COMPATIBILITY

    Compatibility with others begins with ourselves. Harmonious relationships grow out of inner harmonies which are created from our willingness to approach challenges in this area of our lives as opportunities for personal growth.We are almost always required to change both our perception of self and our perception of the other in order to resolve difficulties in our relationship. This is a gradual process involving fundamental attitudes and life patterns, our most cherished realities. As we learn to attune with the Inner Self, we learn to see more clearly and to stabilize our emotions. The task is not easy, but is well worth the effort. let us begin with a period of meditation on a particular relationship you are currently involved in that is inharmonious in some way. First, it is important to search your own motives in the situation. Do you  truly want to create a more peaceful, harmonious relationship, or are you looking for a way to get even, to gain control, to manipulate? Are you avoiding the other person, resentful. combative, angry? Or, are you feeling powerless, defensive, inferior, helpless? The relationship will remain at an impasse until you let go of your old way of seeing and feeling. You must be willing to listen to the still, small voice within and accept the truth of what you know in your heart. This requires both honest self-examination, and then, the ability to forgive yourself and the other. Forgiveness allows us to learn from our mistakes, so the we can act with a renewed sense of responsibility and moral integrity to do what we can to help resolve the situation.

Second, it is important to assess the relationship on the basis of needs and expectations.We all have certain needs which are met within harmonious relationships,such as the need for companionship, for love given and received, for compassion, for recognition  and acceptance. we all know that when we live and work in harmony with others, we release creative energies to achieve greater goals than we are capable of alone. Relationships are jeopardized when we translate needs into unrealistic expectations. As adults, the two most common distortions are the result of expecting to be taken care of and/ or expecting one other person to be everything to us. Mutual trust, respect, and acceptance are best nurtured when we are willing to be responsible for our own needs; when we are willing  to be sensitive to the other person's needs; and when we are willing to risk vulnerability.

Often, we shut out all possibility for true, loving relationship because we allow fear to dominate our thoughts. feelings, and behavior. For example, imagine the other person in your mind's eye, and begin to talk to them. How are you assuming their response? Are either of you hurt, angry, defensive, fearful? Is there some way you can speak to them so that  they will respond in a more positive way?Or,so that you can face then more  compassionately ?Do either of you have unrealistic expectations of the other?  what would your life be without them ? How would their life be different without  you ? In what ways are your lives connected? What is the context of your relationship? Is there a particular issue that causes tensions between you? Can you visualize a solution that will ease the tension? Are you willing to negotiate resolution?

Explore the relationship in your mind's eyes from as many different perspective as possible. Be aware that your relationship grow and change as you do. The more objective you become (the more you free yourself from fear), the more insightful and creative your thoughts will become. Gradually, you will be able to replace fear with feelings of self-worth, love, and compassion. Finally, it is important to face your own loneliness. Only when we are willing to be alone, to commit ourselves to a relationship with  the master within, do we discover the capacity to love with a whole heart. Our sense of belonging to something larger than ourselves brings true emotional stability. Until we bring all our relationships into the context of our highest ideals, and dedicate our lives to the service of those ideals, we will not be effective in creating loving, harmonious relationships with others. Peace begins within each one of us and extends beyond us in an ever-expanding network of connections, dependent only on the strength of our commitment to spiritual realities.

SECRET SIGNS OF THE MYSTICS

There are sixteen signs by which mystical student and practitioners may be recognized. Those who have only a few of these signs are not student of a very high degree because true mystics have all of them.

1. Mystics are Patient.

The first and most important victory of Mystical student is the conquest of self. It is a victory over the "lion who has wounded bitterly a few of the best mystical student. The Lion cannot be overcome by a wild and thoughtless attack, but must be overcome by patient and strength. True mystic try to overcome enemies through kindness. They heap no curses but the fiery coals of love upon the head of others. They do not pursue their enemies with a sword or with rods, but let the flower grow with the corn, until both are ripe and are separated by Nature.

2. Mystics are Kind.

Mystics never appear dismal or melancholy or with a surly or sarcastic face. They treat everyone kindly and courteously and are always ready to help others. Although they are different from the majority of the other humans, they try to adapt themselves to the habit, forms, and needs of others as far as their dignity permits. They are,therefore, sociable and pleasant, and know how to converse with rich or pool alike. They carry themselves in a manner so as to win esteem among all classes of society.

3.Mystics Know No Envy.

True mystics are always satisfied with their lot and know that it is as they deserve. The advantages and riches which others enjoy trouble them not, because they always wish for the best. They know that they shall receive everything which they deserve, and it bothers them not if other humans have more than they. They do not expect any favors, but spend their benevolence and good will without any partiality. 

 4.Mystics Brag Not.

They know that the human is nothing but a tool in God's hand and that they cannot accomplish anything useful through their own will.To God they give all honor, They have no unbridled haste to accomplish a thing, but they wait until the Master who resides in them gives the order. They consider well the things they speak about and omit unholy words.

5.Mystics are not Idle.

By this they prove that there is something true in them that they are not as a bag blown up up with wind. Applause and censure leave them untouched and little do they feel sad if they are being contradicted and scorned.They live in their inner self and rejoice in the Beauty of their inner world, but they do not long to show their possessions or to brag about any spiritual gifts which they might have acquired. The greater their gifts, the greater their modesty, and the greater is their desire to obey the Masters Within. 

6. Mystics are not excessive.

They try at all times to fulfil their duty and to act according to the orders of the law.They are not swept away by external things  nor by ceremonies. The law is written in their hearts; consequently they master all thoughts and acts. Their dignity lies not in their outer appearance, but in their real self, which in comparison is like a root out of which spring all action. The inner Beauty of their inner self reflects upon their outer self and stamps all their deeds with its seal. The light of their inner self can be detected in their eyes by one who is experienced; it is the mirror of the "God Vision ' within.

7.Mystics are not ambitious.

Nothing retards the development and extension of the soul more than a narrow vision and selfish character. True Mystics always concern themselves more about the well-being of others than of their own. They have no secret or obstinate interest concerning protection or doing good. They seek to do good at all time and never miss an opportunity when it presents itself toward that cause.

8.Mystics are not excitable.

Mystics very often receive resistance from narrow-minded and short-sighted people;by slanderers they are sometimes insulted. Their motives are distorted. The ignorant judge them falsely. All such occurrences cannot excite the mind of true mystics, and as little can such disturb the Godly Harmony of their Soul because their Faith rests in the recognition and the Wisdom of Truth in them. The opposition of thousands of unknowing people will not deter them from actions of goodness and nobleness even if such action should result in the loss of their own fortune and life. Accustomed and capable to put their vision upon the Godly, they hang on to eternal Truth. Surrounded by sickly influences whose voices they hear, they are not  disturbed or influenced by the noise and alarm. They live in the company of noble beings who at one time were also human, but were transfigured and are out of the reach low and common minds.

9. Mystics do not think evil of others, 

Those who always think evil of others see only their apparent evil reflected in others. Mystics are always ready to accept all that which is recognized to be good. Suffering is the virtue through which mystics are exceptionally distinguished and recognized. If a matter appear ambiguous, they will withhold their judgement of it until they have examined its nature; but until their judgment is cut off, they are inclined to have a favorable opinion rather than unfavorable. 

10.Mystic love Righteousness. 

They never seek to judge the mistakes of others or appear wise by the  censure of others' infirmities. They love not follies and gossip of humans and pay them no more attention than they would to the buzz of a fly or the leaps of a monkey. They find no pleasure in reproaching.The seek not the cunningness of the fox nor the hypocrisy of the crocodile nor the robber-like greed of the wolf; they are not happy by the stirring up of dirt. Their nobility of character lifts them to a sphere high above such vanities and absurdities. The love the company of those who love the truth and are surround by the Peace and Harmony of the spirit.

11. Mystics love the Truth.

Nothing is worse than falsity and slander. Ignorance is something of no existence but falsity is the substance of evil. Slanderers rejoice when they found something on which they can build lies so that such may grow to mountainous proportion. The opposite of this is the Truth. She is a beam of light out of the eternal  Well of Good. Therefore Mystics never seek any other light except the Light of Truth. This Light they enjoy in the company of all the good who have found fulfilment through their Godly Majesty, whether they live upon this earth or in a spirituals state.

12.Mystics know to be silent.

Those who are false love not the Truth. Whoever is foolish loves not Wisdom. Mystics prefer the company of those who know the value of Truth in preference to others who trample it underneath their feet.Mystics keep their wisdom locked in their heart, for in Silence lies power. Their Silence ends only when the king bids  them to speak; for then it is not they who speak but Truth speaks through them.

13. Mystics believe that which they know .

They believe in the immortality of the eternal law and that every cause has its effect. They know that the Truth cannot lie and that the promise made by the king will be fulfilled if they will not interfere. Therefore, they are unapproachable by fear of doubt and set absolute Faith upon the Godly Principle of Truth, which has come to life and realization in their heart.

14. Mystics are strong of Faith.

Spiritual Faith is the knowledge of the heart and wholly different from the intellectual speculation of the brain. Their Faith rests on the rock of immediate perception and cannot be shattered. They know that in everything, no matter of what evil appearance , there is within a good seed and the hope that in the course of development this seed will grow and will be changed into Good. 

15. Mystics cannot be subdued by grief.

They know that no Light is without a shadow, no evil without something good, and that strength grows through resistance only. After they have once recognized the presence of Godly Principle in all things, external changes have no great importance and deserve no great consideration. Their aim is to hold fast to their spiritual possession and not lose the crown which they won in the struggle of life. 

16. Mystics always remain member of a mystical order.

Names play no great role; the principle which projects over mystics is the Truth. And  they who know the Truth and make practical in their lives are members of the Order over whom rules the Truth. If all names were exchanged and all languages altered, the Truth would remain the same.

The Dawn Of Awareness

   Dawn has often been used to symbolize a period of time when everything is new. In the hours immediately before dawn, darkness prevails, and during darkness it is difficult for us to have clear perception, whether we are concerned with visual perception or with clarity of thought. Darkness seems to be the place where fears and superstitions find shelter. Most of our fears and superstitious belief are n some way connected with the dark; that is their origin seems to be related to darkness. However, the person who imagines conditions that cause him or her to fear, or to develop superstitious practices, will find that with the dawn, the basis for such practices and beliefs disappears. The objects that may have caused us concern cease to have such importance. With the dawn light seems to shed a degree of understanding on all that we perceive and cause us to reanalyze our environment and our own mental processes.

      In a certain mystic ritual are the words: "Darkness is the absence of light". This phase, which mystics who attend convocations in lodges and chapters throughout the world hear during the early part of the convocation ritual, has been heard so often by so many that is has probably ceased to have the meaning it really should have for each of us. When we say that darkness is the absence of light, we are literally setting forth a basic principle of mystical doctrine or belief; namely, there are no grounds for people's fears or superstitions because they are, as already pointed out, evolved in darkness, and darkness is a state that exists only by being the absence of something else. Darkness is not an actuality.

      By stating that darkness is the absence of light, we are specifically saying that darkness is a negative  quality. It only exists because something else is missing. This can be illustrated by imagining two windowless rooms that are connected by a door. The rooms are sealed, airtight and light tight. In one room a great bank of fluorescent lights illuminate the room to a level almost equal to that of day light. The other room has no source of illumination whatsoever. When the door is close, that room is in total darkness. Now if i stand at the door separating these two rooms and then open it, i know before i open the door, that one of two things will happen; either the light will enter the darkened room or the dark will enter lit room. We of course know what will happen. The light will enter the darkened room.The room, previously so dark that it was impossible to see, will take on the degree of illumination entering through the open doorway .There will be a small area of bright light near the door and a lower degree of illumination where the direct light does not reach .

     In other words, as stated in mystic rituals, darkness is the absence of light, and light can replace darkness. If light could be replaced by darkness, then darkness would be the dominating force. Since darkness is only an absence of light, it has no power in and of itself. It is not a force; it is an absence of  force. It is not even an existent entity . its function and power exists only to the extent that we permit it to exists if we give free reign to our imagination and permit fears and superstitions to develop in our consciousness when it is in darkness. Let us term for a moment from the actual consideration of light and dark as states of making it possible or not possible to use our visual sense, and think of light and darkness in terms of knowledge and ignorance; or illumination as opposed to complete lack of inspiration, illumination or moral concepts. Knowledge is light. That is why we sometimes refers to knowledge as illumination. Darkness represents ignorance and superstition. Implied in the concept of darkness is slavery, or being bound to ideas or things.

     The mystic philosophy advances the principle that we may gain illumination, literally and figuratively. We may gain it literally by working as a material entity within a material universe illuminated by the light of the sun and the artificial forms of illumination that we have evolved. We also gain illumination by becoming conscious of the knowledge that exists in the world through reading or being told of the experience of others. But this illumination is only secondary to the illumination which we have the potentially of achieving by becoming aware of the cosmic force of which we are part and which can function through our own entity, thereby illuminating us to the realization of ourselves as a segment of the Divine, as a part of the God-force itself.

    Thus, when we speak of throwing light on a problem, or upon any matter, we are literally directing the force of our consciousness toward problems or conditions about which we seek further information or a solution. Every dawn brings a new day, and every new bit of knowledge we perceive bring a new opportunity for further illumination of our own consciousness. The attainment of Cosmic Consciousness is the terminology we use to apply to the illumination that comes to us when we are able to relate our objective consciousness to the impulses coming to us through our intuitive faculties equal in strength to what we perceive through our five sense.

Close your eyes a moment and visualize your consciousness as being a circle. One one side of the circumference of the circle are five holes. One the other side, there is one hole. The five holes on one side represent the five physical sense faculties: seeing, hearing, tasting,smelling and feeling. Though those five channels the physical world enters our consciousness, and within our consciousness the physical world with a relative fair degree of adjustment to that world simply for the reason that we perceive it . In other words, we gain knowledge of it. But for people to adjust themselves to the physical world is not enough. We have a soul, and the soul that motivates or activates our life and consciousness is of the immaterial or cosmic world and so, on the other side of our imaginary circle is one opening. This opening , which we call intuition , represent the means by which we perceive the impressions that into our consciousness from the Cosmic.

People will always live in disharmony and imbalance, trying to cope with serious problems, until the balance their consciousness by perceiving the physical with their physical senses and the psychic world with their intuition. Proper balance is essential to illumination, because only through perceiving through all six of these channels can we have consciousness fully illumined. Therefore, the exercise that help us to develop this faculty of intuition are the exercises that lead us to Cosmic Consciousness. We are giving a number of simple exercise in mystic schools . One that we should use from time to time is visualizing a symbol found in ancient symbolism and which has been used by mystics school for centuries. This is the dot within a circle.When we visualize this symbol, we should direct our attention toward the dot as being representative of ourselves, while the circle represent both the physical and the psychic or divine universe. The circle in its entirety represents the whole cosmic scheme. We might think of the line constituting the circle's circumference as being the physical world and the space between this line and the dot as being the transcendent or Divine. Then we should visualize ourselves as the dot with this area, equidistant from physical impressions, and from the Divine, thus being able to absorb impressions from the physical world and from the Cosmic, thereby gaining illumination. 

Mansions Of The Soul

On of the most perplexing question we've grappled with at times is that of our survival (or not!) after death. We are so used to our privileged status of having life, consciousness and free will when we encounter death at a funeral or as a witness to a fatal accident, its mystery and finality impresses itself upon us with great force and urgency. For some people the experience is traumatic, and they are left emotionally scarred for months or even years to come . For other it is a sobering wake-up realization that we have no guarantee we will see tomorrow. But for others, and probably most of us who are mystics, it spurs us on to deep reflection on what may happen after death and whether or not we are, as religions say, truly immortal.


The Essentials;

As this article wrote primarily from a western spiritual perspective, i find it convenient to divide my attention between the Jewish and Christain religions, and addresses religious viewpoint in future article. Each religion has its ideas about the qualities of what is generally called the soul. In Judaism the Soul is believed to be dual in nature: on the one hand it is active, for "...breathed into his nostrils the breath of life..." (Genesis 2:7 ); on the other hand, it is the vital spirit with which God inspires His human wards. I believe that this led to the confusion responsible for the emergence of the spiritualist movement in the 19th century. Christians, including Spiritualist and the catholic Encyclopaedia,see the Soul as the "ultimate internal principle by which we think, feel and will, and by which our bodies are animated". They identify with the universal idea of the Soul as not only a ' vitalizing essence " but also as the human seat of consciousness and mind.

     The author compare these ideas to those of mystic students as expressed through mystical revelation. He reminds us that all mater, regardless of how inanimate it may appear to be, is quite fully living. The only, but big, difference is between traits of life as opposed to traits of consciousness that all beings possess in some form.

     Spirit energy permeates everything and maintains the expression of matter;but it is not the same as the Soul. The Soul is the Divine consciousness or infinite mind and it is what connects us with one another on earth and continues to link us till in the spiritual realm. This connectedness of everything through a common source, the divine consciousness, has immense ramifications which everybody reading this article should ponder deeply.

     The Soul consciousness added to the physical consciousness in the body of man  during incarnation here on earth gives man his character or personality'. This is a key point and one that is ultimately bound up with the subject of karma,commonly referred to by mystic students as the Law of Compensation. There are three reason to support reincarnation. First, the soul must  have earthly experiences; second, the human body must have spiritual knowledge and illumination; and third, the human personality must eventually be brought to a state of perfection.

PERSONALITY

What is character and what constitutes personality?  The character, composed of one's ethical and moral principles, is ephemeral and changes easily; the personality is subtly different from one's character. We tend to disguise our true personality by adopting different behavior in our character. Someone, whom we know is by profession a banker, may exhibit the characteristics of a banker by his mannerisms, his style of clothing, even his businesslike conversation. When we think of him, we think the word" banker'. But in the evening we may be surprised to find him engaged in a pastime we wouldn't have though him to be associated with, such as carpentry, music, amateur dramatics and so forth. Our personality is in fact drawn to those things in life with which we have a natural affinity, and is the result or function of our evolving soul personality.

    "'The tendency if the inner self is to build up a personality progressively towards a higher degree of perfection rather than towards a lower one,'This progressive development of the personality is inexorable associated with the divine consciousness. Consciousness is a factor here ; the voice of the inner self or personality challenging the conduct of the outer self. Both seem to put humans at the mercy of fate, thus relieved of all personality for their birth. From a theological point of view, we come up against the doctrine of predestination by which some people would reach everlasting death. This has given rise to the introduction of a character called Satan on whom to shift accountability for all human evils.

Karma and Personal Evolution

The Soul has a continuity if experience through successive incarnations that moulds and perfects the mind and memory of the soul personality, thereby giving it greater comprehension and power. It is free to choose how it wishes to handle the debits and credits it has acquired throughout its cycle of evolution. This brings into play the law of karma or compensation. We discover in reincarnation and karma the only rational and acceptable explanation and cause of for the seeming injustice of the inequalities of life,.

   Succinctly, inequalities in life are karma and are according adjusted. Each person is responsible for his or her own fate. We are an aggregation of our past personalities, drawing upon the lesson and experience of the past to' express them as the fundamental element of our present character, while at the same time learning, through lesson and experiences, new principle and new elements out of which we decorate and modify, shade, blemish or improve the beauty of our character,.

To be continue ....

Creed For Happiness

I shall begin each morning unafraid, and shall seek the wonderful gift that the day will bring to me. I shall be guided by intelligence rather than belief, and shall see truth and ignore no fact. I shall guide my thoughts into the highest realm, holding my cherished aspiration and sacred ideals uppermost in my mind.

Throughout the day i shall enjoy all the beauty of my surroundings. I shall glory in my association and aspire to the exaltation that comes with love of God and of humankind.

I shall forgive freely before forgiveness is asked. I shall harbor ill thought towards none. I shall fulfil every trust. I shall remain poised and serene i every trial, and face each emergency without fear.

I shall be friendly and courteous toward all. To me each day will one of kindly deeds and unselfish love. I shall give loyalty to all to whom loyalty is due. I shall be clean in body, action and thought. I shall revere my God and have the utmost respect for the religious convictions of my fellows.

To obtain the most from life i shall give the best that i can give. At all times will i enthrone service and eliminate the motive of gain. I shall perform each task cheerfully. I shall build not destroy.

And so will i come to the end of each day with the satisfaction brought by service, serenity,kindness and love. I shall go to rest with peace that comes from an untroubled mind and the memory of tasks well done.

APPEAL FOR SPIRITUALITY

      In my view, the crisis that is hitting many, if not all, countries, is not  just social, economic and financial one. These are the consequences of a crisis of civilization, in the wider sense of the term. Put another way, it is humanity as such that is crisis. But what kind of crisis? Although i answer part this question in some of my past write ups, i feel it is necessary to come back and elaborate on it .Mystical philosophy and ideals lead us to consider that it is a duty that involves all mystic as well as citizens. As such, and contrary to what may have been said about mystics, the importance that we attach to spirituality had never obscured the interest we have for materiality, not the least because the ultimate aim of our quest has always been to acquire life mastery.

         First, we think that humanity is in a spiritual crisis. In our view, this irrefutable fact has two principal cause: the major religions established several centuries ago no longer answer the existential questions that today's women and men ask themselves. Their doctrine as well as their morals are not longer adapted, which explains why they are increasingly being abandoned, thus creating a large spiritual vacuum that many people no longer even seek to fill. At the same time,in the so-called developed countries, society has become more and more materialistic in that it incites people to seek happiness through material possessions and excessive consumption. This trend has considerably increased the power of money and has perverted its use.It has gone from being a means, to becoming an end itself, a thing that one likes to posses a such, when it is nothing by itself.

         Does this mean that today's religions have no future? Before replying to that question, i wish to reiterate that i respect them all in all the noble things that the have to offer their followers to enable them to practice their faith daily. But, as i have said previously, consciences and mentalities have greatly evolved since they originated, and therefore their credos are outdated in the eyes f many people, especially the young. As they have not been able to , not known how to or not wished to update their teachings, i think  they are doomed to disappear in the medium term. As a result, all that will remain of them are the monuments created for them over the centuries, as well as the texts relating to them, including those that are considered to be sacred, such as the Bible, the Koran, the Upanishads, the Tripitaka, etc.

            As regarding the subject of money, it is not a question of resorting to caricature or demagogy. As a means of exchange, it is a necessity in order to live a live in society. We need it to obtain what is necessary for our material well-being and to satisfy the legitimate pleasure our existence can offer.But, over time, it has taken n too much importance, to a point where it conditions and governs practically all sectors of human activity. It has today acquired cult status, acting as a religion which probably has the greatest number of followers in the world.Unfortunately, every day at its alter we sacrifice the most elementary of ethical values (honesty,integrity, equity, solidarity etc.) so that it constitutes more than ever a vehicle of debasement.

          Do not think from the above that mystics are not in favor of the "vow of poverty",and that they believe that material wealth is incompatible with spirituality. Even since they appeared on Earth, humans have sought to improve their living conditions and be happy. This tendency lies within their deeper nature and it part of the process we call 'evolution". This does not mean that the aim of existence is to become rich, but it is neither natural nor normal to aspire to be poor. Beside, the fact of being materially f financially destitute does not make a person better in human terms and is not a criterion for spiritual elevation, no more, indeed, than being rich.

          It is my view that the happiness to which human beings aspire more or less consciously resides in equilibrium between the material and the spiritual, and not in the exclusion on one or the other. This is why any individual who consecrates himself to solely to spirituality, to the point of depriving  himself of the legitimate pleasures of life, cannot be happy. The same applies to anyone who makes material possessions the sole basis for his well-being. This explain why many people that we term as being well-off are deeply unhappy. It is because they suffer from an inner emptiness that ' all the gold in the world' would not fill. We are all familiar with the expression: ' money does not buy happiness", even if it can, indeed , be a contribution factor.

         If we assume that a human being is not simply a material body kept alive by a set of physico-chemical processes,  but that it also possesses a soul, we can easily understand that it also requires a certain form of nourishment: spirituality . But what is spirituality? In accordance with what i have said previously, it transcends religiosity. In other words, it is not limited to believing in God and following a religious credo, no matter how respectable this may be, Instead, it consists of seeking the deeper meaning of existence and gradually awakening the best within ourselves. But this search for meaning and improvement is cruelly lacking today, which explain the chaotic state the world is in and the despondency into which it has sunk over the last decades.

          The majority of people, from all countries and nations, feel they are in a dark tunnel that nobody can see they way out from, not even those who lead and govern them. Furthermore, they are not aware that the light they hope to see appearing can only come from themselves, and not from an external source. This brings us back to spirituality and the need to look towards something other than materiality for resolving the problem that humanity is confronted with.But you may be one of those people who do not accept the existence of the soul, and naturally you have every right to do so.If this is the case, allow me to ask you this following questions, and take the time to answer them yourself ; To what do you attribute what is commonly known as the "voice of conscience? How can your explain human aptitude for virtues such as benevolence, generosity, compassion and love? Do you truly think that the most beautiful works of art, whether it is paintings, sculpture, music or in another forms, originate only in the mind of those who created them ? How do you explain tat millions of men and women the world over have experienced clinical death, before coming back to life with the memory of what they "saw' and heard" in what we generally call " the beyond'? Do you really believe that if the existence of the soul was just an illusion the great thinkers and philosphers that humanity has known would have admitted it as being an obvious truth?

"  TO BE CONTINUE ........

EVERYTHING IS VIBRATORY

I accept that everything in the universe is vibratory,but how do vibrations relate to passive state like meditation?

      Vibrations are the basis of everything in the universe. This is not a mystical tenet,it is part and parcel of elementary physics. Everything we experience is caused by vibrations and without there would be nothing,literally a void in the most absolute sense. As Mystics,we are fully aware of this,but we also know that anything whatsoever that vibrates,sends out waves similar to the waves produced in a body of water when a stone is dropped into it.The waves spreed out in all directions from the source of disturbance, and in times will affect all things within proximity of the source of the vibrations.

      Objective consciousness, which seems so powerfully to be located in our physical brain,is analogous to the hand that causes a tuning fork to be struck, thereby sending out sound waves in all directions.It is also like the hand that flicks a switch which cause a modulated current to flow in the tuning device found in a radio or television transmitter. Those electromagnetic waves also spread out into space in all direction and are picked up by similarly constructed radio and television receivers.In a very real,physical sense then, there is a connection between transmitter and receiver, though separated only by times and space.

     If we had some sort of biological equivalent of television receiver circuitry in our brains,we would be able to pick up and see television programs directly,and without the need for a television receiver. That may seem a rather silly example,but it is close analogy to the operation of our psychic faculties.Through the exercise in the mystical classes, we learn to tune in to impressions far more subtle and refined than television signals, and we do this through a gradual process of awakening our psychic center/chakra, Overlain over those centres of information exchange are physical areas of the body that enable this information exchange to be perceived by the brain,and hence  brought into objection consciousness. The psychic centers act as regions of our being where specific frequency ranges are stepped up or stepped down, depending on whether we are sending or receiving information or vibrations. Meditation is indeed a passive process, but only at the summit of the experience.Building up to the experience,which may last on a few seconds ,or a few minutes at most,is a process of tuning out' all but the most subtle and high frequency vibrations passing through our five sense faculties,and 'tuning in' and amplifying to the greatest extent possible,impressions that we constantly receive from the Cosmic ,and which contain information vitally necessary for our spiritual growth. The first steps of this process involve learning to hold our tuners on one frequency,and this is the active stage of the meditation process.

   We also need to collect new data from frequency that we are not familiar with,in order to lay a foundation of experience for understanding and utilizing the guidance available to us from our inner self. As we gain more experience in controlling this process,our consciousness is slowly transformed,it becomes more attuned with the exceptionally high frequencies of the Cosmic ,and begins to apply meaning to the information which flows to it.It also becomes easier with practice to enter the ultimate stage of meditation where the internal chatter cease, all sense impressions are at the maintenance of life,and the mind is in the most receptive state possible to perceive the extremely rarefied and subtle vibration that carry the information we need most.

     On a purely practical level,the more we unselfishly serve the interests of others, the more we are able to transform our objective thoughts into thoughts in harmony with the Cosmic,and easier it becomes to enter a true state of meditation.The experience of service recall old ideas and impressions from the memory,allowing them to be re-examined in the light of higher consciousness and returned to the memory in a form compatible with high vibrations we have received during the brief ultimate stage of meditation.Through service,we find practical,down-to-earth ways of putting the new understanding we cumulatively gain through meditation into practice.

      The meditative state may seem passive by the standards of our normally active chatterbox minds .But at no point do we cease receiving and attempting to apply meaning to the Cosmic vibrations that constantly bombard us. We may be a supremely passive state,but we are still perceiving and analyzing very much, though in this case,information of very focused and concentrated form. Every thought.word and deed that is inharmonious with the creative,constructive force of the Cosmic must be ferreted out before we enter full mediation. But when at last the mind has been 'purified' through years of hard effort,we will be able to partially merge if for varying lengths of time with the Divine Mind.And from this we one day accomplish the crowning glory of life, the Mystical Marriage or Cosmic Consciousness.