The Bible:
Wonder Book of the Ages
by Corinne Heline
(Part 2)
The Disciple Simon Zelotes, the fiery zealot, beheld the work of
transmutation performed by the Christ and His circle of Initiates, and it was
this which changed the resentful patriot into the loving, tender Disciple who
was willing to receive and bear the ridicule, contempt and persecution of his
former friends and associates in order that he might give his life only in
love for his fellowmen.
Judas Iscariot
Judas is a symbol of the limitation and incompleteness which act as
a negative spur to progress. "Nature abhors a vacuum," and every human soul,
when it becomes sensitive to its spiritual emptiness, seeks for self-
fulfillment. All things work together for good, St. Paul said; the greatest
sinner may become the greatest saint, as Paul also demonstrated.
Judas represents the lower nature in man, which ever betrays the higher of
Christ within. This betrayal causes the great pain or Passion and must always
take place in the Garden of Agony. In the path of spiritual progression it is
a necessary prelude to the Crucifixion which brings liberation, freedom, and
attainment. This can be accomplishment only by evil or limitation (Judas)
destroying itself so that the divine nature may show forth. Matthias, a holy
man, is then chosen to replace him.
Legends state that the mother of Judas was warned in a dream that he was to
become the son of perdition. She therefore placed him in a chest or ark and
set it out to sea. There he was discovered by a king, who adopted the
beautiful boy and reared him with his own son; but Judas murdered his foster
brother and was compelled to flee. He became a page for Pontius Pilate and
later tried to follow the Christ.
Judas represents acquisitiveness, the love of the power which accrues from
the possession of material things. He was the Disciple who carried the money-
bags. Intense, passionate, his eyes filled with weird lights and his hair like
crimson flame, he was accused from childhood of having a devil. He is also
linked, in some accounts, with Mary Magdalene in bonds of sensual love, the
two representing the path of transmutation whereby the lower or mortal nature
is cast aside in favor of the new and Christed life.
John
A poet sings of the youth of the beloved Disciple John, "coming to manhood,
he was like a beautiful swift storm." "Sons of Thunder," the Master called
John and his brother James. That terrific inner intensity which led James to
be the first to lay down his life won for John the place of best-beloved of
the Master in the sense that his spiritual advancement brought him closest to
the Christ Spirit. From early childhood John's eagle eyes had visioned the
radiance of angels and his heart had listened to their glorious singing. In
the shadow of their wings the white flame of love was born within him, and
that love became power, and was later poured into hi Book, making it the most
treasured of the memorabilia of Christ's ministry on earth. Through this love
he was able to view the glory of those mansions which the Master has prepared
for those who love Him and make themselves worthy to inhabit them. It was in
the spirit of this love, which is such as the angels know, that he was able to
strike that keynote of ecstasy sounded in the injunction, "Love one another as
I have loved you," and in His promise, "If I be lifted up I draw all men unto
me."
It was in Ephesus that John prepared himself for the great work of healing
and teaching which he accomplished after the dispersion of the Disciples.
There he lived and there he taught the wondering multitudes of the inner
meaning of love as a power.
Angel bands were chanting hosannas when first he met his Lord, and these
hosannas were prolonged when his radiant spirit left the earth to rejoin his
beloved Master in the heaven worlds. The fragrance of his parting words to his
disciples still lingers like the breath of rare, exotic flowers: "Little
children, love ye one another."
James
James, the brother of John, was accounted the first of the Disciples until
the time of his martyrdom. He was among the first to be called and he was the
first to follow his Master to martyrdom.
Matthew IV:21,22
"And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James, the son of
Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending
their nets; and he called them. And they immediately left the ship and their
father, mending their nets; and he called them. And they immediately left the
ship and their father, and followed him.
The fisherman's net, in esoteric symbology, refers to the wisdom extracted
from the experiences of daily living, the fisherman being one who has awakened
spiritually to the meaning and purpose of physical existence. The New
Testament contains many references to the Disciples' work with nets. Sometimes
these are broken, and again they are being mended. They represent the
substance out of which the soul body, the etheric body of the New Age man is
fashioned.
James represents the supreme quality of hope which "springs eternal in the
human breast." It was by the power of hope that James was able to leave his
father despite his remonstrances, saying: "I must go, for Jesus has come."
Bathed in this white light of hope from the soul's high altar, James was able
to pass calmly through the bitter experience of persecution and martyrdom.
Before the power of Herod reached out to "kill James by the sword," the
Disciples had planted the seed of the new Christian faith in the land. Mystic
legends aver that after the martyrdom of James the other Disciples had placed
his body in a boat which was propelled by angels until it reached the coast of
Spain, and there a great rock opened of its own accord to receive it—a
reference to the truths of Initiation and the new white stone of which he
taught. In this legend we have another facet of the Mystery of the Grail,
whose castle, built by men and angels, stood somewhere in the mountains of
Spain before it graced the altars of Glastonbury in the time of King Arthur
and his knights; but some say that it was in Britain first.
Jude
Jude means praise. This disciple represents, therefore, one of the most
important qualities to be developed by one who is seeking the inner light. All
true spiritual instruction emphasizes the need to cultivate the spirit of
praise. The law of praise is the law of increase; hence what we praise we
multiply. The more spiritually illumined one becomes, the more one is given to
the daily practice of praise. This is exemplified in the Book of Psalms. As
the Psalmist became increasingly attuned to the music of the spheres, the more
ardent became his songs of praise, until his very life resounded with the
starin: "Praise the Lord, oh my soul, and all that is within me praise His
Holy Name!"
Praise it is, then, that we associate with Jude, the cousin of Jesus and
son of that Mary, who was a sister of the Virgin and a co-worker in the
Mystery cult of the Essenes, the Community of the Elect.
Thomas
Thomas represents doubt and skepticism which arise inseparably from
intellectual training. Doubt and skepticism are two of the greatest deterrents
to the acquisition of first-hand knowledge by modern aspirants. The Master's
words to Thomas, "Be ye not faithless but believing," are still echoing
through the ethers. We need not expect to progress far on the Path until the
Thomas stage of development has been passed.
Thomas was on the very threshold of understanding, as for instance when he
witnessed the raising of Lazarus; but on the occasion of the Master's arrest
in Gethsemane he was overwhelmed by the old doubt and conflict, and at the
Crucifixion he fled. In his tortured mind he carried the memory of the broken
body and pierced side, but in his heart, like hidden music, he retained the
cadences of the divine prayer: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what
they do."
At the end of the long dreary week of the Master's Passion he returned to
Jerusalem, where already the ethers were vibrant with the joyous rhythms of
the Resurrection initiatory hymn: "I am the resurrection and the Life." Here
his dedication was complete. With the words, "My Lord and my God," a new
Thomas went forth into the world, his heart aflame and his lips touched with
that Light which is born from attunement with the love which is eternal.
In India there is a sect numbering several thousand members who call
themselves "St. Thomas Christians," testifying to this day to the great works
and miracles of the holy and illumined Disciple who founded their Order.
Matthew
The life story of Matthew is that of the publican and sinner who, through
finding Christ, became one of the most glorious of the saints and Apostles and
the writer of the Gospel which bears his name.
Matthew, the tax-gatherer, symbolizes acquisitiveness, possessiveness. This
quality he manifested first on the physical plane, but its transmuted
equivalent he later manifested to a corresponding virtue in the alchemy of
spiritual illumination. Through sorrow and suffering the quality of
acquisitiveness and possessiveness was lifted from one level to another, until
it became the power by which he was a collector, through experience, of
wisdom, its essence.
In his luxurious villa beside the blue waters of the Galilean lake, Matthew
celebrated his renunciation of the old life and his dedication to the new by
holding a great feast. This feast was attended by many publicans and sinners,
friends and companions of the old life, and was also graced and blessed by the
presence of the gracious Lord Himself. For this was in truth a spiritual feast
at which the attributes of the former unregenerated self were lifted up and
transformed by the presence and the power of the Christ.
The transformation of Matthew was effected through the glorious experience
accompanying the Master's Sermon on the Mount. Ever afterward his eyes were
lit with a strange mystery, and from his lips sounded the warmth and power of
the new words of Spirit and Life.
In contrast to his former luxurious mode of life, Matthew became a most
abstemious and ascetic person, until gradually there emanated from his face
and form that transcendent light and glory which was like unto the divine
radiance of the Master.
His great work centered largely in Ethiopia where he labored for
approximately twenty-three years. Matthew signifies the great purpose and
power of transmutation in human life.
Andrew
Andrew is the Disciple who represents humility and self-effacement; the
first to be chosen, yet never becoming one of the innermost circle. He was
content always to shine in the reflected glory of his younger brother, Peter.
Dreams and longing for the things of the spirit led him, in the early days,
to become one of the followers of John the Baptist; and so he was prepared for
a further and higher service under the Supreme Master. The Bible mystically
describes his preparation by saying that he was casting nets when Jesus came.
Andrew was one of those chosen by the Great Initiator to serve in the
miracle of the loaves and fishes. The purpose of this miracle was to teach the
Disciples how to manifest physical substance from a given nucleus, as well as
to demonstrate the fellowship of sharing.
After the great powers conferred on the Disciples at Pentecost, they
dispersed over the world in furtherance of the Great Work. Andrew journeyed
over all of the seven seas, and the mystic legends relate that he was the
first to give Scotland the new and blessed Word of Life. St. Andrew's Cross is
an X, symbol of sacrificial blood, drawn in fiery red:
Where tortured and martyred,
Fair flowering trees beheld him standing there,
With blossoms decked where he had shed his blood.
Throughout Masonic and esoteric Christian symbology we find it repeatedly
represented that where sacrificial blood has flowed a living memorial has
arisen in the form of a flowering tree. The bloody path drawn by the
staggering footsteps of Hiram Abiff, according to Masonic writers, describes
this X of St. Andrew's Cross, and the flowering tree sacred to his memory is
the Acacia. The symbol aptly illustrates the process of Initiation.
Peter
Peter, the uncertain, the vacillating, "the wave man who was later to
become the rock man, "is an example of one who achieved mastery over great
personal weakness and indecision; and his record shows him to have had more
failings and shortcomings than any of the other disciples. Yet he finally
succeeded to develop the transcendent spiritual attributes to which every true
disciple aspires.
Peter received his first discipline in the esoteric school of John the
Baptist. When the Christ found him, he was busily engaged in mending his nets.
He typifies action and service, and at last achieved to that high place
wherein he symbolizes faith—faith as a power, not merely an abstraction. It
is upon that new-found power of faith, that the Church of the New Age, or body
of the Initiate, is built.
When love, faith and hope become manifest as workable powers within the
consciousness of modern aspirants then they, too, will be able to accompany
the Christ in His greatest wonder-workings as did Peter, James and John, the
Disciples symbolizing these qualities.
Our greatest failures may become our stepping-stones to the greatest
unfoldment, as in the case of Peter. He could never forget his denial of the
Christ, and at his own execution he asked that he be crucified head downward,
as unworthy to die in the same manner as his Lord.
Peter's most treasured memory was his meeting with Master in that luminous
dawn sson after the Resurrection when once more he was permitted to renew and
rededicate his life, as a further reply to the Master who had asked Him:
"Lovest thou Me?"
Magnificently he fulfilled the Master's command to feed His sheep. Holy
legend has it that even his shadow, falling upon the sick, had power to heal;
yet we know that it was not his shadow which healed but the wonderful soul-
emanations of Christ-like love which did this, falling upon all who came near
him.
Peter's life was illumined in light and shadow, the darkness of conflict and
failing, of trials and weakness, yielding to intermittent shafts of glory
until at last he surrendered himself to death in the white radiance of a faith
which was truly divine. All that was weak and human was obliterated at the
last in one great burst of spirit fire which consumed the flesh. His life
illustrates, as perhaps no other does, the truth of the saying of a modern
seer: "There is no failure save in ceasing to try." More than any of the
Disciples, Peter is the apostle of the unceasing effort.
It is because of his many and varied experiences, and the wisdom and
understanding these brought him, that Peter is said to hold the keys of heaven
and hell. The student of inner things realizes that the real purpose of life
is not happiness but experience.
Nathaniel
Nathanael was the dreamer and mytic among the Twelve; "an Israelite in whom
there is no guile" were the words the Master used in describing him. He was
Nathanael, the son of Thalmai, and so he was called Bar-Thalmai, or
Bartholomew, his name being Nathanael Bar-Thalmai. His father was a tender of
vineyards, and it was amid the cool shadows and rich fragrance of his hillside
home that Nathanael dreamed his dreams, until for him the songs of birds were
intermingled with the chorusing of angel voices and the gleams of stars were
torch lights beckoning him from the stairways of heaven. Thus musing and
living in dreams that were scarcely less real to him than the lovely world
around him, this young Galahad of the spirit was prepared for the eternal
quest.
Philip, his friend, knowing Nathanael's deep longing for the coming of an
illumined one to guide him on his quest, burst in upon him one day in burning
eagerness and enthusiasm to announce that he had "found the Messiah."
Nathanael stands for purity. He had accomplished the great overcoming of
the lower man in preparation for the coming of the Great Teacher.
Throughout the Bible the fig symbolizes generation. "Whilst thou wast under
the fig tree I saw thee," said the Master in the first moment of greeting; and
he predicted: "Thou shalt see the gates of heaven and the angels of the Lord
ascending and descending," referring to the powers of Initiation which he
would later develop. Purity is the supreme requisite of Initiation and no true
spiritual power can be attained without it. Nathanael became one of the most
wonderful healers among the disciples, and it was for this reason that he was
stoned to death by the priests of the old religion, for they feared his power.
The healing forces are life forces, and purity such as Nathanael's, which
is the fruit of living the regenerated life, increases the healing forces a
thousandfold; for the personal powers are augmented by cosmic forces which
align themselves with the disciple's own universalized, because purified,
potencies.
Phillip
Phillip was the Disciple from Beth-Saida, which in Hebrew means a house of
nets. Esoterically it means to awaken or to infuse with spirituality. The life
story of Phillip contains the process or formula for spiritualizing the mind.
This is a long and arduous process, and Phillip was long in accepting the
divinity of the Lord. Many times during this process of spiritual awakening
the mind cries out in protest: "Show us the Father and it sufficeth us."
Difficult is the attainment whereby we learn to comprehend the Master's reply:
"Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father in Me?"
Phillip was the son of a Hebrew father and a Grecian mother. He became the
first evangelist to the Grecian world. His was the hand that opened the door
to Christianizing Europe; and so he has been well named the Hermes of Christ.
The greatest influence in his life, with the exception of the Master, was
his friendship for Nathanael. They constitute the inseparable two, the David
and Jonathan of the New Testament. They were inseparable in life and together
they faced martyrdom. Phillip brought Nathanael to Christ, and Nathanael saw
the passing of the luminous spirit of Phillip from the martyr's cross to his
reuniting on the inner planes with the Master.
Phillip had journeyed over the land, sharing the light of the great new
truths of the Messiah which he had so ardently espoused, and because of the
multitudes of his followers and the many wonderful healings he performed, he
was bound to the cross in front of the Temple and crucified. Strengthened by a
vision of the glorious Christ and by the earthly presence of his beloved
Nathanael, the radiant spirit of Phillip left its earthly tenement, winging
its way upward in the joy of those who remained faithful unto death.
James the Less
James and Jude were the sons of Mary, a sister of the virgin, and Cleophas.
Their childhood was spent in the same household with Jesus in an Essene
community, but it was not until that mystic interval between the Resurrection
and the Ascension that they accepted without reservation the evidence of His
divinity and mission.
James received from his mother the tidings of the Resurrection and declared
that he would neither eat nor drink until he had seen the risen Master. Soon
the Savior appeared before him saying, "Bring table and food and drink as
evidence of the new life."
James became one of the most devoutly believing of the Disciples, and until
his death was head of the new church in Jerusalem. So noble and fine was his
character that he was highly esteemed even by those who had no reverence for
the new Messianism, and it is believed that he may have been head of the
Essenes in Jerusalem before he became head of the new church.
Enemies of the new Christian sect inveighed the holy James to appear upon
the parapet of the Temple before the assembled multitude during Passover week,
on the plea that he should tell them something of the Master whom he so much
loved; and always eager to discourse upon this them he willingly complied. As
he spoke fervently of Jesus as the Messiah of God, the mob took up stones and
began to stone him; he fell to the terrace far below, where he died, bearing
no malice toward his persecutors, like his Master before him.
Thus his great spirit passed into the higher realms with the words of that
sublime prayer upon his lips: "Father forgive them, for they know not what
they do."
So greatly had this Master Essene been loved by the populace that panic and
horror swept over the city with the news of his death, and devout men
everywhere said that Jerusalem would suffer great sorrow because of this
crime. During this time, or soon after that the Roman armies came and
destroyed the city, and Jews as well as Christians said that it was the murder
of the saintly James which had brought this catastrophe as a punishment from
God.
Schools of Initiation, both ancient and modern, have graded the instruction
and disciplines required of aspirants into three major steps, and among the
early Christians these were known as Dedication, Purification and
Illumination; or Preparation, Purification and Perfection. These outline the
work of Probation, Discipleship and Initiation as known in modern schools.
Saint Paul, one of the most illustrious of the early Christians, has given
much information on the experiences that mark the progress of the aspirant on
the Path of Holiness. For Saint Paul it was the Road to Damascus that led to
the glorious summit of Illumination. It is rightly said that the Bible has an
allegorical significance; and so the Road to Damascus has come to mean the
Path of Light, because of Paul's initiatory unfoldment on that Road. Yet this
does not mean that the story of Paul is a myth or that it never happened as
described. It was a true story, and its truth is emblazoned upon it at every
point, but it may also be taken as a picture showing the experiences of
illumination as they come to every aspirant.
This is true of every human being. The life of the humblest may be taken in
its entirety and sublime mysteries deduced from its numerous events, from
birth to death. We understand how this can be when we realize that the life-
pattern exists in the heavens, and the life on earth is the shadow which is
cast in time and space by that divine pattern. Imperfect as the life may be,
the divine pattern may yet be inferred from the shape of the shadows.
The Road of Damascus was the beginning of the Path for Saul, who became
Paul. If anyone is skeptical of the fact that the Bible teaches the Truths of
Initiation and of the mysteries leading thereto, let him study carefully the
Three Journeys of Saint Paul as recorded in the Book of Acts and in his
Epistles in the New Testament. Then he will find new depth of meaning in
Paul's words: "There is milk for the babes and meat for the strong."
Truly it has been said that "Paul was one of the greatest voices that the
world has ever heard. For forty years after the Transfiguration, his life was
a sublime and terrible adventure."
His life was a mighty kaleidoscopic picture of stirring events. We see him
as Saul, guarding the cloaks of those who were stoning Stephen; his first
encounter with the disciple Peter; we observe his great illumination on the
road to Damascus; later, as Paul the Apostle, we see him stoned and scourged
at one time, worshiped as a god at another. We hear him pleading with the
Athenians on Mars Hill, and then rise with him on the wings of inspiration as
he sings his immortal song in which love takes precedence over faith and hope;
an ecstatic hymn that translates for us the songs of the angels, and is
charged with a beauty and power which assures it a place in the hearts of all
men for all time to come.
Later we follow Paul to the Sanhedrin. We see him casting the viper into
the fire, and finally, in the dim purple shadows of the great pine trees of
Rome, see his noble head laid beneath the headman's ax. Thus we view Paul, the
intrepid, the courageous, the victorious, whose life maxim, adopted hundreds
of years later by a great esoteric fraternity as the sesame into its Temple, was
contained in his words: "I desire nothing but Christ Jesus and Him crucified."
Each of the pictures in the life of Paul strikes a distinctive keynote and
marks a specific phase of development. A similar progression from soul-step to
soul-step characterizes the aspirant who attains to Paul's exalted status.
Saul, the persecutor of Stephen, bears little resemblance to Paul, the author
of the divinely inspired song of love, excepting only in the fervor of his
temperament. it was the change in character and consciousness that changed the
name of this eager, arduous spirit from Saul to Paul, for esoterically names
are the vibratory expression of the spiritual idea that they represent.
The Saul of Tarsus is far removed in consciousness from the Paul who penned
the final Epistle to Timothy—that Epistle which describes the high goal for
every modern disciple, his sons in spirit: "I have fought the good fight, I
have kept the faith, I have finished the course."
Paul placed mystic keys in each of his Epistles as an aid to all disciples
who enter upon the Way in search for a deeper understanding of the mystery of
life. Fourteen of the twenty-seven Books comprising the New Testament testify
to the work of the great evangelizer, and "every letter of Paul is a picture
of Paul." (Adolf Deissman). When arranged in their chronological order, the
thriteen Epistles of Paul may be classified in four groups:
Glory Light
Over Damascus
Saul was born in the city of Tarsus, province of Cilicia, during the most
stirring days of the Roman Empire. He was of the tribe of Benjamin (Cancer)
which always remained faithful to Judah (Leo). At approximately the same time
that Saul was born, angels proclaimed the birth of the Holy Child in
Bethlehem. The world was passing through a state of transition in preparation
for a New Dispensation, the coming of Christ Jesus. Saul, the youth, was
trained in accordance with the strictest Pharisaical tenets. His first visit
to Jerusalem was made at the age of thirteen, when he was sent there to study
with Gamaliel, the greatest of the doctors of the Law. Note his age, and
compare it with that of Jesus, who at the age of twelve taught in the Temple.
The years are those of adolescence, which on a higher plane of development
mark the awakening of the emotional soul. Loyal to the sect of the Pharisees,
disdainful and contemptuous of the teachings of the new cult of the Nazarenes,
he was outraged at their presumptuous claims on behalf of their Master and
determined to exterminate them as whatever cost. Such was the attitude
instilled into Saul of Tarsus by inheritance and precept, such was the
background of him who became Paul, the Christian, whose life, after
conversion, was dedicated to one purpose: "That they might all be filled with
the fullness of God."
Appointed by the Sanhedrin to prosecute those Jews who had become followers
of the Nadarines, Saul was traveling to Damascus to drive the heresy out of
the communities of Jews who were living there. He had almost completed his
journey, and was nearing the ancient city, when the event occurred which
changed him into another man and set his life upon a new and perilous course.
Acts IX:3-9
"And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined
round about him a light from heaven:
And he fell to earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, 'Saul, Saul why
persecutest thou me?'
And he said, 'Who art thou, Lord?' and the Lord said, 'I am Jesus whom thou
persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.'
And he, trembling and astonished, said, 'Lord, what wilt thou have me to
do?' And the Lord said unto him, 'Arise, go into the city, and it shall be
told thee what thou must do.'
And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but
seeing no man.
And Saul arose from the earth; and though his eyes were opened, he saw no
man; but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. And he was
three days without sight, and neither did eat or drink.
It is of the utmost significance that this event took place in the auric
environment of the city of Damascus. Even at that time Damascus was one of the
world's oldest continuously living cities, a city which had never known death.
Many great and powerful and beautiful cities flourished in antiquity. Damascus
outlived them all.
Eastward of Damascus, in the wilderness, there were mystic communities
where the Initiates communed with God within the heart and with the hosts
of heaven without, the rulers of the elements and the glorious and mighty
Angels and Archangels. Their hymns echoed the music of the spheres, and it is
said that one of their chants of the dawning light has come down to us in the
opening verses of John's Gospel. They were communities similar to that of the
Essenes of the Dead Sea in Palestine, and there was constant communication, a
journeying to and fro of member-saints, between them.
In the city of Damascus there was a community of householders, as the Book
of Acts intimates, such as had also been the background of the Holy Family at
Nazareth; and in their homes the sacred Mysteries were venerated, from before
the coming of Christ Jesus and in preparation for Him. To them Saul was led
and they watched over him during his three-day period of outer blindness
during which his inner or soul-Self was awakened.
Damascus is a lovely, mystic city which every aspirant approaches when
making the illumined contact with the Christ. Abram, like Saul, was moving
towards this particular city when preparing for the inner realization which so
altered him that his name was changed to Abraham even as Saul, after the great
downpouring of spiritual power, became Paul.
Saulos, a famous Jewish name, and Paulos, a Latin name of Greek origin and
form, represent the two natures of man, namely, the lower (carnal) and the
higher (spiritual). Saul of Tarsus, the intolerant, the revengeful, the
persecutor, came forth from his experience as Paul, the new man. The old Adam
in him died and the Christ within him was born. His ambition became humility;
his bigoted sectarianism was transformed into an all-embracing fellowship and
compassion. His intense zeal for the family of Israel was engulfed in love for
all mankind. His brilliant future was exchanged for a career uniting suffering
and renunciation, while honors and adulation were gladly exchanged for
scourging and imprisonment. He willingly renounced all that this world offered
in order that he might become even the least among the Apostles of the Christ,
and "if by all means he might save some."
In what manner was this complete transformation effected? In his work on
the life of Paul, Adolf Deissman is near to esoteric truth when he says that
Paul's religion is "Christ Mysticism" and that the journey to Damascus marked
for him the beginning of the indwelling Christ. Fro three days and three
nights Paul neither saw light with his eyes nor partook of food or drink.
During this mystic interval, his sight was lifted and his consciousness was
focussed upon the inner or spiritual plane. During this time his light was
not that of the physical world but of the higher or heavenly realms.
It was the illumination which his great and glorious vision brought to Paul
that led to his dedication of body and soul, without reservation or
hesitation, to the furtherance of his chosen work. It was to this stupendous
event that he referred when he said, "I was never disobedient to the heavenly
vision."
The Way to the
Light Within
Many attempt to walk the way that leads to the mystic city of Damascus, but
few succeed in entering its portals. The light from heaven is, first, the
flame of the awakened spirit within; this is that light that never fails to
attract the Teacher who comes to open the way for further instruction and
illumination.
The acquisition of first-hand knowledge concerning the life and conditions
of the superphysical worlds, and a contact with the Great Ones who guide the
destiny of mankind from these inner realms, and obedience to their instructors
are the necessary requirements for true spiritual Initiation. Such
illuminations are possible today, but a higher spiritual status than that of
the majority is essential, and few there are who can meet the requirements of
a clean diet, constructive and harmonious thinking, and the chaste, pure life.
These are fundamental and cannot be ignored or overpassed.
During the sublime interval of blindness to outer-world conditions, Paul
was enlightened concerning the real esoteric mission of Christ Jesus and the
ushering in of the new Christian Dispensation. After the years of
misunderstanding and persecution of the followers of the gentle Nazarene, the
lightning-flash of illumination stripped his soul clean, and he was privileged
to glimpse vistas reaching down the centuries. He saw the new heaven and the
new earth in which fellowship and brotherhood were a reality; a time which
Isaiah, another Initiate, had declared would come to pass, when men would beat
their swords into pruning hooks and their sabers into plowshares; when—in
words echoed by a later prophet—the knowledge of spiritual law (the Lord)
would cover the earth as waters cover the sea.
After his initiatory experience in the community at Damascus, Paul went
into the desert of "Arabia," as it is said, where he stayed for three years.
We understand by this that he went out into the wilderness known as the
Peraea, to some of which he has referred obscurely in his Epistles. He
undoubtedly made pilgrimage to the community of the Dead Sea also, and to
others elsewhere.
During his Arabian retirement Paul communed unceasingly with the Risen
Christ and with the Great Ones who direct and govern the evolution of mankind
in its advance toward emancipation. This was truly Paul's novitiate in God's
School, the School of the Universe and its divine Mysteries. He learned to
read in the great Book of God's Remembrance described by Enoch, which is
located in the etheric stratum of earth's aura, and in the still more
marvelous Book which is found in the higher heavens. These he saw and
understood the wondrous formula of Initiation which was enacted for the world
in the life of Christ Jesus, in his Death, Burial, Resurrection and Ascension.
In the same wondrous Book of God he read the future events pertaining to his
own life-term on earth.
Acts IX:22
"But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which
dwelt in Damascus, proving that this is very Christ."
Acts IX:15,16
"But the Lord said unto him, 'Go the ways for he is a chosen vessel unto
me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of
Israel; for I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my names'
sake.'"
Paul's experience in the superphysical realms for the three days and night
at Damascus left their impress in various ways on each of his Epistles, whose
letter spells immortality, and whose every page glows with the splendor of
life eternal. Each one of his Epistles contains both an inner and an outer
message. Within each of them he has placed milk for the babes and meat for the
strong man.
The Journeys of Paul
The principal work of Paul is divided into three phases or journeys. There
are always three steps leading to the final culmination of the Great Work, as
they are outlined in any school of Initiation. We have shown that these three
steps were anciently termed Preparation, Purification and Perfection; which
correspond to the modern steps of Probation, Discipleship, and Initiation.
Paul has veiled these steps in his description of the events of his three
journeys and the works he accomplished therein.
The first journey occupied two years, the second three years, and the
third, four years, which totals the number nine, again a mystic key referring
to the nine steps or degrees of Apprenticeship, Fellowcraft and Master, in
Masonry. In the life of the Supreme Initiator these steps are represented by
the Birth, the Baptism and the Transfiguration. After these experiences there
always follows the great works, or ministry, for others. The "trials," which
confront every neophyte upon the Path find historical correspondence in the
life of Paul as the trial before Felix, the trial before Festus and the trial
before Agrippa. It was the manner in which Paul passed these tests that gave
him the authority to declare: "There is laid up for me a crown of
righteousness, and not for me only, but unto to all them that love His
appearing."
It was during the work of the second journey that Paul began writing the
matchless Epistles, the first of which was sent to the church of Thessaly. The
love indicative of the close bond which exists between the spiritual teacher
and his pupils is expressed in the lines: "Ye are become very dear to us; ye
are our glory and our joy."
The Epistle to the Thessalonians contains the message of the Resurrection
to the New Life in all its inner meanings, namely: the ability to function
consciously apart from the physical body, which none other has described more
accurately than this great Christian Initiate.
The Way of Initiation he makes very plain.
I Thessalonians IV:13,17
"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which
are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in
the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the
Lord."
One who has acquired the ability to function in the
finer or etheric realms, knows the truth of the immortality of the spirit, the
continuity of life. Death he finds to be but a transition from one plane of
activity to another. It was this joyous realization which caused Paul to
declare: "O death, where is thy sting? O, grave, where is thy victory?" (I Cor: XV:55) No longer does one who has
reached this place have to say, "I believe," or "I think,"—he may
triumphantly proclaim with Paul, "I know, for I have seen." Then comes the
realization that "Death hath not touched it at all; dead though the house of
it seems."
This realization will bring to mankind one of the chief blessings that
await it in the new Etheric Age that lies before us.
Corinth, the city of frivolous and idle pleasures, signifies the subtle
temptations of the senses. The gay and dissolute life of this city revolved
around its beautiful Temple of Venus. Every sort of pleasure, both innocent
and evil, flourished there. In no other city was a center bearing the
influence of the new Christ Dispensation more needed.
Acts XVIII:9-11
"Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision. 'Be not afraid, but
speak, and hold not thy peaces for I am with thee, and no man shall set on
thee to hurt thee; for I have much people in this city.'
And he continued there a year a six months, teaching the word of God among
them."
The Epistles to the Corinthians are filled with inner, mystic meanings,
understandable in their full significance only by those who are following this
same way and striving for a similar attainment. The First Epistle to the
Corinthians teaches the neophyte to die daily in the subjugation of the body,
or the lower nature; for this is always the first and fundamental teaching
given by any school of true mysticism. The Second Epistle to the Corinthians
contains a deeper message, given only for those who have found transformation
through living the life.
II Corinthians V:17
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are
passed away; behold, all things are become new."
In the teachings given by the Thrice Great Hermes
there is a similar instruction to that of Paul in Corinthians XV, wherein he speaks of bodies
incorruptible, of natural bodies, and of celestial bodies. Hermes says,
in reference to this transformation: "For that we have a stream of earth and
water, of fire and of air flowing into us, which renovates our bodies and
keeps our tents together."
"Five times received I forty stripes save one." Here Paul is recounting,
for those who have eyes to see and ears to hear, the process and the number of
His Initiations. Forty save one equals 39, which numerically yields 3, and 3
times 3, or 9—the steps of attainment pertaining to the third journey, or
degrees of the Master. Again he is describing this same attainment of
Mastership when he says:
II Corinthians XII:2-4
"I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I
cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an
one caught up to the third heaven.
And I knew such a man (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot
tell: God knoweth;) How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard
unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter."
In the Epistles to the Galatians, perhaps the most deeply esoteric of all
the Epistles, Paul proclaims that he "confers not with flesh and blood."
Galatians I:17
"Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but
I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus."
These verses refer again to the inner plane Mystery Temple teaching and to
the work of the Illumined Ones who minister there. Paul tells us that these
teachings which were revealed to him could be given only privately to those
who were "of reputation," meaning thereby to those who were qualified to
receive them. This is but a restatement of the Master's injunction not to cast
pearls before swine. The Epistles to the Galatians closes with that most
mystic of Paul's utterances:
Galatians VI:17
"From henceforth let no man trouble me: for I bear in my body the Lord
Jesus."
These words do not refer to physical marks from beatings, stonings and
scourgings, but to certain marks of light, discernible only by spiritual
vision. Those bearing these marks are among the Christed Ones, the elect of
the Lord, who take their seats at the holy table in communion with the Savior.
The Epistle to the Romans was written near the close
of the third journey. The glorious confirmation of Paul's testing through the
three great labors, or journeys, was then nearing its close. Standing in the
white light of Mastership, he sounds the keynote of this high work in the
words: "Present your bodies in a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God." (Rom. XII:1)
Allen R. Brown, in his volume entitled "Paul the
Sower" which is a study of the purpose and meaning of the Epistle to the
Romans, comes very near the New Age Bible Interpretation when he says: "The
words, 'in Christ,' Paul uses over 150 times; these words do not refer to the
historical Jesus, but denote a continuing relationship with the Christ present
in the heart; Paul is not completing Christ's suffering (Colossians I:24), but is carrying out in his body his own Christ-sufferings."
All New Age Interpretation deals with the awakening of the Christed powers
within man himself. "Let the Christ be formed in you." This declaration of the
great Christian Initiate contains the solution to all the problems of the
universe and will, when fully understood and developed, usher in the New
Heaven and the New Earth. When Paul came to take his last journey, to meet his
final trial and to liberate his bright and glorious spirit in death, he was
completely absorbed in interesting the centurion (who, together with a band of
soldiers accompanied him to the Ostain Gate of Rome) in the work of the New
Christ Dispensation. To the last the thought uppermost in his mind was to
bring others into the service of the Christ.
Arriving at his destination, under the great shadowy pine trees, he asked
for a time of meditation and prayer. They who watched saw him assume the form
of a cross and, with arms outstretched, address in Hebrew some invisible
presence. That glorious Being, who had given His benediction to Paul's first
illumination, was present to bless him and speed him on his way as he laid
down his body in His name, in a dedication total and unswerving to the end. He
was ever faithful to his own words: "If we are to live in Christ, we must
forsake ourselves and die with Him."
The thyrsus-bearers are many, but the mystics are few.
Straight is the way and narrow is the gate, and few
there be that find it.
This is the Way to that mystic City of Damascus, with its spiritual
treasures. It is only for those who, with the great Paul, have learned "to die
in Christ."
Part III:
The Christ Mystery
in the Cosmos
Foreword
The Baptism heralded the beginning of the Lord Christ's earthly ministry
and the Crucifixion, the high point of His sacrificial mission. At the
Crucifixion, he who came as a mediator between God and man, and heaven and
earth, entered into the heart of the planet and became its indwelling Spirit.
Since then His ministry has continued both from within and without our
planetary body.
The heart of the earth is His planetary center. Each year His Spirit enters
therein with ever-increasing intensity and volume, thus making it easier for
this spiritual impulse to enter into and find a dwelling place in the heart of
man. This was the wonderful revelation that came to Saint Paul on the road to
Damascus, and that he later incorporated into instruction given to his
disciples.
Those who hold that the Christ as a personality never lived and that the
story of His life is but a symbolic rendering of the initiatory Path miss the
very crux of esoteric or mystic Christianity.
A thousand years with the Lord are but as a day. In the Second Creative
Day, as recorded in Genesis, and known in esotericism as the Sun Period,
Archangels were passing through a stage of development corresponding to our
present human evolution. However, their vehicles or bodies were not like ours
but were formed of no denser substance than that of the desire or astral
plane. (The next denser vehicle, the etheric body, did not come into being
until the next Creative Day, or Moon Period, nor the physical body until the
succeeding Day, our present Earth Period.) The Christ was and is at the very
head of the archangelic life wave, and it was in that aeonic past above
referred to as the Sun Period that He dedicated Himself to serve and to guide
the earth and all its progeny in their evolutionary development. Then aeons
more passed before our earth was ready to receive Him in its innermost center.
When the Sun was passing by precession through Aries, the sign of the Lamb,
the Christ came as the Good Shepherd to the sheep that had lost their way.
Preparations for His coming were begun when the Sun passed by precession
through Libra, the sign opposite Aries, approximately ten thousand years
earlier. Initiate Teachers were sent to different parts of the world, each
with a similar message, to make ready an inner circle of disciples for that
glorious event: the coming of the embodied Light of the Sun who was to be the
Light of the World.
When the Sun enters Libra at the time of the autumn
equinox the Christ glory touches the outer aura of the planet earth, and a
cosmic quickening occurs. Little by little during November and December the
Christ Spirit penetrates the planet's interior, layer by layer, until it
reaches its very heart at Christmas time. To higher vision the Christ Ray is
golden like the spiritual Sun whence it emanates, and it is truly this light
that illumines the Path of Holiness for the disciple who has sincerely and
earnestly entered upon the Quest at the period of the autumn equinox. At some
future winter solstice he will greet the Divine Light, new-born in the heart
of the earth, for the winter solstice is the time for the soul's dedication to
the Christ Way. Before he can achieve this goal the aspirant must learn the
cosmic lesson of Libra: "Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and
judgment, and equity; yea, every good path." (Proverbs 2:9) Knowing the real from the unreal, the true from the false, is the lesson taught by Libra at the autumn equinox.
The disciple on the Christ Path is given the one most important lesson of
all, a lesson which is basic to all subsequent endeavors: He learns that he
himself is a god in the making, made in his Father's image and likeness in his
true, essential selfhood; and he seeks to see himself, to know himself, as God
sees him and knows him. This is called establishing contact with the God
within. In this work the Hierarchy of Libra, the Lords of Individuality, are
divinely qualified to assist. They are more than teachers. They test and try
the soul, and the testings of the disciple at this point are for the purpose
of developing his powers of discrimination, a most important attribute to one
on the Path of Discipleship, when temptations take on the nature of the most
deceptive subtlety.
Treading the Path of Holiness as he follows the golden Christ Ray to the
heart of the earth the disciple uses the Scorpio period as a time of
transmutation. He then endeavors to sublimate evil into good, darkness into
light, negatives into positives, in every phase of his daily living. He
consecrates himself to the task of transmuting the base metal of his lower
nature into the pure gold of spirit. The physical laboratory wherein he
performs this "Great Work" is the central nervous system, especially the
spinal cord and the brain, which, automatically, are therefore sometimes
referred to as the Path of Discipleship.
When the fire of the spirit is first awakened in the disciple, it is felf
first at the base of the spine. As the spirit fire ascends it unites with a
corresponding downpouring fire from above, the two gradually increasing in
volume and strength until the entire body is filled with light. he thus
attains to an illumination that is visible to those possessing inner vision.
It is then, for the first time, that his lower nature is literally consumed in
celestial fire and he himself becomes a torch, so that he is able to walk in
his own light upon the Path of Light laid down by the Christ to the interior
of the the earth, where the Christ Splendor abides in fullness. The greater
his sincerity, the more ardent his devotion, the more intense his application,
the farther along the Path he will be with each return of the Holy Season,
until at last he will be declared worthy to partake of the Feast of Light
consummated on Holy Night.
Biblically, as well as astrologically, Scorpio, the sign which the Sun
enters about the 20th of October, is said to have for the neophyte two
keynotes, the first being for the neophyte as follows: "Blessed are the pure
in heart for they shall see God." and second, for the illumined disciple, "I
will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the
world."
As the Sun passes through Sagittarius in the month of December the Christ
illumines the inner realms and forms a veritable spiritual garment for our
planet. Viewed with spiritual vision from outer space the earth then appears
like a ball of molten gold. The disciple who views this radiance from the
planet's surface walks in an ocean of golden light. All of the brightness and
color of Christmas observances are but a dim reflection of the light and glory
of the inner planetary realms when the Christ Glory is functioning therein. if
a disciple on the Path of Holiness has worked faithfully and effectively with
the forces of transmutation under the influence of Scorpio, he will now find
himself drawn into that great and glorious radiance.
Each event of the sacred Christmas celebrations symbolizes the development
of a specific spiritual power within the disciple himself. As he awakens these
powers, he experiences an increasing measure of at-one-ment with the cosmic
activities of the winter solstice time.
Sagittarius has been symbolized by a series of lighted lamps, and the
disciple who has been persistent in his spiritual labors now finds that these
lamps have been lighted within his own aura, and even within his very body-
temple. These are the lamps which light his pathway to the center of the
earth. There he stands in the presence of the Lord Christ, the Light of the
World. There he receives His blessing and hears Him intone the mantram which
has been used in every Temple of Initiation, ancient or modern: "Well done,
thou good and faithful servant...enter thou in to the joy of thy Lord."
The golden Christ Force, descending out of the fount of the Sun, touching
the outer atmosphere of the planet at the autumn equinox, as previously
observed, passes through the desire realm during November (Scorpio), the
etheric realm during December (Sagittarius), and into the earth's center at
the winter solstice (Capricorn).
In the hour that the Christ force penetrates the core of the earth, a deep
calm and stillness pervades nature. This is the Holy Night of all the year.
There follows a mighty upsurge of the life forces of the planet. This new
infusion of life into Nature has been beautifully described in the legends of
Holy Night in which it is said that even the animals and the plants make
obeisance to the Christ Child at the holy mystic midnight hour.
Year by year the Christ Glory penetrates the earth with its harmonizing,
healing powers. Year by year the earth is quickened with cosmic life. Little
by little hatred, enmity and conflict are being overcome, and little by little
the spirit of brotherhood makes headway. Eventually the ideal pictured by
Isaiah so long ago will become a reality: "man shall turn his sabers into
plowshares, and his swords into pruning hooks, and there shall be war no more,
and peace shall cover the earth as waters cover the sea."
The constellation Aquarius is the home of the Hierarchy of ministering
Angels, beloved of all holy legends of every faith. Their field of action is
the etheric realm, and since the angelic body is fashioned of ether, they
become visible even to persons who have only a little extended vision. Many
children had first-hand knowledge of angelic beings and nature spirits who,
like the Angels, inhabit the surrounding realms.
Angels are experts in working with etheric substance and life forces. Many
and varied are the beautiful flower patterns which they fashion in the blue
and gold of the higher ethers; and it is these patterns which the fairies
transmit to earth as blossoms to adorn the earth.
When the Sun is in Aquarius, the Christ Force centers His activities in the
etheric realm. He pours His love and blessings upon both Angels and the
disembodied souls of earth's humanity who are living and serving in these
realms. Here also is a portion of the heavenly homeland of children who have
died in childhood; and here they are taught and accompanied by Angels. Such
child-spirits do not live in the etheric realms at all times, for their real
place is in the higher regions of the Soul World, or astral realm, but at
special times they are brought by their angelic instructors down into the
higher ethers where they can learn the joys of nature and the fairy folk.
Also in the etheric realm are found the initiatory Temples which, in
ancient times, also existed in physical form. As humanity lost the inner light
they were removed from our plane of manifestation and continued to exist
solely at the etheric level. Hence they have become today generally the
subject of legend and poetry. Now, however, the time is approaching for their
re-externalization. In the meantime, to the illumined disciple the etheric
Temples are accessible, and appear as substantial in their realm as physical
structures are on this plane.
One such Temple, the most beautiful of all to Christians, is located above
the city of Jerusalem. Closely associated with the work there conducted, and
in all similar inner-plane Temples, are the Angels. They are free to enter
such sanctuaries at will, and it is their joy to serve in the holy places
belonging to the children of earth.
It is said that a Guardian Angel hovers above the chair of each Knight who
sits at the Round Table in King Arthur's Temple. This is a legend, but
profound spiritual truths are concealed in legends, and especially in the
Grail legends of the Middle Ages. The Grail Temple is really a part of the
Christian Mystery School. The deeper meaning of spiritual legends is veiled by
poets and artists, who relate them to the manners and customs of the period in
which they first appear. There is no mystery in Christianity more profound
than that of the Holy Grail, for it belongs to the story of the Last Supper
and has reference to deep cosmic truths that Christ imparted to His disciples
at that time, and especially to John, the Beloved Disciple, who "rested upon
His bosom."
Through the ministry of the Hierarchies of Capricorn, the disciple learns
to minister as an Invisible Helper to persons still living in the physical
world. As the Path of Holiness passes through Aquarius the work is enlarged.
Here the disciple learns, under the guidance of Angels, to work with beings
who inhabit the inner realms.
The qualified disciple who has followed the Christ thus far is able now to
enter consciously into the etheric realms. There he observes the varied and
beautiful ministries performed by Angels for the benefit not only of humanity
but of all the kingdoms of earth. Many of Nature's secrets are revealed to him
then through the activities of the nature spirits or fairy folk. Thus he finds
himself in an enchanted world, a tenuous world, wherein fairy lore has its
origin; for the realm of the higher ethers is veritably fairyland. Many an
inspired writer or mystic has woven fantasies about the wonders of this
region. A delightful example is Maeterlinck's Blue Bird, which, though a child's
fantasy depicts truly the nature and characteristics of the etheric realm.
When the Sun passes through Aquarius, the Christ Glory is already rising up
out of the earth, preparatory to His Easter Liberation. During March, with the
Sun passing through Pisces, which is the sign of sorrow and suffering, the
Christian Church enters upon the Lenten sacrifices, and participation in the
Christ suffering on Golgotha. Pisces is the sign of Crucifixion, the sign of
the Messiah. The Crucifixion of the Cosmic Christ begins when the Sun is in
Libra at the autumn equinox, when the Glory descends into the "hades" of the
planet earth. The commemorative observances of the Christian world at Easter,
when the Sun turns upward toward the summer solstice, is not His Crucifixion
but His cosmic Resurrection. The earth planet is then aware of a certain void,
a spiritual emptiness, as the Cosmic Glory departs. This is the source of the
mingling of sadness and joy in the Eastertide of the spring equinox.
As a disciple travels the path iof holiness that leads into the spiritual
realms, the experiences encountered become ever more wonderful and
transformed. At these supernal levels of existence there is no veil separating
those living on earth from those inhabiting the inner planes of light. From
the superphysical world here too may be witnessed and understood the actions
of human souls during the period between death on the physical plane and
rebirth into incarnation, together with those of Angels and the yet higher
kingdoms of light. Here too, it is that one cane observe the workings of
nature spirits and note how their activities underlie what science refers to
as the laws of nature. Here on every Easter morning, amid triumphant hosannas
of Angels and Archangels, the Christ, following His release from the annual
incarnation in the earth, appears in radiant glory. In the Temple of the
Christian Mysteries the glorious Easter processional is formed around His
luminous presence, not as a mere spectacle but as a medium by which to
transmit a transcendent power upon all of those who have been found worthy to
be numbered among His sanctified company.
The mystic Christian commemorates Easter not only as an historical event
but as an annual spiritual occurrence. In the course of the solar year after
His descent into the heart of the earth at Christmas time He arises again with
ever recurring Eastertide to reascend to the throne of the Father into the
high heavens for restoration of His powers before again returning to the
physical sphere at the time of the Autumn Equinox.
It was at the time of His crucifixion that the Christ left the body of
Jesus, in which He had functioned for a three-year ministry among men, and
transferred His Spirit into the planetary body itself to henceforth be its
Regent. There is a profound significance in the words He spoke to His
Disciples after the Resurrection: "All power is given unto me in heaven and in
earth."
When the human race succumbed to the seduction of Lucifer spirits the
atomic rhythm of man's physical body was changed so the spinal spirit fire was
attuned to the Luciferic forces and received the impress of these fiery
Beings. It is the mission of the Christ to counteract this condition by
substituting His rhythm and impress for that of the Lucifers—for the Christ
also, as an Archangel is a Fire Being. When this has been accomplished, the
atomic vibration of man's body will make it immune to disease and death.
Individuals of the New Age bear within themselves the glorious image of the
Christ.
The Hierarchy of Aries contains an archetypal pattern of man as he was
created "in the image and likeness of God." This pattern will be increasingly
manifested in the New Age. The six constellations above the equator contain
these patterns in miniature, so to speak, and the Hierarchies of these
southern constellations work with mankind to bring these patterns to
fulfillment here on earth. For example, the Hierarchy of Aries holds this
perfect pattern of the new Christed man. Libra, the sign opposite Aries and
the home of the Lords of Individuality, steps down this cosmic pattern of
Aries and is aiding man in bringing about its manifestations.
Such is the knowledge which has motivated the great teachers of the world
to help mankind bring the divine pattern into manifestation on this plane. The
work is arduous. But down through the ages those brave souls who have been
strong enough to follow the Path of Holiness into spiritual realms have
returned aflame with what they beheld of a "new heaven and a new earth"
inhabited by a Christed humanity. They know, as the Christ knew, that "the
Word was God" indeed.
As the Sun passes through Taurus during the month of May, the Christ force
ascends higher and higher into earth's spiritual aura. The disciple who is
walking the Path of Holiness follows in the wake of the ascending Christ Light
and enters a sphere where he finds himself inwardly harmonized and
strengthened by the creative power of music. Celestial Beings who inhabit this
realm speak a musical language. Their every motion emanates music. They mold
and fashion all manner of forms through the medium of musical tones. In this
realm all growing things are nurtured by the power of music, while the various
flower colors are produced by variations in tone. Music is assuredly the
supreme creative power of this lofty realm.
The constellation of Taurus is the home of cosmic patterns for all that
exists on earth. These patterns are shadowed forth by its opposite sign,
Scorpio, home of the Lords of From. This Hierarchy teaches form building
throughout the physical plane; and from the constellation Taurus sounds forth
the mystery tone God used in creation, that creative Word by which "all things
were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made." This is the biblical keynote of Taurus.
The Lords of Taurus hold the cosmic pattern of a most wonderful organ
destined to become a part of the future human body. This new organ, resembling
a golden rose, will be located in the throat, and will be the center through
which the creative word will be projected by the New Age man. By its power
generation will become regeneration, and man will be able to mold a substance
into whatever he desires. In the realm where Taurean powers are most active an
illumined one can behold a vision of this perfection and meditate upon it. He
perceives the glorious development awaiting him in the future and realizes
literally the meaning of the Psalmist's words: "Thou hast made him a little
lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor."
When the Sun ascends toward its northernmost point in the sky in June it
transits the sign Gemini, the constellation that sets a dual impress upon the
human body-temple. It governs the dualities of the body: lungs, shoulders,
arms and hands in particular. It also holds the cosmic pattern of the
perfected androgyne in whom the masculine and feminine potencies are in
equilibrium. Such is the attainment of Initiates of the Greater Christ
Mysteries. This attainment brings immunity from disease and old age. And since
consciousness remains unbroken whether such be in or out of the flesh, death
as we know it is never experienced by them because their consciousness is
centered in immortality without interruption.
The archangelic life has reached the status where it functions in perfectly
polarized bodies. This is not true of the less evolved angelic and human
kingdoms. It is, therefore, possible for members of these kingdoms to descend
from their high estate into lower forms of expression. The fall of Angels is
recorded biblically in the account of the war in heaven, when Lucifer and his
followers were expelled therefrom, and the Fall of man occurred, according to
the Genesis account, when Adam and Eve (infant humanity) lost the Garden of
Eden. Redemption from these falls required a higher power than was available
to either of these life waves. It had to come from the Archangelic level. And
so it did. The Lord Christ, the most highly evolved of the Archangels, became
the teacher and redeemer of both the fallen Angels and humanity. This is one
of the most profound truths associated with the mystery of the Christos.
The pattern of the perfect androgyne was projected by the Hierarchy of
Gemini into its opposite sign, Sagittarius. The Hierarchy of Sagittarius
(Lords of Mind) gives this enlightening teaching to earth's most advanced
pioneers. After the coming of the Christ, further development of the human
mind passed from the guidance of Scorpio to that of Sagittarius. Considering
the wonders of the mind, its creative powers and its ability to encircle the
globe in an instant of time and to contemplate the vastness of cosmic space—
even though at present only a fraction of it is active, we get a faint glimpse
of the transcendent glory of the Sagittarian Hierarchy whose lowest vehicle,
corresponding to man's physical body, is composed of mental substance. It also
indicates the sublime powers awaiting man when he attains like development.
For an awakened soul, the supreme purpose of cultivating the mind is that
it shall become Christed. As yet this is the attainment of but few only. The
majority are steeped in the materialism of the concrete mind, which is focused
mainly on worldly pursuits and interests of the separate self. So long as such
concerns claim man's attention there will be a lack of spiritual perception
and scant realization of the realities pertaining to the inner world and
universal mind. Nor will there be any continuity of consciousness and but
little, if any, intimation of the experiences encountered in the spiritual
world during intervals between earthly lives. The result of consciousness so
veiled from spiritual realities is the materialism that conditions the world
today. This, however, is but a temporary phase of mankind's evolution. As
added light falls on the path of those who strive for holiness, realization of
spiritual realities will become clearer and stronger. The insistent impulse of
such aspirants to make themselves worthy to walk in the Way of Holiness will
bring more and more light.
The Sun in its annual transit through Cancer reaches the highest point of
its northern ascension at the time of the Summer Solstice. Its physical
radiation then attains to maximum in the northern hemisphere, so the days are
longest and nights shortest. It is the high noon of the year, and its keynote
is light.
Cancer is the foremost feminine sign of the heavens. In harmony with this
fact, the sign contains a small cluster of stars arranged to as to resemble a
manger. From the heart of Cancer well up the waters of eternal life, in which
are germinated seed-forms that animate all the kingdoms of earth. The Summer
solstice occurs when the Sun enters Cancer (June 21st) and is also attuned to
the principle of fecundity. It is in obedience to this active principle in
nature that seeds burst forth into a cycle of manifestation. Light, freedom,
joyousness are dominant qualities of the midsummer season. Accordingly many
people particularly in Europe, observe this time of year with music, dancing
and exuberant festivities.
The Hierarchy of Cancer is known biblically as the
Cherubim. It is the ministry of this Hierarchy to guard sacred places. They
hover above the Holy of Holies. Through initiatory processes an aspirant is
taught to build this Holy of Holies within Himself. The pot of golden manna
within the Ark of the Covenant is a symbol of man's own individual Grail Cup
and his own sacred life force. Humanity lost the Garden of Eden through misuse
of this life force, since which the Cherubim have guarded the gates of Eden
lest unregenerate humanity should find its way back prematurely. The Blessed
Virgin Mary and the Disciples are alleged to have communed with the Cherubim
after Pentecost, meaning that they had learned these sacred truths from this
divine Hierarchy.
As the Sun reaches its highest ascension the Christ Spirit ascends to the
very throne of the Father. His activity is then focused at the very highest
level of earth's planetary aura, where He brings added illumination and
renewed blessings to the celestial Beings who inhabit this realm; also to
souls who, in their spiritual progression between physical embodiments, have
risen to this high plane. In harmony with this, it is also at the summer
season that an illumined one who is following the Christ on the Path of
Holiness rises in consciousness to this realm to commune with its celestial
denizens and learn further about the nature forces. Here it is perceived how
the elementals of air and earth, the sylphs and gnomes, work in autumn and
winter with disintegrating and dying plant life. On this exalted plane one who
pursues the Path of Holiness stands before the actual mystery of life itself.
Only the pure in heart attain to this plane. Those whose hands are stained
with blood can never lift the veil of this holy place. He who seeks to
discover the secret of life will never find it until his hands and heart are
chaste and clean. Only to such will come the realization of the oneness of all
life.
These are truths that belong particularly to the Heirarchy of Cancer, and
they are not possible of direct transmission to the earthly plane. Therefore
they are passed by the Cherubim to the Hierarchy of Capricorn, the sign
opposite Cancer and home of the Archangels who, being of a lower hierarchical
rank than the Cherubim and thus closer in consciousness to humanity,
disseminate them to those of earth who are ready and willing to receive them.
Hence, it was at a time when the forces of Capricorn permeated the earth that
there descended into embodiment the Master Jesus, of the seed of David, who
became the bearer of the Christ.
It has been said that as the Sun transits the sign Cancer and Leo during
July and August the Christ ascends to the throne of the Father where He bathes
in the Father's transcendent glory. It is here that He renews and revitalizes
Himself, attracting higher and more spiritual forces for continuing His
earthly ministry when He returns to the realm of humanity at the Autumn
Equinox. During His sojourn in the high heavens the earth planet,
clairvoyantly observed, appears luminous with His radiations; and the observer
comes into a profound realization of the meaning of His statement that "All
power is given unto me in heaven and in earth."
When the Sun is thus transiting Cancer and Leo, an illumined one who treads
the Path of Holiness ascends to the highest spiritual realms of this planet
and enters into a deeper consciousness of transcendent power. He begins to
understand that love in its highest aspect is not passion or sentiment, but a
phase of divinity itself. It was with such power of love that Peter was
imbued. He himself referred to this power of love when he said to the lame man
beside the gate of the Temple Beautiful: "Silver and gold have I none, but
such as I have give I thee...arise and walk." Again, it was this same power
which so animated Paul that, despite all persecutions and imprisonment, he was
able to utter those sublime words: "Though I speak with the tongues of men and
angels and have not love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling
cymbal."
When an aspirant reaches this degree of spiritual attainment the Christ is
all in all to him. To serve as He served, and to love as He loved, becomes his
highest aspiration. The biblical keynote of Leo is sounded in the words "Love
is the fulfilling of the law."
While the Sun is in Leo the Christ spirit is refreshed and renewed by the
glories of the Father's kingdom. As the Lord Christ's highest attribute is
sacrificial in nature, when the Sun passes into Virgo, sign of service, a
cosmic urge moves Him to leave the realm of the Father and descend again to
Earth, which He contacts as the Sun passes into Libra.
The Path of Holiness, following the Christ Ray, also leaves the spiritual
region of Earth while the Sun passes through Virgo. Love being the keynote of
Leo and service through purity that of Virgo, one who walks that part of the
Path which traverses the higher vibratory planes of this sphere must have
evolved purity as a power within himself. The quality of such power is not
generally recognized, yet the Christ declared that only the pure in heart
shall see God. In this connection the lines of Tennyson in Sir Galahad are
descriptive. "My strength is as the strength of ten, because my heart is
pure."
This is the attribute that rendered Parsifal immune to the attack upon him
by the evil Klingsor. The spear of hate which the black knight hurled at
Parsifal was deflected from its course. In that same moment, and by the virtue
of this power, Parsifal made the sign of the cross and brought complete
collapse to Klingsor's castle of evil.
While Virgo holds the secret of the Immaculate Conception, it is through
its opposite sign, Pisces, that this gift was brought to earth and
demonstrated by the supreme feminine Master, Mary of Bethlehem. It was under
the Hierarchy of Sagittarius (Archangels) that Mary herself was immaculately
conceived; and it was under the spiritual guardianship of the Hierarchy of
Virgo that she was born into the physical world.
A candidate who is worthy to touch the supernal realm of Virgo finds
himself before the mystery of the Immaculate Conception and learns that this
divine gift was not bestowed upon one individual only, but that Mary and Jesus
were type patterns which humanity as a whole is destined to emulate. In this
celestial abode those who are spiritually enlightened hear Angels chanting of
the day when, in a new heaven and a new earth, the Immaculate Conception will
be the heritage of the entire race.
As previously stated, the Hierarchy of Taurus holds the cosmic pattern of
form; the Hierarchy of Cancer, that of life; the Hierarchy of Virgo, the power
by which life ensouls form. These three constellations, the Feminine Triangle
of the heavens, minister to all kingdoms of life on earth.
It should be noted that one who follows the path of holiness through the
six zodiacal signs above the equator has reached that high place of
illumination where he is found worthy to stand before the sublime mysteries of
the four Greater Initiations. The disciple who tread this Path as it is
outlined in the six signs below the equator is being prepared to receive the
work of the nine Lesser Mysteries.
The Bible is one of the great mystery books of all
times. Few there are who realize its infinite depths. Christ said of the
imperceptive multitudes: "Seeing, they may see and not perceive; hearing, they
may hear, and not understand." (Mark 4:12)
Of the many thousands of books that have been written about the life of
Christ there are not more than two or three which mention the profoundest
mystery concerning Him, namely, the Christ Mystery in the cosmos. Until our
own time it was not, perhaps, essential that this Mystery be taught openly.
Today we enter a Space Age, and it is the Cosmic Christ who will be the
central figure of the religion of the incoming Aquarian Age. We who are
privileged to begin here and now the study of those profound cosmic truths,
preparing ourselves to be the pioneers of the Age so soon to dawn, must accept
special responsibilities. These are the responsibilities of the New Age
Disciple who is taught by the Risen Christ, or His emissaries.
Therefore in tracing the Christ Path through the stars we shall endeavor at
the same time to trace the pattern of New Age discipleship, the "Awakened One"
who learns to walk in the same Path of Light in which the Christ walked,
showing the Way to those who shall come after Him.
The Christ Mystery is so sublime and so far-reaching in its import that it
transcends any human definition. So profound are its meanings that they can
never be plumbed nor expressed by mere words; they can be sensed only in the
silence of spiritual contemplation.
In The Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception, Max Heindel states that: "In the first
chapter of John this Great Being is called God. From the Supreme Being
emanates the Word, the Creative Fiat 'without whom was not anything made,' and
this Word is the alone-begotten Son, born of His Father (the Supreme Being)
before all worlds—but positively not Christ." Here Max Heindel is making a
distinction between the Cosmic Christ Jesus in His planetary and historical
aspects. "Grand and glorious as is Christ," he continues, "towering high above
mere human nature, He is not this Exalted Being. Truly, 'the Word was made
flesh,' but not in the limited sense of the flesh of one body, but the flesh
of all that is, in this and millions of other solar systems."
The Father channels the will principle; the Christ, the love-wisdom
principle; the Holy Spirit, the activity principle. The last literally infuses
forms with life. The Holy Spirit works with the life principle which is
present in all creation; and is the guardian of the sacred force, the creative
principle of God. Therefore, every living thing is under his guardianship. God
creates and Christ formulates, while Holy Spirit activates form. The
difference between the Christ of the Earth and the Cosmic Christ is best seen
by an illustration. Imagine a lamp in the center of a large hollow sphere of
polished metal. The lamp will send rays from itself to all points of the
sphere, and will refelct lamps in all different places. So the Cosmic Christ—
the highest initiate of the Sun period—sends out rays.
The sun of our planetary solar system is threefold. We can see the outside,
the physical sun. Behind that, or hiding in that, is the spiritual sun whence
comes the impulse of the Cosmic Christ Spirit. Outside the other two is
something we call Vulcan, not a planet, that can be seen only as a half globe.
In esotericism we say that is the body of the Father. When we had developed so
far that the Christ came here and incarnated on earth, then a ray of the
cosmic Christ came here and incarnated in the body of our Elder Brother Jesus.
After the sacrifice on Golgotha He drew Himself into the earth, and became its
Indwelling Planetary Spirit.
The Planetary Christ
The planetary Christ is a glorious Archangel, supreme among the Archangelic
Host. The Hierarchy of Capricorn is the home of the Archangels; but during the
period of His mission to this planet, Christ and His ministering Hosts make
their home in the spiritual sheath of the Sun—for each heavenly body has a
spiritual sheath extending far into space beyond its visible form. In the same
way every human being has a spiritual extension beyond his physical vehicle.
From the very beginning of civilization the most primitive religions paid
homage to this Great Being Who dwells in the Sun. High priests of Mystery
Temples taught their most advanced disciples the truth relative to this
glorious Sun Being, and they looked forward to a time when He would descend to
earth and become the world's Redeemer. Those who were clairvoyant could see
the Solar Lord to whom they paid homage to this great Being Who dwells in the
Sun, and then they knew that His human embodiment was imminent. From country
to country, from prophet to master, from master to teacher, from teacher to
disciple passed the glad tidings that the Blessed Lord, He who was to be the
Saviour of the world, was close to earth.
When we speak of a spiritual rising in inner space it is to be understood
that "upward" and "inward" are virtually synonymous; yet at the same time, to
the clairvoyant vision the Christ Glory does really have the appearance of
"rising" upward to the Sun from the surface of the earth; for as the Divine
Hermes of ancient Egypt said, "As it is above, so it is below."
The Path of Discipleship also follows from the outward to the inward, which
is also upward. Max Heindel likened this Path to a church steeple which
becomes narrower and steeper until there is nothing left to cling to but the
cross; a very apt analogy. The Christ said: "If any man will come after me,
let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me."
The cross of renunciation, symbolized in the Lenten and Eastertide, must be
accepted by every true disciple who endeavors to walk the Path of Holiness.
His soul body can never be built until he acquires mastery over himself, and
is willing to forgo the so-called pleasures of the sense world. The soul-
powers attained by self-conquest enable the illumined one to exchange the
cross for a crown.
It is said that the constellation Pisces will be the home of the human race
when all of its units have been perfected. Pisces is called the constellation
of the human race, as Aquarius is that of the Angels. Those who follow the
Christ to the ultimate high goal finish their cycles of mortal incarnation;
they are free from the wheel of birth and death. They "go no more out," and it
is then that they as spiritual beings, cluster among the stars of the
constellation Pisces, in a manner of speaking.
Their karmic debts are paid and all their earthly bonds are severed. Such
are known as the Compassionate Ones, the Elder Brothers of the race who no
longer need earth's lessons. They are free to pass into a glorious existence
within the constellation Pisces. However, these great ones may return at will,
and in obedience to the precept that he who loves most serves best, often they
give up the blissful opportunities of that divine plane in order to serve the
less advanced members of the human race who are still struggling in the toils
of their self-made karma. Humility, obedience and service are the keynotes of
their lives.
Such renunciation is illustrated in the life of Mary of Bethlehem who,
having learned all of earth's lessons and having been caught up to reign with
the Angels, returned to this planet to teach humanity one of heaven's supreme
mysteries, that of the Immaculate Conception. Knowing that she would be
misunderstood, persecuted and reviled, yet she persisted, so that she might be
to mankind an Exemplar so nearly divine that today, almost two thousand years
later, it is still barely comprehended by a few and remains entirely unknown
to the masses. Working under the law of service, she descended into mortality,
saying, "Let it be according to thy word." Such a high state of spiritual
attainment, built upon sacrifice, humility of spirit, and perfect
at-one-ment with the law of obedience, awaits perfected man.
The aspirant who reflects seriously upon the meaning of the twelve zodiacal
signs which comprise our immediate cosmos do well to correlate the Piscean
meditation with the experiences of the immortal Twelve during the season just
preceding Christ's annual "crucifixion." As Golgotha's pain and sorrow are
swallowed up in the golden glory of Easter morn, the disciple who has overcome
the personal self and who walks the Path of Holiness through Pisces to its
very end, will find that he has exchanged his cross for the golden glory of a
"wedding garment" in which to function, free and triumphant, with the Risen
Christ.
The history of mankind since Christ's Sacrifice on Golgotha may seem to
have improved little; but this age is the age of Pisces, which as we have said
is the sign of the balancing of the ledgers of karma. The debts which man owes
to man and nation owes to nation are now being liquidated, and as this Old Age
of Pisces disappears in time and the New Age of Aquarius takes its place,
world-wide harmony will be achieved, with a world government of nations,
dwelling in brotherhood and peace, for Aquarius is the sign of the Son of Man.
The physical drops of blood which fell upon the Mount at the Crucifixion
were not the true agents of earth's salvation. The fiery wings of light and
power, which are the Christ's Glory, striking in and through the planet are
the earth's forever Redeemer. The Archangelic Light is truly His blood, and it
is this which saves.
Now each year as the radiant Christ Ray ascends once more from the earth's
core, its passage upward is felt as a drawing force in Nature; and when it has
reached a certain height its forces are focused anew in the desire world of
the planet. The raging emotions of mankind are now the special field of His
ministration and at Eastertide mankind senses that a great tranquility is
pouring into his soul from some unknown source. By means of this power
intensifying year by year, mankind is slowly but surely becoming a Christ in
the mankind.
Chapter XII:
The Cycle of the Year
with Christ
The First Quarter
January — February —
March
The cosmic resurrection occurs in March, when the Christ Spirit is
liberated from the Earthly sphere and reenters the heavenly spheres. The
Hierarchies of both Aries and Pisces then join with the Angels and Archangels
in triumphant jubilation over this event. The rhythm of their comic hymn found
earthly transcription in Handel's Hallelujah Chorus. Pre-Christian ceremonials
celebrating the return of spring and the victory of light over darkness were
attuned to these same rhythms.
The Spring Equinox is one of the high points of the year for a disciple.
Its keynotes are the freedom and emancipation that leads to a larger life. Iyt
is also the time when the cosmic Christ is freed from the terrestrial fetters
that held Him in bondage during the winter months. Hence, it is the most
propitious time for an advanced disciple to break the bonds that bind him and
to enter the joyous freedom of the spirit.
The Church observes the ecclesiastical Feast of the Annunciation in March
when nature commemorates the cosmic Feast of the Annunciation, for there is an
intimate relationship between man and nature. Nature is God in manifestation.
Man is a god in the making. Therefore one reflects the other. The most sacred
rituals observed by man are in attunement with the seasonal transitions. Poets
sing in praise of the joyous spirit of spring, while nature's green-and-gold
splendor gives evidence that returning life forces are responding in triumph
to nature's resurrection impulse.
An advanced follower of the Path understands that the time has come to
merge the sorrow and tears of the personal life (Pisces) with the transforming
fires of Aries. As he accomplishes this he joins the mighty chorusing which is
echoed and re-echoed by Angels and Archangels: "The Christ is risen, for
Christ has now risen within me."
April — May — June
The ancient Persians termed the month of April as the month of Paradise,
and the early Christian fathers declared that it was during this season of
enchantment when the Sun entered Aries that God fashioned the planet Earth,
and all that dwells therein. April is generally considered a resurrection
month.
When the Lord Christ makes His ascension the inner realms take on the
appearance of a molten mass of shining gold. In the holy Grail legend, the
Knights are told that on Good Friday a dove descends from heaven to replenish
the water of life in the sacred Cup, and that they will be able to draw
spiritual nourishment therefrom throughout the following year. So it is that
the Risen Lord pours out His love and very Spirit to nourish every living
thing upon this earth plane. Were it not for this annual replenishment, fields
would be barren and the trees and vines would bear no fruit. In the light of
this fact it can be seen that the Lord Christ uttered a profound and literal
truth when He said to His Disciples at the Last Supper, "This (bread) is my
body which is given for you: ...This cup is the new testament in my blood,
which is shed for you."
One of the most beautiful feasts of the year is that of the Ascension,
occurring about the time the Sun passes from Taurus (May) into Gemini (June).
It is then that phalanx after phalanx of Celestial Beings kneel in adoration
in the Christ's exalted presence, and the very stars unite in a symphony
proclaiming His majesty and glory. During this holy feast His radiation
permeates the earth with an effulgence past all describing, making bright both
the physical and spiritual realms. As nature is in perfect accord with the up-
winging Christ currents during the forty days between the resurrection and the
ascension, the period is of such spiritual significance that it is an
auspicious time for a disciple to awaken within himself the powers of
clairvoyance, clairaudience and other gifts of the spirit belonging to true
discipleship.
During the month of June the Christ becomes a channel for radiations sent
forth by the Seraphim, the Hierarchy of Gemini. There the Christ contacts by
means of the Holy Spirit, the third aspect of the Trinity. One of the keynotes
of Gemini is activity; it is also a keynote of the Holy Spirit. By means of
this activity the Seraphim step down the mysteries of Holy Spirit to Gemini's
opposite sign, Sagittarius, the Lords of Mind. Here they await man's
development and illumination to the point where he is able to understand and
apply the powers iof Holy Spirit in his daily life. As yet humanity in general
is able to grasp but faintly the mysteries connected with the principle and
powers of this third aspect of the Trinity.
July — August — September
As the Sun enters Cancer in the month of July, the Lord Christ ascends to
His own home world, the World of Life Spirit, also designated as the Buddhic
Plane. This is the realm where unity and harmony reign supreme; also, the
sphere of consciousness that the early Christian disciples contacted on the
Day of Pentecost. This is to be the attainment of advanced humanity at the end
of the present Earth Period. Through the operation of the Cosmic Christ, it is
here that the Son or Word principle and the second aspect of the Trinity, our
Blessed Lord, contacts the Hierarchy of Cancer, the Cherubim. These celestial
Beings are guardians of all Holy places of heaven and earth; they hold the
great mystery of life itself. Under the guidance of the Lord Christ tjhis
sacred mystery is stepped down from Cancer to its opposite sign, Capricorn,
and given in charge to the Archangels. For this reason World Saviours who come
to earth proclaiming the mystery of the Holy Spirit are born under the sign of
Capricorn. The observance known ecclesiastically as the Feast of St. John, the
forerunner of the Christ, occurs during the Summer Solstice season.
In July the soul of earth is steeped in sheer ecstasy. Heaven bends low
while earth is lifted up. In the divine interchange of spiritual forces the
Mystic Marriage between heaven and earth is consummated. For a four-day
interval desire currents are stilled so the spiritual forces can become
increasingly operative. The earth is then being literally flooded with the
pure white light of spirit. The disciple that learns how to tune in with this
mighty inflow will receive an undreamed of accession of spiritual awareness.
As the Sun reaches the highest point in its northernmost ascension the
Christ likewise ascends into the spiritual realm described biblically as the
throne of the Father. This is known in Rosicrucian terminology as the World of
Divine Spirit, the abode of the God of this solar system. God is Love and God
is Light. Love and light are keynotes of the Hierarchy of Leo, the Lords of
flame (Love). Under the supervision of the Lords of Flame, and united with the
powers of the Father, the first aspect of the Trinity, the Lord Christ, works
with the supreme power of love, the stabilizing force of the earth. Here He
becomes the channel for that power whereby He rotates the earth on its axis
and revolves it in its orbit around the Sun. This love power is stepped down
by the Hierarchy of Leo to its opposite sign, Aquarius; hence, it will be the
power animating the new Aquarian Age.
In this season cosmic influences give greatest aid to the aspiring disciple
to make love the dominant motivating force of his life. It is the time for
embellishing his every word, thought and deed with this magic of the heart.
The thirteenth chapter of II Corinthians, one of the soul's greatest love
songs, is the perfect mantram for both meditation and emulation during the
period that the Sun is transiting the royal sign of Leo.
In September the Lord Christ turns from the glory of the highest heavens
and begins His descent toward physical realms. Throughout this month the
tender, yearning beauty of nature is like that of no other season, for the
Christ is brooding over the earth with the gentle sorrow He felt as He wept
over Jerusalem long ago. His tears were shed because He knew the long ages of
pain and suffering through which humanity must pass, in having chosen darkness
rather than light. His great heart grieved over the dark clouds that would
encompass Jerusalem, the very heart of the planet to which He had dedicated
Himself in service and upon which He was pouring out his great love.
September is another month of preparation for a disciple. One of the
keywords of Virgo is sacrifice. An earnest disciple, preparing himself by
means of sacrifice and self-renunciation to take part in the coming winter
feasts, meditates often upon the spiritual keynote of Virgo: "If any man
desires to be first, the same shall be last of all, and the servant of all."
October — November — December
When the Sun enters Libra, which heralds the coming
of October, the golden Christ force passes into earthly realms as this sublime
Being begins anew His annual sacrifice, an event termed the cosmic crucifixion. To it St. Paul referred in Romans 8:22 "For we know that the whole
creation groaneth and travaileth together until now." As this season of the
Autumn Equinox is a time for the disciple to renew his dedication to walk in
the way of the Lord despite any vicissitudes and hindrances that may beset his
path.
During November the Christ spirit permeates the desire realm of earth. This
is a propitious time for the disciple to work on the purification of his lower
nature and thereby be more able to aid the Great Ones in their work of
cleansing earth's astral envelope. A special effort is then to be made to
become a more efficient conscious server on both the outer and the inner
planes of life.
In the early stages of human development the Hierarchy of Scorpio, which
presides over the zodiacal month of November, assisted in awakening man's
indwelling ego, and in so doing launching him on the road of
individualization. During the present stage of human evolution a disciple
working under the jurisdiction of the Lords of Individuality (Libra) and the
Lords of From (Scorpio), is learning to translate assertiveness into humility
and to sacrifice the personal "I" for the impersonal "we"; in other words, to actually lives the ideal of the greatest good for the greatest number.
Advent Season extends through the month of December and is heralded as a
Feast of Light. The spiritual impulses of the season prepare mankind for the
downpouring of the heavenly forces accompanying the rebirth of the Cosmic
Christ into our earthly sphere. This period is followed by the Winter Solstice
season which extends from December 21st to the 24th and culminating on the day
following, the 25th, in Christmas, the day most deeply revered in all
Christendom. The festive observance of this holy season will never cease for
aspirants until the Christ shall have been born within our own souls. To the
degree that a disciple attains to this state will be the spiritual ecstasy
experienced at this time, and the joy of ever increasing participation in the
seasonal mingling of the earthly and the heavenly is felt at no other time of
the year.
End of
The Bible: Wonder Book
of the Ages
Reference: The Bible: Wonder Book of the Ages, by Corinne Heline
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