The Way Of The Cross

[QUOTING]

The new Soul element has two poles. One is directed to the Fatherland, to the Father, to the Spirit, to the approaching Pymander. The second must direct itself to the nature-born personality to allow the Immortal, the new power of salvation, to flow into the mortal. This is the reason for the inner struggle you must experience from the very moment you celebrate your true pupilship. Consider the following:

Two absolutely heterogeneous states of being combine. In the Gnosis, one undertakes to link the Heavenly with the dualistic and nature-born, in accordance with the example given by all the Great Ones who said: "Be my followers". If you link these two heterogeneous states in your system, great pain will result. One pole of the new Soul element will flee to the Spirit, to Pymander. The second pole will have to encounter the nature-of-death. While the new Soul element makes every effort to strive after The Good, after the essence of the Spirit, it must at the same time suffer the conflict with the two essential powers of nature: passion and desire. What grief will be the result! On the one hand there will be intense longing for Liberation, with every heartbeat; on the other, there will be contact with the powers of defilement and slavery.

In this way the Cross is erected. The vertical and the horizontal are joined together, solidly planted in the earth; what is Heavenly bends down towards the earth and goes its Way of the Cross on earth; it must do so. The top of the Cross is directed towards what is Heavenly and at the heart of the Cross is nailed the Rose of the Soul.

Do you feel the inescapable grief of such a nailing? The vertical is continually scourged and tortured through this voluntary surrender; the Spirit cannot bear it, cannot stand it. And if the horizontally-active soul-power is drawn upwards for a while, this is again an impossibility. The result will be a scorching pain, the scorching of burning. The horizontal cannot abandon its nature-being and the vertical cannot become established in the nature-of-death, although that is exactly what it is supposed to do on a voluntary basis. This process, this Way of the Cross, as the hermetic philosophy summarizes, is the guide to freedom: "You must give up the body before it dies and overcome the life of conflict; then, if you have won that victory, you will return to the Highest".

This guide is the Cross with the blood-red Rose, the Cross of voluntary self-sacrifice, the Cross of Purification. Nailed to this Cross, the young Soul must wrestle and fulfill its task.

Therefore, if you walk the Path of Piety, you should not be surprised that you have conflict in your life and still so much in yourself with which to struggle. What is taking place is the necessary encounter between two antagonists that are completely irreconcilable and that, by their encounter, cause a great inner fire, the fire of the Cross. This fire cannot fail to appear, it must rage. The new Soul-state must first have overcome by mortal life. This, stated Hermes, is what you should very well understand and struggle through with your inner being.

There are people who take on the struggle caused by the Path with their "I", with their ego of self-mortification. Such people make this inner struggle into a conflict of a highly personal nature. They proceed from the mistaken idea that all this pain, trouble and grief strikes them because of the fact that they still have an "I"; because their lower nature plays a trick on them in one way or another; because they are still that bad or that sinful. But this has nothing to do with what we have been discussing. Please, see your situation very clearly:

As pupils, you have opened your heart sanctuaries to the new power of the Sixth Cosmic Domain, the power of the Living Soul-state. It penetrates your blood, your nerve-fluid and advances to the head sanctuary; it fills your whole being and causes Soul Birth. However, there is also the other power which is absorbed by the root system of the serpent-fire system; this power also finds its way into your being. These two entirely incompatible powers cause the burning fire. In this way your Soul suffers and so does your "I". You should not think that the "I' is the cause or that the Soul is the cause. No, it is the encounter of two incompatible forces, two different tensions, two antipathetic electromagnetic powers.

What should you do now? Live the endura! Do not allow the "I" to meddle in this process. If you feel grief and tensions, do not work them off on other people, but experience your own grief as the necessary purification of the holy RosyCross. If you experience this grief to the depths of your being, the Gnostic Light-power will be active in you in a most mighty and dynamic way. As we said before, there have always been those who consider the struggle caused by The Path as a struggle of a personal nature. They become, as it were, completely bound up in the "I", and so they put all their efforts into self-mortification. However, it is precisely the "I" that should stand aside! The "I" should not step in anywhere; it should become quiet. Just let this struggle, this purifying fire, rage!

Just think of the ancient monastic habit of self-chastisement and voluntary mutilation in the struggle against the flesh. However, the struggle of the Way of the Cross is not a struggle against the flesh. It is a struggle between the Sixth and Seventh Cosmic Domains that takes place within you. It is impossible to be victorious if these things are tackled with the "I". Such self-mortification is suicide. A human being cannot bear it and death will be the result. Therefore, we emphatically repeat, you must not fight against yourself like a desperate person. Then you will only invoke all sorts of forces which are active in you. You will then place your "I" in the service of one of the two parties. The results will be a speedy consumption of energy, until death follows.

What should you do then? You should exercise devotion until piety has been found. Give this the first priority in your life. For the "I" it will mean the endura. Withdraw from the inner conflict of the two natures, do not be a party to the conflict and let the New Soul perform its voluntary work, its sacrifice within you. This is what the initiate mystics had in mind when they said: "Let the Christ do the work within you'.

*endura - the path of I-demolition, of the Last Death through self-surrender of the "I" to the Other One, the Immortal Man, the Christ within us. It is the path of John, who "makes straight the paths for the Lord". It is to put into practice these words: "He - the heavenly Other One - must grow and I must diminish. I must perish so that the Other One may live in me". The path of the endura is the Way which has existed throughout all times and by which fallen man ascends, by means of the purifying fire of a total reversal of life, to his true, Immortal being and returns to the Father. Man's path through this nature-order is a life of dying. The endura is a voluntary dying in order to be able to Live: "He who is willing to lose his life for My sake, will find It".

Do not force yourself to withdraw, as if in a corner of your being, from which you can peer at what is going on. No, you must desire the endura with all your heart, now, in the present. It must be your deepest longing, for which you yearn in self-forgetfulness and serving love. If you do that, the new Soul element will be born in you and you will begin your Way of the Cross, your way of the Rose and the Cross -- the meeting between the two irreconcilable elements. So the Soul will not seek to fight, because the Soul is only Love; and the "I" will not fight for it then desires only the endura. What will take place is an unavoidable encounter between the two irreconcilable electromagnetic forces. Through this meeting, a circulation will develop in your life, a grief, a struggle of that which hastens upwards and must experience and endure the fire of its sacrifice.

No one knows how long this fire, this struggle, this grief, will last. No one knows for how long all the results of the Way of the Cross will make themselves felt in your being; entirely in accordance with your karma and the merciful radiations active in your microcosm. But at a time when you don't expect it, perhaps right in the midst of the fire of some trial, it can suddenly appear that the mortal has been overcome, and that the "Consummatum Est" can be spoken.

Therefore, accept in perfect objectivity your Path of the Rose and the Cross and do not meddle in it with your "I". Then the Hour of Liberation will certainly come. Your Soul will arise and celebrate its morning of Resurrection. This will be the first New Day, the awakening in the Golden Head, the beginning of the New Morning, the Morning of Eternity.

From "The Path from Bethlehem to Golgotha" - The Egyptian Arch-Gnosis, Vol. 2 - Jan van Rijckenborgh

[END QUOTING]

In unity,

~ g
.

The Prisoner

[QUOTING]

 

"See, my son, this is the guide on the way that leads to Freedom: you must give up your body before it dies and overcome the life of Conflict; then, if you have won that victory, you will return to the Highest"

 

- Corpus Hermeticum, Book V, Verse 14 -

You will understand that this text places before us the true Resurrection of the Soul, the liberation of the Soul from the hold of natural birth. This is a difficult task, but one that makes victory all the more beautiful.

The inner struggle every candidate has to fight is described in the gospels in the capture of Jesus the Lord, in his cross-examination before Herod, Pilate and the Sanhedrin, in his humiliation, his Way of the Cross and his death. Finally, we see his grandiose victory on the third day, the feast of resurrection. The Jesus drama signified the birth of the Soul and its course through matter, its liberation from matter and its ascent into the World of the Living Soul-state, from where it returned to serve mankind, to be helpful to the other chained ones.

If you are pupils of the young Gnosis, you will know that the Soul belongs to the Tri-Unity of Light, of the True Being: Spirit, Soul and Body. Each of these three aspects of the being has its own inherent function, so that a co-operation between the three is perfect and harmonious. The Soul acts as an intermediary, as a mediator between the Spirit and the Body. Its positive part is directed to the  Spirit, its negative part to the Body. So the outpouring of the Spirit-power into the Body takes place via the intermediary, the Soul.

Let us consider the case of the pupil of the young Gnosis who has decided to walk the path of piety. The consequence will be the birth of the New Soul. What does this mean? A light-power radiation of high serenity which is not of this world will penetrate the nature-born being via the heart sanctuary and take up residence in it. That is the birth of the New Soul. The immediate effect is an ever-increasing inner struggle, an ever-increasing tension.

Many pupils tell us time and time again that they live with this tension and cannot escape from it. That is only natural! As the radiation of the Living Soul-state enters the heart sanctuary, the Sword is thrust into your being, and the result is a tension which, at a given moment, can no longer be tolerated, leading to a great crisis. This will result in the liberation of the new Soul-state, in resurrection.

When the New Soul is born, the Body is influenced by a new Light-force. Yet, equally, many other forces are at work in the Body, natural forces which are absorbed by the root system of the serpent-fire from the surrounding dualistic field. As soon as the new Light-force chooses to dwell in the Body and act as a new intermediary principle, it is, as it were, taken prisoner at that very moment. The New Light in us is then waylaid by the natural powers represented by Herod's soldiers, the bands of the high priest of the natural being, the mercenaries of Pilate.

The new Soul-principle cannot and must not avoid this, even if it were possible. It agrees to be taken prisoner within the system, for its task is to surrender voluntarily to this Body. It must be the mediator in order to save the whole being and urge it on to Transfiguration. That is why Jesus the Lord must, in great calmness, voluntarily allow himself to be taken prisoner.

In this lies the essence of any possible Transfiguration! No one else can accomplish it for you. A great man who perhaps lived two thousand years ago cannot do anything for you; at best, he is an example to be followed. It is you yourself who must walk the Path. That is why Jesus the Lord says: "Be my followers". Perhaps you can visualize the extent of the initial struggle of the new Soul principle before it can achieve the Great Separation and be able to speak the positive "consummatum est", "it is accomplished". That which is true, pure and undefiled must deliberately and knowingly join with the unclean, the sinful, the nature-born. It must, in Perfect Love, allow itself to be spat at, kicked and flogged; it cannot and must not escape this. At the beginning of this very painful process, the new Soul-being may ask beseechingly: "Cannot this cup pass me by? Is there no other possibility?". But this cup must be emptied to the last drop in order to attain the Goal.

From "The Path from Bethlehem to Golgotha" - The Egyptian Arch-Gnosis, Vol. 2 - Jan van Rijckenborgh

[END QUOTING]

The above provides a glimpse into the powerful gnostic symbolism that is embedded in the four New Testament gospels. One would be well-advised to blow the dust off of his or her New Testament and begin to read it anew, utilizing the gnostic key to penetrate the veil that was put in place to protect the Doctrine of Liberation from the profane.

That said, the foregoing passage seeks to advise us that the Path of Return is not an easy one, especially in its initial stages. Although we have been struck in the heart by the Gnosis and the vibrations of this Touch have awakened our Divine Spark, we are still nature-born and in the grip of the archons and aeons of this nature. The Divine impulse that we have received is not yet strong enough to overcome the corrupted astral energies that rule our microcosm. In order to begin its purifying and liberating work, this Divine impulse must withstand an onslaught of forces inimical to it while waiting for the pupil to do that which is required to allow the gnostic power to grow in strength. It must increase while the "I" decreases.

Paradoxically, we act as both jailer and potential liberator to the Other One that is bound within us. Let us seek to abandon the role of persecutor and instead work to free the Divine Self yearning to be Reborn.

~ g
.

Foolishness In The Eyes Of The World...

18 For the preaching of the Way of the Cross to those who have gone astray is foolishness; but to those of us who are saved by the Gnosis it is the power of God.

19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the "wise" and I will do away with the understanding of the prudent.

20 Where is the "wise"? Where is the scribe? Where is the learned of the world? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

21 Because all the wisdom which God has given was not sufficient for the world to know God, it pleased God to save those who believe by the simple gospel.

22 For the Jews demand signs and the Arameans seek after wisdom;

21 But we preach Christos crucified which is a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Arameans;

24 But for those who are called, both Jews and Arameans, Christos is the power of God and the Wisdom of God.

25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

26 For consider also your own calling, my brethren, not many among you are wise in terms of worldly things and not many of you are mighty and not many of you belong to the nobility.

27 But God has chosen the foolish ones of the world to put the "wise" to shame; and God has chosen the weak ones of the world to embarrass the mighty

From The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians - Chapter 1

Christos? A fivefold Gnosis? Divine Sparks? Rose of the Heart? Path of Return? Path of the True Way? Cross with Roses? Soul Rebirth? Dying as to Nature? Transmutation? Transfiguration? Liberation from Matter?

Now, as then, men consider such teachings to be foolishness. For their hearts have been hardened and they are unable to receive That which is being offered to them. The "wise" of this world will only believe in that which can be proven scientifically, empirically. Like Thomas, they must see the nail-holes before they will believe.

Those who are touched by the Gnosis respond to the simple but powerful and all-encompassing Truth of the Universal Doctrine as presented by the messengers of the Universal Chain of Gnostic Transfiguristic Brotherhoods. It requires no priests or intermediaries, no halls of learning, no rituals or occult practices, no chanting, meditation or concentration. It requires that one

- permanently disown every worldly attachment,
- recognize the purpose of God's Divine Plan of Salvation
- yearn for a permanent and true escape from this earthly vale of tears
- understand and accept the requirements of the Path shown, counting the cost of this Choice
- maintains a steadfast determination to not turn back once having embarked upon that Path.
- do all that is required in order to assist the Transfiguristic process

This is foolishness, is it not? As Nicodemus once asked incredulously: how can one be "born again"? Can a man crawl back into his mother's womb? He sought to mock the Truth that was being introduced to him but instead indicted his own "wisdom" as sorely lacking and earth-bound.

This writer embraces the foolishness of God, for it has set him Free. My brothers, if you answer the call of the Gnosis, you too will know the utter sublimity, the great joy of being a Foolish One.

~ g
.

Touched

 

 

From "Holy Fire" by Alex Grey

 

.

Total Transformation Of The Earth (Re-Post)

Originally posted on 14 June 2011

[QUOTING]

I deal not in opinions, for they are insubstantial and everybody from a dullard to a genius has one and they are all different.

The Truth is just True.

You may regard it as a certainty that the world is poised before a change, spiritual as well as physical. The Earth itself stands before a total Transformation - a re-structuring of its surface as well as a re-shaping of its interior, and men likewise must prepare for a process with spiritual repercussions, because everything living upon Earth: man, animal and plant, shall have ceased to exist as soon as the re-shaping is under way.

It will be understandable, therefore, that the grounds for an all-embracing Transformation will be spiritual, that a new school for spirit shall be created, and this calls for the destruction of everything old. The Earth cannot remain as at present, if it is not to circle through the universe amid other planets and moons devoid of all purpose.

A change has to take place, and those men shall live to see the act of Transformation upon whom God has bestowed the Grace of using the last opportunities for maturing, because God has blessed the final time of this Earth's existence by heaping graces upon graces on men, so that they will be able to mature by the last day.

That the gifts of grace go unheeded - that they are unwelcomed and hence not accepted - is only proof that the end time has come. Only a few, therefore, shall be able to observe the final act of Transformation, as these stand within God's Will, and hence have knowledge of His Plan of Salvation from eternity.

These shall incur no harm from the process of Transformation, as they shall be lifted from the Earth before the final work of destruction of the old Earth, and are therefore only affected by the change to the extent of exchanging their habitation for a Kingdom of Peace, until they are again led to the newly formed Earth, as progenitors of the new human race.

The others have, until the last day, ample opportunity to change, however, and thus to save themselves. Because as soon as the spiritual transformation has taken place in them - return of the soul to God, from Whom they were alienated through the firmest resistance - these souls also become aspirants for the Kingdom of the Blessed, and need no longer fear the ruin of the old Earth. Nothing of the creations of the old Earth shall remain, neither shall any man remain alive who had not been previously been lifted.

Complete destruction of the Earth's surface as a whole also results in the end of every creature, and where a soul is still capable of change, the change will have been accomplished at the hour of the last judgment. Spiritual change, therefore, is a man's criterion, whether he will live to see the end of this Earth-epoch, and is permitted to inhabit the New Earth as a Child of God.

All men are still capable of change, but only a few are willing to change, and hence the act of Transformation of the Earth shall take place because man's will no longer takes the right direction, and the Earth no longer accords with its destiny. Earth life is misused.

And thus mankind collectively stands before a spiritual change which shall not, however, take place on the old Earth, and which only a few men will consciously live to see, whilst the largest part of mankind shall, indeed, enter a new stage of development, and therefore shall also be affected by the spiritual change, but in a most retrograde sense. They will lose their physical life but shall continue their existence in an entirely different form. (Physical) Life has ceased, and a condition of "death" or sleep enfolds the soul because, as man, it had failed, not having utilized the opportunity to change, to redeem itself.

In the universe, however, the act of Transformation signifies an entirely new period of Salvation, and the termination of an epoch supremely memorable, when God Himself incarnated on Earth as The Christ through Jesus, in order to exemplify to mankind the transformation from man to a Divine Being, which all men ought to carry out on themselves.

The Earth, which carried His earthly body, must now also help the hardened, physical, solid matter to Salvation. Every creature must undergo a change of its outer form, everything bound in form beneath the level of man must be allowed to maintain its upward-impetus, which is only possible through a total Transformation of the Earth.

Author Unknown

[END QUOTING]

We owe a debt of gratitude to the unheralded messengers who have been sent to warn us. Even more important than appreciation, however, is action.

Prepare yourselves. Learn how. Start now.

~ g
.

True Integration

[QUOTING]

A small percentage of humanity is desperately seeking integration, union with God, order, rest, balance harmony in the great home of nature. Of course, this seeking is without success, because it is impossible to reach integration in a nature-field that is inappropriate for it. Therefore, any efforts made in this direction will invariably fail, since there results no integration, but at most a crystallization, a delayed effect of natural processes of life.

Real integration is a complete existential disappearance from this entire nature-field, by confluence with another life-spirit and by the genesis of another existence adapted to this other life-spirit. This is the purpose of all Gnosis!

The Gnosis gathers all those who seek integration and are ready for it and impels them onward to the great process of Rebirth. Therefore, we, who wish to walk this Path, have already started by taking leave, on principle, of the great Mansion of this world, to go, in practice, all the ways leading to Transmutation and renovation; of daily decreasing according to the old nature and daily growing according to the New Nature, in entire harmony with the Johannetic and Christ-centered laws.

However, we have seen that the nature-field, the natural state out of which we are born, cannot allow this process of Rebirth to take place. It will offer opposition and try to hold us back, for many reasons of self-maintenance.

This is why, when we want to leave this nature-field, it will fight against us by means of its creatures and its creations, from the very moment it becomes apparent that it can no longer retain us through its electromagnetic forces of radiation.

However, in the course of the cosmic nature, there are also moments and periods when the great redeeming process of Rebirth can proceed smoothly and easily. Such periods immediately follow those during which the dialectical nature-field is cleansed of its wickedness. Naturally, however, this wickedness will ever crop up again and again and gather for an assault, since this nature-field harbors a fallen human nature. Each time, the purpose of such purification is to  open anew the door to Liberation for the microcosms captive in the nature-field. Hence, as already explained, all nature aeons, their forces and their vassals, will oppose such purification, since this will bring closer and closer the end of the fallen realm of nature.

From Chapter II - Unmasking - Jan van Rijckenborgh

[END QUOTING]

We are prisoners in a hostile world order. It is a prison without walls, thus presenting the illusion of freedom. However, we are indeed prisoners, as our entire constitution (our physical, astral and mental bodies) is under the influence and control of the Twelve Aeons.

Not only are our microcosms struggling beneath the constantly applied pressure of the Twelve, but our imprisonment is sealed by the fact that most of humanity are completely unaware of their dilemma. Man accepts this world as the World and accepts this life as the Life. This results in a general complacency and a spiritual laziness that prevents man from seeking the Path of the True Way.

Yoga (union with God) and religion (from the Latin religare, meaning to re-link [with God]) are just two methods whereby humans attempt to re-connect with the Divine Spirit that we are estranged from. Over the millennia, these methods, which once worked during the pure phase of mankind's existence, have become but a shell of what they were. They serve only to mislead or disillusion humanity.

Our goal, our duty, is summarized as follows:

Find the Path
Awaken the Spark
Surrender the "I"
Change the Life
Walk the Path
Transfigure

No one can be forced to take these steps. One must be truly exhausted with the world and yearn to be free of it. Any material attachments at all will continue to bind the prisoner to this sphere of existence for eternities.

~ g
.

An Introduction

http://www.goldenrosycross.org/ext/downloads/en_broch.pdf

PART 1   The quest for life's meaning

                              The dual nature of the human being
                              The two orders of existence
                              A bridge from Time to Eternity 

PART 2   The heart of religion
                             The Universal Path
                             The Holy Grail 

PART 3   The two nature orders
                             Our nature order -- the world of 'dialectics'
                             The Original, Divine nature order
                             Why does the dialectical nature order exist?
                             The Fall
                             The task of humankind
                             The Re-awakening of the Divine spark 

PART 4   The human being as a microcosm
                             The microcosmic firmament
                             The respiration field
                             The subtle bodies
                             The Divine Seed
                             The Path of Experience 

PART 5   The holy desire
                             The process of Transfiguration
                             The Choice facing us
                             The Golden Cross of resurrection

                             Can it really be done?

http://www.goldenrosycross.org/ext/downloads/en_broch.pdf

.

 

The Brotherhood

[QUOTING]

1 Brothers in belief, there are two roads through life: the Road of Good and the Road of Evil. They are not clearly-defined roads and often run side-by-side, and sometimes cross each other. Those who travel without a guide or in darkness often mistake one road for the other. We are those who have chosen to walk in Light, a brotherhood of men who travel the Road of Good together in companionship.

2 We are companions on the Great Path of the True Way, and when an instructing brother speaks of the Great Path of the True Way he speaks of a double path. The Companions of the Right Hand are those who bear the burdens of earthly labor and advancement, for they require strength, dexterity and steadiness. The Companions of the Left Hand are those who bear the burdens of spiritual labor and enlightenment, things closer to the heart of man.

3 The brotherhood is separated into two parts. There is an Earthly Brotherhood, and though it may be small in numbers and have few possessions, this will not always be so. There is also a Heavenly Brotherhood comprising certain of the Twice-Born and their followers who have gone before. Their task is to clear the Netherworld of demons and dark spirits and prepare the way for those who follow. They are like men who enter a new country and must clear it of wild beasts and bring the land under control. It is the task of those above and those below to build a road joining the two territories.

4 Your brother is not so well-equipped to instruct in earthly matters, and therefore leaves it to another. The caravan moves quicker when each man rides his own camel. In spiritual matters, the most important is that each man should awaken his own Soul, a task far more difficult than it may appear, but for which the earth is a dedicated instrument.

5 The first objective to attain towards this end is self-taming. Just as a horse has to be broken in before it can be of any service, so has the mortal body of man to be tamed and brought under control. To do this requires not only self-discipline, but also the ability to rise above earthly conditions. No easy task, for Earth is a hard taskmaster and worthy adversary, and the mortal body of man a unruly steed.

6 The duties, the obligations and the restraints by which those who follow the Great Path of the True Way direct their steps are not imposed capriciously. They are, in fact, no more than the bare essentials covering the first steps. That is why everyone, before admittance into the brotherhood, must accept every obligation and decree covering our way of life. We do not claim to know the only path, undoubtedly there are others, but we can claim to know the best. The top of the mountain may be reached by many paths, but the shortest one is always the best.

From The Kolbrin: Books of the Sons of Fire: Chapter 3 - The Brotherhood

[END QUOTING]

The above dates from thousands of years in the past. In every age, there is a Gnostic brotherhood whose task is to lead yearning seekers to Final Liberation. These brotherhoods work both on the terrestrial plane and beyond the veil. Each preceding brotherhood passes on its charge to the next. This chain is unbreakable and reaches from here to the Divine Kingdom.

As mentioned, there are many paths to Liberation, but the majority of these paths will cause the traveler to meander his way up the mountainside for ages before reaching the summit. There is only one Path by which the seeker can bore a shaft directly from this nature-order to Eternal Life. This is the Path that the Brotherhood both guards and offers to all who are willing to walk it.

 

Enter by way of the narrow gate,

For wide is the gate

and broad is the road which leads to Destruction,

And many are those who travel on it.

But narrow is the door

and difficult is the road that leads to Life,

And few are those who are found on it.

Matthew 7:13-14

~ g
.

Begin...End...Begin Again.

 

Man does not understand that humanity experiences in varying cycles of time. There are minor cycles of roughly 3,600, 6,000 and 12,000 years that affect the races. There are major cycles spanning roughly 26,000 years that affect the Earth and, by extension, humanity. This is a precessional cycle, also known as a sidereal year, or Great Year. Three such Great Years constitute a major cycle that affects not only Earth and her humanity, but the entire Solar System.

Each time a major cycle ends, the Earth is devastated (actually, cleansed is probably the better word). A large portion of humanity is destroyed and a remnant, those who followed The Good Law, is taken to a place of safety. The story of Noah is a symbolical representation of this very ancient fact.

The purpose of the destruction is to not only cleanse the physical earth, but to clean out all of the regions of the reflection-sphere, as well (the reflection-sphere is the realm of the dead, what man mistakenly refers to as "heaven"). Both halves of the earth-sphere, both visible and invisible, are cleansed of the astral filth and dross that have accumulated over the millennia due to man's ignorant and thoughtless thinking, willing and desiring.

Once the reflection-sphere has been cleansed, a new Day of Manifestation dawns. The remnant are free to begin again. However, they do not undertake this endeavor on their own. They are assisted by Divine teachers, known throughout the ages as the Sons of Fire, the Shining Ones, etc. These Helpers of Humanity return to the earth-plane once more to guide the remnant on the Right Path, the Path of the True Way. Because the archons, aeons, light-spirits and shades have been flushed from the invisible spheres, it is much easier to teach man that which he needs to learn. Many are liberated during the early stages of a new Day of Manifestation.

Predictably, this honeymoon phase does not last. Inevitably, man falls back into his old habits, his selfish way of thinking, willing and desiring. New aeons are created and commanded by new archons. Man descends anew into debauchery and violence. An appointment is set for a new Period of Cleansing. The Destroyer is dispatched to perform its gruesome duty.

We have reached the end of a 75,000 year cycle of time. The entire Solar system is undergoing a cleansing. On Earth, that purification is taking place right now, it has already begun. The Great Separation is underway.

This periodic cleansing is a mercy granted to wayward mankind by the Logos. It gives fallen microcosms a chance to start over before they crystallize beyond saving. These cycles will continue to repeat themselves in the millions of years that lay ahead, reaping and harvesting until all prodigal microcosms have returned to the House of the Father.

What is important to know is that this time around, something special is taking place. The Earth is moving up a rung on its own Path of Return. After this Cleansing, the physical Earth will cease to exist. Earth's lowest vehicle will be an etheric one. As such, all life on the new Earth will also have to be etheric in nature. This graduation to the next higher plane is known as the Lesser Harvest, as opposed to the Greater Harvest, which is Final Liberation.

Those microcosms and incarnate humans who are unable to make the required transformations will be recycled. Some millions of years hence they will have to begin again, as cave-men and cave-women on a physical Earth-like planet somewhere else in the galaxy in the hope that they can learn to follow the Truth that they once scorned.

May it be so that this time around, you find yourself aligned either with the Remnant destined for the New Earth or with the Chosen on the road to Final Liberation from matter.

~ g
.

Lament For The Foolish

[QUOTING]

1 Our deeds are as thistledown launched upon the wind. We know not where the winds of chance will bear them, or whether they will take root or be borne away as though they never were. Our works are as edifices of mud built upon the river banks, which are swept away by the running waters. The one thing certain in life is change.

2 Men make plans. They are as naught, they are as words written on the waters, as commands given to the winds. Wise is he who knows the Plans of God, for to them the whole Earth conforms.

3 Men cry out at the tribulations of life, not knowing that by adversity alone can they find their Souls. They say, "Why are we beset with trial and tribulation?", for they cannot understand the contest. They say, "Why must we seek and never find?", knowing not that life is naught but a search and at the end man can discover nothing except man.

4 O man, gaze well upon the Earth. See, is it not by its nature a place of labor and not a garden of pleasure, or a panderer to your weaknesses? Truth is found in the book of life, but it may be understood by just degrees. For who among men receiving the whole world would not be overwhelmed and destroyed?

5 In general, men are childlike. Give the people deceitful things and they will rejoice like children. Show them amusing things and they will acclaim their pleasure. The gods of fear are held in reverence, but the Great God who banishes fear, they despise.

6 O foolish people, O foolish generation! With dust on my head I mourn your ignorance. With loud lamentations I decry your folly. Yet the path you have chosen, you have chosen freely. Ease and comfort appear to be your end and purpose.

7 The gods of deceit have temples of splendor, their priests are well-clothed and overfed. But The Great God of Truth has no more than a hidden cavern, his servants are garbed in rags and their bellies are empty.

8 The gods of lust and cruelty have storehouses of treasure, but the God of Kindness has not even a field.

9 The people worship gods that oppress and ignore The God who frees. They give to the gods that take and spurn The God who gives. O misguided generation!

10 O blind and ignorant people, to cherish the stone gods of death and mock The God of Life! O misguided generation, to clasp to its breast the things that inherit decay and spurn the things that inherit Everlastingness!

11 Let the Destroyer come as the whirlwind of barren places. In the dread day of its appearance the works of ignorance shall go down

From The Kolbrin: Book of Manuscripts - Chapter 12 - Eighty-Seventh Scroll

[END QUOTING]

As timely today as it was thousands of years ago.

~ g
.

The Unveiling Of Gnostic Wisdom

The Unveiling Of Gnostic Wisdom - Part I



The Unveiling Of Gnostic Wisdom - Part II



Happy New Year.

~ g
.

The Mystery Of The Grail

Mystery of the Grail - Part I



Mystery of the Grail - Part II



Next: The Unveiling Of Gnostic Wisdom

~ g
.

The Rebirth Of The Soul

[QUOTING]

Let us now return to the five aspects of Transfiguration and try to form a clear understanding of them.

What we call the soul is a fivefold revelation of the astral fire in our personality. It fill the seven cerebral cavities and is taken up into the system by means of the magnetic respiration of the brain. This astral fire and its connection with the head-sanctuary form the nucleus, the deepest being of our soul-state, of our entire life. Owing to this animation, we call ourselves "I". As long as this soul is to be explained entirely out of dialectical nature it is mortal.  After the death of the body, the soul, too, undergoes a process of decay. At first it remains for some time in the reflection-sphere, but after that, nothing remains of it: the soul volatilizes to ordinary cosmic fluid.

However, as soon as the new state-of-consciousness becomes a fact, owing to the influx of the new astral fire in the sevenfold system of the head-sanctuary, one can speak of a new soul-being and consequently of the sign of the Son of Man. From that moment on, the Soul is no longer mortal. After the death of the personality this immortal soul no longer needs to occupy itself with the reflection-sphere because it no longer has a reflection in the earthly territory. Therefore, at the parting of the material body, should you possess a soul-state renewed in the Gnosis, then the earthly is swallowed up and the Unearthly exists. This Unearthly Being cannot be found in the reflection-sphere. That is why we have always said that a pupil who dies after having accomplished the task will find himself in the Vacuum of Shamballa.

When your soul-state has become immortal, there will be no further question of the need to return after the death of the personality. Notwithstanding this, there will be several among us who will return, but that will be on a voluntary basis for the sake of those who stay behind to maintain the Spiritual School in the service of the Universal Brotherhood as long as that is useful and necessary.

We emphasized that as soon as the new state-of-consciousness has become a fact our soul becomes immortal. This offers a great consolation, in particular to the older among us, for it will be better to cast off the crystallized and worn-out cellular structure of the earthly personality than to try to renew from below upwards. When the transfiguration of the soul has taken place and death has been conquered due to the possession of the immortal soul-state, the new personality can also be constructed in the Vacuum of Shamballa. The transfiguration of the soul can be realized by you within a comparatively short time.

If you ache for the New Life, if your thoughts are directed to the Spiritual School and your state-of-faith is without criticism, then make room in your head-sanctuary for the Light of the Gnosis, so that the sign of the Son of Man may be stamped on your forehead. Then you are released from the nature-of-death. Then, as regards your soul-state, you have become immortal. Moreover, as soon as the Immortal Soul has become a fact, you are free from the Wheel of Life and Death, unless you would like to return on account of a voluntary load that you would shoulder in servitude to humanity. You need not return any longer for the renovation of your personality.

You will now realize that, when the New Soul has become a fact, it takes over the task of the old soul. And as you know: a state of consciousness is a state of life. The soul, the consciousness, governs, builds and maintains the personality and the body. When a new soul-state has been born in us and the New Soul takes over the function of the old one, wonderful consequences follow. The soul has five fluids: the astral consciousness-fire, the serpent-fire, the hormonal secretions, the nerve fluid and the blood. These five fluids emanate from the nucleus of the soul and together form the soul-state. If they are realized in the body by the reborn Soul, then it will be clear that the effects will be borne out in the body. Therefore, transfiguration is not an obscure wonder but a scientific process.

To summarize: liberate the Path within you for the Light by means of the twofold magic of Faith and Life. Be absorbed by the merciful rebirth of your entire soul-state. Then you no longer need to be anxious about the rebirth of the entire state-of-being, as that will be an automatic result of the rebirth of the soul.

From "The Rebirth Of The Soul" - The Gnosis In Present-Day Manifestation - Jan van Rijckenborgh

[END QUOTING]

That's 'Faith' as in faith in the transfiguristic process and 'Life' as in actively living out of the required New Attitude of Life. Without these two cornerstones, one is only talking about the Path, not walking it.

Make no mistake, there is an alchemical process that can enable man to return to his former position as an immortal Child of God. The minimum requirement for being able to begin this process is a life of unselfishness and unceasing service-to-others. The focus must be away from the self and what the self wants. Without this minimum foundation of Love and Service, it will be impossible for one to attract the Gnosis, the Divine catalyst that can awaken the Rosebud and herald the Rebirth of the Soul.

~ g
.

The Sign of the Son of Man

[QUOTING]

We will now go further into the results and the consequences of the new state of life that originates from the new state of consciousness.

Let us assume that after many thorough preparations the new electromagnetic fluid of the Gnosis becomes part of us. This will be the result of our application of the fivefold Universal Gnosis. Firstly: pure insight. Secondly: true yearning for salvation. Thirdly: complete self-surrender. These three define the quality and the magic of our state-of-faith. This leads to, fourthly: the new attitude of life which, owing to its magic and quality, results in the opening of our personality to the imperishable light of the Gnosis. The result if this is, fifthly: our admission into the New Life Field and the great process of regeneration, Transfiguration, begins.

As soon as the new consciousness fluid pours into the head sanctuary, it becomes visible in a clear, shining light. The Bible speaks of "the sign of the Son of Man" because this consciousness fire is the true, Original Human Fire. It radiates outwardly when the Original astral fire can be inhaled by the brain-system and the seven cerebral cavities are filled with it. The focus of this radiation is formed at the place mentioned, behind the frontal bone. This point is the sign of the Son of Man.

As soon as this sign starts radiating, the total transformation of your entire nature, indicated by the Christ as "the rebirth by water and spirit", takes place. First, there is the transfiguration of the soul. Second, owing to this, a whole series of new consciousness-abilities are going to develop. The nature of the astral fire that touches us defines our entire state-of-being. Body, thinking, etheric vehicle, state-of-desire, blood, nerve-fluid, in short the entire state-of-being is defined by and grows out of the consciousness-fire that glows within you. Therefore, when that fire is renewed, the result must be an entire change of being.

One aspect of such a change is a completely different consciousness faculty which, thirdly, results in a different sensory state. For your sensory faculties also have their basis in the head sanctuary. This new sensory state will lead to a wonderful series of events in your life. Fourthly, a modification develops in the cell structure of all the cell groups of your body, owing to which, as the Bible expresses it, "the old vesture of matter is swallowed up in victory" and replaced by a personality structure which harmonizes with the New Soul-State. Thus, fifthly, death is completely conquered. In fact, this entails disappearance out of the old field of nature.

From "The Rebirth of the Soul" - The Gnosis In Present-Day Manifestation - Jan van Rijckenborgh

[END QUOTING]
.

Mortal Soul vs. Immortal Soul

We have been led to believe that we have an immortal soul that will "live forever" after we die.

Not true.

The soul you now have is a mortal soul. This means that just like the physical body, it is subject to decay and death. The mortal soul is created at birth from material borrowed from a child's mother and father. Like everything which has an origin in the material world, it has a temporary existence.

The mortal soul will outlive the death of the physical body (the "first death"), but will eventually dissolve after a somewhat longer existence in the regions of the reflection-sphere. This is the "second death" referred to in Revelations:

"Be faithful even unto death, and I will give you a crown of Life. He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches: he who overcomes shall not be harmed by the second death" -- Revelations 2:10-11

This passage recognizes that there is an alternative to the death of the mortal soul. That alternative is the rebirth of the Immortal Soul, which can only be accomplished when one begins to walk the Path of Return. Those who embark upon the Path endeavor to overcome the powerful pull of physical matter with the goal of obtaining permanent liberation from the wheel of death-and-rebirth.

Man is a temporary, emergency-order being. Nothing about the personality and its soul-vehicles will survive death. Only the emptied microcosm and its accumulated karma will persist, to eventually provide a home for a new personality. If one wishes to avoid falling victim to this scenario yet again, it will require the birth of a New Soul, generated from astral materials not-of-this-earth. This is what the gnostic Path of Return is all about: the alchemical process that leads to True Immortality.

~ g
.

The Birth Of The Christ...Within

 

"Though Christ a thousand times in Bethlehem be born
And not within thyself, Thy soul will be forlorn".

 

- Angelus Silesius -

 

The above quote has meaning to those with eyes to see and ears to hear. Silesius was referring to the awakening of the Divine Spark that sleeps within the heart of man. It is the Immortal Seed that must be touched by the Gnosis so that the Original True Man can be re-born.

This is the true symbolical meaning of Christmas. It represents the moment of the awakening of the Rose of the Heart. It represents the birth of the Christ within us. The Child (the Christ-Ray) is born in a stable, His mother resting on a bed of straw, surrounded by assorted beasts and humans. Here, the four kingdoms of the earth are represented: mineral, plant, animal and man.

The event symbolizes that which must occur within each of us, not after we die, but here and now, while incarnate on earth. We must prepare a place in our hearts to receive the Gnosis, the Christ-Ray. Once our Spirit-Spark atom has been touched by the  Gnosis, we are instantly re-linked with the Divine Kingdom from which we estranged ourselves. The Path of Return has begun, upon which we must continue to persevere until the Good End.

May you begin to recognize the true gnostic meaning of the Birth of the Christ, and understand that it is an invitation extended to you to do that which is necessary to provide a home for the Christ that literally sleeps within your heart.

In unity,

~ g

.

Not-So-Random Thoughts

“Great men are they who see that spiritual is stronger than any material force, that thoughts rule the world.” - Emerson

“Most people live, whether physically, intellectually or morally, in a very restricted circle of their potential being. They make use of a very small portion of their possible consciousness, and of their soul’s resources in general, much like a man who, out of his whole bodily organism, should get into a habit of using and moving only his little finger." -  William James

“All that we are is the result of what we have thought.” - Buddha

“We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a show that never leaves.” - Buddha

“Whatever your mind can conceive and can believe, it can achieve.” - Napoleon Hill

“A man is but the product of his thoughts; what he thinks, he becomes.” - Gandhi
.

Yearning For Salvation

 

[QUOTING]

Man has four vehicles: the material body, its etheric double, the desire body and the thinking faculty. The etheric body builds and maintains the material body; the desire body defines the inclinations, the type, the character, the ability of man -- in short, his essential nature.

The desire body, or sidereal figure as Paracelsus called it, surrounds and penetrates us from every angle and the sidereal fluids enter our material system by means of the liver. There is a continuous circulation of these forces that enter and leave the liver. So the liver is more especially the focus of the desire body. The quality of the head and heart sanctuaries is in accordance with the nature of the desire body, as it has developed since birth. The head and heart of natural man are the slaves of he desire body; the functions of the heart and the mentality are directed by the desire body. Your feelings and your thinking as persons of this nature are regulated by your pelvic sanctuary. Consequently, you live out of your pelvic sanctuary, through your spleen-liver system, bound to matter, desiring and focused upon everything that is of ordinary nature. All sidereal radiations enter the liver in accordance with the activities of your desire nature.

When, after endless roaming on the dreary Road of Experience, a human being reaches a dead-end in nature-bound life, it can happen that he begins to desire renewal, to yearn for a liberating solution; that in such a man something like a yearning for salvation develops, an urge to seize one or another approach to Salvation -- to realize it within himself, that he might climb up out of the pit of mortification. This state of searching for renewal, this increasingly conscious yearning for salvation is he highest form of desire of which nature-born man is capable. You cannot reach higher. What in your heart churns and boils is completely desire and its qualitative pinnacle is yearning for salvation. This is the highest state, the limit of dialectical, astral radiation. When we stand at this border, the Gnosis touches us; not in the liver, but in the heart.

The First Touch of the Gnosis always takes place in the heart sanctuary; however, that occurs only in answer to man's yearning for salvation. Therefore, it is out of the question that anyone who would approach the Temples of the gnostic Spiritual School simply experimentally or out of curiosity would benefit in any way. It is beneficial to be in a gnostic focus only when the heart has opened up somewhat for the Gnosis, yet only as a result of that highest state of desire, the yearning for salvation.

From "Pymander and Hermes" - The Egyptian Arch-Gnosis, Vol. 1 - Jan van Rijckenborgh

[END QUOTING]

Everything about us is attracted and attuned to this nature. We are surrounded and interpenetrated by the energies of the Gnosis, but because our thoughts and feelings are tuned in another direction, towards the natural world, we cannot form a link with the Gnosis.

As long as we are content with the world of duality (dialectics, as JVR calls it) we will never be able to form that sacred link. For the Gnosis does not vibrate with the natural world. It is a vibration that is not of this world. The only part of us that can connect with It is our Spirit-Spark atom. Our Divine Spark shares a vibrational affinity with the Gnosis. Once awakened, it will send out a homing beacon, as it were, to the Gnosis. But first, a true desire to be done with this world must exist within the Caller. There must be a yearning born out of total weariness with this world, all of it. Only then, will the Gnosis respond to the Call of the Heart.

May it be so, that you develop this yearning and ignite the Flame of Renewal within.

"Renounce the whole world, and the whole matter therein." The Christ

~ g
.

About Truth, Illusion, Delusion and Dissolution

[QUOTING]

1 Hermes: It is impossible, O Tat, for a human being, an imperfect creature, to presume to speak about the Truth, since he is composed of imperfect members and, with regard to his sheath is constituted of an assemblage of foreign bodies. But what is possible and correct to say I will say: namely that Truth only exists in eternal bodies, the elements of which are also True: in fire, which is once and forever fire and nothing else; in earth, which is once and forever earth and nothing else; in air, which is once and forever air and nothing else; in water, which is once and forever water, and nothing else.

2 Our bodies, on the other hand, are composed from all these elements together; they contain Fire, and also Earth, and further more Water and Air; yet they are neither fire, nor earth, nor water, nor air, nor anything whatsoever that is True.

3 If then, from the beginning Truth is foreign to the physical constitution, how shall it hold or express Truth? It will only be able to understand Truth if God wills.

4 The things of this earth, O Tat, are not the Truth, but the imitations of Truth; and not all are even that, but only a few of them. The rest are lies and error, O Tat; illusion which only consists of phantoms. When, however, such an illusion receives an influx from Above, it becomes a replica of the Truth. Without this superior influence it remains a lie, an untruth. It is the same with a portrait that is an image of a body; the painting is not the body it represents. It has eyes, but they see nothing, ears, but they hear nothing. The painting also shows all the other parts, but it is all illusion that deceives the sight of the observers. They think they see the Truth whereas reality is a mere lie.

5 But when one observes something that is not a lie, then one beholds the Truth. So if we see or understand all those things as they actually are, we see and understand True things. If they are different from what they seem, we will neither understand nor know anything that is True.

6 Tat: There is then, Father, Truth even upon earth?

7 Hermes: You are mistaken, my son. There is certainly no Truth on earth, and neither can Truth be brought into being on earth. But it could happen that a few people could form an inkling with regard to the Truth. They are those to whom God has granted the ability to see it.

8 Tat: So there is nothing True on earth?

9 Hermes: I think and I proclaim that everything is illusion and delusion. The things I think and proclaim are True things.

10 Tat: But should one not indicate as Truth those things one thinks and proclaims as being True?

11 Hermes: How would that be possible? One must think and proclaim things as they are: on earth there is nothing True. This is True: that here, Below, there is no Truth. And how would that be possible, my son? Truth is the supreme Magnificence, the absolute Good which is not obscured by matter, nor encompassed by a body. Truth is the naked, luminous, unassailable, exalted, immutable Good.

12 But behold, my son, how the things which are here Below are unable to receive this Good. For they are perishable, subject to suffering, soluble, mutable, forever changing, passing from form to form. How could these things be the Truth, since they in themselves are not True? Everything that changes is illusion, because it does not remain in its Essence, but passes from form to form and thus presents a new appearance all the time.

13 Tat: Is not even man himself true, Father?

14 Hermes: As a man he is not, my son. Truth consists solely in itself and remains what it is. But a human being is composed of manifold elements and does not continue to be identical with himself. On the contrary, he changes and transforms from one age to another, and from one form to another, as long as he inhabits a body. Often, after but a short interval of time, parents no longer recognize their children, nor children their parents.

15 Can a creature which changes to such an extent as to be no longer recognizable be True, Tat? Should we not rather think that, on the contrary, this succession of diverse appearances is an illusion? Therefore, understand that only what is lasting and eternal is true. The human being is transient - therefore, he is not True. He is but appearance, and as such, the supreme illusion.

16 Tat: But Father, are the eternal bodies then not True either, since they also vary?

17 Hermes: Nothing that is brought forth and subject to change is True, but as those bodies were created by the First Father, it could be that their substance is True. Nevertheless, there is in those bodies, too, a certain falsity, because they are variable, because nothing is True save what remains identical with itself.

18 Tat: What may we then call True, Father?

19 Hermes: The Sun alone can be called True. While everything else changes, the Sun does not. That is the reason why only the Sun is entrusted to give form to everything in the world, to reign over and create everything. I venerate him and bow before his Truth; after the Only and First One I recognize in him the Demi-Ourgos, the constructor of the world.

20 Tat: And what, then, is the primordial Truth, Father?

21 Hermes:  The One and  Only, O Tat -- He who is not made of matter, nor exists in a body; who has neither color, nor form, who changes not, nor is changed, but who always Is.

However, what is illusion is perishable. The providence of what is True keeps all that is on earth encompassed in dissolution, and will always do so, for dissolution is the condition of all genesis. Everything that is brought forth dissolves so that creatures can again come to birth. It is necessary that out of dissolution life must come into existence, and what is born must, in turn, necessarily decay, in order that the generation of creatures will never cease. Behold the first active cause of the propagation of creatures who, born out of dissolution, are but illusion; at one time they are born like this, and at another like that. It is impossible for them to be born exactly the same. How could then what is reborn and not identical with itself, be True?

If one wanted to define this simulacrum in an accurate way , one ought to regard a human being as a sham person, a child as a pretence of childhood, a young person a sham one, an adult as a pretence of manhood, a greybeard not truly old. As soon as things change, they deceive, both to what they were and as to what they have become.

Yet, my son,  you must understand well that even the illusory activities here Below depend on that which is Above, that is, on the Truth itself. And indeed, since this is the case, I define Illusion as the expression of Truth.

Seventeenth Book of the Corpus Hermeticum - Hermes to Tat: About the Truth - The Egyptian Arch-Gnosis, Vol. 4 - Jan van Rijckenborgh

[END QUOTING]

In short: that which is Changeable cannot be True. That which is True remains so always. Therefore, anything subject to change or dissolution can never be True.

So what does that say about Man and this World? It says that we are but transient illusions. We come and we go. We are composed and then we break apart, again and again and again.

However, an atom of Truth does lie entombed within our microcosm. It is the Rose of the Heart, the Divine Spirit-Spark atom. It is this Truth which we are tasked with freeing from the bonds of illusion. It is this Truth that will liberate us from the Sleep of Ages, if we manage to find and triumphantly walk the Path of the True Way, the Path of Liberation.

You may have to read the above passage from the Seventeenth Book of the Corpus Hermeticum several times before gleaning its True import, but its meaning will most surely dawn on you eventually, pulling aside yet another veil.

~ g
.

Fishbowl (Re-post)

Originally posted on 30 July 2013

Imagine that your microcosm is a globe-shaped fishbowl with you, the personality, in the center. You are surrounded and inter-penetrated by astral fluid, just as a fish is surrounded and inter-penetrated by water. As the quality of the fish is determined by the quality of the water that surrounds it, so the quality of the human personality is determined and conditioned by the quality of the astral fluid that surrounds him or her.

Our thoughts are living creations. When we think a thought, a particular vibration is sent into the surrounding astral field. If our thoughts are impure, evil, selfish, fearful, critical, judgmental, vengeful etc., the thought-vibration we send forth will color our astral field accordingly. The emotional body is conditioned by those mental emanations and the ethers that compose the etheric body are also extracted from those astral vibrations. The etheric body, as we know, vitalizes and conditions the physical body.

From the foregoing, one should be able to see that what we think dictates our desires and eventually manifests itself in the health or disease of the physical body. Man lives in a fishbowl. Our astral creations - our thoughts - surround and inter-penetrate all four vehicles of our human personality. If, via wrong-thinking we pollute our respiration-field, the astral field that surrounds us, we have to understand that there will be consequences to deal with and a bill that must be paid.

We are what we think. When we look in a mirror, or examine our desires, or take note of our physical condition, we are seeing our thoughts being reflected back to us.  If we do not like the reflection there is but one thing we can do:

Purify our thoughts. Clean up the fishbowl.

~ g
.

Born To Rule, Now A Slave

'Slaves lose everything in their chains,

even the desire of escaping from them'

 

– Jean Jacques Rousseau

[QUOTING]

"Now", said I, understanding is mine, but what of man, what of myself?  How was man created?" The voice of the Good and Great Being which I knew to be a personalized manifestation of the Holy Spirit, answered me".

"The image and nature of the Supreme Spirit resides in the soulseed of man, just as the image and nature of an oak tree resides in an acorn. The pattern for the mortal body of man was formed in the Sphere of the Holy Spirit and projected to the Sphere of Matter and Mortality where Nature built upon it. When the time was ripe, the body prepared by Nature was implanted with the soulseed of Divinity and the creature of Earth became a man. From that day, man, unlike all other living things on Earth, became a two-fold being in his own right, mortal in body but immortal in Soulspirit. He is immortal only because he has been made the heir of Divinity, and as such all things are within his grasp. He is mortal because he lives within a mortal shell and is subject to a destiny in mortality".

I said to the Being who seemed so near, "Whatever man was when given Divine Life, it is said that he suffered a downfall or disinheritance". I heard the Voice say in reply, "Man will not be disinherited, but he can make what he will of his birthright. The downfall of man was a fall from the sunlit Heights of Spirituality into the dark valley of agnosia. It was also a fall from a position of responsibility and trust, and man has yet to regain that position".

'Man fell because he declined to undergo the necessary preparation and discipline needed by one who aspires to climb the Heights. Also, he possessed the powers of creation, and being free could express them as he pleased. Man used them to satisfy his lower desires and so brought about his own downfall. Since then he has no longer enjoyed them to the full. Given freewill and the ability, it was intended that man should direct his own evolution, but he proved unequal to the task".

"Man was intended to be the redeemer of reasonless Matter and the controller of Nature, for that reason he was first called Lord of Creation. But it was Nature herself who dominated the will of man and tempted him to betray his trust. She lured him into entanglement with the senses, so that instead of being free, he became the slave of desire. The sweetness of the bait disguised the poison it contained and the Spirit of man was dragged into forgetfulness and mindlessness".

"Instead of being the master of a noble steed galloping along the Road to Immortality, man was now a blind creature bound upon a runaway horse. Notwithstanding this, he found the sensation enjoyable, believing that in being freed from the responsibility of control, he had found true freedom. Man made little effort to assume control, for this meant struggle, effort and responsibility, and so he remained in the state of spiritual inertia called the Mire of Matter. The Soulspirit had entered the body, only to be caught in the toils of the of the flesh. Man was heading in the wrong direction  and the way was all uphill".

"So now you see", the Voice continued, "that man was made a two-fold being. Within, though this is a misleading description, is the Soulspirit, but to all outward appearances, man is a mortal shell subject to decay. Though born to a heritage of Divinity, man himself has chosen to suffer as the slave of his desires and the vassal of his weakness. He has bartered his Spiritual birthright for a handful of fragile material baubles. Man, becoming enamored of the glitter from the first bauble offered, has lost his sense of values and has closed his eyes to things of real value. He has drunk the material waters of spiritual oblivion and now lies asleep beside the stagnant pool. He slumbers, awaiting the Day of the Awakened".

The Kolbrin: Book of Lucius - Chapter 3 - The Making of Man

[END QUOTING]

No matter how glorious or tragic the life, man is like a drunk lying half-conscious in the gutter, not caring about the puke drooling from his mouth or the foul smell of his own waste. As long as we do not Seek the Kingdom that sleeps in the Rose of the Heart (referenced in the Book of Lucius as 'the soulseed') we may as well be dead while "alive", which is, in fact, the true case.

Awaken.

~ g
.

Lifeforce, Soulspirit, Duty and Purpose

[QUOTING]

When the child grows up, becoming a youth or maiden, it enters into a struggle with existence, with worldliness. It becomes like a swimmer setting out to cross a turbulent river. Individuals try to mold the world to their own way of thinking, but the world fights back and in so doing shapes each one into an image differing from his own conception. To each person Earth takes on a different aspect, according to individual thoughts and inclinations.

The lifeforce centered in man is not something unique in nature, and the vast Ocean of Life seeks to draw it back into Itself. Therefore, if the lifeforce is to remain separate within the individual, the individual must be prepared to face conflict and opposition. The struggle to retain life cannot be renounced, no one can cut himself off from the difficulties of worldly existence, or discard the burden of manhood or womanhood.

While strength and vitality throb within the mortal container, worldly problems and difficulties must be steadfastly faced and overcome. But at the onset of middle age each one should prepare for the downhill run, and by this time the soulspirit should be aroused to consciousness and be well and harmoniously formed. Each person should, by this time, be strong enough to face the inevitability of old age, decay and death, with equanimity. At this, the turning point of life, there should be an inward turning, a greater effort expended in seeking to understand the purpose and meaning of life. There should be a seeking after spirituality, after fulfillment.

The sole purpose of earthly existence is to realize and develop the latent powers in man. All the problems and struggles, all the spiritual difficulties and obscurities, all the paradoxes, the experiences of joy and sorrow, pleasure and pain, simply serve to awaken the soulspirit. Life is all-embracing, it includes both birth and death, growth and decline, the contrasts, the opposites, the active and the passive, the male and female.

It is the knowledge of his individuality, his separateness, his consciousness of self that raises man above the level of the dumb creatures, but this position cannot be maintained without effort; it will always be easier to fall than to rise, to go back instead of forward. The child knows little of the burdens imposed by life, but as it grows older, its light-heartedness becomes over-shadowed by the knowledge of duties and obligations which must be assumed. The hearts of our weaker brethren are so often filled with a longing to return to the state of protected childhood, that they are easily beguiled by parental faiths which treat them as children. They find it easy to cast their spiritual burdens at the feet of comforting priests, but such action is not only childishly irresponsible, it is also morally cowardly.

The spiritually irresponsible, who seek a comforting creed, are generally apathetic or selfish persons careless of their spiritual life and needs. My friends, the ultimate, the final thing we must depend upon is the soulspirit. Only that accompanies the individual into life eternal, but it is too late to come to this realization upon the deathbed. Those who have confidence in their future existence are the only true contented ones on Earth.

Man should never forget that his most important aspect is the soulspirit and he should not be neglectful of its needs and demands. He should not confuse it with the frail mortal body whose needs and demands, if given full rein, will override those of his greater self. Man must understand Life, he must understand its forces, which play about him. To understand it fully is to know one's own destiny, one's own heritage of struggle and one's own trials. Man must resolve on the inner search and follow its trail diligently.

When a man's life becomes a pattern of perfection reflecting the Perfection above, he is a container for the lifeforce and a channel for the down pouring Power which serves to uplift the whole of mankind. Becoming this is in fact the only real service man can render The Supreme Spirit.

Man's prime duty is to himself and even when he serves others he is serving his own ends, therefore he should not be hypocritical about his goodness. The good deeds of men are the molders of the soulspirit, as are also spirituality, freedom from agnosia, forbearance, love of Truth and justice, tranquility of the heart, simplicity, austerity, generosity and integrity.

Only in a well-balanced being can the lifeforce manifest harmoniously. Therefore, all excesses of joy and sadness, pleasure and melancholy, despair and exhilaration, are to be avoided. The rule must be oft-repeated: Moderation in all things and complete control over the self.

My friends, I have revealed to you the nature of the Inner Being who controls all things from within. Now it is up to you to use this knowledge to good effect. I have shown you the chords by which the spheres are held together and the same chords bind all things.

You ask me, "What is a good man?". He is one in whom goodness triumphs over evil, whose good qualities grow stronger daily, while his evil qualities weaken. In him, conceit, avarice, selfishness, anger, rashness and agnosia are diminishing each day, and he governs his life in accordance with the Good Books.

From The Kolbrin - Book of Lucious - Chapter 13

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Withstanding The Trials Of Life

"Hear my voice, those who miserably bewail their misfortunes. When troubles beset you and new trials confront you every day, know you are being tested. Life itself is a necklace of tests. Accept with fortitude whatever test life presents, saying in your heart when meeting each one, "However this may appear now, it is for my ultimate good".

Face up to every trial, for only the tests successfully undergone and the good deeds done have lasting value. To merely wile away the time, to take the easy path through life, turning aside at every obstacle, has no value whatsoever".

The Kolbrin: Book of the Silver Bough - The Teachings of Elidor
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Arrival In The Hall Of Judgement

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Awful is the Great Day of Judgement at its dawning in the Netherworld. The soul stands naked in the Hall of Judgement, nothing can now be hidden. Hypocrisy is no avail; to maintain goodness when the soul reveals its own repulsiveness is futile. To mumble empty ritual is foolishness. To call upon gods who have no existence is a waste of time.

In the Hall of Judgement the wrong-doer is judged. On that day and henceforth, his qualities shall form his food. His soul, soft as clay upon Earth, is hardened and set into shape according to its moulding. The Balances are adjusted.

One arrives. The Forty-Two Virtues are his assessors. Shall he dwell among Beauty as a godling or be given over as a captive to the Keeper of Horrors, to dwell among vile things under a merciful mantle of darkness?

One arrives. The twisted body, tormented on Earth, and the ugly face have gone, discarded at the Portal. He strides through the Hall in radiance, to pass into the Place of Everlasting Beauty.

One arrives. Now no earthly body shields the horror which is the true likeness of the evil-doer upon Earth. He runs from the Light which he cannot tolerate, and hides himself in the shadows near the Place of Terror. Soon he will be drawn to his compatible place among the Dismal Company.

One arrives. He has been upright and a just one. His failings and weaknesses were of little account. This upright man fears nothing, for he was welcomed among the Bright Ones and shall go unhampered among the Everlasting Lords.

One arrives. He trembles before the Unseen Judges, he is lost, he knows nothing, earthly knowledge and confidence are left behind. The Balance drops, he sees his soul and recognizes his true self, he rushes into merciful darkness. It enfolds him and dark arms embrace him, drawing him into the terrible gloom, into the Place of Dark Secret Horrors.

One arrives. She graced the court with beauty, men sang of her loveliness and grace. Now, as when a mantle is removed, all is discarded, it is the time of unveiling. Who can describe the lustful thoughts and secret unclean deeds which fashioned the horror coming through the Portal? There is a hush among the compassionate.

One arrives. On Earth she was pitied by the compassionate and scorned by the hard-hearted. There her lot was degradation and servitude, privation and sacrifice, few and meager were the gifts from life. Yet she triumphed. Now she comes forward surrounded by brilliance, even the Shining Ones are dazzled by her beauty.

One arrives. The twisted face and pain-wracked body of the cripple have been left behind. A kind and loving soul dwelt imprisoned within its confines. Now the relieved spirit steps forward into the Great Hall, unencumbered and free, glorious to behold.

One arrives. The splendid body which graced Earth remains there, an empty, decaying thing. The naked soul enters the Everlasting Halls. It is a deformed, misshapen thing fit only to dwell in the merciful gloom of the place with which it has compatible affinity.

One arrives. Neither goodness or wickedness bears down upon the scales. The balances remain straight. The soul departs to the twilight borderland between the Region of Light and the Region of Darkness.

O Great Lords of Eternity, who once were in the flesh, even as I, hear not the outpourings of an over-burdened and sorrowful heart. For who am I to presume to call upon the Great God of All? Who am not without wickedness and weak in spirit. I have filled my heart with knowledge of the Secret Writings but still I fear the Judgement. Therefore, Great Lords of Eternity, I call upon you who once walked the Earth, even as I, and who, therefore, understand the failings and weaknesses of men.

I am not weak in my standing with earthly things, but I am weak beside the Greater Beings. Will I, too, ever be worthy of the grandeur of the Eternal Mansions? O Great Beings, whose nature is beyond understanding, grant me just a spark of the Eternal Wisdom, that it might light my soul and kindle the flame of Immortal Life.

What is the destined fate of a man who knows the existence of things beyond his understanding? I see but I do not know, therefore I am afraid. Man can swim against the current towards the bank, but he needs a helping hand to pull him ashore when he is exhausted from the struggle.

This is the fate of man. He must strive for that which he cannot attain. He must believe in that which he cannot prove. He must seek that which he cannot find. He must travel a road without knowing his destination. Only thus, can the Purpose of Life be fulfilled.

Man may believe he knows his destiny, but he cannot be assured with certainty; in no other way can he fulfill it. In this way alone can the soul be properly awakened to flower with its full potential. This alone he may know: The purpose of all human life is a Goal so glorious it surpasses all earthly understanding.

We may visualize our individual goals as we will, it is ordained that we have this freedom. How close or how far we are from Reality is of little consequence; what is, is. He who seeks a non-existent destination will, nevertheless, get somewhere. He who seeks not at all will get nowhere. Earthly life will fulfill itself without attainment.

From "The Book of the Scrolls: Chapter 13 - The Scroll of Ramkat" -- The Kolbrin

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Upon physical death, the material body is discarded, the life within withdraws with the man's remaining soul vehicles. Alive as ever, the man now travels to realms beyond the veil. These realms are invisible and unseen to most while in the body. Upon transition, the eyes of the astral-etheric body are opened.

Each soul that passes over is subject to a Great Day of Judgement, for it must be determined where the new arrival will spend his next eternity. How is this judgement carried out? What is the criteria? Who stands as Judge?

It is the overall vibrational quality of the soul that is examined. The essence of all thinking, willing and acting while in the earth-sphere is collected and retained within the mortal soul of the man. It is this record that man carries with him when he crosses over. At that point, the earthly charade is over. The soul stands naked in the Great Hall. Those things that were easily hidden from the physical eyes of men are exposed here for all to see. Pending the outcome of the Weighing of the Heart, the soul will be dispatched to a region that vibrates in harmony with his vehicles. In essence and in truth, man judges himself.

As noted in the above extract, those who were apparently "nothing" on Earth may, depending upon the life led, appear in radiance before the scales. Those who were beautiful, wealthy, brilliant or celebrated on Earth will find that no one cares a whit about those things once they have crossed the Portal into the Great Hall. All things earthly are left behind. The man is left with only the fruitage of his actions.

This is why every thought, desire and action is vitally important to the future of the personality. When the earthly life meets its lawful end, we remain alive. Our consciousness is able to perceive the reflection-sphere that was veiled from us while in the physical. It is then that many will say, "Wait! Let me do it over again! I didn't know!". But it will be too late.

Those who manage to Seek in the right direction and manage to locate the Pearl of Great Price, the Gnosis, will not have to stand in judgement in the Great Hall. The vibration of their soul-vehicles will attract it to a region of safety that is not a part of the reflection-sphere: Shamballa, the Eternal Oasis.

Live consciously. Seek unceasingly. Everything we do on Earth, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant, has the aim of trying to help us find our way to Shamballa. Do not wait until you cross over to understand this. Understand it now.

~ g
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