The Master Within

Some people refer to the master within as "the still, small voice within." Although vaguely correct , technically it is not the same as the inner master, but is what has been termed the "voice of conscience." Conscience is partially the voice of the inner master but crucially , it is filtered by our cultural milieu and relates as well to things we have learnt from others in society, not all of them being universal in their scope or even that beneficial to us . We can see this by the fact that in different cultures, where morals and mores are different; conscience relates to the particular moral setting in which it grew. We are taught a pattern of right and wrong, not only in moral issues but also in lesser matters. In its basest state, conscience is a reminder of what we have been taught whenever we are on the verge of disregarding or violating the precepts we have been taught to respect . Conscience then , tells us usually only what we already know and it is only as we allow the voice of the inner master, the true voice of intuition,to take charge in our lives, that conscience merge with and become subsumed by the universal, spiritual values of our deepest selves. It is important therefore to always try and distinguish between conscience that has been drummed into us and conscience which comes from master within. The master within can reveal to us what we do not already know;the solution to a difficult situation, a new discovery , the meaning of a new experience or a new way of looking at ourselves. At times this insight may be received in words or as an idea without words;at other times,it comes as visual image. Often it is disguised in imagery or symbols that we have to interpret . The master within does nit have to be trained or developed,for it is already there. We do not have to train and develop ourselves to make use of it or to cultivate a working relationship with it ,but we do need to subsume our concept of what is right and wrong,namely our conscience,to the will of this inner master. This is an important part of mystical study . The master within is a part of the human psyche,related to the unconscious,subconscious or subliminal consciousness. This deep area of the psyche is independent of ordinary objective consciousness as it is the conscious manifestion of personality of the soul itself during the brief period if time that it is incarnated in a human body. This inner master operates by different rules from our everyday lives,and is unaffected by the social norms of the day. We do not manage any part whatsoever of its consciousness,but we do have a direct line of communication with it . And of greatest importance to us as aspiring mystic is that the master within is in close communication witg both our individual soul and with the soul force,i.e.the force of life which animate all living things . What we can get in objective consciousness is a sort of echo from the inner master. If our "echo chamber" is warped or cluttered,the echo will be distorted and maybe even silent. If the door is shut,we will not hear the echo at all. Often it is lost in the continual buzz and clatter that come through the objective sense. One skill to be learned is how to focus on a particular question. Another is to disconnect:to stop,look and listen for an answer.