Pearls of Wisdom - Year 1969 Inspired in Mark L. Prophet and Elizabeth Clare Prophet ****** Contents ****** 0 Prologue - Gautama Buddha 1 Vesta - January 5, 1969 2 The Goddess of Liberty - January 12, 1969 3 Gautama Buddha - January 19, 1969 4 Faith - January 26, 1969 5 Hope - February 2, 1969 6 Charity - February 9, 1969 7 El Morya - February 16, 1969 8 El Morya - February 23, 1969 9 El Morya - March 2, 1969 10 El Morya - March 9, 1969 11 El Morya - March 16, 1969 12 El Morya - March 23, 1969 13 El Morya - March 30, 1969 14 El Morya - April 6, 1969 15 Serapis Bey - April 13, 1969 16 Gautama Buddha - April 20, 1969 17 The Goddess of Liberty - April 27, 1969 18 Saint Germain - May 4, 1969 19 Amaryllis - May 11, 1969 20 Kuan Yin - May 18, 1969 21 Casimir Poseidon - May 25, 1969 22 God Meru - June 1, 1969 23 El Morya - June 8, 1969 24 Mother Mary - June 15, 1969 25 Kuthumi - June 22, 1969 26 Lanto - June 29, 1969 27 God Meru - July 6, 1969 28 Kuthumi - July 13, 1969 29 Lanto - July 20, 1969 30 Kuthumi - July 27, 1969 31 Meru - August 3, 1969 32 Lanto - August 10, 1969 33 Kuthumi - August 17, 1969 34 Meru - August 24, 1969 35 Lanto - August 31, 1969 36 Kuthumi - September 7, 1969 37 Meru - September 14, 1969 38 Lanto - September 21, 1969 39 Kuthumi - September 28, 1969 40 Meru - October 5, 1969 41 Vaivasvata Manu - October 12, 1969 42 El Morya - October 19, 1969 43 Lord Maitreya - October 26, 1969 44 Mother Mary - November 2, 1969 45 Saint Germain - November 9, 1969 46 El Morya - November 16, 1969 47 Archangel Michael - November 23, 1969 48 God Meru - November 30, 1969 49 Archangel Gabriel - December 7, 1969 50 Listening Angel - December 14, 1969 51 Jesus Christ - December 21, 1969 52 Kuan Yin - December 28, 1969 52.1 Appendix: The Dark Cycle - 1969 ****** Chapter 0 Prologue - Gautama Buddha ****** Vol. 12 - Prologue - Gautama Buddha PROLOGUE New Year's Eve Address December 31, 1968 by Gautama Buddha, Lord of the World Release of the Thought Form for the Year 1969 THE ARK OF THE COVENANT The soft petals of God's love surround the fabric of the mind and the fragrance is ensouled by the beauty of the Divine Heart. We bring you greetings from Shamballa and the Spirit of the Prince of Peace. Ours is awareness of his mission, of the eternal vigil for the earth; for the heart of the enlightened ones solemnly gathers together in that holy conclave that, bestowing budding divinity upon a child, gives to him the mantle flame of a future regeneration. The hand of God is the hand of peace, and the hand of his peace provides celestial security to terrestrial natives who long to behold our abode - Shamballa and the Marble Bridge. Shamballa, mystic city of fair radiance! Shamballa, queen of the cities of the earth! In our hearts dwells that cool flame of peace, that cool white flame of peace, that soft flower radiance that bestows the caress of God upon the beloved. And who is not the beloved? Each pebble, each grain of sand or celestial orb - he loveth all. He giveth to all the fruit of striving, the wisdom flame, and the tenderness of his care. My brethren assembled now from our sister star, Venus - Hail to thee, Sanat Kumara! Rex, Lord of the World! Rex, Lord of Creation! Hail to thee, Sanat Kumara, thou Regent Father! Beloved and most precious Lanto and Confucius! The great cosmic emissaries from starry bands and from the Great Central Sun magnet! We raise up and exalt once again the memory of the Prince of Peace and the blessed Babe of the New Year - the little pure one who comes to man without spot and blemish, the fair and blessed textured parchment upon which is to be written the fate of mankind. We are aware of the world of form and the world of the formless. We are aware of the dark shadows and the dispelling magnificence of the sun. We are aware of the charity that begins at home here upon this so-called dark star, the charity that requires the banding together of hearts that the shoring up of the world may be done, that the flood tides of destructivity be assuaged, that the mercies of God be amplified. Our prayer in the name of the Great White Brotherhood is for peace. Our prayer in the name of the Great White Brotherhood is for enlightenment. Our prayer in the name of the Great White Brotherhood is for abundance. Our prayer in the name of the Great White Brotherhood is for the fruit of understanding to be scattered to the family of nations. And as we assemble here, O brethren of light, it is mindful also of the blessedness of Wesak. It is mindful also of the gathering of souls into that beautiful valley and of the harvest of Christ-accomplishment. The centuries to us seem as but beads of a rosary, and our fingers caress the accomplishments made in the name of humanity. But the end is not now nor will it be, for the permanence of striving is assured. For the Cosmic Lords know full well, they know full well that among mankind there are hearts that were like our own - hearts determined to complete the mission they came to do; hearts that will not say, give up; hearts that will pray, Lord give us the cup and let us drink and walk in thy footsteps. Because it is so, my brethren, because the Prince of Peace has drawn very nigh unto you throughout this conference, and because the hosts of heaven support your earliest endeavors to produce world action on behalf of the youth and the staying of the hand of doom, we are determined to present our own petition to the Karmic Board this night, sealed in living letters of light. And this petition is for an activity of what is known as "half a time,"{1} and this "half a time" means that we have asked a point of equipose to be created where on January 18th the Lords of Karma would agree and consent to take this "half a time" and permit it to be a function most discretionary whereby it could go either way - either the path of the Dark Cycle{2} or the beginning of a point of light that mankind have never known before. I feel that this petition will be granted; and if it is done, it will not mean that the cycle was averted but that it has what you would call a fifty-fifty chance of being averted. This does not mean that the students should become overly confident. It means that mankind have one more year in which, if they are careful, they may stay the hand of karmic law and have this year what would amount to a final opportunity to mend their fences, to prepare their defenses, to make a turn from materialism to the pathway of peace. It could go either way, blessed ones. It simply means that now, in a "half a time," it has an opportunity; and that means an extension unto July and the Royal Teton Conference then. But the "half a time" could be misused; and so it could come to pass that before July should come, the fires of mankind's aversion to peace would break out in horrible destructivity, or the elements themselves could erupt in such a display of cosmic anguish as to make the heart almost to stop. Because this is so and because there is that danger as well as that opportunity for deliverance, we want the students to take the fullest advantage of that offer which we have petitioned so solemnly and which we have had some prior assurance can well be granted this night. And now as your petitions have been received together with our own, drawn forth by the hand of the angels and gathered together from our various outposts upon the planetary body, we shall patiently wait the moment when the Lords of Karma shall say, "Our deliberations are finished." The hour is near when we shall receive the descending images of this blessed, blessed year. The chalice descends, and in it is the thought form for the year. It is the Ark of the Covenant. It is simple. It was formed long ago. And now we see it in its preserved and beauteous state, inlaid with gold and having upon its top the covering cherubim. We see the light of the Ark of the Covenant in all of its blazing brilliance, the Shekinah glory.{3} And this ancient symbol of Israel and of the promise speaks to men of their rights to make a covenant with God and to know that this Divine One will also place the tablets of the law within the ark of their heart. Is it not written, "I will write my laws in your hearts and minds, in your hearts and minds will I write them, saith the Lord"?{4} Let no one be disappointed at this thought form. For the Lords that have delivered it unto us have great faith that, although it is a symbol old, it is a symbol of particular meaning for this year of peril. For do not men now more than ever need to make a covenant with God? And if that covenant be with your own beloved I AM Presence, is it not then sealed in the wholeness of truth and the faith that you bear in your heart? Does it not relate to the identity of each one of you? Does it not bring you joy to know that in your heart this thought form can itself lodge and bring you peace? You can feel in the hidden recesses of your heart, within the presence of this ark, an ark of safety, an ark of light, a place to receive the commandments of God that they themselves being written there may speak out from your heart with the authority of the law from Zion. For did I not correctly apprehend him when he said, "Zion is my holy mount and I will dwell therein forever"?{5} Shall not the joy of Zion, then, run throughout the earth, and the great four rivers themselves in their confluence comment upon the restoration of the consciousness of Eden? Can Eden, then, be restored to man - a "paradise lost" as John Milton wrote? Can it not now be a paradise regained? Did we ourselves not experience it before we made our ascension when the attunement of the angelic hosts came to us and we were able to grasp those wondrous principles of universal love that are often expressed to us here in Shamballa by the beloved God Himalaya? Again and again in the Retreat of the Blue Lotus, the God Himalaya silently speaks to those of us who are able to understand his message, and we are always thrilled at how he takes the grandiose concepts of cosmos and reduces them to those childlike pictures of the purity of love and then conveys them to us without scarcely a smile. We think there are times when we have noted a twinkle in his eye. But even those of us skillful in discerning the quickest motions that can be made even by ascended beings are sometimes not sure, for he seems so completely enamored with the divine that even at inner levels he scarcely stops his meditations upon Love long enough to even convey to us what you would consider an accurate thought. But then the very heighth and depth and reality of his meditations are themselves the source of infinite inspiration to the ascended host. It is interesting how that in the panoply of ascended masters some have decided that they will, as Babaji and Mataji, manifest certain qualities of proximity to the celestial light where there is no escape therefrom. They seem to have little desire to actually hold consort with the children of men, being completely devotees of the Most High. Then again there are others like your blessed Saint Francis who is sometimes almost tardy at the courts of heaven, for he is so busy serving the needs of mankind. It is almost excessively interesting to us to observe the character differences in the ascended masters and how they have actually preserved some of the little foibles that you would consider to be human traits that are really not. For some of the traits that mankind hold today as almost repugnant to one another, when they are raised and elevated by the divine light, become facets of service of great value. We are not trying to tell you tonight not to change your ways; we are simply telling you when you come to ponder the character of one another that many times little things that may seem to trouble you in your own sense of propriety are not nearly so bad when they are refined by the fires of heaven. Take for example the quality of boldness. Sometimes the meek who shall inherit the earth{6} are not just exactly taken up with the idea of another's boldness. Yet we are fully aware that this boldness, when raised to higher levels, has won worlds and has assisted mightily in the preservation of cardinal principles which are so meaningful to the people of this earth. Will you understand, then, that tonight we have given you a most simple ceremony in the lowering of the thought form? We have given you most simple instruction, yet profound, because of the outreach of our love towards your hearts individually and collectively. But ours is really a passion for peace, and we are aware of the awful criticisms leveled at those nations embroiled today in armed conflict. But we want you to understand that whereas war is gross, involving many people, we are just as concerned for a family feud or a little difference between brothers or brother and sister. We are concerned everywhere for the advent of peace - in the homes, in the schools, in the churches, in the world, in the marts of commerce, in the kingdoms of nature as well as the kingdoms of men. We are concerned with attunement with the angels that the instruction for the assimilation of true art be conveyed to children, that the divine sense which some of you have developed in your listening to music or ministering unto men may be amplified, that you may understand that ours is to unite both East and West, to spread the balm of pure love, and to garner the world prayer sense and offer it to the feet of God. Ours is also to gather the balms of nature, the balms of the Spirit, the unguents of healing, and apply them to tired minds, to hearts that beat slowly because of the weight of oppression, to those who are fearful and lack courage, to those who tremble, to those who are so sure that they are right that they have already made preparation for their attainment to the extent of almost literally informing the world by invitation to attend their coronation or ascension. We want all segments of humanity to understand that the heavenly ones continue to actually convey enlightenment to them. And the media of conveyance are not always the same; for in actuality we would not like to bore you in any way with our service, yet we are fully aware that without it thousands of years might elapse where you would make but little progress. For we know in our own case that it was the ascended ones above us prior to our ascension who drew us to them and who gave us the support of their love, their grace, and their wisdom truly to be a Buddha, to be "a budding one" finally enlightened, where the fires of the mind opening in the soft petals of cosmic love are able to manifest as a thousand-petaled lotus of light. The fires of the brain as the Shakti rises from the spinal base up unto the very top of the head are actually such an inspiration to the angelic host, for it signifies to them that a soul is about to be born again into the kingdom of light; that a star, a nova, is about to suddenly appear in the firmament of that one's mind; that the mantle of cosmic attainment will soon be dropped upon another pair of shoulders, and the Herculean task of guiding the world will be assumed by one more life who will share the burdens that heaven shares in their concern for the children of the world. And yet the economy which we are dictated to by Alpha and Omega, by Helios and Vesta must be observed. We are reminded again and again not to waste our energy, not to give our energy unnecessarily to those who are not willing to follow the mandates of cosmic law or to those who dwell in the temples and halls of their own conceit. We are asked again and again to withhold our light from them; for it we give it unto them, they have always misqualified it and made it corollary to their own ego. And for this reason it has come to pass that many who would be magnificent candidates for greater illumination have been denied it because of these human qualities; and many who were simple cobblers, or tillers of the soil, or men relatively ignorant by human standards have had conveyed upon them the fruit of cosmic illumination because they dwelled in a temple of love and humility. Let all then learn from the examples of these and understand that the Lord draweth nigh to those who are humble; he giveth them grace, but he resisteth the proud.{7} These old statements must always be remembered, for in a subtle moment of human pride the enemy comes forth and he wreaks his havoc upon the individual. How tenderly, then, is my desire now to enfold you, one and all, in the mantle flame of my peace. And so I have asked ten thousand of the angels of all the Buddhas that have ever lived upon this planet to converge upon this city, Colorado Springs [audience rises]. And I have asked that here from your focus they shall first come and then depart, carrying to the four corners of the world ribbons of light, streamers of peace, and streamers of hope. We have even been graced, mind you, with beloved Faith, with beloved Hope, and with beloved Charity; and they have formed a triangle directly above your focus at La Tourelle. They are in the air 333 feet above this building, and this beautiful triangle shall remain for nine days, glowing with the love of Faith, Hope, and Charity, extending its power into 1969. And, precious ones of light, the 10,000 angels of peace that have come with me tonight shall lower upon your heads now the feeling of God-peace [seventeen-second pause]. Is that not sweet? Is that not tender? Is that not an example of the passion of the coolness of grace and brotherhood, the coolness that cools the fires of human passions of anger and of irritation? There is even a rustling in the atmosphere as they move about. They are lovers of your cosmic identity. And now that the blessing has been bestowed we say, charge these angels with your love. Raise your hands upwards and charge them with your love [nine-second pause]. Now as they receive your love we say: Angels of peace from Gautama's heart, depart! Go to the four corners of the world and carry our love and with it the love of these blessed ones that the world may share, all over the world, the mantle of Christ-peace. You may lower your arms now; for they have gone several seconds, winging on their way and carrying the advent of their blessing to mankind. When I have finished speaking, I wish you to sing "Joy to the World" and I promise you that the joy that you feel then will permeate the earth. This is my simple message, my simple love, my simple purity which I give to you and to the world that they may learn that in the humble manifestations of God the true spirit of brotherhood sweeps the world. And thus, as you look forward expectantly into 1969, it shall be toward a year of Christ-victory, toward a year of the Queen of Light's manifestation of the Mother of the World, and to the amplification and extension of cosmic wisdom and the wisdom of peace to humanity. You may then call throughout this year for wisdom and sanity and balance to appear in the hearts of the leaders of the world, and this is what is needed. For many of the people themselves long for peace, but their leaders push them toward the brink of destructivity. In the name of Faith, in the name of Hope, and in the name of Charity, I salute you with the kiss of Christ-peace. Salutem! God is beautiful. January 1, 1969 12:01 a.m. MST Class of the Twelfth Hour The Citadel of Freedom Colorado Springs, Colorado ****** Chapter 1 Vesta - January 5, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 1 - Vesta - January 5, 1969 A Vision of Cosmic Reality for the Golden Age: The Banner of the Mother of the World Is Unfurled Blessed Seekers for the Real, We shall override delusion. Truth shall prevail. The forces of light shall march. The real needs of man shall be met. The pledges of heaven are the reaffirmation of the original cosmic intent of the Father of all life. If the lash of human chaos were permitted unbridled rein, what would occur to the civilizations of the world? Men have nurtured culture for generations, and they have sought through religion and science to find a way to peace and the abundant life. Heaven does not wish to convey the doomsday concept to mankind. But again and again the law of cycles has proclaimed the end of an era when the firmness of the Karmic Lords rang clear: "Stop the actions that spread pain and hurt among men, that fail to reverence life and opportunity, that are the result of old encrusted concepts based on vicious human greed! Replace all that is darkness by the vibrant light of cosmic omnipresence!" The world is so conditioned by the many control factors that lead to realms of darkness - which originate in the desire to dominate the mind and destiny of man and are propagated by those who, while denying freedom to others, deny freedom to themselves - that we are compelled by the prayers of mankind to give answer. Therefore, in the darkness of the present age of materiality, we are again setting forth by cosmic decree - issued from beloved Helios and myself in the name of the one God, beloved Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending - the Central Sun principles, the golden-rule law, "Whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, so do ye also unto them."{8} Whosoever shall break this law, whosoever shall continue to act according to selfish and greedy intents shall find that the activity of the soul of God, the vital life force within himself, shall activate the domain of conscience - if not the conscience of the individual which may well be hardened against truth, then the conscience of the race; if not the human, then the divine. You can expect this coming year and forever after until the end of the cycle the stepping up of karmic awareness, of an understanding among men of the law of compensation.{9} Hope steps forth and fills the abyss, the vacuum of human resources, with a vision of cosmic reality for the golden age. The limitations that men have placed upon creative progress by their failure to understand cosmic economics have caused them to deny bread unto the hungry and to seek first for their own security. Now heaven pours forth her love as a holy unguent to the earth. Let men and women with creative imaginations hold up the cup of their consciousness this year. Let them perceive that the time of cosmic science is at hand. Men must cease to function in a domain of limitation. They must expand their awareness of the fact that with God all things are possible.{10} They must seek new methods for the production of food lest in future days, because of demographic problems, mankind find themselves hungry on a world scale. Men must seek new ways to bind up the wounds of the nations and to put down the cars of juggernaut created by the spoilers who in their outreach for social justice have failed to perceive universal justice. There is a higher law, and the higher must demand of the lower significant homage that will enable new gifts to be given. The solar rings are being activated to beam forth to the earth, even through the physical sun, a new outpouring of infinite grace. The effect of the step-up in the radiation patterns of our sun to the planets of this system will be to shorten the days of man's travail if he will but accept the offered gift. When limitation is cast aside and the limitless light of God is perceived, then intelligence is no longer tethered to the old matrices of human reason but creates instead new patterns of expansion that lead to the abundant life. The throbbing wonder of the miracle consciousness of the Master Jesus has left its beauteous mark upon the world for two thousand years, but in the minds of some it has become more and more diluted into form and dogma without their realization of the gifts he offered saying, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father."{11} Light is a great key, beloved ones; and men and women should understand that the garish colors of the world with their deep-dyed densities only stir the passions and destroy hope{12} while the pastel shades reactivate communion with higher spheres. By the correct use of color and the use of the correct colors, {13} men can find in the limitless expansion of light's rainbow hues a renewal of their consciousness and the purification that must occur daily if they would progress along the path of stewardship. How tenderly, how joyous is that precious gift of life - the immaculate conception. When God is conceived of as light not darkness, as formless not mere form, as joy not sorrow, as sweetness not bitterness, as immortality not death, as faith, hope, and charity not fear, doubt, or uncertainty - the world will become imbued more and more with the circles of infinite grace. Passing from the Central Sun to the suns of every system of worlds and through the interconnecting antahkarana of cosmic hope, the web of life will vibrate with God's happiness. This happiness must be shared by more people. Therefore, to that end the year 1969 is being dedicated to cosmic motherhood, to the Mother of the World, and to the reactivation of her influences upon incoming children. The nurturing and care of infants, the preparation of the consciousness of expectant mothers, the exaltations that once were used so beautifully upon earth that have now become a lost art must be reactivated. The flowers of the little children of the world must be taught compassion, the power of love, the need to hope, and the need to perceive that the darkness of the world is not real but that it must be changed by the infusion of greater light. Ho, ho all that thirst, Let them come now To the fount of cosmic light! Let them share In the fires of the sun. Let them sing a hymn To the One, The life that is within. For perfect love Casts out each fear,{14} Revealing truth That I AM here. Thy God is real, As thou art, too - His love will penetrate Through and through. The cup of need The world lifts up We'll fill refreshingly With love As beams extended from afar, The radiance of our happy star. O shed thy darkness, World of men, Receive the ray of hope again: I, Vesta, drop the mantle flame, The power to raise, New hope acclaim. In cosmic union men shall rise, The power of heaven will open eyes, And blind shall see, And man shall be The kindred of Reality. The banner of the Mother of the World Is unfurled, And the children of God, Called manchildren, Shall come forth; And the meek shall inherit the earth,{15} And darkness shall go, And light shall flow, And truth be revered here below. For this year and all to come, I speak from out this blessed sun. Devotedly, your Sun Mother, Vesta ****** Chapter 2 The Goddess of Liberty - January 12, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 2 - The Goddess of Liberty - January 12, 1969 Develop a Greater Sense of the Consciousness of God: The World Must Lift Itself Up by Its Own Bootstraps Sons and Daughters of Opportunity, All of the hosts of heaven are grateful for last week's release from mighty Vesta. Her issuing forth of the summons to love - for the children of the world and for the blessed mothers of those children - was intended to act as a reawakening affirmation, renewing hope for deliverance in the face of the darkness of opposition. The statement of Jesus recorded in the Book of Matthew concerning "weeping" and the "gnashing of teeth"{16} is a reference to human suffering in all of its many forms. But we affirm for all time, they have no part in the divine consciousness! The consciousness of the Eternal always was, is now, and always will be the fullness of the abundant life and the desire to bestow boundless happiness upon all creation! I, therefore, urge students of truth and beauty to develop a greater sense of the consciousness of God; for it is the consciousness of God alone that enables men to understand the statement of beloved Jesus "I and my Father are one."{17} As long as individuals hold to the cult of separatism, there is always the danger that they will be drawn away from the central force of truth into the sloughs of error where they may lose their souls and become castaways.{18} The only guarantees that life can give to men are to be found in that cosmic bond which is a form of cosmic insurance that holds the aspirant and the created son to the heart of their Creator. Beloved ones, why do you think that the world is so intent upon the denial of God? Why do you think that the world is so intent upon disproving universal reality right in the face of all natural manifestations and life's wondrous patterns? You must learn to rely upon cosmic law and upon inner strength rather than permit yourselves to be withdrawn from the power of cosmic reason.{19} Again and again, the wisdom of the world has stimulated the human ego in its desire to be thought wise as individuals have patted themselves and one another on the back for their achievements in the realm of human thought. The separatists have always desired to amplify their separation, for it enables them to compete with one another and to seek worldly honor and gain. Those who understand that the greatest gain of all is true Godliness will recognize the need to enfold themselves in their own latent divinity while realizing that the supreme God is already proceeding - by a cosmic release that is effective in the world of form - to surround them with swaddling garments of great light. Men are not always aware of that which surrounds them of either good or evil; therefore, they should understand the need to maintain those blessed cosmic assurances that are both signet and strength of the immaculate concept that God holds for every man. These assurances can be had by making a specific drive to put oneself in the center of the divine attention. You know, blessed ones, there is a certain amount of universal aggressiveness that is permitted by cosmic law. In fact, we even encourage it. We do not reference here the unfortunate habits of using dangerous drugs or seeking by violent methods of meditation to tap the secrets of the universe. On the contrary, we advocate the recognition of the existence of a higher intelligence and the capacity of the individual to tap that intelligence through the power of the Christ rather than through material methods - however scientific these may seem to be. Once you understand cosmic law and the spiritual interpretation of language and word usage, you will see that the higher intelligence is to be found in the very heart of your own individualized I AM Presence. For those who have not yet developed a state of awareness of their Presence, let me say now that to accept the fact that a higher power exists, that it is compassionate and allied with all constructive ethics, is to seek after it that one may find it. "Seek, and ye shall find,"{20} is a promise that cannot be denied. If individuals would only understand that they can deliberately attract the attention of the Universal, they would address themselves to Deity and recognize that such form of address is never ignored. It is merely a matter of time before the call does compel the answer. Unfortunately, some have thought that the answer would be immediate, and so it was. But they should also understand that the answer must descend into the realm of humanity through the dense substance surrounding the individual ego. Some individuals have more substance than others and this must be penetrated. Therefore, the seeker should learn to open his heart to the immediacy of the divine response even when no tangible evidence is forthcoming. This attitude of receptivity helps to dissolve impediments to the divine will that reside within the ego and to magnetize in the aura of the individual a greater influx of universal light assistance. The all-power of God has been sought by honorable men through the ages. Your own beloved George Washington went down upon his knees on the fields of battle, {21} and many generals and men of world renown have prayed and received answers or tokens of divine intervention. When the forces of darkness acting through ignoble men seek to prevent prayer in the schools of the world, when religion is attacked as though it were a despicable thing, when many of the media of the world distort religious concepts and a flood of unvital ideas is released to a disheartened humanity, we signal that the vast cosmic network of light assistance to the earth must be reactivated by those who are in physical embodiment. They must seek to reconnect themselves with the high standards to which some of them once held and from which they have since disconnected themselves. Those who have dwelled far too long upon a plateau of complacency because of spiritual ignorance must recognize that the hand of Heaven stands near to raise them above their present stature and to lift them into the lap of Divine Reality. Comfort is extended And assistance draweth nigh, The renewal of hope and the insistence of heaven Are apparent in the sky. We are not engaged in a tug-of-war with embodied individuals. We stand as helpers to lift men out of the swamps and delusions of life into the blazing noontide of cosmic reality. Those who say that our words are unnecessary do not understand the power of the spoken Word, nor do they understand the power of heaven to heal the ills of earth. Neither age, race, nor karmic pattern can deny this immortal grace to any part of life. However, men and women deny it to themselves because of their acceptance of false information that has been passed on to them, in some cases, from childhood; in other cases it was given to them later in life, intended as a comforting word of truth. Genuine truth has the power to free, and we are concerned with the freedom of the earth. The greatest assistance that can come to mankind at this hour is the knowledge of the reality of our being. As this knowledge is spread abroad, those who do not know of us will be enabled to establish conscious contact with us. Then the stream of our love and our energy for the heavenly Father's plan will flow into the world over the connecting cables that will be created by the attention which embodied men and women shall give to cosmic detail, and we will be empowered to assist the earth to find her freedom voluntarily now and always. Progress and creative effort are needed, for the world must lift itself up by its own bootstraps. Providence has provided countless measures of assistance, and we wish to make them available without strain by a natural spiritual buoyancy that will enable people to grasp the God consciousness that overcomes the world, that refuses to be intimidated by outer conditions, and that recognizes the power of Victory and his legions, of the Christ consciousness, of the Mother of the World, and of the heavenly hosts to vindicate the faith that Almighty God has had in embodied mankind and to restore them to their Edenic state of deathless immortality. We come, then, to renew your faith and to pledge to you our strength in a year of victory. Valiantly, I AM The Goddess of Liberty ****** Chapter 3 Gautama Buddha - January 19, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 3 - Gautama Buddha - January 19, 1969 In the Calm Knowing of the Sun Center of My Soul: The Sign of the Dark Cycle Set Aside Pending the Actions of Israel and the Arab States Beloved Seekers and Doers of This Age, The thrust of identity continues to impel expression in the individual domain. But the tensions generated in the world are inhibiting the whole social structure in this era of time. Society is honeycombed with treachery, and selfishness that is rampant everywhere hides the face of God from the consumers of mortal merchandise. They are blind, they do not see, and the ways of peace they do not know. But the karmic juggernaut rolls onward. And one by one, as they encounter the blind alleys of living, they turn to the old familiar gods and find no solace. In desperation men beat upon their breasts and they cry out in fear when the cloak of pleasure they have sought to wrap around themselves will no longer fit their growing desires. The admonishments of Paul the Apostle "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth"{22} seem meaningless to a society that has lost the understanding of the Word. The Creator himself has become almost an anathema to them, so puzzled are they because they have dabbled in the records of delusion, and illusion follows them wherever they go. We seek to alleviate this distress for the entire earth, but we are compelled to recognize that we can help only those whom we can reach. Therefore, let it be clear that the structures we seek to build and to perpetuate in society are intended to be vehicles for service similar to the hospices of the Essenes. These focuses of light and the souls trained to sustain them will one day, when the madness of men is better known, provide assistance and relief from distress for those who are ready to turn and serve the light they currently do not know exists. The beautiful thought form of the Ark of the Covenant lowered in the Teton ceremonies on New Year's Eve certifies to man that God is now ready to bestow the grace of the eternal covenant upon men and women who seek him diligently. The mysteries of the Brotherhood and of the elect have long been hidden from the profane. Today, when every type of knowledge seems to be flourishing and the world is rediscovering lost scientific arts, the beautiful and gentle arts of the Spirit with their incredible potencies seem but a lost skill and the weavings of individuals' lives are often encompassed by a sea of doubt. How can it be otherwise? They have sown the wind and the whirlwind is at hand.{23} Those of you who were present for my address at the Class of the Twelfth Hour will recall that I did petition the Karmic Board to set aside the date of January 18, 1969, as the beginning of the Dark Cycle{24} and move it thence to July 18, 1969. You did not receive the answer of the Karmic Board (which I had apprehended would be favorable). But for reasons best known unto that body, which they have communicated to me privately, their decision has been to grant this request tentatively and only under the condition that Israel cease from her aggressive attitudes toward the Arab states. Naturally, the Arab states, too, must restrain themselves in their movements; for we do not favor one nation against another. But the warlike manifestations currently being exercised in the Holy Land represent to us the most dangerous single factor that is calculated to plunge mankind headlong into a holocaust of planetary destructivity. Therefore, if Israel shall persist and the Arab League shall join her in another round of destructivity, it can well be the trigger which will launch the sign of the Dark Cycle. Our fondest hope is for the world to have an era of peace in which the productive elements of society can rise to serve the needs of man. I think that the brothers of light are also concerned that the bookstalls of the world and the places where learning is communicated by the written word as well as the spoken word should reflect in their literature and teaching the urgent need to spread peace and constructivism. When all goes well for individuals, they have a tendency to forget that it need not always do so; and when all goes badly for people, they frequently fail to realize that this, too, need not continue. It is indeed a long road that has no turning,{25} as you have said to one another. And thus the world has now turned toward the dark in her basic drives, and the children of the youth, rather than seek the golden fleece of wisdom and peace, are chasing after a fluttering rag that signifies meaningless chaos. There are, to be sure, exceptions to all rules. And there are numbers that are dearly engaged in a search for Christ-reality, for the universal law of the Buddha, and for the ark of the ages. Covenants made unto God are made as goalposts, markers of construction. Aspirations thus labeled assist the reach in attaining the highest grasp of cosmic principle. Times of struggle and of darkness are not real, but to those enmeshed in them they seem so. And the sane, Godly recognition that man can penetrate the veils of illusion and find the inner way of peace in the most disturbing conditions should help him to understand that this is obtained not by struggle so much as by faith. For if men would cease the struggle for peace and would simply manifest it, the problems of the world would vanish. We do not seek by platitudes to bind up the wounds of the world, but we pour forth the thrust of our Spirit, enveloping the earth in the Cosmic Christ efforts of our octaves of light. You can valiantly assist us in that which we are doing by maintaining harmony in your feeling world, by refusing to give acceptance to any condition less than perfection, and by realizing that the thinking which makes conditions so can always be directed or even diverted into channels of wholeness. You must never give up or cease from your loving of humanity, for thus you learn to love your Creator. But greater wisdom from on high always reveals that there are interacting responsibilities which are charged to the individual's record. So many seek to be divested of responsibility. They want to let someone else act for them. We, as ascended beings, act for millions of lifestreams. But we, too, feel that individuals can learn to think and act for themselves. They must, of course, exercise care, study the approved way, and summon the fire of the soul to produce automatically its perfection in their worlds. I cannot stress enough, then, the need for individuals who have decreed perfection to follow their decrees with spaces of silence, harmony, and God-ordained action in which the perfection they have invoked can be externalized and flash forth its light. In the calm knowing of the sun center of my soul, I am sending out mighty pulsations of peace in spaced waves. These are intended to assist the evolution of the planet in this year dedicated to the Holy Mother. Recently in Darjeeling, a suggestion was made that the century should be devoted to the Holy Mother. The cultivation of understanding regarding the Mother of the World has become a lost art. Non-Catholic failure to accept even Mother Mary and her beloved service to life illustrates how few in the world are aware of the World Mother, of the aspect of cosmic Deity she represents to this planet, and of the need to gather people together beneath a canopy of cosmic reality that is no illusion. Let wellsprings of peace, then, be created in the soul that we may encourage the faith of men in the Lord that liveth eternally. That he may live eternally in them and they in him is the purpose of our system of spiritual re-creation. In the name of the Prince of Peace, I remain Gautama Buddha ****** Chapter 4 Faith - January 26, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 4 - Faith - January 26, 1969 THE TRIPARTITE FLAME OF FAITH, HOPE, AND CHARITY "Man Shall Not Live by Bread Alone" I Faith - First Step in the Externalization of the Divine Plan Leap into the Arms of Divine Reality Blessed Seekers for the Gift of Faith, What shall we say to a world who has pinned her faith upon a cross of Matter? Matter simply means "Mater," or "Mother"; and the powers of nature - air, sea, and land, wind, and flame - all come under the domain of the spiritual Father. Without the impregnation and the holding pattern of the eternal Spirit, the womb of Matter would be unable to bring forth the Manchild of cosmic reality. At Banff, in the great Temple of Faith presided over by Archangel Michael, we are continually beholding the needs of a planet and its people. We are also taking note of how destructive innuendos are being subtly introduced through popular figures of society. For example, one of your well-known television personalities in the United States recently had a man on his program who paraphrased the Master Jesus' statement "Man shall not live by bread alone"{26} saying, "I live by bread alone." And the commentator laughed. Around the world a titter was heard, ridiculing the master's statement and seeking to destroy the faith of men in the realities of the Spirit. But these can never be gainsaid. For whereas men have said that if a tree should fall and no one would be there to hear it, that no sound would be made, it is not really so; for the agitations of the air would still occur, and their sound would be sent forth. Thus the Father pulsates his love and his light and his life out into the universe. He feeds the fountains of faith in the world and in the human heart. He wraps the soul in mantles of cosmic structures, holding to the principle of life everlasting. While men see death everywhere, some preparing for it and some not, some knowing about it and others knowing little about it, the principles of light and faith are seldom really understood or sought. Mindful of the statement of beloved Gautama that we can help only those whom we can reach in a direct way, we hope this year to produce miracles of worded expressions calculated to make men and women literally leap into the arms of divine reality. We want to make the temples of light live in the consciousness of men, even as earthly edifices do. We want to charge man's search with the affinities of the angelic hosts that will polarize and draw into the world of men the deep abiding faith and love that are a part of the angels. We know that human destiny has often permitted itself to become wrapped up in a temporal moment. We know that thousands of delusions and clamoring sounds are almost able to insulate men and women from the temples of faith. But, because the angels and the archangels are towering figures in the cosmic world whose majesty of elevation and nobleness of service combine to generate in the world the glory of spiritual blessings, we cannot be still. We must sing out, even when unheard, "Joy to the world, the Lord has come!" True it is that men and women can pity an age that becomes wedded to materialism. True it is that men and women can see in the fulfillment of their earthly dreams the shaping of reality. But it is also true, and more so, that spiritual goals and spiritual realities span the centuries and exalt the senses out of their limited communion with wells of matter into the cloud-capped domes of celestial spires. How real is heaven! How real is the invisible world! How real is the world of fire - that is, the fire of the Spirit! How erroneous it is for men and women to linger carelessly in the sacking thoughts of mere mortal life, bypassing those opportunities that often do not come again when desired, while the hand of life stands ready to bestow upon them the joys of heavenly octaves and the power of the Christ consciousness. We pray, then, in full faith that the drawing magnitude of Archangel Michael and his legions of blue-flame angels may continue to send out into the world everywhere their magnificent songs of faith and praise. What a pity that many do not hear these songs. What a pity that the sounds of the world drown out the magnificent oratorios of the heavenly world. We come this year, when the strength of men needs to be the strength of ten, to offer bowers of faith and even temple alcoves of faith for the repose of the consciousness whenever it is tired and weary of the drudgery and oppressions of the world. Come to Banff, come to the inner temples while the body sleeps! While you rest passively away from the cares of the world, enter into the solitude of communion with the angels! Men and women whose business upon earth is at executive levels and those of attainment that require a sustaining momentum of power can recharge themselves at our retreat. Through the awareness that they are not identified with their bodies, they can let go of the heavy folds of the flesh that hold and mold them to old inharmonies; they can soar in thought as well as in consciousness in body vehicles pulsing with living flame. The comfortable aspects of all of this are beyond belief, for the flame that engulfs the rising spirit is one of coolness and sweetness, a light and airy reality that draws the soul nigh to the most beautiful experiences that have ever occurred to that one hitherto. We are concerned with men and women of all ages, but naturally two segments interest us the most from time to time: the children who can be taught and are learning the business of life and who should also be taught the spiritual graces, and those who are more mature whose life fulfillments have been either satisfying or distressing. To these segments of humanity as well as to that band of lifestreams who are in between, we wish to offer our assistance so that all men may receive that which they need today. The passions of youth can be curbed and controlled, they can be guided. It is not so easy for those who are more mature to change their unfruitful habit patterns; but hope also lives in them, if they will only permit it to manifest. If they will remain receptive to the voice within while looking to be covered with the glory of faith, they will receive from that cloud of witnesses{27} who have inhabited the ages the song of their gratitude for the gift of faith from on high. We seek now through no mystic radiance but only through the direct grace of God to amplify the power of faith that already lives in you, to dissipate the human opacity that has kept you in darkness, to strengthen you immeasurably in those far-reaching experiences that, under the tutelage of cosmic law, will assist you in perpetuating in your life those things that are of true worth. We are starting slowly this year but with a measured purpose to build into the consciousness of men in the inner ways, in the Within, those elements which raise them to God. The desire is in so many to find him, and they realize that he is nigh at hand. But he does not manifest to them in a tangible way simply because their faith has failed to provide the power to shatter the veils of Matter and to let them see what marvelous gifts life has given. These stand before you now. These are light, truth, and life. For your progress in exalting faith, I AM the Cosmic Being, Faith ****** Chapter 5 Hope - February 2, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 5 - Hope - February 2, 1969 THE TRIPARTITE FLAME OF FAITH, HOPE, AND CHARITY "Man Shall Not Live by Bread Alone" II Hope - Second Step in the Externalization of the Divine Plan A Cosmic Sense of Space and Time Blessed Searchers for Reality, Some of you say that I am not a real being. Well I say to you, "How do you know?" Do you not have many individuals in embodiment on earth today with the names Faith, Hope, and Charity? Does it seem so very unusual that I should be named Hope? Hope is a divine quality. It is a quality of God himself, and it springs forth eternally in the human heart from the fount of the Father of all lights and cosmic purpose. He and he alone manifests the power, love, and wisdom of the threefold flame. Faith, or the blue plume thereof, identifies with the vibration of power; for faith is "the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth."{28} Hope identifies with the yellow plume, and it is to be found in the holy comfort of true illumination; it springs from the Christ mind, from the mind that hath wisdom. And, as you shall see, charity is the boundlessness of divine love. To me there is given in this year of our Lord, 1969, the cosmic honor and responsibility of invoking in the hearts of men caught in the contemporary net of burgeoning illusion a truly spiritualized cosmic sense of space and time. To them belongs the sense of the importance of each lifestream, of seeing that each life is a divine mission and that they never ought to extinguish within their beings the full flowering of hope for a better tomorrow. You do not know, beloved ones, in all of your wit and sophistication, how very important it is to develop the blessed feeling of cosmic hope: hope for the world, regardless of the terror produced in this age by mass disobedience to cosmic law; hope for the religions of the world, that ultimately some glimmer of light will penetrate the hard shell of bigotry that would separate one chosen son of God from another. In heaven - where we can see directly into the heart's light of all whom we meet even as they can see into ours, where we can see the purpose behind each individual's thoughts and feelings - we do not encounter the difficulties of mutual understanding that you do on earth. For there, midst the throng of astral density and denial, plagued by uncertainties, you sometimes viciously attack one another, even those who are serving the same God and the same holy cause. If men and women would allow the flame of hope and its comforting Christly illumination to penetrate their every thought, and if they would pay less attention to human personalities and human motives, they would find a great deal more peace penetrating their worlds. With this thought in mind - that world struggle is basically the struggle of individuals - we should like to invoke a greater effulgence of the flame of peace within the minds and hearts of those who are following the same divine plan which we followed and even within those who profess to follow the Path, knowing not that they have erred along the way. Now as the cosmic tally of each man's karmic record is being counted, it does make a difference, regardless of opinions to the contrary, whether or not men and women are aware of the fact that this 'Judgment' is taking place daily. For when individuals begin to think seriously about the business of world karma in the light of personal karma, when they understand that all men are being tested by the compensatory laws that reflect acts, thoughts, and feelings and that there is no such thing as private karma, when they realize that each individual act is reflected on a total world scale, they will see that their best hopes lie in externalizing at all times, regardless of outer conditions, the type of consciousness that expresses concern for and involves itself in the entire creative process. Today many individuals are continuously absorbed in a round of alternating moods of joy and depression. One moment they are up, and then like a roller coaster, whoops! down they go into the valley of delusion and unhappiness. Because hope is such a propellant to the consciousness, I would like you to take a more than ordinary look at it as a gift of God; for when you perceive the tangibility of hope even as you do the tangibility of faith, which is the substance of things hoped for,{29} you will realize that it is the second step to the externalization of the divine plan - and a very important one at that. My life is but one among many divine expressions dedicated to the fulfillment of hope in all life. I have offered myself in the service of the light to generate and regenerate momentums of hope and to charge them into the forcefields of individuals so that they may have the benefit of my momentum and thus add it to their own. This is the way in which much good is multiplied upon earth. It is somewhat like the story of the little boy with the loaves and fishes. {30} In the hands of the master, multiplication occurs and the 5,000 are fed. In the hands of the devotee, the alchemist, the true servant of God, hope becomes a vehicle for the expression of his faith and the amplification of his charity as it unites with the universal charity of God in the heart of the Father of all. How beautiful it will be, you say, when all of life fulfill the divine plan. Yes, this is true, beloved ones. But do you realize how very important your own life is as it represents a cog in the great cosmic wheel? Do you realize how many people you can contact and benefit daily by your own faith and the opportunity not only to hope but also to decree the best things for all men? We have noted of late that those who ought to be setting an example for their brethren of lesser attainment are instead gossiping about some of our brightest sparks. We would remind each and every one that the law will one day bring to their own doorsteps a realization of just how they have hindered the plan by their thoughtless conversation without ever having helped it. Dear ones, many individuals, out of the inadequacies and failures of their own lives, feel compelled to speak disparagingly of the lives of others. How painstakingly they will one day pull out each thread that was carelessly inserted into their weavings is a subject that would not be too hopeful a one; therefore, I shall not dwell upon it. I mention it only in passing because it is necessary to be not only constructive in all of your doings, but also to avoid the negative aspects of destructivity and destructive sowings. Now in 1969, the year when the Cosmic Mother comes into greater prominence than ever before, when the world sense of the Cosmic Mother is increased and the fulfillment of universal Sonship is revealed anew to the devotees, we are concerned that their hopes should mount up, indeed it has been said, as on eagle wings.{31} We are concerned that men dare, that they do, and that whereas they may keep silent abut their plans in advance, they understand that when the time comes for them to be active in the service of God, they must, as the Gideonites did, break their pitchers and let their light shine.{32} The time has come when the resources that God has placed within his chosen ones must be mustered and put into the service of the light, for the dragon of world destructivity has spread abroad in the world awful momentums of fear and competitiveness in a vain attempt to strangle the infant Messiah. You see, beloved ones, Messias is ever being reborn - reborn in the hearts and minds and lives of individuals. All need to understand and accept the fact that the nativity of the Christ occurs within themselves and that as he is reborn within them, as he matures within them, their life expressions will take on new garments of hope. Now hope is a white flame, but it often comes with the dawn of illumination; for the white fire embodies within it the essence of the yellow. For practical purposes, the flame of the Christ and the white garments of the Christ can envelop one with illumination just as effectively as the garments of the Brothers of the Golden Robe. You see, beloved ones, all of the rays are to one purpose: the victory of the Christ in manifestation. We sometimes use simile in order to illustrate the Law of Correspondence and the practical relationships between peoples, but we are even more concerned that our brethren do not become involved in the trivial while ignoring those vastly important areas of cosmic service and brotherhood. In the hope that the students will examine themselves carefully - not with a view toward criticism, but with a view toward constructivism - we ask that once again you will learn daily, as it was taught in golden ages gone by, to hope for yourselves the best things. While the best things in life are said to be free, we say that this freedom is the buoyancy of God. It is the elevation and the upliftment that comes through divine ideas captured in the folds of individual consciousness. The ideas of God are the most precious of all gifts. And being the most precious, they are the most dear. Therefore, those who would have the gift of hope and the best gifts that are freely obtained must understand that the Lord will require their allness in service so that he may indeed, out of the bounty of his graciousness, bestow upon them and all of life the allness of himself. This is the best hope. Abundantly I remain, for the abundant life for all, Your cosmic friend, Hope ****** Chapter 6 Charity - February 9, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 6 - Charity - February 9, 1969 THE TRIPARTITE FLAME OF FAITH, HOPE, AND CHARITY "Man Shall Not Live by Bread Alone" III Charity - Third Step in the Externalization of the Divine Plan Out of Law, Order, and Reality - the Consciousness of Eden Dear Students of Truth, I AM Charity, and charity has been said to be the unguent of God that covers a multitude of sins.{33} Now it is time that the myth of sin be dissolved as an act of the Most High, as an act of universal love, as an act that in its finality will resolve for all time the awful problems of self-condemnation that exist in the world today. When God created all things in his own glorious beginning, the heavenly ordinances were established as an act of faith, hope, and charity - the abundance of his love for law, for order, and for reality. For out of law, the law of faith, out of order, the order of hope, and out of reality, the reality of true charity, are born the consciousness of Eden, the garden of God, the garden of consciousness wherein all perfection can and does live. The Tree of Life in the midst of the garden of God{34} signifies the self-perpetuating seed of the Divine that always produces after her kind; therefore, out of the perfection of God there is born the perfection of man or the perfection of manifestation. God said, "Let there be light: and there was light."{35} This statement illustrates the nature of the divine fiat. When God commands, his command produces and sustains that which he desires to express. Let it be understood, however, that God is the allness of all things whereas man, the manifestation, marks the beginning of all things. God is the consciousness of beginning, of the middle, and of the end. Man is the consciousness of the beginning, the unfulfilled - he who is being fulfilled, he who is being taught, he who must learn to express within the framework of the divine aegis. "All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made."{36} We can truly say that charity, as the highest expression of God-reality, produced all things; that charity, as God realization, is the sustaining momentum of the Divine inherent within life; that charity, as love in action, must always obey the Divine edict. For this is the nature of the Christ. To love is to be carried away by the abundance of that love to the complete fulfillment of that which Love desires to express. Individuals are often captivated by the glamour of their own thoughts and feelings. They do not see how narrow the shell is that encompasses them roundabout. They do not recognize the darkness that is in their own worlds. But when the blue lightning of divine love intervenes, when there is a shattering by true faith of the illusions men have spun around themselves and those to which they have submitted, then hope as a golden ray surrounded by white fire reveals to them the Christed plan of their being. As that Christ plan begins to manifest a little more of itself each day, there comes into their worlds a great and subtle beauty that gradually seeps through their entire being, removing the lines of care from the countenance and smoothening the wrinkles of the soul. Hope is indeed a golden oil that nurtures the being of man and makes him aware of the power of divine love. How often individuals are captured mentally and emotionally by the idea of love, but how seldom does true love actually permeate the being and nature of man. Many times we find that individuals have an intellectual comprehension of the greatness of love and a feeling they call love which they desire to express and to see expressed in others; but then, when it comes to the field of action, they deny themselves the opportunity to be love in all things that they do. They do that which they would not because they have not banished from their worlds those old habit patterns that are encrusted within the caverns of consciousness. These create reactions against everything and everyone. Why, they even react against the Deity, sometimes openly. And often they do not even know what they are doing. Against this basic human ignorance, the Lord Jesus did implore the Father saying, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."{37} Nevertheless, the Christ knows full well what they do and he desires to see expressed in all life that cosmic charity which moved so freely and so beautifully in his life. Today I, Charity of the Sun, would invoke for everyone a greater understanding of universal law. I would invoke in the world a feeling of ease and completeness, a feeling of sincerity, of directness, and of the avoidance of unnecessary pitfalls. I would that the children of men, in their relationships with one another, might understand the perfection of the Great Law. I would have them understand the perfection of nature. And as the fingers of their minds explore the possibility of calling upon the Infinite One for every need, they will know that they are entering into communion with the sun in all of the brilliant inner radiance that can and must be reflected in the soul if the soul is to know her freedom. Men have applied themselves to religious studies for years. They have prayed unto God either as a remote possibility or as a remote reality without ever understanding the nearness of the Deity to themselves. They have not seen that as they begin to express him in a minor way, he can and ultimately shall fill them, flood them, seal them, and complete them in the perfection of his plan. The great gifts of the God Self, of the Holy Christ Self, of the perfect tripartite flame of faith, hope, and charity, the gift of the white-fire garment and of the seamless garment of the Christ - all of these are pearls of great price.{38} If they were seen and known by men and women in their fullness, nothing would ever stand in the way of their acceptance of these gifts. But when the proffered gift comes in minute portions - as little jots and tittles of cosmic intelligence, pieces of a vast cosmic jigsaw puzzle - individuals are sometimes unable to fit them together. Unable to see their relationship to the pattern of personal evolution, they carelessly push them off the table of life and thereby lose a priceless facet of God's effulgent consciousness which they might have made their own. Little do they realize that at a later date they will have to painstakingly reassemble the fragments in order to observe the unfoldment of the great cosmic purposes of life within themselves. Each individual life pattern is a vase of priceless beauty. It is an exquisite rendering of the soul of God as infinite harmony coming to the ears of the heart and saying, "Lo, I AM here, I AM within thee, I AM the lullaby of life, I AM the sweetness of charity, of reality, of eternity." As children hold a whelk shell to their ears to catch the remote sounds of the sea, so does the soul hear the distant sound of far-off worlds, of tones of true love that will come through, that will penetrate, and that will be established as the foundation of life in all who hear the voice of their Creator. I AM Charity, and charity does begin at home. It begins when you first listen to the voice of God and realize that he is within your very own soul. It begins when you realize that his voice does not command so much as it implores you to receive the gift - the best gift that life could possibly give. Charity begins when you understand that the way to receive this gift is to express it everywhere to each man, each woman, and each child whom you meet and to each thought that comes to you - even the tempting thoughts from the Tempter that would pervert the law of the Lord thy God and tell you that you should live by bread alone.{39} Then you must understand how important it is to say, "Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God!"{40} And see to it that it is the Lord thy God that lives in you. See that it is the Lord thy God whose law you are following, who through your consciousness actually accepts his own law and establishes it forever within you. For you are his child, and no one can take this honor from you. But in order to be sure that these holy things are established within you, you should understand that charity must draw the firmament of universal loveliness as the architecture of the cosmos within the framework of your consciousness. It is not enough that charity be in the universe or in the world, it must also be in you. Christ must be formed in you,{41} the divine image must be traced there by the hand of God. Invite him, then. Call him forth, even in the moments of temptation and trial. In the moments of struggle, surrender yourself to him. So shall he surrender himself to you. Out of this pact of cosmic charity, the fullness of the man of God appears - an Elijah, a John the Baptist, a Christ, a Buddha, a soul swimming in a sea of light that understands that the whole vast globe of light, all of nature, all of the heart and the field of consciousness belongs to him as unto God. God surrenders to you the universe as you surrender to him the minutest part of yourself. For you are indeed a son of God. As the centurion of old beholding Christ upon the cross said, "Truly this man was the Son of God,"{42} so as you accept this truth and as you draw nigh to this love, God will draw nigh to you. {43} In the simple ritual of fulfillment, charity will be born anew within you. The year 1969 will become a memorable one as many souls, bathed in the resurgent light of cosmic purpose, shall draw together and unite as never before in the supreme purposes of God for this blessed Earth - this little pinch of cosmic dust floating in space that is 'home' to so many millions. That they may draw nearer unto God is our prayer. We are watching with the all-seeing eye of cosmic charity as each one of you with new determination sets sail for the cosmic haven of surrender, of fulfillment, of purpose in action as God within you unites with God within all. In charity's name, in the name of cosmic charity, I AM your Charity ****** Chapter 7 El Morya - February 16, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 7 - El Morya - February 16, 1969 Seven-League Boots To the Warriors of Peace THE CENSURE of carnal minds, leveled by the children of men against one another, is an accumulation of deceit that is practiced upon the self and fostered upon an unsuspecting humanity. The world may not take note of the treachery of mental viciousness, but like a Chinese torture chamber the human mind often seeks new inventions to bring pain and peril to the tenderest of hearts. The affair in Czechoslovakia is just one more episode in a long line of infamous tyrannies to which the human race seems prone to fall heir. I shall not weary you with a long list of aggressions. The prologues of world history, buried in dusty mausoleums, are the sad mementos of a dingy past. Let us now set forth to examine a future that shall be based not upon the near past but upon the Beginning and upon the thoughts of the Ancient of Days. Let us examine anew the ideologies of the Spirit. Let us seek votaries among men who will extend the domain of the divine thought through themselves, ennobling the mind of man and raising him Godward. There is a force in the world that is not benign. It has sought to wreak destruction upon men by magnifying their supposed worthlessness. We would show men their worthfulness and extend the best possibilities into the domain of the present hour. Little do the kind ones dream of how the fruit of their kindness is dispersed and scattered abroad. The good seed falls upon the fallow ground the world around, and the fruit can often be traced to the most obscure sources. We speak of the framing of beginnings, of the destinies of the fathers, and of the present hour as an extension of mercy into a future replete with gracefulness. As we ponder the sky in the blueness of its color, we take note of the sapphire order, of the blueness that gemlike reflects the will of God. Whereas one knows that it is blue, one also knows that the white light has produced the fragrance of its appearance. So is everyone that is born of the Spirit. Those who are born of the Spirit have a tendency to exude the fragrance of mercy and hope. They open the gateways of the mind to the flood tides of divine resources. They stimulate with gladness the flow of the fruit of goodness and mercy. They thrust evil from them until it goes back into its lair, and in dauntless courage they sometimes follow it to a smashing retreat, soiling their garments in the hope of vanquishing it into a state of permanent rest. Yet the hour has come when the signs of the wearing out of the world order do appear. The mercies of the brothers of light, in considering in mercy's name a dispensation that would provide an extension of time before the Dark Cycle,{44} is commendable. The purpose of such a dispensation would be to prevent the destruction of useful, social instruments and to preserve order among men. We embrace the will of God that, working through the brothers of light, extends mercy to the uttermost. Yet as it has been said, "My spirit shall not always strive with man, for he also is flesh. ... The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever."{45} We are concerned, then, with the Spirit that makes the bones fat, with the Spirit that extends the grandeur of cosmic architecture into the finite world, with the capturing in the net of Matter of some reflected glory of cosmic energy, with the accumulation of passions for hope, for beauty, and even for compassion. The dire forebodings and ominous rumblings in nature and in man and the vicious openings into the astral currents that have been invoked by dabblers in black magic and dangerous drugs have brought about new maladies of the spirit, syndromes of praetorial decay producing lese majesty and permeating the world. The legions of men are becoming neither more Godlike nor more manlike. They are simply dissolving their resemblance to reality in a chaotic nihilism. We draw these analogies momentarily as we prepare to plunge into the fountain of reality in order that, by the startling power of contrast, we may show the world the true appearance of cosmic regeneration, of cosmic wholeness, of the washing of our garments white in streams of Cosmic Christ energy. One of the problems of these times relates to the awful tirades of man against man. These ragings come from the mouths of evil spirits, speaking through embodied men and creating tortuous roadways where shadows obscure the path and detour the soul from its appointed round. Now Morya speaks. Beginning next week, it is my hope to strike a blow for God in the world order, to create a new series of teachings on the will of God - an offering based on such dedication and hope for an enlightened humanity as are the Great Divine Director's "Mechanization Concept," beloved Serapis Bey's "Dossier on the Ascension," and beloved Jesus' and Kuthumi's "Corona Class Lessons."{46} As you know, down through the centuries men have discussed the will of God as though it were a thing apart from the will of man, bearing no resemblance to an offering that affords the best gifts to man. Contrary to human opinion, the will of God seeks to vest man with his immortal birthright and never to deprive him of his freedom. Therefore, by his grace I shall show to the men and women of this age what the will of God really is, how it may be known, and how mankind may cooperate with it and use it as a means of extending the person (the pure son) into immortal realms. We shall run the field if necessary. We shall request seven-league boots. We shall restimulate the fires of the Spirit in the chelas. And, above all, we shall turn men to God because there is no other way whereby the soul can find the answer to all of its many problems. The enigma of life is hidden within the will of God. When properly understood, it provides a stimulus for every worthy purpose and re-creates a passion for living that many have lost. What you call zest or sparkle when imbued with the Holy Spirit is no chimera but a flash of joy that ripples across the belly of the world, that sways the tallest pines and moves all things toward cosmic usefulness and cosmic purpose. Some may wonder why I have chosen to speak. Now that the earth has entered the cusp of an age that is not innocent, I am impelled by the Great Divine Director himself, by the Prince of the House of Rakoczy, to seek to steal from the folds of the world those who have ears to hear that I may feed the sheep of God and safely shepherd them into the House of God's Will. There is no other course to be run. But if there were, we should seek it. This one has so many blessed avenues of service, so much greatness to offer to men that it is with relish that I elect to pursue the path of bringing once again to the world a greater understanding of the will of cosmic purpose - the will of God. It will enhance my service to all men and to yourselves immeasurably if you will pray for me as I begin to intone those holy mantrams that will invoke in the sacred temples of the world, of the Great White Brotherhood, a refiring of the flame of God as we seek to reflect it - not only in words, but also in Spirit. Adoring Him, I remain El Morya [This text is the version published in the book, The Sacred Adventure.] ****** Chapter 8 El Morya - February 23, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 8 - El Morya - February 23, 1969 THE WILL OF GOD I The Gift of His Will To Those Who Seek the Blue Heaven in Which the Sun Shines CHERISH: word symbol of arms clasped to the heart, the closeness of Reality, the beginning and the end of a search. This is the will of God. Seek, and ye shall find.{47} Lessons are learned, and they are ignored. The journey of life, the long flow of identity, is a flurry of beginnings so separated from the Beginning that, in the farthest turn of the wheel, the beginning of the cycle is forgotten. We raise the curtain of solar identity. We raise the cosmic curtain upon the mystery of life. What is this ray flashing forth, this splendid, shining, far-off world? It is the will of God, permeating like a magnetic field. Yet the whole substance of cosmos is seldom sensed and seldom known. In order to understand the earliest beginnings, it is necessary for man to consider the will of God. The divine will sought to create, and create he did a majestic and finalizing plan for the beautiful unfoldment of the soul in the knowledge of the created self. And with the plan was given the means for the creation to keep pace with his own transcendent nature. God sought to bestow, and the best gift that he could give was the gift of his will. For by his will he framed the far-off worlds, and by his will he sustained the momentum of life within each cell. And so he heard the melody of the divine will. Some call it the music of the spheres, others perceive it in the faces of humanity. Some cognize it in the revelations of science, others in the kingdoms of nature, while still others realize it in cloister. Retreating from the world, they hear it in the measured flow of the hours, in service, and in prayer. All have heard it, but all have not recognized it. Only the few are able to see that which glistens like whitecaps upon the waves. The tormenting substance of human drivel has opaqued the magnificent face of God that man can look upon but once and ne'er live as man again.{48} Through this obscuration of the perfectionment of God, men are caught in the snares of their own choosing (or in those that are thrust upon them), in the strands of ignorance they have woven, and in the carelessness of treasured moments that slip so easily through the fingers of time. What is this evanescent light? What is this courtesy of the givingness of God, of the holy will, and of the fire of the Divine Mother's heart? How do you separate the will of God from him? Is his will a separate gratuity, an element of his grace which he gives to man? And if so, why does man not know it? Does man know in part and sense in part the holy will of God? If so, what derision is it that seeks to mock the will? It is the witless sophistry of sense meandering. It is the desire to rebel against the fashion of real beauty. It is the sense of separation and shame. The will of God is the flawless diamond, it is the shining of the Divine Mind, it is the rushing of the wind of the Spirit, and it is the strength and laughter of real identity. The will of God that seems so simple a thing is the most complex organism in the universe. From it sprang full-blown the entire scheme of cosmos, worlds without end - circles, pinwheels, spiral nebulae in cosmos, and the whole sidereal sea, all glowing fire-gems responding to the ministrations of the divine will. Yet its cadences, like those of the melodic songs of a child, come forth with the simple beauty that adds meaning to each hour. "How remote it all seems," you say. Astronauts journeying out into space sense all of this immensity, but they cannot receive it within themselves; for they, too, have limited their consciousness. The dish of thought which they have made their portion is too finite and too small, albeit more vast by far than that of ordinary men in their narrow frame of reference. But now we seek to understand the thrust of purpose, to define the universe within the microcosm, man, and to relate the two through the extension of the Divine Will, the Divine Wisdom, and the Divine Presence. For we cannot fail to gain some perspective of worlds within and without through His allness that brings to men the blessing of happiness and stops the simpering idiocy of thoughtless, witless minds. And when the mind has grasped the principle of kindness and compassion, this tiny facet of the divine will can turn the lever of nations and cause them to respond. What a miracle, then, is the will of God. And what is its fashion? It betrays no man, but summons the elect to the primacy of purpose. What shall we say, then, to the careless ones who demand their own definitions and their definitions of definitions? We will say with God, "I AM Agam, the Unknowable. I AM the Infinite within who, in all of your winnings, can never be contained within the consciousness of sense or of perception." Therefore the law of Love would bestow upon man the means to contact and to know the will of God. It is an inward sense We must discover and impart, It is an inward sense That rends the veil before we start. We must convey our love to him Who gives to us the grace to win, The power to see the flow of truth, The sweetest comfort, eternal youth, And mighty power of light to live - This is the radiance God does give. In kindred minds he will impart The holy will of God to start The process over once again. And thus we show that the will of God is a seed to be planted within the consciousness of the individual, that the will of God is substance, even as faith is,{49} and that the will of God is the conglomerate stream of reality - the issuance of purpose from the uncreated realm into the realm of the created essence. I AM the beginning And the ending of all things, Of joy and beauty, Of perfection and loveliness, Of the strength and sweetness Of the right arm of God. I AM the will of God, The firmness of a cosmos that cannot turn In response to tyrant's cry, But flashes forth its light Of mystery to meet the eye Of mariner, ancient, bold, Who seeks the way to fashion Be it told - I AM the will of God. And so this will is right within His Presence where you are, And when you see it Its fiery light will be a star To open wide the chamber Where the Real You lives. Gratefully, I AM El Morya [This text is the version published in the book, The Sacred Adventure.] ****** Chapter 9 El Morya - March 2, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 9 - El Morya - March 2, 1969 THE WILL OF GOD II The Inviolate Will of God To the Sincere Ones VARIANCE creates disturbance. Variance is the stones of change. Variance is the disturbing stones thrown in the pond. Waves of thought and feeling prevent the true reflection of the Real. Life does not mirror the will of God but in its place reveals distressing conditions. One can control only the mind of self and the feelings of self, but one should ever remember that in a universe throbbing with the pulsations of the will of God the victors are many and their vibratory actions should be recognized. Many peer instead at the myopic gray ones whose environmental concepts amplify the discord generated from or projected into their own worlds. Morya speaks. We advocate the amplification of the will of God, for "the will of God is good." The affirmation of this childlike statement over and over again is the means whereby the mind can be stilled and the mounting crescendo of human emotions diminished. The will of God is the thunder of universal love. It is the strength of the right arm of the Almighty. It is the fire of his devotion and the best gift to his children. There is safety in it and the strength that fashions security for the ages and beyond. The manvantaras and the pralayas{50} may go forth, but those who cognize the will of God as the first vibration of his magnificent love will not be moved by the chirping of crickets, the boom of cannon, or the threatening ones. Fear assaults the will of God, but the calm knowing of infinite love shatters the opaqueing conditions that scream from the minds of the depraved. How long can they endure without the fire of the holy will? They steal light and energy, for they have lost their own. The children of the sun are their innocent victims, but not for aye. Now come the wise ones. These are the peacemakers that are called blessed.{51} These are the children of God who understand the strength of the holy will. In the Great Forever, in the beginningness of all things, God saw light and he was light. Out of his light went forth the beauty of loving purpose, and in him was no darkness at all{52} nor could there be darkness there. This was the inviolate will of God - the same yesterday, today, and forever. {53} The knowledge of good and evil, of duality, of the temporal and opposing factions that were within the range of the free will of the person - these came forth first as possibility and then as the looming shadows of karmic violation and disobedience to good will. The tenets of brotherhood were clearly stated in the golden rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."{54} But each violation produced its correspondent blot, its stain upon the page, and the Lords of Karma spoke: "This departure from the law of Good is but a repetition of the voices sent forth unto discord." But there was an overthrust, a compulsion of the will of God, that sought to teach by the chastening of the law, thus to avoid the repetition of error. The necessity of the will of God was clear. But while perfect love casts out all fear, for fear has torment,{55} what should be done for the impoverished ones, those who had lost their perfect love from the beginningness of God? "Let them at least," said the Great Ones, "understand that God chastens those whom he loves,{56} and that he continues to love out of the bounty of his forgivingness." Thus the will of God toward forgiveness was born in the consciousness of man. It was a step toward the regaining of perfection; for as men understood that as they had sowed so should they reap,{57} a desire to have perfection arose within them. This desire to return to perfection through grace became the second corollary of the will of God. Now the children of men who had erred saw the need to correct the error of their ways and thus be restored to the old boundaries of perfection - the perfection of perfect love. The children of the sun, who came forth bearing the white stones from the Temple of the Sun, evoked the mightiest response possible from the hearts of men; for in the hearts of men there was also a residual memory of the olden days when the elder race communed with the living God. Forgivingness, they saw, was eternal grace and the fire of purpose. Forgiveness, too, was the will of God. Thus the desire to return to perfect love flashed forth anew. "Consider the lilies of the field; they toil not, neither spin. ..."{58} The cadences of the Master's words were dripping with the fires of that perfect love that is his perfect will. It is necessary that we establish in consciousness the concept of origins, for the majority of men's thought processes are patterned after the swing of the mind - to and fro. This pendulum motion, often stemming from the restlessness of men's emotions, is part of mankind's struggle for that identity which has already been bestowed upon them. But such movement can only swing men away from the peace of God and from his love. Let men who would discover the will of God realize that it is already a part of the universe; that the universe, in the macrocosmic sense, is already the perfection of God; and that each star, each cell, and each atom was stamped with the divine image. The words "Thou shalt have no other gods before me"{59} show the necessity for the Godhead to counteract the travesty of man's acceptance of fiats of imperfection. These have been issued by lesser minds and by the deceitful ones who are self-deceived. The will of God that is good is naturally good. This goodness is inherent within nature, within the mind of man, and within all systems that were created by God in the Beginning and which he sent forth to do their perfect work. "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect."{60} The desire for perfection is a natural manifestation of a perfect God shining behind his perfect manifestation, but all that which proceeds out of imperfection is against the divine nature. The will of God is a security beyond belief, beyond faith, and even beyond manifestation, for it is the solemnly beautiful beaming of the tenderness of the Father's care for his creation. Left undisturbed and permitted to express the elements of their cosmic identity, individuals would see themselves leaping into the arms of perfect love - the perfect love of God. And the flashing of their divine identity would enable them to overcome all of those elements of the appearance world that have for so long distressed them. And so the dream, the "impossible" dream, becomes the reality. And all that man has thought to be real, insofar as his own relationship with the universe goes, is seen as a chimera - a shimmering illusion that comes from misqualified energy. In its place, in the place of the mirage of carnal identity with its shifting sands of manifestation, the reality of the Christ identity is seen as the will of God. What difference does it make that there are opposing forces? The forces of Light are more dominant, the forces of Light are greater, the forces of Light are complete and eternal. They will stand when men are but dust and their present thoughts hollow echoes in the chambers of memory. Let men understand that it is not the Father's will that they should perish but that they should have abundant life.{61} When we begin to examine the great thoughts of God and the great will of God, when we begin to examine how great God is, we must see that cardinal to his greatness is the abundant life, the life that is eternal. It is fear - fear of death and fear of illusion - that has caused some men to fail to hold themselves in that state of consciousness wherein the will of God could manifest through them. They need to understand the very naturalness of cosmic purpose: God is life. They are manifesting temporal life, but they also possess, here and now, the seeds of eternal life in the very essence of the soul which God has given to them. The flaming Presence that directs them from above, their beloved God Presence, "I AM,"{62} represents the fire of the will of God; and the will of God includes within itself the all-chemistry of cosmic purpose. Therefore, each department of life is brought under the direction of the central purpose of the will of God. What folly it is that individuals feel separated from the will of God, as if they could not know it! For his will begins in the simplicity of a child and in the simplicities of nature. It is so natural and sweet that in their sophistication men often lose its tenets. The pathway to regaining it is the pathway the Master Jesus taught: "Verily I say unto you, except ye become as a little child, ye cannot enter in."{63} The result of becoming as a little child is rebirth, a being "born again"{64} into the consciousness of the kingdom of heaven. And I assure you that the will of God will teach you to expand your being until from the tiniest little seed, like unto a grain of mustard seed,{65} you shall become a tree of cosmic purpose identifying with the divine will. What thundering concepts are captured within the simple ideas of faith, hope, and charity! Forward we move into the ever-expanding light. Your elder brother, I AM El Morya [This text is the version published in the book, The Sacred Adventure.] ****** Chapter 10 El Morya - March 9, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 10 - El Morya - March 9, 1969 THE WILL OF GOD III "How Can I Know the Will of God?" To the Builders Who Seek Truth "HOW CAN I know the will of God?" This is the cry of millions. Man presupposes that the divine will is hiding from him, as though it were a part of the plan for the Eternal God to play hide-and-seek with him. Not so! The will of God is inherent within life and merely awaits the signal of release from man's will in order to ray forth the power of dominion to the world of the individual. There is a sovereign link between the mortal will and the Immortal. In the statement of Jesus "It is the Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom," {66} men can be aware of the eternal will as the fullest measure of eternal love. Release, then, your feelings of possessiveness over your own life! Surrender the mean sense of sin and rebellion, the pitiful will to self-privilege which engenders bondage. See the will of God as omnipresent and complete, the holy beat of the Sacred Heart throbbing within your own. Know and understand that surrender is not oblivion but a point of beginning and of greater joy. Now, responsibility does not cease but begins anew, and man is yoked with eternal purpose - the shield of God's will. O how joyous is the touch of thy hand, O living flame. How comforting this contact By night or day. We are not alone anywhere, For thy presence is a succoring shield. "Dominus vobiscum"{67} to all substance And the infusion of the Spirit of Hope In the purposes of men As they blend most tenderly Into the purposes of God. Through surrender The molding process can begin. Waves of cosmic energy With or without conscious awareness Literally flood body, mind, and soul With strength of purpose, defying inertia. We live because thou livest in us. We are in a state of consonance with thy purposes, And O how glorious are those concepts Of givingness to life! The Great Giver is perceived As the only true friend to us all - Our common bond of brotherhood and strength. Allied with invisible legions, The weld of strength and purpose Becomes increasingly persistent. Shelter me from delusion, O God, To whom shall I fly? For thy way is the best way. Old residual habits seek banal reexpression. To opaque the holy will is their purpose And to excite me to evil strength and shame. Yet short-lived are the carnal creature comforts, And dark is the desiring of mortal wayfaring. The sheltering arms of thy will come again, And I AM known of thee Even as I increase my knowledge of thy will. Down through the ages I have known many names, Thou hast known but one name, The strength of thy arm is my salvation, The joy of my heart, The solitary consoling factor of life, The joy of my desiring And the manifesting of thy light, My purposed will! By doing, by identifying, By just becoming aware of thee I automatically know thy will. Increment by increment I AM adding to the perfect knowledge That casts out the fear of oblivion And gives my soul the peace thou hast Because my mind is stayed on thee. Strength, strength, strength be multiplied, And love, be thou increased! All these are found in the holy will. Born out of increased devotion, They take their own full measure Of action and renewal. Long has the soul been dead In the night of personal delusion - The struggles, the accumulated karmic debts, And the great harms. Now the end has come In one solemn sweet surrender: I AM - Thou art - we are - All are One! Yet the finite span, The temporal shafts of darkness Remain a blight and pit to snare the soul. Can my resolve to be thy will in action Be a shield so strong That never again shall submit to carnal will And the pitfalls of the senses? The body cries out in pain, The mind does reel in anguish Of human condemnation. These are not thy will But only that the soul should gain in light And bask in the willing of thy love. What peace is mine that dares not be afraid To seek the depths, the heights, The riches of thy soul? The soul of God is one great sea of promise, Interconnecting all with all that lives. Yea, saint and sinner of all ages past Do rise or fall in him. All life does live or perish in his memory vast And does return to him complete or yet unborn, Unfinished by his grace. Our souls are torn by splendor Contrast 'gainst the night. A higher purpose and a holier will are born, We seek and find new light with coming morn. O not my will, my will be done but thine.{68} Great drops of blood betray my anguish - Thine the glory and the power, Lord, Thine the kingdom shining O'er the hills of time Revealing, as we upward climb, The starry ladder of thy grace. As angels to and fro do go,{69} Our souls do know thy purpose dear. And in communion, strength appears As triumph over death. Morya cries out, O weary traveler, know him ere it is too late! So many tempt God one more time, fearing they may miss some passing earthly joy. The will of God is an interpenetrating essence that flows through substance, mind, and motion, conveying new images and changing old ones into transcendence. To die to all of this marvelous flow of living light by closeting the soul in vain desire is an abomination beyond terror. Come out now, then, and see the sole goal of eternity shining through the strands of time. What a marvelous gilding of opportunity is to be found in the pursuit of his will. And it can be known! We cringe for a distraught humanity, caught up in the passing paradise of the senses. Man's inhumanity to man is not destroyed by a liberal sense, neither is utopia secured by developing a sense of social justice or an outreach toward world betterment which denies immortality. Only by union with God's will can the world, one and all, come to peace and perfection in a relative sense, stretching toward the good things to come that spring forth in eternal life. How myopic are the "savers" who store their world's goods like camels in little humps of survival and are themselves utterly barren of soul substance. The will of God is the will of change for man that feeds the flame of life within and changes mortality into immortality. It would seem that what the senses cannot report is unbelievable unto many, and yet the life that beats the heart of man is not seen or known by any save the few. Many wonder how man, made in the image of God, could have fallen so low. Let them realize that deteriorations occur first in consciousness. Hence, when men indulge in simple flights of imagery that are not in keeping with divine ideals, they take the first steps in departing from the will of God. A downhill course is more difficult of reversal than an ascendant one. We evoke the consciousness of God in our disciples, for in God's own thoughts the alchemy of change is wrought. Men are not realists when they mull over the murky patterns of human history. The distortions of life recorded on the strata of mortal consciousness are full of arson, murder, and debauchery. Strangely enough, justification of these crimes by individuals sometimes causes them to become imbued with a sense of righteousness as though they did God service. The topsy-turvy attitudes of such folly prove why men are wont to change light into darkness and darkness into light. The will of God is purely beneficial to all the earth, yet wholly tethered to the infinite love of the Father without human favor or distortion. Now we call for the clear seeing of the God consciousness in all life as the first step toward immaculate victory which all must take if they are to be reborn in the divine image and likeness. The quality of thoroughness in all things men do weds them to a sense of the immaculate and the perfect; but herein men must exercise care, lest false pride in accomplishment give rise to a spirit of criticism of others whose outer care for perfectionment remains yet undeveloped. The Father's attitude of reflecting only pure love and communion with all who desire to manifest this love is the exemplary mode which all should follow. This satsanga, or "fellowship with truth," is the invisible coming together of the body of God upon earth in one real cosmic brotherhood that can never deny its likeness to the heavenly will. Does shallowness of being mean that man can never become full of grace and the manifestation of God's will? I say, nay. For if the vessel be shallow, enlarge it; if the substance be minute, increase it! God's will is everywhere manifest, but it must be sought and gathered. The substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not yet seen{70} must be held as potential for all. In the fullness of faith in the divine creation, men must identify with the hidden man of the heart{71} and out of this oneness they will roll up victory after victory right in the teeth of seeming defeat. Knowing the longing and the hunger of the souls of men for the real, I am diligently evoking the symbols of his will to manifest in you as alertness of mind, willingness to change, and the courage to offer the self of mortality to the lovely designs of the Father's purpose. The Brotherhood cannot be affected by mortal doings, but human life can! We urge that faith be implemented by right action and that the confidence of each student in his personal relationship with the God Presence as the repository of God's will be upheld. Thus shall the finite line be extended and the eternal 'try-angle' be perceived as the setting for the calm eye of cosmic vision to survey all things and direct all things by the plumb line of everlasting justice and mercy. I AM the Master Mason, directing the pyramid of lives to the summit of attainment. Graciously, I AM El Morya [This text is the version published in the book, The Sacred Adventure.] ****** Chapter 11 El Morya - March 16, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 11 - El Morya - March 16, 1969 THE WILL OF GOD IV The Ownership of God's Will Precious Seekers, CREATE unto yourself the new sense of the ownership of God's will! You have long thought of God's will as a thing apart from yourself. Now, new longings and a fresh perspective can re-create the best gift you have ever had. The memory of his grace can come alive within you as you accept the infinite care of the Eternal One for you. His blessed consideration of your lifestream must be contemplated and made a living, vital part of your whole consciousness. For far too long man has yielded his birthright unto the false, the insecure, and the transitory. But when he pauses to think of his source, there should come to mind the best gifts of life - the ever-present thoughtfulness of God about his rate of progress, his advancement, his endowment, his protection, and his ultimate fulfillment. Why, God can be made so central, so real, and so intimate to the very being of any man who diligently seeks his will (tutoring both inwardly and without) that he will scarcely remember his former state of unbelief! It merely awaits an opening, a twinkling of the eye of being, for the last trump of immortality to sound and to change the lesser image into his glorious divine reality!{72} This can be, for it already is! Why do men set up a counterfeit will and call it their own? Why do they engage in a continual struggle between the will of God and "their own" will? In the answers to these questions is to be found the key to happiness for every part of life. When man understands that there is no need to struggle for a personal existence outside of God (because he is complete in God) and that, in actuality, there are not two wills - the will of man and the will of God{73} - but only the will of truth and freedom, inherent within the very Spirit of Life which is the Spirit of God, then he will enter into the new sense of harmony and grace. Every man should realize his essential individuality, his privilege God-given of expressing unique qualities of life that he can use to endow the universe from the fountain of his own life and love. But, there are lessons to be learned, understandings to be sought and found, and old senses to be cast aside, transmuted and, in some cases, re-created. Morya thunders! Why should we put off the hour of the emptying of the mind of its delusions? Why should darkness impel the mind and heart to distrust themselves? Let us infire men with a gnosis of possibilities. Let us create a sense of strength based not upon weakness but rooted in the flow of reality. The fact that men have not known does not mean that ignorance should continue. We send light on the holy will and it permeates the consciousness, bridging the old gaps and steaming the spirit loose from its confining walls where the insidious glue of human consciousness has dried up the very thought of progress. Sultry spirits infest the gullible and the complacent! We speak to those who are willing to be God-willed! The very idea of "me" and "mine" often leads to separation. The strange consciousness of schism finds welcome wherever men love darkness. They ply the boat of consciousness into watery caves of intricate folly. But the clarity of the will of God promotes the facility of smoothened reality. Now, the Word long ago went forth, but the common man skulks in fear lest someone should find out that he is in league with God or the holy will! Shames are honored while the source of all grace remains hidden in shame from puny mortal eyes. Truly, the blind lead the blind.{74} Walk ye in the dominant way of the sacred stranger who respects no man's illegitimate thoughts but every man's person (pure son). The counting of the hours is good when worth appears. Yet the hairs of the hour's head are numbered.{75} Finite screens frame eternal possibilities. Change, blessed change, how beloved thou art! Yet for thine own sake, let us make clear that only the turning to the awful noontide of truth will show the scorpion on the ground. Alertness spares man the spawn of infectious evil and hallows the blessedness of Christ-expansion. The meaning of the incarnation is not measured in hours, but in events! The wayfarer lingers too long at the stagnant pool when the glories of the fragrant moment are near. Every moment spent in learning to live in the will of God is a blessed one. The sense consciousness may not glow in the will until it has developed its spiritual appetite (for good), but akasha{76} will record each benevolent thought and action to the expansion of cosmic grace in the obedient ones. The will of God is the sole source of man's freedom. For many, unlearning is more vital than learning. The science of the soul can be mastered by the soul without any effort save sweet surrender, yet the education of the heart will school the whole man in the understanding of amazing dimensions. "Where have these realms been all my life?" men will cry. Where indeed but right where they are, resident within the heart of truth. The will of God is known only by the very few; for many who think they have this precious commodity are clinging to the vine of mortal reason, opinion, and a whinnying whimsy! I think, then, that reappraisals must be made and that they should be based on the vein of God's mind and not upon sense criteria. Why should men not ask that they may receive, seek to find, and expect the descent of radiant grace? The world is often fooled by those who proclaim longevity on the Path. Little do they know the compounds of the Eternal Chemist who, in the laboratory of nature, has also created subtleties to satisfy the natives of aeons! Where away? Certainly we must flee the present. Ever in the dim as well as in the near past have we thought upon the escape from the contemporary net, from the hypnotic trap of the manipulators, through the freshness of sound vision. But peripatetic visions{77} must be eschewed. Men must ask of God grace to discern the higher will as the bright threads of hope, implemented by practical action and endowing the heart with the leap of boundlessness. So dear is the will of God to me that if I had to take upon myself a body once again and descend into form here, I would willingly do so for the sake of God's will. Alas, this cannot be. And I must satisfy myself to look downward from these glorious realms of light in the hope that men and women taught the three Rs and the sweet homilies of human life will, as many of us have done, espouse these eternal causes. May they do so diligently in order that the Great Magnet will be successful in drawing the flame within the heart into magnificent attunement, raising the whole body of mankind's consciousness into the blessed light of the holy will! In one very real sense the links with heaven are so beautifully woven that if men could see them clearly in all of their blazing reality, they would need no other polestar upon which to fix their gaze as an escape to eternal hope. Yet the carnal welds men have synthesized are so tenacious as to defy perfection, and they bind men embodiment after embodiment in the old oily schemes of selfishness that shrivel the soul in the carnal will. What can we do but hold forth the vision of the grail of God's will as the beacon of every hour. Along with the vision of personal ownership of God's will, one should also think upon the omnipresence of the will. Darkness thickens in the carnal mind;{78} simultaneously, the light dazzles the consciousness with nearness. To draw nigh unto the light: this is the requirement of the hour! The flashing forth of the renewal of the first covenant is the will of God; for it was this bond to which every soul who received the gift of individual life expression did once consent. The breaking of the bond of God's will has meant the parting of the way between father and son. For the prodigal son has chosen to wander into the depths of maya to seek his fortune in the realm of illusion.{79} Now we say, let us return to reality, to the Father, and to the heavenly will. Thus shall the fire purify each man's work{80} and the fiery trial cease in a pact of friendship with God. Victoriously, I AM El Morya [This text is the version published in the book, The Sacred Adventure.] ****** Chapter 12 El Morya - March 23, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 12 - El Morya - March 23, 1969 THE WILL OF GOD V "Not My Will, But Thine Be Done!" To All Wanderers of the Spirit, THE FIRST flush of freedom, how magnificent! Now, no longer engaged in a sense of struggle, man becomes a part of the holy sea ("And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal ..."{81}) The will of God, how clear and lovely - a beautiful dream filled with no thoughts of the human nightmare. The promise "My grace is sufficient for thee" {82} becomes a tangible reality as man is enclosed within the strength of God's will. When the hymn "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God"{83} was released, it was to be a tribute to the divine will; and I think there is no greater goal for any man than to identify totally with this universal lifewave of cosmic creativity. Yet many do fear to surrender their own will to the universal. They fear to lose their identity when in reality they would but "loose" their identity and find it again in the blessed sense of self-direction that exists in higher octaves of harmony.{84} For harmony is a divine sense, an afflatus of such vibrancy, buoyancy, and oneness with all life that heaven can never imagine how anyone who has tasted thereof can ever again return to the soil of carnal expression. Children of the cross, awake and see how you can benefit men by bestowing upon them the prime example of your godly accomplishments for and on behalf of the light! The need is great. And it is God's will that we gather the children of the sun under the canopy of the divine radiance! Men have accused me of hardness. Let me tell you, there are two kinds of hardness: (1) hardness of heart, which is wholly selfish and wedded to pride and ambition, that never says die to its Moloch of self,{85} and (2) the hardness that identifies with the diamond of good will - God's will for total good, total intelligence, and total opportunity. The latter, in its grand design, is the simplicity of the crystal that reflects the passion of the soul to live within the protective love of the Father without compromise to other expressions. This is the diamond of perfection that incorporates the quality of mercy and gives balance without straining at a gnat or swallowing a camel!{86} There are so many forms of subtlety in use upon earth today that the process of knowing the will of God is at times difficult. For example, some conceive of poverty as being the will of God; these make their lives an example of total simplicity. Others see opulence and abundant supply as the will of God. In reality, neither state can guarantee victory to the soul but rather the gift of nonattachment which can either use the empire of the universe in all its fullness or be content in any environment. The truly illumined are able to rise above states of mind or expression to the place where they identify with the allness of God. In the early church, the controversy arose between those who ate meat and those who did not.{87} Saint Paul advised that the true believer should condemn neither attitude, for Jesus had said, "Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man." {88} How important it is, then, that men do not judge at all lest they be judged. {89} For those who live in poverty as well as those who are surrounded by the greatest wealth can be doing the will of God. To his own master each one stands or falls. The enemy in the guise of good, in a subtle form of criticism, purports to describe just what qualities and conditions will prove the existence of a so-called master. This may lead those who follow such an outline of what masters supposedly "do" and "don't" into the banal pathway of criticism. Those who go about examining "masters" to see if they are following the "rules" may enter the same spirit of condemnation which is apparent in those well-meaning teachings that appear benign but are based upon false standards of condemnation and judgment. Let all understand that, even as our palace of light in Darjeeling does reflect all of the grandeur and more of a maharaja's palace, God does not forbid his son to partake of his abundance. For these blessings are within the latitude of cosmic privilege. They are earned by the soul who knows that all things come from God and that they are to be used to bless life abundantly: "For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath."{90} Yet to the spiritually rich and to the spiritually poor I say, your life is not in the material, but in the spiritual. However, when total surrender to God is made, all things can be safely added unto you.{91} It is more blessed to give than to receive; but if you do not first receive, may I ask, how can you give? Therefore, it is the Father's good pleasure{92} to endow you with his Spirit and also with material substance whenever the Lords of Karma see that benefits to humanity can be released through your blessed lifestream. The will of God is everything. For it provides the spark that pushes back the darkness of sense consciousness, of ignorance and despair while holding forth the torch of true illumination to the seeking soul, enabling each individual to find himself, lost in the passion of God's will! Can you now understand how I, when embodied as Sir Thomas More, did see beyond the tower cell and loss of life and did reach outward to uphold principle for that age, fully confident of my identity in God? Yet those who betrayed me within a few short years did leave the old familiar scenes for regions of nether nonsense. Truly, men who build in the holy will do build for eternity! Be wise, then, in the simplicity of God. Be content not to judge men but rather to inspire them to that coagency of marvelous reality: the will of God. Blest be the tie that firmly binds that holy link. For when men do otherwise, seeking in their own way to express the vagaries of the human will, a vain expression of whimsy and discontent is always the outcome. The will of God is not so, for it represents the original archetypal thought of God that identifies uniquely with the soul of the individual. Holding ties with universal man, it maintains its own personal vital unity. Like a refreshing breath of pine, the ideas of God fill the air with a raising hope that destroys the personal illusion while bestowing the real crown of Life upon victorious man. In heaven's name, men of earth, do you think the Most High God created life to manifest as history shows it? And what of contemporary struggles twixt church and state, race and race, class and class, and even man and man or man and woman? Does life seem so wonderful and the prospect of the future based on human trends so grand that you are fearful of submission to the will of the Eternal? I hope not, for in his will is comfort and strength for the ages as well as for today. The fiat "Not my will, but thine, be done"{93} was not intended as a statement of sacrifice but one of heavenly inspired wisdom. In the higher schools, this mantram of the Spirit is intoned invocatively so as to create the needed liaison between man and God. Whereas it is God's will that man intune with him, it is incumbent upon man to recognize that his responsibility demands search, willingness, and an understanding of the self-created barriers that must be taken down so that the clarity of the will of God can come through. The reason that the releases of the Brotherhood in the Pearls of Wisdom{94} are slanted to different levels of human thought and expression, offering invaluable advice to mankind, is so that these Jericho-like walls of opposition to your union with God's will can be broken down. Little keys unlock the biggest doors, and man must be ready to walk through and not stand hesitatingly upon the threshold. You will never know how indecision or vacillation can alter the mind to turn a deaf ear to the voice of God. That is why it was once wisely said, "He who hesitates is lost." Be ready mentally, spiritually, and emotionally by an act of simple devotion or a feeling of awe to accept the will of God as a gladiator would a laurel wreath. Eras of achievement lie ahead - the planning of great cities, civilizations, and humanitarian doings. But until the will of God becomes acceptable to men, until they can put aside their double-mindedness, they will remain unstable and fluctuating in their aims.{95} The terrors of their world exist first in their denial of God and secondly in their denial of his will. In order for the kingdom of God to manifest upon earth, it must first manifest in the heavenly consciousness. Let men think heaven and think God's will, let them deny the power of darkness and the light of holy knowledge will show science and religion the way to happiness through finite days to infinite aeons of bliss for all. Thus God ordained it, thus man must seek to know! O holy will, descend to earth we pray, El Morya [This text is the version published in the book, The Sacred Adventure.] ****** Chapter 13 El Morya - March 30, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 13 - El Morya - March 30, 1969 THE WILL OF GOD VI The Human Will To Our Very Dear Aspirants THE HUMAN WILL presupposes that it has the knowledge which it does not have. It bases most of its choices on human history and the observations of those whose own quality of observation is centered primarily around the physical and is seldom involved with the celestial. The human will identifies with the ego and seeks to support it in its passing aims. Men erect monuments to their vanities which endure in substance far beyond the tenure of their own times. But we are concerned with monuments of the Spirit. The will of God assures man that he will survive, for it is the will of God that those whom he has created should inherit his kingdom - but the rules of the game must be followed, for the law of God is inexorable in its demands for perfection. Humans, cast in the role of imperfection, have been willing to discount the possibility of their attaining that measure of perfection which stems from God realization. Let not your hearts be troubled, for with God all things are possible.{96} It is just as easy to serve the will of God - in fact it is far easier - than it is to serve the decaying will of man with its varying standards. The human will propels men to false aspirations at a dizzying rate of ascent and leaves them stranded without spiritual knowledge to plummet to their destruction. I would like to postulate, then, that the majority of men have no conception at all of what the will of God is, therefore they do not really know what they are opposing. The human will opposes the divine will because its aims are shortsighted. Men find it difficult to expand their thought beyond their days. They are prone to accept death as final and to identify with the physical form rather than with the spirit which gives it life.{97} That there is a very definite interest in the afterlife is witnessed by the large number of people who speculate on and profess to believe in survival after death. It might interest them to know that from the viewpoint of the Spirit, when man is born he is considered to have died. The reason for this is that spiritual substance possesses the quality of malleability, whereas on earth centuries are sometimes required even for the construction of a cathedral. For example, when men begin to build a large building they first complete the architectural design and then proceed to build the physical structure. But in spiritual realms men can actually create the blueprint of an idea in their minds and then release it into manifestation almost with the speed of light. Like some of your modern electronic computers, the sum appears upon the screen almost as fast as the keys are punched. There is a reason why manifestation in the lower octaves is slowed down. It is in order to give people an opportunity to dedicate themselves to higher values and to avoid the mistakes associated with haste. If carnal man were permitted to precipitate his will with the speed of light, the cruelty that would follow would be incomprehensible. Man's containment within a framework of natural law has provided a safety valve against the accidental destruction of all civilization. Wise men have thought upon this and they have conceded that with the present use of atomic energy, world destruction could become inevitable. Certainly, it behooves mankind en masse to understand the need to guard the educational channels of the world; for succeeding generations can easily have their attitudes altered, as they have had in the last three decades, to such a point that standards of morality and decency, upheld since man's emergence from the Dark Ages, will be trampled upon and lost. Whether or not a recovery can now be made quickly enough to preserve civilization is a problem for both man and God. Hereditary and environmental influences may be strong, but environmental influences can in a short time eradicate centuries of right living. Of course, I speak in a relative sense. Would it not be wise then for man, caught in the net of illusion, to examine the purposes of God, to know them, to understand and serve these mighty purposes in order to accelerate in his own personal evolution the divine plan and to foster the architecture of heaven for all mankind? The problem of absolutes is always at hand - absolute Evil and absolute Good. These conditions are so remote from the average person that their concern lies not in the absolute but in the relative. They are concerned not with the question "Is it a condition that manifests good or evil?" but when making a moral decision they ask, "Is it relatively good or evil by comparison to other conditions, and does it represent the best choice?" Understanding moral values, which are valid because they are based on truth, will help men to understand that their progress must come from their present state and move forward. Too many are obsessed with the idea of a utopian ideal which, because it is unobtainable, they use as an excuse for lowered standards. The law of the circle exacts its full toll: what men do unto others they receive unto themselves.{98} The way to success, to prosperity, and to happiness is to give happiness unto others. The simplicities of the Master's way have been made plain in the midst of a complex civilization. The pathway of the Spirit that is so childlike and sweet is in any age wondrous to live when verified by the Spirit of truth within oneself. Cultivate, then, the Spirit of truth.{99} Invite an honest analysis of situations. This will not require hours of your time when it is evoked out of an honest heart. The will of God that has already engraven his wisdom and love upon your heart will enable you to draw reasonable standards toward which you may reach. God will not seem so remote nor his will when men are able to envision it as an extension of their own consciousness from present standards to those that are still higher. But when men consider their own standards to be above the stars, then like an animalistic cult they grunt and groan, dance in circles, and dissipate their energies in vanity. We are concerned that the will of God come into fuller manifestation in the world of men. But in a relative sense, one man's idea of the will of God may be a far lower standard than it is for another. Men must realize that some have higher standards than others and that some can attain higher goals. Life is not meant to be filled with criticism and condemnation, but it is an opportunity to thwart the human ego which must ultimately reflect God if it is to endure. This is the real purpose of the existence of man: to reflect God and then to identify with the Real Image that is reflected within. To improve the quality of the reflecting mirror is essential; in this way consciousness itself, as a chalice, can be improved so as to contain, not only qualitatively but also quantitatively, more of the will of God. If individuals would just grasp the principle that the will has been hidden from them, that over the centuries they have seen only remote flashes reflected in the cup of life and that these flashes are responsible for all of the betterment of humanity, they will understand that the will of God is the panacea of healing for the world order as well as for the individual. Conversely, they will recognize that the will of man, tethered to no sense of the real but following its own darkened star, can never lead to the Promised Land or give man his freedom and permanent place in the universal scheme. From time to time, the Brotherhood releases buoyant ideas - sometimes simple, sometimes complex - into the minds of the students. These ideas are not always assimilated immediately. Albeit instant love is the will of God, it is not always the possibility of man. Therefore, these teachings on the will of God are given in order to re-create in consciousness certain engrams{100} that will enable you to accomplish effectively and by consent your release from the carnal mind and to replace it by the buoyancy of the mind of God. As a little Father, I remain in your service, El Morya [This text is the version published in the book, The Sacred Adventure.] ****** Chapter 14 El Morya - April 6, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 14 - El Morya - April 6, 1969 THE WILL OF GOD VII A Sacred Adventure Eternal Seekers IN THE BEGINNING God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."{101} It is to this point that we would return in order to reveal the tenderness of the eternal will, for the light shone in the darkness and the darkness comprehended it not.{102} It is, then, to comprehension that we dedicate our closing release in this series on the will of God. Thought is buoyant, but whose thought is more buoyant - man's or God's? If man thinks God's thoughts, are they ineffective because he is man? The affection of the will is its raison d'être. A will without affection is a nonentity. The natural affection of God for the creation is apparent within the creation, for the fire of creation is the affection of the will of God. The ability to affect Matter and Spirit simultaneously is the prerogative of the divine will which, in a lower harmonic range, is observed in part by evolving men. The laws of containment which govern time cycles and the enlargement of space involve the spreading apart of divine ideas from the center point unto the circumference of manifestation. The tenderness of divine love refuses to yield itself to a moment of sympathy; for such indulgence would deny immortal opportunities, and it is even questionable that it would satisfy temporary thirst. Yet the mercy of the law is functional and practical, and man is never deprived of grace by submission to the will of God. The grace that is sufficient for every day{103} is extracted from the universe by an act of will when that will concerns itself with glorifying God through outer manifestation and purpose. The will of man is not capable of expanding self or substance, but dedication to the supreme purpose invokes the will that moves mountains. Man can do the will of God without knowing it, but by being conscious of himself as a part of the will of God he is able to fulfill his destiny in a more sublime way. The talents and opportunities of life are given to man as stepping-stones toward spiritual achievement, and spiritual achievement is the only goal that is real, hence worthwhile. Eternal life can best be enjoyed spiritually, for "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God."{104} The form maker, who is the form breaker, can also be the form remaker. No loss can occur when one serves the eternal will, for the revelation of the will of God shows the seeker the abundant face of reality. One glimpse has been sufficient for many avatars who were thereby exalted out of the socket of contemporary worldliness into positions of universal service and love. The greatest boon comes to those who surrender willingly with or without understanding, but always in the confidence of a faith that observes the universe and its myriad wonders and grasps with the simplicity of a child the reality of universal science. Known by any name, God is still the Creator-Father of all life and his will bears the fashion of acceptance by all of the emissaries of heaven. Every active power by which the universe is sustained and managed in the light of cosmic justice comes forth from him, and every spirit that he has created returns to him. Each spirit is intended to be made like unto him, hence in his image. Any lesser dominion is the having of "other gods before me."{105} Therefore, the holy will appears as the fullness of the swaddling garment of the Divine Man, the Son of Righteousness, with which the children of the sun must be clothed. Stand now to release thyself from the darkness that is in thee{106} and face the luminous orb of the Central Sun from whence all creation sprang. Mindful of his will for good and of his power to extend that will, realize that he is able to extend thy consciousness from its present state - to pick it up, to exalt it, and to draw it into himself by the magnetism of his grace - here and now, prior to thy release from sense consciousness. Realize that he that keepeth all that is real{107} about thee, having received thee momentarily unto himself, is also able to return thee to the present moment unaffected adversely but mightily affected inwardly by a fuller measure of the understanding of his will. Realize that the will of God can best be known by a spiritual experience. Desire, then, that experience. Desire to reach outwardly toward the Godhead in the Great Central Sun galaxy. At the same time as thou art reaching inwardly to the implanting of the divine seed within thyself, it is the will to live within thyself that must unite with the will to live as God lives. This is the divine will within the heart of the Central Sun. This thou must understand and be united with. If this be accomplished but once consciously, thy life shall ever thereafter be affected by an innate knowing, recorded within, of that which is the will of God. The phantoms and the ghosts that formerly made thee a stranger at the court of heaven will no longer hold power over thee as they once did. But man's reunion with the Sun can only be accomplished by an act of God. It is a cosmic event which can occur in the world of the individual only when he has proven himself ready for it. I am a cosmic teacher, and I choose to appear to those who are able to see me with their spiritual eyes, to those who understand that my prime concern is the union of the heart of hearts within man with the Heart of Hearts within God. For me to provide descriptive passages of these wonders and to record them on paper would in no way compare to the glorious experience that can occur as you rise through the trackless air and far-flung reaches of space into a realization of the will of God that penetrates all substance and all nature. You must be able to go deeply within, for not in outer accoutrements of name or fame or even in worldly intellect does man find the keys that will transport him to these higher reaches. We caution that great care must be exercised in this matter, for truly we are not concerned with the developing in men and women of untutored or unguided psychic experience. We want this form of communion to be a rarity rather than a daily practice. It is something one should try no more often than once a year in just this manner, with the exception of those who have been mightily prepared by advanced training. For them there will unfold the necessary direction which will assist them in having vital experiences to guide them in their solar evolution. You must understand that the will of God is a sacred adventure. I have said it thusly for a reason, for the average individual considers an encounter with the will of God a remote possibility. He prays to have the will of God made known to him, but he does not understand that he can have an a priori glimpse of that will while yet in mortal form. He does not realize that the will that sees can also be seized, in part, as a treasure-house of consciousness and carried back into the domain of the life within. There the great lodestone of truth acts as a divine revelator to reveal to each man from deep within his own heart what the will of God really is. Above all, let him understand always that, complex and all-embracing though it may be, the will of God can always be reduced to the common denominator of love, life, and light. Forward we go together. I AM simply, your Morya [This text is the version published in the book, The Sacred Adventure.] ****** Chapter 15 Serapis Bey - April 13, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 15 - Serapis Bey - April 13, 1969 A New Order of Prophecy Begins To Those Who Love Truth, The hand of beauty is a disciplined one, for arch-magnificence is the geometrical achievement of a dedicated heart. There is in the world today a spirit of carelessness. We would replace it with the spirit of carefulness, for the Architects of the Spirit themselves have, in measured cadences, made their own novitiates in times past. Because of gross mortal misunderstanding and the deliberate machinations of the sons of darkness, there occurred a great distortion of Christian dogma as well as of all religious offerings. The logic behind this is apparent in the face of the destroyer who does not come manifesting destructivity, leaving that to his marplots; rather, he comes with the face of "an angel of light."{108} Thus, manipulation did distort dogma and the Eternal Father was portrayed as one who is a tyrant. The visiting of the sins of the fathers upon the children to the third or fourth generation is a partial statement of cosmic law; for at a later time the Eternal repudiated the concept as it had been interpreted in eras of less enlightenment. Let all perceive that the Scriptures must be rightly interpreted. When they are, the airy vaults of the lesser heavens recede from view and the Infinite appears more the Infinite, his opportunities more noble and grand, and smallness shrinks into its own shell.{109} From time to time, we come out of the vaults of cosmic innocence into the world to examine with the eye of cosmic justice the doings of mankind. This is a prerogative of the Karmic Board and one which is presently necessary. We long for the hour when the devotees, being altogether upon the Path, will number all among mankind. Then all things will be a matter of moving from glory unto glory, as the Spirit of the Lord literally propels men toward the destiny of immortality.{110} Without God realization and true happiness, what would be the meaning of life? The ego that is extinguished or blown out in nirvana is not the Real, for who can extinguish the eternal flame which is representative of all that God destined for man? The lesser ego is the mask of imperfection; it is the changing personality which must be transmuted from its base of unreality to the reality of the Divine Ego. Man, the manifestation, stands with awe awaiting the dawn of eternal purpose. One would think that the purposes of God, in all of their lofty majesty, would be clearly perceived by men and that there would be no need for wayshowers; but the moldering dust of centuries of deliberately darkening concepts has shrouded the glorious identity of man. "But for too long," we have often said, as we have longed to impart freedom unto all. Now in this time when the world has brought upon itself the seeds of great destruction and unrest, we set about fashioning in the hearts of the devotees a new order of the ages. Whilst the ashes of destruction eddy around a decaying society, the magnificent cosmic creation is already being blueprinted. And how glorious it is! It conceives not only of the current renovation of humanity, but also of a future time when every little child will at birth begin the process of initiation. In reality, Birth herself is an initiation, for it is in that moment when the breath of life is renewed that the Cosmic Mother begins the process of tutoring her children. When there is gross interference on the part of the old world order, it is always an attempt to stultify the vigor of the Spirit and to sunder the holy thread of contact between the realm of the immortals and those who tarry in the dusty world. We propose that the grand design of the Lord of the World be made known to many more potential disciples this year. While the lamentations of the prophets of doom would invoke a destruction that is already a matter of karmic record, we who understand the mysteries of the Spirit prepare for hours of courage and strength - for a time of building, not destroying. The struggle has waxed hot amongst the vainglorious apostles of orthodoxy who do not see how the Keystone was knocked out of the arch of reality. They suppose themselves to be doing God's service in their archaic meanderings. We condemn them not, but regret their decisive indecisiveness. It is fear of personal loss that provides the incentive for their rigor mortis. We encourage freedom from the vain ideas they have sought to implement. Watching while the world weeps and destroys herself, they sometimes even rejoice in the destruction. We, who come from immortal realms to give our all to all, rejoice only in the constructive spires that unfold the latent divinity of all men. The uninformed suppose that in our ancient record rooms, our vaults and depositories, we are concerned with outer treasure. They suppose us to be in league with the dark ones. They know not that they themselves are the victims of perpetrations from destructive astral realms. Now we begin, through the student body and through the principles of illumination, to knock the scales from the eyes of men{111} and to show forth as never before the inner esoteric processes whereby the living Christ is unfolded within each and every man. It is to the Spirit of Resurrection that we dedicate ourselves. For the Spirit of Resurrection is a living flame. It is a holy principle that brings to man a vital awareness of God in every living cell. Life tingles with anticipation and hope, and a renewal of faith in the potential of the individual is vouchsafed to everyone who accepts it. God is love and his love excludes only those who exclude themselves.{112} God is reality and his reality enfolds all who will thrust aside the unreality of the darkness. God is immortality and immortality springs forth out of mortality. Purpose is fulfilled, and the eyes are gladdened by a vision of the new day. The Brotherhood is one. It has many avenues but all are not united, as we would have them, with the Spirit of Unity. Now the fires of revelation descend and a new order of prophecy begins. It shall invoke the honest facing of truth by the individual soul. He must unfold because he sees, and he must see because he unfolds. Man is born of God; and to God he must return not as a recoil from life's opportunity but as a going forth that he may once again establish upon earth that kingdom of God for which every mystic and true spiritual seeker has always longed. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one God!{113} Regeneratively, I AM Serapis Bey ****** Chapter 16 Gautama Buddha - April 20, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 16 - Gautama Buddha - April 20, 1969 A Strengthening of Reality in the Present World Order Peace Be to the Earth: Each potential facet of the mind yearns to drink in the flame, the golden flame of illumination. The illumination of peace is the result of courageous action. Inward concealment of one's devotions from the prying eyes of the profane can well result in inward revealment of the living flame.{114} The flame of the resurrection is a unique contribution of God to each man and woman. Its exclusivity is discovered only when it is claimed by the individual; then he becomes unique as God intends, his life a significant contribution to one or more facets of the Divine Whole. As long as the world remains a place of turmoil and struggle, it might be supposed that out of this would be generated a recoil into higher realms. While this does occur in many cases, it is not always assured; for destructivity, violence, and hatred cannot give rise to love and peace. Students of the Great Law should understand that regardless of man's infamy, his error, and his wickedness, the Law of Love functions independently of human misfortune to establish temples of peace in the countless lives of those who pursue it diligently. The vileness of the world will remain as it is until it passes away through a change of consciousness. So long as any individual lingers in his cups of shame, so long will his world remain outside of the manifestation of the perfection of God. There is a tenderness in the heart of God that would rescue the most violent or hardened sinner, that seeks to save that which is lost, that expresses, perchance, even a greater love for that which is turned out of the way than for all of those who are walking the straightforward path. Those who are on the Path have the comfort of contact; those who are outside of the holy circle are the despairing ones, even when they acknowledge it not. Hence, the Spirit of Peace and Love, the Spirit of Perfection, goes forth into avenues of service to humanity, into government circles, labor movements, cultural endeavors, and teaching at all levels; above all, it invokes the establishment of true religion. Myopia is a strange disease. When men are convinced of their own superiority and of the superiority of the intellect, they too frequently ignore the mandates of reality. Today, greater understanding of the principles of life and truth, free from the distortions and unrests of mortal rebellion, is urgently needed. But, much of the world is seething in social unrest, jingoism, and religious competition, while competition between capitalism and communism is dragging the nations headlong toward destruction. Those who seek to save their lives{115} and to establish without God a perfect social order will soon find, one by one, that they have failed in their understanding of life's purposes; for the kingdom is not temporal, but eternal, and the life of man is not for just a few short years and then extinction. Attainment and service are advantageous, because they lead the way to eternal life when they are harnessed to the stars of cosmic law. The way of peace that we seek to establish is the way of men tilling the soil, planting and reaping - of men planting orchards and eating the fruit thereof. When the understanding of God is given to men as the Eternal Brotherhood intended, then all things are perceived not as they seem to be but as they are. And what a vast difference there is between the realities of eternal truth and the religious concepts that have acted as a solvent to dissolve all unity upon the planet through the centuries! Wars have been fought and incredible pain has been inflicted upon a humanity already scarred by the viciousness of past ages. The shedding of blood has been most unfortunate; for linked to it as cause is mankind's misunderstanding of the divine nature. There are times that we almost wish that men were without religion; then we could begin again to show them the first principles of cosmic law. It seems highly unlikely, in the next few decades, that we will be able either to establish a world order based on universal reality or to bring about peace on earth. But we will continue to try and to know that each devotee won for our cause shall invoke a strengthening of reality in the present world order. Those who serve the Eternal Light can rejoice in their labors, knowing that the fruit of God's service will ultimately bless and benefit even those yet unborn. The full meaning of life may never come to men upon this planet, for life is vast in its dimensions; but the Holy Child that emerges from within the individual through the initiatic processes and through devotion to divine truth shall bear fruit for the individual and the world order. I do not recommend excess concern for the reaping of spiritual rewards, but I prefer to advocate concern for the service that is presently being rendered, knowing as I do that service always generates its own reward and that without fail. Let us, then, put first things first and establish the kingdom upon earth because we have established it within ourselves.{116} The peace of the Lord Christ, the peace that he has to give, the peace that enabled him to have steadiness of courage in the face of adversity is yours even as it is mine. But we must advocate the seizing and the acceptance of this faith, the blazing forth of the flame of peace as a tangible reality of God's identity; for the nature of the Eternal God is peace, and when the turmoil of the world manifests, it is always with the intention of destroying Godly ideals and God-reality. No man can vanquish the Eternal, for the flame will always rise. No man can put out this light; for it will reestablish itself somewhere, sometime. Therefore, let us increase courage and the flow of service, not in order to break the servant of the light, but to make the servant of the light a point of principle in the eternal chain of cosmic identity, a link of holy hands descending from infinity into the finite. I AM your friend of light, Gautama Buddha (The Enlightened One) ****** Chapter 17 The Goddess of Liberty - April 27, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 17 - The Goddess of Liberty - April 27, 1969 They Cannot Extinguish the Flame Which Is Inextinguishable To the Patriots of Every Nation: America is more than a nation; she is an ideal. From her earliest conception to the present hour, the divine forces have sought to transfer the higher consciousness from the realm of the ideal to the realm of manifestation. This was done in order that America could exhibit to the world a master radiance after which the family of nations might pattern. The ascended masters have never been partial in their love of endowing man with cosmic grace. The Eternal God has desired that the whole family of nations should share jointly in the blessings which he would manifest upon the earth. America was a wilderness land; in selecting that land, God sought to produce a miracle framed as a new beginning in order that a beacon of hope might shine forth universal grace to every nation, buoying them up and removing the dust of the ages. The strength that has been the forte of America has been spiritual. The words "In God We Trust" engraven upon the coins of this land, the emblem of the Great Seal of the United States together with her constitution and sacred relics were dedicated as holy talismans to lock the benefits God intends to bestow upon the world into the hearts of the American people. The flame of patriotism that in past decades made the hearts of the people to beat faster at the sound of martial music and patriotic songs has always been a stimulus toward decency, order and charity. It is easy to see that the legacy of virtue, preserved within this great nation by the Eternal God for the whole world, has become the target of those enemies of righteousness who would extinguish the eternal flame. They do not know that they cannot extinguish the flame which is inextinguishable. But they try, as they have done, to hide it from view, to opaque its glory to the masses of mankind and the emerging young souls who come into life without awareness of their inheritance. The busyness of the age and the chaos it has generated have concealed the truth from the youth of the world by means of many clever methods. The dark powers of the land have given voice to violence and discord to arouse the demons in human nature and then to cloak them with the vestments of the Church. The living Christ in all of his glorious radiance, standing forth and saying unto the world, "Come unto me, all ye who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,"{117} is forgotten as men and women, under the malefic intent of the very denizens of the netherworld, open the doors of the great cathedrals to jazz masses and orgiastic activities. The educational systems of the world are promoting a godless atheism which brings forth only partial glimpses of the evolutionary process as though the part were the whole. Mass media have been invoked to report sensationalism and to deny voice to truth. Government, which was instituted to serve the basic needs of man, has been involved in interminable controversy. The forces of safety and protection, inherent within the very system and way of life that constitutes America, have had to be invoked against the people whom they should serve. And now the world is asked to witness with rejoicing the downfall of the greatness that the Eternal Father, through the founding fathers, brought into manifestation to be a cup of light and blessing to the world. We fan the fires of patriotism this spring. We fan the fires of allegiance to the eternal nation under God that serves only a world of divine unity, not a world of unity by force or violence. Past history records that whom the gods would destroy they first make mad.{118} We look, then, for an awakening on the part of the American people; we look to them to repudiate the voices of discord that masquerade as wolves in sheep's clothing{119} and plot the overthrow of a way of life that, while it may need correction in many ways, is still the highest and best that the centuries have produced in modern time. The words "God mend thine every flaw" (from "America the Beautiful") ought to be accepted by every American as a fiat that is intended to evoke personal and national introspection and a striving toward perfection. Criticism is a disease that does not produce the fruit of rightful striving. It is lawless and destructive in its base intent and drags down the soul of the individual who submits to it. Thus the admonishment "Judge not lest ye be judged"{120} went forth. We are aware of the fact that the godless societies criticize the flaws of those nations that are outside of their fold whom they would overpower. We understand their methods of boring from within, of hiding behind legitimate facades, and deceiving the people. We urge, then, in view of the awful plots that have been hatched to overthrow the forces of freedom in the world, that every lover of freedom will heed our warning in his prayers, in his contacts, and in the renewal of his faith. Jesus said long ago, "They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick."{121} The sickness of the nations must be healed, the shield of righteousness must be used, the sword of the Spirit must be employed, and every magnificent action that man can take must be taken for the preservation of right values. The proper education of the masses must be accelerated and the protection of freedom must be carried on to the fullest extent of the law. Armageddon is at hand. The forces of destruction, with their godless philosophy, and the sweet, spiritual powers of the world to come are locked in a deadly embrace. It is never a question of outcome, insofar as the power of right is concerned; but the battle can be lost in the realm of the individual - in the militant and vicious individual who, in the name of social justice, can excuse a conduct that tarnishes the image of justice and produces only the fruit of misery, never of order and peace. Knowing, therefore, that the little children who are incoming will be victims of man's dangerous defections from just action, we urge that this activity of light be expanded more and more. A strengthening of the bonds of devotion to the preservation of God's dream for America and the world is in order. For the ascended masters, in far-off retreats and far-off worlds, are watching as the struggles of mankind go on, hoping and calling forth an avalanche of light to awaken men before it is too late. Understand, then, O men of earth, that eternal vigilance is the price that you must pay if you are to preserve liberty upon the earth. Oh, act before it is too late! As a cosmic mother, I speak. Obediently yours, I AM The Goddess of Liberty ****** Chapter 18 Saint Germain - May 4, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 18 - Saint Germain - May 4, 1969 Freedom Is Freedom Only So Long As Men Are Vigilant Dear Preservers of Freedom, We of the ascended master councils regret the encroachment upon our time and yours of the problems involving the plight of the world, for the desires of our heart are to enhance the spiritual well-being and happiness of the students of the light; yet we have never flinched where right is concerned. We have always exposed, when we felt the time was right, those activities that place in jeopardy the highest values of human life, the values of freedom. The trends of human life have moved increasingly toward a gregariousness reminiscent of the days of ancient Babylon. These trends are understandable, when viewed as by-products of the scientific achievements of the age. For instance, advanced methods of communication have been employed to spread the message around the world that has involved men in a false sense of social reform as though the power of God himself were inadequate to bring the kingdom of God into manifestation upon earth. Let past history speak, then, of the defections that have occurred in the true religion brought forth by the Lord Christ two thousand years ago. Because of the enlightenment which his ministry brought to the masses of the people, it became necessary, on numerous occasions, for the dark powers to invade the Church in order to remove and color vital points of doctrine upon which hinged the very survival of the nations; cloaked in righteousness, they came forth to set up the triggers of unrighteousness that would later affect millions. Arming themselves with the weapons to exploit every weakness in human nature, they took advantage of man's trusting nature to the fullest. The treachery of the dark ones is not only reprehensible, but it is also inconceivable to the mind of the average individual. Because of the light of the sun that shines upon the just and the unjust{122} and the hope that springs forth eternal in the human breast,{123} we often find men and women to be naive when it comes to assessing the character of the enemies of righteousness. While they attribute a nonexistent virtue to those who are charged with subverting the entire human race, they are willing to attribute the darkest deeds to those who are sworn to universal service in God's name. Such upside-down tendencies found in human nature have not only made people susceptible to the darkness that opaques progress in this age, but also they have permitted science free rein even to the point of shaping the moral code, and truth is denied access to the council chambers of the gods of this world. If we did not see the divine intent from inner levels and the large number of souls whose hearts are like glistening pearls, hopefully radiating the banner of the new age, we might stand aghast at the monstrous activities of the dark ones and their methods of involving the earnest and sincere in their activities of worldly purpose. Surely, heaven has not wished upon men aught but the abundant life. Surely, in purveying a gospel of social perfection, men have not bequeathed happiness or eternal assurance to any; for the world reeks with turmoil both distant and near, and fear clouds many an honest heart. Deep within their hearts men and women know that something is wrong with the state of mortal life, that although God may be in his heaven, the world herself is not right. The long procession of human history follows a line marked by swordplay, militarism, and vicious maneuvering. Yet the honest of heart know that the time has not yet come, the juxtapositions of forces being what they are, that police forces and armies can be abolished, nor can national sovereignty be superseded by a world federation when all nations have not sworn to uphold freedom. We avow that there is a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip, that injustices creep among the children of men everywhere; but no nation has a premium on injustice, nor can anyone keep the peace without paying an honorable price. In heaven's name, freedom is freedom only so long as men are vigilant; but bondage is inevitable when the powers that enslave the human mind and person go unchallenged. Events in Czechoslovakia proclaimed loudly to the world the intent of a godless tyranny and a communal atheism where universal freedom is denied. But you cannot extinguish the flame of freedom in the hearts of all peoples. For freedom is their natural lot and an estate to which they will aspire even when it is denied them - more so then, perhaps, than ever before. We ask ourselves this question: Must the world fall into the depths of degrading bondage in order to evoke the honest patronage which freedom requires in order to survive? We hope not, for we have contact with many an individual who is enlightened as to the trends of the times. Many are aware of the fact that the masqueraders lurk behind their snobbish ploys, manipulating the moods of the carnal mind by the power of name and fame and substituting the decisions of their ridiculous councils for the wisdom of the ages that is the forte of the God-realized man. We are interested neither in instituting class struggles nor in standing idly by while the urgency of the dishonest strivings of the world is magnified out of all proportion. We seek instead to awaken the world with an understanding of the fact that it is mass ignorance that has permitted a take-over of human values and the promotion of that which denies God's freedom to the earth. There are many individuals who are with us in sentiment and belief, but they are not willing to enter the arena of action and to put their total energies on the line. To them I say, Wake up and realize that, perchance, for want of the nail not only the shoe but the whole battle may be lost!{124} We magnify freedom in the heart, but we would see its flame fanned into an activating principle. Men must understand that whereas past ages of history lacked the perfection of the Eternal, they also lacked the degradation of the present. The forces who aspire to world take-over know that they must first destroy the values of freedom. Thus they seek to permeate the arts, commerce, government, industry, and society as a whole with a crass materialism that, as many men have crudely said, is a dog-eat-dog philosophy. The church as a rallying point no longer exists; therefore we must, through our sacred orders, enlighten mankind as to how the presently existing compromises were enjoined. The forces of darkness would give the impression that they are in league with the forces of light. Otherwise, they could not promote the evil molds that they employ in their attempts to destroy the glorious image of God. In its place, they would make for the children of this age a graven image whose distortions evoke ambivalent attitudes which compromise truth in the minds of the people. I come not so much to chastise as to alert, for you are the avant-garde and the elect of this age upon whom we depend for the perpetuation of the flame of freedom. The Godly ideals of the ascended hosts have been a bulwark of strength to those who sought to express the glories of the kingdom even midst the narrowness of past ages. Because time flows, those who would preserve the present age must grasp the torch of the Spirit and ignite future ages by upholding the old principles and enhancing them with a renewal of the flame of freedom. Bathed in the fires of God's heart, these will seek, in regenerating themselves, to extend the borders of that regeneration to the whole wide world. The minutemen of the Spirit, like those at Lexington and Concord, must understand that the shot heard 'round the world and those that have begun all other wars can never guarantee to man peace or the perpetuation of those conditions which make for it. After the battle is won, there is the continuing need for open eyes, minds, and souls that breathe together with Galahad the statement "My strength is as the strength of ten, Because my heart is pure." {125} Free, then, from calumny and with the understanding of the need for honest hearts, may the Sons of Liberty remain active in holding the cup of light that is righteousness and justice for all. The honest heart will correctly assess the signs of the times and perceive the need to preserve for his brother those values that the dark ones would destroy. In the name of license and in a high din of confusion, they would motivate men selfishly while proclaiming that they seek justice for the world. Would to God these could understand the meaning of the phrase "tethered to reality," for that which is real is like a golden thread that has passed through the old civilizations and come down untarnished to the present time. There is always the need for a rephrasing of the old tenets of justice and equality. Freedom is greatly desired by men, and yet it is carelessly placed in the balance scales of ignorance and self-love. How men wish to be thought wise. How they enjoy the popular ideas, yet in their elections and predilections they trample again and again upon the robes of their own best interests. They are promised liberty by those who are themselves the servants of corruption.{126} These can never bring deliverance to the world, but only an excess of bondage. Stalwart men and women must determine that order will be kept in the educational systems of the world, that a purging will occur of those professed exponents of liberty who seek to bind the minds of youth to a concept of violent struggle. Those who would tear down their nation's flag and express disrespect to youth and age alike may need the chastening of the mace of righteousness. The only solution we can offer at this time is the invoking of divine power that will ultimately strengthen the minds and unity of the people. For the time must come when they shall overthrow the yoke and tyranny of their overlords who even now are planning the dethroning of the Constitution and the order that heaven has sought to extend as a banner of hope over this land and all lands. In God's name let us exalt Him! In God's name, let us win a breather for the forces of righteousness in this hour of peril, that the regrouping of the legions of light will not find brother fighting against brother, that they will not be divided on dogma or triviality but united in a common understanding of the phrase "imputation of righteousness." While it is true that the Lord chastens often those whom he loves,{127} it is also true that Virtue has her own reward,{128} that the trees only grow so high, and that the armor of righteousness must be worn even as the battle between light and darkness must be won and light triumph. Vigorously, I AM your Knight Commander, Saint Germain ****** Chapter 19 Amaryllis - May 11, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 19 - Amaryllis - May 11, 1969 The Mystery of the Cosmic Circle of Life Seekers of a Joyous Heart, In those landed areas of the earth where the four seasons flourish, the miraculous advent of spring brings to the waking hearts of men a sense of the renewal of life. But to those of us who are privileged to see from inner levels through the veil of manifestation, the wonder is increased. Man presupposes, in his limited frame of reference, that the programming that makes for perfect manifestation is inherent within substance itself. Little do men dream - that is, men who are wedded to material science - of the vast network of higher intelligences who function in magnificent consonance behind the screen of nature. But when they are apprised of the existence of the guardian spirits, they are able to have a greater appreciation of the so-called miracles of nature. Going beyond a mere acknowledgment of these higher intelligences, serving under the Divine Presence, they may enter into actual communion with the beings who are responsible for the riot of color and the tender expressions of abundance in verdant nature. Then they may learn to appreciate the science of nature which is even more exact than the scientists of this world dream. Little children, uninhibited by form concepts and hard dogmatic lines, are able to commune with nature in a manner that beggars description. They could not, if they were asked, tell the feelings that they have within their hearts as they wander barefoot on a dew-kissed field, as they fling their hands toward the lacy clouds and with consummate abandon cast aside all care in the wondrous awareness of life everywhere. For life is God; it is the surge of his presence, his creative pre-essence, his all-penetrating love. In the divinity schools where the knowledge of God is supposedly taught, the lines of dogma often give rise to conditions of argument between people who have been forbidden to have "other gods before me";{129} yet sadly enough such argument creates, above all, the Moloch of the human self in its anti-God manifestation. There is no god that is a greater enemy of truth than the god of the personal person, which is typified in the story of Moses and Pharaoh who hardened his heart against the children of Israel and then softened it because of the fear which came upon him.{130} Cast aside, then, this unwanted feeling - call it brittleness or fear, for they are the same - and enjoy the throbbing Presence of God in nature and Self. This Presence is your own, but it also belongs to all. You will find, in the surrender of the tiny self to the allness of God, a welling up of the feeling of universal brotherhood which is the hum of the universe: Om mani padme hum! {131} The flowering of the spiritual lotus portends the opening of the soul who yearns to drink in God and his compassion. This compassion manifests through the child of love, the child of nature, who sees in all of this reckless, wild abandon the order and sincerity of universal intelligence prescribing itself according to divine decree. Thou hast appointed the bounds of life - its limitations are created by thee. Nature is the servant of God and the servant of man. Nature is kindred to all that is lovely. And nature, when cherished and honored, produces all that is grand and noble. Nature unchained functions unnaturally in her raw estate. When the human will would bind her to the thralldom of the senses and have her believe the lie that God is dead, that life is simply a struggle between relative states of imperfection tumbling toward some semblance of social order, Nature rebels. By contrast, the boundlessness of the will of God and the great onrush of perfection with all of its buoyancy has that restraint of the Gods of Nature that was beautifully inspired by the Most High to stimulate order and perfection in all things. Therefore this year and every year, open the pores of the mind to the Godhead, to the stimulus of universal beauty, and to the acceptance of responsibility in whatever walk of life you have chosen. It cannot be that nature would ever become insensitive to the dicta of the universal Christ; and when the master said, "Peace" to the raging elements, "be still!"{132} it was the assertion of the Divine Presence within the Christ that spoke. It was the universal Presence that said, "Be still, and know that I AM God." {133} There is no desecration here; man, made in the divine image and restored to his divine image and likeness, can assert that divine dominion which was his original conferment: Take dominion over the earth and subdue it.{134} Here we see the simplicity of order. Man, made a little lower than the angels, is crowned with more glory and honor;{135} and the universal potential - which God has locked within every cell and atom of man's physical, emotional, mental, and memory identity - harks back to the moment in creation when all beauty and perfection in divine procession went forth to do God's will. I AM Amaryllis, the Goddess of Spring, a cohort of universal order and a representative of the cosmic hierarchy. Those who are not familiar with me as a person must understand that God intends to make each monad, each person, familiar to all persons.{136} For when the universal perfection of God is served as heaven designed it, each person is found to be the indispensable manifestation that has locked within its cellular identity the mystery of the cosmic Circle of Life. Every part of life blends with every other part, and the heaven of God possesses that magnificent outreach that excludes none but includes all. Those powers and forces that have allied themselves with the dark, they but contrast the power of the light to free man for immortality. In the messages of the flowers and the trees, men see aspiration reaching toward heaven; they see beauty flourish everywhere in glorious fulfillment. Why, then, should any man cast aside his divine birthright for sensuous living and the senseless struggle between egos - for criticism, gossip, human filth, and degradation - when the great continents of the air await the coming of the Higher Mind? For the mind of Christ communed of old with nature, and in his oneness with nature did he receive the power to control nature. Modern man and modern mystic, as they once again draw nigh unto God, will find the power of God drawing nigh unto them;{137} for the Holy Spirit will regenerate within them that unity which will enable them to feel and to be the harmonizing power of the natural order of all things. Nature herself cannot bear to deny a proper response to such as these. Therefore in taking Christ-dominion, in basking in the flame of the resurrection, in ascending in consciousness to folds of natural immortality, men obtain a release of the dominant power of God into their worlds. "Go, and do thou likewise."{138} Create a heavenly mind and fulfill the destiny of the saints and sages of all ages. Unity with God is unity with nature. Your sister of light and air, Amaryllis ****** Chapter 20 Kuan Yin - May 18, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 20 - Kuan Yin - May 18, 1969 Beginningness and Its Ultimate Perfectionment Is an Act of Mercy Precious Seekers for Understanding, Dual forms should be understood: that which is of the earth, earthy and that which is from above. Whereas the earth is necessary, it should be realized that the earth, that is to say, flesh and blood, cannot inherit the kingdom of God. {139} But the divine man from heaven, the divine image, the likeness of God, shall endure forever; for it has the blessed stamp of immortality. "The fashion of this world passeth away,"{140} and rightfully so; but in its passing it does not leave a void. When it has outlived its usefulness, its energies will be returned to the Universal; for that which comes forth from God must return to him. This rhythmic flow of energy to and from the Source of life is an activity of infinite mercy that, once understood by mankind, will enable him to live in comfort and harmony, knowing the indestructibility of the divine image which he may make his own. In truth, life is a road of opportunity; and when the purposes of life are correctly apprehended, the individual is able to gather along this road the sacred mysteries that enable him to form the divine image within himself. The living Christ is the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. {141} This Christ must be reconstructed in the hearts of all men. This Christ is the Saviour of the world. This Christ is the mercy flame that blazes within and creates those pulsations of consciousness that enable the individual to blend so perfectly with the Godhead that the Son and the Father become one. Through the years, in many lands and in many forms, these concepts have remained either partially or entirely hidden. Only within the individual's world can the fullness of the Divine Man stand forth, and how beautiful it is when the Divine Manchild rules the lives of those who embrace his image and likeness. The pure in heart shall see God,{142} for he shall appear. And when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.{143} This is a fiat that will help you to break the illusions of duality; then the Christ (whose Presence is magnetized wherever the fiat is spoken) will reveal to you the straightforwardness of the unity of God. At this point I desire to remind you that the the human tendency toward sympathy can become a maelstrom of destructivity which the powers of darkness use to draw men's energies downward. Empathies between people are such that individuals find it easy to picture themselves in almost any type of situation. When they read or hear of the unfortunate plights of others, they feel dreadfully sorry for them because they imagine how it would be if they, too, were to become involved in such a situation. Some even feel that their grief for another person may be an assistance to him. Perish the thought! Now the balm of truth must be applied to this whole matter, and in mercy's name we must strip it of its glamour (illusion). Those who are sympathetic to others often prevent them from learning the lessons that life intends to teach. Then again, sympathy pulls the sympathizer into the same vibratory action, the same human mess, as you would say, that the one with whom he is in sympathy is in - without ever raising the unfortunate soul out of his misery! Oh, there are moments of temporary assuagement of grief; there is comfort in having other people agree with you, even when you are wrong. But how much better it would be if individuals would learn to face themselves, to face life, and to live with reality rather than illusion. Infinitely, reality is God; finitely, reality may be anything that men imagine or accept. Sympathy involves judgment; for to sympathize with someone is to judge him as manifesting less than the Christ, and whatever quality one imputes to another he draws to himself. This is why the Lord Jesus often said, "Judge not lest ye be judged."{144} For it is in judging men without knowing the facts or having the power to enter into their minds and hearts that individuals create such frightful karmic action, and this misqualified energy always returns to them for redemption. When it does, they cannot understand why certain events transpire, why they are so rudely affected by their own returning karma. All too frequently, people do not see why the buffetings of life occur at all; and in their mortal musings they say, "Well, what is the purpose of the universe returning evil to men when they do not even understand the law of cause and effect?" Blessed ones, understand the soul. The soul has awareness of its own. The soul knows. And deep within the recesses of consciousness, the reason for all things is apparent to that blessed emerging Identity that comes forth from chrysalis into manifestation. One day with God is as a thousand years and a thousand years is as one day.{145} The power of the soul to compress and to expand the consciousness of time is the means whereby the divine outreach is served in teaching the inner man to know what is right and what is wrong. There are not only dualities of manifestation in man, but there are also sheaths of manifestation within his world. These were designed to hold the light within the aura, but unfortunately over the centuries during many embodiments they have been filled with human creation - layer upon layer. Like encrustations of sedimentary rock, these layers encase the God flame within the heart of man, preventing the expansion of the light within his world. A spring cleaning is in order! The vessels of soul consciousness require ultimate transmutation as an act of mercy which will free them from banal records and man's release of undesirable vibratory actions. How the divine flame longs to transmit the purity of itself to each sheath in order that the whole electronic circle of man might become a God-kissed chalice of Christed concepts! This it will do instantaneously in answer to the decrees of the aspirant which must be given in the name of God, I AM, and in the name of the Christ. Time is both healer and teacher; and the mercy of time often affords individuals, as an act of grace, freedom from intensification when the human self cannot quite bear the pressures of the divine flame that acts from within and the karma that molds and shapes the soul from without. But how beautiful is mercy when it is understood! How marvelous is life when it is comprehended! Therefore, men should look toward the endless beginning of the divine life rather than toward those moments of anxiety when things do not seem to be quite as they should. Oh, we recognize full well that temporal spans are often filled with dire forebodings and fears. But if you will realize that the perfect love of God that sees beyond the years is directing and perfecting life, you will perceive that your attunement with that precious Presence and your own beloved Christ Self will make a new man or woman out of you. And this is as God intended it from the beginning. The sending forth of the sun radiance of the Solar Man, of the Solar Christ, of the universal or only begotten Son, was intended for the glorification of all manifestation. By him were all things made and without him was nothing made that was made.{146} Therefore, the beginningness of God was an act of mercy; and the end of suffering and pain, together with the acceptance of the mantle of perfection, will also be an act of mercy. In truth, all that occurs between the lines of that manifestation of beginningness and its ultimate perfectionment is also an act of mercy when it is rightly understood. Nothing that happens in this world, because of its temporal nature, need cause undue concern to anyone. Whether it be life or death, sorrow or joy, man's nonattachment to circumstance and his complete adoration of the purposes of God will free him forever for that immortality which is hid with Christ in God. {147} Won't you understand, then, why sympathy is a pit of delusion and compassion is born of understanding? Be compassionate to one another and extend the balm of grace to yourselves in order that the glories of the kingdom may shine through your countenances, through your minds, and through the joy of God that is within you, one and all. What matters it that human opinion may attempt to invalidate you? Each day, each hour, God is validating and reaffirming the implantation of his seed within the garden of your heart. That mercy may flourish in all, I remain Kuan Yin The Goddess of Mercy ****** Chapter 21 Casimir Poseidon - May 25, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 21 - Casimir Poseidon - May 25, 1969 Psychic Predictions and the Prophecy of God To All Who Would Cast Out Fear by Love: The love, wisdom, and power of the Brotherhood, patterned after the image of God, bodes no harm to the earth or to its people. Our every wish is for the unfoldment of natural spiritual grace to the world and for the imparting of a permanent golden age to mankind. The karmic wheels that turn are of varying sizes. They orbit the world of the individual, the family, the business enterprise, the community, the state, and the nation. Islands and continents come under their domain, and the undergirdings of the earth, according to the natural order, have their own juxtaposition of forces held in abeyance and hopefully controlled, thus making possible a peaceful lifetime for humanity over the landed area of the earth. Few understand the correct use of prophecy. Few understand that prophecy in the hands of unspiritual people, whose egos are fattened by the fulfillment of their predictions, can and does under certain circumstances produce the very conditions that have been predicted. Many of the psychics of the world, out of hearts filled with frustrations and subtle hatreds toward humanity, have predicted awful cataclysmic action upon the earth; but some who have foreseen difficulties are true prophets of God. Therefore, we wish to examine for you some of the motives that are involved in prophecy. Those who gloat over wholesale and wanton destruction, wreaked upon lands and peoples, may one day find themselves in a position where they will reap that which they have sown. Meanwhile the Brotherhood of light, fully aware of the massive psychic attacks that are being leveled against the stability of the earth and its peoples, continues to pour the tenderness of watchful care and salvation to humanity from the hands of the Cosmic Christ. Because of the conditions of mankind's karma, we are not always able to prevent destruction from taking place. It should also be understood that all destruction is not physical; one must consider the destruction of ideals and religious and moral covenants to be even more dangerous to civilization than wars and rumors of wars.{148} Those who seek to destroy the codes and systems of the world that have evolved out of the dark ages of human history, from the old Babylonian Code, the Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule, the Code of Hammurabi, the Magna Carta, the Constitution of the United States, and other instruments of Liberty - these would offer the world, in return for its imperfect state, one of nihilism and chaos; they are not the bearers of beauty and happiness to mankind or to themselves, but they are the harbingers of havoc whose name is Legion.{149} Let me say - and my statements are not based on the bitterness of condemnation, but they are born out of cosmic accuracy and universal records - that once life is understood as purposed by God to convey to each lifestream the wonders of its own internal security in the divine system, in the order of universal beauty and perfection, then to live life to its fullest becomes the goal of individual man for himself and for his world. Concerning matters in California and elsewhere where destruction has been predicted, we wish to emphasize that even when the Brotherhood itself has recognized the threat of danger to certain areas, we have set about to do all in our power to prevent harm before it occurs. It is never the will of God to bring the terror of falling buildings, death, and desolation to little children, young mothers, or the aged and unfeebled. It is God's will that life should be fulfilling and beautiful. There are those who say that mankind, through their karmic violations, have brought disintegration upon themselves. While this may be true, we emphasize the fact that spiritual destruction through personal involvement in negative aspects of the psyche whereby the individual ignores the mandates of his Divine Presence and the fulfillment of the will of God for him - thereby placing in jeopardy the very existence of his soul - is far worse than the destruction of the outer world. The scriptures have said, "Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."{150} God's law as justice is operative at every level of consciousness, for he is both law and love. Seeing that the love nature of the Father is aware of the fall of the sparrow, it should be understandable that, above all, he wishes to prevent his children from becoming involved in selfishly motivated predictions that stem from personal frustration and unhappiness or grudges against the world.{151} Individual life is what men make of it. And whereas through ignorance and misunderstanding they often fall into delusions concerning one another and cast blame upon the holy innocents, we are confident that you will understand that this is never the will of God. In the case of Attila the Hun, who was called "the scourge of God," we find that his deeds were wholly malignant and in all things he was most superstitious; falling back before the cross, his end came shortly.{152} Yet regardless of the perpetrations of the deluded ones, the world has advanced through the years and continues to move forward toward greater enlightenment. The order of science has reached forward in giant strides while religion has fallen backward, lagging still in medieval superstitions, in old encrusted hatreds, and in diabolical involvements of horror, fear, and greed. To condemn the world does not prepare it for salvation of any kind. The real example of benign power is to be simply the Christ. This is to show the world the meaning of hope in the renewal of all men who can do likewise. Let men learn, then, to do well;{153} and let them not accept the stimulus of a wounded ego as the motive or excuse for creating chaos and destruction. Truly, there are those who would destroy the earth because they are contemptuous of life itself, and they resent the blows that have been dealt them. They do not understand the balance of cosmic law that clearly sayeth, "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."{154} If they would look within themselves first and thence upward to their Presence - to the Presence of God that uniquely belongs to them, the spark of their own happiness - they would find that the means of salvation lie within the domain of the life that beats their own hearts. And when the sparkling jewellike radiance of the Cosmic Ego, the spiritual man, stands forth in his blazing identity to be seen as the reality of their own selves, as the truth that lives within them, they will begin to pour forth universal love in such paeans of praise to God for the gift of life as to receive, over strong cables of light, the wisdom that will guide their every act. And as in the matter of Jason and the Golden Fleece, they will begin to pursue their goals with cosmic diligence. We await the era of the builders, of those who strive to build up their own and others' characters, of those who honor God and country, who understand the meaning of forging links of spiritual strength, who perceive the way of blessing, rather than spoiling. Long ago the Father said, "Woe unto those who spread malice between brethren." Truly, our duty is to spread harmony, joy, and cosmic effort. Let us unleash, then, the power of the young sapling of truth. Let us plant a tree, build a house, sanctify a life, cleanse a leper, or even raise the dead if our faith be great enough. Above all, let us institute constructivism for the world and ignore those prophecies that are born of fear, for they have torment.{155} On the other hand, let men not ignore God; for he is the hope of the earth, and his goodness, spread abroad in the lives of countless millions, will enable the fulfillment of these prophecies of beauty to occur. Let men predict beautiful things. Let them dwell in the tents of the Lord who is the goodly Tentmaker. He spreadeth his canopy over the whole earth, and he filleth the consciousness with good things. How rich is his bounty, and how mighty are his judgments. Truly, men should trust in him. Thus we shall forestall those catastrophic manifestations that are born of human consciousness and conduct.{156} Faithfully, in his cause, I remain Casimir Poseidon ****** Chapter 22 God Meru - June 1, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 22 - God Meru - June 1, 1969 Let Parents Act As Guardians of Education and of the Coming Age Men of Vision: At a time in the history of man when communication has expanded to fantastic dimensions, the need for restraint in all things becomes more apparent every day. Media uncontrolled, catching the ears of youth, could easily turn the world upside down; but rightfully employed to transmit values, convey ethics, and create a new climate of living, the media could become the purveyors of universal grace and order to humanity. Men ought to live not only for the present but also for the future rewards that present efforts bring; not only should they build for the limited span of mortal life, but also should they consider laying stones in the temple of eternal being. For both longevity and a new sense of the magnitude of beauty are conveyed to men's lives when they seek to become links in universal grace, receiving and transmitting the torch of freedom to each succeeding generation in a wholesome manner. Where the titillation of the senses is the sole object of individual life expressions, the instruments of bribe, blackmail, and fear of personal destruction are ever at hand. But when the great winds of freedom that fan the threshing floors of the Almighty flow untrammeled through the universe and are allowed to reign unchecked by human pride, they can elevate an age to new heights of achievement. Love of humanity, rightly understood, is love of God; for whatsoever you do unto the least of these, the brethren of God, the created sons made also in his divine image, you do unto him.{157} There are many in the religious world who would cast aside the water of life{158} because the tin cup in which it is conveyed does not flatter their egos. Others see the water of life and the chalice of its conveyance as a Holy Grail. It matters not to them what frail form or ungainly hands may pass that cup. Their concern is that harmony, love, beauty, and happiness be the inheritance of their posterity. To this end, patriots and leaders of the past have fanned the flame of love in myriad hearts; but the opposition has also had many adherents and these, too, have made their mark, infamous though it be, upon the pages of history. Now we urge all men everywhere to consider education anew, not from the standpoint of buildings or laboratories but from the standpoint of a curriculum that will not only include avant-garde ideas but that will also treasure the traditions that must not and dare not be cast aside. Personal liberty as well as the liberty of nations is important; and the freedom to worship God according to the dictates of one's conscience must be preserved at all costs, for it enables men to continue in their search for divine understanding and in their probing of the mysteries of the universe. What does it profit a man if he gains the world and loses his soul?{159} If an instrument that is intended to convey grace fall into the hands of traitors, shall these traitors be permitted to destroy the instrument? Let mothers and fathers the world around, whether or not they have availed themselves of the fullness of higher education, investigate the infiltration in the universities and school systems of the world by those who deny God and proclaim science as the accredited king, by those who have no real values of their own but would wantonly destroy those that have been established by other men. Let men stand guard over the school systems of their nations; for succeeding generations will either be turned out as regents of order and discipline, respecting age and youth alike and welcoming the opportunities of life to extend the balm of peace and peaceful pursuit to all men, or they will espouse the violent destruction of those values their fathers held dear. These are days when men dare not cast their eyes to the ground and say, "I cannot look." They dare not say, "I will not become involved." For whether you will or no, the onrush of the age will inundate the passions of all souls. The choice that is yours is whether you will become builders of universal harmony and peace or destroyers, in the name of temporary peace, of those values which the terrorists and dissenters of the world would sweep down en masse.{160} Education is necessary to humanity; but all that has been done in the past of moral value and of universal ethic, all that has been created to perpetuate order and grace must be upheld. The Christlike values that have made all nations great must be rekindled where the flame has gone out, and they must be fanned into renewed activity in the great forges of life. Enduring happiness cannot be conveyed to flesh and blood as a temporal measure, for happiness is derived from eternal levels of value. Western man, tutored by angels of darkness who come to him in the name of God, has sought to destroy those who proclaimed the truth of reembodiment. They have said that it was against Christian tradition, but they were not present at the council of the Christ which he held privately with his disciples. They were not there when he spoke to them who had been with him of old, the Holy Twelve who were the sons of Jacob when he himself was Joseph, "the idle dreamer," with his coat of many colors.{161}> Once again he gathered them around himself,{162} and the seamless garment he wore was a swaddling garment of light in manifestation that drew them as a star-magnet to his heart. The mysteries of God are immense, and those who are prone to condemn quickly the "false allegiance" of men of the Spirit whose vision exceeds their own should reexamine their own hearts according to the divine idea. "I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. ... Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist."{163} The reembodiment of the prophet Elijah in the person of John the Baptist was a salient example, one out of many in the holy circle of lives dedicated to the salvation of a planet.{164} Let men be apprised that there are more things in heaven and earth that are unknown to them than most of them have dreamed of.{165} Let them open the eyes of the soul to God and in loving care consider the proper education of their children. Certainly they should not be taught atheism and tyranny; certainly this will produce the whirlwind destruction{166} of the very school systems that were instituted to educate them aright. Remember that there are evil men in league with the dark powers and destructive forces of the world who would bring this planet under the domination of the red dragon.{167} They know that the destruction of God, of his name and his power, is essential to their purposes. They are aware of the fact that in order for the state to rule supreme, they must destroy in the minds of the people all invisible images and allegiances. Let us, then, ask that men of vision, like Gideon of old, shall cast down Baal's altar and build instead an altar to the living God.{168} Let their hearts be that altar, and let the indwelling of universal awareness and universal mysticism be the star of their search. And to those who are in the front lines I say, let alert parents everywhere act as guardians of the coming age. You dare not be careless, for the Lord from heaven watcheth. "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it" {169} is a proverb that lingereth in the universal conscience. Awake before it is too late, O humanity! and let all unite in doing their lot that we may prepare for the universities of the Spirit which we would construct upon this earth so that the golden age may live. Fervently, I AM Meru Lake Titicaca, South America ****** Chapter 23 El Morya - June 8, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 23 - El Morya - June 8, 1969 To Have the Wisdom of Serpents While Maintaining the Harmless Flight of the Doves To the Wisdom Neophytes: The flow of thought into the arena of action may be swift or slow, but in either case destiny is mediated. The individual sense of being cast aside, subject to the whims of the elements of primeval force and human consciousness, should be denied by the ascending valor of hope. Let men learn to hope on the grand scale. They need not be lacking in discernment, as self-deceivers who stumble into pits of delusion; for the story of the men who held their shields on one arm while drinking with the other{170} typifies mankind's dual need to have the wisdom of serpents while maintaining the harmless flight of the doves.{171} The little bird of hope will gather his companions when he is fed by hands of love. The sign of the cross in the sky, invoked by Saint Francis, was the communion of the inner being, the microcosm of his consciousness, with the Macrocosm, the outer world of natural order. We are summoning the elect. We call to those who see the world need and who understand the lineup of forces which are bent upon the destruction of order in society and of those guidance systems that of old were framed by wise men. We have heard the calls of the students in search of themselves, and we are preparing mighty answers this very summer. You know, beloved ones, there is an allegorical summerland of universal love, a haven of refuge from the shadows of mortal thought and feeling, a place where the hand of God can radiate the mystical sweetness of his communion with his servant-sons. We see how the old Atlantean rebels, with their dark red fires and their fuming smoke, move to obscure the face of reality and we are determined to bring forth the clearness of the crystal stream of divine truth! Using the hand of divine decree, we will cut out the diamond of the will of God for man. Each one has a plan, Each one is a man - Of God-intended, God-defended Beauty in manifestation. Roll back the dark clouds of illusion And the dust, blown by an ill wind of confusion! Set forth the straight path, the straight knowledge Before the vanguard of victory That marshals brotherhood on earth! Ours is not a game, but a victory factory! Here we manufacture the substance of perpetual progress not in name only, sons of heaven, but in the fulfillment of the Father's business{172} do we seek the capture of hearts who will respond to the vibration of beautiful destiny. In response to your calls, we have struck blows in the name of God for righteousness and justice upon earth. Those who have eyes to see and ears to hear will realize that from the beginning we were winning, as I told you long ago. Even now behind the obscuring screens, you can see evidence of the seeds of victory we have sown, coming up with shoots of hope. Yet we dare not cease the vigil or engage in a release of such tranquillity as we would desire to do. Rather must we, as captains of the Lord's hosts, keep men on the qui vive lest they be caught in unwariness. Each time that I am wont to spin a tapestry of the beauty of the will of God and of the wonders of his unfolding plan, I am also aware of the forces of opposition that manifest as doubt and unbelief in human hearts. These must be dealt with forthrightly, for too frequently they cause men to take the gravitational route that shatters bone and spirit. But I cannot resist telling you that the strands of hope are beaming from the high tower of God's reality, that the showing of his magnificence, his coming wavelike in ever-ascending levels of the reality of his musing, is emanating through the universe the pulsations of God and Christ-reality - the reality of the Father and the Son. These pulsations touch the heart, and the auric field is increased. But oh, how the angels pray that men will shed their willful ways of human thought and feeling so that transmutation can prepare them for the higher way, so that the light that is in them and the light that is given never becomes darkness! Hold the hand of the thread of light that pierces the gloom, and never let it go; for the joy of song, the laughter of the overcomer, and the sweetness of the face of God await the solitary climber who can unravel the skeins of destiny that are his in a universe whose vastness defies comprehension. Let us be about the business of knowing by right action! When we consider the many releases of our love that we have given, when we contrast these with the momentary, ever-present pulsations of God's grace and then combine them as one in the sweet humility of being, we see clearly that men are surrounded with breathing reality, that God lives in the universe and in them, that God lives in nature and everywhere, and that it is only a lack of perception that produces the distortion ring on which the dark ones circle. They are as mischief-makers at a carnival, whereas the servant-son climbs the stairways to the stars. He is a cosmic astronaut! Requiring no material vehicle for his penetrations, he soars in the oneness of universal reality and then returns to the vessel of responsibility where he can perform his good works in God's name right where he is. Be clothed, then, with the garments of true humility and hold the chaste mind of a being of Love. Be not discouraged by the vibrations that come from old weavings of imperfection that return to you for redemption. Touch them with fingers of light that make your hand to be the hand of God. Take dominion over the earth,{173}> as He said, and with a sunburst of magnificent light disperse the veils that seek to enshroud thee! What you give unto yourself, you can give in larger measure unto others. For in the dark, the hand of God is a touchstone that glows 'gainst the velvet curtain of night as a splendid new star. He has made the day and the night, he has made the greatest light to light the day. This is no reflected reality; it is the clear crystal of hope, the pertinent diamond that every bringer of victory must wear. Bring victory to yourself! It is the will of God. Flick off the passions of the dust, and replace them with the passions of the Spirit! These are the cords that bind the heart by its own response, that make the heart to cry, "Welcome, O God, I bid thee come!" These ties of immortal love do not repel you from God or man, but they draw you closer to the hour when you can understand the mission of individuality and perceive that within you is a jewel to be cherished, to be polished, to be balanced, and to be shared with all the universe. This is no Pollyanna dream, no impractical idealism. It is the poetry of action that speaks of the wedding garment of the Lamb, it speaks of an invitation to all men to commune with the King of kings and the Lord of lords. It tells the story of the centuries on the altars of Atlantis, in the temples of Lemuria, and in the swinging censers of the Medes' and Parsis' fiery altars. You hear it in the quiet of a Buddhic meditation and in the cry of the majestic Son upon the Nazarene hillside: "Come unto me, all ye who labour" and it bids the whole world enter into the rest of spiritual faith.{174} This rest of action is the continual will of God. In his name, I remain El Morya ****** Chapter 24 Mother Mary - June 15, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 24 - Mother Mary - June 15, 1969 Something Must Be Done Friends of God's Heart: Outcries from the inmost being of men rise to solicit our aid. We cannot fail to respond. Everywhere tumult causes the hearts of men to shudder. And in the face of nature's sun, where hope should radiate its burning message, the numbing chill of fear reveals the deepening dark in the world community. While the seams have been torn again and again by human selfishness and inconsideration, we have again and again mended the rents. The yawning gap between ministering heavenly hands such as I recently offered in Cairo, Egypt, and the petty grievances that men amplify seems to be an almost uncrossable abyss. Yet men cry out. And we, in our councils, debate the answer. Certainly something must be done. Things cannot continue as they are in the world order, else undesirable dissolution occur and the forces of nature radically effect man's defection from universal purpose. The magnanimity of one heart, such as that of my son Jesus, can for two thousand years and longer sustain the heartbeat of a Christlike momentum to the planet. Countless sages have echoed and reechoed his message. They have seen how the clever machinations of Antichrist have sought on a world scale the destruction of the mainstream of God-identity in every man. The cutting off of belief in God in the schools and colleges of the world by those who proclaim a militant atheism has torn from the minds of the young the one sublime hope that would have sustained them throughout life. Mothers all over the world vary in their understanding of their children. Some offer them a prayer, whereas others give them a cigarette. This gamut from the sublime to the ridiculous is only a sample of life as it is currently manifesting. Beautiful hope, revealed in the magnificence and ruggedness of nature, speaks to man of the sculpturing of his identity according to the plan of the Eternal Father. But first we must restore to the people of this age a correct understanding of the inner flames of their own real beings, the divine spark of life that is the gift of God to every man. This seemingly simple matter of recognizing the God who lives in every man must be included in the most complex patterns of civilized living, but because this truth is obvious it is overlooked even by the devotee of years' standing. Well might men say, "Open my eyes that I may see." For the breathing of this prayer, by reason of its humility, keeps the soul on guard against the choking weeds of delusion and all that would equate mankind with a world scheme in which they lose their identity as instruments of the state. What is one of the major plots of the Antichrist in the world today? It is the downgrading of human life, the downgrading of human opportunity, the downgrading of the soul. For if men can be made to feel that they are creatures of worthlessness, they will not be overly concerned when they cast their lives and opportunities away. Their pleasure madness is not so much a result of inordinate desires, then, as it is the result of a failure to perceive a sense of mission for themselves. I have recently sat at the Darjeeling Council table with my son Jesus, Master El Morya, beloved Kuthumi,{175} and a host of others whose every concern is for the welfare of the children of this planet. The plots of the Antichrist and the disturbing conditions of the world were discussed. Strange as it may seem to some among mankind who believe that heaven holds in hand a separate solution to every human problem, we realize full well that the solution was given "in the beginning." Our task is but to tutor men and to develop in them that self-reliance which will enable them to seize and reestablish dominion over their worlds according to that original and perfect solution which was affirmed of old by the universal Christ. Mindful, then, of the need for greater commitment on the part of all who seek to serve the cause of guiding a distraught and straying humanity, we urge every son of heaven to persevere continually in prayer and attunement with the higher octaves of life. Just as no angel or deva in heaven is insignificant, so no soul upon earth is bereft of meaning. All are loved, and in that love of God for the lost and straying sheep there is hope also for those who are closely following in the footsteps of the Good Shepherd. All should perceive their great need to maintain contact with us - in thought, in word, and in deed. For in the reading and contemplation of our words, there is to be found the inspiration for daily good deeds. Thus through Christ-ordained activity, the body of God upon earth is knit together into one salutary action that produces the fruit of rightful strivings among men; for the crown is ever raised above the cross, and achievement stems from many small victories. All these matters and many more were discussed at our recent council meeting; for we ourselves, who identify so much with the Word, with the Logos, maintain a steadfast communication with one another and with our blessed Divine Presence, the Eternal Father. Born from the council's recent sessions were many fervent ideas for the illumination of mankind. Human ignorance, by reason of its contrast to divine truth, seems more virulent than ever; for the intellect of man has become a two-edged sword to drive him from the Eden that he seeks and the knowledge that heaven would convey. The statement was made by one of the wisest of the masters that man's ignorance of himself is greater than his ignorance of the world around him. In this twentieth century, the average person knows far more about nature and nature's processes than he knows about his own psyche. Therefore, the idea was born that some treatment of the subject of the consciousness and being of man should be given in the Pearls of Wisdom in a forthcoming series. This would prove an invaluable aid to men of every race and creed, and it would provide insight so badly needed to people in all walks of life. The valiant combination of the instruction of the World Teacher Kuthumi, released from his beautiful temple in Kashmir, India, the meditations of beloved Lord Lanto, given from the retreat in the Grand Teton, and commentaries on the age directed by the beloved God Meru from the Temple of Illumination in South America will, I am certain, bring forth a splendid series born out of the wisdom of God that is calculated to assist individual man in finding his place in the divine scheme. The series will also help him to understand the juxtaposition of forces that seek his doom and show him how he might better carry on a service to himself and to all life. Living free from fear and in a constant state of listening grace, man is able to spread the message of the divine radiance far and wide. Hopefully and by the grace of God, he is able to penetrate the facade of this age, the strange front of mortal illusion. Then there will be revealed before his very eyes, in a new and vitalizing manner, the hand of the Eternal as he extends that hand through us all to redeem the world order and to call forth from among men the coming race. Victoriously, for the freedom of every manchild, I remain Your Cosmic Mother Mary ****** Chapter 25 Kuthumi - June 22, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 25 - Kuthumi - June 22, 1969 Understanding Yourself 1 Consciousness Is the Doorway to Reality To All Who Would Know Themselves: Self is interwoven with consciousness, and consciousness is the doorway to reality. In an impure state, consciousness puts out the light; in a pure state, it radiates light. The admonishment "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven"{176} is both blessing and reproof - a blessing to those who follow it and a reproof to those who do it not. But the purposes of life are not to reprove; they are to cultivate qualities of reality. The appearance world is a world of illusion. Yet it seems real, and to some even the idiosyncrasies of the human personality take on a form of reality. Our subject, understanding yourself, is a broad one. We would softly yet skillfully pull the thread of man's consciousness through the eye that opens into the world of crystal clarity. From the standpoint of the human, how sad it is that illusions must be shattered. But we deem it far wiser and less painful to shatter them by the skillful use of spiritual discernment than to have them broken by the impact of the higher law as the law brings to the doorstep of each man a return of the energies he has sent out. Let us journey through the night of human reason. As we pass through the undergrowth of the wilderness, suddenly a light appears! 'Tis a light set upon a hill.{177} An old castle is perceived dimly through the mist, yet the feeble beam by contrast is a glowing filament of hope. Someone is there. Someone lives whose consciousness will smile with joy at our approach. The hope the heart holds to hear the word "friend" is very great. We approach with some degree of caution yet with the awareness that all may be well and that a warm reception can be anticipated. And so we come first to the golden rule "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"{178} and we hold in our hands the chain of affinities that links many embodiments to the present one. Many times the skeins of recognition have been unraveled in a momentary thread of contact. A touch long forgotten sparks a human relationship as souls contact the bitter and the sweet of passing experience. Place this motif against the light in the castle window and realize how men search the past in their longing for a good reception, for friendship, for decency, and for a sense of belonging. Ask yourself, Can the eternal Creator create without the hopeful thought of spiritual unity? Should unity be only spiritual or should it also enter into human affairs? Wherever the flame of life blazes, whoever is made conscious of the fact that he exists holds awareness of the unusual as well as the natural qualities of life. Sometimes these qualities change - the natural takes on the aspect of the unusual whereas the unusual may swing to the natural. We would point out that there is never an excuse, regardless of what men may do unto you, for your returning in kind an act of evil. At the same time we point out that this does not preclude the possibility of the individual, in the divine dignity of his being, avoiding subservience to human nonsense. Therefore, out of dignity and Christ awareness men can spread the balm of forgiveness to everyone they meet without becoming a victim of men's vicious energies. It is our intention to contribute to all who would follow in the footsteps of the masters the wisdom of God that does not mock man's efforts to emulate his Creator. We convey hope and the thread of contact. We convey a sense of unity with the Brotherhood, but we alert everyone to the great need for the construction of nobility of character in imitation of the Divine. Let all, then, learn the lesson of loving friend and foe equally. Sometimes friends are more dangerous than foes; for enemies are known to be enemies, but friends are known only as friends yet their thoughts may reek with poison. Often, unknown to themselves, threads of selfishness motivate individuals to seek unwarranted and unrighteous control of other lives. When advice is sought, it can be offered with impunity. When advice is offered without being sought, frequently it becomes karmic responsibility. When it is spurned, the invisible clash between minds creates karma for both parties. Unnecessary tension between individuals creates a sinking feeling in the belly because all discord sets up an interference to the pattern of light energy which flows through the solar plexus. The removal of tension from one's consciousness is the first step toward wholesome integration with the Divine Presence. As the years pass, so do embodiments. Human affairs often become entangling, but the best way to disentangle oneself and one's energies from karmic patterns which return for redemption is to maintain a sense of unity with the Creator and with all of his created sons. The fact that you have had problems with individuals does not mean that they should continue. Experience should teach the soul how to relax and find freedom from oppressive states of consciousness. Like a curtain that cloaks the sun, so a feeling of anger or resentment against anyone is most undesirable. Therefore the apostle said, "Let not the sun go down upon your wrath."{179} There is such a thing as righteous anger, but this involves principle not person. When principles are violated because of the misleading activities of the dark spirits, one's feeling of anger - like unto that of the Master Jesus when he drove the moneychangers out of the temple{180} - should be against the spirits that defraud men of the wholeness of their seamless garment of light and not against the innocent victims of the plight. When men wear the garb of greed or egoism, when they cloak themselves in the raiment of senseless idiosyncrasies, when they shape their lives by whimsy rather than by cosmic law, when they imagine God to be wholly impersonal having no personal interest in themselves, they close the door to joy and reality. In this series we come to flood the soul, the mind, the consciousness, and the being of man with an awareness that will shatter the chains that have created conditions of unhappiness and strain. We wish to restore the boundaries of the temple of God, to reassert the dominion of the individual over his own life, to help him in his search for reality, and to assure him of our living presence in the universe as his brother and his teacher. As we represent God, so may he. To one who is learning to understand himself, the world is a stella nova. Each day is a freshening dawn. The weary soul sheds its false sense of frustration and at last opens its eyes to behold reality. From the beginning through the ages of instruction, God has sought the gradual and permanent elevation of all of his children into that wholesome vision of the whole divine man - the Real Self. Be at peace in God. Lovingly, I AM Kuthumi [The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself.] ****** Chapter 26 Lanto - June 29, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 26 - Lanto - June 29, 1969 Understanding Yourself 2 The Essence of the Higher Consciousness To Those Who Have Surveyed the Summits of the World: The happiness that one feels when the flow of one's energy is toward the straightforward purpose is an expression of universal harmony. As men seek to understand their own being, they must see that God has implanted his purpose within them as within nature. Each seed bears after its kind, each creature expresses according to its own inherent pattern. As man is a free agent, he should also hold understanding of the meaning of freedom in his exercise of free will. Each man's culture is dominated by the patterns that lie deep within his subconscious being. Frequently men say that they do not understand themselves. They do not know why they act as they do. It is not possible for them to open the doorway of consciousness, to roam the corridors of memory and see each habit in its development, and then to weed out each undesirable thought. There is a better way, and that way is the saturation of the consciousness with the flame of cosmic worth. The old statement "Our God is a consuming fire"{181} is a source of great comfort to those who understand it, for the divine image is truly ablaze with benign activity. The pulsations, or risings, of the sacred fire, in all of their naturalness, convey the essence of the higher consciousness. These deactivate all malintent that may be locked within the subconscious world of the individual, and they create and re-create in his total consciousness the most outstanding designs{182} reflecting cosmic law. Such patterns enable the individual who accepts them and uses the higher consciousness they convey to be completely free and yet to remain under the dominion of his Divine Self. This so-called overshadowing of the human consciousness by the Divine, when it is accompanied by the correct use of the flames of God, will magnetize the sense of reality that in the innocence of childhood was realized by many men embodied on earth today. The passing of the flames through one's consciousness above and below, that is, in the conscious and subconscious minds, is a ritual that has been practiced for centuries by devotees of the mind of God. We trust that you will understand that each Pearl in our series is intended as a specific for one of the forms of the universal disease of unhappiness. For through creating in consciousness a correct understanding of the self and then outlining methods of overcoming the undesirable qualities that have been inextricably conjoined with the self, the symptoms of unhappiness can be alleviated. We plead, then, for a return to that state of holy innocence which has no need to defend itself against a host of enemies. It is not that we would deactivate those defenses that are necessary to the maintenance of one's spiritual life or the protection of one's family. But we ask you to set them aside temporarily during your periods of study in order that your consciousness may enter once again into the happy state it once knew before its nature was warped by the opinions and verdicts of men that are based on a hard view of the world and its people. Ask yourselves why men have developed this hard view. Our answer in part would be, What they have received many of them have also given out. Yet not all. Those who have given harshness to the world and then have received it as recompense are often the first to chafe at the bit of their own energy as it returns for redemption. They want to be free from responsibility. They want to feel that they have the privilege of damaging other parts of life and of expressing an immense dislike of the very life principles - such as the quality of mercy - which in moments of stress they expect to assuage their own existence. What they think to accomplish by stressing their own importance through destroying the self-respect of others remains a mystery to many. By contrast, the great teachers who have walked the earth have again and again showed men how to live. Their instructions have been simple. They have taught men not to hate but to love. These admonishments were for the most part accepted by those who heard them; yet when the first tests came, it was as though they had never been schooled in the righteousness of God. Struck with self-righteous indignation at the ignorant acts of untutored souls, they hurled wounding arrows from the bow of emotion and then stepped gingerly over the bodies of those whom they felled. Such reactions are unnecessary in the life of the man of God. He can walk the earth and maintain not only a graceful dignity and God-control, but also the correct attitude toward every part of life. Attitude is all-important, for it is like a screen through which the ingredients of life are pressed. What comes out as the individual's life is molded by his attitude. Therefore it is utterly important that every follower of truth understand the folly of patterning his life after human conduct. Instead he should recognize the peace that passeth understanding{183} which comes when he kisses the hands and feet of the law of God as his saviour. For the law leads men to life eternal. The law frees the consciousness from the dregs of darkness that have taken hold of it. We dare not eliminate the tares without realizing that if we do so prematurely, we may also uproot the benign and helpful aspects of human nature. {184} The safest way is the way of using the flames of God, but the knowledge of just what the flames are is seldom realized by men; and when we speak of them they are often puzzled.{185} Let us say again, then, that there is a natural order and universe and there is a spiritual order and universe. The glory of the terrestrial is one, and the glory of the celestial is another. {186} The flames of God are of the spiritual order; and these, by the grace of God, penetrate the natural order with the transforming power of the Holy Spirit.{187} The experiences of the devotee who loves the truth enough to search it out will help him to understand that the qualities of God are inherent within the spiritual order and that although these qualities penetrate the material order, they do not originate in it. It is in the correct understanding of Matter in its relationship to Spirit, therefore, that men become enlightened.{188} To understand oneself as a spiritual-material being is to apprehend one's relationship to others. To understand the need to purify one's consciousness insofar as it has taken on a limited, self-centered view of existence is to apprehend one's relationship to Life as a whole. The reception of the consciousness of God as though one's physical form, one's mind, and one's consciousness were wholly permeated by the fire [energy] of creation will produce in one's total being the Godly estate that is desired. It is this estate which, when harbored within, casts out the darkening proclivities of the mortal consciousness and replaces them by the stern yet joyous awareness, the vital yet penetrating hope of the infinite mind of God as it descends into the finite world. After all, it is the Christ mind that is the divine armor against the insidious forces that lurk within the individual's `electronic belt'. This so-called belt is positioned in the aura of the individual around the lower portion of the physical form; it extends from the waist to beneath the feet, somewhat in the shape of a large kettledrum, and contains the aggregate records of his negative human thoughts and feelings. Man is transported out of the confines of his mortal sense into spiritual realms of thought when he contacts the vital flames of the very essence of the Creator's consciousness. The desire to be transported out of the realm of the ordinary is tantamount to invocation; but when men also express a willingness to be decontaminated of all undesirable qualities, they open the floodgates of their consciousness to the light, which then rushes in to expurgate all unwanted vibratory actions. Beneath the surface calm there lies within the consciousness of men much that is undesirable, much that represents the polarization of imperfection during near and distant epochs of personal history. To cast out the enemy within by invoking the sacred fire is a necessary process. When this is done, transmutation takes place and the energies that have been imprisoned in matrices of imperfect thought and feeling are released. Immediately after having been dislodged from the electronic belt and purified by the flames of God, these energies ascend to the causal body of man which is the repository of all good that has ever been externalized by the individual. Just as the electronic belt bears the record of human infamy, so the causal body bears witness to all true creativity. The causal body, then, is of the spiritual order and universe and the electronic belt is of the natural order and universe. The glory of the celestial body is in the overcoming of the body terrestrial. In the words of Saint Paul: "It [the terrestrial body] is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit."{189} The wisdom of God "is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits."{190} The tenderness of the Divine is a boon of great comfort, and the faith which men express in a childlike manner assists them in finding freedom from the darkness that hides in the self. May wisdom lead you into light and light into God-happiness. Victoriously, I remain Lanto [The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself.] ****** Chapter 27 God Meru - July 6, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 27 - God Meru - July 6, 1969 Understanding Yourself 3 The Art of Self-Discovery To All Who Seek Wisdom: The quest for self-discovery is sparked in reality by the voice of God, spurring the creation onward to discover the real intents and purposes behind creation. Those who are content to remain snarled in the minuteness of karmic interaction are always overly concerned about the details involving their individual egos and lives. Therefore, one of the secrets of escape is to be found in the depersonalization of life as the Master Jesus taught. He who loses his life for "my sake" shall find it again.{191} It is extremely difficult for the person who has not contributed in an outgoing manner to the needs of others to relinquish his involvement in the personal sense of struggle. Therefore, service unto others becomes a means for self-discovery. The gravest dangers attendant upon such service lie in the hope of reward, for whenever individuals serve because they expect reward they already have their reward.{192} The key to freedom, then, is to serve and search. But let the search not be a forced penetration of the mysteries of life but a beautiful expectancy that promotes discovery. One of the chief problems encountered by those who would discover the Real Self is the human tendency to analyze. This method while scraping the soul bare also destroys its fabric. So delicate is reality that it must be left untouched by the hand of human reason. This is why Jesus made the statement "The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force."{193} Their rewards are a scorched-earth activity that destroys both wheat and tares{194} and leaves them comfortless. We espouse the development in man of a sense of sweet surrender to cosmic purpose even though that purpose be unknown. The greatest masters, through an abiding sense of confidence and faith, have obtained reality. They have never found reality by intellectual design or by probing the recesses of the caves of darkness lurking in the subconscious mind. You cannot examine evil and produce good. Only by faith in the universal idea of the Fatherhood of God and a sense of proximity to the life-giving energies of the universal Christ can the soul be nourished with the milk of the living Word. To ignore divine mandates and eternal wisdom and to turn instead to mere intellectual sophistry is destructive of immortal purpose. There is no higher truth than contact with reality. For here there is no need to describe sensation, but only to avow a buoyant sense of surrender to a spiritual escalation and exaltation which, by its own native intelling, fulfills the requirements of intelligent being. God teaches in the space of an instant more than man could learn in thousands of years of raking over old ruins. God is the Creator and he tutors man when man becomes a disciple in the essence of creative culture. Man needs to know how to do, but he can never convey to another by word of mouth, by rote, or by text the very marvelous means whereby the soul can expand itself and fashion its own wings to rise. We who are greatly concerned with the evolution of God's intelligence in unascended man and with the furtherance of the true education of the Spirit have no desire to belittle the educational systems of the world or those who would convey basic knowledge to humanity. It is only when the system becomes an end in itself rather than a means to an end that we are concerned. According to divine ideals, the universe is not competitive. It is buoyant and expansive, and it reflects in the world of the individual the reality of the Self in its highest state. When the individual is made aware of this reflection of the real within himself, he is changed in a moment - "in the twinkling of an eye."{195} He has found his reason for being in a relative sense, and he knows that he is standing on the brink of still greater discovery. This is transcendence as God wills it. Human knowledge, while progressive, moves in such small increments that even today the advancing and whimsical fashions of the ages pirate from humanity their lost opportunities, leaving them desolate. The electronic pulsations of the great divine flame that embodies eternal joy, peace, and purity convey the refinements of heaven to evolving humanity. But where today can men actually make contact with the valid instruction which will enable them to utilize the tremendous boons which were secretly imparted by Jesus to his disciples? Just because men and women have waited a long time to contact truth does not mean that they should not now get started. Involvement in the business of self-discovery is the greatest assurance one can have of obtaining a passport to reality. Man should desire to have that passport and to escape from the riddle of the shifting sands of personality. Man must build on the rock of reality. And that rock is the Christ,{196} the only begotten Son of God. Mankind have lived in the denseness of the material world. They have been glued together by the strange anachronisms of the varying standards of civilization. Through the ages, the mores have changed while the lusts of the carnal appetite have robbed mankind of their immortal birthright. Now every son of God must discover who he is. He must recognize the accomplishments of the person - his mental grasp, physical strength, and moral values - as vehicles through which the expanding light of reality can shine. When it shines, it carries the power of transmutation into the confines of individual manifestation and into every area of human endeavor. It lights the hidden recesses of being. It smoothens the anomalies of life. It brings the individual into contact with a higher fraternity. It shows him a new sense. It purifies, rectifies, and exalts his consciousness. It becomes the delight of his universe, the acme of his joy, for it is the jubilation of the Gods. This light is the deluxe contact with reality which will detoxify his being of old poisons and beyond the moment of cleansing fill him with eternal treasure - the treasure of his being. Those of us to whom has been assigned the task of tutoring you in the art of self-discovery warn you at the outset that ours is no mere game of word juggling but an infinite revelation which must be studied and absorbed. The Great White Brotherhood has long desired to assist man in discovering himself, but in order to do so we must cover many angles from the simple to the most complex. We must provide new insight and new approaches so that every hungry heart can be filled with spiritual manna. Never before in the history of man have the dark ones carried an age to the brink of destruction as they have done in these latter days. Yet never before in the history of man has so much inward delight in the law of God indicated possibilities that can draw forth and magnetize those indomitable spiritual characteristics that make of mortals immortal adepts. Once again the earth must be trod upon by embodied Gods. This is no desecration, it is the fulfillment of God's dream for man! Only men of courage and valor, men of consecration and universal understanding can penetrate the insidious plots that would defraud the earth and its people of the solar power of reality. "We have seen his star in the east."{197} The light from within must go forth and it must reveal that which is hidden. It must remove from the consciousness the barriers that prevent individuals from becoming the elect and chosen of God. Fear not, little children; it is the Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.{198} And "when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is."{199} - In most profound peace, I AM Meru ****** Chapter 28 Kuthumi - July 13, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 28 - Kuthumi - July 13, 1969 Understanding Yourself 4 "Man, Know Thyself" To Men and Women of Faith: The little child is born. His life begins and moves forward. Of what is he composed? Ideas? Whose ideas? His own? God's? The world's? Out of many ideas the outer person comes to be. "What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?"{200} Man has many overlords of whom it can be said, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me."{201} These rulers of the deep are built into the consciousness and very existence of the person in such a manner that their influence is both subtle and obvious. For example, the karmic record when it is not benign becomes an opposing force, a threatening god that must be reckoned with. Man sows; he must also reap.{202} Although the Karmic Lords seek to bring the best tutoring out of each experience that is karmically leveled against humanity, the fact remains that sometimes the hammer blows of "fate" - which are actually manifestations of cosmic law in operation - do bring to a very low estate (seemingly without purpose) individuals who long to rise. The cry of "Why?" is heard. Yet what is needed is a perspective outside of the self, an objective view of the human person. Men must behold the outer self from afar so that they can be objective in analyzing the drama of existence. Negative karma should not be an overlord. Man should learn to rule his karma through understanding himself. Obviously it is there, it is a fact. He cannot pass over it entirely, for he created it. We leave you with this thought for a moment that we might go on to another subject and that is the buildup within the self of a resistance to opposing forces which manifest in society in general and in the world of the individual. In this connection we would also speak of man's desire to control others, of his desire to dominate, of his will to rule even where he is opposed. And we see now that there are gods many and lords many,{203} but the man who will truly understand himself must be subject to none of these. Man is born to rule, but first he must rule himself. He must school his desires and flex the muscles of self-control. If he cannot do this by himself, he has the right to seek divine help. He is not alone. He is a unity in a diversity which itself is held within a unity. Returning now to the idea of the karmic god in its negative aspects, we would point out that what one cannot change one must learn to live with. And it must be remembered that the intervention of mercy is always a possibility for the soul that would truly serve the cause and in so doing emerge from the entanglements of his karma. God is always willing and ready to help. The statement of Jesus to Saul of Tarsus "It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks"{204} reveals the fact that when living truth first manifests to the human consciousness, it may seem to be a hard thing and the way difficult. All of the forces of the universe seem to oppose the life of the Divine Manchild. It is as though the Herods of the world were sending out soldiers to slaughter the innocent young Christs emerging within the dense domain of the person. Yet the struggles against karma must not be permitted to overcome the self nor to make the self bitter as those individuals driven into the wilderness of self -consciousness who, feeling the pangs of inferiority, seek to flagellate the world, to lash out and overcome in an earthly way those "opponents" of their very existence. We are reminded of the words "All is vanity and vexation of spirit."{205} But such is not the purpose of life. Man must truly know himself - not as a karmic record, but as a divine being. We come, then, to the god of opposition. The world seems to contain within itself the very seeds of opposition to the achievement of any good thing. All who rise are opposed, and we sometimes ask ourselves if opposition itself is not the goad that engenders strength for attainment. Yet man must not become subject to an overpowering sense of the opposition of the world. These towering gods must be dethroned not by human reason but by holy reason and by a purified intelligence. If the surface of the idol be rough, then that rough surface will provide a foothold for the climb. And of the desire to dominate others, this must be recognized as one of the most dangerous of all diseases of the ego. Only by the wings of true selfhood can man actually attain, and when he does so he becomes a power of good example in the universe which all may follow. As the Master Jesus so lovingly said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father."{206} As the soul rises toward God it becomes a luminary that inspires other lives to see his star, to be his star, to ingest light, to be possessed by light, to be light, to exalt, and to be exalted. This is ascended master God-control which mobilizes the good in all life through the individual who has attained self-mastery. How man trembles on the brink of self-destruction. Indeed, how he trembles on the brink of self-exaltation! The little children of God must learn to fear not, for the natural steps to universal attainment unfold within the domain of the inner Self. It is but the outer self that trembles, as has been said, "the devils also believe, and tremble."{207} Yet man is not a devil (deified evil); he was made a little lower than the angels and when he is found to be an overcomer he shall be crowned with more glory and honor.{208} The self must be discovered. If a man lose his life for "my sake," the fact that he shall find it again{209} must be realized by him as eternal truth which cannot be gainsaid. He is not the little person that he seems to be. He is the great Person (the pure son) that God made him to be. But the overlay - the patine of mud, of human filth, of degradation and dust that covers the earth - must be removed by the cleansing power of the Holy Spirit, by the washing of the water by the living Word{210} that makes all things real. Then upon the altar stone, the foundation of truth and reality, he must rebuild the city of perfection which is cast down. In his search for the real, man can, if he wishes, explore the world of the unreal. But merely to understand what is not real will not of necessity bring him a sense of that which is real. God seems far away to some, but when they draw nigh unto him and he does draw nigh unto them{211} the comfort of the Holy Spirit manifests in the joy of discovery. Religion has been dangled before men as a panacea for all of their ills. It is not formal religion that is the answer, but the reality of God who originally clothed man with innocence. This purity that is the identity of the real man must be put on once again even as the old man with his deceit and shame is put off.{212} This is not merely a matter of sect or philosophy; it is more than that. It is the living actualization of truth and being - being that refuses to accept the mold of complacency, of degeneracy, of death, that recognizes that the last enemy of death{213} shall be overcome together with all of the lesser enemies that seek to destroy the reality of the person. The false realities must go, they must be overcome, they must be recognized for what they are - enemies of the real Person. Not only do these lie in wait without to waste away the substance of the soul, but also they lie within the domain of the individual consciousness. That discord which is without is drawn to the self because reason has already been dethroned within and man lives in ignorance of his great commission. As he returns to reason, as he begins the process of rediscovering himself, much of the sense of struggle disappears and experience is seen as the turning of the pages in a great book of known reality. Rise he must; but the how, why, and when is not always answered to one's satisfaction. The great universal magnet - through the hungers of the soul and its subtle belief in reality, by its inward majesty - appeals to the being that lives within this shroud of human personality. Truly the words "Man, know thyself"{214} lead him onward and upward into the light. - Radiantly, I AM your elder brother, Kuthumi ****** Chapter 29 Lanto - July 20, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 29 - Lanto - July 20, 1969 Understanding Yourself 5 Identification with the Real Self To Those Who Maintain an Open Mind in the Spirit of Inquiry: One can easily resolve the question "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" by asking, "Which came first, God or man, Spirit or Matter?" The answer may well provide additional insight into our subject - understanding yourself. Man was created as a Spirit, and consciousness and intelligence are a necessary part of the spiritual being that man really is. However, consciousness - which may be defined as God's awareness of himself - not only functions in the domain of Spirit but also is able to project itself into the time-space continuum and thus to integrate the ever changing world of the finite into the magnificent real world of the Infinite. The sole purpose of life upon the schoolroom-planet Earth is to develop in man through consent by free will those masterful cosmic qualities that are a part of the character and being of God. The eternal Spirit is all-goodness. Man is intended to become that goodness. Of necessity, his intelligence has been limited both in ability and flexibility by his karmic pattern and by his response to the opportunities of Life. His power, likewise, has been restrained until such a time as the character of the individual might be developed in its divine similitude, whereupon his acts would become wholly divine, hence worthy of the divine power. There is no competition in God. He delights in the diversification of all creation provided that its pattern is after the true nature of the divine being. The reason that pattern is all-important has to do with eternal life or a state of permanence in God. God does not wish to perpetuate evil or unhappiness, and certainly man should not desire to prolong his imperfection. Therefore the guardianship of the Eternal has placed necessary safeguards and restraints in the world of form, including the death of the physical body. This was done in order to prevent the perpetuation of undesirable traits of mortal thought and feeling. Let men understand that the abundant life must come into manifestation in the world of the individual as naturally as the opening of a flower once he has developed attunement with the mind of Christ. For the Christ acts as a mediator for him and imputes unto him that righteousness which is the Father's will. There are many weapons which the dark ones have employed to keep mankind from discovering the Real Self. The most darkening of all is the screen of egoistic (self-centered) consciousness and that altogether human quality of pride which so readily saturates the being of man. Beloved ones, pride is so subtle that individuals often mistake it for spiritual zeal. The great doer is always the Eternal One who employs the hands and feet of humanity as well as their consciousness, their mind, and their will but never without the consent of the individual. It is his intent to turn over to the individual - just as soon as he has demonstrated his capacity and worth to receive it - the full employment of his God-given talents. The correct use of these talents is always under the direction of the genius which God has implanted within the mortal consciousness. This genius is truly a manifestation of the infinite law that lives and moves in the finite world. With all of their hearts, men should guard their consciousness against the luciferian attitude of human pride. With few exceptions, the people evolving upon this planet have lurking within their consciousness the quality of pride which shows its face when individuals allow themselves to become piqued over little things. The spiritually progressive lifestream who is willing to engage in a bit of introspection should note as an indication of personal pride the fact that he becomes annoyed or angry with others over trifles or unimportant matters that ought not to make any difference. One should learn balance and reasonability, giving unto others the same grace that one expects to receive. Through inward delight in the law of God,{215} a man can reach the point where he is able to withstand the onslaught of excess emotionalism and hold himself in the balance of the universal light even when his sensitive nature causes him to feel the pain of anger or regret concerning the conduct of another. Self-control that is control of the emotions and the feeling world is one of the keys to self-mastery which some of our disciples find difficult to employ. Because the individual identifies with his consciousness, he is sensitive to circumstances which invade his consciousness and which he may interpret as an affront to his own life. By identifying with all life right while he maintains an awareness of his personal function and a sense of his personal mission he can easily understand why individuals may act or react as they do. This understanding will spread the oil of tranquillity on the troubled waters of human affairs. Above all, the self should remain poised yet not aloof or without compassion for the problems of others. Training in sensitivity to Christ is advocated by the Brotherhood, but we would point out that involvement in psychic sensitizing and improper physical contact with others (which comes under the heading of "sensitivity training") is a dangerous procedure which can very easily bring about the demise of needed individuality. Men need to preserve the individual self while they attain spiritual identification with the Real Self. Expanding that sense of identification, one can include as a part of his own self-awareness the God Presence in all life. And he need not explore the human psyche or physique in order to achieve this awareness. It is necessary that effective God-control over the creation be maintained in the universe so that God can produce the reality of his kingdom everywhere. Where the Spirit is not present, where the Spirit is denied, where the Spirit is quenched{216} there is no fount of reality that brings the buoyancy of inter-spiritual and inter-personal realizations to the consciousness. The little bursts of joy that flood the soul as it comes in contact with those who are spiritually of like mind is a certain indication of the presence of the Spirit. Those who engage in so-called mental karate, those who seek to control or to hypnotize others, often do not realize that they are functioning outside of the intent of the eternal Father. Each son, in the dignity of true self-realization, must hold a sense of his own individual mission and expand outward in consciousness through the heavenly Presence to understand the life plan of others. In one sense all life is one, and this is the highest sense; but in the lower senses there are many snares and tangles to be avoided. Through discretion, Christ-discrimination, and holy prayer, men retain their divine dignity which does not preclude the possibility of the effervescing of the self in humor, truism, and perpetual joyousness. Such dignity is never overcome by person, place, condition, or thing. Health, faith, and determination are all adjuncts to the expansion of the real in man. You must come each day to a greater understanding of yourself in order to be able rightly to represent the purposes of life. You are love and you love love. You are wisdom and you love wisdom. You are power and you love power. But you know that all is fulfilled in the perfect triangle of balanced attitude. This is the attitude that seeks the commonweal and understands the dangers of mental manipulation. Through human cleverness and wit, the kingdom of God has suffered violence,{217} the world order has been tampered with, and the forces of media have been used for purposes of negative control. The key to the redemption of the social system lies in the victory of divine law in the being of individual man. What the individual man becomes, the collective world is. Through a wholehearted entering into the kingdom of God and his righteousness{218} and through participation in those spiritual exercises that strip man of the false and clothe him with the real, the individual and his world can and must become the fullness of all that God intended from the beginning. O wisdom's star, continue to shine! Graciously, I AM Lanto ****** Chapter 30 Kuthumi - July 27, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 30 - Kuthumi - July 27, 1969 Understanding Yourself 6 Energy Levels and the Potential of the Self Peace Be unto Wisdom's Children: In order to create a more crystal-clear picture of the self, we wish to discuss the self in terms of energy levels. The parable of the talents{219} reveals that individuals vary according to the gifts given unto them. This is also true of energy levels. Health, karma, and aspiration are among the many factors that govern the abundance of energy one has at his disposal. Energy levels also vary within the framework of a norm - a high and a low. Most individuals do not realize that the potential of the self is related to the quantity and quality of the energy which they use. Very little progress in the study of the self has been made by mankind, for they have not known just how to proceed. For instance, the idea of the soul has been preserved as a sacred cow. Men have not considered the soul as energy bestowed. They suppose that the soul is a unique but undefined quality of reality. If you will think of the nature of the soul as the nature of God and consider the facts (1) that God is boundless energy, (2) that man has been given a limited quantity of God's energy, and (3) that the energy which he has been given does comprise the content of the soul, you will be on the right track in your investigations of the self. Jesus warned that men could lose their souls,{220} and of course there are many trials and taxing situations which may deplete the amount of energy available to the individual. I do not say that all energy used by man comes from the soul, for as you know man's supply of every good and perfect gift is from above.{221} But I do relate soul energy to the temporal manifestation of identity. This soul energy, or solar energy, is limited in quantity - some having a great deal more of it than others. As a man soweth, so shall he reap. {222} Therefore karma acts as the governor, in part, of the flow of man's energy from his Presence just as it regulates the amount of soul energy given to the lifestream at the beginning of each embodiment. Health is related to karma because both are cumulative. Health is the result of past and present energy uses. Good health encourages the steadfast flow of energy. The reverse is also true. We cannot deny that there are good and bad energies. But let us remember that energy itself is really neither good nor bad; it is the qualification that is made of energy that determines its inherent manifestation. Therefore in our study we must remember to relate energy and its qualification to the self. There is undoubtedly an initial impetus or quantity of energy bestowed upon the individual as his divine portion.{223} This is brought out in the parable of the prodigal son.{224} The statement "To him that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath"{225} also gives a clue to the maintenance of the energy potential necessary to the self - what we might call the "critical mass." The more energy a person has, the more he is apt to attract; and the less he has, the less he is apt to attract. The need to purify one's energies becomes more and more apparent as the individual sees that his life potential is dependent upon the quality of his energy. Actually a great deal of energy which was once his to use is now imprisoned in the imperfect patterns of his own human miscreations. Like money in the bank which has been pledged as collateral, this energy cannot be withdrawn until one's spiritual obligation has been met. Those who serve mankind in the field of medicine and chiropractic, especially those who work with nerves, understand that when muscle groups are in a state of tension there is an enormous tie-up of energy that keeps the entire body tense. They know that the release of tension in the muscles of the body provides more energy for both mind and body. Likewise those who have an understanding of the human mind know that when the psyche is tied up emotionally with diverse problems, this can cause a split personality. Increased mental and emotional tensions create a buildup of attracting and repelling forces that divide the self. Those who treat the mind or emotional nature of man know full well that where there is a drop in energy levels, where fatigue occurs, there is a much greater tendency to mental disorders. What man must do, then, is learn how to release himself from tensions - physically, mentally, and emotionally. He must learn to use all of the energy which God has given him, some of which is in a state of rest and some of which is in a state of movement. He must learn to undo the misqualifications of energy for which he bears responsibility; he must learn to requalify that which has been misqualified. This will give him a greater quotient of energy that can be used in the development of true soul consciousness, for the purposes of life are that man might master the universe through first mastering himself. In a very real sense the spiritual energies of the divine image are reflected in the mirror of mortal consciousness. These energies bring about the advent of soul force within the lifestream, but they must be continuously augmented in order that the expanding soul may attract a greater portion of divinity to the life of the individual. All undesirable karmic manifestations return to their point of origin - which is the individual being of man - when the attractive force within him, whether qualified with good or ill, has reached a certain intensity. Therefore it is well that individuals recognize the fact that when they draw to themselves the higher nature of being, they are also drawing a definitive quantity as well as a definitive quality of energy that will serve to fortify the being of man against the day of karmic reckoning when all negatives and positives must be adjusted. In our considerations of man's energy potential we are concerned with both quality and quantity. Although it is true that the Absolute is all and therefore possesses all (in a sense being possessed by all), the universal desire for the manifestation of purity by the self - whether it be the desire of the macrocosmic Lord of the Universe or the desire of the individual monad - should be a progressive reaching out for more and more of the reality of right qualification. As you think of the soul as the repository of the energies of the fiery world, {226} you will feel a greater sense of responsibility to maintain the soul and its contents upon the altar of purity. And perhaps you will consider more often how vastly beneficial it will be - not only to you as an individual but also to the universe as a whole - if you will learn how to summon the will to requalify negative thoughts, feelings, and creations with the pristine beauty of the first creation of God. Think of the worlds of misqualified substance that are waiting to be conquered when you practice this supreme art of transmutation! Following the Master in the regeneration, cradling the infant Messiah of reality in the crèche of the heart, men will begin the process of expanding their understanding of the self through becoming all that which is real and discarding, through requalification, all that which is not. The task may seem interminable, the process involved. It is not. Except that ye become as a little child ye cannot enter in.{227} To manifest the little-child consciousness is to develop the masterful Christ consciousness that will successfully take dominion over the earth.{228} Wait, watch, and work. For the Father works with you and within you. - Faithfully, I AM your brother, Kuthumi ****** Chapter 31 Meru - August 3, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 31 - Meru - August 3, 1969 Understanding Yourself 7 The Ego Beloved Seekers after Wisdom's Flame: Consciousness, when functioning properly, is a glowing orb of reality, joy, and full illumination. The individual reaching-out from the seemingly separated center of being to contact the cosmic center of life and thence the periphery of all reality is accomplished as easily as the miracle of the radiant, expanding mind of God penetrates the universe with light. Inherent within man is the power to expand consciousness beyond the sphere of the personal self into the dominant domain of reality. This reality is shared by the myriad manifestations that inhabit cosmos; but because of the marvelous quality of "locked-in individuality," there is never any oppressive erosion of the permanent nature of man. There are only the gentle molding factors as the hand of Universal Intelligence, Power, and Love commences the process of tutoring the evolving soul personality. Recognizing then, as beloved Kuthumi has said, how easy it is for individuals to misqualify energy and conversely how wonderful it is to begin the process of requalification, the individual self can look forward to experiencing newness of life and a sense of fulfillment that he has not known before. Soon he will bypass the false structurings that he has created and that have been created for him by the dark overlords and their dark stars of compounded misqualification. Soon he will realize, with the joyous gurgle of a newborn babe, that the universe is a home of light and hope where the temporal manifestations of intelligence, consciousness, and identity can be welded to the Eternal even as the Eternal permeates the substance of mortality with its essential reality. Here at last mankind can come to know the permanent gift of bliss which it was the Father's joy to convey to the individual at the birth of his identity. The Ocean could have chosen to remain the Ocean; but, by separating the tiny luminous drop from the Whole and holding it up to the glorious rays of the sun of illumination, a new ocean was begun. And so the individual consciousness was given dominion over his own world. And so man, made in the image of his Creator,{229} also became a creator. The first stirrings of reality outside of the lost Edenic state moved in the darkness, in the void of not-knowing; these stirrings of purpose were soon translated into outer action, but the fabrications of social contact unfortunately dedicated themselves to egoistic expression and a sense of struggle. Man's rise seemed to be proportionate to his dominion, not over self, but over others and over his environment. The overcoming of environment was valid. The wreaking of destruction upon others was not. Therefore, the tribunal of justice known as the Karmic Board came into being in order to record and govern the interaction of man's humanity or inhumanity to man. The sense of struggle mounted. Involvement in the ego became a snarl of inverted spirals, structuring within the consciousness of mankind a kaleidoscopic reverie so complex as to make the consciousness to recoil. The simple forms of grace were forgotten in the astral melodrama. Man seemed to live without, but actually he lived within the snares of his own creation; now he was infecting others with his own dilemma, and the power of contagion banished him from the heavenly state. The ego is the seat of all man's problems. What are known as inferiority or superiority complexes revolve entirely around the pride and frustration of the ego. But although people know these things they continue to allow themselves to be victimized by the internal obstructions which they have created. The only way out is through the door of reality. This is the escape hatch which has been provided so that the body of destructivity created by man's own negativity can be transmuted and overcome. As long as men remain involved in the ego, no matter what religious study they undertake, no matter what devotion they temporarily manifest, no matter how many good works they do, no matter what level of striving they attain, they will never be free from the illusion of the self that pursues them as a wanton ghost of struggling identity. Only when they escape through the door (I AM the door{230}) into the understanding that the eternal being of God is the "doer," into the realization that God can act in them to remove hampering influences, to transmute their darkness, and to translate their consciousness from darkness into light, will they begin to know the freedom of the Self to achieve without limit. We could set up guidelines which would help you to recognize when the ego is in command, but I think that a little honest gazing into the mirror of self and a study of the reactions of the self to the doings of others will quickly show, if one's appraisal be honest, whether or not the ego is acting. Let all see and know for all eternity that the not-self, the shadowed-self, the named-self, the personality-self, is and always has been the snare of the ego, and that the man or woman who lives in that consciousness must die in it. There is no possibility for flesh and blood to inherit eternal life.{231} Men seek eternal life because it is their true nature, the nature of God and of the divine image. Eternal life is formed independently of the vehicle of self through the process of translation, that man should no longer see death but be translated into that life which is the divine nature. The statement that man should die daily{232} to the finite, egoistic self must be followed by another - that he should live daily to the progressive glory of his eternal Self and the apprehending of all the reality which that Self can and does bring. This is the Sun we face that casts no shadow. Oh, we can and we will bring forth such an abundant wealth of spiritual information regarding the true nature of man as to almost cremate man's present consciousness! Yet we must delay long enough in this bringing forth until man has had ample opportunity to understand how necessary it is that he shed the ego. This concept is far more than an index of words. It is a flow of the vital seed-idea into the consciousness of man whereby the consciousness itself is transformed into its natural glowing Presence. This is the Presence of God which identifies the individual, through his sense of expanding reality, with the universal consciousness of God yet never takes from him one erg of his energy or of his true selfhood. The Father created the Son to be the beloved inheritor of all things that were made. And in reality the Son of God, or the light of God that never fails, was the means by which the Eternal Progenitor performed the creative act. "Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."{233} The ego that is always being hurt, that is oversensitive, full of self-pity and a sense of struggle, the ego that seeks in poring over the rubble of past lives to find some element of worth should understand that man's worth is in the Eternal Now. He should understand that the Eternal Now is in the Eternal and that the grace that man must have that is sufficient for every day was implanted within the soul with the inpouring breath of divine energy that first gave him consciousness. In the name of Holy Wisdom I, Meru, urge upon everyone the willful relinquishing of the snakeskin of identity that has crawled upon its belly while pursuing the vanities of the intellect. Replace this by the dominant sunburst of the living, vital mind of God and that reality which God is and which you are because he is. I AM his servant and your elder brother, Meru [The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself.] ****** Chapter 32 Lanto - August 10, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 32 - Lanto - August 10, 1969 Understanding Yourself 8 Spreading the Network of Joy To Those Joyous Hearts Who Would Expand the Joy of God: Our subject is the spreading of the network of joy, the antithesis of sorrow, in the domain of consciousness and its communication into the world of form. When the individual monad can willingly give up the personal self beyond the point of test in a genuine act of surrender, he is soon magnetized to the God ideal of spreading in the world domain the marvelous activity of vibrant joy - joy in self, joy in nature, joy in opportunity, joy in service, joy in music, joy in art, and joy even in the process of purifying the self. Every facet of life takes on the aspect of challenge to those who daily strive to be more like Him. But this is not a challenge of discomfort, it is one of hope. The very fact that the individual can improve regardless of his station, that he can change his concepts, his vibratory action, and the contents of his mind as he would his garments is a sign of hope and a portent of delight. Energy fields are magnificent when they are properly qualified, for they not only surround the creator of the energy field with his own vibration of bliss but, according to the law of attraction, they also magnetize the vibrations of happiness and joy from many parts of the world. We acknowledge that the reverse is also true, and seldom do people take into account the fact that from time to time they are surrounded with entities - entities of fear, of doubt, and of grief - which seek to invade the aura only because by their own attitudes individuals create the climate that attracts these outsiders. In the matter of moods, then, we would suggest to every student who pursues God's happiness, whenever he is invaded by a feeling that is less than God-happiness - a feeling of discomfort or disquietude - that he begin to look for the cause first in his own subconscious mind and in the centering of his attention around negative ideas which he may have allowed to enter his world and secondly in the person of masquerading or malevolent entities. The nature of invading entities is such that whenever an individual seeks to improve himself by engaging in religious worship, by attending a constructive lecture or concert, or by reading religious literature, the vibratory action of the higher pursuit makes the entity extremely uncomfortable. The entity, unwilling to relinquish his hold on the lifestream, will then project to his consciousness a feeling of discomfort or unhappiness and this, he will assure the individual, is directly attributable to the function in which the individual is involved. In this manner many sincere souls are either stopped on the Path or they are prevented from obtaining the benefits of higher meditation. Thus, through their susceptibility to invading entities, they are deprived of the opportunity to receive transcendent blessings. This is why spiritual protection is necessary for those who would continue to progress on the upward way - protection not only through the knowledge I am conveying but also through decrees, through prayer, and through the determination to do the will of God no matter what the argument of the opposition may be. When you are able to cast out from the self the influences of discarnate entities - whether these be departed relatives, friends, or enemies who may be magnetized to your person - when you are able to invoke the protection from on high that will insulate you from the malice of those whom you may not even know are your enemies - whether embodied or disembodied - you will find yourself making spiritual progress at a more rapid pace. Because of the increasing threat of witchcraft in the United States as well as in the world, spiritual aspirants must exercise caution and they should learn to weigh the evidence before they credit all of their failures or seeming failures to themselves. Witchcraft has a subtle allure for those who are not grounded in spiritual knowledge and who do not understand the karmic penalties that accrue from such dangerous practices. Often practitioners of witchcraft use their powers to launch a general form of attack against anyone who tries to escape from the mass miasma.{234} There is something about progress that always engages the teeth of men's egos. When others begin to progress, they often enter into feelings of jealousy. Jesus described this human propensity in his statement "Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered."{235} Many in the orthodox churches are naïve concerning these facts. They are entirely too standpat in matters of the self. Quite frankly, as you have been told in this series, the self is little understood. This is why people often work against their own best interests and against the best interests of humanity, why they are so easily captivated by the idea of massive social gain and why the dark forces are able to create so much unrest in the world, making men and women think they can gain spiritually as well as materially through forms of government control. The ideal society is that which evolves out of the higher consciousness when the individual opens the door of his being to God without reserve. In such moments of personal contact with Life, the entire being of man becomes as a mouth pressing itself against the Infinite in order to receive the subtle nourishment that floods into the hungry soul. Because the grace that comes from on high is so creative, so inspirational, so filled with depth and height and volume, it literally overwhelms the being of man, and spilling over the lip of life it floods forth as the impulse to be a benefactor to the race. Such impulse must be guarded under God-control and channeled constructively in order to protect the self and the highest nature in others. Each person should realize that the higher intelligence within himself is capable of making accurate decisions as to when he should speak and when he should be silent, when he should offer a helping hand and when he should withhold it. There are times when nothing is as important as a physical gesture of assistance to another, and at other times there is nothing so dangerous. Some of the best gifts that can be given to men are inward gifts such as the communication of the highest vibrations of hope and comfort. The consciousness of the individual should become like a grail, and the knowledge that flows into the grail consciousness should draw more and more of the regenerating Christ consciousness into the domain of the self. Certainly it is true that if a man ask of God bread, he will not give him a stone.{236} Therefore consider the fact that constructive endeavor always receives the necessary support spiritually, morally, and materially proportionately as one accepts the highest sense of his mission in a spiritual manner. "It is more blessed to give than to receive"{237} yet unless men receive they cannot give. Therefore the words allotted portion must be understood as the grace of God on deposit in the great causal body for each individual. Man can expand, as he is able to receive them, the highest judgments and qualities of God. He can grow in grace and in the knowledge of truth. He can become tomorrow a greater servant than he is today. Yet the foundation stones of the temple must be laid while consciousness is held in readiness. This is done by an act of willing to do whatsoever must be done in the furtherance of the kingdom of God both within and without. The self needs to expand. In order to expand, men need to receive. But all who receive need also to give; for if man becomes an inlet with no outlet, he will eventually become a parasite on the world body. Man must qualify his energy with divine love just as the pulsing joy of God vivaciously entices all of Nature to perform her wondrous feats - her miracles of temporal reality immortalized as they recycle over and over again. Thus shall the individual realize that one day the true meaning of his life will be found in the spiritual interchange between the microcosm and the Macrocosm that is known as flow. Through this process, the allness of man flows into the allness of God and the allness of God, flowing into the allness of man, brings about an exchange of the pulsations of identity which make the humblest soul a king of victory and the most exalted to bow in joyous humility. Truly "he hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree."{238} Truly the living God is crowned in every atom. Truly each man is the son of the Eternal One. Move on, then, to understand that which you can be; for out of the expectancy of hope is born the implementation of faith that establishes the borders of self right where charity is. When the meaning of true love is known, it is found to re-create that supreme moment when the innocent soul cried out with divine wonder, Because thou art, O God, I AM!" Thus we see the links of identity, intelligence, power, and love uniting all to the oneness that is God. Victoriously, I remain Lanto [The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself.] ****** Chapter 33 Kuthumi - August 17, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 33 - Kuthumi - August 17, 1969 Understanding Yourself 9 "It Does Not Matter!" To the Spiritual Mendicants Who Minister to the Needs of the World: "It does not matter!" When you can say that to the unavoidable circumstance, when you can commit the keeping of yourself unto Him without reserve, when you feel no qualms of anguish because you have sought and held to the best of your ability to the highest link with Self right while understanding the need to surrender even the sense of self-righteousness, you are truly beginning to come out of the bondage of Egypt. For Egypt symbolizes the material creation - the pyramid of Matter standing by the ever flowing Nile of time, winding through the sand of space. When the fiery world of Spirit that gloriously possessed the consciousness and means whereby it could produce material form, primal substance, and the ability to produce secondary creation is revealed more fully to embodied men and women, they are able to grasp the real meaning of life. They see the schoolrooms of earth, the geometric corners of creation, the endless circles of repetitious activities, the noble aspirations of triadic manifestation, and they recognize their inner need to obtain congruency with reality. But when they understand that the tensions of spiritual determination are necessary reinforcements in the battle of overcoming the transitory, they are on the road to victory. Yet we must map out the campaign long before we are able to execute it. One of the saddest facts of human existence is that some individuals, by reason of their own self-importance and materialistic insensibilities, reject the necessary instructions that would have given them their freedom not only in some ultimate time but also here and now. Instead they allow themselves to remain tethered to fetters whose clutching bondage has continuously caused their own joys to be spilled out of the cup of life. But heaven itself is both objective and pragmatic. Therefore, the cry has gone forth that many who are first shall be last and that the last may well be first.{239} Let men, then, see to it that they lose not the crown of their rejoicing.{240} Temporal life is without bond or guarantee and can be terminated at any time. The business of acquiring spiritual fortitude and spiritual reality is the only business in which the soul ought to be engaged. Countless individuals, without realizing that they are doing so, spurn genuine activities of the Spirit that would enable their souls to grow fat; they have chosen instead to revel in the entertainment marts of the world or in psychic involvement in the curious. There are enough rewards in true spirituality to warrant men placing their attention upon the higher teachings, and I am certain you know that all is not gold that glitters in the field of so-called esoteric studies. But pray you must if you would be free that you might recognize the potential in yourself as well as in others to create pinions of freedom to which you can attach your consciousness and then move aloft, above the hopeless sea of mortal drivel. The way of the Christ is the way of life. It is the way of beauty. It is the way of hope. The ascended masters are not dead. God is not dead. Hope is not dead. And even in the darkest hour, the planet is not dead so long as the freedom to produce the vibration of virtue and aspiration lives within the soul. I think that the freedoms of speech, of religion, of the press, and of assembly are necessary in order that God and man might have the opportunity to communicate the living Christ to the world. In order to break the bread of the knowledge of the True Self to humanity, man must be able to disseminate that knowledge. Where it is forbidden by law or harassed by those who think they do God's service when they interfere with the flow of the highest truth, millions are deprived of their rightful inheritance. For this reason, the great Masters of Wisdom have sought to incorporate into the American dream a dream of freedom that can be patterned by all nations. All nations can and should make it their own, for the people of the world hunger for personal freedom as well as for spiritual freedom. Men have no more loyal or devoted friends anywhere than among the ascended masters. Yet we also acknowledge our friendship with a host of patriots who live yet in the veil of flesh as servants of God and friends of all mankind. These will not permit themselves to be blown by the wind as chaff.{241} They insist on the dignity of their worth, of their service, of their lives, and of the pursuits which God has made for all to enjoy. These see the vehicle of the little self as expendable, even as they know that their greatest strength emanates from their dedication to spiritual goals. Matter and substance change. The individual's consciousness is altered by circumstance, by education, by family, by the economic level to which it is accustomed, by his intelligence quotient, and through associations with other people. Consider, then, the meaning of choosing one's friends carefully. If your friends are turning you against God, if their thoughts are destroying your peace of mind, if their activities are a constant war against your spirit, regardless of how close they may be to you, you should begin in the name of Almighty God to ask yourself this question: Should they remain a permanent part of my life, or should they be expurgated to make room for higher friendships? Only you can determine what course to take. But it would be well to remember what the Christ said long ago, "He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me."{242} If the Christ sought to save men's lives, why would he ask them to deny their lives or those of their families before him? The question simply becomes, What is real and what is unreal? The Christ image of every man which was bestowed upon him by God is real. The self that must be denied is unreal. The unreal seeks to cramp the style of the real, to hold it in bondage. And so Ishmael, the son of Hagar, the bondwoman, is not to be compared with the Son of promise.{243} The altar of being in the form world is a place of great threshing. It is the threshing floor of the Most High. The flailing of the grain is the chastening of God that refines the pure gold of the soul and brings it to the surface where it can be gathered into the treasure-house of reality. Many who read about reality fail to realize their responsibility to make the best use of the opportunities which life extends. Surrender to God is not death. It is life. It is beauty. It is hope. It is the wings of the mind borne upward into the airiness and lightness of celestial realities. No empty void is there, but the natives of cosmos in all of their blazing reality - ministering spirits, angels, cosmic beings, cosmic masters - one and all, as the higher kin of every man, hold their offerings of eternal sweetness for the purification and release of the souls of men from bondage. What a wonderful schoolhouse the planet Earth is! How joyously men can chuckle, even when dark shadows cross their paths with the opacity of their crusty nonsense. Men must learn to shatter bondage, to regard it as an enemy, to see the clutching of the little self as a frightening thing for in one moment it could cause them to drown in a sea of earthly perdition. On the other hand, the lifeline to the Higher Self is already flung out, and the eternal Presence waits as the eternal Father to draw the prodigal son{244} of the little self into the mooring of his eternal greatness. Whether one has attained his victory yesterday or today, when it comes it is the long-awaited product of eternal evolution and, in a very real sense, it is a spiritual rebirth. The words "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God"{245} signify that man is not only of the earth earthy, but he is also a product of heavenly aspiration.{246} God hopes for the soul. Man must identify with the hopes of God. And then as the tolling of a great bell, the death knell of the finite self will make no mournful sound but it will sing to the soul in cadences of immortality. Through these cadences man shall come to understand the golden meaning of reality, and the revelation of worlds unknown shall also be his own. Stretching as an endless column of beautiful trees, the landmarks of the real point the way from present circumstances to the very footstool of reality, the rainbow of ascendancy, the Spirit Most Holy where man is crowned with the life that is God. I, who was Francis of old who loved earth, sea, and sky, remain your brother who hopes for the best in you all. - May I sign myself as of old, simply Francis ****** Chapter 34 Meru - August 24, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 34 - Meru - August 24, 1969 Understanding Yourself 10 To Educate the Heart To Those Who Would Attend the Universities of the Spirit: The thought of possibility and of expansion should be guarded by the heart and mind of man. Those who have a tendency to accept negative concepts about themselves or their future do again and again produce negative fruit on their Tree of Life, but the mind that has gleaned wisdom and the mind that will accept it will see the need to call forth from the very presence of life the God-given gift of its own reality. The reality of unlimited possibility affords the individual a sense of hope, and a sense of hope eliminates the need to do battle right while it affirms the need for the acceptance of a responsibility that is born of faith in the ultimate destiny of the individual. Whereas karma is the law of the circle returning to each one exactly what he sends out, the control of karma is best established by an awareness of the best possibilities available in a given set of circumstances. Hence, the right kind of spiritual education is an essential and determinant factor in the forward movement of man's unfolding destiny. In bygone years the word claptrap was applied to questionable and spurious teachings, and even today there is a trend toward lightly dismissing the unacclaimed sources of the best truths. In these days of travail when the darkness of educated ignorance covers the world, it is easy for men to look with a faith, which is actually misplaced, to the old established orders whose only proof of integrity is often in their longevity. We admit that some of the old orders have preserved the truth inviolate through the ages, and a few have even added to the truth those progressive revelations of the Divine which have been vouchsafed by heaven. But we must not neglect to point out that in this age many of the leaders of the world's humanitarian and religious institutions have lost the first love of their founders. They have been turned away into the delusions of the world which are both anti-Christ and anti-God, hence anti-purpose and anti-spiritual in their evolved concepts. An evolutionary method that confines itself solely to the needs of social progress and that gauges its worth according to the tenure of mortals seldom contributes to the progressive reality of infinite man. Darkness cannot produce light, neither can light produce darkness; for the nature of the one is the vibrant vitality of life, and the nature of the other is the somber shadow of nihilism. Rejoice, then, for your salvation is at hand! And it lies at the point where the educated consciousness contacts the mind of God. But an education that is derived solely from Matter or the changing principles of man's understanding of Matter can never hold an enduring promise before the gaze. Nor can such an education elevate the consciousness. We who are steadfast and unwavering in our search for eternal truth welcome you to examine the source of your knowledge and of your beliefs with a view to determining what is real and what is not within the storehouse of your consciousness. For only by so doing will you be able to recognize the reality that we shall unfold before the gaze of the Self. Those inner experiences that are the by-products of the soul's contact with universal truth will still the inharmonious voices of the madness of the world and reveal the peace that can be obtained from communion with the divine intention. Some do not understand that it is never enough for the Divine to intend, to will, or to plan. Man must align himself with the divine intention through the consent of the will and the implementation of that will by action. If Cain had perceived the tenderness of the relationship between Abel and God, he could have established the same relationship between himself and his God, the deed of murder would not have been done, and his sense of the reality of God would have been exalted as was Abel's. This experience in human consciousness was an opportunity to exalt a sense of equality among brethren in the sight of God. But, as is often the case, the one to whom the opportunity was given chose to base his actions on a false sense of inferiority.{247} "Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown"{248} is a scriptural admonishment which reveals the sovereign need of the individual to guard his light against those forces and principalities of darkness which would despoil the nature of his being. This they do by making him jealous of others and by causing him to seethe with resentment and thus become a victim of his own self-inflicted wounds. The key to the divine domain lies in the Self. It does not lie in the self of others but in one's own Self. Each emotional skirmish where the personality, in a warped sense of inferiority, lashes out at another part of life produces a karmic reaction which further delays the individual's progress in reality. Jesus said, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."{249} No man, through a mere repetition of the divine letter, can inherit life or master it. Life is mastered through the Spirit of Truth which was implanted within man from the very beginning. His turning from the reality of the Self, his turning from the divine image to passionate involvement in the sense of struggle is behind every untutored act. True education is the education of the Spirit, for it is through the Spirit of God that the consciousness learns to govern itself by universal principle, by love, wisdom, and power in perfect balance. Understanding the need to contribute to the Universal Triad, each monadic expression must daily strive to understand the totality of being and his relationship to the whole as well as to the parts. When this is accomplished, the drawing rights of the individual upon the Universal become a matter of record and of merit. Just as soon as the student realizes his place in the cosmic scheme, the golden rule becomes practical to his consciousness and he sees the futility of not being informed and controlled by reason and justice. Quite naturally, malevolent forces have sought to involve the consciousness of man in such intricacies of thought and feeling as to hide the simplicity of reality and universal justice from his gaze. Thus in an unjust and an unreal world, Justice seems proverbially blind but in reality she is not. It is not God who must be corrected, but man who must be corrected by God. For we deal with the universal principle of the creative flame, the twin electromagnetic pulsation that draws into manifestation the designs of the mind of God in man. The social diseases of the times show forth - and clearly at that - to all who would pause to consider the need for a purification of art forms. It is easy to see why art, music, sculpture, the theater, and even language itself have been tampered with in this age; for they are the lever by which the consciousness of the youth and of the entire race can be and have been warped. In reality, these are the instruments which God has designed to communicate to man the spirit of his wisdom. They are the media which are intended to convey to the spiritual senses of man, even to the unawakened consciousness the eternal verities of the mind of God. No wonder the counterfeiters of reality are busy twenty-four hours a day weaving a spell of nihilism into the fabric of culture!{250} We commend men to the simple joys of God realization, not only through worship but also through application to the soundness of the laws of God which possess the power to educate the heart. One who possesses an educated heart will recognize that he must first assess his potential based upon his present record, then he must take stock of his imagination (his ability to image forth reality){251} as that imagination under the direction of God and the laws of justice conceives in faith of a realistic goal that may justly be accomplished within one's lifespan. Men should not ignore the laws governing the accumulation of wisdom. Those who with motive pure drink of the fount of knowledge, even in so-called old age will draw through the process of solar magnetism and hold within the orbit of the personal self a treasure of spiritual knowledge which they may use in the near or distant future. Life is continual, and there is magic in believing and in hoping for a better tomorrow. But that magic must not be dissipated into channels of doubt and fear. It must not be allowed to dissolve in a gaze at yesteryear and its attendant failures. The being and consciousness of man must expand its own faith in universal purpose and draw upon a firsthand knowledge of the divine schemes rather than upon human ones. Many forms of self-expression must be altered to conform to the divine ideal. Man must not only be willing to foster the divine intent, but he must also be able to foster it. The heart that applies itself to the Creator's purposes is the joyous heart that overcomes the world through the consciousness of the Christ. Neither the momentums of self or of others ought to be used as excuses for one's failures or as weights upon the soul. The soul must be free to drink of the fount of truth and to realize that behind the appearance world lies an infinite world of masterful causes, a treasure-house of the Divine Mind. Let the self lay claim to these gifts and graces that the self may muster the will, the wisdom, and the strength of love to overcome through light. To the many valedictorians in our class I say, Victory! Meru ****** Chapter 35 Lanto - August 31, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 35 - Lanto - August 31, 1969 Understanding Yourself 11 Human Moods Faithful Hearts Who Would Know the Truth and Be Free: The swing of human moods is a predominant force by which the happiness and hopes of men are temporarily dashed upon the rocks. Therefore to understand and to control the moods that seize the consciousness is to understand and master the self in a most effective way. First, let us show that the word mood is related to the word moon and that the lunar force that acts upon the tides also affects the feeling body of man and temporarily distorts his emotional nature. The interaction of people's emotional bodies in the ebb and flow of positive and negative polarities and in the juxtaposition of good and evil creates lunar fields within the forcefields of those who are involved with psychic energies. The effect of these forcefields on those who come within their influence is similar to the effect of the moon in her cycles. One of the problems involved in lunar influence is the tendency of people to identify with their moods. The student of the light must come apart from the world of moods. He must learn that by attuning his consciousness with the divine nature he can reverse the tide of his human moods and become the master rather than the slave of his feelings. Unfortunately, those who practice self-analysis often lack the necessary objectivity when it comes to their own personalities. Even men of science - skilled in the practice of medicine and psychiatry and those who have been trained in psychology, philosophy, and the physical and social sciences - are seldom able to solve their own problems. This is because they plunge headlong into a subjective sense of their problems and lose all perspective in matters in which they are emotionally involved. We therefore advocate the cultivation of a deliberate sense of detachment from the self, especially during those crucial periods when one must ask oneself the question "What is acting in my world?" When you can recognize any problem for what it is as though it were happening to someone else, you will find that it will have less hold upon you and you will be able to rise above the downward pull of mood moments. Your own Holy Christ Self and your beloved God Presence are eager to have you become the master of your own world that you might be able to see just what is acting there when vicious forces, whether of your own or of another's creation, seek to subvert the levels of spiritually progressive happiness that you desire to manifest. The course of the highest love, as it meanders through the personal labyrinth where self-identification has created its own canyon walls, is naturally restrained to conform to the confinements of the self. Yet it must be borne in mind that the highest power is the highest power, the highest love is the highest love and it is able to overflow the banks of self-imposed limitation and to inundate the soul with the purifying energies of the Holy Spirit. The tendency of people to identify with the lowest common denominator of human behavioral patterns, whether their own worst deeds or another's, is contrary to divine principle. Therefore to dare and to do must still be the fervent cry of the man of the Spirit who would advance over all obstacles including his own self-woven shrouds of negation. Once and for all the soul cries out, "I want to be free!" But with each new challenge it seems to be confronted with an impenetrable door whose mysterious face will not yield to the hungry and thirsty traveler. In reality, the time and tide that wait for no man are vehicles of divine opportunity. When a balanced understanding of divine love and life is maintained during periods of personal struggle and social upheaval, the fiery intensity of cosmic intention is able to burn through the obstacles in self and society without scorching the evolving consciousness of men. But this is true only when the disciple is able to stand aside. Carefully balanced on the razor's edge of pure reason, he is able to keep the flame of life on behalf of many innocent souls. He is in the world but he is not of the world, and from this vantage point he perceives the need to defend his cosmic rights against the forces which would defraud him and all mankind of their divine inheritance. He knows that the strength that is sufficient for the day will be forthcoming through his simultaneous invocation of the assistance of heaven as a humble servant-son. Man who dares to do the will of God ought not to dare without meekness. For the meek shall inherit the earth.{252} The type of meekness of which we speak is that quality of graciousness which is manifest in those who know the source of their strength and use their knowledge not against other parts of life, but for the emancipation of all. I am well aware of the fact that all of these matters appear simple on the surface, and often individuals who read our instruction are so struck by its simplicity that they cry out, "But I already know that!" almost resenting our method of teaching mankind by repetition. But let me say again, It is not what you know that counts but what you do! And if you really have the knowledge of the law, it will not be just an accretion of knowledge, a weighty tome of words partially retained in the brain and computerized for instant playback, but it will be an active state of understanding - "With all thy getting get understanding."{253} For it is divine understanding that makes possible the individual unfoldment of divine power in the domain of the conscious will of man. And it is divine understanding alone that assures him that he will be able to control and eventually free himself from tendencies that are destructive to the well-being of himself or others. This doctrine of ahimsa or harmlessness toward life is truly the effulgence of the Christ nature in manifestation. However, even as Archangel Michael and the Lord Christ did not hesitate in their contentions with evil to say, "Get thee behind me ...,"{254} so the student must not hesitate, when he is made aware of the fact that he is coming under the influence of moods, to rebuke those feelings which are foreign to his true nature and he must, if he would be freeborn, always control his moods before they control him. Now, the students should be alerted to the fact that there is often a penetration of mood energies between the sheaths of the four lower bodies of man. This penetration can and does create great discomfort (both psychic and physical) because of the temporary polarization of the nerves to the astral plane. The commitment of the self unto the Holy Spirit through devout prayer, through the giving of intensive decrees, and through the visualization of the violet transmuting flame in, through, and around the four lower bodies will invariably produce a change in consciousness if such a change is truly desired by the supplicant. Sometimes a change of pace is all that is necessary to prevent the further encroachment of the negative force of the mood upon the psyche. Often time is needed in order for the four lower bodies to recover from the influence of moods, for when the consciousness is overwhelmed by moods of anger, fear, grief, resentment, or a general feeling of irritation, there is an invasion of psychic substance that is completely foreign to the soul. The soul must, therefore, be given time to throw off this substance, and this is effected much in the same manner as the physical body expels toxins. Those who are subject to moods are frequently labeled "moody." Many are even proud of their moods, for they feel that in the name of freedom they have the right to express any quality which they choose. Cosmic law proves otherwise. And whereas they certainly can and do have the "right" to do as they will, the gift of free will is never abused with impunity. The ascended ones, the elder brothers of the race, are always desirous of bringing the balance of the Christ to the students; for we know full well that all children of the light will at one time or another find themselves at odds with the world consciousness. When that time comes, it is well to have developed some degree of mastery over one's energies that they be not lost in one unguarded moment. We earnestly believe that the ability to control one's moods is a vital part of self-mastery that will bring the individual closer to an understanding of (hence dominion over) the self. All too frequently, even students of the light think they can indulge themselves in moods or states of reverie simply because this is a habit they have learned to enjoy. Actually, this is a most dangerous indulgence, for the entertainment of moods can be confused with the creation of a spiritually receptive consciousness. Furthermore, prolonged involvement of the psyche in mood energies greatly diminishes one's faculties of Christly discrimination. It is recommended that the student entertain a receptive state of consciousness, a waiting upon the Lord which we might term "a receptive mood." In this frame of mind, he can be drawn into a higher spiritual state. However, it should be borne in mind that human ideas as things in themselves are never enhanced by reason of their circulation in human consciousness. In order for an idea or a state of consciousness to change its polarity, it must be subjected to the higher will, to the higher love, and to the higher intelligence of the mind of God. Lingering residual magnetism in the subconscious regions of the mind can be purified and changed without ever surfacing to the conscious level. This is accomplished through the use of the transmutative power of prayers and decrees as the supplicant invokes the violet transmuting flame. Those who have never experimented in the use of the flames of God for the purposes of self-improvement and the raising of the consciousness should not find fault with this method until they have experimented with it for at least six months. Even then, if they would give their spiritual teachers at least half the chance which they expect life to give them, they should consider that perhaps their technique is undeveloped or their own density too great to yield in so relatively short a time. Therefore, they should continue to learn and use God's laws governing the scientific use of the flames. Each day is an opportunity for the soul to attain an element of his eternal mastery. You do not pass in one moment from the human octave to the divine, but step by step you climb wisdom's golden stairs. Study thyself to show thyself approved unto God.{255} Devotedly, I remain Lanto ****** Chapter 36 Kuthumi - September 7, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 36 - Kuthumi - September 7, 1969 Understanding Yourself 12 Action and Reaction Hearts of Light: We must consider both the diffusion of consciousness and the concentration thereof. Idealists and spiritual seekers frequently dissipate their consciousness, as it were, all over the universe. Some have the tendency to concentrate their consciousness so completely within the precincts of the self that there is no room in the inn of their being for an inflow of versatile ideas or for a free exchange of concepts with others in their circle of associations. It is logical and sane to establish boundaries to the habitation of one's consciousness.{256} These can be created on an arbitrary basis, but a reasonable rigidity should be adhered to in their formation. Otherwise, erstwhile and tramp thoughts might easily break down the necessary barriers one must establish in order to maintain a field of action within which he may function. Quite frequently in examining the akashic records of an individual lifestream we find that the affinitizing of souls is based solely upon their mutual karma. One of the wisest masters of old, Sri Magra, once said: "Affinities are the fine ties that are established in the perfect balance of the heart where the natural affections are enhanced by the feeling of delight in givingness as well as in a gracious state of receptivity." Let souls be drawn together, then, according to their highest good. Thus no mere negative pitting of karmic law will be responsible for the joyous expansion in service that comes to lifestreams who are drawn together by their delight in the law of God. The unfortunate state of consciousness that is engendered by the human ego in its sense of personal commitment to other egos often destroys beautiful friendships before they are born. We find this to be true in all cases of misunderstandings where a breakdown in communications is the cause of the problem. While such misunderstandings are admittedly a farce and no soul should have ill will toward another because of them, we often note the tendency on the part of humanity to mimic the worst examples in every age rather than to be the best examples. David observed the senseless activities of the people and asked, "Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?"{257} And in reality what can you do about it when individuals insist on having their own way? The wayward child seldom realizes just why he acts as he does, nor does he know why the reactions of life (the return of karma) come into manifestation. We face, then, not only the subject of action but also that of reaction. Every human being in the course of a day's events is continually making things happen unless he is neutral to all manifestation and is, in effect, blown about by every wind. It is the desire of the Eternal God to impart to the advanced disciple the understanding that if he is to be a part of the Prime Mover of the universe, a part of the Holy Spirit, he must keep the way of wholeness in the whole body of God insofar as he is able. This means that he must put an end to his reactions to the actions of others. From the Dhammapada, the teachings of the Buddha ring clear concerning the wailing of men: ' "He abused me, he beat me, he defeated me, he robbed me' - in those who harbor such thoughts hatred will never cease."{258} Down through the ages, men have recited their grievances against other parts of life. We doubt not that many of these grievances have been based on injustices, but we believe that what is most important is that happiness live in the consciousness of the self. As the Buddha said, "If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness follows him, like a shadow that never leaves him."{259} When the self is constantly suffering as the victim of someone else's actions, it is often because the key of one's own reactions has set up reactions in others. When the self becomes accustomed to functioning in a climate of domination, imposing itself upon others and in turn being imposed upon by others, it knows not its own freedom nor is it able to impart freedom. Therefore, the greatest step that the disciples can take in this day of violent actions and reactions is to cleanse the self of the vicious habit of reacting to the mistakes of others. It is enough that an individual has erred in the first place, but when you add to his error your own you have what we have often called "a compound fracture." These situations are not always easily mended. The more sensitive among mankind often hold in review the chastisement of another's ill-chosen remarks or, in some cases, well-chosen remarks which were misinterpreted. The business of living requires exquisite care, and if one is to be mindful of the self while being mindful of others he must hold dear the virtue of perfect balance at all times and especially when disturbing conditions manifest all around him. One of your poets phrased it well: "If you can keep your head when all about you / Are losing theirs and blaming it on you ... / Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it."{260} The influence of the moon is often greatest upon those who refuse to acknowledge its influence upon them. Lunar substance is drawn unknowingly by many among mankind through their impure feelings, and its accumulation causes their fragile peace to be easily shattered by the most trivial manifestation. If you then "can keep your head," you can further the divine plan for others as you guard against the accumulation of undesirable records in your own Book of Life. How fortunate it is that this understanding can be given, that we are able to reach through the veil as we do in our current series in the Pearls of Wisdom, and that we may counsel you from our level both simply and profoundly - first as to how you may understand yourself, and second as to how you may rule yourself. You would be surprised, I am certain, if you could see the records of the billions of lifestreams evolving upon earth, to note how many truly delightful people allow themselves to be harried by their own careless and vain expressions. If you were to ask them just what they get out of life during periods of stress and if they were to be honest, they would have to answer, "Nothing." But we would disagree. For what they get out of it in reality is misqualified energy which places a weight on the balance of life and counteracts what virtue they have and should express in their lives, both in the past and in the future. The man who is careless with his energy places in jeopardy not only the moment in which he lives but also the future in which he hopes to live. Men cry out that they wish to please God. They beat upon their breasts, and they vow with fierce determination that they will never again depart from the law of their being. Yet the record is clear: old and crusty momentums often draw more of their kind into the world of the individual and they pull down the otherwise buoyant craft of self into the rapids of life where experiences blend into a montage of whirling energy, a movement too fast to stabilize. In a state of desperation, men turn to undesirable panaceas. These may include dangerous drugs, sexual indulgences, the use of intoxicants, a display of violence, or an exhibition of the ego calculated to win admiration from humankind. This is truly gilding the lily from without. And it not only spoils the natural beauty of the flower, but it also creates a tie-up of energy. If this energy were permitted to flow forth from within, it would naturally open the bud of self into such octaves of beauty and supremacy as to stimulate the most noble expression in all who would so order their lives. We direct you this week, in order to enhance your understanding of the self, to a thoughtful consideration of the dangers of reaction. The only safe reaction is response to inspiration from on high and from within. One can and should respond with joy to the positive energies flowing into one's world from the fount of truth. The practice of this type of cooperation with life's energies will eventually replace those reactions to negative stimuli which produce a fiery and useless battle in the world of men. We hold before the vision of the ascending son a burst of renewed hope. Progress is best made by stopping the expansion of error and by turning all energy - misqualified energy, unqualified energy, and qualified energy - into one wide channel of glorious spiritual achievement. This practice will make for progress in all, and it will ultimately furnish all with the means of supplying their every need. May we say together, "Fortunately I AM!" Kuthumi ****** Chapter 37 Meru - September 14, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 37 - Meru - September 14, 1969 Understanding Yourself 13 The Hidden Man of the Heart Beloved Seekers: Let us open up through sweet simplicity the understanding of men to the doorway of Self. Self is not the image that appears, that seems to be, that masquerades behind the name of an individual or his personality. Self is not the mask, nor is it the karmic record filled with undesirable qualities which man in his heart repudiates. In the seeming struggle between good and evil, there are negative forces that seek to hide from the eyes of man his Real Image and to glorify the pseudoimage. This they do in order that they may control men by warping their motives and by surrounding them with fear. But the key to escape is simple. If you will remain steadfast in a childlike sense of wonder and trust in God, we can this day dispel all doubt and fear from your consciousness, regardless of your intellectual level. You must understand first that the image that appears is not real; second, that the image that does not readily appear but that is real is often hidden; and third, that this hidden image is the image that God did make and that he saw was good.{261} The subtle forces of the serpent that roam the planet - whether they act through a fraudulent theology, through psychopolitical treachery, or through an invasion of the minds of men, producing obsessions - will continue to downgrade the individual by amplifying his supposed or actual errors, and they will continue to seek to hide the beautiful image of God in which each man was made. We propose to restore the individual sense of dignity and worth as one of the first steps in finalizing man's understanding of himself. It is not that we would say of the evil that men have done, it is no cause for punishment. The word has clearly stated, "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." {262} But men should understand that the law was written for positive reasons. When God said, "As ye sow, so shall ye reap," he referred to the law of givingness and service whereby a star of minute proportions could attain to a greater glory by permitting a greater measure of the glory of God to flow through his consciousness. This is the only means whereby the gifts of the eternal kingdom may be permanently retained. The world is full of condemnation. Mankind do not understand that when they condemn one another they also condemn themselves, nor do men understand that condemnation is a tangible misqualification of God's energy, nor do they realize that when they laugh at one another they are actually laughing in the dark at God who is in the light. For God dwells in the inner light of every man,{263} and those who speak against the veiled prophet that abides within as the hidden man of the heart{264} speak out of the darkness of themselves against the light. That they know it not and are ignorant is no excuse. In teaching you to understand yourself, we must remove from your eyes the scales of injustice that have traduced your immortal reality. You are a child of the light, You were created in the image divine, You are a child of Infinity, You dwell in the veils of time, You are a son of the Most High! To ray your light and to serve Is to do the will divine, By being the living Word. No darkness can long endure Before the radiant light. The truth will make you secure And ready your soul for flight - The ascension is the goal. As Jesus rose from the sod, He inspired man to enfold Himself in the mantle of God. I AM is the name of the Father, I AM is the name of the Son, I AM is the Spirit Most Holy - Ye all are clothed by the One. He will guide and guard you forever, He will carry you far in his arm, He hides himself from the clever, He enshrines the poor with his charm. God lives in your soul, the image of Self - To know it will change your view. God lives in the light that shines from within, He breaks his bread with the few. He hears our calls and answers, His love is the light of men. Accept, then, his understanding - Your wonderful way to win. I AM is the name you must call on - 'Tis being so broad and true. For the narrow confinements of selfhood Can only hide from view The Face of Forever in heaven Unfolding within the soul. His bread is the precious leaven To raise us all to our goal. Won't you understand, then, that as your Real Self has no part in these karmic records, in these personality traits, in this sense of struggle and separation, so you must be alive forevermore. As Jesus said to John upon Patmos, "Behold, I AM alive forevermore ... and have the keys of hell and of death,"{265} so the development of the deathless consciousness of your Creator will enable you to build for eternity. The work you do is not for a moment. It is not for a family you will lose or who will lose you. It is not for a course that will be won or for a diploma earned. These are pinnacles in time. These are but passing landmarks on the road to an ever transcending reality, for the work of the Father and of the Father through the Son is for eternity. Understand thy Highest Self, then, as the God of very gods. As you face this concept, the lower self falls upon its knees. As the Christ, the eternal Mediator, bows to the Father, Good becomes All-in-all. Man enters the sudden stream of overcoming Self-realization. He fears no merge, for he sees that the blackened image of the synthetic self that has sought to cast down his immortal birthright is not real! Therefore, he quickly replaces it with the divine image and humbly holds himself in the consciousness of the son who awaits his divine inheritance. These simple phrases, meditated upon again and again, will reestablish the currents of the ascension flame within the fabric of the soul. These gentle graces, thought upon with utter devotion, will take the sting out of the battle of life and they will balance the service of the man of great spiritual attainment with that of the man who is just beginning. As it was spoken long ago, "But many that are first shall be last; and the last first."{266} Until men merge with their divine image and with their divine inheritance, they should not look to the matter of who is free from karma and who is not, who has more karma and who has less karma. For the way of overcoming is strictly a matter of consciously realizing that one's living identity is the deathless, birthless, eternal God. Through identification with this Eternal God, the lodestone of the Presence becomes the magnet that focuses energy and purpose in the individual monad, drawing him ever upward in the great sounding stream of universal progress. A God is born. "Ye must be born again."{267} No longer wedded to the changing, shifting sands of personality, of frustration, and of struggle, man understands himself as one with his own beloved I AM Presence. But a note of caution must be sounded here. No one must use his Presence as a cudgel to harm other men or others upon the Path. No one must say, my Presence is over your Presence. For the Presence of all life is one, and the delicate interaction between the souls of men that is a development of the power and wisdom of the Presence always exudes the perfect activity of divine love. Yet as part of the forte of heavenly wisdom that becomes the treasure of the individual seeker upon the Path, it would be well if he would understand clearly that he must put an end to the sense of struggle that he has developed between himself and differing ideologies, concepts, and personality traits of others. This does not require one to become aloof from humanity, nor do we suggest that you fail to consider politely and sincerely the statements of others as they may be functioning on the Path below the level of the divine. Rather do we recommend that you establish your relationship with others on the basis of your relationship with the Christ. Let none construe our remarks to mean that you should presume to judge or to condemn other men, for your judgment rests with the Eternal. Your faith rests with God. Your hope rests there and your future. When you commend your life and your thoughts unto him, you automatically free the lower self from the converging and diverging lines of karmic force and you draw into your unascended consciousness the beautiful qualities of the Presence that fulfill, step by step, the necessary and lawful requirements that lead to your ultimate freedom in the light. Oh, if only the students would grasp this principle! And then if they would reread this series until they have made it a part of the inner instruction that is written in the heart, they would find it much easier to manifest the freedom of genuine happiness in fulfilling their divine plan. Lovingly, in the light of daily progress, moving onward to perfection I remain Meru ****** Chapter 38 Lanto - September 21, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 38 - Lanto - September 21, 1969 Understanding Yourself 14 The Memory of the Soul To Those Who Are Determined, Victory! Not words, words, words but the Word. "In the beginning was the Word."{268} In the middle are words, words, words. But in the ending only the Word will remain. The students who would understand themselves should realize that the expansion of the middle - a term which I use symbolically to describe the finite realm - is intentional in order to provide in the field of kal (time) and desa (space) what may be called a fort of opportunity. Here the chaff of human experience can be separated from the wheat of spiritual growth.{269} Here the false starts and the false moves that inscribed the karmic record upon the soul can be adjudicated and balanced. And here the beautiful purpose of realigning the consciousness and of manifesting the original purpose for which the individual took embodiment can best be served. There is a statement that some may say is trite, nevertheless it seems to us that it must be said. It is this: "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."{270} The ways of death signify the death of the human person, the stamping of "finis" on the dossier of an individual life. Now, those who identify solely with the expressions of the personality do actually die when the life energy that beats their hearts is withdrawn, for their existence was based entirely on the flesh. But those who have already cast their anchors beyond the veil, those who have relinquished their ties to the human person simultaneously fulfilling their responsibilities and obligations which they have contracted in the world of form - these live on in the consciousness of immortality. We would impart holy wisdom to men and women on the spiritual path and to those who are in a state of becoming all that their Presence would have them to become. We would make clear that it is essential that they do not prematurely forsake, before they exit from the world of form, those natural and reasonable obligations which they have made. Care is a quality of the Deity. And it is, therefore, the consideration of God for humanity which prompts men to underwrite humanitarian endeavors during the tenure of their earth life and even beyond its span. These are the marks of God's own cosmic care and consideration for each one. The Eternal God, in his sweeping program to give to humanity the fruits of the kingdom of the Spirit, has provided in reembodiment a renewal of opportunity to those who fail to make the grade in the first, second, third, or subsequent battle for attainment. To those who are not on the Path it provides a hopeful continuity in order that one day they might recognize the splendid purposes of life and thus become a part of the vanguard of the kingdom of angels, elementals, and men who seek the increase of beauty in life always and everywhere. When men are able willingly to surrender their habitual sense of identification with the changing, death-centered mortal personality, at that moment they actually attain immortality. This act of surrender is a splendid one. It is truly a rebirth by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is a transfer of the consciousness from the forcefield of mortality, with its attendant sense of struggle, to the domain of the Spirit - right while the consciousness occupies a physical body. When this transfer occurs, the body need no longer be a liability to the soul but it can provide the necessary adjunct that will assist the soul in bringing about the ascension of the consciousness and the reunion of the vehicles and of the total man with the heart of his Divine Presence. Inasmuch as the Presence is birthless and deathless and holds contact with every other part of life in the most beautiful sense of infinity, at the moment of awakening the whole universe bursts into view within the consciousness. Now, let us understand clearly that we are talking about two forms of consciousness: (1) the consciousness of the outer self with its awareness of externals, and (2) the consciousness of the soul with its inner knowing. The eyes of the soul once opened are able to witness the birth of star systems that even the most powerful telescopes cannot reach and they are able to respond to the prayer of a child embodied behind the iron curtain with the divine pathos and the divine answer. You can never truly serve the needs of all whom you love until you hold within your grasp the infinite power of God. We have witnessed healings upon the Earth planet that have been accomplished through the agency of embodied men and women who have made intercession for those in need. Consider, then, what it means to be able to hold in your hands the globe of compassion as the scepter of power, to be able to serve to assist as God does in the development of the universe, to be free from mortal limitation, and to commune with the immortals in their exalted state of consciousness; for they formerly passed through the same doorway which you will now be passing through as the soul awakens. And remember, dear hearts - those of you who have difficulty in accepting the truth of reembodiment because you do not in your outer mind recall all of the events of the past - that it is the soul's memory that is able to integrate all experience into a comprehensive whole. The objective consciousness is naturally confined to the memory of the events of your present life until it learns to reach into the memory of the soul and to draw forth with crystal clarity the patterns of life that integrate the allness of self into the allness of the universe. When this is done, it will not create a decrease in happiness but a tremendous increase in happiness because it will bring about a natural unfoldment of the divine memory from within. Those who attempt to force these spiritual experiences through the use of dangerous drugs or mental probings and exercises literally tear open the petals of the flower of the soul from the budding center. One day they will find the fallen petals at their feet, faded and dry - returning to the dust from which all things were made.{271} Only by recognizing that the soul within, the living soul that God made, possesses the capacity to span the centuries will you be able to enter into immortal life. The soul has been neglected, the soul must be awakened. And man, too, must awaken himself to the soul's consciousness. He must never permit the desecration of the beautiful soul which the Lord God made in his own image. {272} The restoration of the son to the image of the Father is the precious way of salvation which is implemented by the power in hand of the living Christ-identity vouchsafed to every man. When every eye shall see him as he is,{273} they shall place their fingers upon the body of his substance, they shall feel the symmetry of the Spirit that is within him, they shall feel the electronic throb of his heartbeat as the essence of his life pours through the garment he wears and floods their souls with identification with higher realms. Then shall man truly come to know who and what he is. Man is a God in the becoming, but he can never know this while he thinks earthly thoughts. He can never know this by worldly knowledge. For the things of this world are foolishness with God,{274} and in the eyes of God the only real values are those that free man from the eclipse of being that has concealed the Sun from his eyes. And it is the Sun that will awaken his spiritual senses that enable him to see with Saint Paul the face of the master and to hear his cry "It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks."{275} "God loveth a cheerful giver"{276} and those who surrender sweetly, joyously to his program of hope for them and for the whole world are forerunners in the cause of understanding the great, blazing noontide reality of themselves. These not only will to be free, but they will also be free. Graciously, in the never-failing light of God, I remain Lanto ****** Chapter 39 Kuthumi - September 28, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 39 - Kuthumi - September 28, 1969 Understanding Yourself 15 The Consciousness of the Living God Children of Valiant Faith: I recently spoke unto the disciples gathered at the headquarters of The Summit Lighthouse in Colorado Springs and I said: Understand that the noontide is not the even and that the midnight hour is not the dawn. With these thoughts in mind I would draw to a close our training on understanding yourself, for there is a tendency on the part of humanity to regard themselves fixed in whatsoever state they find themselves at a given moment. It is almost as though they considered themselves to be that moment rather than the `all-moment.' When the Word went forth of old " ... with his stripes we are healed"{277} and the Word went forth again " ... their sins and iniquities will I remember no more,"{278} many grasped this principle with faint hope and others with fervent hope but all were looking to exalt in themselves freedom from past responsibilities. I have learned to trust Him completely, for He is able to save to the uttermost those that believe on Him.{279} But the faith that men have is but a goad to the works that they must do in order to transpose the self from its habitual human affinity to an understanding of its eternal divine reality. Therefore you must not live in the sense of your present order or disorder, of your present progress or struggle, of your present fears or hopes but you must come apart from all that makes up the world of opposites where man is found alternating between his midnight and his noonday hour, where the shades of expression pass from exaltation to depression and then back again to exaltation. To dwell in the consciousness of the living God is to hold oneself in a state of such constant beauty as defies description in ordinary words, in ordinary tongues. Only the tongues of angels could even begin to describe what it is really like to have the vast power-flow of Eternity resident within the soul, to have access to the great libraries of heaven with all of the considerations and works of the sons of God recorded there, to be able to glean therefrom the fruit of a continually self-renewing knowledge and to know that his laws are divine coordinates. These coordinates are fixed as stars in the firmament - blazing points of light that will gladden the eyes of each little child who shall come to this knowledge of himself. So tender and so beautiful is the face of the Eternal One that those who are made in his similitude, those who occupy all of the vast planes of being, never cease to marvel at the great unity that is manifest in the diversity of heaven. Just as it is easy to see how environmental influences upon Earth can erode the fine substances of the soul, so it is easy to see how those who have attained to the higher consciousness of the angels and of the spiritual beings will have blotted from their consciousness all of the sense of struggle and pain that has been attendant with them throughout the span of their Earth life. The alternate pleasures and displeasures that come to mankind - holding him now in the hot water of fear and then in the cool water of hope - are a source of continual pressure-pain. But he whose delight is in the law of God{280} and in the power of God's mind is content to convey to all generations the laws of the many mansions of the Father{281} that gleam in the heavens and that continue to bespeak promise to the souls of men. For in a very real sense the higher laws and the higher virtues are polestars to guide the mariners in this world toward their eternal realities. It is quite natural that men should fear to die, but some of you may be startled when I say that the soul has a greater fear of being born into the world of form than it does of leaving. Whereas there are on the lower astral planes of life frightening and gruesome figures which seek to harm the soul as it journeys from one plane of existence to the next, he who places his trust in God is able to draw the power of the angels and of the archangels to his defense and to rise out of those dense spheres and controlled realms. Then at last the soul knows and it is known in the limitless and airy habitations of the planetary orbs, in interstellar space, and even in the space within the self - its own "forty acres." You think and speak of heaven as home, but you live as though earth were forever your dwelling place. When the home of heaven lives within you, the dwelling place of man is no longer important. For you can command the elements around you to be free, you can take dominion over environmental forces, and you can create through beauty and art a place which God himself will call home. Through the span of the ages, men have changed their environments - the environment of their thoughts, the environment of their reading material, and the environment of images upon which they gaze. All things that you do that are cooperative with your Presence in the bringing forth of the kingdom of heaven around you will help to evolve the kingdom of God within you. And as you evolve these higher thoughts, bear well in mind that thy self is also thy neighbor's self and that the good that flowers within thee is also available to him in God's garden even as the flowers of his garden are available to thee. Whereas some may smile in the coarseness of their sensuality at these finer gestures of the angels which I am making unto you in this my final offering on understanding yourself, I am confident that when the close of the series is given next week by beloved Meru you will rejoice that you have had the opportunity to progress through its pages and hopefully to progress through the consciousness of God's own understanding of himself which we have sought to convey. Although man may be born in faint hope, he lives to see the day when that hope becomes the vital faith that carries him through all of the vicissitudes of life. I hope then for you, as does every son of heaven, that as you read and reread this series together with those other messages that we release each week from the whole panoply of cosmic servants of light you will be able to find the glowing power of your spiritual reality as a tangible manifestation within the field of your consciousness, that you will cast aside the petty and the trivial - those conditions that have hindered you so grossly, that have been blown up out of all proportion to their size. I call to God for renewed perspective for each one of you that you may vent your consciousness by opening the windows of the soul and by calling for the sunlight of his radiance to pour through. Our words may not always be new, but the consciousness that he brings is ever new. The ideas that he will bring and the ideas that we will bring in his name will be not only new but also renewing. And one day we will clasp hands even as now in Spirit and in essence we can clasp hearts. Of old as Saint Francis I carried many hefty stones and threw them into place, even with my knee. Now I place my knees upon the eternal rock of the living Christ{282} who is our joint salvation and I pray with thee that the mantle of his peace may sustain thy heart at every moment - at the dawn producing hope, and at the midnight hour producing an awareness of the coming dawn. - Your sincere friend of the ages, Kuthumi ****** Chapter 40 Meru - October 5, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 40 - Meru - October 5, 1969 Understanding Yourself 16 Taking Dominion over the Self To All Who Love Victory: We have sought to cast upon the self what can be called the golden flame of precise illumination. If we have revealed a page, volumes remain to be written and read. Nevertheless, a helpful summation of what has been given is in order. Man's delight in the inward laws of his own being will increase in majesty and in power through his realization that the gift of dominion lies within his own hand. There are many who wait for external conditions to shape their lives, and we acknowledge that to a great extent outer circumstances do control the lives of men. But men must recognize that the inward affinities of the soul and the accumulations of good and bad karma are the actual promoters of their destiny. Therefore, to understand the man that is within is an essential part of taking dominion over the earth.{283} Taking dominion over one's world as God intends does not include the exerting of mortal control over others nor does it imply that individuals should be moved by every whimsy of mortal thought and feeling. But far too many of the children of God upon earth are unknowingly subject to the various methods of control of the self by others whose ideals and purposes are not identifiable with the divine plan but with a plan of personal domination. Dominion and domination are not the same thing. To take dominion means to be aware of the cosmic potential that has been implanted within the Self as a gift of the living God and then to begin to externalize in the outer world of form the beautiful pattern which God holds for every man, whereas the domination of mankind is the usurpation of his free will. One of the greatest mistakes men make is to fail to externalize the plan of God first in the inner world of the mind and then in the outer world of manifestation, for the divine plan is intimately involved with the subtleties of the inner radiance of the divine consciousness in man. When that plan is passed through the muddied stream of the subconscious mind, filled with its hodgepodge of vain imaginations, it is temporarily lost to the outer mind which can then bring forth only the bane of ignorance upon the screen of life. The purification of one's consciousness, then, is a vital prerequisite for the beginning student as well as for the more advanced along the Path who would truly find their way Godward. The winged God Self cannot fly when its wings are clipped by human vanities or man's self-imposed limitations. Man is truly a God in exile, but he need not remain so. He can purify his world through application to the heart of Deity, and he can invoke those cosmic flame patterns which are manifestations of the flow of the Christ consciousness. It is then the sense of sin as well as involvement in iniquity that has promoted in men those feelings of guilt which cause them to go deeper and deeper into debt simply because they do not see their way clear to pay the debts they have already made. Far too many among the children seeking the light fail to understand that they themselves have created what we refer to as "a pile of rubble." And they know not that they can never complete the beautiful work of soul development until they have also engaged their energies in the process of purification. The question has been raised, shall a man purify and develop his soul simultaneously or must he complete his purification before he begins his development? Beloved ones, let us put first things first. Purification is development, for even in the building of a house you must first clear the land and prepare the site before you can lay a proper foundation. One of the problems that is often confronted by the more advanced students results from the fact that they have been involved in a great deal of study of spiritual law, often with a number of teachers and organizations who have taught partial yet effective truths. At certain points along the way, these students seem to feel compelled to cast aside all that they have learned in order to grasp the eternal symbol of progression. Let them learn that although names may vary, processes remain the same. We acknowledge that the techniques that are recommended for their spiritualization may differ according to the teacher, but the individual should always remember that his relationship to his God Presence remains the same. Therefore, upon the student rests the responsibility of drawing from the teachings the effective application that will enable him to profit the most from the instruction. We do not exonerate the teacher of the responsibility of presenting the teaching in the best way possible. But what is the best way possible when one deals with minds in various states of progress, stemming from various beginnings? Hindered by semantics, some become hopelessly lost and they eventually abandon their search for truth. None of this is necessary, for even the most advanced student does not hinder his progress by reexamining the basic principles of the law as a point of review. Simply because you have already mastered a language skill does not mean that you cannot profit from a review of your earliest books or an encounter with phrases now forgotten. Such review will often revitalize the whole imaginative process and enable you to capture an inner picture of a host of subjects which when integrated will add to your compendium of knowledge that is so valuable in the business of living. Divine arts are no different than human ones, and we choose to think that the business of living is really a divine art but far too many among mankind take this business for granted. Long ago, one of the great followers of the Christ said, "Ye are not your own. For ye are bought with a price."{284} The descent of God into form was an opportunity for the personality (the form consciousness) through the nature of God individualized to attain to the completeness of the Godhead. The Christ is the cornerstone of the temple,{285} and your own Holy Christ Self is the mighty orifice of the fountain of life. As this opening is enlarged through your attunement and the expansion of your own level of awareness, the unfolding realities of the Self will bring the peace that comes with a more comprehensive knowledge of the law. In our releases to mankind, both in our worded instruction and in the gentle radiation of our love that can be felt through the very pages themselves, we desire to bring you into the great sheepfold of the eternal Good Shepherd. The bishop of your soul is the living Christ within you. And unless you have and maintain contact with this mighty universal being, whose business it is to see to it that you become the fullness of all that God is, thereby fulfilling your destiny and returning to the divine image, you will never come up out of the human consciousness. He is the door and all who climb up another way are thieves and robbers.{286} Christ is the light of the world.{287} But centuries ago the children who had only a partial glimpse of reality twisted and warped the great Christine truths that would have given all men their freedom long ago. Therefore we today ask you in the holy name of your God Presence to realize that your Higher Self is very much involved in the business of living and so must your lower self be. There are entirely too many among mankind who function mechanically, repeating with cyclic regularity their boring routines without ever realizing their opportunity to bring the Christ light into the simplest and humblest task. Whatever you do can contribute not only to the development of yourself and to your daily understanding of the Self but also it can provide a beacon of hope to others with whom you may be associated. The grace that is not too proud to become as a little child in spiritual things,{288} to stoop that it might enter the narrow, sometimes low doorway of events, will ultimately find itself at the feet of Infinite Grace. Surely one day the dawn of Self will become the noontide, and the fulfillment of the cycles of being will signify a return to the Father's reality. The flame here at Lake Titicaca rises high. May all aspire to the highest illumination of the Real Self. I remain devoted to your light, Meru ****** Chapter 41 Vaivasvata Manu - October 12, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 41 - Vaivasvata Manu - October 12, 1969 The Hierarchical Principle of a Chaste Intent, the Law of the Wheel within the Wheel, and the Cutting Edge of the Sword of the Spirit To All Who Would Understand and Serve the Intent of Hierarchy: Most of the seething unrest that permeates the atmosphere of the planet today is a manifestation of that human selfishness which seeks to manipulate men. This type of control works through cleverness of wit and sophistication that always takes into account man's susceptibility to pride and what is referred to as "snob appeal." People are being forced by their own vanities and emotions into the position of being manipulated, and they have allowed themselves to become puppets of their own limited imaginations. The Great White Brotherhood is currently seeking effective means of bridging the chasm between popular opinion and the progressive instruction which the masters seek to convey to mankind. Thus it is our hope to restore a climate of spiritual receptivity that may be accelerated into a golden-age understanding that will promote peace and harmony upon earth. The hungers in the hearts of men for spiritual bread gnaw at their serenity and often drive them to commit acts of which they are later ashamed. Humanity's destructive momentums of self-condemnation are often shifted to a collective scapegoat or to an individual who becomes the target of the personal malice of millions. The solutions to mankind's present problems are not apparent to those who are embroiled in them. These problems are compounded on the one hand by an extreme narrow-mindedness, and on the other by a fanatical liberalism. To have what we may term a hard core of knowledgeable disciples upon the planet, who are devoted to enlightened humanistic interests, does not guarantee that the remainder of the population will adopt the correct attitudes which will bring about improved conditions in human relations. We must be able to use those in different states of spiritual awareness, according to their highest capacities, who will act as mediators in the world of form. These must act neither on the basis of fear nor on that of misguided love, but on the hierarchical principle of a chaste intent. This is the intent whose only goal is the enlightenment of humanity and the creation of a broad spectrum of tolerances that will not be found so far afield of true freedom as to give no voice to the discrimination of the Christ mind. Naturally, we are interested in all people. And we are interested in establishing a rapport between differing modes of spiritual thought that will bring about a long overdue synthesis of understanding, including a codification of religious terminologies with a view to making what we may term "the occult" more easily assimilable by an evolving humanity. It is unfortunate that through the years many have been used to complicate the structure of the teachings which we have sought to build as a bridge of comprehension over which a bewildered and seeking humanity might pass. One of the messages that we must get across, with the help of our disciples, is the practicality of the councils of the Great White Brotherhood. The most complex problems are seen through our eyes as resolvable through reasonability, affability, and mankind's own willingness to implement the solutions we offer. Therefore, in the final hours of this year, we enlist the aid of the students in spreading abroad the good news of the higher teachings of Christ to all who will give ear to the voice of God that still speaks in the wilderness of humanity's consciousness, saying: "Prepare ye the way of the Lord."{289} We cannot condone the actions of those who thrive upon the poison of malicious gossip, nor do we hold guiltless those who spread lies about others. If those who consider themselves to be among the vanguard of the spiritual forces of the world are to remain effectively aligned with the hierarchy in their outer service, they must hold to the cardinal principles of virtue in their dealings with one another. At the same time, they must exhibit internally an attitude of compassionate comprehension toward those whose zeal at the beginning of the Path causes them to feel, albeit sometimes rashly, that they are more efficient standard-bearers than those who have for many years been continuously engaged in a form of service to humanity. It is not necessary for a student on the Path to judge the merit of another disciple or of another movement in order to be effective in his own particular calling. We of the hierarchy are not so much concerned that people work together in the same avenue of expression as we are that they learn to concentrate their energies and their attention on the purification of their individual worlds and whatever avenue they have chosen as an outlet for their expression of the Christ. Only when individual man has resolved his personal problems by improving his attitude toward his fellowmen can he become an effective mediator in the arena of world action where he will encounter many schools of thought. The time has come for visionaries to understand that it is not necessary for them to build a house in which all of the people of the world can live. These must understand what we have termed the Law of the Wheel within the Wheel.{290} This law has to do with the interchange of the microcosm and the Macrocosm, and it reveals that all manifestation must be patterned "as above, so below." Pur et simple this means that any endeavor, regardless of its size, can manifest the same cardinal virtue of sincerity which the Brotherhood advocates; for all who would embrace the truth can learn to outpicture within their own field of service an aspect of the design of the universal temple. Millions can drink from one spring if the water be pure; for there joy is conveyed, and this is the purpose of our Brotherhood. Men and women do not need to be joined together as an incongruous pile of lumber haphazardly nailed together. But they do need the essential spiritual conveyances of service and of technique which bring peace to the heart and expand their knowledge of the mysteries of the Christ. Working with the central purposes of hierarchy, they will then draw forth the necessary harmonizing factors that will make all life one. On the other hand, attempts to integrate religious groups and ideas often bring about a segregation of both, as people, through encounter, may become less tolerant of one another and less inclined to accept one another's concepts and goals. Evolution, in a spiritual sense, comes either gradually or suddenly to men; and it is difficult for those in either category to appreciate the progress of those in the other. How wise was he who said, "With all thy getting get understanding."{291} The business of educating humanity along the spiritual path is a great necessity at the present hour; therefore, we are most concerned with the cutting edge of the sword of the Spirit that is held in the hand of the devotee, for it is the correct implementation of the Word, referred to in the Scriptures as the "sword of the Spirit,"{292} that is all important to the evolving soul. Whether you fight under one flag or another, as long as you are true to yourself and to the activation of the power of faith within your heart, as long as you are unfolding the principles of higher wisdom and removing the impediments of dogmatic interpretation that have prevented your acceptance of truth through the years, as long as you are amplifying a selfless love that recognizes what is real in the scientific manifestation of being, you are a part of our vanguard. We want you to feel, each and every one of you, that the need for individual spiritual unfoldment is paramount. Then we want you to see the value of collective associations and examinations of truth that follow the theme of the hour which must ever be acknowledged as Christly discrimination. Many rash deeds are done in the name of altruism whereas, if a little foresight had been exercised, much pain would have been spared to the self and to others. Our concerns, then, lie in the forward movement of mankind in a service that is guided by the wholeness of cosmic reasonability and justice and in a purity that is free from personal pride, a purity that adheres with maximum effort to the principles of honesty for which there are no substitutes. As it has been said, "God give us the freedom to do the right as we see it." May we, then, call forth in all of you the blessing of freedom to see with the eyes of the Spirit the vision of one man transposed to become one world. For only through the life patterns of the Masters of Wisdom, only through living in keeping with the pure truth of being will man and what he does become permanent. He will not have to backtrack or to recycle old errors, for he will have transcended the world and all that's in it. Press on. Keep on keeping on. Only victory lies ahead! For the hierarchy, I remain graciously Vaivasvata Manu ****** Chapter 42 El Morya - October 19, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 42 - El Morya - October 19, 1969 The Building of an Impregnable Tower To Those Who Would Align Themselves with the Forces of Righteousness: The divine plan seeks implementation. Men and women of the Spirit who call upon the fires of purification should realize that the purposes of purification are to ready the soul for spiritual victory and for the divine plan fulfilled. It is difficult for men and women, separated as most of them are from the power of true spiritual vision, to understand their seemingly appointed lot. The wheels of karma turn; and the sweet and innocent, by reason of inward training, elect to hasten the day of their salvation by accelerating the balancing of personal karma in their final embodiments. These often pick up the threads of their negative karma that have been mercifully held in abeyance in order that they might render a greater service before the day of reckoning. Having made good use of their opportunities to mount up the good karma of deeds well done, these souls are anxious to pay their final debts that they might obtain "a better resurrection."{293} Often their contemporaries stand aghast as the karmic lash descends, and they cannot in their wisest moments understand the functioning of the universal law as it pertains to their loved ones. No one should fear the outworking of karma, good or bad, for the law of retribution is always just; but heaven pity the man or the woman who falls into the toils of the traitors to the divine plan. You have heard of the war between Michael and Satan.{294} You have heard of Armageddon.{295} You are witnessing daily, even now, the flood of events that is the finalizing configuration preceding the golden age of peace and enlightenment. Wrath trembles in the cup; and those who should fear do not, while those who have nothing to fear, fear. Let us reverse the cycle and proclaim the victory of the light! The carnal mind continues to seek refuge in a series of paper defenses that lack validity. Now we say, "O warriors of the Spirit, build mountains and reservoirs of faith for the days that are ahead; for the children of the light must become the children of the light of wisdom!" It has been said that the children of darkness are wiser in their own generation than the children of light.{296} This means that they know more about the things of the world than the children of the light know about the things of the Spirit. Let all understand clearly the need to seek holy wisdom and to promote the study of spiritual truth, not with a view to enhancing the old crusty momentums of the misguided and the misguiding but rather, as mariners of wisdom, let them chart their courses according to spiritual ideals. The deceits that are practiced in the world today, which are intended to make puppets out of humanity, cause them to scoff at truth and at the things of the Spirit. They laugh, but their mirth shall be cut short. Their boldness comes from those archenemies of righteousness who themselves believe and tremble{297} but would tutor mankind otherwise. They create reservoirs of intellectual defenses for the doctrines of atheism and agnosticism. They spawn doubt, fear, and all manner of lies; they create confusion and spread it abroad, but their end will surely come. As you approach the citadel, then, let it be with rejoicing. "Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."{298} The unholy alliances that have deceived many among the youth, that have sought to encase mankind in the mustiness of orthodoxy centuries old, and that even today seek to forbid the heavenly manna from being placed before the children of men are but cutting themselves off from life and truth. They will pay to the last farthing for their evil deeds,{299} and short-lived will be their cavorting in the enemy's camp. Surely the goodness and mercy of God can be seen in the glory of the sun, in the cycles of nature, and in the perfection in life. Surely the honest of heart can discern the unreasoning face that seeks to spread mischief abroad in the land and in the world. The psychology of the Spirit sweetly and simply reveals the law as the arbiter of man's destiny and as the fruit of the sowing of righteousness. Gazing now at the great conspiracy of darkness and at the network of evil that is spread everywhere, gazing at the multiplied pain and anguish that these have caused humanity, gazing at the egoistic struggles of the separatists - those who bid for fame and, according to the Faust legend, sell their souls to Mephistopheles - we say to humanity, how long will you linger in the toils of the wicked? We would also caution all who practice witchcraft, black magic, hypnosis, or psychic domination, all who ally themselves with darkness because they do not feel worthy of the light; and we would recommend that they make haste to reconsider the path they have chosen, for it will never lead them to the Real. Remember Milarepa, the great yogi, and his life story. Indeed it is better to be a gatekeeper in the house of God than to be a prince of darkness, for darkness will cease; and all who follow it, all who pursue it in its many ramifications that lead from the narrow isthmus of self to the colossal conspiracy of the legions of the night will be ultimately dragged down by their own debauchery. We are concerned, then, with the building of an impregnable tower, a spiritual fortress that shall be forever a rock of the ages. Standing on the promontory of time that juts out from the eternal shores, this tower of faith must first be builded within yourselves. All must create a healthy vision of spiritual possibilities not only for their own lives per se, but also for the humanity of this earth; for the heart-pangs of the race are multiplied by worldly entanglements, by wars, by the density of human deceit, and by the network of human greed that would make merchandise of men. Replace all of this by light! Seek peace and pursue it, but understand that the price is high. Understand that your freedom must be maintained together with your faith. We have secured many a grant from the Karmic Lords for and on behalf of freedom to mankind this year. The invisible workers are mightily aiding in the fight against inequity, shadow, and shame which are being used to hide the light of the Christ on a world scale. And the need for all to rally to the cause of the light is pinpointed by the rise of darkness and by its proliferation. The children of the dark seek always for authority. They seek for political control, for ecclesiastical control, and for monetary control; and in all things they seek to master and not to be mastered by any. What we should call universal justice is far from their minds, but the Karmic Lords hold it ever in mind; therefore, the light sustains the momentum of freedom which you are generating even now through your prayers and decrees. The rulers of the darkness may not be complacent; but little do they know how many people love justice, mercy, and truth. We shall continue to uphold these virtues in our daily visualizations for humanity. We shall continue to trust in him and to look for a restoration of the old boundaries when the gods walked the earth and the spirit of Eden was abroad in the land. Men foolishly think that the borders of their lands were allotted according to an historical epoch with which they are familiar. Let us remind you that the age of the earth is far greater than humanity have reckoned, that countless civilizations have had even greater scientific advancement than your own, and that there have been periods when the spiritual laws of the universe were used by ascended and unascended masters to assist the evolutions of earth in governing the planet according to the laws of love, wisdom, and power. That these days shall come again is inevitable, but the time shall be decided by the hour of the victory in the battle. We are preparing at this very hour blessings of great magnitude for you all, and hope is far from dead. In his overconfidence, the enemy shall find that he has overstepped his bounds. The people of the world are sick and tired of destruction, of excessive greed, of the fostering of hatred against races and nations, of the spread of the religions of darkness, of witchcraft, and of the perversions of the natural life that are recurring now upon the planetary body. The little children of the future must be given an opportunity to learn the laws of love. And if they are to learn them, it must be through your hands. The traitors must be exposed. Those who have proclaimed peace and liberty but who have secretly sought to bring sudden destruction upon humanity shall emerge from their sheep's clothing as wolves{300} which they indeed are. Let us ask the powers of light and illumination from the Great Central Sun to dip into the fires of the will of God and, by their attunement with his will for this earth and its evolutions, to give mankind the wisdom to discover the deceits of those who would confiscate property and subvert the laws of the land which are in keeping with the laws of God. Let us ask them to expose those who would dominate the free will of the sons of God. Let us ask that the deceivers be made known to the consciousness of the masses, that they may learn to repudiate them swiftly and not to be deterred in their spiritual search by the activities of these few children of darkness who have risen to positions of power. There shall come a great stirring this fall, and it shall mount feverishly; for we are determined that this sweet earth shall remain the Lord's and the fullness thereof.{301} In the confidence of your continued response to his holy will, I remain El Morya Chohan of the First Ray ****** Chapter 43 Lord Maitreya - October 26, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 43 - Lord Maitreya - October 26, 1969 The Principle of the Abundant Life Friends of Unity - That Magnificent Concept! The establishment of a unity of world religions through a synthesis of truth is far off and will remain so unless humanity approach the grace of God with both an openness of heart and an inner understanding of the principles of brotherhood. Most men draw nigh to the principle of brotherly love with their lips, but their heart-of-action is far from being manifest. With minds full of condemnation and seething with emotion against one another, they think to approach the throne of grace. We are concerned, therefore, with dispelling confusion by our light drawn from the councils, both Eastern and Western, of the Great White Brotherhood and with giving forth those spiritual instructions that will create a clarity of vision for all. Therefore, we submit herewith our concepts concerning a current problem that is being blown up out of all proportion to reality in order to spread abroad violence and confusion. I refer to the principle of the abundant life and to the problem, so-called, of economic inequality. There is a constant din that can be heard in the world, a clamor from those who have not against those who have. An interesting sidelight is that the babel of voices for the "have-nots" and against the "haves" is being joined by many among the "upper class" who, in effect, are begging their own destruction. Let me hasten to say that all wealth belongs to God, that the earth is his, and that he has asked man to take dominion over it and to share in the practical proof of the principle of the abundant life. This life is, was, and always will be for all. Man does not need to create equality; God has already created it. We call it the equality of opportunity. Those who are willing to make application sincerely, to study to show themselves approved unto God{302} and to the wise men of the world are always able to draw forth supply even to the point of being able to give generously to others. The philosophies of Communism and of the supremacy of the state may thrive on what we will call a false humility, the wearing of garments of protest and the shunning of more refined aspects of living. This is the sacrifice of individual self-mastery to the lowest common denominator of the group karma. Those who promote these attitudes either do not understand or they are unwilling to accept the reality that man's spiritual and real progress does not come from outward sources but from his own reality and the sense of beauty that he holds within. There is no sin in the individual accumulation of wealth or in the manifestation of wealth, for this is a divine privilege that is given to all. All may live in fine houses, wear fine clothing, and share in the beauty that creative discipline within an abundant culture can bring forth. There is never any need whatsoever for humanity to turn against one another, as did Cain against Abel, in the fear that they have not or will not receive an equal share of the Father's love. All activities of criticism and condemnation are destructive, and they lead inevitably toward a violent climax. The way to real peace in the world for every nation, both at home and abroad, is to amplify the concept of the abundant life. Peace is best preserved by adhering to the principles of freedom; for freedom is also tolerant of the thoughts and ideals of others, even when those thoughts and ideals are based on an incomplete understanding of the laws of God. But the exercise of tolerance does forgo for any man his right to attempt - not by argument, but by an objective presentation of fact - the correction of his brother's error. The members of the Great White Brotherhood are concerned that the principle of harmony be found in operation upon earth. In order to further that end midst the struggles of the masses for economic equality, we would point out that for generations there have been those who have, in effect, taken the vow of poverty and who have eschewed the accumulation of wealth. To them poverty itself has become a virtue; on the other hand, many follow the way of poverty simply because they are unwilling to make the effort to do a great work in the world. They lack either the capacity or the will to create for themselves an abundant life. Both should understand that the laws of love are best practiced and mastered from within. We do not condemn those who wish to live in poverty or those who wish to remain in humble surroundings; rather we would point out that it is nonattachment that the law requires of the individual no matter what his station in life - and this means nonattachment to persons, places, conditions, and things. Man can be just as attached to his state of poverty as he can be attached to things, and very often we find that poverty becomes a "soap box" from which those who "have not" criticize those who "have." Those who follow in the steps of the Brotherhood see all things as belonging to God, and they see themselves as stewards of his grace. They have, then, no inhibitions as to the earning of large sums of money and the using of that money for their fellowmen. They recognize that creativity can harness the secrets of the universe for the good of all. And they seldom criticize those who do not have an abundance of this world's goods - those who espouse poverty or the kind of life that on the surface seems to be based on a philosophy of nonattachment. Those who would rise politically in the world often capitalize on the weaknesses of humanity in order to achieve their ends; their method is to set one segment of society against another by using both secular and religious issues to divide and conquer the minds of men whose hearts are in reality one. This tactic is often the root and only cause of the underlying social problems that confront individuals and nations today. True faith in God is faith in the abundant life. It should be of no concern to your what your neighbor is able to gain of this world's goods or even how he employs his gain so long as it is done honestly. People should rejoice in the abundance of others as they would rejoice in their own abundance; and they should see that when men are able to produce abundantly and to remain in a calm state of good will to all, they not only enjoy life but also they are able to support institutions and activities that will sustain and preserve God's beauty on behalf of all men. The ugliness of the world manifests through man's criticism of man. Whether that criticism is leveled by an Eastern yogi against a learned pundit of the East, it can only degrade, by the downward spiral, the one who engages his energies in the practice of criticism. The principle of the abundant life is the principle of the Great White Brotherhood that keeps the soul open to God from the top and that enables the flow of reality to beam constantly into the chalice of the individual lifestream. As the reality of his True Self becomes more real, he sees in the natural order of manifestation the inward perfection of the Edenic state that existed before the fall of his consciousness into the density of an ego-centered existence. It is easy, precious ones of the light, to criticize; but it is even easier to hold the principle of the abundant life in your consciousness. It is easier to enhance the meaning of life for others than it is to rob them of their virtue by a constant damning (condemn-a-tion) of their attitudes and the spiritual processes which they have evolved. Be it so that they are surrounded with error; the purpose of life in the evolutionary stream is the shedding of error and the mastering of perfection. If you force the issue you may break the slender thread that is leading them on to the very truths you would have them accept in your time instead of in God's time. Man did not come into manifestation in order to lose his life, but he came to gain all of God-Good. We who are concerned with the initiation of each individual are also concerned with the initiation of society. The total identity of a free society is inextricably interwoven with the thoughts and ideals of its people. A free society can rise no higher that the thinking of its best leaders, and these are constantly being assaulted by the negative concepts of forces which attempt to tear down all that serves the nobility of the Christ in the individual and in society. The sense of struggle must be shed and the windows of life must be opened wide that the fresh, clean air of the Christ consciousness may renovate the life process. We have seen enough of despair, engendered by those whose own frustrated egos lead them into forms of exhibitionism that are calculated to raise their personalities into prominence. We are concerned only with the raising of divine ideas into prominence and with the exaltation of divine ideas in the minds and hearts of men, for these are the ideas that will make men free. Hold on, then, with the very teeth of your being to the principle of the abundant life; develop God's consciousness of the abundant life for yourself, expand it until you can clearly see that it is not the Father's will that man should perish or live in limitation or lack. Whether the seeker is a divine poverello as Saint Francis of old or a businessman of worldly fame and means, he should seek the correct use of his stewardship{303} and, above all, he must be ready to accept the possibility that his personal philosophy, his developed concepts, and his opinions of long standing may not necessarily be correct. Be willing to examine truth and beware of the trends spread abroad through the media that are designed to divide and to confuse the world. "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father" has been defined as the visiting of the widows and the orphans and the keeping of oneself unspotted from the world.{304} In the sense of the abundant life, let good works abound; and let these include the purification of the consciousness so that the corrosions of the world, both secular and religious, do not disturb the beautiful fruit from the Tree of Life that God seeks to nourish in every soul. How great he is, and how great man can be! How abundant and delightful are his hopes and plans for all of humanity. Let men joyously receive his concept of the abundant life for all. Stirred by the needs of the moment, I remain faithfully Lord Maitreya ****** Chapter 44 Mother Mary - November 2, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 44 - Mother Mary - November 2, 1969 The Self Is the Gateway to God Cherished Children of My Heart, We would ease tension and not create it. Yet the appalling waste of time that is engaged in by mankind in the pursuit of trivial affairs may one day be regretted. People say that they do not have time to pursue spiritual studies, prayerful intercession on behalf of those in need, meditation, and the things of the Spirit. And many shun faith in spiritual endeavors until they themselves come to the place where they are sorely in need of assistance from on high. Last week Lord Maitreya delved into one of the problems that is currently facing humanity on a world scale, that engages their energies not in producing the miracle love of the kingdom of the Christ but in spreading the blight of division and hatred across the face of the earth. At this time I would like to deal with certain problems which arise in the field of religion that are often most disturbing to the children of men. Many of you will recall my son's words to Peter "Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat."{305} The phenomenon of sifting the spiritual man or woman as wheat has often been observed, even in your time. This sifting of men's devotions does hurt to the children of God who yearn to pledge their faith not only to him but also to embodied men and women who are about their Father's business.{306} When those who are supposedly engaged in the business of serving the spiritual needs of man - whether in the East or in the West - do not uphold the principles of truth and honor, when they manifest a spirit of criticism toward individuals or segments of society and their own lives afford meager example of Christly virtue, those who look to them to set the example for the age are often keenly disappointed. Most spiritual seekers have at some time in their lives manifested great idealism. This idealism causes them to yearn to bring into their lives elements of spirituality that will draw them very near to God and to their fellowmen. When they see those who claim to espouse the divine cause, those who profess to be teachers of righteousness - ministers, priests, learned pundits, or church officials - engaging in practices that are unkind, unholy, unethical, or that compromise in any way the true teachings of the Christ, these idealists are sometimes driven, almost in a spirit of despair, to discontinue their own search for God or to reject the reality of God in themselves and in others. The damage that is done by these would-be leaders who go forth in my son's name but carry not his Spirit is incalculable. Yet I would speak to those who have suffered the pangs of disillusionment; and I would say to one and to all, "Remember, in order to have disillusionment you must first have illusion. Look only to the real which God has implanted in every man, and then you will not be disappointed in the unreal which man himself has unwittingly created or accepted in his world." Strange as it may seem, there are some individuals who have consciously sought to manifest evil. These dark spirits, pursuers of luciferian tendencies, mistakenly think that the knowledge of the world is the brilliance of reality which they seek, and they look upon the kingdom of God and his wisdom as though they were foolishness. Observing the great caravan of lives returning to the heart of the Father, we are concerned that the simple beauty of the pure in heart shall be the goal of every man. If man looks for purity of heart in himself, he will also look for it in others. And if he does not find it, he will want to invoke it. Yet in this strange drama of living to rise in an ever-ascending spiral of cosmic reality, men must also understand the importance of true discrimination. My son said, "By their fruits ye shall know them. ... Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"{307} Whereas we have, again and again, stressed that men ought not to speak ill of one another or to gossip, pointing out the corrosive dangers involved in such activities which border on condemnation and judgment, we have also said that spiritual people should realize the importance of learning to discern the difference between good and evil. How else shall the follower of the Christ understand the meaning of the words spoken by Paul to the Corinthians, "What fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?"{308} Evil deeds are self-declaring, whether they are practiced by saint or sinner. And if the saint be truly all that the name implies and he commit one or more mistakes while his life is filled with good deeds, if he is a saint, if he is truly a child of God, he will be grateful to have pointed out to him the error of his ways. But if he stand behind the shield of personal egoism, defending himself as one who can do no wrong, he will not retain the purity of heart that will enable him to see clearly the path that lies ahead.{309} In this connection may I say to all, to those of learning and to those who are struggling to master their worlds, bear in mind that the love of God is tangible and real. You should strive continually to express it, but you should also realize the difference between the divine character and the character of human creation. It is not wrong to be able to discern the difference between good and evil; in fact, it is absolutely essential that one develop spiritual discernment, for these differences are often most subtle and difficult to perceive. There is a certain danger even in the statement "All is love." For whereas all is love as it exists in the highest consciousness of God, love, in order to be practical in the world below, must be willing to recognize the weeds in the garden that are to be plucked out. Those who are blind to these facts of life and those who lead the blind will personalize the weeds and defend them as though they were their own. For many, through pride, have fallen from lofty positions; but the pure in heart shall see God within themselves and within others. They shall be unafraid to name the condition that is acting in their worlds, and they shall be careful to differentiate the real from the unreal in their discernment of others. Yet courage is needed, for evil is not personal. It is simply magnetized to the world of men by reason of their own lack of faith in themselves. If men had faith in themselves, they would find it easier to have faith in God. We seek, then, to generate greater faith in the children of the light and in all men, knowing that in the simplicity of their faith will be born that devotion to service and that understanding which will ultimately create a new sense of worth in the people of the world. How wonderful it is for individuals to be able to have and to hold a sense of worth about themselves and about their lives. The self is the gateway to God. When God is found, doubt and fear vanish. And if a friend does not measure up to one's ideals or to one's expectations - or even if the self falls short of the mark - faith in God and in his leading, in his ultimate purpose made manifest for all, will strengthen the bond of reality in the consciousness of men and enable each one to realize that the Christ is the true worth and the only measure of a man. Faith will bring peace midst turmoil and spread the balm of healing truth that, in plucking out the thorn of error, desires only the manifestation of health and wholeness in the body of God on earth. The hierarchy warns that there are wolves in sheep's clothing,{310} that some of these know they are wolves and that some know it not. Notwithstanding, all can rely upon the Christ of their own being, upon that great reservoir of celestial light that pours out the precious nectar of his holy wisdom, the oil of his anointing, and the waters of purification upon all who will receive him. May I ask that you keep the bond of faith in the midst of turmoil, serene yet actively aware of the need to know the truth that is above persons, places, conditions, or things, the truth that alone can make and keep you free.{311} I remain your Benefactress in Cosmic Diligence, representing the light of the world. Mary ****** Chapter 45 Saint Germain - November 9, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 45 - Saint Germain - November 9, 1969 Magnifying the Tide of Freedom Heart Friends of the Ages, The numberless radiance of God bears silent witness to the finite manifestation of magnificence in nature which appears as beauty, utility, and service to humanity. Gratitude should fill the heart every day, for gratitude forms the wings of a spiritual song that establishes communion in the world of the individual with the highest glory, the Gloria in Excelsis Deo. In this age when the hungers of humanity are often for superior wisdom, the simplicity and the tremendous power of the little child, whose silent eyes tell the miracle of nameless wonders, remind all of the singular grace of God that creates a sense of belonging for every soul in the universe who will accept it. As your heart fills with gratitude for the manifold blessings in your life, I ask you in this year of Our Lord 1969 to remind yourself of the nearness of heaven to humanity. For only a few short years ago, all who are now embodied stood at the gates of birth and death, waiting to step through the veil of flesh into the realm of temporal manifestation. Now that you have established ties in the business of living, affinities and affections, desires fulfilled and unfulfilled, glorious hopes and unfortunate fears, you should come to the safe conclusion that the schoolroom of earth is a place for training - that it is a place where all must learn that the highest pleasure is the joy of discovering the spiritual meaning of life, of mastering the pressures of earthly existence, and of securing the heavenly opportunities which life presents. The family of nations, by reason of its heterogeneous nature, is seldom reflective of the highest good that is to be found in the consciousness of the individual. Let those who seek wisdom understand that the scum that rises to the surface is the offscouring of all things and that the valuable ingredients in life are not always readily apparent to all. Millions of individuals, whose pure hearts are yet in embryo, seek earnestly to do the will of God and to solve the mystery behind the riddles of life. Many are beginning to find out that in the world of form only God and the followers of God will allow them their freedom (for neither the ascended masters nor their true representatives will ever interfere with the free will of the individual). Whereas most people - family, friends, organizations, societies, religious groups, commercial enterprises, governments, armies, and all sorts of worldly associations - continually demand of the individual his life, his fortune, and his sacred honor.{312} The manipulators are everywhere, and freedom is constantly imperiled by them. Wise is the man of the Spirit who values his freedom enough to see through the miserable schemes that come in almost any guise, seeking to deny him his God-given right to pursue a life of spiritual enlightenment. What do you suppose, humanity of earth, is behind all of the dreadful forms of control that are being exercised upon your unsuspecting selves? The challenges are everywhere to be found: in the field of education, in the employment marts, in the theater, in the arts, in the world of financial speculation and banking, and in the ordinary parlor game of chance. Such diversions combine to draw from men their life's energies by holding their attention bound for as long as they will hear. Because of the variety of experiences that are available in the marketplace, when men tire of one pastime, another is offered. And thus they while away their lives without ever realizing that the power of a heartfelt gratitude can draw into their worlds the cosmic lodestone of spiritual reality that will communicate the gift of understanding for which their souls pray. In the name of freedom, I say, let us open the eyes of the people of the world! Many of you whose eyes are already partially opened to the schemes of those who control the media take delight in ferreting out the shocking truth and in pointing it out to others. But are you aware of the fact that the wolves of darkness also masquerade as the exposers of the dark ones? Now let no one interpret our statements to mean that we are directing criticism against a particular organization, for we are not. We are simply reminding you of the fact that treachery and intrigue are often exposed where they are least expected. But withal, we would sound a note of great hope that you might understand that your greatest power lies in the pursuit of spiritual goals, in living a life of honesty, of integrity, of truth telling, of humility, of submitting yourself to the higher powers from the spiritual world. For they, together with your own beloved Holy Christ Self, will assist you to develop the Christ consciousness within yourself and to create an awareness not only of the Higher Mind but also of the higher planes of consciousness. Those who dwell in the mundane are often involved in silly games that have proved to be both amusing and deadly. There is a book that has recently been published on this subject entitled Games People Play. I am here to tell you that it does not meet with our approval, for it has a tendency to create in the mind of the reader a spirit of cynicism which we would avoid. It promises him an escape from the entrapments of the world by making available to him the knowledge of how he and his contemporaries are often taken in by one another, but in reality the author has spun a concoction that we consider to be unwholesome because it destroys men's faith in one another. In heaven's name, I say, even if the world were three-quarters blackguard, do you think that we intend to fill our consciousness with the substance of mankind's deceit? Let all learn, then, that although it is not our desire that you should be gullible, we would rather have you innocent than to have your minds involved in a constant battle of seeking to outwit the situations you encounter in the business of daily living. On the other hand, we do not desire to have the students remain innocent to the extent that they have no knowledge of how to protect themselves. We simply do not wish the need for protection to overshadow the reality of the light. You will find, blessed ones, as you pursue the pathway to our abode with the full reality of your being that we are well adjusted, balanced, and wholly sincere in our offerings of higher wisdom which are calculated to cut across the lines of the human domain and establish the ascended masters' sense of victory and God-control. But as long as the shapes of darkness fill your mind, how can the light penetrate your being? Yet unless the light penetrate the dark shapes and transmute them into light, man will remain bound by the limited sense of his imaginations and confusions. We want to see every chela and every seeker on the Path establish himself in the higher wisdom of the God-intent by meditating upon the nature of freedom. Freedom is a quality of God for which all men should be thankful. Yet the possession of free will does not in itself assure humanity that their assumptions, made on the basis of their free will, are correct. Free will is but an open door. Through this door humanity may walk and choose their dwelling place on the other side. If that dwelling place be a mansion of light, well and good. If it be a hovel of darkness, how pitiful. Life is opportunity, and free will is the gift of opportunity to all; but the use you make of it will always be yours to determine. There are many forces that seek to prevent the students from assimilating the depth of wisdom in our releases. But there is one power that can release you from them all, and that is the power of your own mighty I AM God Presence who, when called into action, always obtains the victory. Will you understand, then, that midst the seeming complexities of life there is a beautiful and a sweet simplicity in the innocence of the Divine Child that seeks expression in humanity at any age. There is also to be considered the height and depth of hierarchy which would lead men into all truth. Each release from our heart that comes forth in these weekly Pearls of Wisdom is designed to establish a forum of righteousness in the hallowed circle of your consciousness, thus uniting all searchers for cosmic truth on the one Path that emerges from the many. How thankful mankind should be that the Guardian Spirits of the race, the ascended masters, are preparing new and beautiful releases to make the instruction of the seven holy weeks preceding the advent of Christmas most vital and informative. For these Spirits possess within themselves the power to change the mortal consciousness as it hearkens to the noontide sense of freedom and hope that diligently leads all to the feet of their own God-reality. Every word we say, each thought and line, when rightly understood is a timeless utterance of truth. It is a message winged from us to the heart of one or many. Magnifying the tide of freedom, I remain Saint Germain ****** Chapter 46 El Morya - November 16, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 46 - El Morya - November 16, 1969 The Discernment of Living Truth Pilgrims of Good Will: Man's destiny is in his own hands even as it is in God's. The will of God left to its natural course would have long ago automated the perfection of man; but man demanded and was accorded free will, including the right to choose between his own versions of "good" and "evil," for the Lord God envisioned only good and produced it and it alone. Yet men dwell in the vale of dualities. This makes it necessary that they be given cosmic tests. All embodied men are tested. Therefore, I call to mind the words of Jesus "If it were possible, they [the false Christs] shall deceive the very elect."{313} Although they have been warned that the powers of darkness masquerade as angels of light, the children of God are often fooled by the masqueraders. Wise, then, is the student who will kiss the opportunity to learn discrimination and who will rejoice when the steadfast hand of progress becomes a hand of chastening, for the fruit of the Spirit is ever and anon the reward of man's conscious, willing acceptance of the immutable law of his own being. Until the students understand, and clearly, that the pathway through the vale of shadows is full of hidden dangers, they may well fall prey to the confusions of the carnal mind. When Philip said to Jesus, "Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us," the beloved master replied, "Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me ...? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. ... Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works."{314} Those who have communed with their own Holy Christ Selves and with the beloved God Presence have seen both Father and Son; these will not be confused by the carnal mind if they remain steadfast in the vision of their oneness. Our instruction is a bond of light; it shatters darkness, it confutes error, it reveals the inner light of truth; yet, even our followers are sometimes deluded by reason of the very kindness of their hearts. The spoiler lies in wait. He comes wearing robes of righteousness. He preys upon the children of God; for they alone, in their innocence of heart, possess the virtue that the spoiler has not known and that he will not espouse in the secret heart of his being. The winnowing process must go on. The children of the light who seek the highest spiritual attainment, as opposed to the mere excitement of religious adventure or the temporary satisfaction of intellectual curiosity, will seek righteousness and pursue it. If they fall, they will rise. If they are tricked or deceived, they will admit it; for the face of cosmic honesty is the prize they seek. They know that only the gem of truth will reveal the hidden doorway of the heart of God. We do not need to close our doors against those who do not possess cosmic honor, against those who flash forth a wild spark of passion, favoring their human egos which always betray the kingdom of God. Nay, they have already closed the door of reality unto themselves by their thoughtless blasts of criticism, by their failure to apprehend the best fortresses, and by their unwillingness to see that the fortitude of the Brotherhood is in straight knowledge and in purity of motive. What a pity that men often forget that Christ was tempted. What a pity that they do not realize that the best instruments are sometimes partially strung. Morya stands with everyone who stands with righteousness, with all who sense the struggles of these hours and with those who perceive that with the approach of solstice, the thick and gathering darkness moves in to stifle the cry of the newborn babe of righteousness. It is true that the cloistered hours do not necessarily bear fruit, but what of the frittering away of time in the social whirl of mortal unrest and egoistic struggle? What of the strange dichotomy that drives men of spiritual potential to exhibit their lesser wares to humanity in a display of their "attainment," while the virtues of honor, decency, integrity, and reality are sometimes absent from the household? I tell you truly that I would rather have a man of honor for my servant, one who would not hesitate to admit before men a mistake which he had made, than I would to have one who would preserve his image before men while dethroning the great cosmic purposes of life that plead from within himself for the right to manifest. Little do individuals realize the impact of their thoughts and feelings upon others. The statement, "Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge,"{315} refers to the meanderings of the dual stream of individuality (the individed duality), made dual only because men have not allowed the polarities of life to run side by side into one blending. We, who have and know that which is above and that which is below, find that in the allness of God there is neither height nor depth, but only the stream of oneness. Separation ensues because men will have it so. They will themselves into a false sense of individuality, and then they spurn the uniting fires that would meld their duality into wholeness. The dregs of the cup of wrath are drained and the cup of purity is rejected. The rushing wings of the angels are heard, and men say, "A flock of birds has taken off." They will to make common the greatest gifts of life, and they do not understand the need for valor in the battle. They say, "What struggle is this? God is peace." Yet, the Apostle declared, "When they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them."{316} That destructive consciousness which wasteth at noontide{317} is also that subtle wit that gazes upon the substance of eternity in minute increments, dispensed as drops of time to men, and then assumes that in a given era these dispensed treasures are themselves full of reality. They are but drops of potential, but the correct use of their potential will result in the release of the radiance which God has locked into the secret of substance itself, awaiting the keyed response. How diverse are the origins of man, yet how universal! Coming into manifestation from a common source, the "diversity" of the people of the world is a witless cloak that conceals their common origins. This shroud of pseudoindependence, while purporting to give man a "feeling of freedom" that makes him "his own man," binds him ever more tightly to the festering rood of self-delusion. Approaching now the moment of freedom, we say, let the people understand that the fault of their lack of progress lies in the domain of individual motivation. Men are motivated by greed and egoistic desire. They are full of vanity, and they are unwilling to see the sorcery of their natures consumed by the purifying fires. Now, with the advent of the annual renewal of the Christ Mass, our hearts turn to outwit the sinister strategies that would lay to waste the opportunities that God has made for man. The Lord of the First Ray speaks, but the Lord who is the first ray spoke long ago; and his holy will is a joy-bomb, exploding its fiery intensity of cosmic magnetism into the soul, shattering the awful fences of darkness as though struck by a wild whirlwind, and creating the pure and whitened spot of atomic realization where the broken fragments can be gathered up. Here the altar of the Lord will be builded, here the hunger-strivings of cosmic fulfillment will yield the fruit of pure reason! What is the gathering darkness of the gathering storm that seeks to destroy the Manchild, that seeks to snuff out noble cosmic effort? Why do the dark ones come and wear their white masks, practicing their deceits in the name of Christ? We say, let the light from The Summit gleam on! From every attack we will rally, summoning the continuance of the faith in the hearts of the faithful who have seen that the adventure that will illumine the holy road to perfection is a gem of such worth as to merit all one has first received from God. What price is glory? It is the prize, the greatest prize that fills every moment with delight. Cast aside the curtains of darkness. Let the clear radiance shine through, and behold the living witness within yourself that has always sought only the doing of His will, never the undoing, always the doing. And then let us see in ourselves what is the meaning of the words, "By their fruits ye shall know them."{318} Let us make all words of His will live in the self. Let us perceive them in others, whether they are there manifest or not; but, above all, let us retain always in the fragile moment the discernment of living truth. Thus, the dust of error shall not cling to your cloak for long; and He will stand revealed, the living mentor of God's will. Victoriously, I AM El Morya ****** Chapter 47 Archangel Michael - November 23, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 47 - Archangel Michael - November 23, 1969 The Gift of Divine Friendship To the Remnant of the Faithful: So you have lost a friend - weep not, but rejoice. For when you are given the correct understanding, you will see clearly that only divine friendships last for eternity. These are never conditioned by outer expectations, but they are based on the inward faith of the soul in universal purpose. No man can take from you that which the Lord has given to you, and I speak with a certain knowledge to everyone upon the planetary body who can accept it: the gift of divine friendship, when correctly understood and accepted, will not only bring the deepest comfort to your souls but it will also enable you to be a better and truer friend to every part of Life. In all walks of life men are experiencing struggles because, quite frankly, their attention is constantly turned toward the outer self rather than to the inner Self. If they would reckon honestly, they would perceive that the outer self is in a constant state of vacillation and then they would be more inclined to tie themselves to wings of faith. For angelic wings are actually pinions of light which are able to cut men loose and set them free for all eternity from those vibratory actions of the human senses which constantly make of their consciousness a literal yo-yo - now up and now down. It is constancy that we would give to you as our gift of faith, for constancy is the power to overcome those oppressive human traits that have never given to any man his freedom. With the advent of Christ-knowing - approaching the earth as a radiant, starry gnosis, a manifestation of the all-seeing eye of God that beholds purity, love, and hope for all - it is encouraging to the angelic hosts to know that we are dealing with a matrix of the universal will that millions are able to accept. For among the remnants of orthodoxy, there is one traditional celebration that quickens the pulsation of the love flame in the hearts of even the most dense among humanity. It is the fashion of the Christ Mass, with all of its tinsel and glitter. Unfortunately, many are caught up in the mad whirl of human expectations; nevertheless, a generated momentum of Cosmic Christ love and faith sweeps the world around, realigning human tendencies and pointing humanity toward God. We of the angelic hosts are happy that such momentums can still be generated, and we take the fullest advantage of the spirit of the season; in many cases, we are obliged to tread lightly when approaching those who would be startled to know that our existence is real. Ours is the task - and not an easy one at that - of awakening a distraught humanity whose hopes for peace and reality have again and again been dashed to pieces by human nonsense. For what else can you call it but human nonsense when individuals constantly create a jangle of sounds and scenarios that tense the nerves and create a sinking feeling in the belly of their captive audiences? These are the vibrations that lead to hopelessness in the lives of many who do not see beyond their own noses or the experiences of a moment. Precious ones of the light, I AM Michael. And my thoughts are made practical at this time in order that I may call to your earnest attention the fact that no threatening sense of loss has any reality to the soul. Outer conditions may change, but how do you know that they will not change for the better? How do you know that the character judgments of the individual who has allowed himself to become a trumpet for falsity and a court of unholy error are not one hundred percent wrong? Realize that the law of the Infinite One is ever accurate in all of its judgments and manifestations. Be unconcerned with mortal considerations except to see to it that you yourselves are not guilty of the karma of placing oppressive obstacles in the pathway of your brother. You may not always be able to govern the actions of others toward you; but you can, precious ones of the light, govern your actions toward others. In this way your faith will be kept pure and you will find yourselves rising in consciousness to the hallowed vibrations of our Lord in his annual ministration to the children of men. I do not wish you to think for one moment that every day is not a day of the Lord's service, but I would call to your attention the fact that mankind's own receptivity during the holy weeks preceding the Christ Mass makes his service more effective at this particular time of the year. Will you, therefore, call with me to the powers of heaven and to the unfailing light of God for dispensations from the Solar Lords for the staying of the hand of the destructive forces that use the psychology of darkness against unsuspecting souls? Will you ask that these forces be exposed and that the work of the powers of darkness who would divide men's hearts be brought to naught? The light we dispense from The Summit gleams upon the mountain of truth, of faith, and of hope. It is a staunch light that will stand for truth and know that error will never be vindicated, but only truth. There are times when you are required to make decisions that demand the greatest courage and conviction of your life. These decisions may not always be easy, for sometimes they lead you to separation from those you love very much. Nevertheless, you should understand that when you have done your all, when you have exhausted your efforts at preserving service, friendship, and love on behalf of an individual or a group and you are continually attacked and bombarded by falsehood and destructive energies, you simply do not have to accept it nor should you be willing to sacrifice the ascended masters' standards on behalf of those who refuse to toe the mark. You can call to me and to my sword of blue flame, which is a tangible manifestation of the sacred fire from God's own heart, to comfort you and to cut you free from all negation - even from those whom you may love dearly but who do not reciprocate your love. Perish the thought that the action you take will cause them to fall or that heaven will desert them! But because you have taken a stand, because you have put yourself out of the way, the justice of the law can and will act impartially in the interest of the good of all concerned and you will have your freedom here and now. Thus the energy you have deposited in matrices of great hope for others will be used on behalf of those whom you may not even know as yet - as assistance, love, and light to further their spiritual evolution. There are upon the planetary body old records of karmic hurts, personal vendettas, and hatreds of long standing; for these are carried over from one embodiment to the next until they are transmuted. These records are constantly being revolved in the minds of those who should know better and those who do know better - even in the minds of those who have been lovingly taught how to invoke the forgiveness flame. All should realize that each time they revolve these records, they strengthen the bond of iniquity and darkness upon the planet. We who serve the great light and know the power of freedom to elevate the race insist that humanity shall now understand, and understand clearly, that there is only one reason for man's life upon earth and that is in order that he might find an unyielding, uncompromising faith in the unfolding destiny of his life under the hand of infinite grace. Relationships which people think are based on love are often nothing more than human bondage. Each party to a pact of friendship may have some subtle design upon the other, yet I do not say that that alone is cause for breaking the friendship. My point is that all friendships should be made divine, and then they will no longer be subject to the whimsies of mortal thought and feeling. So many times the substance of the soul is torn literally in half as man's loyalty is divided between two friends who may not themselves agree. The solution to the problem is that one's loyalty must be to God and to him alone. This loyalty should be guarded with one's life and it must never be compromised through associations with those who, by their actions, have proven that they are loyal neither to Him nor to their "friends" but only to themselves. Let men be a friend to the God who lives in all, and then their loyalties to God and man will be strengthened and preserved. We, therefore, are concerned only with his great love-radiance that at this season of the year should be made a permanent flame in the hearts of all. May we ask, then, that you will continue to pray for this activity of light through which I am speaking and for its preservation against all obstacles? I say this because the closer it draws to the fulfillment of its mission, the more disturbed the dark forces of the world become and the more frantically they work to tear it down. We are therefore asserting our protection for and on behalf of The Summit Lighthouse, the messengers, and all of the blessed students of this activity at this Christmas season, and we would make our release a permanent blessing from the archangelic level. Let your feeling worlds be at peace, and let your soul be filled with that indomitable sense of the glory of God that will let no obstacle stand in the way of your own Christ-victory. When the soul wrestles with the human ego, let go of your sense of struggle and let the virtue of the light prevail, and then you will be multiplying and breaking the bread of the Divine Word among men as a living, tangible, moving object of the emancipation of the Christ. You will free the very image of the Christ from the via dolorosa, and you will exalt the true meaning of the Christ Spirit in the human family. To you it is given to know the mysteries of God. The archangels are dispensing to you this season their love together with their wisdom; for we are buoyantly, joyously, determinately blessing you with our faith that will move mountains {319} of adversity and prepare the way for blessings without number. In the full faith of your overcoming victory, I remain Archangel Michael ****** Chapter 48 God Meru - November 30, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 48 - God Meru - November 30, 1969 The Nature of God Pilgrims on the Path of Illumination, Just as divine qualities are the source of man's freedom, so human qualities are the source of his bondage. The two streams flow side by side in the human consciousness. From which shall man drink? Sometimes individuals dip into both, the result being a muddied mixture. And so it comes to pass that in the spiritual search there are some who become caught up in the stream of human greed. This means that their prime reason, subtly concealed from view (even from themselves), for engaging in the spiritual quest is in order that they might expand what they hope are their "latent spiritual powers" that will enable them to demonstrate their superiority over other parts of life. The age-old statement attributed to Mary, the Mother of Jesus, "He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree"{320} is applicable here. The key to God-success and God-happiness is in drawing nigh to the beautiful givingness of the Christ character. Albeit man was conceived and born in the being of God as a creature of love and service, his identification with the human ego has warped his expression of both love and service. Men love in expectation of being loved; they serve in expectation of being served. At this time of the year, when so much accent is put upon both giving and receiving, the Brotherhood here at Lake Titicaca wishes to create in the consciousness of the disciple a breathing, tangible awareness of the nature of God. For that which came down from on high, that which was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the humble surroundings of the manger, was in reality the manifestation of the divine nature. The morning stars sang together for joy.{321} The conclave of the Magi journeyed across the sands. The shepherds, awestruck in their huts, paid him homage. Every part of life was affected by the glorious tinge of that which composed both the corporeal and incorporeal body of Messias, the Promised One, the actual manifestation of "the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."{322} But with the passing of time, the 'personality' of the Master overshadowed in the minds of men the power of his grace and truth; for it has ever been customary for mortal men either to deify or to deny the existence of the human person. They have never understood that the human person is also sacred to God - in all of its ugliness, in all of its waywardness, in all of its destructivity. God already is and he can say with all of the power of his light, "I AM." But man, even in his present state, is but a creature of becoming who can only say, "Through the power of God, I AM." Man has failed to understand that God loves even the human person and that he holds him dear to his heart - yes, even with all of his defects. For, by his great love, God hopes to transmit the radiance of the divine image to the mortal self that it might clasp to its consciousness his own thought about the identity of the real man. And it is thus that God hopes to imbue man with the power to mold and to shape his character according to the wondrous manifestation of the only begotten Son. This is the true meaning of the celebration of the Christ Mass. This is the means by which the soul imbibes his true worth and the precious gift of immortality. All who destroy the character of God in themselves, who permit themselves to lie and to steal, to depart from principle and to compromise the law, all who are pleasure-mad and live only for themselves know it not but they are entering into the vortex of the bottomless pit. This is the pit which never exalts but always draws the soul downward into a consciousness of continual demand for more of everything to be gotten. And how well the statement has been made "It is more blessed to give than to receive,"{323} for that key which truly unlocks the blessings of eternity and supplies man with his own natural spiritual grace is his givingness in accordance with universal purpose. God is the Great Giver, and he has given to all that they might multiply the gifts they have received through giving them away; for the only gifts that men ever retain - which they have first received from God - are those that they give away. In reality, then, if we are to achieve solidarity of Christ-love upon the planet, it must be a solidarity that submits itself to purpose and principle above persons, places, conditions, and things, that enters into the all-knowing mind of God, and that gathers the fragments of light, shattered now and dispersed upon the planetary body, into one cosmic summit of universal reality, a beacon set upon a hill that cannot be hid.{324} While men are often prone to preserve their personal idiosyncrasies, the Great Cosmic Law desires to free them from all sense of drudgery, of fear, and of turmoil and to give them once and for all a sense of the dignity of God and the true worth of their being. When man esteems the true worth of his being, he also esteems the laws which God has created and by which he framed the universe. The operation of these laws is essential to the business of living. To honor these laws is to honor the heavenly Father and Mother and to provide for that endless continuance in the being of man known as immortal life. What a fraud it would be if the type of life that is based on hatred and struggle were to be preserved and men were never to find their way to the path of universal God realization. What is God realization but a realization of His nature within the nature of man. It is the being born again,{325} the being born with the Christ universal, the being born in the hope of pouring out so much divine love and light into the world matrix that at last the very substance of the world's corrosive thought, of the world's thoughts of fear and doubt, will be erased. Then will being be vivified by the emerging consciousness of the universal Christ in every man. How else can we celebrate and send gifts one to another except through understanding the spiritual law? So long as men seek to defeat and to destroy one another by malice, by gossip, by misunderstanding, by deceit, by confusion, by greed, and by the building up of the human ego, so long do they delay the manifestation of the kingdom of God upon earth. Many think, because they have escaped temporarily the full descent of the karmic results of their own recent acts, that perhaps the acts were not wrong. Be wary, beloved of the light, for the law is unerring in its design; nevertheless, it has never postulated man's destruction. Hence often even karma is momentarily delayed in order to give the soul a chance to brace itself, for God does not wish it to be destroyed. His love, then, is so valiant, so magnificent, so totally glorious that I commend it to you as the love of pure wisdom. This is the love that extracts from all of the religious writings of the world not the sense of domination of other lives or even of Life itself but the entering into the Spirit of universal Christ dominion where the kingdom of God is always the first consideration of each soul. Then, you see, the fulfillment of the promise of old "Peace on earth, good will toward men,"{326} can become a blazing reality because you will be entering into it, not only individually but also universally. It is in this hope that the ascended masters pour their radiance over the earth during this season in a special effort dedicated to the unfoldment and the awakening in humanity of the precious powers of the world to come. These powers lie dormant within the being of man; they are latent truth, latent immortality, the vitality of the soul awaiting expression. Will you understand, then, that his star in the east within you is a symbol of immortal greatness that shall come forth upon the true vine. The statement of Jesus "I am the vine, ye are the branches"{327} references man's universal contact with God, with being, with the I AM Presence of his life. Will you accept this wisdom and thereby obtain all wisdom in perfect balance? Felicitations of the holy season to all, Meru ****** Chapter 49 Archangel Gabriel - December 7, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 49 - Archangel Gabriel - December 7, 1969 The Intense and Fiery Image of the Living Christ To Those Whose Hope Is in His Love: Compassion, oh, how sweet thou art! The confluence of human destiny, drawn from great skeins of cosmic light, weaves a garment of renewal for the world that is never more apparent than at this blessed season of the year. The advent of the ever-new is resurgent, uplifting, joyous, brimming with hope. We, the archangels, mindful of the beauty of purity that like a mantle of snowy whiteness covers the barren earth, see in the tiny diamondlike matrices of the frozen crystals the filigree points of light that reveal the wonders of God in nature. We think of the great hope of the Father of all for every soul who approaches the gates of birth. With what joy the soul trembles momentarily in the chalice before it passes through that gateway into the miniature form of the physical manchild, whose tiny expectant heart waits through the long night for the precious first rays of the golden dawn. Now old things filled with fear are put away, and joy is cherished as an orb of power; the intangible yet luminous faith is about to be made tangible once more, and the hope of fulfillment becomes the fulfillment of hope. I recall that in my visitation to Mary, I was charged before my contact with her to drink deeply of the draft of universal certainty and hope so that I might convey that hope in my first words " ... Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women."{328} The preparation of the angelic hosts that goes on behind the scenes is seldom realized by mankind; but then, do those who are not a part of the world's various dramatic companies think of the hours of lengthy preparation, of the careful selecting for the parts, of the learning of the lines, of the endless rehearsals, and then at last of the magic of the moment of presentation? How few in the world today are concerned with the proper presentation of the Father's desire. Yet I say to you today that the desire of Jesus and the desire of humanity as pertains to true reality are one; hence the song "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" effectively conveys the idea that the desire of the universal Christ is also the desire of the universal man. " ... Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus."{329} Those whose hearts are like stone, those whose feeling worlds, whose total being and consciousness remain unstirred by the virtues and thoughts of heaven, have little idea of all that they are missing; nor do they realize the high cost of their delay in pursuing the things of the Spirit. Yet his mercy endureth for ever.{330} And thus with the mere crumbs that fall from the Lord's table humanity is satisfied for a time until, once again, the wolflike passions of the children of darkness take control of the political, religious, educational, and social arenas of the world; and then they realize, all too late, that the saddest words of tongue or pen are really "It might have been the kingdom ... it might have been the kingdom!"{331} First the dark ones destroy the faith of men in the divine plan, and then they destroy the faith of the individual in himself. Out of this whirlwind of destruction,{332} man emerges with a feeling of utter helplessness and, knowing not which way to go, he impugns the purity of his brother's heart. Thus the mystery of the divine plan that reveals itself in the starry radiance of the Christ-tide is lost behind the clouds of human misery and human carelessness. This year, we of the angelic hosts have decided to be realists in more ways than one. First of all, we shall reveal the reality of God in all of its dazzling loveliness, and then we shall show the impracticality of mortal activities that in all of these centuries have given so little light to a hungry world, to a world that yearns for the touch of God's reality. You must understand that the prince of darkness is clever and that, to the innocent of heart, his machinations are almost beyond belief. For example, the children of Belial, masquerading as angels of light, will allow themselves to be caught momentarily behaving very badly but they will do so in a limited way where only a few are able to observe. When those who witness their behavior, out of honor make it known to others, the masquerader will point the accusing finger at the one who speaks the truth and dares to expose the lie. The wolf in sheep's clothing{333} will then retreat behind a mask of innocence, concealing the blackness of his heart from the multitudes, his purpose being accomplished through the spread of the poison of hatred against the souls who have the courage to stand for truth and justice. But I say, fear not; for the Lord is with thee who uphold truth in the world domain, who are courageous enough to consider the protection of the youth, of the aged, and of the divine design in the dazzling whiteness of his purity to be of more worth than all other conditions. These will see to it that the Christ image is preserved not only at the Christmas season but also throughout the year. These will understand that the angelic hosts are messengers of glad tidings to men of good will everywhere, and that we are determined to stand by the side of those who have the courage to uphold the law of love, the law of light, which is the sun of true illumination, and the law of life that values, more than the wayfaring of the little self, the emancipation of the soul as a son of God. No man can long deceive the powers of heaven, yet heaven must maintain an immaculate concept toward the world; for only God is real, and only justice and goodness endure. When the archangels, therefore, announce the coming of the victorious Son of God who will change the pathway in which the world has elected to walk, you can prepare for the time when men shall study to show themselves approved unto God,{334} when they shall master the sciences and the arts as vehicles of Christ wholeness, when they shall found universities of the Spirit whose educators will cherish the lives of the young as a precious trust, when they shall yearn for the presence of the angelic hosts and for the wisdom and the feeling of God's love they impart, when they shall call for the ennoblement of music and the sacred tone of service rendered for the sake of service, and when they shall do all things well in the Master's name. When all of this shall come to pass, then we of the archangelic level will feel that our work of fashioning the feelings of man in the divine image, in the Christ concept, has at last been begun on a universal scale. But until men draw nigh unto God with more than their lips,{335} these things can never be so. Therefore, I ask that you will hearken to my words spoken to you this season and that you will mold therefrom an intense and fiery image of the living Christ within the manger of your hearts. See all of the hosts of heaven ministering unto your own life as well as unto the lives of all mankind, and see this vision being expanded and communicated to others. Vitalize and lift up the image of the Christ in the consciousness of the millions of earth's evolutions, knowing full well that God is thinking with you as you think with him. Will you understand, then, the need to reject the darkness? And, throwing up the arms of the heart, will you clasp to yourself the precious secrets of the light itself as the illuminator of the world? Because the light of God Is ever his truth, Because the light of God Is ever the subtle proof That men and angels seek The strength of glory shining meek Within the mild eyes of the Son - He whose heart is ever one With the Father from on high, Starlike radiance drawing nigh: I AM the Christ Mass, blazing bright, Reality of heaven's light. In purity and truth in Christ-love, I remain Archangel Gabriel ****** Chapter 50 Listening Angel - December 14, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 50 - Listening Angel - December 14, 1969 The Miracle of the Child's Heart To Those Who Are Still Willing to Listen and to Be God-Taught: All over the world, where the vagaries of nature manifest alternately as sun and shadow, swirling cloud and falling rain, sunlight and moonbeam, hail and dancing snowflake, the beings of earth, air, fire, and water - guided and guiding intelligences operating under the Father's hand of love, under hierarchy - are also affected by the alternate droopings or upliftings of men's minds. The kaleidoscope of natural manifestation, seen in minute segments, presents its wonders to eye, to ear, and to mind. But witnessed on a larger scale, the kaleidoscope is even more magnificent, as if a number of theaters of nature were functioning simultaneously and being played upon by the jeweled reflections of the light of the stars, the moon, the sun, or the twinkle of manmade lights dashing to and fro. Midst all of this beauty the inhabitants of the invisible world carry on their activities, often denied by mankind in their sophistication and sense of the ordinary. But the miracle of the child's heart, even in countries behind the iron curtain, steadfastly reaches up through all of the drama of nature to hold reverence with life in the chalice of consciousness. It is as though the beauty of a miniature star of hope glistened in the mind and being of the child. But with the passing of the years the confusion and brittleness of the synthetic consciousness distorts, destroys, and defiles in the consciousness of the maturing soul the wondrous purity of God that links all of nature in a comprehensive whole of the Christ radiance. For as envisioned by God, the Earth is a luminous orb; and all of the multitudinous facets of nature harmonize in a symphony of abundance, joy, and exquisite tenderness. The dark threads, the coarse threads - these come from the activities of the black magicians and man's domination of natural forces from far-off millenniums. That these threads have been preserved to the present hour and increased is the cause of all sorrow and pain upon the planet. For in the heart of the All-Father, as it is well known by every angel, is the cascade of light from soundless heights, leading the entire world to a vision of ethereal perfection which also permeates the natural order, visible even to the mortal eye. The glory of God that shines behind the veil, known to us of the angelic hosts, has the power in its penetration to transmute every trace of hatred, of shadow, of darkness, and of stain in the world until at last the fairyland of cosmic wonder that God would make of all nature is seen by men; and as they glimpse this vision, the internal nature of man is changed by nature even as nature continues to be changed by man. The interchange between man and nature is seldom recognized by humanity, passing as they do so quickly from their body temples and living out so shortened a mortal span. But we of the angelic hosts, pressing our hearts of light ever in service to humanity all the while retaining our conscious awareness of the Father, move hither and yon in the ministry of our love to the children of Earth. We kneel beside the bed of a child whose thoughts are caught up in prayer; we hover near a little babe, frightened by the howling of the wild winds from the mountains; we tend a little girl who screams in terror of the loud peals of thunder in her land and clutches her blanket or her mother's hand without total consolation. Everywhere the angels go to minister. Yet at the time of Christmas, when the consciousness of humanity is more inclined to accept the miracles of life, we are able to perform a greater service because of the currents of receptivity generated in the hearts of men. We say, make the miracle and you make the pathway to our abode. And it is truly the sense of the miraculous that enables man both to receive and to benefit from the simple ministrations of cosmic law - the blessings of the healing of the mind, of the healing of the emotions, of the healing of the physical body, of the healing of the memory body as the stings of past errors smart the consciousness of man. We say, then, as we are preparing from the angelic level our Christmas gift to the children of Earth, bear in mind that the garment of the Christ with all of its ethereal beauty is already sheltering the heart of an infant humanity. We say "infant" because, with all of their scientific knowledge and their treasure-house of natural resources, mankind have ignored - in the coarseness of their thoughts and in their overconcerns for self and those immediately connected therewith - the need to feel a real world thought. We speak not of a thought of union that would unite the world for the sake of political, economic, or religious control; but we speak of the thought of union that unites each monad, each point of light, with the Central Sun of cosmic innocence. If this 'world sense', this Weltanschauung were embraced by humanity, then the natural order of all things, regardless of prevalent forms of government, would always make room in the inn of being for the universal Christ; it would always hold a sense of obedient awareness of the voice of God speaking even in the most unexpected places. If you will humble yourself beneath the Father's love, securing also his wisdom and recognizing the flow of his power, you lives can be changed each day and the whole Christmas season will be translated into a paean of cosmic meaning that will teach you to share in the drama of the most far-off worlds. Little lamps twinkling in the heavens speak of others who have long been aware of the Christ Mass; thus it is not merely with the traditional charm that surrounds it all that we are concerned, but it is with the precious contact with the secret - the eternal secret of the universal Child, the Wonderful, Counsellor, The Prince of Peace, The mighty God{336} within that beats and sustains the impulse of life in the center of your being - that we are concerned. It is our desire to fill the chalice of each one's being with an increasing awareness of the law of Love as it is taught through the ministrations of every avatar and promised one; and, above all, it is our desire to transmit to the world the sense of God's love for the individual. Men may worship at the shrine of the Christ in Bethlehem, but until they worship at the shrine of the Christ within themselves and see his abiding presence there, unfolding through the experiences of life, they may not be able to summon the wisdom, the love, and the power to do the Father's will in their daily thoughts and deeds. It is ever thus when men fail to recognize the presence of the Christ in themselves and others: desecration and pain follow where only blessing is intended by God. We urge, then, upon all a continual feeling of awareness that awakens within the soul a knowledge of the care and concern of God for the individual. When you communicate to one another, let it be through a communicated awareness of the Christ within speaking to the Christ within and of the Christ in nature, Messias, being everywhere. The blood of Christ is always translatable into the life of Christ; for the life is in the blood and the blood is in the life. Therefore when we think of the purple and golden rays of ministration and service, it is to think of the master and of his love for humanity. The pouring out of your life's energies in cosmic service makes you to follow in his footsteps. And then we who are of the angelic hosts will minister unto you - whether man, woman, or child - and our love will be recognizably manifest for you. This is our gift of each day which we give as increased awareness at this season, mindful of the need to draw together and to unite the many divisionary forces in the world with the one Spirit of the All-Father whose love is with you always. Devotedly in his service, I remain Listening Angel ****** Chapter 51 Jesus Christ - December 21, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 51 - Jesus Christ - December 21, 1969 I AM the Christ of the World To the Blessed Who Shall Inherit the Earth: In the words "He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree"{337} are to be found the reality of the law. In the promise "Draw nigh unto me, and I will draw nigh unto you" is the fulfillment of the love of the law. And in the observation "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble"{338} is seen the wisdom of the law. When we hear from the ascended level the pleas of men for the bringing in of the kingdom of God, for personal assistance and to increase the power of God in the life of the individual, we must of necessity answer according to the karmic record of the supplicant. And our answer must always take into account, precious ones, the karma of example that you have set before men, the manner in which your lives are lived. Many are familiar with the Beatitudes of the law, with the scripts of beauty and positive affirmation, but they fail utterly to assess their own need to manifest the teachings they profess to love. There is a statement of my beloved disciple John in the Book of Revelation which goes in this wise: "Thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked."{339} Herein is the predicament of the dual nature of man: the human person always feels rich and satisfied when his wants are being met, but he seldom gives his spiritual needs the priority that he gives to his human needs. Therefore, in blindness men stop their spiritual progress without even realizing it; and they come naked before God, having little fruit of the Spirit to their credit. Now the consequence of this heaping upon their own heads of the bushel of neglect is a lack of genuine attainment and a false sense of plenty about mortal things, which is often very deceptive - an emptiness of the Spirit and a fullness of the world. Because each soul is so precious to me, because I am so vitally concerned that each soul be tethered to spiritual reality which alone can bring the powers of freedom into the world of a man and direct him Godward, I am determined at this Christmas season to bring into focus for the students and for all mankind the meaning of individual destiny and of world destiny. In Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, the character of Scrooge is shown as he hearkens to the voices of the world and then again as he hearkens to the voices of the spiritual hierarchy. But all are not so fortunate as he was to find that the door they have closed on spiritual opportunity is opened again. Many have closed the doorway for the last time in this embodiment upon an opportunity to pursue the spiritual path, for their own karma of neglect dictates that they must wait to be "born again" before they may enter the kingdom.{340} Again I say, our love is very great for the soul of each man, but our love is not given for the gratification of temporal pleasures or for the mere building up of the human ego in its self-satisfying experiences. Rather, we desire with all of our being to lead men in the way that will prevent strife and struggle from occurring between peoples everywhere. Jealousy, greed, and ignorance are the principal forces that prevent the manifestation of the angelic blessing "Peace on earth, good will to men"; and this is true of both the secular and the religious worlds. The motivations of envy and human avarice continue to be the directing mentors of man's unrighteous conduct; hence, my sheep are not fed the living Word because the moneychangers in the temple continue to make merchandise of them. This is why hierarchy has elected through this forum of the Pearls of Wisdom to release the vital and living truth, that all who gaze upon it may live. Men say that they would have given anything to have been with the shepherds of old or with the three kings of the Orient when they gazed upon my infant form. Others say they would have loved to have heard me speak upon the Judean hillsides. Still others say they would have liked to have seen my miracles, my crucifixion, my resurrection, or - with even greater desire - my ascension. How pitiful that men do not understand that I AM alive for evermore.{341} Oh, they understand this with their ears but not with their hearts, for again and again they seem to be of the opinion that I am far away and not nigh at hand. Let me hasten to say, then, that the radiation of the Christ which I bear and the power of God which I wield today are greater than they ever were; and they are increased with the increase of God{342} and by the spiritual momenta of the countless souls who, through the centuries, have served with me in rendering a magnificent service to humanity. Therefore, the mature image of the universal Christ which I present to the world today is full of great saving grace than the image of the past. For the expansion of the Spirit is the forte of the ascended hosts and of every man who will understand that when he is rightly oriented, when he is pursuing the upward path, God who giveth the increase{343} is steadily multiplying his spiritual powers and graces. That these may not be self-evident is not necessarily an indication that they are lacking in the individual; nevertheless, it is always proper that the students should examine themselves to see whether or not they are actually growing in grace. However, the quality of grace is sometimes difficult for individuals to assess where they are personally concerned; for they have a tendency, living as they do within the confines of their own auras, not to observe that gradual expansion of soul which is nonphysical. By a like token, millions are unaware of their own iniquitous acts. They can see treachery, jealousy, hypocrisy, shadow, and darkness in others; but seldom do they recognize these traits in themselves. Often they apply our admonishments to others without realizing that they must first be applied to the self. And perhaps they should never be applied to others with any great degree of certainty, for fortunately humanity can change and sin can be forgiven. As I prepared this Christmas message for the students and the world, I mused within myself upon the foregoing releases in the Pearls of Wisdom that have been given by the members of our Brotherhood. I thought also upon man's expectancy of the old familiar message of my birth, and I decided to transmit instead the radiant morsels of spiritual truth that are so needed by so many. Iniquity and darkness are subtle and lurk often in high places. If each soul would therefore apply his heart to God with all earnestness and realize that his delight should be in the law of God (and not in the law that wars in his members, as beloved Paul said),{344} he would avoid the discussion of endless psychic problems - problems involving the lower nature of man. If he would center his attention upon the laws of God, he would see clearly that the applying of his heart to the power of divine love would draw that love into his life. He would also understand that he need not be sympathetic to the animal magnetism that is of the earth earthy,{345} whether in the crowd or in himself, and that he should desire that escape into purity which will result in his being clothed with a sense of the Virgin Son. The purity of the Great Law functions in the inward parts of man, enhancing his meditations upon God through the reality of truth and holy wisdom. Lacking confidence in the operation of the law, men take it upon themselves to chastise one another. They forget that the Lord himself chastens those whom he loves. {346} When the last present has been opened, the last Christmas card read, the last Christmas carol sung, men look forward to the bringing in of the new year and to the opportunities for celebration and merriment it will bring. The toys are soon broken and put away, the magnificent concepts are folded and carefully closeted, while the reality of my birth seldom dawns on the many save the few. Little do men realize that as a Son of God I am not concerned with personal glory or attention, but only with that directing glory which builds a vital link between the universal Christ and the Christos of the individual. How deeply scarred are the pages of history by the infamy of human thought and feeling. Men do praiseworthy acts by the thousands, but these are seldom noticed. They commit one questionable error, and their entire career is placed in jeopardy. The fickle world soon forgets the magnificent service that is rendered by the chosen ones; for its judgments are crass and according to the mood of the moment, totally lacking in any understanding of the wholeness of being. The worldly give unto others the crumbs that fall from their table, and they keep the best gifts for themselves. Yet, the Messianic message is one of hope and redemption to the world. Long ago the revelation of the Holy City was given to John who wrote: "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away." And he heard the voice of the Son of God saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men. ... for the former things are passed away. ... Behold, I make all things new."{347} In this hope of a new world, I appeal to the men and women of all religions upon earth to live according to the principle of love and according to the higher teachings, to cease their condemnations of one another, to let go of the sense of struggle, and to shun cutthroat competition that breeds gossip and the hypocrisy of psychological tricks. Learn to live honestly with thy God, and so shall you live honestly with your fellowmen. You will find that the reverse is also true. From the very beginning, all of the religions which have been sponsored by hierarchy have had as their central theme the ennoblement of man, the exaltation of his consciousness, the purification of the thoughts and motives of his world, and the final perfectionment of the individual as he is fitted for higher things in the many mansions of our Father. If it were not so I would have told you.{348} But I have often told you, and you have often been told by life. Now there are many in this day and age who, from childhood on, have developed a spirit of cynicism toward organized religion and even toward the idea of God. These souls are suspicious of everything and everyone connected with "religion," and they literally stew in the gall of their bitterness{349} and their unawareness of the invisible world. Yet we come not to condemn any man but to assist all and to create the bond of "a new heaven and a new earth." This can never be unless the fruit of the Spirit is allowed to ripen in the life of the individual. Therefore, every true religion should seek to nourish and to expand the precious soul that must live for a time within the narrow room of self. When there is constant bickering among the various factions of the so-called body of God upon earth, when men do not prune themselves of gossip and destructive releases of thought and feeling, when they seek human control of the lives of others through what is actually witchcraft, black magic, and psychological treachery - masquerading as innocence while imputing guilt to the innocent - they themselves will surely come to judgment; yet their judgment will not produce the miracle of the new heaven and the new earth. We are concerned with this miracle of the new heaven and the new earth,{350} and we know that it can be brought about only as the political and religious leaders of the world and their followers bring themselves joyously to the feet of that universal reality which will endorse the golden rule in day-to-day living. For I am convinced that much of that which feeds the cynicism of the world is the nonliving of truth by those who profess to practice it. I urge, then, before this new year shall come, that all shall examine their consciences and that all shall determine that the sacrament they shall take this Christmas will be the sacrament of cosmic honesty. For it is only through communion with the cosmic honor flame that they shall come to know within themselves that the things which are done in secret will be shouted from the housetops{351} and that the Lord will cause it to be done. I think, then, that the doubts and fears that the negative force has spread among mankind, that have caused them to walk in darkness and to experience pain in their lives, will be cast aside by them. And I think that the vital flame of a living faith will be sought as the most priceless gift, and that the power of my love as it is reflected in the service of every ascended master will be desired as the masterful presence in the life of each one whose search is for reality. For the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdom of our God and of the universal Christ.{352} How could I fail to return in actuality to every town and hamlet, to every spot upon the planet where my precepts are honored and obeyed? How could I fail to be kept away from a world where my teachings are flaunted and deliberately disobeyed? To such a world I could come but as a thief in the night to take those souls that would respond at the appointed time to a place of refuge away from the density of the world and into the light of my Father's kingdom. But because I continue to hold out he light of hope for all, I ask everyone who is willing to submit to the truth of my words - whatever your faith, whatever your desire, whatever your beliefs - to join me in a consummate endeavor to turn your backs upon the darkness of the ages that are passed - the ages of condemnation, of struggle, of fear based on ignorance - and to hold high the lamp of faith. Be not afraid to be united with purity and truth within yourself or within others, no matter what the name of the organization may be; for "not in name or fame, but by my flame," saith the Lord, "will I witness to all that I AM. Not by name or fame," saith the Lord, "but by my flame will I reveal the secrets of the ages." By the will to win, men will outwit the darkness lurking in the caves, in the darkened recesses of the outer self. Light will beam forth, and it will be the light of the Son of God. I AM the light of the world.{353} My light shines in every light, In every focus that pierces the gloom; But, above all, my light shines in the tomb Of human matter and misery To release it forever by the flame of resurrection Into the world of higher dimension To which man will ascend one day. Hopefully all who pass this way, In the world of form, will pass that way In the world of spiritual victory. For every man, for every woman, For each of these I lift my flame: I AM the Christ of the world, Raising life unto its celestial goal. Exhibiting faith, hope, and charity there, Right where I AM. I pledge my heart and head and hand to thee; For I, whom ye call Jesus, am the Prince of Peace Who came to every man To free his soul from bondage and from shame, To kindle in his heart the brilliance of my flame. Illumination's ray to tutor inward parts, Illumination's ray uniting human hearts And strengthening bond of love's completion, then, That makes each one to know That I AM building now A new world for you all. To raise you from the Fall I came, Will you hold your hand in mine And pledge to me your name, Your fame, your being, all? For thus we shall restore the world And raise it from the Fall. Victoriously in this season, 1969, I remain your elder brother, Jesus the Christ ****** Chapter 52 Kuan Yin - December 28, 1969 ****** Vol. 12 No. 52 - Kuan Yin - December 28, 1969 "Kuan Yin, We Must Not Fail" To All Who Love the Flame of Mercy, Greetings and Peace! It has been said, "The darker the night, the brighter the day." But during the hours of vigil, the consolation of hope at times seems inadequate to assuage the feelings of frustration that are intensified by the night. In moments of gaiety, time seems like a babbling brook, bubbling with unceasing joy. The star of comprehension, representing a configuration of the drama of life, is not always visible to the eyes of man; and because he sees a piece of the mosaic rather than the pattern of the whole, his concerns may rise to the point of danger. Let me here and now, then - for humanity, for the individual, for religious expression upon the planet - remind you that this generation shall pass, its mistakes and its errors shall become part of the history of mankind's experience, but the Lord of Life and the great cosmic flame of mercy shall endure forever. Would it not be wisdom, then, to identify with the enduring side of life rather than with the passing, fanciful fragments of the moment? At a recent conference held in Darjeeling with the beloved Ascended Master El Morya, we discussed the fickleness of man's density. The great master said unto me, "Precious Kuan Yin, heart of light, when we gaze at the splendid snows of Kinchinjunga, we see the loneliness of the summit and we know that the farther one climbs up the slope the fewer trees one finds, and beyond the timberline there is a thinning out until one sees only a few tall trees upon the mountain heights. "These are the symbols that can be the life mode for every man, for each tree is itself a symbol of all life. The lower boughs droop toward the earth; but as one follows the branches, there is a steady rise of the angle until, with the tall sentinel of the central branch, one and all point skyward, the corollaries around it braced as cups to serve a central purpose. Thus, the higher branches are remote from the lower ones, yet all are part of the same tree. "Midst the struggles of the masses for recognition of one form or another, they seldom recognize the mobility of the self. Enmeshed as they are in the maya of delusion, they run with the herd or, as we would put it, they merge with the branches below, often losing the perspective of their lives and a sense of total purpose. Sometimes all that is necessary to bring about their reorientation is a pause and a steadied gaze upward along the central shaft of the pine, a gaze toward the snowy peaks in the midst of the skyey vigil they keep. For theirs is the way of purity and the way of loneliness that understands that union with God must be sought with one's entire being to the exclusion of all else. "Yet if the masses continue to compress themselves downward toward their lowest common denominator as the current trend would indicate, the individual will fade into insignificance and his departure from creative purpose will be the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place where it ought not.{354} If this trend were to continue, the masses of the world then would soon degenerate into a chaotic protoplasmic mass of purposeless substance. "All hope is in The Summit concept. All hope is in the resurrection of universal purpose for every man. All hope looks toward the master's configuration, the star of the advent of reality that manifests in the Divine Ego. Let men look up and live." And then with a merry twinkle in his beautiful eyes, the master said to me, "Kuan Yin, we must not fail." It is with this sense of God realization, then, that I come to each individual who pursues the path of individuality, and I remind that there are two goals that ought to be considered by every man: (1) the goal of singular service to self, excluding all others, and (2) the goal of service to others, excluding the self. Quite frankly, both of these are extremes not adhered to even by the greatest masters; for what is needed is neither total self-sacrificing service nor total sacrificing to self, but a balance of universal love that perceives that the individual's mission is enhanced by reasonable service to others, to God, and to cosmos. I come, therefore, to remind each one that he serves others best who serves self wisely. And thus, the purification of motive is called to your attention. I recommend that before the close of the year you write down the goals you have for the coming year and for the balance of your life. Examine your motives for having these goals; then, see if you can draw a line through those that are vain and foolish, through those which will consume your time and energy without helping your family, your group, or your society to evolve. See if you can draw a line through those that will consume your time and energy with small returns and little development of the God within. As you examine all of these things, try to find out the "why" of the motivation behind each goal. The motivations behind some goals whose end is just may seem rooted in selfishness. These can be reinfused with purity by prayer and attunement with cosmic purpose whereas other goals will be clearly seen as a drain upon the total man. Remember that God helps those who help themselves.{355} Remember that it is an act of mercy toward yourself and toward humanity that bids you to seek to know his will for you. And above all, remember that the words "Not my will, but thine, be done"{356} are words of healing mercy and healing love. As man ceases to struggle and lets God's mercy flame free him from the sense of struggle and from the sense of blame, he is able to make greater progress in whatever his goals may be - whether they be complete or fragmentary of a whole not yet seen. There are no goals so small or so great that God will not inhabit them when he is invited, for it is his mercy and his intent to flow into the consciousness that bids him welcome. Be aware, then, of his mercy for you; and, as it infuses your soul, realize that to you it is also given to express genuine compassion and mercy for others. The mercy of forgiveness that latches on to a fragment of hope for tomorrow for every soul is far superior to the consciousness that lashes out at everyone with feelings of resentment. How gentle is the ascended master consciousness, yet how firm! How tender, yet how highly resolved! The riches of the wisdom of God, as they flow into the test tube of the individual in the laboratory of nature, reveal their stress and strength nowhere more beautifully than in the soul as it reacts, under the pressures of living, to the various experiences of life and ultimately triumphs. Will you hold with me then - for this organization, for this tall pine upon the mountain with ever deepening trunk and widening branches - the greatest of hopes for expansion, that its boughs might cover the earth and point each one to the star of his Presence? Will you be ever mindful of El Morya's thoughts for the world as they flow with mine into Saint Germain's and Mother Mary's as bulwarks to protect the human family against the depredations it has performed against itself? Will you realize the great strength that there is in this union of devotees who serve under the aegis of the Great White Brotherhood to nurture the best gifts in so many among humanity? Will you help to increase its scope in your life and in the lives of others? Will you help to enrich its aims by whatever contribution of energy you are able to give? For all are needed according to their capacities to unfold the plan of God. Therefore, as you think of this beautiful world turning in space and as you consider the minute portion of reality that you have made your own (as compared with the infinite potential that is available to individual man), recognize the man or the woman that you can become with God's help. And above all, mindful of our joint endeavors together for humanity, will you remember the fire in the master's eye and the hope in his heart as he said, "Kuan Yin, we must not fail"? Devotedly, in the name of mercy, I remain Kuan Yin The Goddess of Mercy ***** 52.1 Appendix: The Dark Cycle - 1969 ***** Vol. 12 No. 52 - Appendix: The Dark Cycle - 1969 Appendix The Dark Cycle The Dark Cycle of the return of mankind's karma began on April 23, 1969, following the "half a time" announced by Gautama Buddha on December 31, 1968 (see Prologue to 1969 Pearls). The Dark Cycle is a period when mankind's misqualified energy, held in abeyance for many centuries, is being released for balance in this period of transition from the Piscean age into the Aquarian cycle. With the dispensation of Jesus Christ, the Piscean Conqueror, came the setting aside of a vast quantity of human karma. By his sacrifice and victory, the entire planetary weight of human misqualification was lifted, giving the evolutions of earth the opportunity to realize the fullness of their own Christ-reality. As this two-thousand-year cycle draws to a close, the 'sins' of the world borne by the Saviour Jesus Christ - world karma held in abeyance by the grace and mercy of the Law - are being returned to mankind that they may also be overcomers of sin, disease, and death. Bearing their own burden of personal and planetary karma, they now have the opportunity to apply the teachings of the ascended masters in redeeming those energies misused in past cycles and to fulfill the requirements of the ascension on the path of discipleship under Jesus Christ, who said: "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father." (John 14:12) THE GREAT DIVINE DIRECTOR "Yet it is not the will of God or the ascended masters to permit the downfall of society or of the world of form, but we want you to know that the accumulation and accretion has risen higher than ever before in history. In fact, it was only seventy-five percent this high when the decision was made to overthrow in the time of Noah the civilizations then existing. ... "Conditions in the world today have reached a point where the Karmic Board has withdrawn all restraint from the beings of the elements. This means that the mankind of earth today do not know from one minute to the next just what the elementals will do. At first this may seem to you to be a very strange activity, but it is a decision that is based upon the preservation of eternal values as weighed against temporal values which have themselves decayed. "I shall clarify. The life of mankind, the temporal life, must be laid down. The reason for its tenure, en toto, is that men should find God. Men are so immersed in materialism and in the pursuit of darkness that they are not finding God. The calls and prayers of the students of light to protect the coastal region of this land and to protect Europe and to protect other parts of the world have been heeded by the cosmic Karmic Board, and mankind have actually been benefited by the calls of the righteous men upon this planet. "But now has come the time, precious ones, when they man call and the Board cannot answer. For a certain period of time a dispensation has been granted at the request, the righteous request, of both the Darjeeling and Indian Council for the will of God to be made known. And the will of God has clearly delineated that if the present course is to be pursued, the entire planet would of necessity be blotted out of the planetary chain and those righteous individuals who are here be removed to other evolutions. Inasmuch as there remains one shred of hope for mankind (that when the forces of elemental life are unleashed, and when certain destructive elements in mankind are released and unleashed without restraint), that mankind may then awaken and decide for themselves that they will cancel out the product of their own corrupted imaginations, we have recommended that this shall occur for the sake of mankind and for the preservation of their immortal soul and the preservation of immortal value. "Therefore, we sound forth tonight the edict that unless mankind shall change and correct and mend some of the terrible flaws now existent in society, certainly the elementals will be unable to hold back the tide of human creation which now stands behind them, held in the name of cosmic mercy. Do not be surprised nor affrighted by that which comes forth, then, upon the earth; and if you wish to give your energies to try to stop it, that is your privilege, but I think that what the Karmic Board would like to have you do shall now be made known to you. "We desire that those who have formerly given their energies for the protection of mankind and for the holding back of cataclysmic action shall now turn their total attention upon the masquerades which mankind have put around themselves, the human creation which they have builded around themselves to protect themselves against spiritual power. We desire that you shall call for the walls of Jericho of human creation to fall down. We desire that you shall call for mankind to become illumined to the spiritual power that is now rising today to great cosmic heights upon this planet and is responsible for many conditions which mankind do not understand. Because mankind are not accepting that spiritual power but are rejecting it, it is breaking out in all sorts of disturbances upon this planet. "When you call therefore solemnly to Almighty God for a removal of the cause and core of mankind's recalcitrant and rebellious attitude to the Spirit of Almighty God, you will be doing the specific thing which we have decided now should be done. It is not essential to stop the action of cataclysm or world disturbances; it is rather to call for an awakening of mankind (which is really putting the horse before the cart, blessed ones) and will produce, if mankind will accept it, their deliverance from the karmic retribution which otherwise will descend upon them. This is inevitable; you cannot stop it! The only way you can stop it is by mankind's acceptance of the law. It is the law of Love. ... "Did not the Word sound forth of old, 'Remember thy Creator in the days of thy youth when thy years fail not?' (Ecclesiastes 12:1) Then know that the power of the Karmic Board is a wise decision. I personally voted for it, and I would vote for it again. And we have the backing not only of the mankind upon this planet, but of other systems of worlds that we have consulted. And great cosmic emissaries of light have come out to us from the Pleiades; and a petition was presented to Alpha and Omega by Helios and Vesta which demanded action because of mankind's ignorance of the law. ... "This is a solemn moment, and I am calling this to your attention so that you will recognize that there is something that you can do, and that is to continue to call for the awakening of mankind. Let these signs appear! Let these signs manifest! Do not try to stop them! Let them come because they represent hope to the world! They represent hope for mankind's awakening. "All of the evolutions of the earth now in embodiment, blessed ones, would in less than one hundred years have practically disappeared from the screen of life. Therefore, you see what is really important on this great cosmic cusp, when the age of Aquarius is breaking forth into the world of form, is to have a spiritual awakening as never before sweep across this planet. We have tried it by divine love. We have poured divine love from our octave in such measure as you will never know until you are ascended, yet that love has not been received to stir but a small segment of the population. "What then are we to do, to permit this generation to perish? To permit its progeny to worsen? To permit corruption to increase? To permit distortion to expand? I think not." November 5, 1966 Los Angeles, California GOD MERU "And we today say to you with this clear note of warning from the very center of the flame of golden illumination here at Lake Titicaca in which we see the reflection of the whole world order, that unless contemporary man within one year shall make some great attempt to harness the forces of heaven which we pledge to do - letting you know today that we will engage by the teeth of our intentions the teeth of your intentions - unless men shall heed this warning, the Dark Cycle shall begin January 18, 1969." October 15, 1967 Colorado Springs, Colorado MOTHER MARY "We are determined - the ladies of heaven, the Karmic Board, and the angelic hosts - as we stand by mankind, to give every assistance possible before the approach of the time when it may be possible that the Dark Cycle shall descend upon mankind. This may not be necessary if mankind turn and face the light. But if they do not, we are ready and we are preparing for the time when you individually will be held accountable to hold the balance for this planet. This time is coming soon and, as in the parable of the wise virgins, keep your lamps trimmed, beloved ones; for you will need every erg of energy that is given unto you; you will need it in that time." December 31, 1967 Colorado Springs, Colorado PALLAS ATHENA "I want you to know, then, that the International Resource Conference is planned to be an enormous activity of light for this planet to prevent the Dark Cycle from beginning. ..." April 12, 1968 Colorado Springs, Colorado SAINT GERMAIN "Whereas we have said that the Dark Cycle will start on January 18, 1969, unless mankind does something to reverse it, we are this day mindful of the tremendous gift of your love that you have given throughout this class and we are hopeful that something can be done to stay the hand of that activity of destructivity and to replace it by a constructive momentum that will sweep the world with the torch of God's love." December 30, 1968 Colorado Springs, Colorado For text references to the Dark Cycle, see Prologue to 1969 Pearls of Wisdom; Pearls dated January 19 and February 16; and letter from Mark and Elizabeth Clare Prophet dated August 20, 1969. ***** Bibliography ***** [1] Volume 12, Number 1, footnote 5. Red, orange, black, brown, gray, olive and chartreuse. These colors, together with their metallic correspondents, silver and copper, vibrate at the level of astral creations and discordant qualifications such as anger, fear, doubt, resentment, pride, rebellion, greed, death, uncontrolled passion, etc. They can be seen in the auras of spiritually undeveloped people. The use of these colors should be avoided in wearing apparel and in home decorating by a disciple of the Brotherhood, lest through proximity and the flow of his attention he become the victim of vicious forces which can only gain entrance into his world through the penetration of inharmony and/or the above mentioned colors which focalize discord and disorder of the most degrading kind. Just as the masters draw and maintain focuses of light wherever individuals express harmony and enhance it with the proper colors and music, spiritual matrices and individual consecration, so do the brothers of the shadow sustain their nefarious schemes through discordant focuses amplified by chaotic colors, thought forms, and music. In a recent dictation one of the great masters recommended that the students examine the objects of art in their homes, as well as the colors with which they surround themselves, removing all that do not contribute to the spirituality of the household, its members, and oneself. In the case of expensive and necessary items, a long-range plan is suggested for the gradual replacement of unsuitable items. Balance is the byword in all such transitions from the material to the spiritual; perfection the goal in an imperfect world. [2] Volume 12, Number 26, footnote 5. The flames of God which may be invoked by those who desire to expand the Christ consciousness are many. Following is a list of those which have special importance for the evolutions of this solar system. Regardless of their color, all of the flames have a white-fire core of purity which embodies all of the attributes of God. The flame of faith, power, perfection, protection, and the will of God (referred to by beloved Lanto as the flame of cosmic worth) - blue; the flame of wisdom, intelligence, and illumination (focusing the mind of God) - yellow; the flame of adoration, love, and beauty - pink; the flame of purity (focusing the inherent design of all creation) - white; the flame of healing - emerald green; the flame of precipitation, abundance, and supply - Chinese green tinged with gold; the flame of ministration and service - purple and gold; the flame of freedom and transmutation (known as the violet singing flame) - violet; the mercy flame - shades range from pink violet to orchid and deep purple (visualizing a pink center around the white-fire core of the mercy flame will intensify the action of divine love within the quality of forgiveness); Mighty Cosmos' secret rays, five flames whose identity has not been revealed but which may be invoked with great personal and planetary benefit; the threefold flame of life (also known as the flame of liberty and the Christ flame because it focuses the balanced action of power, wisdom, and love, a prerequisite to Christhood) - blue, yellow, and pink, three plumes of the Trinity anchored in the heart of the God Presence, the Christ Self, and the body temple of man; the resurrection flame - mother-of-pearl; the ascension flame - white; the flame of comfort (also known as the flame of the Holy Spirit) - white tinged with a delicate pink; the cosmic honor flame - white tinged with gold; the flame of peace - golden yellow (often used in conjunction with the purple flame). A simple method of visualizing the flames is to fix in mind the memory of a blazing campfire; retaining the concept of the action of the physical flames, see them take on the color of the God flame you desire to invoke. Now enlarge your image of the flames to fill your entire consciousness. Then visualize yourself stepping into the center of God's flaming Presence and feel his love enfold you as a thousand-petaled lotus - each flame a petal of God's all-embracing consciousness. Prayers, Meditations, and Dynamic Decrees for the Coming Revolution in Higher Consciousness, published by Summit University Press, will help you to sustain your visualization of the flames of God through the power of the spoken Word. =============================================================================== **** Footnotes: **** {1} Dan. 12:7; Rev. 12:14. {2} See Appendix, pp. 263-66. {3} Shekinah or Sheckinah: Hebrew for "indwelling" - "Yahweh has dwelt" - the visible majesty of the divine Presence of God, of the divine mind, as it descends to lighten the way for mortals. (Ezek. 1:28) {4} Jer. 31:33; Heb. 8:10. {5} Pss. 132. {6} Matt. 5:5 {7} James 4:6. {8} Matt.7:12. {9} See Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Compensation," Essays: First Series, 1841. {10} Matt. 19:26. {11} John 14:12. {12} Red, orange, black, brown, gray, olive and chartreuse. [1] {13} See El Morya, Pearls of Wisdom, 7 January 1968; Kuthumi, Pearls of Wisdom, 28 April 1968. {14} I John 4:18. {15} Matt. 5:5 {16} Matt. 8:12 {17} John 10:30. {18} Luke 9:25. {19} Rea-son or Ray-Son - the power of the Son's ray or the Christ light which originates in the mind of God and radiates throughout cosmos from his focus in the Great Central Sun. Hence, the term cosmic reason. {20} Matt. 7:7. {21} See Liberty Proclaims (Colorado Springs: The Summit Lighthouse, 1975), p. 42, for account of George Washington's vision, originally published by Wesley Bradshaw, copied from a reprint in the National Tribune, December 1880, vol. 4. no. 12. {22} II Tim. 2:15. {23} Hos. 8:7 {24} See Appendix, pp. 263-66. {25} Robert Browning, "The Flight of the Duchess," stanza 17. {26} Matt. 4:4 {27} Heb. 12:1. {28} Rom. 1:16. {29} Heb. 11:1. {30} Matt. 14:15-21. {31} Isa. 40:31. {32} Judg. 7:20. {33} I Pet. 4:8. {34} Gen. 2:9. {35} Gen. 1:3. {36} John 1:3. {37} Luke 23:34. {38} Matt. 13:46. {39} Matt. 4:3-4. {40} Deut. 6:16; Matt. 4:7. {41} Gal. 4:19. {42} Mark 15:39. {43} James 4:8. {44} The Dark Cycle of the return of mankind's karma began on April 23, 1969. It is a period when mankind's misqualified energy (i.e., their returning negative karma), held in abeyance for centuries under the great mercy of the Law, is released for balance according to the cycles of cosmic Law in this period of transition into the Aquarian age. {45} Gen. 6:3; Isa. 40:8. {46} See the Great Divine Director, "The Mechanization Concept," in Pearls of Wisdom, vol. 8, pp. 9-142, or The Soulless One; Serapis Bey, Dossier on the Ascension: The Story of the Soul's Acceleration into Higher Consciousness on the Path of Initiation (Livingston, Montana: Summit University Press). {47} Matt. 7:7. {48} Exod. 33:20. {49} Heb. 11:1. {50} Epochs of cosmic history. {51} Matt. 5:9. {52} I John 1:5. {53} Heb. 13:8. {54} Luke 6:31. {55} I John 4:18. {56} Prov. 3:11, 12; Heb. 12:5, 6. {57} Gal. 6:7. {58} Matt. 6:28. {59} Exod. 20:3. {60} Matt. 5:48. {61} Matt. 18:14; John 10:10. {62} "I AM": the name of God given to Moses. I AM THAT I AM (Exod. 3:13-15). The "I AM Presence" is that portion of selfhood which is the permanent atom of being; the Monad of self suspended in the planes of Spirit just above the physical form; The Godhead individualized as a living flame, a point of consciousness, a sphere of identity. {63} Matt. 18:3. {64} John 3:3. {65} Matt. 13:31, 32. {66} Luke 12:32. {67} "The Lord be with you" {68} Luke 22:42. {69} Gen. 28:12 {70} Heb. 11:1. {71} I Pet. 3:3, 4. {72} I Cor. 15:52. {73} Saint Paul called the will of man "the law of sin" which was in his members (in his consciousness). He recognized the presence within himself of a power apart from God, and he knew that as long as he permitted this force to remain in the inn of his being, it would war against the "law of his mind" or the will of God. He also said, "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty," showing that when one disarms himself of all opposition to God and seeks the very presence of his Spirit as the only reality, then he is free from all lesser manifestations. (Rom. 7:23; II Cor. 3:17) {74} Matt. 15:14. {75} Matt. 10:30. {76} akasha: primary substance; the subtlest, super-sensuous, ethereal substance which fills the whole of space. Energy vibrating at a certain frequency so as to absorb, or record, all of the impressions of life. These recordings can be read by those whose soul faculties are developed. {77} Here the master references philosophical meanderings and speculations which are not based upon the laws of God. {78} Rom. 8:6, 7. {79} Luke 15:11-32. {80} I Cor. 3:13. {81} Rev. 4:6. {82} II Cor. 12:9. {83} " A mighty Fortress is our God, / A Bulwark never failing; / Our Helper He amid the flood / Of mortal ills prevailing: / For still our ancient Foe / Doth seek to work us woe; / His craft and power are great, / And, armed with cruel hate, / On earth is not his equal. ... " Words and music by Martin Luther. {84} John 11:44. {85} Mark 3:5; 16:14; Rom. 2:5. {86} Matt. 23:24. {87} Rom. 14; I Cor. 8. {88} Matt. 15:11. {89} Matt. 7:1. {90} Matt. 13:12. {91} Matt. 6:33. {92} Luke 12:32. {93} Luke 22:42. {94} Pearls of Wisdom are weekly letters of instruction dictated by the ascended masters to their chelas throughout the world through the Messengers Mark and Elizabeth Prophet. {95} James 1:8. {96} John 14:1; Matt. 19:26. {97} II Cor. 3:6. {98} Luke 6:31. {99} John 14:16, 17; 15:26; 16:13; I John 4:6. {100} Engram: a geometric formula of the Word that manifests as a forcefield of light. {101} Gen. 1:1-2. {102} John 1:5. {103} II Cor. 12:9. {104} I Cor. 15:50. {105} Gen. 1:26-27; Exod. 20:3. {106} Matt. 6:22, 23. {107} Pss. 121:4. {108} II Cor. 11:14. {109} Exod. 20:5; Jer. 31:29-30; Ezek. 18:2-4, 19-24. {110} II Cor. 3:18. {111} Acts. 9:17-18 {112} I John 4:8. {113} Deut. 6:4. {114} Matt. 6:6. {115} Matt. 16:25-26. {116} Matt. 6:33; Luke 17:21. {117} Matt. 11:28. {118} John Dryden, "The Hind and the Panther": "For those whom God to ruin has design'd,/He fits for fate, and first destroys their mind." {119} Matt. 7:15. {120} Matt. 7:1. {121} Luke 5:31. {122} Matt. 5:45. {123} Alexander Pope, An Essay on Man, "Espistle I, "line 95. {124} "A little neglect may breed great mischief ... for want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse was lost; and for want of a horse the rider was lost." Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanac, 1758 {125} Alfred Lord Tennyson, "Sir Galahad," stanza 1. {126} II Pet. 2:19. {127} Heb. 12:6. {128} Ipsa quidem virtus sibimet pulcherrima merces. ("Virtue herself is her own fairest reward.") Silius Italicus (A.D. c. 25-99), Punica, bk. 13, line 663. {129} Exod. 20:3. {130} Exod. 8-12. {131} "Hail to the jewel in the lotus" - Tibetan Buddhist mantra, also found in Sanskrit. {132} Mark 4:39. {133} Pss. 46:10. {134} Gen. 1:26, 28 {135} Pss. 8:5. {136} God intends to make each "pure son" familiar to all "pure sons." {137} James 4:8. {138} Luke 10:37. {139} I Cor. 15:47-50. {140} I Cor. 7:31. {141} John 1:14. {142} Matt. 5:8. {143} I John 3:2. {144} Matt. 7:1. {145} II Pet. 3:8. {146} John 1:3. {147} Col. 3:3. {148} Matt. 24:6; Mark 13:7. {149} Mark 5:9. {150} Matt. 10:28. {151} See the Book of Jonah in the Old Testament for an account of God's warning through the prophet Jonah to the people of Nineveh, their repentance and Jonah's subsequent displeasure at the Lord's forgiveness of his people. {152} Attila the Hun was stopped by Pope Leo I near the confluence of the Mincio and Po Rivers in 452 A.D. {153} "Learn to love to do well, and you shall" - precept of Casimir Poseidon when he was the ruler of a great civilization that flourished where Brazil now is (approximately 12,000 to 14,000 years ago). Under this guidance the culture reached great heights of achievement, but it declined when the people turned from the truth they had loved to indulge in selfish pursuits. After the masters' repeated warnings to the people to turn from their evil ways and their failure to heed the heavenly admonishments, this culture was destroyed through cataclysm. {154} Gal. 6:7. {155} I John 4:18. {156} See Pearls of Wisdom, September 12 - October 10, 1965-a series on world problems and cataclysm by Saint Germain. {157} Matt. 25:40. {158} Rev. 21:6; 22:1, 17. {159} Matt. 16:26. {160} See "WHAT TO DO in time of personal crisis or national emergency," published by The Summit Lighthouse, p. 5, for directions on how to handle student demonstrations in your daily decrees. {161} Gen. 37:2-11. {162} Matt. 4:18-22. {163} Matt. 17:10-13. {164} For the prophecy of the coming of Elijah see the Old Testament, Mal. 4:5, 6. {165} "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,/Than are dreamt of in your philosopy." William Shakespeare, Hamlet, act 1, sc. 5, lines 166-67. {166} Prov. 1:27. {167} Rev. 12:3. {168} Judg. 6:25-32. {169} Prov. 22:6. {170} Judg. 7:4-7. {171} Matt. 10:16. {172} Luke 2:49. {173} Gen. 1:26, 28. {174} Matt. 11:28. {175} El Morya was Melchior, one of the Three Wise Men who attended Jesus' birth. Later he embodied as Sir Thomas More (1478-1535), the English statesman, and as Thomas Moore (1779-1852) the Irish poet. Kuthumi was the Wise Man Balthazar, Saint Francis (1182-1226), and Shah Jahan (reigned 1628-1658), the builder of the Taj Mahal. {176} Matt. 5:16. {177} Matt. 5:14. {178} Matt. 7:12. {179} Eph. 4:26. {180} Matt. 21:12. {181} Heb. 12:29. {182} De-signs, `Deity signs, Deity's signet, or Deity's signature'. The spiritual root of the word design shows that true art is intended to be an expression of God's magnificence and a tangible focus of the Divinity within the artist and every man, a pattern through which heavenly virtue might penetrate and elevate the consciousness of the race. {183} Phil. 4:7. {184} Matt. 13:24-30, 36-42. {185} The flames of God which may be invoked by those who desire to expand the Christ consciousness are many. [2] {186} I Cor. 15:37-41. {187} "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1-4). "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire" (Matt. 3:11). {188} Sanat Kumara, Pearls of Wisdom, 23 June 1968. {189} I Cor. 15:42-45. {190} James 3:17. {191} Matt. 10:39. {192} Matt. 6:16. {193} Matt. 11:12. {194} Matt. 13:29. {195} I Cor. 15:52. {196} Matt. 7:24-25; 16:18; I Cor. 10:4. {197} Matt. 2:2. {198} Luke 12:32. {199} I John 3:2. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {200} Ps. 8:4. {201} Exod. 20:3. {202} Gal. 6:7. {203} I Cor. 8:5. {204} Acts 9:5. {205} Eccles. 2:11, 17. {206} John 14:12. {207} James 2:19. {208} Ps. 8:5. {209} Matt. 10:39. {210} Eph. 5:26. {211} James 4:8. {212} Col. 3:9, 10. {213} I Cor. 15:26. {214} "Know thyself": an ancient proverb attributed to several sources, among them Thales and Solon of Athens (two of the Seven Wise Men of Greece) and Socrates. Cicero speaks of it as a precept of Apollo. It was one of the maxims inscribed in gold letters over the portico of the temple at Delphi. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {215} Ps. 1:2. {216} I Thess. 5:19. {217} Matt. 11:12. {218} Matt. 6:33. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {219} Matt. 25:14-30. {220} Matt. 10:28. {221} James 1:17. {222} Gal. 6:7. {223} Scientists have detected energy waves around the Earth which they postulate were released at the birth of the material universe. {224} Luke 15:11-32. {225} Matt. 25:29. {226} The place where God is - "Our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12:29). {227} Matt. 18:3. {228} Gen. 1:26, 28. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {229} Gen. 1:26. {230} John 10:7, 9. {231} I Cor. 15:50. {232} I Cor. 15:31. {233} Mark 1:11. {234} The messengers recommend the reading of The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis in connection with the series on Understanding Yourself. Available through Summit University Press. {235} Luke 11:52. {236} Matt. 7:9. {237} Acts 20:35. {238} Luke 1:52. {239} Matt. 19:30. {240} I Thess. 2:19. {241} Ps. 1:4. {242} Matt. 10:37. {243} Gen. 16; 17:15-21; Gal. 4:22-23. {244} Luke 15:11-32. {245} John 3:3. {246} I Cor. 15:47-49. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {247} Gen. 4:1-16. {248} Rev. 3:11. {249} John 5:39. {250} The inner meaning of culture is "cult, or cultivation, of light." Ure comes from Ur of the Chaldees, an ancient city of light. {251} Image `I magic' - the transforming power of visualization through the inner eye; hence, `eye magic'. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {252} Matt. 5:5. {253} Prov. 4:7. {254} Matt. 16:23. {255} II Tim. 2:15. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {256} Acts 17:26. {257} Ps. 2:1. {258} Paul Carus, comp., The Gospel of Buddha, quoted in Lewis Browne, comp., The World's Great Scriptures (New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1961), p. 173. {259} Ibid., p. 172. {260} Rudyard Kipling, "If," stanzas 1, 4. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {261} Gen. 1:26, 31. {262} Gal. 6:7. {263} John 1:9. {264} I Pet. 3:4. {265} Rev. 1:18. {266} Mark 10:31. {267} John 3:7. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {268} John 1:1. {269} Matt. 3:12. {270} Prov. 14:12. {271} Gen. 2:7; 3:19. {272} Gen. 1:26. {273} I John 3:2. {274} I Cor. 3:19. {275} Acts 9:5. {276} II Cor. 9:7. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {277} Isa. 53:5. {278} Heb. 10:17. {279} Heb. 7:25. {280} Pss. 1:2. {281} John 14:2. {282} I Cor. 10:4. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {283} Gen. 1:26. {284} I Cor. 6:19-20. {285} Eph. 2:19-21. {286} John 10:1. {287} John 8:12. {288} Matt. 18:3-4. The preceding text is taken from the book version, Understanding Yourself. {289} Isa. 40:3; Matt. 3:3. {290} Ezek. 1:16. {291} Prov. 4:7. {292} Eph. 6:17. {293} Heb. 11:35. {294} Rev. 12:7-9. {295} Rev. 16:16 {296} Luke 16:8. {297} James 2:19. {298} I John 4:4. {299} Matt. 5:26. {300} Matt. 7:15. {301} Pss. 24:1. {302} II Tim. 2:15. {303} Luke 16:1-13. {304} James 1:27. {305} Luke 22:31. {306} Luke 2:49. {307} Matt. 7:20, 16. {308} II Cor. 6:14-15. {309} Matt. 5:8. {310} Matt. 7:15. {311} John 8:32. {312} Thomas Jefferson, The Declaration of Independence. {313} Matt. 24:24. {314} John 14:8-10 {315} Pss. 19:2. {316} I Thess. 5:3. {317} Pss. 91:6. {318} Matt. 7:16, 20. {319} I Cor. 13:2. {320} Luke l:52. {321} Job 38:7. {322} John 1:14. {323} Acts 20:35. {324} Isa. 30:17; Matt. 5:14. {325} John 3:3-6; I Pet. 1:23. {326} Luke 2:14. {327} John 15:5. {328} Luke 1:28. {329} Luke 1:30-31. {330} I Chron. 16:34. {331} John Greenleaf Whittier, "Maud Muller": For of all sad words of tongue or pen,/The saddest are these: "It might have been!" stanza 53. {332} Prov. 1:27. {333} Matt. 7:15. {334} II Tim. 2:15. {335} Matt. 15:8. {336} Isa. 9:6. {337} Luke 1:52. {338} James 4:8, 6. {339} Rev. 3:17. {340} John 3:3-6. {341} Rev. 1:18. {342} Col. 2:19. {343} I Cor. 3:6, 7. {344} Rom. 7:22-23. {345} I Cor. 15:47. {346} Heb. 12:6. {347} Rev. 21:1, 3-5. {348} John 14:2. {349} Acts 8:23. {350} Rev. 21:1. {351} Luke 12:3. {352} Rev. 11:15. {353} John 8:12; John 9:5. {354} Mark 13:14. {355} Aesop, Hercules and the Wagoner - "The gods help them that help themselves"; Aeschylus, Fragment 223 - "God loves to help him who strives to help himself"; Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanac, 1735 - "God helps them that help themselves." {356} Luke 22:42.