The Two Murderers

[QUOTING]

Think, in this connection, of the fact that three crosses stood on the hill of Golgotha: the cross of the Lord in the middle, with the crosses of the two murderers on either side. This is a beautiful symbolic story of tremendous reality for every human being.

Who or what are the two murderers? The first is the I-central self, with its rock-hard, I-centered behavior. It must be totally liquidated, never to rise again. And there is also another murderer, who can be explained from the psyche of present-day man. When, as a young person, you enter this world you are, as it were, kicked and pushed into all kinds of habits. You are forced to don the strait-jacket of this world, the strait-jacket of convention. And you trudge along, you jog on. But where to? You do not know. You are only certain of one thing: that death will be the end of it all. What will happen then, only heaven knows! So it seems to you, in that situation.

And once, as a young person, you have donned the strait-jacket of convention, many good qualities are stifled, many of the possibilities latent in you are killed, murdered; many aspects of your being in which outsiders see a promise for the future are neutralized. That strait-jacket, which makes you stand in obedience to the nature of this world, neutralizes ever higher possibility within you.

So if you then decide to walk the path of the Christine revelation, the path of the living Rosycross, the cross of the second murderer is erected alongside the cross of the neutralized I-centrality. From this second cross, your long-neglected higher potentialities confess in deep humility: 'Lord, we have recognized you!' And then the words resound: 'Today I say unto you, you shall be with me in the new state of life'. Do you now understand the meaning of the three crosses on the hill of Golgotha?

If you go on following the same course as mankind in general, the functions of the head sanctuary will be completely isolated. They will crystallize into stereotyped activities, into cliches which will make it impossible for the nature, the directedness of your light-vesture to be changed in a positive way. Then the serpent-fire which, among other things, controls the nervous system, will not be able to lead you to liberating initiatives. Is it not so with many of you, that although you believe in the values and powers of the Other Realm, although you are inwardly certain about them and able to discuss them scientifically, you no longer have the strength to take any positive liberating initiative? That is so because you have delayed plunging the sword into your own being for so long. The will, seated at the top of the serpent-fire and corresponding with the pineal gland, then remains bound, oriented towards the old things, towards the habits of the old life. And your eyes, which are also controlled by the pineal gland, finally see only the values of the old world; they remain directed downwards, to the horizontal line.

We are telling you this, we must tell you this, to make it clear that if you want to share in the new possibilities of our times, you will have to change completely and open wide the door of your heart. And you will have to do it very soon; straight-away, in fact! For 'what the heart does not want, will not gain entrance to the head'.

Your heart should be absolutely free of criticism. Criticism causes the most serious poisoning of the nervous system imaginable. All the barriers which arise in you as a result of criticism must be removed. There are countless people just like you as far as their state of being is concerned. They work as you do, they too, are laden with taints and personality faults, just as you are. Your heart should be absolutely free from aversion, free from criticism.

And, in addition, your heart should no longer be darkened by all those feelings of hatred you so often cherish. You must banish this lovelessness utterly from you, for it renders your heart completely inaccessible. So now you will feel with us the need to change all that as quickly as possible; not with cultural motives, for when your light-vesture is not functioning properly, all culture is only a cloak you have put on, which will soon be torn or worn away. No, certainly not with cultural motives, but motivated by the touch of the new inter-cosmic radiation-field (the Christine Rays) which, as we have explained, now encompasses us and our fellow human beings.

[END QUOTING]

From "The Light-Vesture Of The New Man" by J. van Rijckenborgh
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