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THE AWAKENING OF THE CENTRES

Speaking more technically and therefore warranting the use of the word Instructions in connection with this treatise for aspirants and disciples, it must be carefully borne in mind that the main task of the aspirant is the handling of energies, both in himself and in the world of physical phenomena and externalisation.  This consequently involves an understanding of the centres and of their awakening.  But understanding must come first, and the awakening at a much later date in the sequence of time.  This awakening will fall into two stages:

First, there is the stage wherein, by the practice of a disciplined life and by the purification of the thought life, the seven centres are automatically brought into a right condition of rhythm, vitality and vibratory activity.  This stage involves no danger and there is no directed thought—in connection with the centres—permitted to the aspirant.  By that I mean he is not allowed to concentrate his mind upon any one centre, nor may he seek to awaken or energise them.  He must remain engrossed with the [588] problem of purifying the bodies in which the centres are found, which are primarily the astral, etheric and physical bodies, remembering ever that the endocrine system and the seven major glands, in particular, are the effectual externalisations of the seven major centres.  In this stage, the aspirant is working all around the centres and is dealing with their environing matter and with the living substance which completely surrounds them.  This is all that can be safely undertaken by the majority, and it is with this stage that the bulk of the aspirants in the world today are engaged and with which they must remain engaged for a long time to come.

Secondly, there is the stage wherein the centres, through the effective work of the earlier stage, become what is esoterically called "released within the prison house"; they can now become the subject (under proper direction by a teacher) of definite methods of awakening and of charging,—the methods differing according to the ray, personality and egoic, of the aspirant.  Hence the difficulty of the subject and the impossibility of giving general and blanket rules.

It is interesting here to note, even though it has no bearing on the matter of personal training, that this method, first of a long period of purification and later of energising scientifically, is the one employed by the guiding hierarchy which stands behind world affairs.  Steadily They have been working at the task of clarifying world matter, and bringing about world purification on a large scale.  This is the first stage of the work and only became generally possible when man became a more truly thinking entity, during the past few centuries, on a wide level.  This purification is going on now in all departments of human existence, for humanity now stands, or rather three-fifths of it stands, on the path of probation.  Through welfare and uplift movements and the wide spread of sanitation, the work goes forward [589] on the physical plane; through political upheavals which reveal abuses; through economic discontent which is after all a striving to change that which is undesirable so as to give the human unit conditions of living which will lead to thought and from thought to soul control; through religious propaganda and the efforts of the many organisations and groups throughout the world which hold before the minds of men what I might symbolically call "the hope of Heaven" (using the word "Heaven" as a symbol of perfection and of purity), the work of this stage is going steadily forward.  So successful has it been that now the filth and impurities which surround the world soul and which keep humanity from its true expression are known and recognised and there is consequently a steady drive towards betterment.  All has been brought to the surface, and the result seems appalling and uncontrollable to those who only see the surface.  But underneath, the deep river of purity and truth is flowing strong.

One evidence of the success of the world movement towards pure living and the destruction of that which hinders is that the work of the second stage is now in process of initiation.  The hierarchy, for the first time in world history, can now work directly with the centres in the body of humanity.  Thus we have now the formation of the new Group of World Workers, who, in their totality throughout the world, constitute the heart centre and the "centre between the eyebrows" of the etheric body of the human family.  Through the one, spiritual life can begin to flow in and vitalise all the centres, and through the other, the vision can be seen and the inner worlds sensed and known.

I would here like to point out two other matters, and so clarify the entire situation.  There is much confusion on the subject of the centres and much erroneous teaching [590] leading many astray and causing a great deal of misapprehension.

First, I would state that no work such as an effort to awaken the centres should ever be undertaken whilst the aspirant is aware of definite impurities in his life, or when the physical body is in poor condition or is diseased.  Neither should it be undertaken when the pressure of external circumstances is such that there is no place or opportunity for quiet and uninterrupted work.  It is essential that for the immediate and focussed work on the centres there should be the possibility of hours of seclusion and of freedom from interruption.  This I cannot too strongly emphasise, and I do so in order to demonstrate to the eager student that at this period of our history there are few whose lives permit of this seclusion.  This is however a most beneficent circumstance and not one to be deplored.  Only one in a thousand aspirants is at the stage where he should begin to work with the energy in his centres and perhaps even this estimate is too optimistic.  Better far that the aspirant serves and loves and works and disciplines himself, leaving his centres to develop and unfold more slowly and therefore more safely.  Unfold they inevitably will and the slower and safer method is (in the vast majority of cases) the more rapid.  Premature unfoldment involves much loss of time, and carries with it often the seeds of prolonged trouble.

Over-stimulation of the brain cells is necessarily one of the results of the merging, by an act of will, of the fires which circulate in the human body.  Such stimulation can produce insanity and the breaking down of the cellular structure of the brain, and through the over-activity of the cell life can also induce that internal friction between them which will eventuate in brain tumors and abscesses.  This cannot be too strongly reiterated.

The underlying objective in all laya yoga work (or [591] work with the centres) is based upon the fact that the energy of the cells which compose the body or the matter aspect (called in The Secret Doctrine, and in A Treatise on Cosmic Fire, "fire by friction") must be blended with the fire of consciousness.  This latter is the energy, present in matter yet different from the fire of matter itself, which underlies the entire nervous system and because it so underlies it produces sensitivity and awareness.  It is the cause of response to contact and confers the ability to register and record impression, as you well know.  This fire is technically called "solar fire", and when it blends with the fire of matter and with the "electric fire" of the highest divine aspect, then man's being comes into its fullest manifestation and the great work is completed.  But it is a most dangerous undertaking, when induced before the mechanism is ready to deal with it.

This triple blending can only be safely undertaken by the highly organised and rounded-out person, and by one who has achieved the capacity to focus his attention in the head and from that high point direct the entire process of fusion.  It involves the ability to withdraw the consciousness literally into the etheric body and yet at the same time to preserve—in full awareness—a point of contact in the head, and from that point direct the automaton, the physical body.  It presupposes, if successful, certain etheric conditions in the body.  One of these is the process of burning through or destruction (partial or complete) of any obstructions found along the spinal cord which could prevent the free rising of the fire at the base of the spine, commonly called the kundalini fire, which lies quiescent, latent and potential in the lowest centre.  This is "the sleeping serpent which must arise and uncoil".

Each centre in the spine is separated from the one above it and the one below it by an interlaced protective [592] web which is composed of a curious blend of etheric and gaseous substance.  This has to be burnt away and dissipated before there can be the free play of the fires of the body.  A complete network of nadis and centres underlies and is the subtle counterpart of the nervous and endocrine systems.  A little clear thinking therefore will demonstrate the need for excessive care, for there will obviously be a direct effect upon the external apparatus and this in its turn will definitely affect what the psychologists call "behaviour".  There are four of these interlaced circular  "webs" lying between the five centres found on the rod of the spinal column, such as follows: 0/0/0/0/0, and three are to be found in the head.  These three bisect the head, and form a series of crosses, as follows:

This is much like the cross upon the Union Jack, which has always had an esoteric significance for the student, and indicates a point in racial evolution.  This cross in the head separates the ajna centre (the centre between the eyebrows) from the head centre, for it lies behind that centre in the forehead, and at the same time forms a protective shield between the ajna and throat centres.

These etheric webs are in reality disks, rotating or revolving at specific rates, which differ for the different centres, and according to the point in evolution of the system of centres concerned.  Only when these webs are burnt away by the ascending and descending fires can the true centres really be seen.  Many clairvoyants confuse the centres and their protective counterparts, for the latter have a radiance and light of their own.

As the life achieves an increasingly high vibration through purification and discipline, the fire of the soul, which is literally the fire of mind, causes the centres also to increase their vibration, and this increased activity sets up a contact with the protective "webs", or disks of pranic energy found on either side of them.  Thus, [593] through the interplay, they are gradually worn away, so that in the course of time they become perforated, if I might use such an inadequate term.  Many aspirants feel convinced that they have raised the kundalini fire at the base of the spine and are consequently making rapid progress, whereas all that they have accomplished is to burn or "rub through" the web at some point or other up the spine.  A sensation of burning or of pain in any part of the spine, when not due to physiological causes, is, in the majority of cases, due to the piercing of one or other of the webs, through the activity of the centres allied to them.  This happens very frequently in the case of women in connection with the solar plexus centre, and with men in connection with the sacral centre.  Both these centres—as a result of evolutionary development—are exceedingly active and highly organised, for they are the expression of the physical creative nature and of the emotional body.  A sense therefore of burning and of pain in the back indicates usually undue activity in a centre, which produces destructive results upon the protective apparatus, and is no true indication of spiritual unfoldment and superiority.  It may indicate the latter, but it should be remembered that, where there is true spiritual growth, pain and danger are in this connection practically eliminated.

There has been much loose talk about the raising of the kundalini fire and much misapprehension in the matter.  Let me assure you that it is most difficult to raise, and can only be done by a definite act of the will and through the intense mental focussing and concentrated attention of the man, seated on the throne of consciousness in the head.  The Masonic tradition has the teaching clearly held in its beautiful ritual of the raising of the great Master-Mason.  Only when there is united effort of a fivefold kind, and only after repeated failure, does the [594] vivifying life course through the entire body and bring to life the true man.

The second point I would touch upon is that all this deeply esoteric work must only proceed under the direction of the skilled teacher.  Platitudinously, the aspirant is told that "when the pupil is ready, the Master will appear".  He then settles comfortably back and waits, or focusses his attention upon an attempt to attract the attention of some Master, having apparently settled in his mind that he is ready or good enough.  He naturally gives himself a spiritual prod at intervals, and attends spasmodically to the work of discipline and of purification.  But steady and prolonged undeviating effort on the part of aspirants is rare indeed.

It is indeed true that at the right moment the Master will appear, but the right moment is contingent upon certain self-induced conditions.  When the process of purification has become a life-long habit, when the aspirant can at will concentrate his consciousness in the head, when the light in the head shines forth and the centres are active, then the Master will take the man in hand.  In the meantime he may have a vision of the Master, or he may see a thought-form of the Master, and may get much real good and inspiration from contact with the reflected reality, but it is not the Master and does not indicate the stage of accepted discipleship.  Through the medium of the light of the soul, the soul can be known.  Therefore seek the light of your own soul, and know that soul as your director.  When soul contact is established, your own soul will, if I may so express it, introduce you to your Master.  With all due reverence again may I add, that the Master waits not with eagerness to make your acquaintance.  In the world of souls, your soul and His soul are allied, and know essential unity.  But in the world of human affairs and in the process of the great work it should be remembered that when a Master [595] takes an aspirant into His group of disciples, that aspirant is, for a long time, a liability and oft a hindrance.  Students over-estimate themselves quite often, even when repudiating such an idea; subjectively they have a real liking for themselves and are frequently puzzled as to why the Great Ones give them no sign, nor indicate Their watching care.  They will not and They need not until such time as the aspirant has used to the full the knowledge which he has gained from lesser teachers, and from books and printed scriptures of the world.  Students must attend to the immediate duty and prepare their mechanisms for service in the world, and should desist from wasting time and looking for a Master; they should achieve mastery where now they are defeated and in the life of service and of struggle they may then reach the point of such complete self-forgetfulness that the Master may find no hindrance in His approach to them.

It will be apparent therefore from the above that I cannot give specific instructions as to the awakening of the centres and the burning of the etheric web which will result in the release of energy.  Such information is too dangerous and too intriguing to be put in the hands of the general public, who are driven by desire for some new thing, and lack right poise and the needed mental development.  The time has come however when the fact that there is an energy body underlying the nervous system must be recognized by the world at large, and when the nature of the seven centres, their structure and location should be grasped technically, and when the laws of their unfoldment should be widely known.  But more than this cannot yet be safely given.  The intricate nature of this science of the centres is too great for general usefulness.  The teaching to be given in any particular case and the methods to be applied are dependent upon too many factors for a general rule and instruction to be given.  The ray and type, the sex and point in [596] [596]evolution must be considered and also the balance of the centres.  By this I mean the consideration as to their over-development in one case and under development in another and as to whether there is a preponderance of the force below or above the diaphragm, or whether the main energy is concentrated in that central clearing house, the solar plexus.  The quality and the brilliance of the light in the head has to be studied, for it indicates the measure of soul control and the relative purity of the vehicles, and the various etheric "webs" have to be carefully dealt with, and also the rate of vibration of the web and the centre.  A synchronisation has to be set up and this is most difficult to bring about.  These are only a few of the points that the teacher has to note, and it is apparent therefore that only a teacher who has achieved synthetic vision and can see a man "whole," or as he really is, can give those instructions which will reverse the ancient rhythm of the centres, destroy without pain and danger the protective sheaths, and raise the kundalini fire from the base of the spine to the exit in the head.

Such teachers are found by the pupil when he has carried forward his life work under the direction of his soul, when he has grasped the theory of the science of the centres, and has mastered and controlled the astral nature and its corresponding centre, the solar plexus.  The emphasis laid upon the dominance of the Christ principle by Christianity has laid a sure foundation for the work to be done.  This truth is curiously substantiated in a study of the number "eight" in connection with the centres which, we are told, is the number of the Christ.  There are eight centres if the spleen is counted, all of them are multiples of eight with the exception of the centre at the base of the spine which has four petals, one half of eight.  In our day and in the Anglo Saxon mode of writing, the number eight is the basic symbol [597] of all the centres, for the petals are really in form like a number of superimposed eights.  The word petal is purely pictorial and a centre is formed on this pattern.  First, a circle, O; then two circles, touching each other and making therefore an 8.  Then, as the petals increase in number, it is simply a growth of these double circles, superimposed at differing angles one upon another until we arrive at the thousand-petalled lotus in the head.

These centres are, in the last analysis, twofold in function.  They demonstrate the form building aspect of divinity and through their activity bring the outer form into manifestation; then towards the end of the evolutionary cycle—both in the macrocosm and the microcosm—they bring into expression the soul force and life and produce the incarnation of a fully revealed son of God, with all the powers and knowledge which divinity contains.