspirant's training.  It is easy to generalise.  It is difficult to realise.  It is simple to grasp the informative intellectual data regarding the centres of force; it is most difficult to bring about the rearrangement of the forces flowing through these vortices, and to learn to function consciously through the higher centres, subordinating the [191] lower ones.  This has to be done also without laying the emphasis upon the form aspect as is the case in many practices used to vitalise the centres.  The two facts of importance are:

1. The three centres below the diaphragm,

a. Base of spine,

b. Sacral centre,

c. Solar plexus centre,

which are, at present, the most potent in average humanity and the most 'alive', require to be re-organised, re-oriented, and to be brought from a state of positivity into that of negativity.

Equally, the four centres above the diaphragm,

a. The heart centre,

b. The throat centre,

c. The centre between the eyebrows,

d. The head centre,

must be awakened and brought from a state of negativity into that of positivity.

This has to be brought about in two ways.  First, by the transference of the positive energy of the lower centres into that of the higher, and secondly by the awakening of the head centre by the demonstration of the activity of the will.  The first effect is produced by character building, and by the purification of the bodies, as used by the soul in the three worlds.  The second is the result of meditation and the development of organised purpose, imposed by the will upon the daily life.  Character building, clean living, controlled emotional reactions, and right thinking are the platitudes of all religious systems and have lost weight from our very familiarity with them.  It is not easy to remember that as we live purely and rightly, we are verily and indeed working with forces, subjecting energies to our needs, subordinating [192] elemental lives to the requirements of spiritual being, and bringing into activity a mechanism and a vital structure which has hitherto been only latent and quiescent.  Nevertheless, it remains a fact that when the energies, latent at the base of the spine, are carried to the head and are brought (via the solar plexus, that clearing house of energy, and the medulla oblongata) to the centre between the eyebrows, then the personality, the matter aspect, reaches its apotheosis and the Virgin Mary—in the individual sense, which is a finite parallel of an infinite Reality—is "carried up into Heaven" there to sit by the side of her son, the Christ, the soul.

When the energies of the sacral centre, focussed hitherto on the work of physical creation and generation and therefore the source of physical sex life and interest, are sublimated, re-oriented and carried up to the throat centre, then the aspirant becomes a conscious creative force in the higher worlds; he enters within the veil, and begins to create the pattern of things which will bring about eventually the new heavens and the new earth.

When the energies of the solar plexus—expressions hitherto of the potent desire nature, feeding the emotional life of the personality—are equally transmuted and re-oriented, then they are carried to the heart centre and there is brought about as a result a realisation of group consciousness, of group love, and group purpose which makes the aspirant a server of humanity and a fit associate of the Elder Brethren of the race.

When these three transfers have been consummated then an activity transpires in the head centre, the ultimate governing factor, and by an act of the will of the indwelling ruling soul, certain happenings take place which we can consider later in our studies.

2. The second fact to bear in mind is that as these changes and re-orientations take place, the disciple begins to awaken psychologically to new states of consciousness, [193] to new states of existence, and to new states of being.  It will be apparent therefore how necessary it is to go slowly in these matters, so that the mental apprehension and ability to reason logically and sanely may parallel the growth of the intuition and of spiritual perception.  Many schools are simply forcing schools, prematurely developing the higher faculties and leading the aspirant (if I might express it in mystical language) directly out of the realm of feeling and of desire into that of the intuition, but leaving the intellectual faculties and the mental apparatus totally undeveloped and latent.  When this is the case then—again speaking mystically—an hiatus or a gap occurs, in part of the equipment which the soul must perforce use in the three worlds of its endeavour.  The interpreting, organising, understanding mind is unable to play its part.  Where there is lack of understanding and of mental ability, there is danger of misapprehension, of credulity and of wrong interpretation of the phenomena of other states of being.  A sense of values will be lacking, and the aspirant will over-estimate the non-essentials and fail to grasp the value of the spiritual realities.

Energy may pour into the force centres in these cases, but because there is no directing intelligence it will run riot and we then have those sad cases which strew the path of occult endeavour and have brought the work of the Lodge into disrepute—cases of over-emphasized personalities, of superstitious devotees, of credulous followers of leaders, of fanatical unbalanced idealists, and of those warped minds which arrogate to themselves powers which are not theirs.  Men and women become swayed by astralism and wander in the vale of illusion regarding themselves as different from other men, placing themselves upon a pedestal far above average humanity.  They fall consciously into the sin of separateness.  Add to the above category, the cases of sex perversion, [194] brought about by over-stimulation of the sacral centre, the cases of neuroticism and over-sensitivity and emotionalism, brought about by the premature vitalisation of the solar plexus centre, and lastly the cases of insanity, brought about by over-stimulation of the brain cells through unwise meditation work, and it will become increasingly clear why it is deemed necessary to proceed slowly and to develop the mental processes as well as the spiritual nature.

The average student starts with the knowledge that he has centres, and with a desire for purity of character.  He is assured by those who know that, as he strives, meditates, studies and serves, certain changes will take place within him, and that there will arise from the depths of his being, an awakening which will be dynamic.  He is told that there will follow a breathing forth, a stirring and a vitalising which will bring his subjective spiritual life into prominence.  This subjective life expresses itself as spiritual energy, through the medium of the energy or vital body and the energy thus expressed will change his life focus and interests, and produce a magnetic and dynamic effect which will attract and lift humanity.  This energy is sevenfold in nature and utilises seven focal points in the etheric body as its agents.

It is not possible for the aspirant to work with and utilise all these seven types of energy intelligently in the early stages of the Path of Discipleship.  The emphasis, for training purposes, is laid upon only three of them.  These are:

1. That of Will, strength or power, through the medium of the head centre.  This is the energy of the spiritual man, and comes directly from the Monad, via the soul.  Up to the third initiation however, all that the disciple needs to grasp is that the will aspect of the soul should control the personality, via the mental [195] body to the head centre.  When this is the case the thousand-petalled lotus begins to function.  The line of this stream of force is:

Monad.

Atma.  Spiritual will.

The inner circle of petals in the egoic lotus, the will petals.

The mental body.

The head centre in the etheric body.

The nervous system and brain.

2. That of Love-Wisdom, through the medium of the heart centre.  This centre, when awakened, leads to that expansion of consciousness which initiates a man into his group life.  He loses the sense of separateness, and finally emerges into the full light of realisation—a realisation of unity with his own indwelling God, with all humanity, with all souls in all forms of nature, and so with the Oversoul.  This force stream comes likewise from the Monad, via the soul, and its line is as follows:

Monad.

Buddhi.  Spiritual love.  The intuition.

The second circle of petals in the egoic lotus, the love petals.

The astral body.

The heart centre.

The blood stream.

In the little evolved man, this force stream simply passes through the heart centre direct to the solar plexus and expends its two aspects of vital life and of soul quality, one energising the blood stream and the other awakening the solar plexus centre.  This then becomes the dominant factor in the energy life of the man, and the force through which his desire nature expresses itself, until such time as the aspirant brings [196] about the needed transmutation and re-orientation of his emotional desire nature.  Then the heart awakens into activity and the life of the solar plexus centre becomes subordinated to that of the heart.  This is brought about by the development of group interests, by the cultivation of inclusiveness and the steady loss of interest in the personality, and in things separative and selfish.

3. That of active intelligence, or the energy which animates the form aspect, and which creates forms in line with the subjective purposes of the presiding intelligence—God or man, human or divine.  This also proceeds from the third aspect of the Monad, and the line of its contact is:

Monad.

Manas.  Spiritual intelligence.  The higher mind.

The third or outer circle of petals in the egoic lotus, the knowledge petals.

The etheric body as a whole, as it pervades the dense physical body.

The throat centre.

The cells of the body.

In the little evolved man, as in the case of the second aspect and its unfoldment, the energy simply passes through the throat centre and goes directly to the sacral centre, and thus brings into activity the generative processes and creative faculties, utilised in the reproductive work and sex life of the race.

This is a broad and general outline of the three main streams of force or divine energy and their direction.

The relationship of the head centre to the base of the spine, where lies the sleeping fire, will not be considered here, nor will the function of the solar plexus centre as a clearing-house for the lower energies be touched upon.  I [197] am anxious for the students simply to grasp the general idea and the skeleton of the teaching.

Every human being in the course of time works his way back on the Path of Return to one of the three major rays.  All have eventually to express intelligent creative faculty, to be animated by divine love, and to bring into functioning activity the Will, as it works out divine purpose and plan.

The first centre which the aspirant seeks consciously to energise and on which he concentrates during the early stages of his novitiate, is the heart centre.  He has to learn to be group conscious, to be sensitive to group ideals, and to be inclusive in his plans and concepts; he has to learn to love collectively and purely, and not be actuated by personality attraction, and the motive of reward.  Until there is this awakening in the heart, he cannot be trusted to wield the creative powers of the throat centre, for they would be subordinated to self-aggrandisement and ambitions of various kinds.

Here it should be noted that none of these unfoldments can ever be approached from the standpoint of complete static passivity or from the angle of an entirely new undertaking.  We are in process of evolution.  Certain aspects of our force centres are already awakened, and functioning in relation to the form aspect, but are not yet expressing soul qualities.  We have behind us a long and fruitful past.  We are none of us purely selfish or separative.  Human society is now cohesive and inter-dependent.  Humanity, as a whole, has already done much in bringing the heart centre into partial activity, and in awakening some of the more important aspects of the throat centre.

The problem with many aspirants today is that of the solar plexus, for it is wide open, actively functioning and almost fully awakened.  The work of transmutation is however going on simultaneously, leading—as one might [198] naturally suppose—to a good deal of difficulty and to chaotic conditions.  The heart centre is also beginning to vibrate, but is not yet awakened; the throat centre is frequently prematurely awakened, through the transfer of energy from the sacral centre.  This is due to several causes—sometimes to spiritual purpose and intent, but more frequently to a negation of the normal sex life, owing to economic conditions, or to a lack of physical vitality, which predisposes to celibacy.  This lack of vital force is in its turn due to many factors, but primarily to a long heredity, producing a degeneracy of the physical body, or to enforced celibacy in past lives; this enforced celibacy was very often the result of monasticism and the living of the mystical life.  When this creative awakening finds expression through any of the arts—literature, painting, music,—or in group organization and executive work there is no harm wrought, for the energy finds a normal creative outlet.  These points should he remembered by the aspirant.  He is facing a most complex problem.  He enters blindly into a situation which is the result of a long evolutionary process and to which he has not the key.  Especially in the early stages and prior to the first initiation is this the case, for he has no knowledge of the history of the past, nor any prevision as to the future.  He has simply to take his equipment and his opportunity and do the best he can, guided by the age-old rules of Raja Yoga, and the light of his own soul.

As the heart centre is awakened and the throat centre swings into creative work, a definite relation is set up and there is an interplay of energy between the two.  This activity in its turn brings about a response from that aspect of the thousand petalled lotus (a synthetic lotus) through which the energy always animating the heart and throat centres normally passes.  This responsive [199] activity and inter-action brings about two results, and these should be most carefully noted.

First, the light in the head makes its appearance.  A sparking (if I might so express it) is set up between the higher positive over-shadowing energy as it is centralised within the form of the thousand-petalled lotus, and the steadily heightening vibration of the heart and throat centres or lotuses.  These two lower centres in their turn are responding to the energies being lifted and raised from the centres below the diaphragm.

Secondly, the centre between the eyebrows also begins to make its presence felt, and this significant two-petalled lotus begins to vibrate.  It symbolises the work of at-one-ing the soul and the body, the subjective and the objective.  In some occult books it is called the lotus with the ninety-six petals, but this is only a differentiation dealing with the energies focussed in the two petals.  It will be noted that the sum total of the force petals in the centres (excluding the two head centres) amount in all to forty-eight petals.  These energies in their two aspects of physical vital energy and soul qualities make up the ninety-six aspects or vibrations of the two petals of the Ajna or eyebrow centre.  It must be remembered also that the word 'petal' only symbolises an expression of force and its apparent effect in matter.

The five centres with their forty-eight petals are synthesised therefore into the two-petalled lotus, and then we have forty-eight plus two equals fifty, the number of the perfected personality, for five is the number of man and ten is that of perfection.  Symbolically also, if the sum total of the forty-eight petals of the five centres is added to the ninety-six petals of the centre between the eyebrows, the number one hundred and forty-four appears.  This number signifies the completed work of the twelve creative Hierarchies, twelve times twelve, and thus the bringing together of the subjective soul and the [200] objective body in perfect union and at-one-ment.  This is the consummation.  To these figures, one hundred and forty-four add that of the number one thousand (the number of the petals in the lotus of the head centre) and you have the number of the saved in the Book of Revelations, the one hundred and forty-four thousand who can stand before God, for the three ciphers which are found indicate the personality.  When man has completed within himself the great work, when the number one hundred and forty-four thousand is seen as symbolising his point of attainment, then he can stand before God—standing now not only before the Angel of the Presence, but before the very Presence Itself.