When Tannhauser emerged from the cave of Venus one of the first sounds
which greeted him was the chant of a band of pilgrims going to Rome to
obtain forgiveness for their sins, and this awakened within him an
overpowering sense of his own delinquency. Therefore he kneels and exclaims
in deep contrition:
"Almighty, praise I give to Thee,
I pray Thee mercy show to me.
By sense of sin I am oppressed,
The load too heavy far for me.
I have no peace, can find no rest
Till pardon I receive from Thee."
While he is thus dejected and feels himself accursed, doomed to roam
alone and unblessed through the world because of his unhallowed love for
Venus, the minstrels come upon him, and recognizing him, endeavor to persuade
him to accompany them to Wartburg, but as said before, it was the passionate
love of Elizabeth that drove him thence, and he feels that he dare not
approach her. As a last argument, Wolfram von Eschenbach tells Tannhauser
that Elizabeth loves him. Elizabeth has never been at the contests of song
since Tannhauser left, and Wolfram von Eschenbach, one of the purest and
most beautiful characters in medieval history, endeavors to secure the
happiness of Elizabeth by bringing Tannhauser back to her though he
himself loves her, and it breaks his own heart to do so. On hearing this,
passion fires Tannhauser's soul anew, and he sings:
"Ah, dost thou smile once more upon me!
Thou radiant world that I had lost!
O sun of heaven thou dost not shun me
By stormy clouds so long o'ercrossed.
"Tis May, sweet May. Its thousand carols tender,
Rejoicing set my sorrow free.
A ray of new, unwonted splendor
Illumes my soul, O joy 'tis she!"
On meeting Tannhauser at the castle, Elizabeth tells him:
"Now the world to me is darkened.
Repose and joy from me have flown.
Since fondly to thy lays I've hearkened,
The pangs of bliss and woe I've known;
And when this land thou hadst forsaken,
My peace of heart had also fled.
No minstrel could my joy awaken,
To me their lays seem sad and dead.
In slumber oft near broken-hearted,
Awake, each pang was oft recalled;
All joy has from my life departed.
Oh tell me why I am enthralled!"
To this Tannhauser replies:
"All praise to love for this sweet token!
Love touched my harp with magic sweet.
Love through my song to thee hath spoken
And captured, leaves me at thy feet."
Elizabeth then confesses:
"O blessed hour of meeting!
O blessed power of love!
At last I give thee greeting,
No longer wilt thou rove.
Now life anew awakens,
Within this heart of mine;
The cloud of sorrow breaketh.
The sun of joy doth shine."
Thus Elizabeth has inspired love in the hearts of two of the minstrels,
Wolfram and Tannhauser, but how different this love is will be seen from the
way each handles the theme in the contest of song, which follows in the second
act, where the Lord of Wartburg opens the contest with the following words:
"As oft in war times, death we braved,
And knightlike battled, honor to maintain,
So, minstrels, you have fought and virtue saved.
Upheld true faith with voice and harp's sweet strain.
Tune up again; another lay indite. Describe true love, that we may surely know;
And who so does most nobly this recite
The princess shall reward on him bestow."
In this last verse we gain a true understanding of the relative scope and
mission of knighthood and minstrelsy. It was the duty of knights to follow
war, to defend with the sword all who were in need thereof, to fight with a
strong arm the battle of the weak. In so far as a knight followed the code
of honor then prevailing, and defended the weak, keeping faith with friend
and foe, he learned the lessons of physical and, in a certain sense, of
moral courage, which are so necessary for the development of the soul. Anyone
who enters upon the path of spiritual attainment is also a knight of noble
birth, and it behooves him to realize that he must have the same virtues
which were required of knighthood, for upon the spiritual path there are
also dangers and places where physical courage is required. The Spirit, for
instance, cannot come to liberation without physical inconvenience.
Sickness usually attends soul growth to a greater or a less extent, and it
requires physical courage to endure the suffering incident to that
attainment, after which we all strive, and thus sacrifice the body for the
soul.
It was the mission of minstrelsy to foster this courage and to inculcate
the finer virtues also. All minstrels, therefore, had that poetical strain
which brings us in touch with the higher and finer things in Nature not
sensed by ordinary humanity; but more than that, many among the minstrels in
medieval times were Initiates themselves, or perhaps lay brothers.
Therefore their words were often found to be pearls of wisdom. They were
looked up to as teachers, as wise men, and were friends of the true nobility.
There were, of course, exceptions, but Tannhauser was not one of these,
however. We shall find that he was really a noble soul despite his faults,
and in fact we should remember that we are all Tannhausers before we become
Wolframs. We all respond to Tannhauser's definition of love before we grow
to Wolfram's spiritual conception as given at the contest.
Lots are drawn to see who shall begin the contest, and the name of
Wolfram appears on the slip first taken from the box. He therefore
commences as follows:
"Gazing around upon this fair assemblage
How does the heart expand to see the scene!
These gallant heroes, valiant, wise, and gentle,
As stately forests growing fresh and green,
And blooming by their side in sweet perfection,
I see a wreath of dames and maidens fair.
Their blended glories dazzle the beholder,
My song is mute before this vision rare.
I raise my eyes to one whose starry splendor
In this bright heaven with mild effulgence beams,
And gazing on that radiance, pure and tender
My heart is sunk in prayerful, holy dreams.
And lo, the source of all delight and power
Is then unto my listening soul revealed.
From whose unfathomed depths, all joy doth
shower
The tender balm through which all grief is healed.
Oh! never may I dim its limpid waters
Nor rashly trouble them with wild desires.
I'll worship thee, kneeling, with soul devoted. To live and die for thee my heart aspires.
I know not if these feeble words can render
What I have felt of love both true and tender."
At the end of Wolfram's song Tannhauser starts as if from a dream. He
rises and sings:
"I, too, drank from that well of pleasure;
Its waters, Wolfram, well I know;
Who that has life may dare ignore it?
Hear how its virtues I will show:
But I would not draw near its margin
Unless desire consumed my soul;
Then only would its wave refresh me,
My life and heart make new and whole.
O tide of joy, let me possess thee!
All fear and doubt before thee fly;
Let thy unfathomed raptures bless me!
For thee alone my heart beats high,
So that I own thy fiery splendor,
Let me with longing ever burn.
I tell thee, Wolfram, thus I render
What I have known of truest love.
Here we have the true description of the two extremes of love; that of
Wolfram being the love of soul for soul, Tannhauser's being the love of
sense. One is the love that seeks to give, the other demands possession
that it may receive. This is only the beginning of the contest, of which we
shall hear fully later, but these being the definitions first given by the
two chief exponents of love, it is well worth noting that Wolfram von
Eschenbach stands as the exponent of the new and the more beautiful love
which is to supersede the primeval conception.
Even to this day, unfortunately, the ancient idea is entertained that
possession is the signature of love. Those who believe in rebirths in
alternate sexes, should by this fact be sufficiently convinced that, as the
soul is bisexual and our bodies contain rudimentary organs belonging to the
opposite sex, so it is no more than proper and just that each human being
regardless of the polarity of the present garb, should have the same
privileges as the other.
During the contest the sublime and heavenly ideals of the companionship
of soul with soul, is sung by the majority of the minstrels, and at each
presentation there comes from Tannhauser a passionate retort defending the
sensual phase of love. At last, enraged at their seeming insipidity, which
he regards as sentimental nonsense, he cries, "Go to Venus. She will show
you love."
With this remark his guilty secret is out. It is taken by everyone to
mean that he has committed that which is the worst phase of the unpardonable
sin, namely, intercourse with an etheric entity; and feeling that he is
depraved beyond redemption, they rush at him sword in hand and would surely
have killed him had not Elizabeth interceded, pleading that he be not cut
off from life in his sins, but be given a chance to repent. Then a band of
pilgrims is heard in the distance and the minstrels agree that if he will go
and seek the pardon of the Holy See at Rome, they will spare his life.
When Elizabeth reveals the grief of her heart in her plea for Tannhauser,
he at last sees the enormity of his sins and is seized with an overwhelming
sense of his depravity. He, therefore, anxiously grasps the suggestion
given him, joins the band of pilgrims, and journeys toward Rome. Being a
strong soul, he does nothing by halves. His contrition is as sincere as his
sin was brazen. His whole being yearns to cleanse itself from impurity that
he may aspire to the higher and nobler love awakened in his breast by
Elizabeth.
The other pilgrims sang psalms of praise, but he scarcely dared to look
to Rome in the distance, saying, "God be merciful to me a sinner." While
they refreshed themselves and slept in hospices on the way, he made his bed
upon the snow. When they walked over the smooth road, he walked among
thorns, and when he came to Italy so that no even the fair scenes of that
land should give him joy, he blindfolded his eyes and thus journeyed toward
the Eternal City.
At last the morn came upon which he was to see the Holy Father, and hope
rose in this heart. During the entire day he stood patiently while
thousands of others passed by, the ecstasies of heaven on their
countenances, and received there the pardon they craved, going away with
lighter hearts, gladdened and ready to make a new start.
At last came his turn. He stood in that august presence and waited
patiently for the Holy Father's message, waiting and hoping for a kind word to
send him on his way rejoicing. Instead there came the thundered words, "If
you have associated with demons, then there is no forgiveness for you,
neither in heaven nor on Earth. Sooner will this dry staff which I hold in
my hand blossom, than that thy sins will be forgiven."
At this heartless announcement the last spark of hope died within
Tannhauser, and lust, a thing of blood, lifted its head. His love was
turned to hate, and blazing with anger he cursed everything in heaven and on
Earth, swearing that if he could not have true love, then he would return to
the cave and seek Venus anew, and telling his fellow pilgrims to keep back,
he leaves then and journeys back to his native home alone.
Meanwhile the prayers of Elizabeth, the pure and chaste virgin to whom
Tannhauser's love had gone out, unceasingly called for forgiveness for the
sinner. Hopefully she awaited the return of the pilgrims, but when at last
they arrived and Tannhauser was not among them, despair seized her, and
feeling that there was no other way she passed out of this phase of life, to
present personally her petition at the Throne of Grace before our Heavenly
Father. The funeral procession is met by the returning Tannhauser, who is
bowed with unspeakable grief at this sight.
Then another band of returning pilgrims arrive, telling of a great
miracle which has taken place at Rome. The staff of the Pope had budded to
signify that a sinner refused remission on Earth, had found pardon in
heaven.
Though the legend is clothed in medieval and Catholic phraseology, and
though we may discount the idea that any one man has power to forgive sin or
deny remission, it contains spiritual truths which are becoming more
pertinent with each passing year. It deals with the unpardonable sin: the
only sin that cannot be forgiven, but must be expiated. As you know, Jehovah
is the highest Initiate of the Moon Period, the ruler of the Angels, who
during this present Day of Manifestation work with our humanity through the
Moon. He is the author of generation and the prime factor in gestation, the
giver of offspring to man and to beast, using the lunar ray as his vehicle of
work during the times which are propitious to generation. Jehovah is a
jealous God, jealous of his prerogative, and, therefore, when man ate of the
tree of knowledge and took the matter of generation into his own hands, he
expelled him from paradise to wander in the wilderness of the world. There
was no forgiveness. He must expiate it in travail and in pain, reaping the
fruit of his transgression.
Before the Fall, humanity had not known either good or evil. They had
done what they were told, and nothing else. By taking matters into their
own hands, and by the pain and the sorrow which followed their
transgression, they learned the difference between good and evil: they
became capable of choice. They acquired prerogative. This is the great
privilege which more than compensates for the suffering and the sorrow man has
endured in expiation of that offense against the Law of Life, which
lies in performing the creative act when the stellar rays are unpropitious,
thus causing painful parturition, and a multitude of other diseases to which
humanity is heir today.
In this connection I may mention that the Moon is the ruler of the sign
Cancer, and that cancer, in its malignant form, admits of no cure, no matter
how many remedies science may bring forward from time to time.
Investigation of the lives of persons who suffer from this disease has proved
in every case that the one involved has been sensual in the extreme during
previous lives, though I am not prepared to say that this is a law, since
a sufficient number of investigations have not been made to establish it. It
is, nevertheless, significant that Jehovah, the Holy Spirit, rules
generative functions through the Moon, that the moon governs Cancer, and
that those who abuse the sex function in a very marked and bestial degree
are later afflicted with the disease called cancer: that that is incurable
and thus bears out the saying in the Bible that all things may be forgiven
save the sin against the Holy Spirit.
There is a mystic connection between the Cherubim with the flaming sword
at the Garden of Eden and the Cherubim with the open flower on the door of
Solomon's Temple: between the spear and the Grail cup: between Aaron's rod
that budded and the staff of the Pope which flowered and the death of the
chaste and pure Elizabeth, by whose intercession the stain was removed from
the soul of the erring Tannhauser. Neither can one who has never know the
awful torment of temptation realize the position of one who has fallen.
Christ, Himself, felt in the body of Jesus all the passion and all the
temptations to which we ourselves are subject, and it is stated that that
was for the purpose of making Him merciful unto us as a High Priest. That
He was tempted, proves that temptation is in itself not sin. It is the yielding that is sin; therefore, He was without sin. Whoever can thus be
tempted and withstand, is of course highly evolved; but let us remember that
none of the present humanity has yet arrived at that stage of perfection and
that we are better men and women for having sinned, and suffered in
consequence, until we have become awake to the important fact that the way of
the transgressor is hard, and have turned into the pathway of virtue,
whereon alone is found inward peace. Such men and women are on a much
higher stage of spiritual development than those who have lived lives of
purity because of a sheltered environment. This Christ emphasized when He
said that there shall be more rejoicing over one sinner who repents than over
the ninety-and-nine who need no repentance.
There is a very important distinction between innocence and virtue, and
what is more important still, is that we should realize the fallacy of the double standard of conduct which gives liberties to or rather condones them
in a man, while insisting that one misstep will ruin a woman for life.
Were I to choose a wife today, and later learn that her life had been
clouded by a mistake for which she had suffered, I should know that such a
one had learned to know sorrow, and had engendered compassion and
forbearance thereby, and had thus acquired qualities which would make her a
better and more sympathetic companion than one who stood "innocent" upon
the threshold of life, liable to fall a prey to the first temptation that
befell her.
In the prologue of Faust, God is represented as saying, concerning the
hero:
"With vision imperfect he serve me now,
But soon I'll lead him where more light appears;
When buds the sapling doth the gardener know,
That flow'r and fruit will grace its coming years."
This is the actual fact concerning all mankind. At the present time we
all serve God imperfectly because of our limited vision. We have not the
real, true perception of what is wanted and of how we should use the talents
wherewith we are now endowed. Nevertheless God, through the process of
evolution is constantly leading us into greater and greater light, and by
degrees we shall cease to be spiritually barren: We shall flower and bear
fruit. Thus we shall be able to serve God as we would and not as we do.
While the foregoing applies to all in general, it applies particularly to
those who stand in the limelight as teacher; for naturally, where the light
is the strongest, the shadows are also the deepest, and the imperfections of
those among us, who must take up the burden of teaching, are naturally more
marked on that account.
In the story of Tannhauser, the Pope shuts the door of hope in the face
of the penitent because the letter of the law requires it, but not thus is
God's mercy frustrated. The Pope's staff blooms to prove that the penitent
has been forgiven because of the sincere penitence whereby the evil has been
washed from the record made upon the seed atom. Thus by a higher law the
lower has been superseded.
There is in this legend of the Pope's staff, a similarity to the tale of
the Holy Grail and the spear; to the story of Aaron's rod which also
bloomed, and to the staff of Moses that brought the water of life forth from
the rock. All have an important bearing upon the problem of the spiritual
life of the Disciple who aims to follow the path to the higher life and
seeks, like Kundry, to undo the deeds of ill of former lives by a present
life of service to the higher self. The legend of the Grail distinguishes
between the Grail cup itself and the Cleansing Blood which it held.
The story is told of how Lucifer, when he strove with the Archangel
Michael over the body of Moses, lost the choicest gem in his crown. It was
dislodged in the struggle. This beautiful gem, comparable to none, was an
emerald named "Exilir." It was thrown into the abyss but was recovered by
the Angels and from that the chalice or Holy Grail was made which later was
used to hold the Cleansing Blood that flowed from the Savior's side when it
had been pierced by the centurion's spear. Let us first note the fact that
this jewel was an emerald: it was green, and green is a combination of blue
and yellow, and is, therefore, the complementary color of the third primary
color, red. In the Physical World red has the tendency to excite and
energize, whereas green has a cooling and a soothing effect, but the opposite
is true when we look at the matter from the viewpoint of the Desire
World. There the complementary color is active, and has the effect upon our
desires and emotions which we ascribe to the physical color. Thus the green
color of the gem lost by Lucifer shows the nature and effect thereof. This
stone is the antithesis of the Philosopher's Stone. It has the power to
attract passion and generate love of sex for sex, which is the vice opposite
to the chaste and pure love, symbolized by the apocalyptic white stone, which
latter is the love of soul for soul. As this effect of the complementary
colors is well know, though not consciously realized, we also speak of
jealousy, which is engendered by impure love, as the green eyed monster.
The Holy Grail finds its replica in the chalice or seed pod of the plant,
which is green. The creative fire slumbers within the seed pod. Likewise
the same phenomenon must become manifest within each one who enters upon the
quest of the Holy Grail. Will is the male quality of the soul; imagination
is the female. When will is the strongest attribute, the soul wears male
attire in a certain life, and in another, where the quality of imagination
is greater, the female garb is taken. Thus under the Law of Alternation
which prevails during the present age of the rainbow, the soul wears a
different garment in alternate lives, but whether the gender is feminine
or masculine, the organ of the opposite sex is present in an undeveloped
state. Thus man is now, and will be so long as the physical body endures, both
male and female.
In the hoary past, when his consciousness was focused in the spiritual
world, he was a perfect creative unit with both sex organs equally developed
as are many flowers today. He was then capable of generating a new body
when the old one was worn out, but he was not at that time aware to the same
degree as he is now of the fact that he had a body. Then some who were
pioneers — some who saw more clearly than others — told to their compeers the
astonishing story that man has a body. They were often met with the same
skepticism which is now shown to those who affirm that we have a soul.
Thus the symbolical story of Lucifer losing the green gem is the story of
how man ceased to know himself and began to know his wife; of how the Grail
was lost, and of how it may only be found through the cleansing of the
passion filled physical blood which was originally contained in that green
vessel.
At a propitious time of the year, but neither before nor after, the rays
emanating from the heavenly orbs pierce the planted seed and waken its
latent generative force into activity. Then a new plant springs out of the
ground to again beautify the Earth. Thus the act of generation is
accomplished in perfect harmony with the Law of Nature, and a thing of beauty
is generated to adorn the Earth. The result is different in humans since
the feminine quality of imagination was roused by Lucifer.
Now the generative act is performed regardless of the propitious solar
rays, and as a result sin and death entered the world. From that time the
spiritual light has waned, and we are now blind to heaven's glory.
In the hands of the divine leaders of mankind, once of them signified by
Aaron, the living rod was a vehicle of power. later the blooming rod dried
up and was laid away in the Ark, but we are not to conclude that there is no
redemption on that account, for as man was exiled from the heavenly state
when the green gem of passion and desire rolled from the crown of Lucifer,
who then led mankind through generation to degeneration; so also there is
the white stone, the Philosopher's Stone, the symbol of emancipation. By
using the power of generation for regeneration, we overcome death and sin.
It then endows us with immortality and leads us to Christ.
That is the message of the story of Tannhauser. Passion is poison.
Abuse of generation under the sway of Lucifer, has been the means of leading
us downward into the gloom of degeneration, but the same power turned into
the opposite direction and used for purposes of regeneration is capable of
lifting us out of the gloom and elevating us to a heavenly state, when we
have thus won the battle. Through passion the Spirit has been crystallized
into a body and only by chastity can the fetters be loosed, for heaven is the home of the virgin and only in so far as we elevate love from that of
sex for sex to the standard of soul for soul can we shatter the shackles
that bind us. Then, when we learn to make conception immaculate, saviors
will be born who will loose the fetters of sin and sorrow that now bind us.
In carrying out this ideal let us remember, however, that suppression of
the sexual desire is not celibacy; the mind must concur and we must
willingly abstain from impurity. This can only be done by what the mystic
calls "finding the woman within himself." (Of course for woman, it is to find
the man within herself.) When we have found that, we arrive at the point
where we can live the same pure life as the flower.
In this connection it may also be very illuminating to remember that the
"Dweller on the Threshold" which we must confront before we can enter the
superphysical worlds always has the appearance of a creature of the opposite
sex. Yet it seems to be ourselves. It should also be understood that the
more licentious or lustful we have been, the worse will be the appearance of
this monster, and Parsifal standing before Kundry, when his refusal of
compliance has turned her into a virago, is in fact at the very point where
the candidate finds himself face to face with the dweller, before the spear
is given into his hands.
Among the operas of Wagner there is, perhaps, none which is so
universally enjoyed by the large majority of people who see it, as
Lohengrin. This is probably because the story seems, on cursory examination,
to be very simple and beautiful. The music is of an unusually exquisite
character, which appeals to all in a manner which is not equalled by the
author's other operas founded upon myths such as Parsifal, the Ring of the
Niebelung, or even Tannhauser.
Although these last named productions affect people who hear them
powerfully for their spiritual good (whether they are aware of the fact or
not), it if nevertheless, a fact that they are not enjoyed by the
majority, particularly in America, where the spirit of mysticism is not so
strong as it is in Europe.
It is different with Lohengrin. Here there is a story of the time when
knighthood was in flower, and although there is an embellishment of magic in
the advent of Lohengrin and the swan in response to the prayer of Elsa, this
is only as a pretty poetical fancy without deeper meaning. In this myth is
revealed one of the supreme requirements of Initiation — faith.
Whoever has not this virtue will never attain; its possession covers a
multitude of shortcomings in other directions.
The plot is briefly as follows: The heir of the Duchy of Brabant has
disappeared. He is but a child, and the brother of Elsa, the heroine of the
play, who is accused in the opening scene by Ortrud and Telramund, her
enemies, of having done away with this young brother in order that she may
obtain possession of the principality. In consequence she has been summoned
before the royal court to defend herself against her accusers, but at the
opening scene not knight as yet has appeared to espouse her cause and slay
her traducers. Then there appears on the river a swan, upon which stands a
knight, who comes up to the place where court is being held. He jumps
ashore and offers to defend Elsa on condition that she marry him. To this
she readily agrees, for he is no stranger; she has often seen him in her
dreams and learned to love him. In the duel between the unknown knight and
Telramund, the latter is thrown, but his life is magnanimously spared by the
conqueror, who then claims Elsa as his bride. He had, however, made another
condition; namely, that she may never ask him who he is and whence he came.
As he appears so good and so noble, and as he has come in answer to her
prayer, she makes no objection to this condition either, and the couple
retire to the bridal chamber.
Although temporarily defeated, Ortrud and Telramund do not by any means
give up their conspiracy against Elsa, and their next move is to poison her
mind against her noble protector, so that she may send him away and then be
again at their mercy; for they hope, eventually, themselves to secure the
principality to which Elsa and her brother are the rightful heirs. With
this end in view both present themselves at Elsa's door and succeed in
getting a hearing. They profess to be exceedingly penitent for what they
have done, and very solicitous for the welfare of Elsa. It pains them very
much, they say, that she has been taken in by someone whose name she does not
even know, and who is so afraid that his identity be known that he has
forbidden her, on pain of his leaving her to ask him his name.
There must be something in his life of which he is ashamed, they argue,
which will not bear the light of day, else why should he wish to deny the
one to whom he is willing to link his whole life, knowledge of his identity
and antecedents?
By means of these arguments they arouse a doubt in Elsa's soul, and after
some conversation she goes in to Lohengrin, changed. he notices the
difference in her, and asks the cause. Finally she admits that she feels
uncertain about him and that she would like to know his name. Thereby she
has broken the condition which he has imposed upon her, and he tells her
that now, having expressed a doubt in him, it will be impossible for him to
remain. Neither tears nor protestations can change this resolve, so they go
together to the river where Lohengrin calls his trusty swan, and when that
appears he reveals his identity, saying, "I am Lohengrin, the son of
Parsifal." The swan which then comes, is changed and stands before them all
as the brother of Elsa. He then becomes her protector in place of the
departing Lohengrin.
As said, the story of Lohengrin contains one of the most important
lessons to be learned on the path of attainment. No one will ever attain
Initiation till that has been learned. In order that we may properly
grasp this point, let us first look at the symbol of the swan and see what is
behind it and why the symbol is used. Those who have seen the opera,
Parsifal, or who have read attentively the literature on the Grail, are
already acquainted with the fact that swans were the emblem worn by all the
Knights of the Grail.
In the opera, itself, two swans are mentioned as preparing a healing bath
for the suffering King Amfortas. Parsifal is represented as shooting one of
the these swans, and a great deal of sorrow is manifested by the Knights of
the Grail at this unwarranted cruelty.
The swan is capable of moving in several elements. It may fly i the air
with great swiftness; it also propels itself majestically upon the water;
and by means of its long neck it may even explore the depths and investigate
whatever may be found upon the bottom of a not too deep pond. It is,
therefore, an apt symbol of the Initiate, who, on account of the power
developed within him, is capable of elevating himself to higher realms, and
moving in different worlds. As the swan flies through space, so may one who
has developed the powers of his soul body travel in that over mountains and
lakes; as the swan dive below the surface of the water, so may also the
Initiate go underneath the surface of the deep in his soul body, which is not
in danger from fire, earth, air, or water. In fact, that is one of the
first things that the Invisible Helpers have to be taught: that they are
immune from any danger which may befall them in the physical body, when they
are invested with the Golden Wedding Garment of which we have spoken so much.
Thus they may enter a burning building with immunity, there assisting those
who are in danger, sometimes in a most miraculous manner; or they may be on
board a sinking ship giving encouragement to those who are about to face the
great change.
The ancient Norse mythology tells us how noble warriors of old, when they
had fought the battle and had finally been overcome or mortally wounded,
sang their swan song. But let it not be supposed for a moment that it was
only the brutal fight fought upon the battle field with sword and lace that
was meant; rather it was the inner fight, the hidden meaning, that a noble
soul who had fought the battle of life well, at the last when he had
attained to that which was possible in those days, sang his swan song: that
is he took his oath of Initiation and became capable of entering another
realm to help others there as he had helped them here; for it was ever the
sacred duty of a noble knight to succor those who were weak an heavy laden.
Elsa is the daughter of a king. She is thus of the highest and most
noble birth. No one who is not thus well born can lay claim to the services
of such a knight as Lohengrin in that manner; that is to say of course,
there is in humanity neither high nor low, save as we stand in the scale of
evolution. When a soul has been long upon the stage of life, has gone to
school for many, many lives, then gradually it acquires that nobility which
comes from learning the lessons and working along the lines laid down by the
schoolmasters, our Elder Brothers, who are now teaching us the lessons of
life. The nobility earned by eagerness to do deeds of mercy for our less
highly advanced fellow beings, is the key to their favor, and therefore when
Elsa as in distress, a noble soul is sent to teach and guide her.
In the Book of Revelation we read about the mystic marriage of the Bride
and the Lamb. There is that marriage in every soul's experience, and always
under similar circumstances. One of the first requisites is that the soul
must have been forsaken by every one else: it must stand alone without a
single friend in the world. When that point has been attained, when the
soul sees no succor from any earthly source, when it turns with its whole
heart to heaven and prays for deliverance, then comes the deliverer and also
the offer of marriage. In other words, the true Teacher always comes in
response to the earnest prayers of the aspirant, but not till he has forsaken
the world and been forsaken by it. He offers to take care of one who is
thus anxious for guidance, and forthwith conquers untruth with the sword of
truth, but having given this proof, henceforth he requires an absolute
unquestioning faith. Please remember — let it imprint itself upon your mind,
let it sear itself into your very being with letters of fire, that having
come in answer to the prayer, (which is not only words but a life of
aspiration) the indubitable, unquestionable proof is given of the power and
ability of the Teacher to teach, to guide, and to help; and then the
requirement is made that henceforth there must be absolute faith in him,
otherwise it becomes impossible for him to work with the aspirant.
That is the great lesson that is taught by Lohengrin, and it is of
supreme importance, for there are thousands upon thousands walking the streets
in many cities today, looking hither and thither, seeking a Teacher. Some
Teacher. Some pretend to have found him, or have deceived themselves into
that belief; but the requirement that is enunciated in Lohengrin is an
actual requirement. The Teacher must, will, and does prove his ability. He
is know by his fruits; then in return he demands loyalty, and unless this
faith, this loyalty, this readiness to serve, this willingness to do
whatever is required, is forthcoming from the aspirant, the relationship will
be terminated. No matter how hot may be the tears of repentance which
might follow in the case of the aspirant who had failed in his loyalty to
the Teacher, no matter how sincere his repentance; the next opportunity will
not be forthcoming in the present life.
Therefore, it is of the very greatest importance that those who are seeking
Initiation should understand that there is something due them from the
professed teacher, before they accept him. he must show the fruits of his
work, for as Christ said, "By their fruits ye shall know them." This the
genuine Teacher always does without being asked, and without seeming to so or to want to give a sign. He always furnishes some evidence to which
the mind of the aspirant can cling as an indubitable proof of his superior
knowledge and ability. When that has then been demonstrated, it is absolutely essential that loyalty to the Teacher must follow; and no matter
who says this, that, or the other thing, the aspirant should not be
disturbed, but cling steadfastly to the proven fact, stick to that which he
believes to be true and faithfully uphold the one to whom he looks for
teaching; for unless that faith is there, there is no use in continuing the
relationship.
It is very significant, however, that Elsa's brother was, as we learn
from the final scene, the swan which had carried Lohengrin to his sister,
and who was changed back to his natural shape when Lohengrin departed. He
had been through Initiation. He, no doubt, knew of his sister's plight, as
one soul who is advanced and studying along these lines knows of another's
struggles, but although he saw the predicament of this fair aspirant, or
sister soul, he had no fear, for was he not the means of bringing to her the
succor that she might have had permanently had she been as faithful as he?
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