GfarneU Utttoeraitg Slibtarg Mifata, New fnrk FROM THE BENNO LOEWY LIBRARY COLLECTED BY BENNO LOEWY 1854-1919 BEQUEATHED TO CORNELL UNIVERSITY Cornell University Library BF1999.R52 G8 Great work the constructive principle o olin 3 1924 029 209 769 The original of tliis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924029209769 THE GREAT WORK The Great Work THE CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE OF NATURE IN INDIVIDUAL LIFE By the author of 'The Great Psychological Crime'' HARMONIC SERIES Volume III ELEVENTH EDITION 1911 INDO-AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY Chicago Copyright, 1906. /by INDO-AMERICAN BOOK CQ. ©Iff ^ragrpaato SnteUtjenr? af % Ag? TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER. PAGE. I. Evolution in Operation 9 II. Classification of Data 11 III. Truth and Light 27 IV. The Lineal Key 37 V. The Conflict of "Authorities" 73 VI. What Constitutes "Scientific Demonstra- tion" 95 VII. Nature's Constructive Principle iii VIII. "Spirituality," Constructive and Destructive 125 IX. The Basis of Constructive Spirituality. ... 139 X. What is Morality? 167 XL A Standard of Morals 175 XII. The "Ethical Section" 187 XIII. Consciousness 211 XIV. Will 233 XV. Desire and Choice 237 XVI. The Law of Compensation 245 XVII. The First Great Mile-Post 271 XVIII. The Spirit of the Work 303 XIX. Vanity of Vanities 321 XX. Psychological Phthisis 337 XXI. Lions on the Way 359 XXII. The Second Great Mile-Post 363 XXIII. The "Technical Work" 389 XXIV. Meat and Morals 413 XXV. The Mark of the Master 425 XXVI. The Passing of the Master 435 THE GREAT WORK "Fools Deride, Philosophers Investigate.' CHAPTER I. EVOLUTION IN OPERATION. 1. Nature evolves a Man. 2. Man, co-operating with nature, evolves a "Master." 3. The Master-Man, co-operating with and controlling the forces, activities and processes of nature, evolves a ? 9 CHAPTER II. CLASSIFICATION OF DATA. Some things we know, and we know that we know them. Some things we assume to know, but we know that we do not know them. Some things we beUeve, but we do not know them, nor do we even assume to know them. All other things we neither know, nor assume to know, nor do we even believe them. For illustration: First Class. We know that we exist. We know that other people exist. We know that other things besides ourselves also exist. We know that fire burns and that water quenches thirst. We know that snow is soft and white and that ice is hard and cold to our senses. We know that flowers bloom and that birds sing. We know that as individual Intelligences we possess certain faculties, capacities and powers. We know that certain things we call food, water and air are necessary to sustain what we name the life of our physical bodies. We know when we are happy and we know what sor- row is. 11 12 THE GREAT WORK We know that we can think and that we can convey our thoughts to others. We know that life has a present existence and that what we call death dissolves the physical manifestation of this earthly life. These are things we know and we know that we know them. Why? Because they fall within the radius of our own individual experiences. By the aid of our own senses we have personally demonstrated them. And these are the only reasons that warrant us in asserting that we know them. Except as personal experiences we could never know them. That which is outside the range of our own personal experience is not definitely and posi- tively known to us. It is of the utmost importance, therefore, to the cause of truth, that every man who speaks for the world to hear should never allow himself to forget that personal experi- ence is the only absolute basis and infallible test of what we know. Whatever fails to reach the demands of this simple and exact test does not rise to the dignity of actual and personal knowledge. Second Class. We assume to know that the earth is round. We not only assume this to be a fact of nature, but we are ready to act upon that assumption, and we do so act without the slightest hesitation whenever occasion therefor may require. But on a basis of actual test it is doubtful if one in a thousand of the human race, as it exists today, has ever personally demonstrated the truth of that as- sumption. We have read in books that it is true. We have been taught in our school studies that it is a fact. We have been assured, on what we have considered good authority, that others have actually proven it be- CLASSIFICATION OF DATA 13 yond all question; and we have had pointed out to us metb.<)ds by which we are led to believe we might prove its truth for ourselves if we but had the time, money, op- portunity and inclination necessary to make the demon- stration. But that is all. In other words, the very large majority of us do not, in literal truth, personally know whether the earth is round or square or cubical or pyra- midal or any other specifically definable shape. We only assume to know. We assume to know how old we are, and in our rela- tions and dealings with others we treat the subject of our own age with all the seeming assurance of exact and definite knowledge. We do not hesitate to go into court, when called upon to do so, and solemnly make oath as to our respective ages. Many there are who do this with- out so much as a qualm of conscience or a suggestion of doubt or uncertainty. And yet, in all human probability, not one of those who read this page knows to a definite certainty his or her own age. Furthermore, there is, perhaps, no person living in all the world, who remem- bers the exact year, month, day and hour of his own birth. Why? Because under and by virtue of the arbi- trary and mysterious provisions of nature, that somewhat important event in our respective histories lies all the way from two to four years backward beyond the limits of individual memory. All we know of it, therefore, is that our reputed fathers and mothers and those who are older than ourselves have told us that we were born on a given day of a given month in a given year. We take their word as literal truth and govern ourselves accord- ingly. And so, we do not know how old we are. We only assume to know. We assume to know that a certain man, whom history names Columbus, discovered the continent of America; 14 THE GREAT WORK that a certain other man, named Washington, was the first president of the United States of America. We assume to know that a certain other man, named Moses, led the Children of Israel out of captivity in the land of Egypt. We assume to know that one Benjamin Franklin, by means of a kite, made an important discovery concerning the action of electricity; that another wise man, named Newton, made an important scientific discovery concern- ing the action of that force we name Gravity. If time and space would permit and the occasion would warrant the effort, it would be quite possible to mention hundreds or even thousands of other things we assume to know, all of which, however, are wholly outside the limits of our definite and personal knowledge. Indeed, if we but held ourselves to a rigid and strictly truthful differentiation of the data we employ, there is perhaps not one of us but would be greatly surprised, if not genuinely humiliated, to find how many things we assume to know which are, in truth, altogether outside the limits of our personal knowledge. We do not know them. We merely assume to know them, and our assumption passes current for actual personal knowledge. Third Class. Many there are who believe in a God, in the sense that the Great Creative Intelligence is a distinct and definite personality. But there are also many others who believe just as firmly that the Great Creative Intelligence is not a God in the sense of a definite personality. It would seem, however, that among all these there are few, if any, who could truthfully assert that the subject is one which falls within the limits of their personal knowledge. Some men believe there is not only a personal God who CLASSIFICATION OF DATA 15 created the universe, but that he is a triune Being, com- posed of three persons in one, namely, "Father, Son and Holy Ghost." Others believe He is but one person. They hold that he is "One and Indivisible." There are others still who believe that the Creative Intelligence is but an all-pervading essence or power, wholly without the ele- ment of personality. It would doubtless be conceded, however, that not one among all these is in position to know anything about it. Some there are who believe in the doctrine of literal transubstantiation, in accordance with which the bread and wine used in the sacramental service of "The Lord's Supper" are said to be transmuted into the body and blood of Christ. Others believe with equal sincerity that such a doctrine is not only false, but utterly absurd and too ridiculous for a moment's serious consideration. But if the question could be removed from the field of theolog- ical discussion, and then submitted to the several dis- putants on the basis of their definite and personal knowl- edge, it is not at all likely that a single one among them could be found who would seriously claim to know any- thing about it. There are also those who believe in the absolute, in- herent immortality of all mankind. Others believe in conditional immortality, only as a reward of individual effort. And there are others who believe with equal earnestness that immortality is only a pleasant dream, a comforting delusion, a fascinating fiction, and that phys- ical death means total extinction. Human intelligence has formulated concepts which have become the bases of many other beliefs. All such beliefs, however, may be distinguished without difficulty from definite personal knowledge, or even assumed knowledge, as these are classified and defined above. i6 THE GREAT WORK Fourth Class. We neither know, nor assume to know, nor can we formulate a well defined belief as to when time began or when, if ever, it will end; where space begins, how far it extends, or where, if at all, it ends. We neither know, nor assume to know, nor do we have even a definite belief as to where, when or how matter first came into existence, how long it will continue to exist or what will ultimately become of it. We neither know, nor assume to know, nor do we have a clearly defined belief as to how many suns, moons and stars there are throughout all the universe of space ; how many of them are inhabited; or what may be the number and character of their inhabitants. We neither know, nor assume to know, nor can we formulate so much as a definite belief as to the number of fishes or other living things in all the waters of the earth, the insects which pervade the atmosphere that en- circles and incloses the earth, or the living creatures that move upon the dry land. As to all such problems as these, and many others, we do not hesitate to acknowledge our total ignorance. Thus, by a simple analysis, we find that the data of the whole universe, so far as we are individually con- cerned, naturally divide themselves into these four dis- tinct and separate classes, namely: 1. Things we know. 2. Things we assume to know. 3. Things we believe. 4. Things of which we are wholly ignorant. Of these four classes of data, there can be but little doubt, in the mind of any honest student of nature, that the first is by far the most limited. For, the things we CLASSIFICATION OF DATA 17 know comprise only those things which are a conscious part of us, and those with which we come into conscious personal contact or relation in nature. No man is in position to understand or appreciate how almost infinitesimally small and seemingly insignificant, by comparison, is the volume of his own definite, per- sonal knowledge, until he undertakes to write out in definite form a crystallized statement of those things he can say truly he knows. Then it is, for the first time, he becomes clearly conscious how meager is his store of actual knowledge and how conspicuous is his intel- lectual poverty. To be brought thus suddenly face to face with his own destitution is, perhaps, one of the most effectual lessons of humility that could be administered to a human being. It would also seem that of all the many important lessons of life it is one among those we need most to learn. For, whilst it humbles our pride of intelligence into the very dust, at the same time it teaches us the exact measure and intrinsic value of our own actual attainments and points the way to a much broader understanding and a more just appreciation of all mankind. It teaches a deeper respect for the lives and experiences of our fel- low men, admonishes us to a more generous sympathy with them in all their honest efforts, and stimulates in us a more healthful desire to increase our own store of exact and definite knowledge. The second class of data constitutes a volume much greater in magnitude than the first, and much more pre- tentious as to the character and scope of its contents. For, under this head of "Things we assume to know," are, in general, the discoveries and demonstrations of science, the data of history, the deductions of philosophy, and the great body of "Spiritual Revelations." i8 THE GREAT WORK No truly progressive intelligence of the present age will attempt to deny or even minimize the value of all these data to both the individual and society. Indeed, most of such data comes to us from out the ages. It bears upon its face the seeming stamp of truth. Since it comes to us at second hand, it does not rise to the dig- nity of absolute knowledge. Nevertheless, it is of great value because it is the nearest possible approach to that which we designate as absolute, personal knowledge. The third class of data, "Things we believe," would constitute an immense library of itself. But here, in the realm of mere speculations, opinions and beliefs, we come face to face with all those unsatisfactory and dis- quieting elements of uncertainty, unreliability, insecurity, fallibility and change. For instance : No man's mere belief, however honest or earnest it may be, carries with it a positive guaranty of its truth. He may believe, with absolute sincerity, the most impossible things. Then again, the things he merely believes today he may be able to demonstrate tomorrow. When so dem- onstrated they at once become things he knows and are no longer mere matters of belief. By the process of demonstration they immediately pass from the third class of data to the first. By this transition alone, they attain to the highest possible degree of value and im- portance in his life. Or, it may, perchance, occur that the things he be- lieves today he may demonstrate tomorrow to be false. In that event their non-existence is established and they no longer have a place in the data of the universe. It may also happen that some of the things he believes today may be proven tomorrow by somebody else to be true. In that event, as facts demonstrated, they come CLASSIFICATION OF DATA 19 to him at second hand. Thenceforth, in their relation to him, they pass into the category of reported facts, his- tory or science, as the case may be, and fall under the second class. Though he may not know them of his own personal knowledge, yet he may thereafter reasonably assume to know them upon the strength of their reported demonstration. Thus they are advanced one step in their relation to him, and by this transition they become of secondary importance in his essential life. They are now second in value only to the things he knows. The fourth class of data, "Things we neither know nor assume to know nor even believe," constitutes the, at present, unknown field of nature. Whatever that field may contain is, as yet, a closed book to us. Whatever influence its contents may exert upon our lives or des- tinies is not yet within our powers of analysis. The un- explored field of nature may, perhaps, contain countless treasures of infinite value to each one of us, and doubt- less does. But until we see, know, or in some other manner become possessed of them, their intrinsic value is not, for us at least, a conscious factor. Thus it will be observed, that of all the data of the entire universe, that which most intimately and vitally concerns each one of us falls under the first class desig- nated at the beginning of this chapter. That is to say, the things we know are those of which we are in posi- tion to make the best and most intelligent use, both in our own behalf and in behalf of those who need our help. This fact alone gives to them a value and an importance which is to us paramount. It is equally true that the things we assume to know, and upon the truth of which we implicitly rely and un- hesitatingly act, are the things which approach most 20 THE GREAT WORK nearly absolute, personal knowledge. These, therefore, are second in value only to the things we know. In other words, of all the data of the universe, that which falls within the radius of absolute, personal knowl- edge is of paramount value and importance to each in- dividual. And conversely, that which lies farthest from such knowledge is, for analogous reasons, of least per- sonal value and importance to him. For instance: To every intelligent man and woman who has followed the subject to this point it must be clearly apparent that actual knowledge, as hereinbe- fore defined, is of greater value and importance to the individual who possesses it than assumed knowledge. It is vastly multiplied in value and importance when it is compared with mere speculations, opinions and beliefs, any or all of which may prove to be erroneous or en- tirely without foundation in fact. It follows with equal certainty that it stands at the highest point of relative value and importance when it is compared with total ignorance. These facts being admitted, it follows with irresistible logic that one of the most important duties every indi- vidual owes to himself and to his fellow man is, at all times and as rapidly as possible, to increase the num- ber and volume of the things he knows, and in so doing select those facts and truths of which he can make the most valuable use. For by this process alone he becomes the better equipped to discharge his personal responsi- bility to both himself and his fellow man. To one who sees life from this point of vision it mat- ters very little what others may believe (except for their own good), so long as they do not trespass upon the perfect liberty of his own intelligence. That which CLASSIFICATION OF DATA 21 is of paramount importance to him is what they know and what they can help him to know. A brief analytical study of this subject cannot fail to emphasize, among others, the following facts, namely: 1. Exact and definite knowledge is always of the greatest possible value and importance to every individ- ual who has the moral courage to use it rightly. To such it is more to be desired than all other classes of data combined. Nevertheless, it is only the exceptional man or woman, of the present time, who is ready or even willing to pursue it with a degree of intelligence, cour- age and perseverance, necessary to obtain the desired re- .sults. 2. The average intelligence is satisfied to act upon the basis of assumed knowledge. This is true, even though such dataareadmitted to be wanting in reliability and therefore of only secondary value or consideration. Why? Because assumed knowledge involves far less personal effort on his part than actual knowledge. With most of us it is so much more pleasant and agreeable to accept as true the declarations and findings of others than it is to make a personal demonstration of them for ourselves. 3. If an exact numerical balance could be struck, at the present time, it would, without question, be found that a very large majority of the men and women of even the most truly civilized nations of earth are more deeply interested in the consideration of mere specula- tions, opinions, dogmas and beliefs than they are in the acquisition of actual, personal knowledge. Why is this? The question is a most natural one in the mind of the honest student. It would also appear timely and pertinent. More especially is this true in view of the fact that the door to personal knowledge 22 THE GREAT WORK stands so wide open and the way leading thereto is so smooth and inviting. Many answers, or partial answers, suggest themselves. Each of these contains certain elements of truth. The following, however, would seem to cover the largest number of cases: The acquisition of exact and definite knowledge in- volves a labor. It calls for the unremitting exercise of honest, earnest, intelligent, courageous and persistent personal effort on the part of the individual concerned. Indolence, however, in this department of human en- deavor, would seem to be an almost universal charac- teristic of human nature. However much we may de- sire a thing whose value we know and appreciate, we possess only a limited amount of intelligence, courage and perseverance which we are ready and willing to ex- ercise in the task of acquiring it. In the largest number of instances — more especially where the thing to be acquired is knowledge — the amount of personal effort we are willing to exert is very small. Moreover, when we have reached its limit we are inclined to accept al- most any recognized substitute that may be offered. This characteristic of human intelligence is so gen- eral and so strongly marked that it constitutes one of the chief reasons why so few of our brightest and oth- erwise most capable men and women become personal demonstrators of the law. It also explains why so many become mere readers of books. And yet, we are forced by evidence which cannot be refuted, to recognize as a fundamental principle of individual human development, that exact and definite knowledge comes to all of us in exact ratio with the amount of intelligence, moral courage and perseverance we put into the active search for it. CLASSIFICATION OF DATA 23 One person may possess the necessary intelligence but lack the courage and perseverance. Another may have the requisite courage but fall below the necessary stand- ard of intelligence and perseverance. A third may pos- sess the full measure of necessary perseverance but fail in point of both intelligence and courage. A fourth may be able to demonstrate an abundance of both intelligence and courage but find himself deficient in the element of perserverance. And yet another may meet the required standard of intelligence and perseverance, and at the same time be w^holly deficient in courage; and so on. But the men and women are few indeed, who possess all three of these elements of character in such measure and quality as to lead them into the field of personal demonstration. This is more especially true within the field of what, by common consent, we have come to designate as the higher laws, principles, forces, activities and processes of nature. As a perfectly natural result, most of us find it so much easier and more convenient to assume knowledge than to demonstrate its truth, that we fall into the habit of relying more upon others than upon ourselves to dis- cover the facts of nature and reduce them to definite and personal knowledge. Even more strongly still are we tempted to content ourselves with reveling in the nebulous and fascinating field of mere speculations, opinions and beliefs. Why? Because this calls for the minimum of personal eflfort on our part. Indeed, to this intellectual inertia and inherent indo- lence of human nature are due most of the prejudices, superstitions and dogmas of both science and religion throughout the ages. It is easier to entertain a prejudice than it is to ac- 24 THE GREAT WORK quire the knowledge necessary to rise above it. Most of us, therefore, are the witless slaves of prejudice. It is more convenient to cherish a superstition than it is to acquire the wisdom necessary to demonstrate its fallacy. For this reason most of us are bound by superstition. It is more agreeable (to ourselves) to dogmatize than to demonstrate. Hence it is that most of us are dog- matic and intolerant without knowing it. It is more pleasant to preach than it is to practice. Therefore the majority preach and the minority practice. These are among the frailties and fallacies of human nature with which we have to contend in our search for truth. We all know them. We all recognize them — in others. We all admit them — for those who decline to do so. Much as we may appear to be, we are neither entirely ignorant nor wholly innocent of the part they play in our own lives. More than this, we know the remedy. We cannot hope, therefore, to evade nor even minimize our personal responsibility for the evil results which flow from their daily presence and influence in our lives. Let us not deceive ourselves longer. Let us not even try to do so. On the contrary, let us declare our eman- cipation from the tyranny of such a slavery. Moreover, let us do it NOW before we turn the leaf on which these words are printed. Let us do it so effectually and so irrevocably that we shall be able to maintain our inde- pendence throughout all the succeeding pages, even to the final word of the closing sentence. Hereafter, then, let us intelligently, courageously and persistently apply ourselves to the honest and earnest search for definite, personal knowledge. Let us do this in whatsoever fields are open and accessible to us. Let us do it, if necessary, in defiance of our own present CLASSIFICATION OF DATA 25 opinions and beliefs, prejudices and superstitions, in- clinations and desires, as well as those of our fellow men who would seek to hold our Souls in bondage. Let us do this, secure in the consciousness that truth is always a friend to him who honestly seeks it and a benefactor to him who lives it. Briefly recapitulating, the specific purposes of this chapter are: 1. To fix indelibly in the mind of the reader the four distinct and separate classes into which the data of the universe naturally divide themselves when considered solely in their relation to the individual. 2. To emphasize the paramount importance of "The things we know" over all the other classes of data in the universe, from the standpoint of the individual. 3. To remove from the mind, as far as may be lios- sible, all blind acceptance of the mere speculations, opin- ions, beliefs and dogmas of mankind who speak without the authority of definite and personal knowledge. 4. To open the way to a fair and unprejudiced con- sideration of the subject before us with a view to obtain- ing the largest measure of truth possible. 5. To stimulate a healthful desire for exact and defi- nite knowledge concerning the subject under considera- tion, regardless of the source from which it may come. 6. To lead to a personal investigation and intelligent study of such facts as may be accessible and pertinent. CHAPTER III. TRUTH AND LIGHT. As a natural supplement of the preceding chapter, it would seem to be both relevant and material, as well as helpful to the general purpose of this work, to consider briefly the remarkable and strangely significant analogy between "Light" to the physical sense and "Truth" to the soul of an intelligent individual. Indeed, in a purely intellectual sense, the two words are often used synonymously. The further we inquire into the subject matter and analyze the characteristics of both, in their effects upon human consciousness, the more clearly they would seem to justify such use. For illustration : Take an ordinary candle into a dark and unfamiliar room. Then light it and study the results upon your sense of vision. You will observe that no mat- ter how faint may be the light it sheds, you are neverthe- less able to obtain some slight vision of those objects that are nearest you. True, they may, perhaps, be so indistinct that you are quite uncertain as to their exact form or nature. However, you are able to satisfy your- self that certain objects are there to be seen provided sufficient light can be obtained to dispel the darkness. You therefore determine that you must have "More Light." You bring in an oil lamp. You light that also. Let us suppose that it represents five times the power of your candle. You then have the combined light-produc- 27 28 THE GREAT WORK ing power of both candle and lamp, representing an ag- gregate of six candle power. Under the resultant power of these two lights you find yourself able to distinguish clearly a number of objects near to you which were quite beyond the limits of your vision before. You are also able to discover others in the distance whose forms are still too indistinct to be determined with certainty. You must have "More Light." A gas jet is within your reach. You light that also. Let us suppose it adds twenty candlepower to the light already in the room. You now have an aggregate of twenty-six candlepower with which to aid your sense of vision. You note that you are now able to see with distinct- ness those objects which before were hazy and in the shadow. Out beyond them, however, in the remote cor- ners of the spacious room there are still other objects you are unable to distinguish with certainty. The room itself is, in fact, much larger than you had supposed and contains many important objects whose presence was entirely unknown to you when you entered. Your interest is now thoroughly awakened. But you must have "More Light," if you would determine the full extent of the room and the exact nature of its contents. An electric light is at your service. You turn it on. It adds a thousand candlepower of light to that already in the room. You now have an aggregate of one thousand and twenty-six candlepower of light with which to aid your sense of sight. Instantly all the da1-kness and un- certainty seem to have disappeared and you see with comparative distinctness all the conspicuous objects in the room. You examine them critically and satisfy your- self as to their nature, quality, color, value and purpose. But in the midst of your contemplation of this inter- TRUTH AND LIGHT 29 esting vision the sun slowly rises and adds its majestic and transcendent light to that already in the room. Slowly but surely there comes to your consciousness the realization of a remarkable change. A complete trans- formation has occurred in the colors which everywhere before were distinctly apparent. The various objects have taken on added hues and more delicate shadings. Their beauty and richness are many times intensified. Under this flood of combined light you find yourself able to say, with seeming certainty, that you now see things as they are. You seem to realize that any stronger light would only dazzle your sense of sight and obscure your vision, because your capacity for light is limited by the power of resistance of the physical optic nerve. You now note the fact that you seem to be alone in a large and beautiful room. Its furnishings are of rare quality and exquisite workmanship. Its walls are hung with the paintings of great masters and its decorations are works of rarest art and the most fascinating beauty. You stand in mute admiration and wonderment. To your charmed senses the vision is complete. It would seem impossible to add to or take from it without marring its perfect symmetry of expression. Not so, however, for even in the midst of your won- dering there comes from an unknown source a sudden burst of added light. It is a light to which your soul seems a stranger. It is not within your memory of earthly things. It is the light of another world. You understand its meaning. You now realize for the first time in physical life that your spiritual eyes have opened. Again you survey the splendid palace. A seemingly magical change has occurred. To your amazement you observe that you are no longer alone. All about you are men, women and children of matchless grace and un- 30 THE GREAT WORK rivaled loveliness. The robes and the flowers they wear far surpass anything ever beheld by mortal eye. They reflect the delicate colors of a world above and beyond all that we know as physical. So completely is your consciousness absorbed in this fascinating vision of spiritual life, light and loveliness that for the time being you forget this under-world of grosser physical things. But your intelligence is not asleep. All your mental faculties and powers are awake and active. You find yourself instinctively asking your- self the question : "If this be true, may it not be possible that there are yet more wonderful, glorious and exalted truths out in the infinite realms of nature which lie above and beyond the range of my present limitations?" At last the great and solemn truth has dawned upon you, that you have present limitations. No more stu- pendous fact ever impressed itself upon human con- sciousness; for this is the birth of true humility which is the beginning of wisdom. Now let us go back and draw the analogy. A single truth, however seemingly insignificant or unimportant, gives the intelligent possessor some slight vision of conditions most nearly related to it. The light of another truth added to it concerning the same subject matter does not extinguish, annul nor destroy the first truth, nor in any manner militate against nor conflict with it. To the observer its value and importance are only multiplied. He now begins to reason. From his reasoning he draws conclusions. He sees dim outlines of other truths or seeming truths. He longs to see them yet more clearly. He seeks to know them with greater certainty. One by one they come within the range of his intellectual vision. One by one they are added to his increasing TRUTH AND LIGHT 7^1 store of knowledge. Their augmenting light illumities his surroundings. The darkness of superstition ^nd ignorance recedes. The value of truth is established.. At last he conies to know himself in the full light ©f earth's physical conditions. He has reached tlte limita- tions of "physical science." In his pride of intelligeince he says : "At last I see the world in its true light. I aun but a physical entity. Only this and nothing more. I aii>i but making my own little round and playing my own little part, along with the bee and the ant, in a world of purely physical things. When the round is completed and the play is ended my life is done. Nature is hostile to all life, and I am but one of her countless millions of victims." Then comes that opening of the spiritual vision. With it also comes a sublime illumination from the finer world of spiritual truth. In an instant the darkness of physical materialism is banished from his life forever. Physical death is not the end. It is only a second birth. It is a new gateway which opens to individual intelligence the seemingly infinite possibilities of other and higher realms of being. This new and wonderful truth of another life sheds its radiance over all the experiences of the remem- bered past. It gives to individual existence a new motive and a new inspiration. Here, in the higher realm of spiritual truth, he comes to recognize and appreciate the vital fact that he has "present limitations." And here again he is at the beginning of wisdom. A critical study of the foregoing analogy should dis- close to the thoughtful student a number of interesting and significant facts. Among these it would seem that the following might be of special value : I. The presence of one light does not extinguish another light. It only multiplies its intensity and effect. yj THE GREAT WORK tn like manner, one truth does not extinguish, nor in any manner conflict with, another truth. It only adds to its potency and value. ^. The greater the candlepower of light the more d«finiv:e and distinct is the sense of physical vision, until the limit of the power of resistance of the physical organ is re<*ched. EVqually true is it that the greater the number of corre- \ated truths at our command the more definitely and clearly we are able to distinguish the subject matter under consideration, within the limits of our rational powers. 3. Light dispels darkness. So also, truth dissipates ignorance (which is intel- lectual darkness). 4. Light is a fundamental necessity to the proper growth of all physical organisms. With added emphasis, truth is the vital principle at the foundation of all Constructive Spiritual Unfoldment and Soul Growth. 5. The greater the candlepower of light the more perfectly we discern the true colors of things physical. In like manner, the greater the volume of truth at our command the more clearly are we able to discern the delicate shadings of principle which color all life. Those who possess the patience and the courage to amplify the analogy in all its bearings cannot fail to obtain a clear and definite understanding of the purpose of the preceding chapter on "The Classification of Data." That purpose is to establish beyond all question the true relation which mere dogmas and beliefs sustain to actual knowledge, and suggest the relative value and importance of each to the individual. It appears to be a well considered axiom that, "Those who believe the most know the least." It would also TRUTH AND LIGHT 33 appear that they have the least desire to know. There is a good and sufficient reason for this. Opinions and beliefs come to us easily. Actual knowledge comes as the result of labored personal effort. A mere opinion or belief may rest upon very slight evidence, or none at all. The acquisition of knowledge, which means a per- sonal demonstration of facts, requires work. Indeed, the number of such facts accumulated by any given individual may be said fairly to represent or measure the energy he has spent in overcoming his false beliefs and converting his true ones into actual knowledge. The generous hospitality with which we are wont to entertain all manner of opinions and beliefs, quite un- mindful of their real merit, and the labored diificulty with which we acquire definite personal knowledge, are together sufficient to account for the overwhelming preva- lence of dogmatism and "creeds," and the comparative dearth of actual knowledge in almost every department of human life and interest. And yet, if the relative value and importance of definite knowledge and mere beliefs, in their relation to individual life and well being, were an issue before the world of enlightened intelligence today, it would seem to be a con- servative prediction that the verdict would be over- whelmingly in favor of knowledge. Indeed, there can be no question but according to the consensus of intelligent judgments there is nothing of which the human mind can conceive that is more vitally important to the individual than the definite personal knowledge he possesses, and nothing more important for which he should strive than the additions of knowledge which lie within the range of his possible attainments. But it is equally true that there is no error more subtle and difficult to dislodge from the human mind and con- 34 THE GREAT WORK sciousness than that which is embodied in a comforting belief. We cherish such errors as these with an affection and a persistency worthy of a better cause. We chal- lenge and even resent the grandest and most beneficent truths of nature in our efforts to evade the responsibility which a knowledge of them would inevitably fix upon us. We condemn the most generous and unselfish of friends who bring to us unwelcome truths and insist upon our taking note of them. We shut our eyes in simulated con- tempt and in willing blindness cling to our errors, enjoy our ignorance and hug our delusions until the irresistible power of truth wrests them from us. But there are yet other obstacles in our pathway to knowledge. Every hone&t and conscientious author is more or less familiar with some of these. To such an one they are truly embarrassing. Indeed, those who write for others to read find serious and perplexing problems within themselves to be solved. They also are human, and subject to human frailties and temptations which few succeed in overcoming entirely. For illustration : Pride of intelligence expresses itself in literature in the form of dogmatism and a presump- tuous contempt for the honest convictions of others; while intellectual vanity clothes itself in the form and spirit of egotistic speculations and a thrusting of the personality of the author upon the attention of his readers. It is, perhaps, safe to say that we all possess a certain amount of pride of intelligence; and a good many of us some traces of intellectual vanity. For this reason we are in constant danger of offending the intelligence, dignity and conscience of our readers and losing their sympathy with and interest in our theme, because we overshadow it, obscure it, or minimize its importance by the persistent obtrusion of our personality. If we would TRUTH AND LIGHT 35 hope to avoid these mistakes in our writings we must keep the immutable and uncompromising Law of Truth forever before us. As a result of these weaknesses of human nature, often- times the most glaring fallacies are set down as unquali- fied truth, and the merest fancies are stated as established facts. The natural consequence is that the over-credulous reader is forever in danger of being led into an ambush of the gravest errors. The ultra-skeptical reader is equally in danger of having his skepticism increased and the barrier of hostility and unbelief thereby erected between him and the truth which he most desires and of which he is in immediate search. But with the spirit of honesty prevailing in both reader and writer, and a mutual recognition by them of the diffi- culties to be encountered, it would seem that due care and consideration in the treatment of any subject, how- ever intricate or difficult, should be sufficient to guard both against the unfortunate results of these mistaken tendencies. Assuming that the reader of this volume is in search of truth, and that he has entered upon his undertaking with a mind as free from hostility, prejudice, superstition and other obstructions as may be possible; the writer, on his part, pledges himself, as far as may lie within his power, to divest his part of the work of all dogmatism, specula- tion and presumption, and confine himself as closely as may be possible to those things which are within the range of his own personal knowledge, the demonstrated facts of science, and the established truths of nature. In the spirit and purpose of the foregoing suggestions and pledge, and with a view to receiving and giving the largest measure of benefit possible from that which fol- lows, is there any valid or adequate reason why the 36 THE GREAT WORK reader and the writer may not meet upon the plane of mutual confidence and make the journey together in the spirit of fraternal fellowship and good will? CHAPTER IV. THE LINEAL KEY. Since the publication of the two preceding volumes of this Series many letters of inquiry have come to their authors and their publishers from intelligent students and thinkers all over the world. These letters have covered a wide range and a varied field of subject matter. As a result, it has been quite impossible to reply to them individually. Neither time, energy nor oppor- tunity would permit. Nor is it possible at this time, in a work of this nature, to cover the whole broad field in a manner satisfactory to either the inquirers or the writer. Indeed, many of the questions could not be answered at all, so far as we know, because they have reference to ultimate conditions which would seem to lie out beyond the present limitations of human intelligence. Others would appear to be of incidental importance only and scarcely of interest or value to the general reader or student. Of those questions that remain, a considerable number have direct reference to the School of Natural Science. They are of such a nature as to command the most respectful consideration. Moreover, they have been repeated so often and with such evident earnestness and sincerity as to indicate beyond question that their answers should find a place in this volume. It is, therefore, with sincere deference to those who have asked them, and 87 38 THE GREAT WORK who have waited so long and so patiently for their answers, that the following questions will be answered as frankly and explicitly as may be possible. What Is Natural Science? At page 8, Vol. I, the following answer to this question has been given : "It will help the reader very materially if he understands the full significance of the term thus employed. "1. Physical Science is universally understood to mean that science which has to do with physical matter only. It is, there- fore, limited in its scope to the substance, functions and phe- nomena of physical matter. "2. Spiritual science (as commonly understood), is that science which has to do with only things spiritual. It is, therefore, also limited in its scope to a distinct and separate field of causation. "3. Mental Science (as commonly understood), in like man- ner, is limited to a knowledge of the mind with its functions and phenomena. "Thus, it appears that each of these sciences is limited to knowledge of only a part of the facts of nature. But what term shall be employed to designate properly that science which includes knowledge of the facts of physical science, spiritual science and mental science combined? What term is broad enough to cover the facts of all the departments of nature? ' ' Evidently no better term could be found than Natural Science. Since this philosophy is based upon facts in all the departments of nature, the term Natural Science properly designates the science upon which this work is founded. Whenever, therefore, the term 'Natural Science' is used in this work, it must be understood in that broad sense which includes all other sciences and departments of science." From the foregoing it will be observed that the term, as therein defined, is inclusive and not exclusive. In order that it may justify its name it must neither ignore nor deny nor attempt to evade any of the established "facts" of any of the more limited sciences or depart- ments of science. It must meet them fairly and deal with them candidly. Concisely defined, therefore, Natural Science is knowl- edge of the facts of nature, in the broadest and most THE LINEAL KEY 39 comprehensive meaning of the term "Nature." It in- cludes knowledge of things physical, spiritual, psychical and ethical. It embodies knowledge of the laws, prin- ciples, forces, activities and processes which operate within man himself as well as in the great world of nature without. It is the science of sciences, and is without limitations other than those which mark the ever widening boundaries of increasing knowledge. It is in this broad sense that it will be employed hereinafter as well as in the succeeding volumes of this Series. What Is the School of Natural Science? But for the insistent and repeated inquiries from those whose interest in the work would seem justly to entitle them to ask it, this question would have remained unan- swered, so far as the writer is concerned. Even in the face of their insistence, and regardless of their seeming right to know the salient facts, every impulse — save that of duty — would impel him to evade the issue "until future ages might obtain the answer" from other sources. Strange and unreasonable as this may appear to the casual reader, there are grave and adequate reasons for this feeling of reluctance and hesitation. Some of these may, perhaps, appear as we proceed. Having succeeded, however, in relegating them to the background of con- sciousness for the present, and moved only by an earnest desire to discharge what appears to him an obvious duty to those who have accompanied the work to this point, the following statement of facts is made : I. Name of the Great School. The term "School of Natural Science" is not the name by which the Great School herein referred to has been known to its members throughout the ages. It is but a modern 40 THE GREAT WORK adaptation. This modern name of an ancient School has been chosen because it can be made to convey to the modern mind of our western civilization a clear and definite meaning in harmony with the facts. The ancient name, though it were written in boldest type, would con- vey no intelligent conception of the School itself, nor of its methods, purposes or achievements. It would serve only to mystify, obscure and confuse. Furthermore, the ancient name of this "Venerable Association" has been so often misappropriated by modern organizations that its publication at this time would scarcely be deemed a sufificient identification. Indeed, it is believed that in some instances its misunderstood associations would only serve to prejudice the minds of those who might other- wise receive beneficient help and a spiritual, mental and moral uplift from the study upon which we are entering. For these and yet other reasons it is deemed but fair and just to the reader that he be left free to form his own conclusions and judgments of what follows, entirely upon the internal evidences of its truth or fallacy. This alone would seem just to both the reader and the writer, as well as to the larger interests involved. 2. Its Membership. The School of Natural Science, as a physical entity, is composed of a voluntary association of men whose lives and labors are dedicated and devoted to the acquirement and perpetuation of knowledge in the broad and unlimited field of science — ^physical, spiritual, psychical and ethical — and to its application to the development of individual life, individual intelligence, individual conscience, indi- vidual liberty, individual morality, and individual happi- ness. To these devotees of science in its broadest and best sense, may be added such students as have come to THE LINEAL KEY 41 them for definite instruction in the various departments of their knowledge. These men of science represent practically all the advanced and progressive civilizations and peoples of earth. For reasons which appear to them both imperative and just, their work of investigation, experiment, demonstration and instruction is prosecuted and accomplished under the protecting shield of personal confidence and secrecy. This fact alone has been made the basis of much unjust criticism from two different sources, namely, f/om those who are ignorant of the cause of and reasons for such secrecy, and from those who are openly, or secretly, in league with the enemies of intellectual liberty and individual conscience. Never- theless, their work will go on in secret until such time as they shall deem it wise to take the enemies of indi- vidual enlightenment and progress into their confidence, or until the time would, in their judgment, appear more propitious for a public work than at present. 3. Where They Work. The members of this School are scattered over the earth, wherever the conditions for the success of their efforts appear to them most favorable. Their work is carried on in the midst of the most enlightened and pro- gressive civilizations and peoples, and their students are among the most unobtrusive intelligences in their several communities. 4. Their Headquarters. While its membership is thoroughly cosmopolitan, in the sense that it represents practically all the progressive nationalities of earth and draws its knowledge and experience from all races and peoples throughout the 42 THE GREAT WORK civilized world, it nevertheless has a headquarters and a local habitation from which its integral work proceeds and its silent influence radiates. From this organic center each individual member receives his authority, and to it he must render an account of his labors. There its records are transcribed and a sequential history of its work is preserved. Inasmuch, however, as its active work of experiment, demonstration and instruction is carried on by its members very largely "in the field," as it were, a knowledge of its central location can in nowise be of service to the reader nor to the general public, beyond the simple fact that it is in far-away India. On the other hand, any publication of such knowledge at this time could only serve to open the door to an endless flood of inquiry and obtrusive attention from the curious, the thoughtless, the inconsiderate, the selfish and the hostile, and thereby divert the attention of its members from their arduous and important labors which depend upon time, opportunity and the protecting shelter of obscurity for their accomplishment. When the time shall come that the work can best be accomplished without such protection and the preserva- tion and perpetuation of its records can safely be entrusted to the public, concealment will no longer be necessary and will no longer exist. In the meantime, however, there are no insurmountable barriers between its accumulated knowledge and the honest seeker who can prove himself justly entitled to receive it. In other words, those who are able to give "the right knock" will have no difficulty in finding their way to the "door of the Temple," and though they be both "poor" and "blind," a "guide" will be found to conduct them safely over the way. THE LINEAL KEY 43 What Are Its Lineage and History? These cover a consecutive and unbroken chain back- ward from the immediate present to a time many thou- sands of years before the Mosaic period. In truth, the chain is complete to a time long before Egypt had become a center of civilization, of learning, or of power. This fact alone is sufficient to suggest the futility of any attempt to cover the subject in detail. Nor would the writer be able to give the details even if he desired to do so. For a number of years, however, he has been in personal touch with members of the Great School and during that time has received from them a definite and personal instruction, from which it may not be deemed impertinent or presumptuous to present for the thoughtful consideration of the reader the following brief and incom- plete summary : I. Its Origin. The most ancient records at this time known to man, are those of the Great School. There can be little doubt, however, that the School, in some form, long antedated its most ancient authentic records. This would seem to be true because the great fundamental principles of indi- vidual life, liberty and happiness for which it has stood throughout the ages, and for which it stands today, go back to the very infancy of the human race. From this point forward the contest between the representatives of human liberty on the one hand and those of human bondage on the other must have proceeded. This was long before the date covered by the earliest formulated records of that contest. And the Great School, being the first known associate body of men to champion the cause of human liberty, must also have been identified 44 THE GREAT WORK with the prehistoric struggle which long antedated the earliest records of that struggle. 2. Its Influence. Be that as it may, certain it is that to this Great School is clearly and distinctly traceable the original impulse of many of the organized movements of the intervening centuries, for the establishment of human liberty and the protection of human happiness. To its influence are due many of the organized protests against human bondage — physical, spiritual, intellectual and moral. From it has unceasingly emanated a powerful impulse for the recog- nition of the rights of men and women as individual intel- ligences. In it many of the most heroic, illustrious and majestic martyrs to the cause of truth and humanity have received their education and training. In truth, wher- ever the spirit of intellectual Liberty, religious Freedom, and the practice of Fraternity and Equality have gone, the genius and spirit of the Great School have pointed the way. 3. Initiation. The ceremony of initiation into the Great School is founded upon an exact science. It is the result of per- sonal experiment and personal demonstration. It was wrought out of definite personal experiences. It con- stitutes an exact scientific formula. It lays down in the .most specific terms possible a line of scientific procedure. By following this out, in both letter and spirit, the suc- cessful initiate may, in time, achieve the exalted goal of personal Mastership. What this means, in all its fulness, can never be known to any but those who have traveled the path, received the instruction, done the work, made the demonstrations, and had the personal experiences. THE LINEAL KEY 45 To others than these the most that can be given is a mere word picture. Under the most favorable conditions this can convey but an imperfect conception of the great truths of wfhich the picture itself is but an inadequate reflection. 4. Work of the Initiate. To the initiate, or student, the Great School has a definite and specific purpose in presenting this formula, namely, that he shall work it out item by item and step by step until he shall have transmuted its principles into a living personal experience. By this method only can the demonstration be made. This, primarily, involves a work of education. It may, perchance, require years of personal study and earnest eflfort. Above all, it demands of the student a specific and personal application of the principles of the formulary to the right development of his own character and the right use of his own individual powers. Whether this shall require years or only months depends upon the moral character, intelligence, courage, perseverance, application, time, place, opportunity, in- struction and other conditions which may or may not facilitate his progress. Thus, the individuality of each student is a strong determining factor in the rapidity of his progress. What one might accomplish in a year may require ten years or even twenty for another. From the foregoing it will be observed that the work of the initiate in the Great School is that of a "Builder." From the beginning to the end of his labors he is building the "Temple of Human Character." This he does upon the solid rock of enduring Truth, and "when the Temple is completed" it stands as a column of unfading "Light" to illumine the pathway of life to all who travel that way. Thus, it is a fact of the most profound and significant 46 THE GREAT WORK interest to our modern students, that the Great Ancient School is and ever has been a School of symbolic Masonry. The "Master" in that School is he who, as an "Entered Apprentice," has established his life upon the enduring foundation of Moral Principle. As a "Craftsman" he has accomplished the technical work of unfolding and awakening his spiritual consciousness and powers until he can, of his own free will and accord, demonstrate the continuity of life beyond the grave. Finally, as an accredited member of the Inner Court or "Master" of the Third Degree, he has attained to that mastery of self by the exercise of which he may, at will, temporarily withdraw from the physical body and "travel in foreign countries," free from the obstructions and hindrances of physical nature, and receive a Master's reward therefor. In view of these facts and conditions it will be observed that the Gulf of Mystery has already been spanned long ago, and that the Great School today constitutes a natural bridge — a bridge of exact science — ^between the two worlds of matter, life and intelligence. As such, it opens the way for those who are duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified, to travel the road for them- selves, independently, self-consciously, and of their own volition and choice. 5. Freemasonry. Freemasonry, in its modern form, represents but one of the many efforts of the Great Parent School to trans- mit its knowledge to the world in definite, scientific and crystallized form. Had that eflfort been entirely suc- cessful the Masonic Fraternity never would have come to be known as a mere "Speculative" Order. That is to say, our modern order of Speculative Masonry is only a THE LINEAL KEY 47 "Substitute" for the association that was originally planned and intended by the Great School of the Masters. Had the original design been fully consummated an exoteric Order of "Operative" Masons would have been the result. Its members would have become "Operative" Masons in the ancient and exalted meaning of that term. That is to say, they would have become master operators of the faculties, capacities and powers of their own souls. In that event, Freemasonry would have become a great public School of Spiritual Wisdom, in direct touch and cooperation with the Parent School from which it received its inspiration and its authority. It would have become a great educational institution wherein its mem- bers would have learned the definite fact of another life and the scientific method of its independent, rational and voluntary demonstration. All this and vastly more were included in the original plan and purpose of Freemasonry. As already indicated, however, that original plan and purpose were never fully consummated. The reasons for this are told, in figurative language and symbolic form, to every candidate who is regularly initiated, passed and raised to the sublime degree of a Master Mason in the great Speculative Order of today. He is told, for instance, that the Grand Masonic "Word" was "lost." By means of figure and symbol and allegory he is told exactly how it was lost. But what is meant by the "Word," to which the Masonic ceremonial so guardedly alludes ? If he but knew, he would have the key to one of the profound "Mysteries" of Freemasonry. It is this. The instruc- tions of the Great School could be communicated only by "word" of mouth, and to those alone who were "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified" to receive them. The "word" of direct instruction meant vastly more to the Mason of old than the mere Pass Word. 48 THE GREAT WORK To him it meant Spiritual Life and Light. By it he guided his footsteps in the Pathway of Truth. By con- forming his life to its immutable precepts he enjoyed a blessed and comforting hope of immortality. When unforeseen conditions arose which made it for the time being impossible, or at least inexpedient, to go forward with the original design, the instructions of the Great School were discontinued, or withdrawn, and hence the "Grand Masonic Word" was indeed "lost," to the exoteric order, until future ages should find it again. And so it has remained from that day to this. And so it will continue until the Masonic Fraternity shall make it possible for the Great School to restore to it the "Lost Word" of direct instruction. Can this be done? It not only can but will be done. Moreover, the prelimi- nary work to that end is already well under way. But when this shall have been accomplished the Masonic Fraternity will no longer remain a "Specula- tive" Order. For by that fact alone it will have become "Operative," and will then stand as it was originally intended to stand, namely, as the direct channel through which the Spiritual Wisdom of the ages may be given to the world. It will then have become the "Operative" Body through which the Great School will be able to pass its knowledge to all who shall prove themselves "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified, of lawful age and well recommended." For the benefit of those Master Masons who may chance to honor these pages with their thoughtful and considerate attention, it would be a matter of the most profound interest and satisfaction, to present the data at hand upon which the foregoing statements are made and sustained beyond the shadow of question or doubt. Tempting as are the theme and opportunity, however, THE LINEAL KEY 49 the scope and purpose of this present volume forbid. Subject matter of more direct and vital importance to the thread of this work demands attention. 6. Jesus, the Initiate. The life and ministry of Jesus represent another efifort of the Great School to convey its message of Light and Life to the world. To this School Jesus went for his spiritual instruction. In it he spent the years of his special preparation. From it he went forth to preach the Gospel of Peace and the Kingdom of Love. For the cause it represents he labored and sufifered and died. After his instruction and preparation for the Great Work, the manner in which he was received by his own people, who had known him as an infant and also as a youth, is alone sufificient evidence of the obstacles to be met and overcome in such a work. In the selection of his disciples he gathered about him a group of Visible Helpers. He chose for this purpose the intelligences he deemed best qualified to receive from him a personal instruction and under his direction become demonstrators of the law and teachers among their fellow men. More than once he assured them that if they but followed his instructions and were faithful to the trust he reposed in them, they, in due time, would be able to do all that they had witnessed him do, "and greater things than these." At every step along the thorny pathway of his public ministry he gave unmis- takable evidences that an essential part of his plan and mission and purpose was to educate a select group of men for the express purpose of enabling them to carry forward the Great Work after he should have finished his earthly labors. Had he remained with them until their instruction and work of preparation were com- 50 THE GREAT WORK pleted the crowning purpose of his earthly ministry would have been accomplished. For in that event his student-disciples themselves would have become "Masters of the Law." The wonderful things he had done to establish his knowledge and power, they too would have been able to do, and in addition to these the "greater things" to which he referred in his significant promise to them. In short, had their education been completed, had they finished the task of preparation for their part in the Great Work, they then would have been qualified to take their places before the world at once as teachers, exemplifiers and demonstrators of the law. Such, however, was not the case; for in this instance, as in that of Freemasonry, the untimely death of the "Master Builder" severed again the chain of purpose and compelled a modification of the original design. That which was to have become a great exoteric School of Spiritual Demonstration, again became a School of Speculative Philosophy based upon the ethical teachings of the Master. This, in turn, has undergone other modi- fications, as the centuries have passed, until a school of dogmatic theology has come into existence which has obscured still further the original purpose of the Great School. It is not within the scope and purpose of this volume to enter the field of mere discussion, nor attempt to present the complete chain of fact and evidence upon which the reader's final judgment must be rendered. But in order that he may, if he so desire, pursue a line of independent inquiry which cannot fail to supply him such material as his intelligence and reason demand, it may be permissible to suggest that the relationship of the Master, Jesus, to the Ancient School of India and of the Great School to his life and work, may be estab- THE LINEAL KEY 51 lished beyond all question by those whose interest and desire impel them to the task with sufficient intelligence, courage and perseverance to complete the search. To that end the following brief chain of data and evidence may be of helpful interest : (a) The records of the Great School contain a de- tailed history of the life of Jesus, of his education and preparation for his work in the world, and of the pur- poses to be accomplished thereby. While it is true that these records are not accessible to the general public, they are nevertheless open to those who are "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified," and who can establish the right to such a confidence. (b) The ethical teachings of the Master, in so far as they have been accurately stated in the Gospels, are identical in spirit and in principle with those of the Great School. In so far as we have a public record of his teachings during his active ministry, he was but echoing the ethical philosophy of the ages as it had been wrought out and crystallized within the secret body of the Great School of the Masters. (c) Notwithstanding the possible errors of his his- torians, the inaccuracies of translators, and the mistakes and interpolations of revisers, the Gospels themselves contain many of the most significant links in the chain of fact which binds the Master, Jesus, to the Ancient School of India. As an illustration, it will be recalled that when JesUs was born, "there came Wise Men from the East to Jerusalem," etc. Who were these "Wise Men?" And whence came they? Were they members of the Egyp- tian School of Magic, as some have claimed? And did they, therefore, come from the land of Egypt? The relative locations of Egypt and Jerusalem are, of them- l^ THE GREAT WORK selves alone, a most direct and conclusive answer to all these questions. Egypt lies to the south and west of Jerusalem. They were, therefore, not from Egypt, for they were "from the East," — from the Orient. Is it not remarkable that Biblical students have taken so little note of the most significant phase of this unusual incident? The mere fact that "Wise Men" came at all, or from any direction, at such a time, is of itself signifi- cant. For their coming is alone conclusive evidence of the remarkable fact that they were already acquainted with events leading up to the birth of Jesus, and under- stood the importance of his life and something of the nature of his mission. Why is it such evidence? Be- cause they came "to worship him." But as a key to his subsequent instruction it is far more significant that these "Wise Men" came from the East. And so it is that the Gospels themselves verify the records of the Great School wherein the "Wise Men of the East" have personally recorded their own account of the same event. Another seeming mystery which has puzzled and dis- turbed our modern students of Biblical history and for which they have found no adequate or satisfactory explanation, finds a clear, simple and complete solution to students of the Great School. In the Book of Hebrews it is recorded that Jesus was "made an High Priest forever after the Order of Melchizedek" (Heb. 6-20), thus distinguishing him from members of the priesthood of the "Order of Aaron" (Heb. 7-11). The seeming mystery is that which surrounds the identity of Melchizedek. Who was he ? And what was the priestly Order of which he was a member? When it is known that his name is familiar to members of the Great School as one of its most illustrious Grand High Priests, the Scriptural record that Jesus was made an High Priest THE LINEAL KEY 53 of the same Order dispels the mystery, and another link in the chain of relationships is completed. Yet another interesting and significant fact concerning Jesus is, that the Gospels give us a minute and vivid account of his birth, infancy and early youth, until he reaches the age of twelve years, at which time he sud- denly and mysteriously disappears from public view, and for eighteen years he remains in such absolute and impenetrable seclusion and obscurity that but one, single, indefinite and unimportant reference is made to his life during all those eighteen years. (Luke 2-52.) That he should disappear at the interesting age of twelve, just at a time when he had made such a profound impression by confounding the learned Doctors at Jerusalem, and reappear only at the age of thirty, is of itself a most remarkable incident. That he should disappear as a precocious child and reappear as a Master, is far more significant; for in this fact alone we have evidence of the most positive and conclusive character that the mys- terious and unexplained interval of eighteen years was a period of the most vital importance, in that these were the years of his preparation for a public work. But when the further fact is known that the records of the Great School contain a detailed accoimt of his life and his work as a student of the Masters during that remarkable inter- val of his preparation, another mystery is explained. In this connection it is also significant that John the Baptist immediately preceded him on his return, pro- claimed his coming in terms of the most definite and unqualified character, and in his own way endeavored to prepare the public to receive him. All this is indis- putable evidence of his absence. It also bears specific testimony to the fact that John was fully advised of his coming, that he also had definite information as to the 54 THE GREAT WORK nature of his mission and the character of the work to be inaugurated by him, and that his return was an event of unusual importance. Then again, later on in the course of his ministry, when the Master refused to tell the chief priests and scribes by what authority he came among them and per- formed such wonders, he was but following the policy of secrecy and silence in strict conformity with which the Great School has proceeded throughout the ages, and will continue to do until secrecy, silence and ob- scurity are no longer necessary to protect it from the selfish obtrusions of men. If the subject is of sufficient interest to inspire the reader to further inquiry, a thoughtful reading of the Gospels, in the light of these suggestions, will disclose to him many other evidences of a similar and corrobora- tive nature, the presentation of which in detail would require another volume. With reluctance the subject must therefore be left at this point in order that we may not lose the thread of our historic sketch. 7. Buddha, the Master. The life and ministry of Buddha represent yet an earlier effort of the Great School to open the doors of its treasure-house to a needy world. All that need be said in this connection is that no in- telligent and unbiased student, with the data of this School before him, can compare the philosophy and teachings of the Prince of India and those of the Prince of the House of David without at once recognizing their unity of spirit and purpose as well as their common lineage and identical source. Their differences are those of method only and not of substance. THE LINEAL KEY 55 8. Ancient Egypt. We come now to a department of our theme which cannot fail to ehcit the most profound interest and earnest consideration of every thoughtful student who has followed with patience the development of the sub- ject to this point — ^Ancient Egypt, the home of mag- nificence and mystery. More than ten thousand years before the dawning of the Christian era, Egypt was entering upon the period of its intellectual and spiritual ascendency. About this time the Great School, ever watchful for a propitious opportunity to convey its message of scientific knowl- edge and spiritual light to the world, believed that the hour for which it had waited and worked had indeed come. Its "Wise Men" in council assembled, after the most thoughtful consideration and prayerful delibera- tion, decided to undertake the establishment of a branch School and subsidiary headquarters near the heart of Egyptian civilization. To that end "Eliola," one of the Great Masters, was commissioned to direct the difficult undertaking. Under his personal supervision the work was undertaken and inaugurated. A School was estab- lished. Under all the ancient safeguards of secrecy and the protecting shield of obscurity its work was conducted "in due and ancient form." For more than four thou- sand years its influence was a potent factor in the evolu- tionary unfoldment of Egyptian civilization. Its wisdom and unfailing judgments became the solid foundation of governmental policies. Its science and its art became a natural basis for the loftiest ambitions, the most exalted achievements and the holiest inspirations of the soul. Its religion was the religion of Life, Light and Immor- tality. Evidences of their science, art and religion were 56 THE GREAT WORK wrought into enduring monuments which, even to this day, mark the upward pathway of Egyptian civilization and bear silent but eloquent testimony to the wisdom and the work of the Great Masters. But the tide of civilization at last reached its height. The material prosperity of a nation or a people, when it rises to a certain point, seems of itself to develop a subtle poison whose cumulative effects will, in due time, manifest themselves physiologically within the body politic. First comes the spirit of selfishness, then the desire for power, then the struggle for place, then the struggle for wealth, then the practice of dishonesty, then the oppression and suppression of the weak, then the protest of the injured, then the internecine strife, then the final struggle for existence, and in the end spiritual darkness and national death. The poison of unassimilated material prosperity was in the blood of Egypt. The spirit of selfishness took possession of her people. The struggle for position and power began. Dishonesty prevailed. Oppression and domination followed. Suffering and sorrow were every- where. The cry of the subject was unheard and unan- swered. Death had set its irrevocable seal upon the proudest of nations. Egypt died. The history of her death struggle is the tragic story of the approaching and appalling spiritual darkness which finally settled over that beautiful land of sunshine. 9. Birth of a New School. When the floodtide of Egyptian civilization had reached its height and the fatal ebb of national life began a new School was born. This new School is that which, in modern times, has come to be known and designated as the "School of Egyptian Black Magic," or the "School THE LINEAL KEY 57 of Black Art." Its votaries, filled with the spirit of selfishness, and consumed with the desire for material wealth, political preferment and power, knew that the wisdom of the Great Masters had guided the nation over the rough pathway to the summit of its splendor and power. They knew that the faith of the people in the guiding wisdom of the Great School was established. They knew, therefore, that if they could but simulate successfully the profound knowledge and powers of the Masters, they might thereby, through trickery and fraud, hope to gain control of the state. This accomplished, they could thenceforth administer its powers and its material wealth to further their own selfish and ambitious purposes. To this end they openly and shamelessly proclaimed themselves members of the Great School. To substan- tiate their claims they performed tricks of legerdemain in public places to demonstrate their magical powers. By their clever tricks, cunning simulations and subtle falsehoods they blinded the eyes of the credulous multi- tudes and forced their way into the councils of the na- tion. Carefully measuring the credulity, the innocence and artlessness of the masses, together with their awe of and reverence for the miraculous, they began to invent the beautiful, seductive and delusive fictions which later found a place in what we of today know as "Egyptian Mythology." Slowly and carefully, one by one, the fascinating mystical rites and religious cere- monials of early "Paganism" were thus invented and solemnly inaugurated. Accompanied by an artistic and beautiful ritualism they became an important part of the sensuous and idolatrous worship of the new School. Thus, upon the foundation of hypocrisy, selfishness, vanity, greed and the most deliberate falsehood, Egyptian S8 THE GREAT WORK Paganism was reared as a powerful institution of human slavery. Ignorance and superstition superseded wisdom and virtue, and the School of Egyptian Black Magic — whose offspring is Paganism — triumphed over the School of the Masters. Intellectual bondage and spiritual dark- ness succeeded intellectual liberty and spiritual light. ID. Withdrawal of the Great School. When this deplorable condition had become an estab- lished fact and the doom of the nation and its civiliza- tion had been irrevocably sealed, the Great School with- drew from Egypt, and by special edict not one of its members nor accredited students remained from whom the secret wisdom thereafter might be obtained in that country. The door of the "Temple of Light" was closed and sealed. And so it was, that the glory of a great nation departed with the wisdom and the honor of its people and the sun of its intellectual light and spiritual life went down in darkness and despair, never to rise again until the coming of a new race, a wiser people and a better religion. Egypt became "The Land of Dark- ness." And so it still remains. During the first three hundred years of the Christian Era, before the religious teachings of the Master, Jesus, had yet been counterfeited or adulterated to any consid- erable extent by the spurious doctrines and dogmas of Paganism, the Christian movement grew but slowly. Its active teachers and open advocates were few and its enemies were many and strong and bitterly hostile. Surely this was a case where a living entity was forced by the law of its being to make its struggle for life "in the midst of a hostile environment." At the dawning of the fourth century, however, its potency and influence were just beginning to make their THE LINEAL KEY 59 impress upon the countries immediately bordering the Mediterranean Sea. The two most important centers of its development and influence, at this time, were Con- stantinople and Rome. It had now become apparent to its enemies that open hostility and direct opposition could never destroy it nor permanently check its progress. It was, in truth, a living and potential reality. Although it had come into being unbidden and unwelcomed, it had come with a vitality and a growing power which nothing could withstand. II. Paganizing of Christianity. It was only when this had become a thoroughly estab- lished fact that the skilful and subtle political trickery of Paganism began to manifest its power. Since Chris- tianity could not be destroyed by persecution nor its progress arrested by open assault, there was but one alternative remaining to its enemies. They must divert it from its original purpose. By political craft and du- plicity they must convert it into an instrument of their own. They must control it through the subtle power of absorption. They must transform it by the slow and imperceptible processes of elimination and substitution. By this cunning and insidious method it must be thor- oughly Paganized, and this, too, in such a manner that the trick may not be discovered until the purpose should be fully accomplished beyond recall. This was the task set for Paganism. It was finally determined upon and undertaken as the only means of accomplishing the desired end — ^the perversion of the teachings of Jesus and the destruction of their influence. Rome was selected as the logical center of this final master-stroke and counter movement. From this center 6o THE GREAT WORK the work was carried forward. From this center it was finally accomplished. Slowly, silently, subtly and surely the process was set in motion, and never for a day thereafter did it lag or waver until the foundation of primitive Christianity in Rome was completely undermined and the Roman Church thoroughly Paganized. Although the task was one of gigantic proportions and tremendous importance, requir- ing many years of persistent and unremitting effort, nevertheless, it was finally accomplished. As a result, the Church of Rome stands today a living monument of Egyptian Paganism, with all that this implies. In spirit, in form, in essence, and in everything save an empty title, Roman Catholicism exists today as the natural off- spring and living representative of Egyptian and Roman Paganism. The importance of these unqualified statements is fully understood and appreciated. They are not rashly nor idly made. Neither are they made in the spirit of hos- tility, nor for the purpose of provoking controversy, nor with the thought of inviting or exciting the resentment of those who call themselves Roman Catholics. In truth, it would be an act of the most inordinate folly, if not one of insanity, for any man deliberately and openly to challenge the active enmity of a great inter- national organization which, according to the dictum of one of its most able advocates, "never forgets an injury nor forgives an enemy." When it is known and duly considered to what extent the Church of Rome has both the power and the disposition to punish those who incur its condemnation, such an act would appear all the more devoid of discretion and common sense. Let it be understood, therefore, that the foregoing statement of facts is inspired by no such motives. On THE LINEAL KEY 6i the contrary, it is made, primarily, because it contains important facts of history; and secondarily, because those facts constitute a necessary link in the historic chain which explains the present attitude of the various organic religious and philosophic movements and forces, in their relation to each other as well as to the two Great Parent Schools, from one or the other of which each of them is lineally descended. In other words, the present purpose is to give to the reader an intelligent, lineal key by means of which he may trace every religious or philosophic movement to its natural antecedents and determine with unerring cer- tainty to which of the two great antagonistic world- forces it belongs. With such a key in his possession he may know with accuracy whether any such movement stands for Light or Darkness, Freedom or Slavery, Evolution or Devolu- tion, Construction or Destruction. There is, indeed, such a lineal key. Not only this; it is so exceedingly clear and simple that it needs only to be stated to be understood perfectly and without effort. Its paramount value and profound importance will be recognized at once and appreciated most deeply by every student whose researches have ever brought the subject specifically within the radius of his personal inquiry. It may not be deemed wholly gratuitous, nor entirely for- eign to the subject matter and purposes of this work, to fit this important key into the lock of mystery which seems to have baffled and disheartened so many honest and intelligent searchers of the past. To that end the following data are presented, with the simple suggestion that therein may be found a simple, specific and complete solution of the interesting problem which must commend itself to every intelligent and unprejudiced inquirer. Note 62 THE GREAT WORK carefully the meaning and importance of the facts in the order of their presentation: 1. From the early dawn of civilization to the immedi- ate present, so far as we are able to determine, two active and opposing psychological forces have been and still are engaged in a seemingly irrepressible conflict over the status and legitimate^ function of individual intelligence in its relation to humanity as an aggregate organism. 2. These two great forces divided, and stand opposed to each other, upon the vital and fundamental problem of man's rights and privileges, duties and responsibilities as an individual intelligence. 3. One of these mighty psychological forces has con- stantly, unfalteringly and consistently moved forward in the direct line of man's highest individual development and largest personal liberty in his evolutionary search for individual happiness. It has fostered the spirit and encouraged the growth of constructive individuality in its deepest, broadest and fullest sense. It has given both dignity and emphasis to individual intelligence as the natural and essential basis of all human progress. Its action, at all times and under all conditions, has been in the direct line of intelligent, individual unfoldment. Its psychological results have been and are constructive in their relation to and their effects upon men and women as individualized, intelligent souls. 4. The other of these great, psychological world- forces has just as constantly, unhesitatingly and consistently moved forward in the direct line of man's suppression and subjection in his individual capacity. It has antag- onized the spirit and discouraged the idea and growth of individual liberty at every point. It has constantly minimized and depreciated individual intelligence as a factor in human progress. Its action, at all times and THE LINEAL KEY 63 under all conditions, has made for individual subordina- tion and subjection. Its results, therefore, have been throughout the past, and must ever be, destructive in their relation to and their action upon men, women and children as individualized, intelligent souls. 5. Far along the backward path of human history at a point so remote as to confuse all our unscientific ideas concerning the date of "Creation," or the birth of man, the first mentioned of these two great psychological world-forces — that which we have designated as "Con- structive" — crystallized into a definite human organiza- tion. That organization was and is the venerable Brother- hood of Ancient India, herein referred to as "The Great School," and whose modernized and adapted name is "The School of Natural Science." It is not intended nor desired to convey the impression that the Great School herein referred to is absolutely the first human organization based upon an understand- ing and acceptance of the Constructive Principle of In- telligent Individualism. On the contrary, it is quite possible, and by some may even be deemed probable, that it was and is but a crystallized emanation from some antecedent School or Movement of much more ancient origin. Be that as it may, it was and is the first organ- ized movement of its kind of which we have any con- sistent data. 6. The other of the two great world-forces — that which has been denominated the "Destructive" — was ultimately crystallized into a great and powerful organi- zation with its active center of radiation and power in Egypt. This was the School which has come to be recognized as the "School of Black Magic," or of "The Black Art," which in later form came to be known as the "School of Egyptian Paganism." 64 THE GREAT WORK This School, as hereinbefore suggested, assumed defin- ite organic form in Egypt and therein became a dominant and actively dominating power but a comparatively short time before the final withdrawal of the Great Indian School from that field. It was, in truth, the direct and immediate cause of that withdrawal. It must not be understood, however, that the great Egyptian School was the first organized expression of the destructive psychological force in human society. On the contrary, it would not only seem possible, but prob- able beyond a reasonable doubt, that it received its in- spiration from some antecedent organization of much greater antiquity. However this may be, its history and lineage backward to this point are clear and unbroken. What they may or may not be still further back in the remoter ages, is not of vital importance in this connec- tion. It is sufficient for our present purpose that this Great Egyptian Organization, in the natural course of events, itself became a progenitor, and that its living progeny is with us today in the visible form, presence and personnel of one of the most vitally active and pow- erful human organizations on earth. 7. Among the most prominent and important move- ments that are lineally descended from, and directly re- lated in principle to the Great Parent School of India, are: Freemasonry, both ancient and modern; Buddhism, in its origin and primitive character; Primitive Christianity, as exemplified by the Master, Jesus ; Protestant Christianity, in so far as this stands for a protest against the Paganizing of Primitive Christianity. 8. Among the many and various organic movements that are lineally descended from and directly related in THE LINEAL KEY 65 principle and method to the Great Parent School of Egyptian Black Magic, are: Paganism, both Egyptian and Roman ; Mohammedanism, both primitive and modern ; The Greek Church, both primitive and modern ; Roman Catholicism, in its present form. 9. As already indicated, a great and fundamental principle of human life constitutes the point of diverg- ence between the two Great Parent Schools here referred to. Indeed, nothing less vital ever could have become an issue of such transcendent importance as to inspire the segregation of humanity into two such powerful, organized, opposing forces. Moreover, perhaps the only fundamental principle of human life great enough, deep enough, broad enough and vital enough to incite human- ity to a conflict of such extraordinary proportions and of so irrepressible a nature, is the sublime principle of Individual Liberty. Suffice it to say, this is the one vital principle at the foundation of the greatest struggle the world has ever known — the Struggle for Individual Lib- erty — otherwise known and designated as the Struggle for Happiness. The two Great Parent Schools have stood throughout the centuries and stand today diametrically opposed to each other upon the basis of principle which underlies, and forms the subject matter of, this greatest of all human struggles. As might readily be anticipated, the motives which in- spire these two powerful organic forces to align them- selves on opposites sides of the Struggle for Individual Liberty are equally different in character and wholly irreconcilable. One of these has been inspired to action by the most unselfish love for humanity; the other has been moved 66 THE GREAT WORK by the spirit of human greed and the love of power. The one has exemplified the spirit of altruism ; the other that of the most inordinate egoism. The one has sought to liberate men from the bondage of ignorance, super- stition and fear; the other has cunningly played upon these infantile elements of human nature to bind them the more securely to its cause. The one has striven through the potency and influence of knowledge to break the shackles of unjust physical bondage, debasing spirit- ual domination, stultifying intellectual suppression, un- wholesome moral oppression, enervating religious de- pendence and destructive psychical subjection; the other has sought through the pliable influence of ignorance to bind these chains yet more securely about the souls of men, that it may the more easily and surely use them as the passive or willing instruments of its ambition, vanity and greed. The one has sought to accomplish its mission of emancipation by the natural unfoldment of the individual intelligence through the expansive power of a broad, liberal and non-sectarian education, until men might be able to see, understand and appreci- ate the fact that individual human liberty — physical, spiritual, intellectual, moral, religious and psychical — is an inalienable and paramount duty of every intelligent soul; the other has persistently and consistently opposed the development of any and all forms of education in- tended to liberate men's souls from the bondage of super- stition and fear — upon which alone it must depend for the successful enforcement of its assumed authority over them. The one has been impelled to its task of liberation by the unerring consciousness that a knowledge of the truth alone can ever make men free, and that they must thus be made free before they can hope to find individual happiness here and hereafter; the other, in like manner. THE LINEAL KEY 67 has been impelled to its struggle against intellectual, moral and religious liberty by the same unerring con- sciousness that such liberty, if permitted, would inevit- ably shatter its assumed authority over men and free them from its dominating power. The one points out a straight and narrow path whereby the individual who wills, may bring his life by his own personal effort, into perfect alignment with Nature's Constructive Principle, in all the departments of his being — ^the inevitable re- sults of which are the development within himself of an awakened consciousness of spiritual things and an inde- pendent, personal and scientific demonstration of the continuity of individual life; the other points out an easy, subtle and seductive way whereby the individual who will submit his life to its domination and unques- tionably abide by its authority, has the comforting assur- ance that he may thus evade the Law of Personal Re- sponsibility and shift its consequences and its burdens from his own soul to the soulless organism of which he is a member. From the foregoing statement of facts the thoughtful student will doubtless make his own analysis and draw his own conclusions. It may, perhaps, have been a mystery to him, as it has been to many another, why the Church of Rome entertains and at all times and under all conditions and circumstances expresses so deep-seated and violent a hatred against Freemasonry. In the light of the facts it will now be clearly apparent that this spirit of bitterness and hostility is an hereditary development of the ages. It springs from the very fundamental prin- ciple which constitutes the dividing line between the two Great Parent Schools from which these two modern organizations are lineally descended. While Roman Catholicism is the immediate offspring 68 THE GREAT WORK of Egyptian Paganism, Freemasonry received its creden- tials as a "Progressive School of Moral Science" from the Parent School of India. In the ancestral records are contained all there is of allegory, symbolism, mysticism and ethics in Modern Freemasonry. Even our Blue Lodge Masonic ritual of today is but a modern English adaptation of the ancient ceremonial of initiation into the "Temple of the Sacred Mysteries." From the An- cient School of Natural Science, therefore, Freemasonry received the inspiration which has made it throughout the past, and makes it today the consistent, open and ac- knowledged champion of individual human liberty and the unselfish defender of the widow, the orphan, the downtrodden and the oppressed. And so it also now can be understood why Protestant Christianity is held by the Church of Rome in the atti- tude of an hereditary enemy. This is because the Prot- estant movement represents in large measure a direct protest against Egyptian and Roman Paganism. In just so far as this is true, it stands for primitive Christianity which is a direct lineal descendant of the Parent School of India. At this point, and in this connection, it will be of both interest and value to those who have not been in position to follow the subject through other and more popular channels, to know that the Church of Rome is today en- gaged in the execution of a most carefully planned and subtle movement to Romanize the Protestant Churches. More especially is this true of the Protestant Episcopal Church of both England and America. One of the most interesting features of this movement is the significant fact that the Roman Catholic Church is employing the same subtle and destructive methods which its Paganistic pro- genitor so cleverly and successfully practiced on the THE LINEAL KEY 69 School of Primitive Christianity in Rome. That is to say, by the slow but clever and wonderfully effective processes of "elimination and substitution" it is gradually but surely converting Protestant Episcopalianism into Roman Catholicism. This work has been carried on so cleverly and so unobtrusively that doubtless there are many loyal Episcopalians who are not yet fully conscious of the existence of such a movement and would be inclined to dismiss the subject as unworthy of consideration. Not- withstanding this natural reluctance on the part of those who are not informed upon the subject, the fact remains that the process already has been carried successfully forward to such a point that the final act necessary to effect the complete absorption of the Protestant organiza- tion is being seriously considered by representatives of both bodies. Those who may, perchance, question the accuracy of these important statements should immedi- ately acquaint themselves with a work entitled "The Se- cret History of the Oxford Movement," wherein a de- tailed account of the facts may be found. An intelligent application of the lineal key of relation- ships will furnish a clear, and conclusive answer to a number of important questions which have commanded the interest and attention of students and thinkers in the related fields of religion and philosophy all over the world. It has been observed, for instance, that between Free- masonry and Protestant Christianity there plainly exists a strong and fraternal bond of sympathy and fellow- ship. This bond is so distinct and unmistakable as to suggest the existence of some possible esoteric kinship and lineal relation which might seem to be incompatible with the exoteric or outward positions of these two or- ganizations. It is a well-known fact, however, that Free- ^o THE GREAT WORK masonry is in no sense recognized as a "Religion," with- in the generally accepted meaning of that term. The limit of its own claim is that it is "a Progressive Moral Science." It is generally regarded, however, as more truly representing a "Moral Philosophy." Protestant Christianity, on the other hand, is distinc- tively a "Religion of Faith," and is based upon certain fundamental dogmas which, considered as a whole, con- stitute what we are wont to recognize as a religion or a religious creed. The questions which so often arise in this connection are concerning the exact nature and real basis of this mysterious bond of sympathy and understanding between these two great bodies, the one representing a moral philosophy and the other a religion of faith. Why is it that these two organizations go hand in hand as concomitant factors and intelligent forces in the defense of individual human liberty? Why is it that the one as a moral philosophy, and the other as a religion of faith, stand together as a unit in impeaching the au- thority of any organization or association of men, either political or ecclesiastical, that denies the right of indi- vidual thought and individual conscience as inalienable and indefeasible? The lineal key which unlocks the mystery of their common parentage furnishes a complete answer to these and many other questions of equal interest and impor- tance. It is because Freemasonry and Protestant Chris- tianity are the direct, organic, lineal descendants of the same progenitor, the "Venerable Brotherhood" of India — the Great Parent School of Individualism and Free- dom — from which they have inherited the same undying love of individual human liberty. In closing this chapter a great volume of additional THE LINEAL KEY 71 data bearing directly upon the same subject presents it- self for consideration and expression. It is of such a nature as to anticipate the numerous questions which the foregoing mere syllabus or summary of the subject will naturally suggest to those who find themselves sufficiently interested to seek further information. But further con- sideration of the theme at this time would exceed the natural limitations of this present volume and divert attention from the more central purpose herein sought to be accomplished. In due time and proper sequence, how- ever, the broader theme will be resumed in the hope of presenting the data with much greater fullness of de- tails. CHAPTER V. THE CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES." Alleged "facts" do not always prove to be real facts. Neither are real facts always demonstrable on the plane of objective physical manifestations. An illustration may help the reader to place a more accurate estimate of value on the findings of those who stand before the world as accredited representatives of the modern school of physical science. It will at the same time enable him the better to understand and ap- preciate the position of those who reserve to themselves the right to question the authority of that school in mat- ters which do not fall within the sphere of its legitimate limitations. To that end the following illustration will be of special interest and value: A. E. Dolbear, Ph. D., Professor of Physics in Tufts College, and Robert Kennedy Duncan, Professor of Chemistry in Washington and Jefferson College, are both eminent in the world of physical science. Both are recognized as authority in that school. Both are writers of unusual ability. Both have contributed valuable addi- tions to the great world's library of scientific literature. Both are entitled to respectful consideration within the field of their scientific labors. Notwithstanding all these considerations, however, it is a fact of considerable significance within the world 73 74 THE GREAT WORK of scientific thought, that these two distinguished contem- poraneous authors, scholars and professors of physical science find themselves in an irreconcilable conflict as to the very fundamental "facts" of nature upon which the authority of their school depends. Moreover, these "facts," be it remembered, are within the acknowledged field of physical nature, and are therefore clearly within the scope of their legitimate endeavors. The following brief quotations from their most recently published works, respectively, will make clear the point under con- sideration : Professor Dolbear tells us, (Matter, Ether and Mo- tion. P- 355-6), that— "The fundamental postulates of physical science are binding upon the one who understands them, for the same reason that the multiplication table is. There are no contingencies and no possi- bilities of hedging. If any erne of them could ie overthrown the whole hody of science would go with it. This is said because there are not a few who appear to think that what is called physical science may not be so certain as its advocates think, and that there may be factors which have not yet been reckoned with that may quite transform the whole scheme. Science is a con- sistent body of relations, not simply a classified body of facts. These relations have been discovered by experiment, not by deduction. Some of them are the following: "1. Physical changes affect only the condition of matter, not its quantity. One cannot create nor annihilate it,- nor can one element be changed into another." ' ' 3. The different forms of energy are transformable into each other, but the quantity of energy is not altered by the transfor- mation. "5. Every physical change has a physical antecedent, is there- fore mechanical, and is conditioned by the laws of energy." Note especially the clauses and sentences in italics. They are thus emphasized here only that attention may be called to them the more readily. Referring to these fundamental postulates of physical science, the author further says : CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 75 "They have therefore become a corporate part of the body of knowledge, and are no longer subject to any question as to their validity under any circumstances whatever. One who should chal- lenge them would no more be deserving of attention than if he should offer to prove he could square a circle. ' ' It will be observed that the last sentence is especially strong and unqualified. Coming as it does from a recog- nized physical scientist of admitted authority, it would seem to be conclusive as to the "fact" alleged. Any man of less scientific standing than Professor Dolbear would hesitate long and deliberate well before venturing to at- tack the position of such an author within his own cita- del and fortress, lest in so doing he might unwittingly relegate himself to the category of those thus labeled, "Not deserving of attention." Note carefully, however, the following from the pen of his distinguished contemporary. Professor Duncan, who says, (The New Knowledge, p. 256) : "In addition, there are certain new conceptions .which, while we can hardly say they are ascertained truths, shadow themselves as such. " It is in the realization of two of these conceptions that during the next two hundred years the great work of the world will lie. "The first is th^ transmwtability of the elements. Our reason bids us assent to its actual accomplishment, not with our aid but in spite of it, in the case of the heavy elements. In this connec- tion Sir William Bamsay's speech at the Waldorf-Astoria banquet is significant: " 'Experiments are in progress with radio-active substances the results of which seem to show that we are on the brink of dis- covering the synthesis of atoms.' " The foregoing quotations, duly considered, tell a most interesting and significant story. It is this : Here are two recognized authorities in the field of physical science. One boldly asserts, in effect, that there are certain fundamental "facts" of nature which physical science has discovered by experiment and verified by 76 THE GREAT WORK demonstration to be true beyond all possibility of ques- tion. Among these is the alleged "fact" that there can be no such thing in nature as the transmutability of the elements. So emphatic and uncompromising is he in his position as to hold that if just this one alleged "fact" could be overthrown, "the whole body of science would go with it." His distinguished contemporary, however, of equal intelligence and scientific standing, informs us that the transmutability of the elements is an accomplished "fact" in the case of the heavy elements. And he is sustained, to some extent, by another eminent scientist (Sir Wil- liam Ramsay), the peer of either. Neither of these lat- ter, however, seems to recognize the alleged "fact" of the former, that the transmutability of the elements would necessarily involve a complete overthrow of "the whole body of science." On the contrary, they would rather seem to understand that this is merely one more step forward in the line of scientific discovery, and con- stitutes a grand key which may yet unlock the door to many a seeming mystery of nature. Further indicating "The Conflict of Authorities," the reader is asked to contrast Professor Dolbear's "Funda- mental Postulate," numbered "3," on the conservation of energy, with Professor Lodge's exposition of the same subject, hereinafter quoted. In this connection it will be of special interest to the student to observe that Professor Dolbear, in his preface to the second edition of his book (Matter, Ether and Motion), completely annihilates his own "Fundamental Postulate," numbered "5," that "Every physical change has a physical antecedent, is therefore mechanical, and is conditioned by the laws of energy." For in his preface referred to, he says (page iv), "In whatever direction CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 77 one pursues physical science he is at last confronted with a physical phenomenon with a superphysical ante- cedent where all physical methods of investigation are impotent." Some of the questions which must inevitably arise in the mind of every thoughtful student, in this connection, are: Which of these "authorities" within the school of physical science is correct? How is it possible for them to differ thus radically on a question of "fact" or of "science"? In view of this unqualified contradiction, to what extent is their school a school of "exact science," or any other kind of "science" ? If it is possible for lead- ing physicists to differ thus irreconcilably upon what they are pleased to term "the fundamental postulates of physical science," to what extent are we justified in rely- ing upon them or their "science" accurately to solve for us the subsidiary problems of nature which are directly dependent upon those "fundamental postulates"? Since they cannot agree upon the very fundamentals of their own science, to what extent should we hold ourselves bound by their dictum concerning the "facts" or the "possibilities" of a science which transcends the limita- tions of their legitimate activities? These questions are suggested, not in the spirit of criticism, but in the hope of eliciting from those of that school who may be able to give them, intelligent and reasonable answers, if there be such. One more practical illustration will bring "the conflict of authorities" clearly within the subject matter and theme of this volume. It is practically agreed by the best intelligences of all schools of legitimate science that any system which fails to take into account the phenomena of "life," is by virtue of that fact necessarily inadequate. What "life" 78 THE GREAT WORK and "mind" and "consciousness" are, however, may well be regarded as constituting important factors in the great "Riddle of the Universe," if the data of science have any significance. Professor Dolbear, who assumes to speak with some authority for the school of physical science, says (p. 279): "The discovery of the conservation of energy, covering every field that has been investigated, led to the growing conviction that there are no special forces of any kind needed to explain any phenomena. What seemed probable forty years ago, to those vrho were conversant with the facts, — that vital force as an entity has no existence, and that all physiological phenomena whatever can be accounted for without going beyond the bounds of physical and chemical science, — has today become the general conclusion of all students of vital phenomena; and vital force as an entity has no advocates in the present generation of biologists. The term has completely disappeared from the science, and is only to be found in historical works; and every phenomenon which was once supposed to be due to it is now shown to be due to the physical properties of a particularly complex chemical substance known as protoplasm, which is the substance out of which all living things, animals and plants, are formed." Further quotations may serve to present his views somewhat more fully, though it is doubtful if anything he has said covers the ground any more concisely. At page 382 he also says : "Among all those who make up the great class of believers in the spiritualistic theory of physical phenomena, there is not a single physicist; that is, not one to whom one would go for an explanation of any complicated physical process." Page 393: "So there is no experimental reason for assuming the existence of incorporeal intelligences. There is no psycho- logical question that is not at the same time a physiological question. "Experimentally it appears that the association of mind with matter and energy is not of such a nature that one is at liberty to assume their dissociation, any more than one is at liberty to assume gravitation or magnetism as independent existing some- things controlling matter according to certain laws. . . . CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 79 "If such phenomena really happen at seances as are alleged, then we have to do with affairs strictly within the line of physics, whether such phenomena are so-called mental or so-called physical. ' ' He closes his remarkable book with these words : "What is here given is not intended to be a denial that such phenomena as thought-transference, or even the most surprising things such as those described in the Milan experiments, taie place. It is only intended to emphasize the probability that what- ever happens has a physical basis, and is therefore explained only when these physical relations are known." He also quotes John Fiske in support of his own posi- tion, as follows: " 'The hypothesis of a "vital principle" is now as completely discarded as the hypothesis of phlogiston in chemistry. No biologist with a reputation to lose would for a moment think of defending it.' " Wundt is also quoted on the same proposition, as fol- lows: " 'Physiology thus appears as a branch of applied physics, its problems being a reduction of vital phenomena to general physical laws and thus ultimately to the fundamental laws of mechanics. ' ' ' In an appendix, at page 400, a number of other lead- ing physicists are also quoted, seemingly in full accord with the general proposition that "life" and all its phe- nomena, in their final analysis, are referable alone to the fundamental laws of mechanics. And thus he would seem to have made out a conclusive case from the stand- point of physical science. But, after all, it is only seem- ing, for physical science has yet another story to tell. It has yet another view of the same subject to present. And strange as it may appear, this other view is the exact antithesis of that presented by Professor Dolbear, and it is presented by one of the most eminent authori- ties of the school of physical science. 8o THE GREAT WORK It will be conceded by the most enthusiastic disciple of physical Materialism that Sir Oliver Lodge, of the University of Birmingham, England, ranks in every re- spect with the most learned and substantial authorities of the school of physical science. His most recently published work is entitled "Life and Matter." In explanation of his specific purposes in writ- ing this work he says in his brief preface that — "Incidentally it attempts to confute two errors which are rather prevalent, viz. : "1. The notion that because material energy is constant in quantity, therefore its transformations and transferences — which admittedly constitute terrestrial activity — are insusceptible to guidance or directing control. "2. The idea that the specific guiding power which we call 'Life' is one of the forms of material energy; so that, directly it relinquishes its connection with matter, other equivalent forms of energy must arise to replace it. ' ' The book is specially intended to act as an antidote against the speculative and destructive portions of Professor Haeckel's interesting and widely read work (The Eiddle of the Uni- verse). . . -" In justice to Professor Lodge it is but proper to add that he has accomplished far more than the specific purposes set forth in his prefatory remarks. Indeed, his exposition of the subjects covered in his work above referred to is remarkable in that it conforms with signifi- cant accuracy to the observations of "The School of Nat- ural Science." He has unconsciously furnished a sub- stantial bridge over which members of his own School may yet advance to the position of the Higher Science. The following extracts from his admirable work are quoted with great pleasure and approval. Brief as they are they constitute a thesis of wonderful power and vital interest to those who are interested in the great problem of human life and psychic possibilities. He says : CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 8i Page 17: "Take first the conservation of energy. This gen- eralization asserts that in every complete material system, subject to any kind of internal activity, the total energy of the system does not change, but is subject merely to transference and trans- formation, and can only be increased or diminished by passing fresh energy in or out through the walls of the system. So far from this being self-evident, it requires very careful measurement and experimental proof to demonstrate the fact, for in common experience, the energy of a system left to itself continually to all appearance diminishes; yet it has been skilfully proved that when the heat and every other kind of product are collected and measured, the result can be so expressed as to show a total constancy, appertaining to a certain specially devised function called 'energy,' provided we know and are able to account for every form into which the said energy can be- transformed by the activity going on." Page 18: "But the term 'energy' itself, as used in definite sense by the physicist, rather involves a modern idea and is itself a generalization. Things as distinct from each other as light, heat, sound, rotation, vibration, elastic strain, gravitative separa- tion, electric currents, and chemical affinity, have all to be gen- eralized under the same heading, in order to make the law true. Until 'heat' was included in the list of energies, the statement could not be made; and a short time ago, it was sometimes dis- cussed whether 'life' should or should not be included in the category of energy. I should give the answer decidedly No, but some might be inclined to say Yes; and this is sufficient as an example to show that the categories of energy are not necessarily exhausted; that new forms may be discovered; and that if new forms exist, until they are discovered, the law of conservation of energy as now stated may in some eases be strictly untrue; just as it would be untrue, though partially and usefully true, in the theory of machines, if heat were unknown or ignored. ' ' Page 20: "The conservation of energy is a sufficiently legiti- mate generalization: we do not really doubt its conservation and constancy when we admit that we are not yet sure of having fully and finally exhausted the whole category of energy. What we do grant is, that it may hereafter be possible to discover new forms ; and when new forms are discovered, then either the definition may have to be modified, or else the detailed statement at present found sufficient will have to be overhauled. But after all, this is not specially important : the serioiis mistake which people are Apt to make concerning this law of energy is to imagine that it denies the possibility of guidance, control, or directing energy, whereas really it has nothing to say on these topics; it relates to amount alone. Philosophers have been far too apt to jump to the con- 82 THE GREAT WORK elusion that because energy is constant, therefore no guidance is possible, so that all psychological or other interference is pre- cluded. Physicists, however, know better," etc. Page 31: "But are we to conclude, therefore, that nothing else exists? that the existence of one thing disproves the exist- ence of others? The contention would be absurd. The category of life has not been touched in anything we have said so far; no relation has been established between life and energy, or between life and ether. The nature of life is unknown. Is life also a thing of which constancy can be asserted? When it disappears from a material environment is it knocked out of existence, or is it merely transferred to some other surroundings, becoming as difGcult to identify and recognize as are the gases of a burnt manuscript or the vapor of a vanished cloud? Is it a temporary trivial collocation associated with certain complex groupings of the atoms of matter, and resolved into nothingness when that grouping is interfered with? Or is it something immaterial and itself fundamental, something which uses these collocations of matter in order to display itself amid material surroundings, but is otherwise essentially independent of them?" Page 33: "The only answer that can by science legitimately be given at the present time is the answer given by Du Bois- Eeymond, 'Ignoramus' (we do not know). "Scientifically we do not; and for a man of science to pretend, or to assert in a popular treatise, that we do, is essentially and seriously to mislead." Page 34 : " The matter seems to me within the legitimate lines t)f scientific inquiry, and it is unwise to attempt prediction, especially negative prediction, or to attempt to close the door to the future developments of knowledge. "But I am content to say for the present that from the point of view of strict science it is not yet possible to give any positive answer to these questions; that they must await the progress of discovery. It becomes a question of some interest, therefore, how it is possible for Professor Haeckel and for others of his school to have arrived at the idea not only that a scientific answer can be given, but that already it has been given, and that they know distinctly what it is." Page 42 : " Thus, then, in order to explain life and mind and consciousness by means of matter, all that is done is to assume that matter possesses these unexplained attributes. "What the full meaning of that may be, and whether there be any philosophic justification for any such idea, is a matter on which I will not now express an opinion; but, at any rate, as it stands, it is not science, and its formulation gives no sort of conception of what life and will and consciousness really are. CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 83 "Even if it were true, it contains nothing whatever in the nature of explanation; it recognizes the inexplicable, and relegates it to the atoms, where it seems to hope that further quest may cease. Instead of tackling the difBculty where it actually occurs; instead of associating life, will, and consciousness with the organ- isms in which they are actually in experience found, these ideas are foisted into the atoms of matter; and then the properties which have been conferred on the atoms are denied in all essential reality to the fully developed organisms which these atoms help to compose! " Page 50: "The problem to be solved — and an Old-World problem indeed it is — ^is the range, and especially the nature, of the connection between mind and matter; or, let us say, between the material universe on the one hand, and the vital, the mental, the conscious, and spiritual universe or universes, on the other." Page 56: "Then, again. Professor Huxley himself, who is commonly spoken of by half-informed people as if he were a philosophic Materialist, was really nothing of the kind; . . . The following extract from the Hume volume will show, first, that he entirely repudiated Materialism as a satisfactory or complete scheme of things; and, secondly, that he profoundly disagreed with the position which now appears to be occupied by Professor Haeckel. Especially is he severe on gratuitous denials applied to provinces beyond our scope, saying that: " 'While it is the summit of human wisdom to learn the limit of our faculties, it may be wise to recollect that we have no more right to make denials, than to put forth afSrmatives, about what lies beyond that limit. Whether either mind or matter has a "substance" or not is a problem which we are incompetent to discuss; and it is just as likely that the common notions upon the subject should be correct as any other. . . . The same prin- ciples which, at first view, lead to skepticism, pursued to a certain point bring men back to common sense.' " Page 59: "Let the jubilant but uninstructed and compara- tively ignorant amateur Materialist therefore beware, and bethink himself twice or even thrice before he conceives that he under- stands the universe and is competent to pour scorn upon the intuitions and perceptions of great men in what may be to him alien regions of thought and experience. "Let him explain, if he can, what he means by his own iden- tity, or the identity of any thinking or living being, which at different times consists of a totally different set of material particles. Something there clearly is which confers personal identity and constitutes an individual; it is a property char- acteristic of every form of life, even the humblest; but it is not yet explained or understood, and it is no answer to assert gratuit- 84 THE GREAT WORK ously that there is some fundamental ' substance ' or material basis on which that identity depends, any more than it is an explana- tion to say that it depends upon a 'soul.' " Page 75: "And if a man of science seeks to dogmatize con- cerning the emotions and the will, and asserts that he can reduce them to atomic forces and motions because he has learned to recognize the undoubted truth that atomic forces and motions must accompany them and constitute the machinery of their manifestation here and now, he is exhibiting the smallness of his conceptions and gibbeting himself as a laughing-stock to future generations. ' ' Page 90: "If physical science is interrogated as to the probable persistence, i. e., the fundamental existence, of 'life,' or of 'mind,' it ought to reply that it does not know; if asked about 'personality,' or 'souls,' or 'God,' — about all of which Professor Haeckel has fully fledged opinions, — ^it would have to ask for a definition of the terms, and would speak either not at all or with bated breath concerning them. "The possibility that 'life' may be a real and basal form of existence, and therefore persistent, is a possibility to be borne in mind. It may at least serve as a clue to investigation, and some day may bear fruit; at present it is no better than a working hypothesis. It is one that on the whole commends itself to me; for I conceive that though we know of it only as a function of terrestrial matter, yet .that it has another aspect too, and I say this because I see it arriving and leaving — animating matter for a time and then quitting it, just as I see dew appearinnf and dis- appearing on a plate. ' ' Page 93: "Let us consider what are the facts scientifically known concerning the interaction between mind and matter. Fundamentally they amount to this: that a complex piece of matter, called the brain, is the organ or instrument of the mind and consciousness; that if it be stimulated, mental activity results; that if it be injured or destroyed, no manifestation of mental activity is possible. Moreover, it is assumed, and need not be doubted, that a portion of brain substance is consumed, oxidized let us say, in every act of mentation, using that term in the vaguest and most general sense, and including in it con- sciousness as well as conscious operations. "Suppose we grant all this, what then? We have granted that brain is the means whereby mind is made manifest on this material plane, it is the instrument through which alone we know it, but we have not granted that mind is limited to its material manifestation; nor can we maintain that without matter the things we call mind, intelligence, consciousness, have no sort of existence. Mind may be incorporate or incarnate in matter, but CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 85 it may also transcend it; it is through the region of ideas and the intervention of mind that we have become aware of the existence of matter. It is injudicious to discard our primary and fundamental awareness for what is, after all, an instinctive infer- ence or interpretation of certain sensations. "The realities underlying those sensations are only known to us by inference, but they have an independent existence: in their inmost nature, they may be quite other than they seem, and they are in no way dependent upon our perception of them. So, also, our actual personality may be something considerably removed from our conception of it based on our present terrestrial con- sciousness — a form of consciousness suited to, and developed by our temporary existence here, but not necessarily more than a fraction of our total self." Page 100: "The soul of a thing is its underlying, permanent reality, that which gives it its meaning and confers upon it its attributes. The body is an instrument or mechanism for the manifestation or sensible presentation of what else would be imperceptible. "Those who think that reality is limited to its terrestrial manifestation doubtless have a philosophy of their own, to which they are entitled and to which at any rate they are welcome; but if they set up to teach others that monism signifies a limitation of mind to the potentialities of matter as at present known; if they teach a pantheism which identifies God with nature in this narrow sense; if they hold that mind and what they call matter are so intimately connected that no transcendence is possible; that, without the cerebral hemispheres, consciousness and intelli- gence and emotion and love, and all the higher attributes toward which humanity is slowly advancing, would cease to be; . . . then such philosophers must be content with an audience of uneducated persons, or, if writing as men of science, must hold themselves liable to be opposed by other men of science, who are able, at any rate in their own judgment, to take a wider survey of existence, and to perceive possibilities to which the said narrow and over-definite philosophers were blind." Page 116: "I maintain that life is not a form of energy; that it is not included in our present physical categories; that its explanation is still to be sought. And I have further stated — though there I do not dogmatize — that it appears to me to belong to a separate order of existence, which interacts with this material frame of things, and, while there, exerts guidance and control on the energy which already here exists; for, though they alter the quantity of energy no whit, and though they merely utilize avail- able energy like any other machine, live things are able to direct inorganic terrestrial energy along new and special paths, so as to 86 THE GREAT WORK achieve results which without such living agency could not have occurred. ' ' Page 117: "The fact of an organism's possessing life enables it to build up material into many notable forms, — oak, eagle, man, — which material aggregates last until they are abandoned by the guiding principle, when they more or less speedily fall into decay, or become resolved into their elements, until utilized by a fresh incarnation; and hence I say that whatever life is or is not, it is certainly this: it is a guiding and controlling entity which reacts upon our world according to laws so partially known that we have to say they are practically unknown, and therefore appear in some respects mysterious." Page 119: "The view concerning life which I have endeavored to express is that it is neither matter nor energy, nor even a function of matter or of energy, but is something belonging to a different category; that by some means, at present unknown, it is able to interact with the material world for a time, but that it can also exist in some sense independently; although in that condition of existence it is by no means apprehensible by our senses. It is dependent on matter for its phenomenal appearance — for its manifestation to us here and now, and for all its terrestrial activities; but otherwise I conceive that it is inde- pendent, that its essential existence is continuous and permanent, though its interactions with matter are discontinuous and tem- porary; and I conjecture that it is subject to the law of evolution — that a linear advance is open to it — ^whether it be in its phe- nomenal or in its occult state." Page 138: "That life is something outside the scheme of mechanics — outside the categories of matter and energy; though it can nevertheless control or direct material forces — timing them and determining their place of application, — subject always to the laws of energy and all other mechanical laws; supplementing or accompanying these laws, therefore, but contradicting them no whit." Page 143: "My contention then is — and in this contention I am practically speaking for my brother physicists — ^that whereas life or mind can neither generate energy nor directly exert force, yet it can cause matter to exert force on matter, and so can exercise guidance and control; it can so prepare any scene of activity, by arranging the position of existing material, and timing the liberation of existing energy, as to produce results concordant with an idea or scheme or intention: It can, in short, 'aim' and 'fire.' " Page 146: "When a stone is rolling over a cliff, it is all the same to 'energy' whether it fall on point A or point B of the beach. But at A it shall merely dent the sand, whereas at B it shall strike a detonator and explode a mine." CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 87 Page 147: "It is intelligence that directs; it is physical energy which is directed and controlled and produces the result in time and space." Page 174: "Is it the material molecular aggregate that has of its own tmaided latent power generated this individuality, acqtiired this character, felt these emotions, evolved these ideas f There are some who try to think that it is. There are others who recognize in this extraordinary development a contact between this material frame of things and a universe higher and other than anything known to our senses; a universe not dominated by physics and chemistry, but utilizing the interactions of matter for its own purposes; a universe where the human spirit is more at home than it is among these temporary collocations of atoms; a universe capable of infinite development, of noble contempla- tion, and of lofty joy, long after this planet — nay, the whole solar system — shall have fulfilled its present sphere of destiny, and retired cold and lifeless upon its endless way." If an explanation or apology be due for the use of so much borrowed material, let it be found in the follow- ing facts: 1. These eminent men of science involved in the con- troversy as to the physical or psychical cause of physical phenomena are so well and favorably known in the great world of unscientific though enlightened and progressive thought, and they occupy positions of such commanding altitude in the school of physical science, that when they speak to the world upon subjects of vital interest to hu- manity the world is ready to pause in its onward rush and listen with profound consideration to whatsoever they may desire to say. 2. The particular theme on which they have spoken in this instance is one than which there is none more vital and none more deeply and absorbingly interesting to all mankind. For this reason it is but natural that the world should listen with rapt attention to their utter- ances and ponder well the deeper meaning and signifi- cance of their words. 3. Perhaps no writer of equal standing within the 88 THE GREAT WORK acknowledged ranks of physical science has ever shown so conclusively or so clearly as Professor Lodge has done in this truly remarkable and remarkably true work — "Life and Matter" — the almost incredible extent to which mere assumption and unscientific dogmatism make up the foundation upon which physical scientists, with few exceptions, approach the consideration of the great- est and most profound of all scientific problems — the problem of individual human life and destiny. Frankly, then, the chief purpose in quoting so liberally from these eminent physicists is so to present the con- flict within their own school on the great problem of individual life and consciousness, that the hitherto cred- ulous world may see and appreciate the unscientific na- ture of some of its work, at least, and place the responsi- bility where it justly and rightfully belongs. Once let the great confiding unscientific world come to recognize and appreciate the fact that physics is but a mere department of "Science," that it has certain natural and well-defined limitations beyond which it cannot go without either changing its name, committing a trespass, or practicing duplicity, and something of what these natural limitations are — and it will then be possible for the higher science to speak and for its words to receive a respectful hearing. As an indication of the fact that many leading physical scientists are beginning to recognize the insufficiency of physical materialism, it may be interesting to note Pro- fessor Haeckel's lament at the apostasy of many of his confreres: "This entire change of philosophical princi- ples, which we find in Wundt, as we found it in Kant, Virchow, Du Bois-Reymond, Karl Ernst Baer ^nd others, is very interesting." (The Riddle of the Uni- verse, p. 102.) CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 89 By the foregoing quotations it has been shown that leading physicists of undoubted integrity and authority do not yet agree as to what constitute "the fundamental postulates of physical science." One of these, Sir Oliver Lodge, shows in his own masterful and conclusive way that the school of physical science to which he belongs knows absolutely nothing concerning the essential nature, the inner fundamental constitution or principle of indi- vidual life, mind, will or conscience, concerning which it has dogmatized so learnedly and so recklessly. He makes clear the fact that when Professor Haeckel and other materialists presume to explain or account for these fundamentals of physical nature by means of physical matter, what they really do, and all that they do, is merely to assume that physical matter possesses these "unexplained attributes." They simply assume that all those things in nature which the Higher Science classifies under the heads of "spiritual" and "psychical," are mere "properties" of physical matter. They assume that these "properties" inhere in the individual atoms of which physical bodies and organisms are composed. To save any possible question as to the validity of their author- ity they then assume that their assumptions are scientifi- cally correct and that any one who doubts them is "un- worthy of attention." They do not prove a single one of these numerous assumptions, nor do they even so ihuch as attempt to do so. Nevertheless, Professor Lodge makes clear the fact that so learnedly and loftily do they deal with the subject as to convey to the gen- eral reader the impression that their naked assumptions have been scientifically verified, and that they now con- stitute an important part of the world's store of exact knowledge. It is this anomalous condition of things that makes 90 THE GREAT WORK difficult the position of the School of Natural Science in its efforts to command the attention of the world at large, or convey to it any adequate understanding of the nature and value of its own work. Wherever it turns it is met with the dogmatic assumptions of physical science on the one hand, and the dogmatic assertions of theology on the other, denying its authority and protest- ing against the validity or possibility of its demonstra- tions. The difficulty and misfortune of all this are not so much in the opposition itself, as in the fact that when the school of physical science speaks the world is not only ready to listen to its message but also to accept it without question, and this, too, no matter how gratuitous may be its assumptions, how unscientific its conjectures and conclusions, nor how far the subject matter of its dictum may lie out beyond the range of its legitimate authority. The world at large has thus been trained, or has trained itself, into the habit of accepting the mere assum- tions of physical science as "facts," its theories as legiti- mate conclusions or demonstrations, and its working hypotheses as "laws." This, however, must not all be charged to the account of physical science, although much of it is undoubtedly due to the fact that leading physicists fail in their writings to differentiate clearly between their mere assumptions, their theories, their working hypotheses, their facts, their conclusions and their speculations. It is equally true, however, that much of it is also due to the natural credulity of the unsci- entific multitudes whose faith in the authority of physical science has been over stimulated by the many objective evidences of the actual achievements of that school which are to be seen everywhere. This constant touch of the uneducated masses with the almost innumerable results CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 91 of science, which meet our senses at every turn, consti- tutes a natural stimulus to the untrained mind to accept without question the authority of the school to whose scientific discoveries these results are due. And thus, by a combination of conditions which are both simple and easily understood, the authority of physical science has come to be acknowledged by the untrained multitudes, not alone within the scope of its legitimate physical possibilities, but also in the finer realms of spiritual and psychical reality to which that school, as such, has not yet penetrated, and to which it is a virtual stranger. Notwithstanding all these impediments and embarrass- ments, the School of Natural Science has a message of its own to deliver to the same great world wherein physical science commands such unlimited confidence and consideration. Moreover, it is a message of exact science. It is based upon personal experiment and dem- onstration, not upon mere deduction. It has been scien- tifically verified again and again. There can be no more doubt of its truth than of the truth of any other event of nature which has been verified by human experience. But the message is not one of physical science exclus- ively. Its truth is not wholly within the realm of physical nature. Its demonstration does not lie within the range of purely physical experiment. It is, in truth, a message concerning the great problem of individual life and the continuity of conscious individual existence beyond the incident of physical death. It is concerning a life and a consciousness and an intelligence which transcend the limitations of physical matter. It is concerning a con- scious and intelligent life which does not inhere in the atoms of which physical matter is composed, a life which transcends that limited department of nature called 92 THE GREAT WORK physical and that limited department of science called physics. Already, therefore, this proposed message of Natural Science is condemned by the school of physical science (in so far as its position may be correctly represented by Professor Haeckel and his particular brand of physical materialism), even before it is uttered. It is likewise already condemned by the many patrons who follow blindly, or thoughtlessly, the dictum of such physical ma- terialism. The School of Natural Science knows all this in advance. It knows that its efforts to serve humanity will inspire ridicule from the ignorant, hostility from the fanatical, criticism from the prejudiced, incredulity from the skeptical, and confidence from only the comparatively few who are aware that there is a problem of intellectual and moral emancipation. But it knows also that the work of emancipation goes steadily forward. Those who understand fully the nat- ural limitations of physical science, as such, and are able justly to value its real work, as well as its gratuitous assumptions, are increasing in numbers constantly. Those who are not so fully awakened, but who have arrived at a thoroughly wholesome stage of doubt and inquiry (as to the ability of physical science, by physical means alone, to solve correctly the profound problems of spiritual and psychical nature), are multiplying in numbers with an ever increasing ratio. Those who, (still hungry and thirsty and unsatisfied), are turning from the lifeless dogmas of theology in search of living truths and a ra- tional religion are likewise daily increasing in num- bers. And these are they who would seem to hold just claims upon the School of Natural Science for such help as it may be able to give, in carrying forward as rapidly as CONFLICT OF "AUTHORITIES" 93 possible the work of emancipation. It is in recognition of the verity of their claims that the pages of this manu- script have been written. It is in acknowledgment of the justice of these claims that this volume is given to the public. Whatever the contribution may mean to the world — either now or in the time to come — it is made with malice toward none, with profound consideration for all, and with no hope of reward save that of an approving conscience. Let it also be remembered that there is not the least desire to minimize the real achievements of physical science, nor those of psychology, nor to limit the field of their legitimate operations. On the other hand, the pur- pose is to call attention to the suggestion that nature has consistently fixed certain well-defined limitations be- yond which, by purely physical means and methods, the school of physical science cannot go. To pass beyond those limitations and still maintain its scientific status, it must adopt methods and employ facilities which meet the demands of the new and enlarged field into which it thus advances. It must add to its physical equipment the implements necessary to enable it scientifically to carry its experiments and demonstrations into the realms of nature that are finer than the physical. Until it does this its dictum should, in justice to the cause of truth, be limited to the field of pure physics wherein alone it is qualified to speak with authority. Un- til then, its mere assumptions concerning the universe of super-physical nature should be examined with great care and judiciously discounted by all those who seek for exact and definite knowledge as to the continuity of indi- vidual life beyond the point of physical dissolution. CHAPTER VI. WHAT CONSTITUTES "SCIENTIFIC DEMON- STRATION"? More than once in the course of this work, as well as in the preceding volumes of the Series, statements are made to the effect that the results presented are "sci- entific." It is stated and reiterated that the data of the Great School are "scientific" data; that they are the re- sults of "scientific demonstration"; that Natural Science is an "exact science"; that it constitutes the natural bridge of "science" between the two worlds of matter, life, and intelligence, etc., etc. Notwithstanding these unqualified and frequently re- curring statements, and quite regardless of the deliberate manner in which they are made and the clearly manifest intent back of these several statements, there are yet those who unhesitatingly refuse to consider them as worthy of attention from the viewpoint of legitimate "science." A single illustration will serve to bring out the point more clearly: In Vol. II, at page 107, the simple and unqualified statement is made, and without apologies, that "Natural Science has demonstrated with absolute certainty the con- tinuity of life after physical death." A learned physician, resident in one of our energetic western cities, acting in the role of voluntary and self- appoi;rite^ critic, replies to this statement through the 95 96 THE GREAT WORK medium of a personal letter addressed to the author, in the following terse and vigorous language: "The author states an untruth. If he does not know better, he is ignorant. If he knows he states falsely, he is a hypocrite," etc. Both the spirit and substance of his lucid and com- prehensive criticism are truly characteristic. They ema- nate from one who assumes the self-exalted position that nature holds nothing that is even so much as temporarily or partially concealed from him. There is nothing with- in the limitations of Natural Science not already known to him. No matter what the School of Natural Science may claim to have "demonstrated," if it should fail to agree with his already published declarations it is, by reason of that fact alone, necessarily and hopelessly false. Moreover, it is the result of either gross ignorance or deliberate hypocrisy. The true value — or lack of value — of such criticism must be left for the reader to determine. In the limited world of actual science the status of all such voluntary and self-styled "scientists" and "critics" is already well determined, and in that world they are practically harm- less. They do not represent the spirit of legitimate "sci- ence." They represent only its most dogmatic and in- tolerant imitation. In the great unscientific world, how- ever, such egotists as these are unfortunately capable of creating much confusion and obscuring many helpful and important truths. It is here in this larger world, where truth is so much needed and so truly valued, that they make it necessary for us to determine with the most definite certainty possible what constitutes "scientific demonstration." For this purpose, fortunately, no more fruitful field of illustration presents itself than that of Medicine, wherein this type of critic abounds. To his "SCIENTIFIC DEMONSTRATION" 97 own field, therefore, let us turn for an answer to the fundamental and vital question at the head of this chap- ter, namely, "What constitutes scientific demonstration?" Let us assume that the learned physician, hereinbefore referred to, who denies the validity of the "demonstra- tions" of Natural Science, has a newly discovered drug. He does not yet know its nature, its potency, its physio- logical action nor its therapeutic value. He does not so much as suspect for an instant that it also has a positive and definite psychological potency. This is because he knows nothing, as yet, of the psychology of medicine. The problem which confronts him is this: How shall he proceed to test his new drug in such manner that when he is through he may be able to say to the world and to the other members of his profession, in good faith, that he has made a "scientific demonstration," and thus brought the subject matter clearly within the scope of his own absolute, personal knowledge? Suppose he should follow the method so often and so cruelly prac- ticed, of trying it on some innocent and helpless dog. By doing this and then watching the objective symptoms through a study of the dog's actions, he might, in time, and after oft-repeated experiments, arrive at a general conclusion which, from the standpoint of legitimate science, would be deemed a reasonably good guess. But the dog cannot tell him its own story, nor can it convey to him a definite and adequate understanding and ap- preciation of its own experiences. And it is these that constitute the very essence of the "demonstration" from the viewpoint of "exact science." Therefore, he dare not accept this experiment as sufficient, because it clearly fails to bring the results within the exacting limitations of "scientific demonstration." The drug may not, after all, act upon a human being in all respects precisely as it 98 THE GREAT WORK seems to act upon the dog. He must, therefore, make the experiment on some of his human patients. He must measure its action in terms of human experience. He does so, and to the best of his ability notes the objective manifestations as before. In addition to these, however, he questions his patients with all his intelligence and skill, to learn from them whatsoever he may concerning their internal feelings and experiences. From these he obtains some added information. He now assumes that he is in position to draw a more legitimate conclusion and formulate a somewhat more logical and likely guess than before. But still he is not absolutely certain of his ground, because outward symptoms are not always re- liable indices of internal conditions; and "Speech is but broken light upon the depths of the unspoken" experi- ences of the soul ; and because up to this point of experi- mentation all the information he has obtained is of a purely secondary nature. He does not yet know by a definite personal experience the exact, or "scientific" ac- tion of his new drug. How shall he finally round this difficult but indispensable point? How shall he proceed to reduce his experiment to the required basis of abso- lute personal knowledge? There is just one way, and one only. He must administer the drug to himself. He must make the final experiment upon himself. He must study the results upon and within his own organism. He must analyze the exact impressions it produces upon his own consciousness. Finally he must coordinate all these into a definite "personal experience." Then, and then only, is he in position to say to the world that he knows. Then, and then only, is he, of right, entitled to say to his professional brothers that he has, in truth, reduced the problem to the basis of "exact science," and made a "scientific demonstration." "SCIENTIFIC DEMONSTRATION" 99 Let us suppose, however, that he should take excep- tion to this ilkistration, as he very likely will, on the ground that it is too rigidly exacting. In other words, suppose he should hold, as he surely will if he is at all honest, that the "science" for which he is contending does not demand the "personal experience" as a final test of sulBciency. What then? Simply this : If that be true, then out of his own mouth he stands convicted of admitting as "scientifically demon- strated" that which the School of Natural Science would exclude from its own data for lack of "demonstration." In this event, he shows conclusively that the school of so-called "science" to which he assumes to belong is much less "exact" and far less exacting in its method of determining results and accumulating data than the Great School whose methods he would seem to condemn and whose "demonstrations" he would seem to reject as in- sufficient and therefore unscientific. For the School of Natural Science holds that wherever a "personal experi- ence" is possible nothing short of this will be accepted by it as a "scientific demonstration." All data which cannot be reduced in their final analysis to abasisof "per- sonal experience" are held by it as qualified, and subject to further and more complete verification. It is, perhaps, now in order for the vigorous Doctor to pin his imaginary enemy — ^the School of Natural Science — to the wall with a pointed question. Suppose, for instance, he should ask : What do you mean when you assert without qualifica- tion that the School of Natural Science "has demon- strated with absolute certainty the continuity of life after physical death"? Do you mean to convey the impres- sion that this is a "scientific demonstration" based upon "personal experience" ? lOO THE GREAT WORK That is exactly what is meant, nothing more, nothing less. There are no blanks to be filled in. Nothing is left to be supplied by the imagination. Mystical interpreta- tions are strictly forbidden. It is intended as a perfectly plain, unambiguous and literal statement which cannot possibly be misunderstood nor tortured into something else. Nor can it be impressed too strongly upon those who are inclined to accept the dogmatic assertions of voluntary and self-appointed critics who have not yet proven their scientific qualifications (and many of whom have personal interests to conserve). As a further and more detailed answer to the fore- going questions let it be understood that in conformity with a definite and scientific formula for an independent development of the spiritual senses and psychic powers of a physically embodied individual, each full member of the Great School has made the "scientific demonstra- tion" through a "personal experience." As a result he is able, at will, to "sense" a plane of material conditions and material things of a degree of refinement and activ- ity wholly above and beyond all that is known as physical. For want of a better and more appropriate name, they have chosen to designate this world of finer material as the "spiritual" world, or the world of "spiritual mate- rial." In it they see and recognize and communicate at will with those who have passed into that realm, through liberation from physical matter and physical limitations, in the transition we call physical death. When properly prepared, they even possess the power to withdraw vol- untarily from their physical bodies and travel independ- ently and at will in the world of spiritual nature, with all their faculties and powers awake, alert and under their own control; and they are able to return again to the physical, in perfect and conscious possession of all they "SCIENTIFIC DEMONSTRATION" loi have experienced in the realms of finer nature. It is in these and other "personal experiences" that they "dem- onstrate with absolute certainty the continuity of life after physical death." It is concerning these "scientific demonstrations" and "personal experiences" that our critic says : "The author states an untruth." Perhaps even the more courteous and considerate reader may be impelled to ask: "How do you expect those who have never had such experiences to accept your statements concerning matters of such profound importance which are so far out of the beaten path of the average human experience?" In reply to this and other questions of a similar tendency, let it be distinctly understood that neither the author nor the Great School back of him expects any- thing of the kind. Nothing could be further from their anticipations. Judging the present and the immediate future by the experiences of the past, it will be the very rare exception among men who will give credence to the statements herein contained. Fortunately for the Great School, however, it "expects" nothing from the great masses of humanity who are yet in ignorance of life's purposes and possibilities. Its effort to approach the world in this semi-public manner is not inspired by the hope of a popular reception, nor by the anticipation of a friendly, greeting from the multitudes. On the contrary, it knows full well that its message will receive a generous welcome from only the few. It is for these few alone that it is written. Limited, how- ever, as their number may be, these few need its help, can understand its purpose, appreciate its value, and will profit by it. Through them, in time, its truth will be verified again and again, and in the generations yet to I02 THE GREAT WORK come the impulse of their efforts may develop a more general response from the evolving masses. If those who are responsible for the formulation and presentation of this knowledge to the world at this time were actuated by motives of self-interest, by intellectual vanity, by the desire for popular approval, by the am- bition for political or social preferment, by greed for ma- terial gain, or by any of the ambitions or weaknesses which inspire men to court the attention and applause of the multitudes — they would cease their labors immedi- ately. For they are too wise in the wisdom of a hard and practical experience not to foresee that such motives, ambitions and desires could never find gratification nor fulfillment in such a work. If they did not possess that kind and quality of moral courage sufficient to face unflinchingly the ridicule, the derision and even the active hostility of the enemies of human progress, they would never approach the world at this time nor in this form. For it requires moral courage of no uncertain quality to stand forth and with uncovered breast receive these cruel shafts, and do it for the cause of Truth alone, without hope of other re- ward. For one in the position of the author, who possesses a natural pride of individual intelligence, of family, of na- tionality and of race, (and who has given the greater part of half a century to a definite line of scientific re- search, study and personal demonstration), to realize that his only visible reward is to see himself branded publicly and privately as a liar, a lunatic, a fraud, a fakir, in every key and with every possible variation; and this, too, by those for whom he labors ; to realize all this, and yet in the face of it all to persist in his mission of love, calls for a character and quality of courage "SCIENTIFIC DEMONSTRATION" 103 which nothing but a definite knowledge of the truth could sustain. In other words, but for an absolute knowl- edge of the truth herein contained, this work never would have been undertaken nor would it still be continued. But there is yet another class of critic than that to which the pungent physician above referred to belongs. These come from the recognized school of legitimate physical science. Whilst their objections are in some in- stances equally unreasonable, they come from a source which cannot be ignored and which demands definite and specific answers. They insist that, with them, nothing can be regarded as "scientific" which cannot be reduced to terms of phy- sical material. With them, there is no "scientific demon- stration" save that which can be brought within the limi- tations of the five physical sense channels. In a recent letter from an eminent member of that school the problem is propounded in the following definite form: "How would you proceed to demonstrate the continuity of life beyond the event we physical scientists call death, to one who possesses only his five physical senses, and with no possibility of the development within himself of any higher powers of percep- tion to appeal to?" The answer is exceedingly simple and very much less difficult than the author of the question has evidently anticipated. It is this: No attempt would be made by the School of Natural Science to "demonstrate the continuity of life" to any such individual. Why? Be- cause it would be an extravagant and fruitless waste of time and energy. In other words, no such "demonstra- tion" is possible, so far as the knowledge and abilities of this School go. There is no process known to it whereby the physical scientist may reach out into the 104 THE GREAT WORK spiritual realm with his physical tweezers, however fine, and thence pluck forth the spirit of a departed friend, however coarse, and by placing it under a physical micro- scope, however powerful, thus bring it within the limita- tions of physical vision, however keen. There is no process known to the Great School whereby such an indi- vidual might bring the spiritual body of a departed soul within the operation of physical chemistry or the physical retort or the facilities of the physical laboratory and thereby reduce it to either a condition or a form which would bring it within the limitations of the five physical sense channels. If, as the question assumes, the individual possesses "no possibility of the development within himself of any higher powers of perception to appeal to" than the purely physical, then he might far better, for both himself and the cause of science, turn his attention and his efforts to the field of purely physical nature and physical things; for therein only is he equipped to labor with any assur- ance or possibility of success. There is only one process, or one method, whereby the physical scientist will ever come to know with "scientific" certainty that there is a spiritual world and a life beyond physical death. There is but one way by which he will ever make the "scientific demonstration." That is by "the development within himself of a higher power of perception." He must admit this new element into the problem. By this method and this alone he may be able to reduce the "demonstration" to the basis of a "per- sonal experience." Then and then only will he know. But even then he will not be able to "demonstrate" his knowledge to any other member of his profession by physical means nor on the plane of physical nature. The most that he could do would be to point out the way "SCIENTIFIC DEMONSTRATION" 105 whereby he proceeded to "develop within himself the higher power of perception" which brought the spiritual universe of matter and material things within the limita- tions of his own sensibilities. This is as far as he could go. His fellow scientists would have the rest to do if they would verify the "demonstration" and make it their own. Another well known physicist, in a recent letter to the writer, considering the same general proposition, shows conclusively that he has progressed to a point far in ad- vance of the rank and file of his own school ; for he says : "It is of very great importance that the existence of foreign intelligences and their ability to communicate with us be demon- strated on the physical plane, that is, scientifically demonstrated. This would be a scientific demonstration of continued existence. "While I do not regard this as the highest form of demonstifa- tion, yet it would be a gigantic step forward out of the material- ism of today. Christ hinted at a far better and higher way when he said: 'The pure in heart shall see God'; and, 'If ye do the will of God, ye shall know whether the commandments that He taught were of God or not.' " "That is, by doing, or being, or exercising the higher powers, we develop these higher powers. Then all truth becomes self- evideneed, up to the level of that development," etc. Had he stopped with his first paragraph he would have given expression to the usual demand of his school ; for by the expression, "demonstrated on the physical plane; that is, scientifically demonstrated," he would seem to have in mind some method or process of bringing the world of spiritual matter and the spiritually embodied souls of ex-human beings, within the limitations of the five physical senses. If so, therein is his only error; for he clearly recog- nizes the fact that there is a "far better and higher way" ; and that by exercising our higher powers we develop io6 THE GREAT WORK them ; and that truth then becomes "self-evidenced up to the level of that development." His error consists in the assumption that it is possible to work out a "scientific demonstration" in any other manner or through any other process than that of a "per- sonal experience," which can follow only as the result of the personal development of a higher sense perception within himself than that of the purely physical. At this point the question might well be asked : "How about spirit materializations, so-called? Do not these bring the spirits of the departed within the field of phys- ical vision?" No better illustration could have been suggested to bring out with perfect clearness the essence of the prob- lem under consideration. What is so-called "spirit materialization" when genu- ine? It is the result of a process whereby the spiritual body of an ex-human being is invested with sufficient physical material to bring the outlines of that physical in- vestment within the limits of physical vision. The spir- itual form is "clothed upon," as it were, with sufficient physical material to bring the physical outlines within the field of physical sight. Neither the Soul, however, nor the spiritual body of the departed is thus made visible to the physical eye. These are just as far from the sight of mortal eyes as they were before the "materialization" occurred. The process of "spirit materialization" therefore, even when it is genuine, (which is very rarely the case), does not bring the spiritual world nor any of its inhabitants within the limitations of our physical sense perceptions. The only results of that process which are visible to the physical eye of man are entirely physical and not spiritual. True, the spiritual form and entity are back of the phys- "SCIENTIFIC DEMONSTRATION" 107 ical "materialization," or within it ; but these are not seen nor sensed by the physical eye. So far as known to the Great School no physical eye has ever seen a spirit, nor looked into the spiritual realms of nature, nor sensed spiritual material in any manner or form whatsoever. In the very nature of things it prob- ably never will. Nature, or God, or Universal Intelli- gence, without consulting man, so far as we know, seems to have limited the operation of the physical senses of man definitely and arbitrarily to the plane of physical matter only. In the same arbitrary and definite manner it seems to have been provided by the Great Intelligence that the spiritual organs of sense only can respond to and receive sense impressions from spiritual material in any manner or form whatsoever. With these provisions of nature clearly in mind, it is not difficult to understand that the only manner possible in which man in the physical body ever can determine with absolute certainty the existence of the world of spir- itual matter and spiritually embodied intelligences is through the channels of the spiritual senses. This means that if he would reduce the problem of another life to the basis of "scientific demonstration," he must develop within himself the power to exercise his spiritual sensory organism independently, self-consciously and voluntarily. He must turn his attention from the plane of physical nature and physical phenomena to the plane of spiritual nature and spiritual phenomena. He must learn how to make a spiritual demonstration instead of attempting to reduce the problem to the basis of physical experimenta- tion. In other words, he must find a way to open his consciousness to impressions from the plane of materi- ality upon which alone a "scientific demonstration" can ever be made. io8 THE GREAT WORK The skilled physician would laugh to scorn the most learned of mathematicians who should attempt to locate and prove the existence of a blood clot on the brain of his patient by the rules of geometry or surveying and navigation. The trained physical scientist would grow fat with laughter if he should discover an eminent meta- physician or psychologist trying to identify an emotion of the soul through the use of a microscope. The learned astronomer in his observatory on Echo Mountain, would feel a sense of profound pity for the devout minister of the Gospel who should seriously ask him so to adjust his big telescope that through it he might see and identify the personality of God. And yet, these performances are comparatively no more absurd, from the standpoint of legitimate "science," than the attempt to "demonstrate" the existence and iden^ tity of liberated spiritual intelligences through a study of physics and physical phenomena. Nevertheless, this is the identical method which the conventional physicist adopts and insists upon as the only one that will meet the demands of his own particular brand of "science," so-called. In this connection, it is a matter of significant interest to note the slowly shifting position of Spiritualists them- selves on the subject of the real value of the "physical phenomena" of Spiritualism. The best intelligences of that school are now beginning to recognize the fact that the "physical phenomena" of spiritual mediumship do not meet the legitimate require- ments of "exact science." The pending systematic hunt for fraud, (more accurately, search for a genuine materi- alizing medium), which is still agitating the organiza- tion from center to circumference, has raised in the minds of some of the oldest and abjegt advocates of phenomenal "SCIENTIFIC DEMONSTRATION" 109 mediumship serious doubts as to whether there is a single, genuine, public, materializing medium in the United States. This is the statement of one of the ablest and most influential Spiritualists of this country, and one who is in position to know as much concerning the facts, perhaps, as any other member of that school. The foundation of all this uncertainty, after more than half a century of investigation, scientific and otherwise, is in the effort to make a purely physical demonstration of an exclusively spiritual problem. It can never be ac- complished. With the utmost respect for the honesty and great abil- ity of those who are proceeding on this line of experi- mentation, as well as for those who are proceeding from the standpoint of physical science, and with genuine ad- miration for the exalted motives which impel them to their search, it is nevertheless deeply to be regretted that they must continue to plod on and on in the same fruit- less search until weary and heart sick with disappoint- ment they turn from it all in despair, and with nothing of definite "scientific" value to give to a waiting, anxious and hungry world. If they would but shift the plane of their attention from the field of physical phenomena without, to that of spir- itual and psychical activities within, they would not be long in striking the trail that would lead them into the light of a "scientific demonstration" through a definite "personal experience." How does the writer know that what he says is true? Because he has made the "demonstration" and had the "personal experience." CHAPTER VII. NATURE'S CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE. Wherever we turn in our study of physical nature, we are able to note the tangible results of two distinct proc- esses in operation. These two processes appear to our senses to be not only distinct and separate in their action but directly and unmistakably opposite in their effects. All their tangible or objective manifestations classify themselves with such unerring precision that the student of nature is able, without special training, to distinguish them with definite certainty and comparative ease. One of these processes gives objective expression to that which men of science, the world over, have been pleased to designate as "The Law of Integration." Some have named it also "The Law of Growth." Others call it "The Organic Principle." Still others name it "The Law of Affinity." It is also known as "The Law of Evo- lution." The Great School, however, has come to desig- nate it as "Nature's Constructive Principle." It matters little what name we give it, so long as we know with exactness and certainty the meaning of the name selected. To the man of science any one or more of these designations might safely be used without like- lihood of confusion, for to him they mean one and the same thing. And so it would be with the lay student or general reader, if he but knew the synonymous meaning and nature of these several expressions- The question of 111 112 THE GREAT WORK vital importance, therefore, is, what do they mean? Let us see. The process which gives objective expression of this law or principle of nature is everywhere manifest to the trained scientist in the world of physical matter. For instance : It manifests itself to the objective senses in the integration and crystallization of stone. It is evi- denced by that subtile force which integrates and binds together in solid mass the particles of iron, steel, cop- per, brass, silver, gold and other metals. It is observed in the condensation of vapors into liquids and of liquids into solids. It is demonstrated by that subtile affinity between the atoms of physical matter upon which the chemist in his laboratory bases all his chemical compounds. In truth, it is that principle in nature which impels EVERY entity TO SEEK VIBRATORY CORRESPONDENCE WITH ANOTHER LIKE ENTITY OF OPPOSITE POLARITY. In the vegetable kingdom it reveals itself in the results of that mysterious process which integrates matter into cells, cells into aggregates and aggregates into bodies which we call trees, plants, flowers, fruits and vegetables. It is discernible in the activity with which particles of earth and air and water are made to combine and flow in continuous streams into the body of the growing tree or plant. It is indeed that which manifests itself in the outward or objective expression of life, health, develop- ment and growth in all the varied forms of vegetation. In the animal kingdom its manifestations cover yet a wider range. We observe it in that which impels a sin- gle nucleated cell to grow, expand, multiply and com- bine with others of its kind into definite organs. We note its evidences in the development of these simple or- gans into living, individual, organic entities. We watch its manifestation with interest in the development of the CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE 113 animal life germ into the living infant animal, and in the growth of the infant animal to its full maturity. We add to our interest a tender solicitude and personal affec- tion as we study its manifestation in the growth and de- velopment of the infant human being from its first ap- pearance in this physical life through all the stages of its infancy, childhood, youth and maturity ; and we seem to miss it in the declining years of old age. To this point in the ascending scale of individual de- velopment we have been observing what would appear to be the outward objective expressions of a purely auto- matic process of physical nature. Mineral aggregate bod- ies, vegetables and animals come into existence, integrate, grow, unfold and mature, so far as we can determine, by the operation of a law or principle of development in nature, over which they have no control. They seem to be involuntary subjects of it. They would appear to fol- low their course of integration and growth because they respond automatically to the Constructive Principle of Nature in its manipulation of physical conditions and its impelling power over physical things. But there are yet higher manifestations of the same law or principle in operation. These rise to the more exalted plane of psychic phenomena. They constitute the indices by which we mark the constructive unfoldment and evo- lutionary development of the human soul. They measure the increasing power of human intelligence. They sig- nalize the growing refinement of moral sentiment and aesthetic taste. They evidence the increasing sensibility of human conscience. They mark the growth of human sympathy with and care for those who need. They meas- ure the increasing stature of human character. They in- dicate the evolutionary construction of psychic individ- uality. 114 THE GREAT WORK When we come to the consideration of the kingdom of Man, however, the Constructive Principle of Nature takes on a new aspect. For here it is that the Intelligent Soul of Man himself takes the initiative and becomes the in- tegrating force in what we designate as the intellectual and moral character of human society. In all the kingdoms below him the constructive forces and processes of nature appear to work automatically, as if in response to some outside controlling intelligence; but when the estate of Man is reached nature appears to shift the burden of responsibility to Man himself and leaves him to work out his own development and possi- bilities. Nature at this point "rests from her initiatory labors," as it were, and leaves her "finished product," Man, to become the independent demonstrator of this Universal Principle that makes for Integration, Unity and Permanency. What we know as the Social Organism is the result of Individual Intelligence voluntarily seeking its "affinities" under such conditions as to impel co-operation, harmony and organization. The nearer man approaches to barbarism the less co- hesion there is in his social life. The higher the intelli- gence and moral development the closer and the more enduring is the Social Organism. The integrating force in highly developed Society is the Constructive Principle of Nature working under the voluntary and intelligent guidance of the human Soul it- self. For the purpose of definition, this great fundamental law or principle of nature back of the process which in- tegrates inorganic matter, organizes vegetable and ani- mal matter into living, organic bodies, renews and sus- tains individual life, and constitutes the essential founda- CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE 115 tion of all development and growth — physical, spiritual, mental, moral and psychical — will be known and desig- nated in this work as "Nature's Constructive Principle." It will be observed that this definition carries the ef- fects of this principle far above and beyond the plane of purely physical material, into the realms of the spiritual, mental, moral and psychical in nature. To this particular and significant enlargement of its scope and meaning, spe- cial attention is directed. It is of the most vital impor- tance. Upon it, in truth, rests the central theme of this entire volume. Physical science limits its definition of nature's con- structive principle and process to the plane of purely physical matter, physical entities and physical effects. From its limited viewpoint this is both natural and scien- tifically consistent. From that viewpoint, there is no disposition nor desire to find fault with it. But there have recently come to be a few distinguished intelligences within the body of that great school who recognize the fact that their viewpoint is one which has afforded them but an exceedingly limited vision of the great broad field of nature. These few courageous pioneers have delib- erately brushed aside the dogmatism of physical material- ism and have moved out beyond its arbitrary limitations into the seemingly boundless field of Natural Science. Their action marks a new era in the evolution of physical science and gives a new and helpful impulse to the ra- tional school of psychological research. When Vol. II of this series was published it evoked unexpected attention from students and thinkers in the general field of progressive thought and psychological in- quiry. Its declarations of fact and principle are direct, unequivocal and uncompromising. Its scientific scope and purpose are evidently somewhat new to our western ii6 THE GREAT WORK world of thought in general. As might have been antici- pated, therefore, its critics were many. Not a few of them, however, betrayed evidences of uncomfortable agi- tation and a much greater depth of feeling than might reasonably have been expected from those who claim to be honest and unprejudiced. An agitated condition of the Soul due to intense feel- ing (more especially the feeling of hostility or resent- ment or bitterness), involves a state of being wherein deep and profound thought is impossible. It is there- fore but natural that those critics of the work who be- trayed the deepest intensity of hostile feeling, at the same time, and as a result thereof, revealed the least depth of thought, the most reckless disregard of the rules of logic, and the greatest lack of familiarity with the spirit and purpose of the work, as well as with the actual contents of the book itself. All this was evidenced by the symposium discussion which followed its publication, wherein some of its most unfriendly critics found it convenient to read into its pages sentiments of which its author had not even so much as dreamed, and which are wholly at variance with his clearly expressed intent. It is anticipated that a goodly number of those who have made a study of that work, and followed its un- friendly buffetings throughout the symposium discussion referred to, may, perhaps, also honor this present volume with the same thoughtful consideration. If so, it is but just to them as a partial reward for their generous pa- tience, that the author take this occasion to set his critics right upon one fundamental principle whereupon they have both misstated and misrepresented his clearly de- fined position. For instance: The sub-title of Vol. II is "The Destruc- CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE 117 tive Principle of Nature in Individual Life." The cen- tral theme of that volume is "The Subjective Psychic Process" as it is exemplified in the phenomena of hypno- tism and subjective mediumship, and one of its most im- portant purposes is to show that this process is one ex- pression of "The Destructive Principle of Nature" in operation. Some of its critics came forward with the sweeping assertion that there is no such thing in nature as a "De- structive Principle." They take the broad ground that nature as a whole represents but an infinite series of changes or transformations, through all of which noth- ing whatsoever is destroyed. They hold that all those phenomena which we have come to designate as destruc- tive manifestations are, in reality, but evidences of mu- tation and transition, and involve no element or quality of destruction whatever. They support their contention with various illustrations from physical chemistry which are oflfered as evidence to show that in all the material changes and transmutations in the realm of physical na- ture no atom nor particle of physical matter is ever lost or destroyed. Having thus stated a premise of alleged fact which no scientist will attempt to disprove, they turn to the book and point out the fact that its entire theme rests upon the assumption of a "Destructive Principle" which, in truth, nowhere exists in all nature. With a graceful flourish of the pen, a dash and a dot, they dis- miss the whole subject as unworthy of their further con- sideration, condemn the book as founded upon a fallacy, and its conclusions as therefore necessarily false. In the hands of a skilful but unscrupulous debater such a presentation of the subject could be made very effective as a means of confusing the mind of one who had never read the book, and of diverting his attention from the real ii8 THE GREAT WORK and vital point under consideration. It is a matter of regret to note that this is the most exalted use to which it has been put in the particular instances above re- ferred to. The author of that work has nowhere contended that physical matter may be annihilated. He has nowhere even so much as suggested or intimated that a single atom or eon of primordial substance has ever been or ever may be destroyed. There is in nature, however, that which integrates phys- ical matter and builds it up into individualized forms. Its purpose seems to be to construct individualities from the great unorganized mass of material substance. On the basis of its constructive results scientists have named it "The Constructive Principle of Nature." But there is also that in nature which disintegrates physical matter and tears down the individualized forms which have been built up through the constructive proc- ess. It destroys — not the matter itself — ^but the individ- ualized forms into which it has been constructed, moulded and fashioned by nature. On the basis of the results it produces, the process has been called "Destructive," and the principle back of the process has been named "The Destructive Principle of Nature." In its effects upon the "Individualities" of material form, it is the exact oppo- site of construction. The one integrates individualities of form. The other disintegrates them. The one builds up individualities. The other tears them down. The one constructs individualities. The other destroys them. From this viewpoint the one is constructive and the other de- structive. An illustration may serve to present the problem in a clearer light. Let us assume that you have just completed the con- CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE 119 struction of an ideally beautiful house for your home. From the beginning to the end it has been a work of con- struction, of integration, of building and combining the materials into definite individuality of form. When it is finished you look upon it as a beautiful individuality expressed in material form. There comes a storm. One flash of lightning, and your beautiful home is on fire. In a few short hours you see it transformed from an indi- vidualized entity called a "house" to a bed of ashes and a chaotic heap of debris called a "wreck," a "ruin." The scientific critic of the type above referred to (and there are many such), would console you with the assur- ance that "Not an atom of the material substance of which your house was composed has been destroyed. It has simply undergone a chemical transition. Fire is nothing more than a physical phenomenon which results from rapid chemical change called combustion. There is precisely the same amount of physical matter and energy in the universe there was before your house burned. Not even so much as one hypothetical corpuscle has been lost." You look at him in respectful but sad-eyed apprecia- tion of his profound knowledge and in tones of gentle timidity murmur: "But where is my house? Where is that beautiful material embodiment, that individualized concretion I called my home ?" With an air of injured scientific dignity he informs you that he was not talking of your house as an entity or in- dividuality at all. No such unscientific thought had en- tered his mind. He was considering only the hypothetical atoms of which your house was scientifically supposed to have been composed. But you are in no frame of mind to have any special interest in the mere chemistry of the subject. You have neither time nor inclination to follow the hypothetical I20 THE GREAT WORK atoms of which your house may have been composed, through their alleged transitions in the process of com- bustion. The thmg in which you are most vitally inter- ested is that individualized entity you called your house, your home, wherein you enjoyed life, liberty and the pur- suit of happiness. That beautiful individuality is gone. It is no longer in existence. It is destroyed, and that very same chemical combustion about which he has been so learnedly discoursing is the process by which its destruc- tion was accomplished. Thus it would appear that you and your scientific friend have been considering and discussing two very dif- ferent subjects. You have had in mind the concrete in- dividuality of a house, he the individual particles of material substance of which that individuality was con- structed. So far as we can demonstrate, the scientist is correct when he tells us there is no such thing as the destruc- tion of matter. We cannot disprove his assertion. Neither do we desire to do so. And if he will but lift his head from out the "dust" whereof he knows so much, and will give us his attention long enough to receive an in- telligent impression, we would be glad to assure him that we have no intention of trying to prove that matter per se has been or ever may be destroyed. But, at the same time, we know that the house, as such, was destroyed. We know that its physical individuality as a home was literally annihilated and wiped out of ex- istence. And thus, whatever may be the truth concern- ing the destructibility or indestructibility of physical mat- ter itself, we know that the individualities into which it is integrated are destructible. It would therefore appear that the problem of whether or not there is a Destructive Principle of Nature depends CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE 121 entirely upon what we are talking about when we use the term. The physical individuality of a tree or an animal is built up by the integrating or Constructive Principle and Proc- ess of nature. In time it will be torn down and disinte- grated by the Destructive Principle and Process of na- ture. The same is equally true of the physical organism of man himself. As a physical individuality he is built up by nature through the integrating or Constructive Proc- ess. As such, he may be torn down again through the disintegrating or Destructive Process. That which inte- grates and builds up the physical man is constructive in its relation to his physical individuality. That which dis- integrates and tears down the physical individual is de- structive in its relation to that individuality. The same is equally true of the spiritual, the mental and the moral man. In other words, man has a spiritual in- dividuality, a mental individuality, and a moral individ- uality, as well as a physical individuality. Moreover, these are all subject to the same general principles of in- tegration and disintegration, construction and destruction. The mental individuality of a highly intelligent man or woman is as truly a result of growth as are his physical and spiritual organisms. In other words, it is the result of unfoldment, integration and construction. The prin- ciple back of it is the Constructive Principle of Nature in Individual Life. But as the mature mental individuality is built up and is the result of Nature's Constructive Principle and Proc- ess, so also it may be torn down and destroyed by the op- eration of Nature's Destructive Principle and Process. There is not one of us but has witnessed the unmistakable verification of this fact, all too often. The insane asy- lums all over our land are sad but monumental evidences 122 THE GREAT WORK which no sane and honest man will attempt to deny. These enormous and overcrowded institutions exist only because of the mental wreckage, ruin and destruction that are going on everywhere in the midst of human society. They stand for Nature's Destructive Principle in opera- tion. In like manner, there are the wrecks and ruins of moral individualities all along the pathway of life. We have all seen them. We all admit the sad realities. They are the results of the operation of Nature's Destructive Principle within the realm of man's moral life and nature. There is another view of this subject which our esteemed critics seem to have overlooked in their eager- ness and haste to destroy Nature's Destructive Principle. It is this : The argument, (for it is nothing but an argument), on which they depend to disprove the existence of a Destruc- tive Principle, applies with equal force to prove that there is no such thing as a Constructive Principle of Nature. For, if it be true that the process we have all been desig- nating as "Destructive" is nothing but a law of "Infinite Change" in operation, then it is equally true that the antithetical process which we have been calling "Con- structive" is also but the same law of change in opera- tion. For it is true that both of these processes — Con- struction and Destruction — represent "change" from the existing conditions immediately preceding them. It is equally true, so far as we know, that neither process alters the quantity or amount of matter in the universe. It merely changes its combination and outward form or expression. In our consideration of Nature's Constructive Prin- ciple it must be understood, therefore, that the term "Con- structive" is not synonymous with "Creative." For in- CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE 123 stance — when it is stated that man's physical body is built up, integrated, renewed and sustained by the operation of Nature's Constructive Principle and Process, it is not meant that the material substance thus employed is thereby "created" and "brought into existence." On the contrary, so far as we know not a single molecule, atom or corpuscle of matter is created by the Principle and Process of Construction to which reference is made in this work. Summary. All that is here claimed for the Constructive Principle of Nature in Individual Life is that upon the plane of physical nature it takes hold, as it were, of the physical matter already in existence and integrates it, builds it up into individualities of form and sustains those individuali- ties just so long as its activity predominates over that of the Destructive Principle of Nature which tends to dis- integrate them and tear them down. On the planes of spiritual nature the Constructive Principle integrates spiritual matter, builds it up into in- dividualities of form, and in like or analogous manner renews and sustains those individualities so long as its activity predominates over that of the opposite principle of nature. On the intellectual plane the Constructive Principle of Nature builds up or constructs individualities of Intelli- gence which we are able to recognize as distinctly and identify as unmistakably as we do the individualities of physical form. In like or analogous manner it renews and sustains these individualities of Intelligence so long as its activities predominate over those of the Destructive Principle. On the ethical plane of being the Constructive Principle 124 THE GREAT WORK builds up a beautiful individuality of Moral Character. This moral individuality of man makes its impress upon our consciousness as vividly, distinctly and unmistakably as does the individuality of physical form. It is sustained only so long as the Constructive Principle of Nature in Individual Life predominates over that phase of the De- structive Principle which disintegrates, tears down, or destroys moral strength, vitality and character. But wS all know that there is also a principle in nature which, when set in motion upon the physical plane, dis- integrates our physical bodies, tears them down, destroys their individualities and resolves them back into the ele- ments from which they were built up. We also know that there is a principle or process which, when it becomes dominant in human life, tears down or destroys the indi- viduality of human intelligence. With the same unerring certainty we know that there is in nature that which, when it becomes a dominant factor in human nature, tears down, dissipates, or destroys the most beautiful individ- ualities of Moral Character. That which disintegrates, tears down, or destroys any of nature's constructive individualities, whether they be physical, spiritual, mental, moral or psychical, has been designated as "The Destructive Principle of Nature in In- dividual Life." This is the principle under consideration in Vol. II of this series, and the foregoing definition cov- ers the sense in which it is therein employed. The purpose of this present volume is to identify and elucidate the "Constructive Principle of Nature" in its re- lation to and its effects upon individual life, and point out wherein man himself may become an intelligent factor in complying with the Principle and controlling the Process in their relation to his own individual existence and well- being. CHAPTER VIII. "SPIRITUALITY," CONSTRUCTIVE AND DE- STRUCTIVE. In order that the reader may follow with ease and cer- tainty the thread of this chapter, as well as those that are to follow, the term "Spirituality," as hereinafter em- ployed, requires specific definition. For that purpose the following quotations from "Har- monics of Evolution," Vol. I, of this Series, pp. 383-4, may be helpful: "From what has already been said up to this point, it will be understood that man upon this earth plane has a threefold nature. In other words, man is a triune being, made up of three distinct elements, as follows: "(1) A physical body composed of physical matter, coarse in particle and slow in vibratory activity. "(2) A spiritual body composed of spiritual matter, fine in particle and rapid in vibratory activity. "(3) An intelligent soul which operates both of these bodies and manifests itself through them. ' ' The physical body possesses physical sensory organs, by means of which, what we term physical sensations are conveyed to the intelligent soul. "The spiritual body possesses spiritual sensory organs, by means of which, what we term spiritual sensations are conveyed to the intelligent soul. "Thus, the intelligent soul of man is equipped with the instru- ments necessary for communication with both the physical and the spiritual worlds of matter. If it does not always so com- municate, science has at least demonstrated that it possesses the necessary instruments and may do so under proper conditions. The activities of the soul, wherever they are normally manifested, 125 126 THE GREAT WORK whether in the world of physical matter or in that of spiritual matter, are intelligent in their operations. "With these facts clearly in mind, it will be understood that whenever reference is made to the physical nature of man, the term 'physical' includes the physical body with all of its sensory organs, sensations, powers, properties, activities and functions. "Whenever reference is made to the spiritual nature of man, the term 'spiritual' includes the spiritual body, with all of its sensory organs, sensations, powers, properties, activities and func- tions. "Whenever reference is made to the psychical nature of man, the term 'psychical' includes rational intelligence and all that is commonly understood by the term ' Ego ' or ' Soul '. ' ' From the foregoing it follows naturally that the term "spirit," as hereinafter employed, has reference more especially to the spiritual body of man. In other words, wherever it is used to designate an objective manifesta- tion, it has reference more especially to that finer material body or organism through which the conscious intelli- gence or soul manifests itself on the spiritual planes of materiality. This finer material body, in some instances, has been designated as the "astral body." The term "astral" would answer, perhaps, as well as any other, among those who are sufficiently familiar with it and understand its in- tended meaning. But the terms, "spirit," "spiritual body," and "spiritual organism" would seem to be some- what more in accord with our modern, Occidental habits of thought and methods of expression. That which we designate as the "spiritual world" is known to be a world of materiality and of material things, more refined, how- ever, than the world we call physical. And the spiritual body of man is one of the material things which belong in and constitute a part of that finer universe of materi- ality. The term "spirituality," however, takes on a slightly different shade of meaning. Concisely defined, it has "SPIRITUALITY" 127 REFERENCE TO A STATE OR CONDITION OF THE INTELLIGENT SOUL OF MAN, WHEREIN IT IS BROUGHT INTO CONSCIOUS AND IMMEDIATE CONTACT WITH THE WORLD OF SPIRITUAL MATERIAL AND SPIRITUAL THINGS, THROUGH THE CHAN- NELS OF THE FIVE SPIRITUAL SENSES. It is this particular definition that requires the special attention and consideration of the reader if he would un- derstand that which follows. The exact meaning it is intended to convey is of such vital importance as to war- rant the following further elucidation : Let it be understood that man in his normal condition upon the physical plane inhabits two bodies, the one com- posed of physical material and the other of spiritual ma- terial. (At this point it would be especially helpful to the reader, if he has not already done so, to read carefully Vol. I, hereinbefore referred to. Chapter III, on the sub- ject of "Life after Death Scientifically Demonstrable," pp. 33 to 57 inclusive.) Each of these two bodies has its own set of sensory or- gans, the one corresponding to the plane of physical mat- ter and the other corresponding to the plane of spiritual matter. For reasons which will be considered at length in sub- sequent chapters, most men in the physical body employ only the physical sense channels. As a natural result, in all such instances, the organs of spiritual sense fall into disuse and in time become atrophied. In that event they do not convey conscious impressions from the world of spiritual things to the intelligent soul. Just so long as this condition obtains the spiritual sensory organs, as spir- itual conductors, are practically useless to their owner. Whilst it is true that the spiritual organs of sense are all there, nevertheless they have become non-conductors to 128 THE GREAT WORK such a degree that they no longer perform their function, as channels of communication, with sufficient power or facility or independence to impress their work upon the consciousness. For all practical purposes, therefore, the intelligent soul in this condition is limited in its activities and its powers to the exercise of its physical senses only. It therefore senses only physical things. It uses only its physical instrument consciously. Its knowledge is vir- tually limited to the world of physical nature. In this state or condition the soul is not in conscious immediate contact with the spiritual world through the five spiritual senses. But there are processes in nature whereby the spiritual channels of sense may be opened again. Through these processes the non-conductors may be converted into con- ductors, and the embodied soul put into communication with the world of spiritual nature. These processes pro- duce in the embodied soul of man the condition of "spir- ituality" hereinbefore defined, wherein it is brought again into "conscious and immediate contact with the world of spiritual material and spiritual things, through the channels of the five spiritual senses." Special attention is called here to the statement that "there are processes in nature whereby the spiritual chan- nels of sense may be opened again." It will be observed that the word "processes" is plural in number. This is not by accident, nor is it a mistake. Its importance can- not well be over-estimated. For it means that there are more processes than one by which the spiritual channels of sense may be opened and the embodied soul brought into immediate contact with the world of spiritual nature and spiritual things. The full significance of this statement and of the fact it is intended to convey, will become apparent when the "SPIRITUALITY" 129 proposition is stated in another form. In other and more specific words, there are just two distinct processes known to science, and they are direct opposites. They proceed from opposite points. They move in opposite directions. They produce opposite results upon the in- dividual who is affected by them. They represent oppo- site principles of nature. They stand in every particular and at every point in direct antithesis. And yet, their effects upon the individual intelligence fall clearly within the meaning of the foregoing definition of "spirituality." All this, therefore, means that there are two distinct and diametrically opposite kinds of "spirituality," as that term is hereinbefore defined. That is to say, there are two distinct and radically different states or conditions of the physically embodied soul wherein it may be brought into "immediate contact with the world of spir- itual material and spiritual things, through the channels of the five spiritual senses." For the sake of perfect clearness, and to avoid possible confusion later on, it is necessary to find suitable and appropriate names for these two kinds of "spirituality" which will differentiate them in the mind of the reader and student. This is made easy by reason of the fact that one is the result of the Constructive Principle of Nature in its relation to the individual concerned, while the other is the result of the Destructive Principle of Nature, as these principles are hereinbefore defined and explained. Let it be understood, therefore, that the one represents "Constructive Spirituality" and the other "Destructive Spirituality," and that they will be so designated herein- after wherever it may become necessary to refer to them. Lest the reader might otherwise fall into a most com- mon and unintentional error, later on, by permitting his own definition or conception of "Spirituality" unwittingly I30 THE GREAT WORK to creep back into his mind and divert him from the real point we are to consider, it is suggested that he pause here long enough to iix the foregoing definition of the term with all its limitations firmly in mind before proceed- ing further. (To that end, it will be observed that these limitations give to the word a somewhat different meaning from that usually given it by religious teachers and authorities. While in general use the term is employed to convey a number of differing shades of meaning, perhaps the one most frequently given it is, "The state of a mind or soul turned to holy things only." This, at any rate, is the meaning of "Spirituality," as the term is employed in its religious sense. And unless otherwise defined, as in this instance, it is quite likely that the majority of readers would unwittingly give to the word some such meaning as that just suggested. But it is not the meaning given to the term by this School, nor is it so used in this work. The intention hereinbefore has been to give to the word a specific defi- nition that shall be in strict conformity with the demands of science, and thus make possible an exact and intelli- gent consideration and scientific exposition of the funda- mental principle under consideration. From the stand- point of such a definition only is it possible to make clear what is here meant by "Two Kinds of Spirituality.") The word has been so defined that by the use of the differentiating adjectives, "Constructive" and "Destruc- tive," it can be made to serve the purposes of exact science, and at the same time, it is hoped, without offense even to the most sensitive, and likewise without provid- ing undue entertainment for the industrious critic. "Constructive Spirituality" and "Destructive Spirit- uality." The concept may be new to some. The prin- "SPIRITUALITY" 131 ciple, however, is as old as human nature. For aught we know, it may even be as old as the universe. In dealing with the principle we are not wandering aimlessly in the field of speculation, nor sounding the ocean of uncer- tainty. On the other hand, we are clearly and securely within the limits of definite knowledge and exact science. In other words, science has determined that there is a process — in its essential nature destructive, as the term is herein employed — which, applied to the physically em- bodied intelligence or soul, in due time will open the channels of spiritual sensibility and thereby bring the soul, while yet thus embodied, into "immediate contact with the world of spiritual material and spiritual things." On the other hand, it has been determined with the same scientific certainty, that there is also a process — in its essential nature constructive, as the term is herein employed — which, applied to the physically embodied intelligence or soul, in due time will open the channels of the five spiritual senses and thereby bring the soul, while yet thus embodied, into "conscious and immediate con- tact with the world of spiritual material and spiritual things." The destructive process, and the principle of nature back of it, have been considered at great length and with the utmost care, in "The Great Psychological Crime," Vol. II, of this Series, to which the reader is specially referred for definite and detailed particulars. A simple illustration may serve to make clear the fundamental principle which distinguishes Constructive Spirituality from Destructive Spirituality, as these terms are herein employed. For that purpose, let us turn our attention for a moment, to the state and condition of an unhatched chicken. Perhaps there is no subject involving the pro- i$2 THE GREAT WORK found mystery of individual life and death with which mankind in general is more familiar than with the seem- ingly simple process by which an egg produces a chicken. Simple as the mere mechanics of the process may appear to be, nevertheless back of that process is concealed the great mystery of mysteries, the problem of individual life which has confounded the wisest of all times, and which still remains a mystery. The unhatched chick is shut securely within the nar- row confines of the parturient egg. The egg is, indeed, for the time being, its entire world of activity and being. The shell marks its limitations in space, and a very nar- row world indeed it would seem to be. Measured by the intelligent development of its occupant, however, it is, perhaps, comparatively no more limited or narrow than is the great physical world to the man whose conscious- ness is limited by his physical senses to the plane of phys- ical matter and physical things only. But we who are on the outside of the egg know that there is a world for the chick outside the narrow limita- tions of the restraining shell. Some of us also know that there is a world for man outside the narrow and restraining limitations of his temporary physical body. Judging from its objective manifestations, it would seem that nature has implanted within the very essence of the chick a dim or intuitive consciousness of the fact that there is a larger world for it outside the narrow confines of its tiny shell world. So there is in man an intuitive sense or consciousness of a larger world for him than that alone of which his physical senses bear witness. In its own way the infant chick is seeking contact with and knowledge of its, as yet, unseen world. So is man. We who are already on the outside know that there are two distinct processes by which the channels of im- "SPIRITUALITY" 133 mediate contact may be opened between the undeveloped chick and the world outside the limitations of its material fihell. Some of us also know with equal certainty that the same is literally true in the case of man. We all know that in the case of the chick one of these two processes is applied from without and the other from within its pres- ent limited shell world. Some of us also know that this is equally true in the case of man in the physical body. But we all know that nature has so provided in the case of the chick that only one of these two processes is constructive in its relation to and its effects upon the individuality and life of the undeveloped inhabitant. Some of us also know that nature has made the same analogous condition in the case of man himself in his relation to the larger world of spiritual nature. Those of us who are on the outside know that in the case of the chick the constructive process proceeds from within. So it does in the case of man himself. It is the process of unfoldment, development, and natural growth. In other words, it is the process of evolution in operation. Under this constructive or evolutionary process nature on the one hand, and the individual on the other, both have an important part to perform. Under this process nature performs her part and fulfils her purpose when she has supplied the chick with all the materials and made all the conditions necessary to its evolutionary unfold- ment and growth. When this has been done the burden of responsibility is thrown upon the chick and it must do the rest if it would complete the process along con- structive lines. The analogy still holds good in the case of man himself. If the chick would accomplish its part of this construc- tive process of establishing immediate contact with the outside world, it must put forth its individual effort to 134 THE GREAT WORK that end in exact conformity with nature's constructive plan of action. So must man. The chick must break the shell from within, and it must do this by its own unaided effort. So must man by his own individual effort, work- ing from within, break through the shell of physical materiality which separates him from "conscious and immediate contact with the world of spiritual nature" which lies out beyond, if he would ever demonstrate the existence of that world by the constructive process. The analogies of the destructive process are in every way equally complete. We all know that by the applica- tion of sufficient force from without we may break the shell of the unhatched chick and thereby establish imme- diate contact between it and the outside world. But we also know that this is not nature's process, and that it is destructive. It is destructive of the very life and in- dividuality of the undeveloped inhabitant. In like man- ner it has been shown in the preceding volume that this is literally and tragically true of any process whereby the spiritual sense channels of man in the physical body are forced open by other intelligences from without. As in the case of the chick, the results are destructive to the life and individuality of the undeveloped inhabitant. Those of us who have studied the problem in the light of science know that any force applied from without, which breaks the shell of an unhatched egg before the hour when the evolving chick would naturally and of its own free will and accord break it from within, is destruc- tive of the individual life and development of the inhabitant. In other words, nature has provided just one method or process, and one only, whereby the unhatched chicken may establish conscious and immediate contact with the larger outside world without violating the constructive "SPIRITUALITY" 135 principle of its own individual life and being and invit- ing self-destruction. That is the method or process of evolution, the constructive process of nature in individual life, which is the process of natural development whereby through the principle of growth and the process of inter- nal unfoldment it arrives naturally at a state or condition wherein its own individual volition becomes the motive power and its own self-directed intelligent efforts con- stitute the method of procedure. In this constructive process nature has provided that at a certain point — let us name it the "psychological moment" — the intelligent, voluntary and purposeful effort of the individual chick within becomes a vital necessity. That, in truth, is the one and only remaining factor which will complete the constructive process and bring it to its natural fruition. Suppose at this particular point, this psychological moment, when nature demands its voluntary co-opera- tion, the chick should fail to perform its individual part of the constructive process and should refuse to strike out with its tiny beak and break the shell from within; what then? Nature has provided no other means or method by which the shell may be broken at the right moment, or in exactly the right place. Neither has it provided any other method or means whereby it may be broken in the right way, namely, from within. This final, crowning and vital act of puncturing the shell must be done from within ; it must be done at just one point, and it must also be performed by the individual chick concerned in the process of liberation. There can be no proxy. In fact, nature has made no such provision, because there is no other individual on the inside of the shell on whom to shift the burden of such responsibility. This being true, if the chick should fail or refuse to respond to nature's 136 THE GREAT WORK demand upon it to put forth its individual effort in direct harmony and co-operation with the constructive principle and process of nature, there could follow but one result, namely, physical self-destruction and failure to realize its legitimate possibilities. And here also the analogy still holds good in its ap- plication to the principle and process whereby man may break the shell of his own material environment and con- ditions which binds him within the narrow sphere of his physical sense perceptions. Like the chick, he is the only inhabitant of his own physical tenement, the physical body. He is, therefore, the only individual who is in po- sition to co-operate with nature from within. As in the case of the chick, nature clearly contemplates his evolu- tionary unfoldment to a point where and when he shall, of his own free will and accord, and of his own individual effort, break the shell of physical conditions which binds him solely to the plane of physical consciousness. But this is an evolutionary process. It must, therefore, pro- ceed outward from within. It cannot proceed inward from without. It would not be an evolution if it did. Neither could it proceed from without and at the same time be an unfoldment or a development, for in their very essential nature unfoldment and development are processes which proceed from within. Nature performs her full part in the constructive proc- ess of man's spiritual illumination when she furnishes him all the materials, the means, the conditions and the plan in conformity with which he may apply to the prob- lem his own intelligence in the exercise of his own faculties, capacities and powers. Man's part in the process is therefore analogous to that of the chick, namely, he must put forth his own indi- vidual effort in conformity with nature's plan of evolu- "SPIRITVALITY" 137 tionary unfoldment. He and he alone can complete the process. He can accomplish his task in but one way. He must make the personal effort. He must do it voluntarily. He must exercise his own individual faculties, capacities and powers from within. He must co-operate with nature's constructive principle of unfoldment until by his own individual effort he removes the obstructions which close the channels of spiritual sense. When he has done this "of his own free will and accord," and not until then, will he open the door of the spiritual world by the con- structive process and in accordance with the constructive principle of his own being. Then only will he be able to control the process himself. Then only will his develop- ment be an "unfoldment." Then only will he achieve Spiritual Independence. Summary. Thus, the terms "Destructive Spirituality" and "Con- structive Spirituality" are as simply and plainly descrip- tive as it is possible by language to indicate the "Two distinct and radically different states or conditions of the physically embodied Soul wherein it may be brought into conscious and immediate contact with the world of spir- itual material and spiritual things through the channels of the five spiritual senses." One of these states or conditions is reached by the process of negation, by the surrender of individual con- sciousness, and by subjection to and control by other intelligences. The other is attained by positive assertion of the individuality, by marvelous extension of individual consciousness, by complete liberation from all possibility of psychical subjection to or control by any other intelli- gence. Destructive Spirituality is reached by surrender and 138 THE GREAT WORK subjection to the Will of another Intelligence either in or out of the physical body. The motives which impel the controlling Intelligence may be either good, bad or indif- ferent. The result, however, is the same, in that the responsibility is transferred from the one who should retain it to another who has no right to exercise it. The process is called "destructive" to the individual subject to it, because it injures the essential being or Soul and its tendency is to destroy its most valuable capacities and powers. "Constructive Spirituality" is attained by intelligent assertion of one's own rights and privileges and the dis- charge of one's own duties and responsibilities. It involves the gradual but inevitable assumption of greater and higher responsibilities under and in accordance with nature's evolutionary process and purpose. It results in the preparation of the Individual Intelligence for life on higher planes of evolution. It is called "constructive" because it builds up character and increases the capacities and powers of the essential being or Soul. CHAPTER IX. THE BASIS OF CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY In the preceding volume of this Series a certain definite principle and process of nature, together with certain definite propositions related thereto, are stated and reit- erated in as many different forms and from as many dif- ferent angles as the author has deemed necessary to make them absolutely clear to the reader and so impress them upon his mind and consciousness that he could neither misunderstand nor forget them. It was well understood in advance that, to some, this form of repetition might seem unnecessary and possibly objectionable. And so it doubtless would be to those who are already more or less familiar with the subject under consideration. But the author was and is forced to bear in mind the fact that for every one who is familiar with the subject to any considerable degree there are many hundreds or even thousands who are comparatively unfamiliar with the sub- ject of psychology in any of its many aspects. It has been and is for the benefit of these latter that the funda- mental principles and most important propositions are presented from so many different angles and viewpoints. It is for the purpose of reducing the subject to its sim- plest possible form and bringing it within the easy under- standing and ready comprehension of all classes of read- ers and students that such repetition is indulged in these works to a point which, from the mere standpoint of 139 I40 THE GREAT WORK "literature," might justly be made the subject of criticism. The results, however, in the case of Vols. I and II, have proven beyond all possible question that the judg- ment of their authors, in this regard, has been thoroughly sustained. For, notwithstanding the cunning sophistry and subtle Jesuitry employed by able but unscrupulous critics, and in the very face of their insidious attempts to prejudice these works by reading into them invidious suggestions wholly foreign to and at variance with the evident intent of their authors, they have been unable to eradicate or remove from the memory and consciousness of those who have made a study of the books, the funda- mental facts and principles thus emphasized. In defiance of the critics, there are thousands of readers and students today who recognize the fact that there is a "Destruc- tive Principle of Nature in Individual Life," as the same has been defined and elucidated in Vol II ; that the "Sub- jective Psychic Process" involved in hypnotism and mediumship, as these terms are. therein defined, is a destructive process from the standpoint of the individual subject to it; and that there is such a thing in nature as a "Great Psychological Crime," as the same is therein defined and illustrated. One of the central purposes of that volume was to get clearly and indelibly into the minds of its readers the fundamental fact that there are two distinct and definite methods or processes by which the great fact of another life than this may be scientifically demonstrated. Another purpose was to make clear the further fact that one of these two methods or processes is Constructive and the other Destructive in its relation to and its effects upon the individual subject to its action; that because of this fact, one of these, from the standpoint of Morals, is right and the other is wrong. The Subjective Psychic 142 THE GREAT WORK Every process of nature which falls within the intelli- gent comprehension of man, has a natural foundation, a scientific basis, from which it proceeds. "Constructive Spirituality" is a certain state or condition of the Intelli- gent Soul. It has been specifically defined in the pre- ceding chapter. It is the natural result of the "Con- structive Process." It is the kind of spirituality man must cultivate if he would ever reach the goal of "Mastership." All this being true, the following questions, and per- haps many others, naturally present themselves to the mind of the intelligent student : If Constructive Spirituality is the kind of spirituality involved in the Independent Method of Spiritual Self- Development, and is the only kind that can ever lead the aspiring soul to the goal of individual Mastership, on what essential thing does it depend ? What is the natural beginning-point in the process of acquiring it? In other words, has it a scientific basis ? If so, what is that basis ? What is the fundamental key upon which the student must depend for the development of Constructive Spirit- uality within himself? These questions are not only relevant but also both pertinent and material to the subject under consideration. The student who is ready for their answers has the per- fect right to ask them. Indeed, he not only has the right to ask them, but he must do so if he would prove himself ready for and entitled to their answers. They would mean little or nothing to him if he should acci- dentally stumble across the answers before he is ready to receive them. His soul must first realize its need of definite information before it is in an attitude or a con- dition to assimilate it or appropriate it to its legitimate purposes. CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 143 It is taken for granted that the reader or student who has followed the lines of thought and study through the two preceding volumes of the Series and up to this point, has done so, not out of mere curiosity, nor solely because he has been entertained or amused. It is assumed that he is honestly and earnestly in search of further knowledge and more light. It is but reasonable to assume that he is actuated by honest and worthy motives. In that event, his purpose in acquiring the knowledge of which he is in search is not alone for self-gratification, nor for other exclusively selfish ends. The purpose which is back of and which inspires his endeavors must necessarily include also the good of others. It is true with us all that at times we may find it very difficult, if not impossible, to determine in our own minds, to exactly what degree our motives are selfish, and to what degree they are unselfish or altruistic. But we can never be mistaken nor even uncertain when they are wholly selfish. An exclusively selfish act or motive is always simple and easily analyzed by the individual responsible for its existence. Whatever may be the real motive that would lead him to ask such questions as the foregoing, it is certain that their frank and unqualified answers will be of service to him in determining in his own mind to what degree the element of pure unselfishness enters into it, if at all. For that purpose, let us suppose that he has already asked these questions, and that he is ready to assume whatever responsibility their full and truthful answers may imply. On that basis he is entitled to the answers, and in receiving them he cannot evade the full measure of responsibility they carry with them. Note them care- fully and ponder them well: 144 THE GREAT WORK Does Constructive Spirituality rest upon a scientific basis? Answer: It does, emphatically. What is the scientific basis ? Answer : Morality. What is the natural beginning-point for the student who desires to develop within himself that particular kind of spirituality? Answer: The process of development begins with a study of Moral Principles. What is the next regular step in the process ? Answer : The definite practice of those principles in his daily Hfe and conduct, in good faith, and without equivocation, mental reservation, or evasion of any kind whatsoever. In other words, he Is obligated to make of his life a living exemplification of the moral principles which his reason and his conscience accept. What is the fundamental principle upon which the Independent Method of Spiritual Self-Development depends ? Again the answer is. Morality. What is the essential key to that method? Again the answer is, the exemplification of moral principles in the daily life and conduct of the individual concerned. In other words, the Practice of Morality. What is the scientific basis of "Spiritual Evolution," which alone leads onward and upward to individual "Mastership?" Once more the answer is. Morality. From the nature of these answers it becomes impres- sively apparent, even to the most casual student, that Morality is a fundamental problem which must be reck- oned with by those who elect to travel the pathway of the "Independent Method of Spiritual Self-Unfoldment," which alone, through the development of Constructive Spirituality, leads to the goal of "Mastership," Unless the individual is prepared to face this problem squarely and deal with it honestly in its scientific aspect, he is but wasting his time and energy in any further attempt to CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 145 solve the great problem of another life by the Construc- tive Process. This great and profound theorem of Morality, in truth, is the first grim "Terror at the Threshold" which con- fronts every student who would enter upon the pathway of scientific demonstration through a personal experience along Constructive lines. He cannot evade it if he would. It stands squarely in his path, and the path is too narrow for him to slip past. He must therefore grapple with it and actually dispose of it before it is possible for him to proceed further. The question to be disposed of is one which has been propounded in many and divers forms. It has com- manded the profound consideration of the best intelli- gences of all ages. In essence, however, it is one and the same problem. And in its final analysis it resolves itself into one single and seemingly simple question, namely : What is the scientific relation between Morality and Constructive Spirituality ? Another form of express- ing the same proposition would be: Does the Inde- pendent Method of Spiritual Unfoldment have any scien- tific relation to Ethics, or Ethical Principles? Or, is it possible for one who knowingly and intentionally lives a life of immorality from choice, at the same time to develop within himself that state or condition which we have hereinbefore designated as "Constructive Spirit- uality," through which alone the attainment of Master- ship is possible? In other words, can one who, know- ingly and intentionally and without compulsion, conforms his life to a course of action or a line of principle, which he knows at the time to be in deliberate violation of his Personal Responsibility, at the same time develop Independent Spiritual Powers or become a "Master?" It is not at all strange, nor should it be wondered at. 146 THE GREAT WORK that such questions as these, and many others of a kindred nature, suggest themselves to those who are but just entering the field of psychic inquiry. More especially is it but natural that such questions as these should arise in the minds of those who have not yet discovered the important fact that there are two kinds of "Spirituality," and that these are the results of two different processes which are based upon opposite principles of nature. If the reader has at any time made a study of the Subjective Psychic Process, as this is exemplified in the practice of hypnotism and mediumship, or has been even a casual observer of its objective manifestations, he has no doubt suffered the same heart-ache and the same dis- appointment which inevitably come to all who seek for the solution of the great problem of individual life and death along that specific line of psychological inquiry. For he cannot fail to have been profoundly impressed with the remarkable and significant fact that the kind of "Spirituality" developed through this particular process is wholly independent of and entirely divorced from Morality or the practice of Moral Principles. Indeed, the subject of Morals would seem to have been over- looked in the scheme for the development of Spirituality through the Subjective Psychic Process. For it is a lamentable fact with which every student sooner or later must become acquainted, that the hypnotic process does not, in the slightest degree, depend upon Morality nor the practice of Moral Principles. It is a fact with which psychological students of all schools are familiar, that the veriest rascal and most licentious rogue on earth may at the same time be a remarkable hypnotist. It is a fact equally well known to those who are at all familiar with the subject, that there are those who might justly be termed "moral degenerates," men CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 147 and women who are living their lives in conscious and intentional evasion or violation of every moral principle, who are nevertheless known to be thoroughly "devel- oped" hypnotic subjects, or spiritual mediums, through whom genuine psychic phenomena of a wide range and remarkable character may be produced. These simple observations of the facts of nature which are so patent as to be familiar to all classes of students, have led many to conclude that Morality is in no sense an essential factor of Spirituality, nor of psychic devel- opment. Nor is this conclusion illogical from the data upon which it is based. For, if there were but one kind of Spirituality, and that one kind were the result of the Subjective Psychic Process, no other logical conclusion could be possible. But those who have been in position to study the subject from the viewpoint of the Higher Science know that such is not the case. We know, with as much certainty and definite exact- ness as it is possible for individual intelligence to know any fact of nature, that the Subjective Psychic Process, in whatever form it manifests itself, whether in hypno- tism or in spiritual mediumship, as these are defined in Vol. II, does not result in psychic development nor in the constructive unfoldment of the spiritual or psychical nature of the individual who is subject to it. On the contrary, it results invariably in the suppression of the individuality and in the destruction of the individual powers of the Intelligent Soul that is subject to it. In other words, it is a Destructive Process. For this reason it is not moral and is not based upon Morality. In like manner, the fact that it is not founded upon Morality and does not depend upon the practice of Moral Prin- ciples, is the reason it is destructive in its inherent and essential nature. For it is a fact which any individual 148 THE GREAT WORK who possesses the necessary intelligence, courage and perseverance may prove, that Morality and the Practice of Moral Principles are Constructive in their relation to the spiritual and psychical natures of man. Whenever and wherever they exist in dominant ratio they produce "Constructive Spirituality" and result in an independent spiritual and psychical unfoldment and growth. The "Method" of the Great School has been wrought out in conformity with the Constructive Principle and Process of Nature in Individual Life. The primary and fundamental purpose of this method is to unfold and develop the faculties, capacities and powers of the Intel- ligent Soul to their highest constructive possibilities under the dominion and control of the individual himself and subject alone to the independent action and operation of his own Will. It will be observed that this is the exact reverse of the Subjective Psychic Process in every aspect, in purpose and intent as well as in method and application. When all this is taken into account, it is not difficult to under- stand and appreciate the fact that the relation which "Constructive Spirituality" and "Independent Develop- ment" sustain to Morality is also the exact reverse of that relation which results from the Subjective Psychic Process. In other words. Morality is nature's established foun- dation for the support of Constructive Spirituality. There is none other. It follows with the logic of science, that the development of Constructive Spirituality, upon which alone Individual Mastery is possible, has its foundation in the individual practice of Morality. What constitutes "Morality" is considered in the next chapter. This simple exposition of the subject will make clear CONSTRUCTIVE SPtRtTVALlTY 149 the meaning of the Great School when it declares in the most unmistakable terms possible that Morality is as truly and as definitely a matter of science as is chemistry, or any other of the so-called "exact sciences." And it might be added with equal emphasis, that in its applica- tion to the great problem of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment and Psychic Illumination it is just as exact, and even more exacting than Mathematics. For it has been scientifically demonstrated by the Great School throughout all the past ages of its existence, that spiritual and psychical "Illumination" in conformity with the Con- structive Principle of Nature is absolutely impossible, except to those who proceed from the basis of Moral Principle. When this simple fact of science once becomes indelibly impressed upon the individual consciousness, it throws a great flood of new light upon the problem of individual life and its possibilities. In like manner, it gives new and definite meanings to many of the sayings of the Master, Jesus, and brings them within the range of human under- standing. For instance, when he promulgated the Eighth Beatitude, "Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God," it will now be appreciated that he was talking "science." He was not merely rhapsodizing, nor indulging in mere figures of speech, as many who profess to follow him would seem to imply. For, whilst we do not know that the eye of man has ever beheld the great "God of the Universe" which Aye designate as the "Great Universal Intelligence," yet we do know that "the pure in heart" may in time, under proper instruc- tion, develop the independent power of spiritual vision by the Constructive Process, whereby at will they may penetrate the realms of spiritual material and commune with those who, by comparison, are as "Gods" to men. ISO THE GREAT WORK And we further know that their abihty ever to accom- plish this profound achievement is fundamentally due to the fact that they are "pure in heart." Long ages before the Master, Jesus, uttered those wise and significant words, the Great School, wherein he received his spiritual knowledge and training, had dem- onstrated beyond all question the scientific relation be- tween Morality and Constructive Spirituality. Its more ancient Grand Masters had scientifically proven that the only true spiritual unfoldment has its foundation alone in the Practice of Moral Principles. That one tremendous and vital fact scientifically established, and there follows but one possible conclu- sion, namely, that the beginning-point of all Constructive Spiritual Development is the study of Ethics, or Morality, and the Practice of Moral Principles. Indeed, it is only when the "Ethical Section" of the Great Work has been fully accomplished that the student is in position to know how to proceed beyond that point. For then only is it possible for him to know definitely and unmistakably the character of life he must live in order that he may thereby conform himself to the immutable demands of the Constructive Principle of Nature upon which alone true spiritual and psychical unfoldment depends. What it is hoped and intended to make clear in this connection is the fact that Constructive Spirituality and the Independent Method of Spiritual Self-Development begin with Morality, not because of any arbitrary pro- visions or dogmatic rulings of men, but simply and solely because that is the scientific basis and natural be- ginning-point of all true Spiritual Unfoldment and the natural point from which to proceed in the development of all Psychic Powers. With an ethical foundation once established in science, the problem is then resolved into CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 151 a mere question of how far the individual student shall conform his or her life to its principles. For that is the inexorable standard by which nature measures and determines individual unfoldment, development and progress beyond that point. Here we have the law of evolution in operation. It is absolute and immutable. There is no evading or avoiding it. The definite work of Constructive Unfoldment, there- fore, is not merely an intellectual diversion or employ- ment. While it is all that, it is also vastly more than that. For it is the application of moral principles to human conduct. It involves the Living of a Life in conformity with the Constructive Principle of Nature, as this has been demonstrated by the Great Masters throughout the ages, and by them unfolded to their suc- cessive students. For it is a fact which must sooner or later come to the knowledge of every student, that without this appli- cation of moral principles to individual conduct, and without the living of a life in conformity with Nature's Constructive Principle, there is no amount of "technical work" or study that is sufficient to unlock the spiritual senses and place them under the independent control of the intelligent Will of the individual. Furthermore, in order that there may be no possible ground for uncertainty as to the strictly scientific nature of Morality in its relation to Constructive Spirituality, and to make that fact so clear and so emphatic that none may fail to understand it nor fail to appreciate its vital and fundamental importance, it will be of both interest and value to the student to contemplate carefully the fol- lowing practical illustration of the law in operation. Let it be understood, in this connection, that the Great School of the Masters has wrought out and definitely 152 THE GREAT WORK formulated a crystallized system of Morals, which in common parlance might be termed a "Code of Ethics." To the regularly accepted student this is presented in the form of a sequential series of definite "problems." He is given one problem at a time, and is required to solve it himself. He must do this without the aid of anyone. This is a part of the "Independent Method." To solve the entire series may require him one year, or it may require twenty, depending entirely upon the individual. But when he has finished this preliminary section of the Great Work he has developed for himself an ethical formulary which is an expression of science that is far more exact than the most exact of our so-called "exact sciences." With this formulary thus wrought out, he has solved the great composite problem of how to live a life in such manner as to cooperate with the Constructive Principle of Nature and develop within himself the kind of Spirituality which alone constitutes the basis of Mastership. Now let us suppose that you who read these words have come to the School in the attitude of the Student. Let us suppose that you have approached the Great Work in strict conformity with all its requirements ; that you have given "the right knock," and have been duly and regularly admitted. Let us assume that you have finally completed the "Ethical Section" of the work covered by the formulary referred to; that you are living your life from day to day and from hour to hour in strict conformity with the spirit and purpose of the Great Work, and that you have finally carried the "tech- nical work" far enough to have developed within your- self the absolute power of voluntary, free and independent spiritual vision. Now let us suppose, after all this con- structive work and development have been accomplished. CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 153 that there comes to you the temptation to turn your knowledge and your powers to selfish and immoral pur- poses, or to abuse and misuse them to the intended injury of your fellow men, and that you yield to the temptation, knowingly and intentionally, and thus deliberately violate the Constructive Principle upon which your spiritual development has been accomplished ; what effect will this conscious and intentional violation of moral principle have upon your spiritual development, and what will be its effects upon your already developed spiritual powers ? Listen ! You thereby lose your spiritual develop- ment AND FORFEIT YOUR SPIRITUAL POWERS. Do not allow yourself to pass beyond this point until the full meaning and truth of the foregoing statement and of the principle of nature upon which it rests have burned themselves into the very texture of your being and registered themselves upon your wakeful conscious- ness beyond recall. You THEREBY LOSE YOUR SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT AND FORFEIT YOUR SPIRITUAL POWERS. This has been demonstrated over and over, again and again, and always with the same result. There have been no exceptions throughout all the past. There can be none. It is Nature's Law of Individual Life. It is as scientifically true as it is that an electrical engine loses its motive power when the electrical current which runs it is broken, or destroyed, or disconnected. It is as scientifically true as is the fact that an eagle soaring in the heavens will fall to the earth if it ceases to exercise the power by which it reached that exalted height. It is as scientifically true as it is that man will lose his physical health and acquired physical powers if he vio- lates the Constructive Law of his life whereby his physi- cal health and his physical powers zvere acquired. 154 THE GREAT WORK And yet, doubtless there are those who will be impelled to ask why this is so. That is to say, why is it that one who has really and truly developed within himself the power of Constructive Spiritual Vision will, or even can, lose that power if he should knowingly and intentionally abuse or misuse it, or make of it the means of deceiving, defrauding, or taking advantage of his fellows, or in any manner converting his power into a leverage for selfish gratification at the expense of others, or if he should make of it an instrument for the gratification of selfish personal ambitions or of greed for material things? To those who have followed intelligently the develop- ment of the subject to this point, the answer will be simple and clear and entirely satisfactory. It has been already anticipated. It is this: Morality is the foundation which nature has estab- lished upon which alone all Constructive Spirituality rests. All Independent Spiritual and Psychical Powers depend, primarily, solely and entirely upon the individual Practice of Moral Principles. Whatever destroys the natural foundation upon which Constructive Spirituality rests, thereby and at the same time destroys the Con- structive Spirituality which has been built upon that foundation. Whatever reverses or destroys the Practice of Moral Principles thereby and at the same time destroys the only possible source from which Spiritual Powers are or may be developed. The man or the woman who destroys the moral foun- dation upon which he or she has built up a state or condition of Constructive Spirituality, thereby at the same time, and by the same act, destroys the superstruc- ture thus erected. The individual who has developed spiritual powers through the Practice of Moral Principles, by the same CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 155 law loses and forfeits those powers the moment he destroys the basis on which they rest, that is, when he begins to practice principles which are not Moral. Expressed in yet another form, the individual who knowingly and intentionally violates the Law upon which his power depends, thereby forfeits his power. He for- feits his power because he destroys the foundation upon which it rests. In this connection, it would seem to be of pertinent interest to revert to the fact that the publication of the preceding volume of this Series not only created some- thing of a commotion in the ranks of psychological students and thinkers, but at the same time it seems to have stimulated an emotion of deep resentment in the minds of professional hypnotists, as well as representa- tive Spiritualists, public mediums and "spiritual con- trols," all over the country, and even beyond the great waters. Many unkind and discourteous things were said by these agitated and overwrought people, in public and in private, in print and from the rostrum; and many gratuitous misstatements were made concerning both the author and his work. More important than all this, however, is the fact that out of the intemperate criticism and the discussion which followed, there developed a number of important ques- tions concerning the "Subjective Psychic Process" which, for lack of time and opportunity on the part of the author, never fully have been answered. One or two of these questions would seem naturally to fall in line with the subject-matter and purpose of this particular chapter. Their answers at this point will serve the double purpose of discharging the obligation of common courtesy which the author owes to their proponents on the one hand, and of illustrating more fully and clearly, on the other, the 156 THE GREAT WORK fact that there is a fundamental and scientific difference of an essential nature between the "Subjective Psychic Process" and the "Independent Psychic Process." These questions are direct and to the point, and call for definite and unequivocal answers. The purpose and intent of the writer is to respond to them in the spirit of perfect candor and courteous consideration, and in such manner as to remove all doubt as to the principle involved. I. On what essential fact or facts does the author base his assertion to the effect that the "Subjective Psychic Process" is not founded upon Morals, nor upon the practice of Moral Principles? The answer is as follows: (a) From a psychological standpoint, the distinguish- ing difference between man and all the rounds of animal life and intelligence below him, is in the fact that man is Morally Accountable and Individually Responsible, while the animal is not. That is to say, man is bound by a higher law of life than is the animal. He is a dis- tinct factor in the "Moral Order" of the Universe, and is bound by the Moral Law. The animal is not. (b) There is a definite and scientific reason why man is a creature of the Moral Order, while the animal is not. It is because man is invested by nature with those higher distinguishing attributes of the Soul (Self- Consciousness, Reason, Independent Choice, and an Inde- pendent, Self-Conscious and Rational Volition), which alone enable him to understand and respond to the Moral Law and discharge the Moral Obligation of Personal Responsibility. The animal is not so invested. Man, therefore, is a "Moral Being," in the sense that he is charged with Moral Accountability and Personal Responsibility. CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 157 The animal is an C/w-moral being (not Im-moral) , in the sense that it is not charged with Moral Accountability nor Personal Responsibility. Man alone is capable of being /w-moral, because he alone finds it possible, knowingly and intentionally, to violate the Moral Law of his own being. Man, without the higher Soul Attributes above desig- nated, would be as un-moral as the animal. In that con- dition he could no more be im-moral than can the animal. Neither could he be Moral, any more than it is possible for the animal to be Moral. Man, possessing the higher attributes of the Soul on which Morality depends, is Morally Accountable only in just so far as he has the power and the ability to exercise those attributes consciously and voluntarily. Whatever destroys that power or deprives him of the ability to exercise those Soul Attributes, at the same time relieves him of his Moral Obligations and his accountability to the Moral Law ; and to whatever extent this is done he is reduced toward the un-moral state and condition of the animal. All this and much more, in substance, has been said in Vol. II; but its repetition or restatement here is made necessary in order that the essential point of the answer to the preceding question may be made clear and distinct. It is this : (c) The "Subjective Psychic Process," when applied to man, destroys his power and ability to exercise his Soul Attributes at will, in just so far as he is subject to that Process, at any given time. It is a Process, there- fore, which reduces him to an un-moral condition or state of being, in just so far as he is subject to its action. And this is one of the "essential facts" of nature upon which the author bases his assertion to the effect that the 158 THE GREAT WORK "Subjective Psychic Process is not founded in Morals nor upon the practice of Moral Principles." It is a Process which reduces man from a state of Moral Accountability to a state of un-moral exemption from accountability, in just so far as he is subject to its opera- tion. It cannot be founded on Morality, since the very essence of its action is [/«-Moral. 2. On what scientific ground, if any, does the author allege that hypnotism and mediumship, as these processes are defined in Vol. II, are devoid of Moral Principle? (a) The hypnotic process is a psychic process. That is to say, it is a Soul process, a process of the intelligent Soul of man. It may be set in motion by any person who possesses the necessary intelligence and will power, quite regardless of his Moral Status. In other words, it may be invoked by a criminal of the most vicious and degen- erate character as readily as by the man of high moral principles, provided he possess the necessary Intelligence and power of Will. It is, therefore, a mere matter of intellect and will-power on the part of the hypnotist and is in no way related to nor dependent upon Morality. Every hypnotist knows this. Every student of psychology who has gone beyond his alphabet is equally cognizant of the fact. The method of invoking the hypnotic process, therefore, is not Moral. It has no reference whatever to Morality. It does not in the least depend upon the prac- tice of Moral Principles. The scientific relation which the hypnotic process sus- tains to the hypnotist is very closely analogous to that which the physiological action of a poisonous drug sus- tains to the individual who administers it to another. The moral status of one who administers a deadly poison has no effect whatever upon the physiological action of the drug he administers. It will kill its subject just as CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 159 quickly and just as surely and just as dead when admin- istered by one who is moved by pity and compassion and all the most exalted moral sentiments as it will when administered by one who is actuated by malice, hatred and revenge. Its action is not dependent upon "motives." Its essential nature and destructive properties are not in the slightest degree minimized nor in any manner what- soever modified by the moral character of the individual who administers it and sets its active properties in motion. Its results are mechanical, and have no relation whatso- ever to Morality nor to the Practice of Moral Principles, (b) The relation of the hypnotic process to the hyp- notic subject is also one which is wholly independent of Morality, or the Practice of Moral Principles. For it is a fact which all students of psychology understand, that Morality, in itself alone, is not sufficient protection against the hypnotic process. In other words, the indi- vidual of high moral character, all things else being equal, may be hypnotized almost as readily as the indi- vidual of low moral character, — provided he lend him- self to the hypnotic process with the same degree of willingness, unreserve and cooperation. And when once completely subject to its domination and control he is just as helpless as the hypnotic subject of the lowest criminal or immoral type. Once fully under control, the one is just as much and as truly an automatic instrument for his hypnotist as the other. And this again shows that the hypnotic process is not, in its essential nature, a problem in Morals. It is not founded on Morality nor upon the Practice of Moral Principles, from the stand- point of either the hypnotist or the hypnotic subject. But it is anticipated that the artful critic will see, at this point, an opportunity to indulge himself in a clever sophistry which might readily deceive and mislead many i6o THE GREAT WORK an honest and intelligent student who may, perchance, be off his guard. For instance: It has been stated, (the clever critic would say "admitted"), that Morality, in itself alone, is not a sufficient protection against the hypnotic process; and that, other things being equal, a moral person may be hypnotized almost as readily as an immoral one. If this be true, then what is the virtue of Morality in its relation to the hypnotic process? In other words, if Morality is the basis of Constructive Spirituality and the principle at the foundation of Mastership, and yet does not, of itself alone, protect the individual against the hypnotic process, what then is the good of Morality, and what the virtue of being a Master ? If that be true, then why, or in what respect, is Mastership any better than Mediumship? etc. Follow the answer carefully and see if you are able to find a flaw in it : Our imaginary critic has done what so many clever but unscrupulous real critics and disputants do in order to "make a point," namely, he has quoted only a part of the statement actually made, and has omitted the very clause which contains the answering key to his questions. Here is the omitted clause. Note it carefully : "Provided he lend himself to the hypnotic process with the same degree of willingness, unreserve and cooperation." But the man of high moral character who has once learned the destructive nature of the hypnotic process, or the mediumistic process, never thereafter will submit himself to its domination so long as he possesses the power to resist it. And just so soon as he has learned that the process is destructive, he sets himself the noble task of freeing himself from its influence and at the same time acquiring the knowledge and the power whereby CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY i6i he may thereafter resist it successfully. Added to Morality, therefore, there must also be both "Intelli- gence" and "Will Power." And the office of Morality in the combination is to stimulate intelligence to make the search for the needed knowledge, and support the Will in its effort so to apply that knowledge as to accomplish the desired end, liberation. But the question comes back from our clever critic: Do you mean, then, to say that one who has become a Master under the Constructive Process and in accordance with the Independent Method of Spiritual Development, can thereafter surrender himself to the hypnotic process, if he will? Even so, and most assuredly. He would not be a Master if he could not. Mastership does not deprive men of the power of Will nor of Independent Choice. It enlarges the scope of both. He can do whatever he could do before, and many other things in addition. But would one who has attained to the degree of Master ever thereafter submit himself to the hypnotic or mediumistic process? That is another and a very differ- ent question. Observe well the answer. Although it is true that he possesses the power to do so, nevestheless he would not unless he should elect deliberately and purposely to turn backward from the pathway of Light and Life, and knowingly, intentionally and of his own free choice, enter voluntarily upon the opposite path which leads backward and downward into spiritual darkness and unto spiritual death. Has there ever been an instance of this kind? There has. But have there been many such? No. But the number has been sufficient to demonstrate one of the grandest and most profound truths of all nature, namely, that man is absolutely the arbiter of his own destiny. i62 THE GREAT WORK both here and hereafter, so far as the Great School of the Masters has been able to determine. "Mastery" would not be Mastery if it deprived man of the power of Self-Control or of any other of the facul- ties, capacities and powers of the Soul by the exercise of which he is able to do, or not do, or undo whatsoever lies within the pathway of unfoldment over which he has once traveled. An illustration may serve to bring the principle more clearly into view : An intoxicating liquor will make a moral man just as drunk as it will the veriest rascal on earth, if he will but drink enough of it. It would make a Master quite as drunk as either, provided he should drink enough of it, and then deliberately submit himself to its ordinary physiological action. It would injure the moral man quite as much, and in some respects perhaps more, than it would the rogue. It would injure the Master as much as either, and pos- sibly even more, if he should submit himself to its ordinary and unhindered action. But the moral man has the power to choose between drinking and not drinking, and if he elect to drink he has the power to drink as much liquor as he chooses. In other words, he has the power to make himself as drunk as liquor can make anyone. And he has the power to repeat the process just as often as the rogue. The Master has as much power as either; otherwise he is not a Master. He therefore has the power to drink, to become as drunk, and to repeat the process as often as either. But will he do it? Whether he does or does not is a question which none but he can answer. But suppose he should elect voluntarily to follow that course, what CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 163 then? It has now become a Moral Problem. For, once knowing the destructive nature of the process involved, if he thereafter elects to submit himself to it he thereby violates the Moral Law, which is an essential element at the foundation of his Mastership. When he does this he has destroyed the foundation upon which his Master- ship rests. Mastership without a foundation is not Mastership. All that has been said of hypnotism and of the hypnotic process is equally true and might justly be said of mediumship and the mediumistic process. Indeed, it might justly be said with added emphasis. One of the most incongruous and at the same time pathetic and depressing spectacles with which the student of phenomenal Spiritualism is familiar, is that of a medium in a state and condition of absolute trance sub- jection and "control," delivering a public lecture or address on the inspiring theme of "Mastership," to a large audience of mature men and women who believe themselves to be not only sane but intelligent, and who are commonly so reputed to be. Some years ago the writer was privileged to witness just such a spectacle. The lecture itself was indeed beautiful and contained many wise sayings and sugges- tions. It dwelt especially on the vital necessity for the cultivation and establishment of "Self-Control," and the Practice of Moral Principles as the basis of true "Mastership." The medium was a frail, delicate, negative rnd effemi- nate little man, as far from the representation or exempli- fication of Mastership as might readily be imagined. In consonance with his general expression was the fact that instead of being "Self-Controlled," he was, throughout the entire lecture, in a state of complete "trance control." i64 THE GREAT WORK He was entirely unconscious of every word his lips uttered, and wholly oblivious to the thoughts and senti- ments to which his vocal organs had given expression. His listeners knew all this, or had evidence sufficient to justify their acceptance of it; and yet not two dozen out of his entire audience of over four hundred intelligent people seemed to notice the utter absurdity of the per- formance. On the contrary, they listened with rapt attention, drank in every word the speaker uttered, seem- ingly approved every sentiment expressed in advocacy of "Mastership," and went away profoundly impressed with the marvelous fact (for such exhibitions are marvelous) that such sentiments of wisdom should have come from the lips of one in a state of utter helplessness and complete unconsciousness. Had the speaker been in a state of maudlin drunken- ness and the theme of his lecture had been that of "Tem- perance" not one of his listeners could have failed to note and appreciate the utter absurdity of it all. Under such conditions it is doubtful if two dozen would have remained to hear him through. The incongruity of such a spectacle would have moved his audience to all kinds of emotions, ranging all the way from amusement, through pity and sorrow, to profound disgust. And yet, such a spectacle as this is far less incongruous and almost immeasurably less pathetic and distressing than that of a medium in a state of "trance control" delivering to an audience of intelligent men and women an address on the sublime importance of "Mastership," or "The Value of Self-Control." In conclusion, has it now been made entirely clear to the reader that Morality and Constructive Spirituality are inseparable? That Constructive Spirituality cannot exist in individual life except it is built upon and sus- CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRITUALITY 165 tained by Morality? Does he yet understand that Inde- pendent Spiritual Development is impossible without a Moral foundation? Does he yet appreciate the fact that Morality is an essential part of the only basis upon which Mastership ever has been or ever can be attained ? Has it been burned indelibly into his consciousness that all Constructive Spiritual Unfoldment begins with and proceeds from the practice of Moral Principles? Does he yet grasp firmly the stupendous fact of nature, that Morality is one of the basic and essential conditions of nature upon which alone the Constructive Unfoldment of Spiritual Consciousness is possible? Does he recognize the final and consummate fact that this is all a matter of science? Does he yet appreciate the fact that it is all true because nature so established it, and not because men have discovered it and so declared it? Does he yet understand that it is true, not because of men's desires, wishes, or predilections, but in spite of them ? If these essential truths have been so deeply impressed upon his consciousness that he can neither forget them nor lose sight of their application and importance during the remainder of our journey together, then the central purpose of this chapter has been accomplished. In that event we may proceed at once to a consideration of the Ethical Section of the work of Independent Spiritual and Psychical Unfoldment, in conformity with the Con- structive Principle of Nature in Individual Life. CHAPTER X. WHAT IS MORALITY? We now understand and are familiar with the follow- ing facts of nature : 1. There are two kinds of "Spirituality." 2. One of these is "Constructive" and the other is "Destructive." 3. Destructive Spirituality is the result of the "Sub- jective Psychic Process." 4. Constructive Spirituality is the result of the "Inde- pendent Psychic Process." 5. The Subjective Psychic Process develops Hypno- tism and Mediumship. 6. The Independent Psychic Process develops "Spirit- ual Independence," or "Mastership." 7. Hypnotism and Mediumship are Destructive in their essential nature and results. 8. Mastership is Constructive in its essential nature and results. 9. The development of hypnotism and mediumship does not depend upon Morality, nor upon the Practice of Moral Principles. 10. The development of Mastership does depend upon Morality and upon the Practice of Moral Principles. 11. From the viewpoint of Ethics, hypnotism and mediumship — which are the outgrowth of Destructive 167 i68 THE GREAT WORK Spirituality and the results of the Subjective Psychic Process — are Morally Wrong. 12. From the same viewpoint, Mastership — which is the outgrowth of Constructive Spirituality and the result of the Independent Psychic Process — is Morally Right. 13. So-called "Development," by the Subjective Psychic Process, is "The Wrong Way." 14. Development by the Independent Psychic Process, which is the only actual development, is "THE RIGHT WAY." 15. The Right Way begins with a study of Morality and the practice of Moral Principles. We stand, therefore, at the beginning-point of The Right Way — the Way which leads onward and upward to the goal of Spiritual Independence, which is true Mastership, and the first problem that confronts us is the great and profound problem of Morality. Our first step along The Right Way is the solution of this same great problem — the problem of Morality. Since this is at the basis of all Constructive Spirituality, through which alone we may ever hope to arrive at the goal of Spiritual Independence, or Mastership, we have our first lesson clearly outlined and defined. It is that of acquainting ourselves with the subject of Morality. What is Morality? Since it constitutes so fundamental a factor in the only process by which we may ever hope to master the Spiritual Sensory Organism and ourselves open the door of Constructive Spirituality through which to enter consciously and voluntarily the world of Spiritual Material, it is important to have an exact and definite understanding of what the term itself means, as it is here, has been hereinbefore, and will be hereinafter em- ployed. Words mean to us only what we understand them to mean. This is true regardless of what they may WHAT IS MORALITY? 169 mean to others who use them. The only way they can be made to convey exact and definite information from one intelligent individual to another is, first so to define them that both parties between whom they are employed may understand the exact sense in which they are used and the definite meanings they are intended to convey. Many words in common use have a number of different meanings. This is exceedingly confusing, unless it be fully understood and agreed in advance which one of these various meanings will be assigned to if and to which it will be limited. The term "Morality" belongs to the class of words referred to. It has been variously defined and variously employed. It has been given many different shades of meaning. No fault, however, is here found with any of these different meanings, nor with those who are re- sponsible for their use. But we are now dealing with Morality from the standpoint of science. The term, therefore, must not be employed in an ambiguous nor obscure sense. It must be given an exact and definite meaning, and thereafter must be limited strictly to that specific meaning. Otherwise the writer might employ it to mean one thing while the word itself might convey to the reader a very different and a very inadequate mean- ing. It is to prevent just this uncertainty, and bring the subject to the basis of exact science, that the following definitions are presented at this point : MORALITY, as the word is used by the Great School, is THE ESTABLISHED HARMONIC RELATION WHICH MaN, AS AN Individual Intelligence, sustains to the Con- structive Principle of Nature. The same meaning may be expressed yet more briefly and concisely in the following form : lyo THE GREAT WORK MORALITY is man's established harmonic rela- tion TO THE Constructive Principle of his own BEING. In other words, there is a Constructive Principle in Nature. Man, as an Individual Intelligence, sustains a certain fixed and definite relation to that Principle. It is, in fact, an established relation. Not only this, it is a relation that is established on the scientific basis of a true harmonic. Involved in that harmonic relation are many things. For instance, it involves man's individual knowl- edge of and his conscious dependence upon the Con- structive Principle of Nature for all the evolutionary possibilities of his being. There is also involved in it the conscious obligation of the individual to recognize the established principle, and conform his life to its harmonic demands. In other words, it is man's business to pre- serve the harmonics of the relation. In the accomplish- ment of this task is also involved the whole broad and seemingly complex problem of man's conscious relation to his fellow man and to all nature. But all these subsidiary problems, and many others which have not been mentioned, are mere developments from and outgrowths of that "established harmonic rela- tion" which man as an individual sustains to the Con- structive Principle of Nature. By devoting his attention and his efforts to the one simple and central problem of maintaining the harmonics of that "established relation," all these incidental relations and subsidiary questions which grow out of that central problem are cared for as so many mere matters of detail. They do not demand the special attention so generally given them. A familiar illustration may serve to present the prin- ciple more clearly: The member of a great orchestra, in his musical WHAT IS MORALITY? 171 capacity, sustains an established harmonic relation to the constructive principle of nature on which the orchestra is integrated and on which its success as a whole depends. The central problem of his individual life in that connec- tion is to keep his instrument and his work with it in perfect harmony with all the other instruments and work of the entire orchestra. But out of this established harmonic relation as a musician naturally grow his incidental relations to his leader, to his fellow musicians both collectively and indi- vidually, and to the public on whose approval and pat- ronage his position and place inevitably depend. Now, all these relations are important and must be maintained. But if he will give his thought, attention and eflfort to the one simple and central problem of keeping his instrument in perfect tune and playing his score in perfect harmony with the rest, he need not give either time, thought or effort to cultivating the musical approval of his leader, his fellow musicians, nor that of the public. For if he is but successful in solving the one simple and central problem, all these others which seem so important are thereby solved as a matter of course, and without other or further effort on his part. They are all merely incidental outgrowths of the one central problem, and if he is successful in maintaining the harmonics of his established relation as a member of the orchestra, all things else fall naturally into line and all subsidiary problems solve themselves as a result thereof. If the principle involved in the problem of Morality is still obscure to the reader or seems to be abstruse, the following statement of it in another form may bring the principle more clearly to view: There is a Constructive Principle of Nature. It is an 172 THE GREAT WORK established Principle. That is to say, it is fixed and immutable. If man would grow, evolve and unfold spiritually and psychically he must live and conduct him- self in such manner as to keep himself in perfect har- mony with that Principle. In other words, he must maintain the Harmonics of the relation. If he does this nature will do the rest and will unfold his powers, physically, spiritually and psychically. But if he should fail to maintain the harmony of the relation between himself and the Constructive Principle he at once falls into alignment with the opposite Prin- ciple, viz., the Destructive Principle. So long as he maintains the Harmonic of his relation to the Constructive Principle of Nature it is impossible for the Destructive Principle to affect him. He is above and beyond its operation. Now, if he devotes himself to the simple problem of maintaining that harmonic relation every other problem of his life will fall into line without any attention what- soever on his part. By taking care of the central pvopo- sition, viz., the "harmonic relation," all the details of his life and relationships care for themselves as a peritictly natural and inevitable result. In the light of this analysis one of the most significant utterances of the Master, Jesus, comes strongly into the light. In his wonderful "Sermon on the Mount" he counsels his disciples in these words: "But I say unto you. That ye resist not evil," etc. The meaning of this expression, and the exact manner in which it is intended to be applied, have been matters of profound consideration as well as some uncertainty. But the entire "Sermon" is devoted to a definite instruction of his disciples as to what they shall do and how they shall live in such manner as to "keep his Law." WHAT IS MORALITY? 173 In other words, he is instructing them how to maintain the "harmonic relation with the Constructive Principle" which he has taught them. And as a climax he suggests to them that if they but follow his instructions it will not be necessary for them to spend their time in ''resisting evil." For in this event the evil will take care of itself, and will be disposed of as one of the many incidental matters and subsidiary questions which grow out of the one central problem. It will be cared for as a mere matter of detail. In this connection a suggestion to those who call them- selves "Christian Scientists" may not be amiss. It is this: If they will but devote themselves with all their hearts and Souls to the problem of living a life in har- mony with the Constructive Principle of Nature, it will not be necessary for them to spend either time, thought or energy in "denying the existence of evil." If they but comply with the Law of Life they thereby escape the Penalties of Death. If they but comply with the Law of Health they thereby free themselves from the Law of Disease. If they keep busy with the Law of Construc- tion they do not need to deny the Law of Destruction, nor the existence of disease ; for these will be cared for as so many matters of detail. The man who devotes himself faithfully to the central problem of maintaining the harmony of his relation to the Constructive Principle of Nature may make some "mis- takes" and some possible "errors," but he will never commit a "sin." So long as his Soul is in harmony with the Great Central Principle it is impossible for him to commit an intentional wrong or injure his fellow man. MORALS, as a distinct term, has reference to those definite and specific principles and Rules of individual action, procedure and conduct by the conscious and intel- 174 THE GREAT WORK ligent observation of which man may conform his life to the Constructive Principle of his being, and by main- taining the harmony of that relation thereby incidentally solve all those more detailed and seemingly complex problems of his relations and obligations to his fellow man and to nature. THE PRACTICE OF MORAL PRINCIPLES is the Living of a Life in strict conformity with the terms, con- ditions and requirements of those Principles and Rules of Conduct whereby man satisfies the requirements of the Constructive Principle of Nature and maintains that established harmonic relation in his own Soul. It is only by the living of such a life that man may ever develop within himself the state or condition of "Constructive Spirituality." It is only by the develop- ment of this Constructive Spirituality within himself that he may ever consciously and voluntarily unlock his spirit- ual senses, and thereafter exercise them Independently and at Will. And this is "THE RIGHT WAY." Only by traveling this Right Way is it possible ever to reach its desired goal, which is Spiritual Independence, or "Mastership." CHAPTER XI. A STANDARD OF MORALS. In a preceding chapter it has been stated that tlia School of Natural Science has discovered and wrought out and definitely formulated a natural system of Moral Principles. This means that it has discovered and wrought out a definite and specific Code of "Principles and Rules of In- dividual Action, Procedure and Conduct by the conscious and intelligent observation of which man may conform his life to the Constructive Principle of his being." It is anticipated that this is a statement which many intelligent students and thinkers will question. It is con- ceded that it is one the truth of which cannot be demon- strated by the process of mere publication. For, publica Clon alone cannot demonstrate any problem of science The most it can do in that direction is to suggest a method of procedure whereby the intelligent student may make his own demonstration, if he so desire. Morality, as herein defined, sustains a fixed and defi- nite relation to the process of Independent Spiritual De- velopment. It is a scientific factor in the development of Constructive Spirituality. It follows with the certainty of logic that Morals is equally a problem of science. The only room for question or doubt is as to whether the Great School has actually solved that problem, as it claims to have done. The reader may have his doubts 175 176 THE GREAT WORK on that particular point. He is entitled to them. And it may not be possible to remove them through the medium of this publication. In answer to his skepticism, all that can be said at this time is, that the Ethical Section of the Great Work of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment was discovered and wrought out by the Great School on the basis of actual experience. It constitutes a complete and definite sys- tem. It is the basis for all their work of Spiritual Self- Development. Thus far it has proven its entire suffi- ciency, in that it has never yet failed to sustain the super- structure of Constructive Spirituality upon which their Spiritual Independence and Mastership rest. In other words, every student of Natural Science who has taken up the work in its established sequence; com- pleted the Ethical Section as it has been wrought out; conformed his life to its requirements; and upon that foundation completed what is known as the "Technical Work" of the second section, has been successful in the development of his own spiritual faculties, capacities and powers, and has thus demonstrated the great problem of another life by the Independent Method of Spiritual Development. On the other hand, every student who has attempted to evade the requirements of the Ethical Formulary, or who has refused to conform his life to its ethical demands, has failed in his effort to develop independently his spiritual faculties, capacities and powers, and has been unable to make the demonstration by the Inde- pendent Method. And finally, every student who has taken the work in conformity with the Ethical Formulary; who has been successful in the independent development of his spiritual faculties, capacities and powers; who has completed the A STANDARD OF MORALS 177 demonstration ; and who thereafter knowingly and inten- tionally and of his own free and independent choice has turned from the Moral Principles of the Formulary and entered upon a life of immorality, dishonesty, trickery or fraud, has inevitably "lost his spiritual development and forfeited his spiritual powers." But there have been many who have completed the Ethical Formulary and established their lives upon it, and who, by reason of environment or circumstance, have not been able to take any part of the Technical Work. The question naturally arises as to what effect, if any, the Ethical Formulary, and the living of a life in con- formity therewith, has upon such as these. The result is that by conforming their lives to the Ethical Formulary they align themselves perfectly with tlw Constructive Principle of Nature and thereby enable nature to carry forward her work of individual evolution as far as possible without their technical co-operation. Under these conditions nature, in her own time, will carry forward the work of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment until she will bring the individual to a conscious realiza- tion of Spiritual Life. In other words, no effort of the individual to "Live the Life" is ever lost. It all counts. Every day he squares his life by the Ethical Formulary brings him that much nearer the goal of Spiritual Illumination and Master- ship. Many there are who have thus grown naturally into perfect Spiritual Consciousness without the aid of the Technical Work. The only important difference in the case of such as these, is in the element of time. These experiments, which have been repeated again and again, in all the past ages of the School's history cov- ering many thousands of years, and always with the same unvarying results, would seem to establish the scientific 178 THE GREAT WORK status of the Ethical Formulary as completely and as un- questionably as it is possible to establish any fact of science. To go further than this is impossible by publica- tion. It is indeed a crucial point for the student. It is of much deeper importance than would appear upon the sur- face. For, if he should deny the facts here stated and should then proceed upon the task of demonstration upon any other basis known to science, he will inevitably, sooner or later, land at the opposite goal from Spiritual Independence, or Mastership, which is Spiritual Sub- jection, or Mediumship. There are but these two goals of spiritual demonstration, so far as science has yet been able to determine. In the essential nature of things, and in the light of all past experience, it would seem that there could be none other. But there is yet another most interesting and at the same time serious problem which is likely to obtrude itself upon the minds of those who approach the subject from the viewpoint of theology. It is worthy of the most courteous and unbiased consideration. For instance: The theological dogma of "Salvation by Faith" is a "Doctrine" which, as it is generally under- stood and often taught, does not give to Morality that degree of importance which it occupies in the general plan of the Great School wherein it is demonstrated to be a scientific and essential element at the very founda- tion of all Constructive Spirituality. The Roman Catholic Church, for instance, teaches the doctrine of "Salvation by Faith" as a fundamental dogma. And then by ingenious and perpetual emphasis upon the divine origin of the Church, the Faith of its communicants is gradually transferred to and fixed in the Church, itself, in the infallibility of its pope, in the A STANDARD OF MORALS 179 efficacy of its sacraments, ceremonial offerings, penances and purchased absolutions. In practice this has come to be, for the most part, a religion of "Salvation by Faith in the Church" to relieve the sinner from the burden of his Personal Responsibility and his Moral Accountability. Even in its most exalted concept, the theological dogma of Salvation by Faith would seem to exclude Morality as an element of Spirituality at all. For at no time nor place in the development of the general scheme of Sal- vation by Faith alone does Morality enter and find an essential status. In other words, the kind of Spirituality developed under and by virtue of this dogma is not founded lipon Morality nor upon the Practice of Moral Principles. It is therefore not the kind of Spirituality upon which Spiritual Independence and Mastership depend. That is to say, it is not Constructive Spirituality. One of the essential elements is wanting. But there are those who regard themselves as strictly "orthodox," who do not accept the dogma of Faith alone as sufficient. To "Faith" they add "Works." And this is a most vital and important distinction. To those who accept this enlarged dogma, there is no such thing as "Salvation" without both Faith and Works. That is to say, the individual who is seeking salvation under this enlarged dogma, has a much more difficult task ahead of him than does the individual who proceeds under the dogma of Faith alone. For he must not only have Faith in the power of God to save him, but he must also work with earnest zeal to merit the grace of Him who hath the power to grant it. Herein will be observed the principle of Morality which involves "Human Conduct" exemplified in "Works." Protestantism, broadly speaking, accepts the enlarged dogma of "Faith and Works." To its "Faith" i8o THE GREAT WORK in the Divinity of Christ it adds such practical "Works" as conform to its theological interpretation of a "godly life." The Methodist Episcopal Church, however, among the various Protestant denominations, would seem to ap- proach more nearly the spirit, (if not the exact science), of the Great School on this particular problem of Mor- ality. For to both Faith and Works the "Method" of Wesley adds a specific personal and "Spiritual Experi- ence," an inner Regeneration, which constitutes a natural and fundamental basis of both the Faith and the Works. If Wesley had been trained in the exact science of the Great School and as a student therein had wrought out its marvelous Standard of Morals, he would have estab- lished his Church upon the enduring rock of exact science. In that event, Methodism would have stood before the world in perfect alignment with the Construc- tive Principle of Nature. But as we find them today, there is a fundamental difference between the generally accepted position of Protestantism and that of Natural Science. It is a dif- ference wherein may be observed the vast distinction between a theoretical "Salvation" in a hypothetical "Heaven" and a practical and perfectly real salvation wrought out in a human life. It is this : The Great School has discovered and wrought out a definite and scientific system of Moral Principles. It has proven its accuracy and sufficiency in every conceivable way. It makes this system the basis of all its "Works." It presents this system to its students in such manner and under such conditions that each stu- dent must make the discovery anew, and must verify its accuracy and sufficiency for himself, one step at a time. The "Works" which he must perform in this connection A STANDARD OF MORALS i8i are not laid out for him in the form of mere generahties. They are definite and specific works in conformity with a scientific plan of procedure. Their purpose is clear and exact. When these "Works" have been accomplished the student knows that he has made a scientific demonstra- tion. For his spiritual eyes, ears and other senses are opened. He sees, hears and otherwise senses the world of spiritual material and spiritual nature at will. It is not a single nor sporadic experience. It does not come to him in the midst of great Soul cataclysms, only to depart when the psychic convulsions are over. It is not a mystical nor indefinite experience subject to interpreta- tions. It is an Attainment which comes only as a result of intelligent effort in definite lines. It is a work of science. When once accomplished it is a definite pos- session of the Soul. It is under the power of the inde- pendent volition and may be called into service at any moment thereafter by a simple act of the intelligent Will, and the process may be repeated by as many as may be able to fulfil the conditions. In contradistinction from all this, however, underlying the system of dogmatic theology here referred to and now under comparison, there is, to be sure, what may well be termed a "system" of Morals. But it is one that is dependent largely upon interpretation. To whatever extent this is true it lacks the element of scientific exact- ness. It rests upon an incomplete record of the life and sayings of the Master, Jesus. The simple fact that man's efforts to understand this record have already resulted in nearly 200 creeds and systems, sufficiently different from each other to be dis- tinguishable, is sufficient evidence of the extent to which the element of interpretation has entered into the problem. In the realms of science such a thing is impossible. Every i82 THE GREAT WORK scientific formula, in order to be such, must be so exact and so entirely free from the possibility of interpretations, that every individual who uses it will be able to follow its directions step by step from beginning to end and thus prove its accuracy. Otherwise it is not scientific. By this rule alone, it becomes painfully clear that the formula of dogmatic theology is not scientific. There is yet another phase of the subject which proves the same point with even greater clearness. It is this: A scientific formula, in order to be entitled to be so called, will produce the same results regardless of the individ- ual who uses it, or the number of times it may be repeated. If it does not, then it is not scientific. In other words, it has not been reduced to a basis of scientific exactness. It contains some element of uncertainty. For instance : The formulary of science for the manu- facture of any given salt, let us say, calls for the union of a certain acid with a certain other substance called a base. Now, the union of the same acid with the same base under the same conditions will produce the same salt, regardless of the individual who does the mixing, or the number of times the process may be repeated, or the number of successive individuals who make the same test, or the theories they may hold concerning the process. Thus, any individual who has the ability to test the for- mula, also has the power to prove its scientific acciiracy and sufficiency. To bring the illustration more closely to the subject under immediate consideration, the formulary of the Great School for the demonstration of the fact of a life after physical death, is definite and specific. Any indi- vidual who can understand it and who is able to comply with its terms can prove its scientific value. All those who are able to follow its conditions and provisions reach A STANDARD OF MORALS 183 the same results. What it does for one intelligent soul it will do for another under the same conditions. What it does for these two it will do for as many others as are able and choose to make the test in strict conformity with its terms and conditions. Thus far it has opened the channels of spiritual sense for all those who have made the test under all the terms and conditions prescribed. It will do the same for as many more as are able to repeat the process in the same way and under the same condi- tions. These are the facts which stamp the formulary with the seal of "science." But this cannot be said, in very truth, concerning the formulary of dogmatic theology referred to. In fact, it can scarcely be said that it has brought to any two indi- viduals the same results. It is true, however, that many who have tested it have temporarily reached the plane of spiritual consciousness and actually made the demonstra- tion of another life. But there is neither sequence nor continuity to these experiences. If evidence of this fact is desired, it may be found in great abundance in a recent and able work entitled "The Varieties of Religious Ex- perience," by William James, LL. D., corresponding member of the Institute of France and of the Royal Prussian Academy of Science, and Professor of Philoso- phy at Harvard University. Furthermore, these experiences are mostly of a spor- adic nature. They come, oftentimes, without invitation. Most frequently, however, they come to the individual only in the midst of great psychic cataclysms. While these continue they are intense and impressive. But when the psychic convulsions are over the experiences cease. While they last their intensity and abnormality are such that their real meaning and vital significance are seldom, if ever, understood by the individual subject to them. In i84 THE GREAT WORK many instances the initial experiences of superlative exaltation and ecstasy are succeeded by other experiences of a nature too horrible and degrading for expression. These, of course, are involuntary, and are a great afflic- tion and humiliation; but they serve to demonstrate beyond all possibility of doubt that the process back of them is subjective and not independent. All these facts, and many more directly related to the subject, will suggest to the intelligent student the extent to which the elements of exact science are wanting in the theological formulary or method of procedure responsi- ble for such results. In other words, the "works" of those who follow the formulary of theology produce results which are not consistent with any known system of science. In many respects these results do not seem to be consistent with each other, nor with any established sequence. The purpose of this analysis and comparison is not to discourage the religious idea nor antagonize those to whom it has a real value, but rather to suggest that there is an exact and scientific basis for their religion within their powers of demonstration. Once this profound fact is understood and its importance is appreciated, the seem- ing gulf between religion and science no longer exists. They become one and inseparable in the minds of both religionists and scientists, as they are in fact and in essence. There is no antagonism in their essential nature. There can be none. Whatever antagonisms there have been, or may be, exist only in the minds of men who do not understand their true meaning and office nor the essential relation they sustain to each other and to nature. To the Great School : Science is exact knowledge of the facts of nature, class- ified and systematized. A STANDARD OF MORALS 185 Truth is the established relation which the facts of nature sustain to each other and to the Individual Intelli- gence or Soul of man. Philosophy is the conclusions which men, in their search for a knowledge of truth, have drawn from the facts of Science. Religion is the application of the facts of Science and the conclusions of Philosophy to individual life and conduct. From this viewpoint it will be observed that Science has reference alone to the phenomena of nature — the terms "facts" and "phenomena" meaning the same thing. Truth has reference to the relations which the phe- nomena of nature sustain to each other and to the Indi- vidual Intelligence. By reference to the definition of "Morality," it will be observed that the entire problem of Ethics or Morals falls within this field. Philosophy has reference to the deductions which men have drawn from the phenomena of nature, in their search for Truth. Religion is merely the application of such knowledge as we possess, to the problem of individual life and conduct. It will now be apparent to those who have followed the subject closely, that, from the viewpoint of the Great School, science and philosophy and religion are in no sense conflicting schools. They do not antagonize each other in their essential nature. On the contrary, they are, in truth, concomitant factors in the same great prob- lem of individual life and unfoldment. And Truth is the vital element which relates them all. It is also possible now to see and understand the clear principle of relationship between religion and morality. Morality, it will be remembered, is the established har- i86 THE GREAT WORK monic relation which Man, as an Individual Intelligence, sustains to the Constructive Principle of Nature. While Religion is the application of such knowledge as we pos- sess, to the problem of individual life and conduct, in such manner as to maintain that harmonic relation, the inevitable result of which is conformance with the Con- structive Principle of Nature. But the process involved in such a life is one which also, and at the same time, develops within the individual the state or condition of Constructive Spirituality on which alone Spiritual Independence and Mastership depend. What does all this mean? Simply this, that Natural Science and True Religion, after all, are one and the same thing. An understanding of this great truth makes of science a religion and lifts religion to a basis of exact science. To make this clear and certain to the mind of the reader is one of the definite purposes of this chapter. Briefly summarizing: The Great School has discov- ered and formulated a definite System. It is based upon experiment and demonstration through personal experi- ence. It constitutes a Scientific Formulary. Its founda- tion is Morality. Its application is Religion. It is Constructive in its essential nature. It is Evolutionary in its essential character. Its purpose is the development of Constructive Spirituality. Its result is Spiritual Inde- pendence and Mastership. CHAPTER XII. THE "ETHICAL SECTION." If the reader has followed the subject to this point, he will have in mind the fact — stated in a preceding chapter — that the "Great Work" of Spiritual Unfold- ment in conformity with the "Independent Method" of Natural Science, divides itself into three distinct "Sec- tions," or Departments. It is important to keep in mind the further fact that this division of the work into Sec- tions is not because of any arbitrary action or determina- tion on the part of men, but merely because nature has so provided that the work cannot proceed successfully in any other order. As an item of information which may be of both inter- est and value, it may be added that the three "Degrees" of the Great School, which comprehend the full course of its instruction (and which when successfully com- pleted naturally and logically entitle the initiate to the degree of "Master"), correspond to these three Sections or Departments of the complete Formulary. It is also an interesting fact that the original three de- grees of Freemasonry were intended to cover the same general field. The student of esoteric Freemasonry will have little difficulty in verifying this statement. As a suggestion of some significance in this connection, he will recall the fact that the initiate into the blue lodge must be prepared first, "in his heart." This has refer- 187 1 88 THE GREAT WORK ence to his Moral Development. It is upon the basis of this inner preparation that all his subsequent work rests, and the character of that inner preparation, or moral development, determines the results of his sub- sequent labors in the search for "Light." Nature, and not man, has so provided that the Ethical Section of the Great Work constitutes the primary department of endeavor, and the first "regular step" in the student's progressive journey toward the goal of Spiritual Independence, or Mastership. For this reason, and this alone, the next "regular step" in the unfoldment of our theme covers the Ethical Formulary, or, more accurately speaking, the Ethical Section of the General Formulary. If one might safely judge from the character and number of kindred inquiries which followed the pub- lication of the preceding volume, there are yet those among the "Mystics," the "Psychics," and the "Occult Students" throughout the country, who are more than likely to infer from what has been said — or rather, from what has been left unsaid — that the Formulary to which reference has been made is something after the fashion of a "recipe" for the making of a salad, or a physician's prescription for some commonplace therapeutic remedy. Individuals of this type, no doubt, will expect to find on the next page something in the nature of a recipe for the making of a Master. It is assumed, however, that the reader who has fol- lowed the subject with intelligence to this point will make no such mistake. In this connection it would seem consistent with the purposes of this work to answer such specific questions as may enable the reader to obtain a more definite understanding of the natural limitations within which THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 189 we are necessarily confined in an effort to transmit knowledge through the process of mere publication. The result may be to prevent possible misapprehensions on the part of the reader, and at the same time simplify to some extent the task ahead of us. As already indicated in a preceding chapter, the Eth- ical Section of the formulated work is presented only to the regularly "tried, tested and accepted student," in strict conformity with the distinctive "Method" of the Great School. This method is unique in more respects than one. Like unto the Formulary itself, the method also is a result of experiment and demonstration, and it comes to us from out the ages as a work of evolution. As a part of that method, the student must first prove to the satisfaction of the School that he is "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified," and that he is entitled to a definite and personal instruction. Much is involved in this important preliminary which need not be considered extensively at this time. But assuming that he has complied with this requirement, and that there is some member of the School in position to con- duct him, his work of instruction begins with the Ethical Section of the Formulary. His work is laid out for him in the form of definitely formulated problems. These problems are so related in essence that, when logically arranged, they constitute a perfect sequence covering the entire department of Ethics. Beginning with the first in the sequence, these problems are given to the student singly. He must solve each problem in its sequential order, and without help from anyone. This is primarily an intellectual process. Added to this, however, he must be able to demonstrate to his instructor his understanding of the application of each principle discovered, to his I90 THE GREAT WORK own life. And thus he proceeds, step by step, until he has completed the entire Ethical Section and made it his own by actual demonstration. When he has thus completed the Ethical Section, he knows that he has solved the great problem of Morality. When he has done this, and not until then, he knows exactly what is required of him in order that he may con- form his life to the Constructive Principle of Nature. Then, and then only, has he learned the full meaning and measure of his personal responsibility. Then, and then only, has he solved the problem at the foundation of Constructive Spirituality, upon which alone Independ- ent Spiritual Development and Mastership are possible. At this point, however, it is necessary to call attention to an important distinction. It is this : The work of the Ethical Section (in conformity with the method and the plan here outlined), involves a Per- sonal Instruction. It can be given only by one who has been specially qualified as an instructor and can be given only to the student who has been regularly tried, tested and accepted as one who is entitled to the confidences which such a work necessarily involves. That is to say, both instructor and student who are to give and receive the work in the personal manner here indicated, must have had a definite preparation in anticipation thereof. But it must be remembered that this is and must ever be a gratuitous labor on the part of the instructor. It is and must ever be a gift from instructor to student. It cannot be sold. For this reason, instructors are few and widely scattered. It may not be possible at any moment to find one who is able to command the time and the facilities necessary to such a work of instruction. Then again, the very large majority of those who read these pages are more than likely to be mere inquirers THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 191 who have no further interest in the subject. They may have no desire to qualify as students. They may have no intention of undertaking such a work as the regular course of study involves. They may not be in position to do so even if they so desired. It may not be possible for them to find either time, place or opportunity to carry on the work, and it requires all of these on the part of the student as well as on the part of the instructor. Let us suppose, however, that there may be one among the readers of this volume who has the desire to take up the work as a regularly admitted student, and that all other things combine to make such a work possible on his part. Even so, there is no way whereby the fitness of such an individual to receive the instruction can be determined in advance by mere publication. In other words, it is not expected of this book that it will be able to pass judgment automatically upon the merits of those who read it. For this reason, it is not possible, by mere publication, for the author of this work to place the reader in the attitude and relation of a "regularly tried, tested and accepted student." For the same reason, it is not possible for the reader to receive the formulated work (from the pages of this book alone), in such man- ner as to comply with the "Method" of the Great School. For, it is not possible, in a publication of this nature, to give him one of the definitely formulated problems for solution, and at the same time withhold from him the answer until he shall have wrought it out for himself. With the pages of the book open to him, there is noth- ing to prevent him from proceeding in any manner whatsoever that suits his individual fancy. If the book, therefore, contained both the problem and its answer, there is no way of compelling him to work out the 192 THE GREAT WORK answer for himself. And thus, the "Method" on which so much depends, is defeated. For this reason the pages of this book must contain only those things which the reader is entitled to receive without being "tried, tested and accepted," or in any manner bound by the obliga- tions of a regular student. This means that the contents of the book must be limited to such matters only as any reader who may chance to open it is entitled to receive. This fact brings at once into the foreground the most embarrassing problems the author is called upon to elucidate. Nothing but his sense of personal responsibil- ity would impel him to the task. Again and again, in different forms, and with varying degrees of interest and warmth, certain questions have been put — not alone to the writer, but to all other men who have ventured to tell the world of the fact that defi- nite and exact knowledge of spiritual things is obtainable. These questions seem never to have been answered in a definite and specific manner, up to this time. At any rate, the answers, if given by anyone of authority here- tofore, seem never to have become public property. The task appears, therefore, to have fallen to the lot of the writer. The questions referred to have been put by the skep- tical, the critical and the hyper-critical, without taking into account the fact that unusual knowledge is obtain- able only under specific conditions which may also be unusual. Some of them are as follows: 1. If there be Masters, or Wise Men, why do they not present themselves to the world, and prove their identity as such? 2. Why withhold anything from anybody, if it is true? THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 193 3. If the men who possess it are honest, and the knowledge they possess is of value to humanity, what excuse or reason can there possibly be for "secrets" or for "secrecy"? 4. If the School of Natural Science has, in truth, solved the sublime problem of another life, has discov- ered the Principle of Nature to which that problem is related, and has wrought out a definite and scientific formulary in conformity with which others may solve the same great problem for themselves, and if all this won- derful knowledge is as important for the welfare of hu- manity as it would seem to be, then why has not the Great School given it to the world long ago? In other words, why hide their light under a bushel? Why not open wide the doors of their treasure-house to whom- soever may come? In substance, if not in actual form, these same ques- tions have been asked many times and by many different individuals. They have been put in such manner and with such ingenious inflection as clearly to indicate that those who have asked them believe them to be "unan- swerable." They have, in truth, been asked by those whose very tone, emphasis, look and manner combine to convey the challenge: "Answer me if you dare." In the spirit of courtesy and candor, and with the ut- most good will toward, and consideration for, those whose accusing and condemning attitude of mind makes the task one of great difficulty ; it is the purpose, here and now, to answer these questions as fully and as frankly as their nature and importance would seem to justify. This is done, not alone for the benefit of those who have asked them, but also for as many others as may desire to under- stand the fundamental principle of Ethics which underlies them all. 194 THE GREAT WORK 1. "If there be Masters, or Wise Men, why do they not present themselves to the world, and prove their identity as sueh?" To answer this question for the intelHgent reader it is only necessary to ask another, namely: By what infal- Hble, distinguishing mark, badge, Hneament or insignia would the world be able to recognize a Master if he should so present himself for identification? Is it not a pathetic part of the sad tragedy of all human history, that the Great Masters throughout all the past ages have been despised and rejected of men? Is it not true that those who have attempted thus to identify themselves to the world have been ignored, ostracised, ridiculed, scourged, stoned, burned, or crucified? Is it not a sig- nificant commentary upon the clamorous cry of the "world" for Truth, that "the Mark of the Master" is never recognized by mankind until his works and his teachings have been separated, by the march of Time, from his individual life and personality? Those who read the pages of history intelligently know that it is not the Great School that is responsible for this separation of the Masters from the people. Throughout all the past ages its members have watched and waited for the kind of hospitality from the masses that would enable the School to transmit its knowledge to the world. But the world has failed to recognize these Friends of Mankind whenever they have thus appeared and "given the sign." Not until the intelligent masses have been sufficiently educated to be able to distinguish _ a Master from a Magician, or a Seer from a Sorcerer, will those who de- mand a "sign" be able to recognize it when it is given. Not until then could it have any possible value to the world. 2. "Why withhold anything from anybody, if it is true?" THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 195 The individual who propounds such a question thereby clearly implies that, from his or her own understanding or view of life and nature, the truth should never be con- cealed nor withheld from anybody under any conditions or circumstances whatsoever. The very asking of such a question is equivalent, of itself, to a declaration and notice from the individual who asks it, as follows : "What- ever knowledge of the truth I may become possessed of, I shall give to the world without reservations of any kind, and I shall give it to whomsoever may ask for it, regardless of the motives which prompt him or the uses he proposes to make of it. I hold that he is entitled to it for no other reason than merely because he is a human being. For this reason, I pledge myself that whatsoever truth shall come to my knowledge I will give out indis- criminately to whomsoever I may meet, and permit him to do with it whatsoever he will." An appropriate illustration will serve to bring out the weakness, the fallacy and the immorality of such a posi- tion, and will make clear the fact that of all men such an one is least entitled to know the truth. Indeed, from such an individual every honest man and woman is obligated by the law of personal responsibility to conceal what- ever truth he or she may possess which could possibly aid the vicious in the commission of crime or enable the unscrupulous to prey upon the innocent and the helpless. For instance: In the course of a profound study of the problem of individual life and destiny, the successful student comes into possession of such knowledge as would enable one who chose to abuse it, to take advan- tage of his fellow men and women by playing upon their innocence and their credulity. By its misuse he might use them and abuse them for his own selfish and vicious 196 THE GREAT WORK purposes, and commit any number of crimes in such manner as to avoid detection by throwing suspicion on his innocent victims. The student knows that there are honest men and women in the world to whom such knowledge, rightly used, would be a great benediction. And he also knows that such as these would not abuse it nor misuse it. But he knows also that there are many more whose evil tendencies and vicious natures would impel them to turn such knowledge to its most destruc- tive uses possible. He knows that in their possession it would constitute a perpetual menace to society and a power for unlimited harm. Under these general conditions, kind reader, and with such knowledge in your own possession, ask yourself the question : "Why withhold anything from anybody, if it is true?" Then in the spirit of candor and sincerity answer the question in the light of the foregoing illus- tration. If you possessed such a knowledge would you feel yourself obligated to give it to the first individual who asked you for it? On the contrary, would you not rather hold yourself bound by the most sacred and bind- ing obligation to give it only to those who might be able to prove to your own satisfaction that they were "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified" to receive it? Would you not hold yourself bound by the law of personal responsibility to "try and test" each and every individual who applied to you, lest through your own negligence you might set in motion forces for evil and powers for destruction you may not be able to control nor counteract? The individual who is honest with himself will not hesitate the fraction of a second to align himself with the position of the Great School, which holds that "All knowledge is a sacred trust." It is a trust, under the THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 197 control of those who possess it, that must be adminis- tered for the greatest good to the largest number, — which means for the greatest good of society. The indi- vidual who possesses it is bound by the law of personal responsibility, to share it with those only who are "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified" to receive it, and who are able to produce satisfactory evidence of their purpose and intent to make only a beneficent use of it. In this connection it must not be forgotten that the motives which inspire men and women to seek knowledge are as many and as varied and as distinct as are the indi- vidualities of those who seek it. These motives cover the whole broad field of human nature, from the most absolute selfishness to the most perfect altruism, from vanity to humility, from malice to brotherly love, from malevolence to benevolence, from cruelty to kindness, from greed to charity, from vice to virtue, from hate to love. And strange as it might appear, knowledge of the truth may be made to serve any and all of these varying and conflicting motives, and may be so employed as to gratify any and all of the individual purposes of human life however exalted or ignoble. This is true all the way through from the basest to the most beneficent motives which inspire men and women to action. In the pres- ence of these facts, with which all who think are familiar, let us consider briefly the next question in order. It is intimately related, in its essential nature, to the first, and is as follows : 3. "If men are honest, and the knowledge they possess is of value to humanity, what excuse can there possibly be for 'secrets' and for 'secrecy'?" The following illustration will partially answer the question: The government of the United States issues 198 THE GREAT WORK gold and silver coins from its various mints, and paper currency and bonds from its printing house. The funda- mental purpose of all these issues is solely for the good of the people. But because of the dishonesty of many men and on account of the perversity of degenerate human nature, it is necessary for the government to guard its processes in every way possible to prevent dis- honest and unscrupulous men from counterfeiting its various media of exchange and thus converting them into a power for untold harm to both the government and the people it is obligated to protect. For these and other similar reasons, it is well known to business men throughout the country, that the government today is in possession of many "secrets," and carries on much of its important work under the protecting shield of profound "secrecy," in order that the knowledge it possesses may not fall into the possession of those who would surely misuse and abuse it to the great injury of the innocent and the defenseless. If it were not for the dishonesty and perversity of the very people it desires to serve, there would be no need of nor reason for this secrecy and concealment on the part of the government. But for these, the work of the government might all be done in the presence of the multitudes. The same is equally true of individuals and of schools. If all men and women were honest and all their motives and purposes were pure and unselfish there could be no just ground for the secrecy which the Great School is obligated to maintain today. Notwithstanding the discrimination and care it has endeavored to exercise at all times, the Great School has made some mistakes. An illustration will show to the reader how this is possible : A business man of good reputation (whose life, so far THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 199 as then known, seemed to constitute a sufficient guaranty of his good faith and of the purity of his motives), applied for a personal instruction. He was tried and tested by methods which were then deemed suiiScient to determine his qualifications, and was accepted as "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified" to receive the preliminary instruction asked for. There can be not the least doubt that at the time of his application and examination his motives and purposes were in all respects worthy. But it so happened that his first lesson put him in possession of a certain item of knowledge whose pos- sibilities had never before occurred to him. It was of just such a character as to open to his own peculiar nature a line of temptation which went straight to his weakest point of resistance. The outcome of the experi- ment (for the exact effect of definite knowledge upon individual human nature is always, to some extent, an experiment), was that he fell before the temptation. As a result, his life and his work from that time forward were a complete misrepresentation of the Great School and all its teachings. He has abused the confidence reposed in him and has misused the knowledge which, rightly used, might have made him a benefactor among men and enabled him to stand before the world as an accredited representative of the Great School. Today he is discredited wherever he is known. The havoc he has wrought and the harm he has done, to both himself and others, are of such a nature that a hundred honest men in a hundred years might not be able fully to undo or overcome them. Should there be no "secrets" from such men as this? Perhaps there are few who seek knowledge of the truth more persistently than do those who are moved by the impulses of an inordinate vanity. To such as these. 200 THE GREAT WORK however, knowledge is but a means for the gratification of human selfishness. Under the control of such as these its value as an instrument for the accomplishment of good is destroyed. Of this class there is none more dan- gerous to the cause of truth than the man or woman whose vanity takes the form of a desire for leadership and for public attention. It would not be a difficult matter to point out a number of specific illustrations within the knowledge and memory of those who shall read these pages, which would more than justify the foregoing statements. A number of truly worthy and beneficent movements, within the memory of the present generation, have been wrecked and their influence for good among men has been virtually ruined by the struggle of vain men and women for leadership and power. These worthy move- ments were the outgrowth of noble impulses and were founded on truths and ideals which, rightly employed, would have emancipated many a struggling soul from the bondage of ignorance and superstition. But through the influence of that character of vanity which would sacrifice truth and honor and justice and all else that is beneficent and good, men and women of the type here referred to have engaged in a struggle for leadership, and in their reckless endeavors to gratify inordinate vanity they have outraged every principle for which their organ- izations have stood. And thus these "leaders" stand today as mmepresentatives of all they claim to represent. And so it is that by their knowledge of truth they have become active powers for untold harm. Should there be no "secrets" from such as these? And then we have those in the midst of society every- where who are moved by the spirit of avarice and greed. Often they are found in the very front rank of those who THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 201 are in search of knowledge. But to such as these, knowl- edge is valuable only as a commodity which may be con- verted into material wealth. The more unusual the character of knowledge they can gather the larger is the price they may set upon it and the greater the material consideration they can demand for it. Those who thus seek knowledge only that they may sell it, or convert it into material wealth wherewith to gratify the spirit of avarice and greed, are among the most dangerous agen- cies with which society, as such, is compelled to deal. The recent terrible earthquake and fire on the Pacific coast have disclosed many of this class in their true perspective. The men and women who were shot to death by the authorities in charge for selling bread at a dollar a loaf to the homeless, destitute and starving mul- titudes, belong to the class here referred to. Just because they knew that the pangs of hunger would impel these pitiful sufferers to yield to their wicked and inhuman demands, the spirit of human greed inspired them to take advantage of cruel necessity, to gratify the avari- cious demands of their distorted little souls. Should there be no "secrets" from such as these? The lawyer who, inspired by love of material wealth and the advantages he can buy with it, uses his knowl- edge to defraud the innocent and the helpless who trust their interests in his hands, belongs to the same class. Should there be no "secrets" from such as he ? The physician whose sense of greed for material wealth impels him to demand a written guaranty from a helpless sufferer for a one hundred thousand dollar fee, before he will tie up the severed artery of his patient and stay the hand of death, — belongs to the same class. Should there be no secrecy from such as he ? When Vol. I, of this Series was published, it was 202 THE GREAT WORK not anticipated that there were men of good intelligence so low down in the scale of moral development as to use the knowledge therein contained for selfish, cruel and immoral purposes. And yet, from what actually fol- lowed, it would appear that the sacred, ennobling and inspiring Law of Love therein elucidated with such exactness and care, can be tortured by cunning, unscrupu- lous and immoral men, into a subtle and seductive scheme whereby to lead unhappy women and innocent girls into the path of ruin. For it would seem from the evidence at hand, that such men as these have so misused and so artfully abused the knowledge contained in that work, and have so tortured the "Law of Affinity" therein set forth, as to inveigle unsuspecting women and credulous girls into immoral and degrading relations. It would also appear that the only motive back of all this was nothing more exalted than the mere gratification of an uncontrolled animal nature. And thus, for the gratifica- tion of the animal passions alone, hearts have been broken, homes have been wrecked, and life itself has been sacrificed. And all this has been done knowingly and intentionally, "in the name of Truth." It has all been made possible by a knowledge of the most beautiful, beneficent and perfect law of human life and human relationships, and of how that knowledge might be mis- used and abused by the morally degenerate. Should there be no "secrets" from men of this type? To supply such men unusual knowledge, more espe- cially unusual knowledge of spiritual things, is as destructive to the cause of Truth as charges of dynamite in the hands of an irresponsible anarchist would be destructive to the cause of Life and Liberty, in the name of which he hurls them into the midst of the multitudes of his fellows. THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 203 In the administration of its trust, the Great School acknowledges itself bound by the highest considerations of morality and humanity, as well as by the great Law of Personal Responsibility, to hold its knowledge in secrecy from all those who seek it for selfish, immoral, or otherwise unworthy motives. From those "whose motives are pure and whose cause is just," it has nothing to conceal. From those who are "duly and truly pre- pared, worthy and well qualified," it has no "secrets." 4. "But, if the School of Natural Science has, in truth, solved the great problem of another life, has discovered the principle of nature to which that problem is related, and has wrought out a definite scientific formulary in conformity with which others may solve the same great problem for themselves — and if all this knowledge is as important for the welfare of humanity as it would seem to be — then why has not the Great School given it to the world long ago?" This question, or its equivalent, has been asked in such manner and with such peculiar emphasis and inflec- tion as to convey two distinct and uncomplimentary reflections and criticisms upon the position of the Great School. The one would seem to question the integrity and good faith of the School with reference to its state- ment of facts. The other would seem to accept the state- ment of facts, at least tentatively, but would condemn the School for not having given its knowledge to the world long ago. To the first of these criticisms there is no reply. In the very nature of things the Great School, through the process of mere publication alone, can do no more for the reader, nor for the public in general, than to make its statement of facts in as clear, simple and exact terms as may be possible. When this has been done the possi- bilities of publication have been exhausted. There is no 204 THE GREAT WORK process whereby the public can be compelled to accept its statement of facts as true. If scientific demonstra- tions are demanded by the public, these carry us at once into another field quite beyond the limits of mere publi- cation. They call for a very different method of pro- cedure, and demand other instruments than paper, pen and ink. But to those who accept its statement of facts as true, and thereupon condemn it for not having given its knowledge to the world long ago, the Great School has something to say. In the first place, it would call their attention to the reasons already given why "secrecy" has been and still is a necessity. It would then remind them of the Law of Personal Responsibility which obligates those who possess unusual knowledge to hold it as a sacred trust and share it with those only who are both able and willing to prove that they are "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified," and entitled to receive it, that "their motives are pure and their cause is just," and that once possess- ing such knowledge they will neither misuse nor abuse it, nor convey it to others who are not equally qualified to receive and rightly use it. But there are yet another consideration and another view of this subject which must not be overlooked in this connection. For instance: The criticism would seem to imply that throughout all the past ages the Great School has made no effort to give its knowledge to the world. Nothing could be more unjust nor further from the truth. A brief reference to the chapter on "The Lineal Key" will disclose the fact that the chief burden of all its past endeavors has been to find some plan or develop some method whereby to accomplish that impor- tant end. There has never been a time when it has not THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 205 been inspired by that hope and desire and purpose. Again and again throughout the past it has planned and labored to convey to the world in definite and crystallized form such of its knowledge of things spiritual as would be of service to mankind in the struggle for evolutionary unfoldment. If this be true, then why is it that their efforts have met with no better success? Why is it that the great world still remains in such comparative spiritual dark- ness? The answer is threefold, and of the most vital importance to those who would know the truth : 1. The Great School is not responsible for the great evolutionary plan nor the present degree of development of the human race. 2. The School of the Masters, ages upon ages ago, demonstrated that Morality is an exact science, and that it is at the very foundation of all Constructive Spirit- uality. Having discovered and demonstrated this fact, it became clear to the Wise Men that a great, broad foundation of Moral Principle must first be laid for the world to stand upon before it would be possible for it to receive spiritual knowledge or rightly use it. The Great School, therefore, has sought first, to lay that broad foundation of Moral Principle and get the world to stand upon it. It has sought to impress man- kind with the scientific nature of Morality, and with its relation to Constructive Spirituality. On this basis it has sought to educate men to a plane of moral develop- ment necessary to enable them to receive the higher knowledge and rightly use it. In other words, the Great School has been endeavoring first, to give to the world a definite knowledge of Moral Laws and Moral Prin- ciples necessary to sustain those ^ who might desire to 2o6 THE GREAT WORK receive the technical instruction and make the scientific demonstration through a personal experience. 3. But the great world of humanity has not been seeking for knowledge of Moral Laws and Moral Prin- ciples. It has been concerned with other things. It has been seeking for knowledge of the phenomena of nature. Men who have constituted the great world have de- manded the kind of knowledge that would enable them to gratify their vanities, their ambitions, their greed for material things, their sensuality, and their love of leader- ship and power. But these elements of human character do not lie in the realm of Morality. Knowledge of Moral Principles, therefore, is not what the world has demanded. Men have neither desired nor intended to use their knowledge for moral purposes. They have sought it for selfish ends. For these reasons they have not been satisfied with the kind of knowledge the Masters have sought to give to them. They have refused to begin at the foundation and build in the evolutionary order which nature has provided. In other words. Natural Science has offered to the world one kind of knowledge. The world has demanded another. Those who possess the knowledge have offered it to the world under certain definite conditions. The world has insisted upon receiving it under other and impossible conditions. The Masters have offered their knowledge to the world in a certain natural and sequen- tial order. The world has insisted upon receiving it in a wholly different order. The Great School has offered its knowledge to the world from the foundation upward. The world has insisted upon receiving it from the top downward. The School has offered to teach the world how to "Live the Life" in such manner that it may "Prove the Law." The world has demanded that it be THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 207 shown how to "Prove the Law" in such manner that it shall not be necessary to "Live the Life." Let it be remembered, therefore, that those who would charge the Great School with having withheld or con- cealed from the world at large, knowledge to which humanity in general is entitled, know not whereof they speak. For their accusing attitude of mind is without foundation in fact, and is unworthy of those who profess to love the truth. The purposes of this chapter have been: 1. To make clear the fact that there are certain well defined limitations within which any writer is necessarily bound, and beyond which it is impossible for the author of this work to go in presenting his knowledge to the world by publication, in a work of this nature. 2. That those limitations exclude the possibility of "demonstrations," such as many thoughtless critics would seem to hold that they are entitled to expect. 3. To answer a few of the most important questions so often asked, as to why the Great School does not conduct its work of education along lines insisted upon by the uneducated masses, and by those who do not understand the nature or the requirements of such a work. 4. To clear the way for an immediate consideration of the substance and general outline of the Ethical Section of the General Formulary. To that end, lest there still may be some who will not understand, let it be distinctly remembered that: 1. The mere reading of this book is not expected to convert the reader into a "Master." 2. "Mastership" involves an instruction, a study, a labor, the living of a life, and an evolutionary unfold- 2o8 THE GREAT WORK ment which together may require years of personal effort and unwavering loyalty to the Cause of Truth. 3. The most that the author can hope to accomplish within the limitations of this volume is to give to the world a general Key to the fundamental principles which underly the Ethical Section of the Formulary. 4. Whilst all this must necessarily be expressed in much more general terms than it is given to the "tried, tested, and accepted student" under a personal instruction, nevertheless it is the desire and purpose so to present the subject that those who desire may enter at once upon the "Living of a Life" in conformity with the Construc- tive Principle of Nature. It is hoped and believed that the subject may be made so clear and simple that those who are ready may proceed with perfect safety, along the pathway of Independent Spiritual Development, as far as may be possible, and at the same time protect them- selves against the dangers and the possibilities of Psychic Subjection. 5. In addition to all this, it is hoped that it may be possible to convey to the reader a comprehensive general outline of the "Technical Work" of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment involved in and covered by the second and third Sections of the General Formulary. 6. It is also a part of the specific purpose and desire of the author, so to present the subject that when it is completed every reader who shall have followed the development of the theme will have in mind a perfectly clear and accurate understanding of the distinguishing dififerences between Mediumship and Mastership, as well as of the processes underlying their development. 7. And finally, it is hoped that when the work is finished it will impress upon every reader, in such manner as to inspire him to immediate action, the paramount fact THE "ETHICAL SECTION" 209 that it is to his own best interest, his own greatest good and his own largest possibility of happiness, both now and in the future of this life, both here and in the life to come, to enter at once upon the noble and ennobling task of "Living a Life" in conformity with Nature's Con- structive Principle, and never thereafter to falter until he shall arrive at the goal of individual Mastership, whether that be in this life or in the great hereafter. CHAPTER XIII. CONSCIOUSNESS. It will be remembered that the data of the universe naturally divide themselves into four distinct classes in their relation to man as an Individual Intelligence or Soul. The first and most important class includes only the "Things we Know." And these are limited to "those things which are a conscious part of us, and those with which we come into conscious personal contact in nature." In short, the things we "know" are the things of which we are personally "conscious." This means that knowledge depends upon Consciousness. In other words, consciousness is the foundation and essential support of all knowledge. Without consciousness there can be no such thing as knowledge. This would all seem to be so very simple as to be self- evident and beyond all possible question. For this very reason alone its importance is all the more likely to be overlooked or ignored. The truths which are so simple and so apparent upon their face that we class them as axioms, are those whose value and vital nature would seem to make the slightest impression upon us, and are the most difficult to express clearly. For this reason, if we are to understand the full mean- ing, importance and application of the Ethical Section of the General Formulary upon the definite consideration 211 212 THE GREAT WORK of which we are now just entering, it is necessary that we make our start at the beginning of the subject and proceed step by step with its unfoldment and analysis in such manner as to omit nothing and at the same time give to each item, or element, its legitimate scientific value. The relation of Consciousness to Independent Spiritual Development and Mastership is the very first problem that confronts the regularly tried, tested and accepted student. It is a problem that cannot be solved in an off- hand manner. On the contrary, it demands the most careful and thoughtful consideration. It is an established and accepted rule or principle of Ethics that knowledge is an essential element and factor at the foundation of Moral Accountability and Personal Responsibility. That is to say, there can be no such thing as Moral Accountability or Personal Responsibility without knowledge. Under the Great Law of Spiritual Unfoldment, men and women are morally accountable and personally responsible for their acts and conduct, to the full limit of their individual knowledge, other things being equal. But the law does not bind them nor hold them morally accountable nor personally responsible beyond that limit. Therefore, the Moral Accountability and Personal Responsibility of an individual, at any given time, depend upon the amount of knowledge he possesses, other considerations being equal. From this it follows that the less the amount of knowledge an individual possesses, the less are his Moral Accountability and Per- sonal Responsibility under the great law of Spiritual Unfoldment. As a natural corollary, the greater the amount of his knowledge, the larger his Moral Account-' ability and the greater his Personal Responsibility. The degree of his knowledge measures the degree of his CONSCIOUSNESS 213 Moral Accountability and Personal Responsibility, other things being equal. For illustration: A child, too young to understand or appreciate the meaning of its act, takes and appro- priates to itself that which belongs to another. It does not commit a crime thereby, nor does it in any manner or degree violate the principle of Moral Accountability or Personal Responsibility. A man of mature intelligence, in full possession of all his faculties, capacities and powers, does the same thing. He thereby commits the crime of theft. He violates the law of Moral Account- ability and Personal Responsibility. Why? Because he knows better. He has the necessary knowledge. The one is bound by the law. The other is not. The one is bound because of his knowledge. The other is exempt because of its lack of knowledge. Other things being equal, knowledge alone determines the existence, as well as the degree, of Moral Accountability and Personal Responsibility. But knowledge depends upon Consciousness. In other words, consciousness is the foundation and support of all knowledge. It follows, therefore, that Moral Accountability and Personal Responsibility, in their final analysis, also depend upon Consciousness ; and that the degree of Con- sciousness determines the extent to which the Individual Intelligence or Soul is morally accountable and personally responsible at any given time, other things being equal. It now becomes apparent how vitally important it is for the student to know as much as possible about Consciousness. Let us see: Consciousness is at the foundation of Knowledge. Knowledge is an essential factor at the very foundation of Moral Accountability. Moral Ac- 214 THE GREAT WORK countability is at the foundation of Constructive Spirit- uality. But Constructive Spirituality is also at the foundation of Spiritual Independence and Mastership. Ergo : Consciousness, in its final analysis, is the sub- stantial basis of Spiritual Independence and Mastership. All this has been said for the express purpose of bringing out in bold relief the profound importance of Consciousness in the process of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment, and of making it clear to the reader that a study of Consciousness is the'natural starting point for every student who enters upon the pathway which leads to the goal of Mastership. It is also said for the purpose of fixing the attention upon the subject, which must therefore command our first consideration. Whilst individual Consciousness is, perhaps, as pro- found a mystery as there is in all the universe, it is, nevertheless, the essential foundation of all our individual efforts and all our individual progress. To fathom the depths of Consciousness and understand all that it is, all that it means, all that it involves, and all its possibilities, it is believed by the Great Masters, would be to know all there is to be known in all the universe. By some it is even believed that this would be to know the Great Universal Intelligence, and all that this implies. Whether or not this be true, however, is not within the purpose of this work to determine. So far as known by the Great School, the possibilities of individual Consciousness have never yet been deter- mined, and its limitations have never yet been reached. It is, therefore, manifestly not the intention nor the pur- pose, nor within the possibilities of this work to exhaust the subject. To suggest such a thing would be to convict the writer of either gross ignorance or wilful dishonesty. It may not even be possible so to define Consciousness CONSCIOUSNESS 215 as to bring it within the dear comprehension of the reader. But this does not mean that the subject is wholly and entirely beyond our grasp. For it is indeed possible for us to study some of its phases, its functions, its processes, and its modes of action. It may be possible even to determine some of the laws and principles which govern its evolutionary unfoldment. We know by absolute personal experience that Con- sciousness is as truly subject to the law of evolution as is the Individual Intelligence or Soul of man. It is for- ever in a state or condition of unfoldment, expansion and natural growth. The infant at birth is conscious of but little outside or beyond the demands of its physical body for food and comfort. Its growth from infancy to maturity represents a corresponding growth and unfold- ment of its Consciousness. In fact, the whole problem of individual life is, pri- marily, and essentially, the problem of Individual Con- sciousness. The two cannot be separated, whatever the scientific relation or unity of their nature may be. The great problem of Spiritual Unfoldment is also but a problem of the unfoldment of the individual Conscious- ness. The process of Spiritual Development, as will become apparent further along, is but the process of enlarging the scope and expanding the limitations of the individual Consciousness. Now let us endeavor to formulate, if possible, a definition of the term that will enable us to realize a closer acquaintance with the thing, in essence, that we name "Consciousness." It is, in truth, vitally necessary for us to give to the word a definite meaning, in order that we may be able to talk of it intelligently and study its essential constitution and function scientifically. The term has been variously defined by the best recog- 2i6 THE GREAT WORK nized authorities on lexicology, and as a result it has been given a number of different meanings and differing shades of meaning. Underlying all these, however, are certain fundamental elements or ideas wrhich relate these various definitions to each other so intimately as to convey to the student a somewhat consistent general notion or impression that it really has a definite and specific meaning, if it only could be reduced to an exact crystallized formulation. If such a definition can be formulated and the meaning of Consciousness thus can be brought to a fixed and certain basis, the cause of science will be advanced very materially. For then it will be possible to speak and write of the subject in such manner as to convey exact information. Just how vitally important this is, never can be appreciated fully by the student until he arrives at the "Technical Work" of the Second Section of the General Formulary for Inde- pendent Spiritual Unfoldment. In an effort to formulate such a definition it will help us if we can get fixed in mind a clear understanding of the essential function of Consciousness, what it does, and what office it performs in the economy of Individual Intelligence, and as an essential factor of the Individual Soul. For this purpose, let us approach it, first, along the line of the physical senses. This is the field of its operation with which mankind in general is most familiar. Let us analyze, as far as we may, the process involved in the experience we call "sound," and observe where it leads us. The process, as far as we are able to follow it, is as follows: The physical atmosphere is set in vibratory motion at a sufficient number of vibrations per second, and of sufficient force, to make an impression upon the physical CONSCIOUSNESS 217 organ of hearing. These vibrations travel in radiating circles from the point of their inception until they strike upon the outer ear of the individual. There they are gathered and thence communicated to the tympanic membrane which they set in synchronous vibratory motion. This, in turn, carries the vibrations through the chain of bones of the inner ear, which are so delicately adjusted and perfectly arranged that the inner one of the chain impinges upon the fluid in which filaments of the outer end of the Auditory Nerve float. Thus the outer end of the auditory nerve is set vibrating at the same rate. The vibrations travel thence along the entire length of the auditory nerve to a point at the inner extremity of that nerve, somewhere within the brain center. Now, just what occurs when the vibrations reach the inner end of the auditory nerve is not known. But it is known that whatever the thing is that there and then occurs, it makes an impression on the Consciousness (sometimes called by the Great Masters "the Sensorium of the Soul"), and this impression is recognized by the Intelli- gent Soul as "sound." The rate of such vibrations — which means the number of vibrations per second — determines the pitch of the sound ; that is, whether it is high or low. The distance covered by the oscillations of the vibrating body or substance determines whether the sound is loud or soft. The greater the distance covered by the oscilla- tions, the louder the sound, and conversely. The process we call "sight" may be analyzed in the same way. Vibrations at a certain rate sufficiently high to produce an impression, penetrate the eye. They strike upon the filaments of the Optic Nerve spread out over the inner back surface of the eye-ball. These are set vibrating at a synchronous rate, and these vibrations are 2i8 THE GREAT WORK carried along the optic nerve to its inner extremity, where the same unknown thing occurs which makes an impression on the Consciousness (or Sensorium of the Soul), which impression is recognized by the Intelligent Soul as "sight." The rate of vibration, in this instance, determines the "color" of the object thus seen, etc. Similar processes convey vibrations of touch, taste and smell to the inner extremities of the special nerves which convey them. At the inner extremities of these special nerves that same "unknown thing" occurs; and in one case the "impression" translates itself to the Soul as "touch," in another as "taste," and in the third as "smell." The vibratory rating determines whether the touch is enjoyable or painful, whether the taste is sweet or sour or bitter, and whether the smell is pleasant or displeasing. Physical science will yet demonstrate the truth of this statement. It has been stated that when the vibrations along any of these special nerves reach the inner extremity of the same within the brain center, some "unknown thing" occurs. Perhaps a further elucidation of this point may help — in an intellectual sense, at least — to make clear to the reader or the student just what phase of the process is "unknown." The vibrations, in all these cases, are vibrations of physical material. For instance: Strike any key of a piano. You thereby set a certain string, or set of strings, to vibrating. These strings are all composed of physical matter. They communicate their vibrations to the atmosphere. The atmosphere is also physical. It communicates its vibrations to the nerve of hearing. CONSCIOUSNESS 219 This also is physical. The vibrations travel the entire length of the nerve until they arrive at its inner extremity within the brain. The brain also is material. Up to this point, therefore, in the process, we have been following only physical vibrations, or more accu- rately speaking, vibrations of physical matter only. But before these vibrations can be recognized by the intelligent Soul as "sensation" — whether of sight, hear- ing, taste, touch or smell — the purely physical process which has carried them to the brain, must either set in motion, or be transmuted into, a psychic process. For Consciousness is an attribute of the Intelligent Soul. It is the Soul that is affected by "sensation" — in its final analysis. It is the Intelligent Soul that is wait- ing to be impressed by all these vibrations, when they shall reach the inner nerve extremity, or brain center. Now, the "thing" that is "unknown" in this process is just how physical vibrations, when they reach the brain center, are transmuted into psychic experiences which we call "sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell." We know that "something" does occur, for we receive the sensation and have the experience. We know that up to a certain point the process is physical, and that beyond that point it becomes psychical. But just what occurs at the time and place when and where a physical vibration becomes, or produces, a conscious experience of the Soul — the wisest of the Great Masters do not assume to know. They only know that the faculty or capacity of the Soul which we name "Consciousness" receives "impressions" from these physical vibrations, and that these "impressions" being recognized by the Intelligence or Soul, constitute what we call "expe- riences." Every "experience" of this nature constitutes an item of "knowledge." And the sum total of all these 220 THE GREAT WORK "experiences" which come to us from the plane of physical nature through the channels of the physical senses, constitutes our stock of knowledge concerning the physical universe. There is a very definite reason why the Great Masters do not know just what occurs at that point in the process where the physical ends and the psychical begins. And while this may not be very satisfactory to the man who insists upon knowing what that "unknown thing" is, nevertheless, it is often of very great importance to the scientist to know why he does not know a given item in an intricate process. To know why we do not know a thing we desire to know, is the next thing to knowing the thing itself. And so, in this particular instance, it is an item of important knowledge to know why we do not know the thing we want to know. For it may help us to know a number of other things which are likely to prove of even greater immediate value and importance to us in connection with the particular thing we are now trying to accomplish. The reason why the Great School and the Great Masters do not know the exact nature of that "unknown thing" to which we have referred, is to be found in the fact that the individual Soul is not a visible entity, upon any of the planes of life from the physical to the highest and most refined spiritual plane of which we have any definite knowledge. In this connection, let it be borne in mind that when- ever and wherever the term "Soul" is employed in this work, it has reference to the highest element of indi- vidual being — ^the Ego, the Individual Intelligence, the essential Self — which is back of all the phenomena by means of which it expresses and manifests itself on any or all of the planes of life, spiritual as well as physical. CO NSC 10 USNESS 22 1 This is important for the reason that many of those who write upon psychological subjects employ the term "Spirit" to designate that which is meant here by "Soul." It is their perfect right to do so, and that right is fully respected. There should be no room for controversy in a matter of this nature, however, so long as a writer defines his terms clearly and then adheres strictly to his own definitions. Volumes of argument, perhaps, have been written by disputants to prove that one or the other of these two terms is correct and the other incorrect, and it has all seemed a great waste of intelligent energy, so far as the results would seem to indicate; for there are still differing opinions among writers as to which term is correct. It would be entirely legitimate for a writer to employ any other term that appealed to his individual fancy, provided he so define it at the outset that his readers may understand the exact meaning he attaches to the term selected. It has just been stated that the "Soul" of man is not a visible entity upon any of the planes of life so far as known. This is a very definite statement. It is under- stood in advance that it will be disputed. It is made, however, notwithstanding the fact that there are those who claim to have seen the "Soul" and to have demon- strated that it is "the shape of an tgg." It is also made in the face of the fact that there is in existence a book that contains many cuts and illustrations which are alleged to represent the form, color, and other character- istics, as well as the general appearance of the individual "Soul" of man as it manifests itself to the author of that book. The writer has seen the same thing, however, many times, and therefore knows that there are in nature realities of which those cuts and illustrations referred to are in some respects true. But they are not "Souls." 222 THE GREAT WORK They are but manifestations of the Soul, or Essential Entity which is back of or within them. In other words, they are but visible phenomena produced by the active "Soul," or Intelligent Entity, and not the Soul itself. The Soul, or Essential Entity of man, manifests itself upon the physical plane through and by means of its physical instrument, the physical body. In other words, scientifically speaking, the physical body is simply the physical phenomenon of the Soul, and not the Soul itself. For this reason, when we look into the eyes of a friend we do not see his Soul. We see only the physical body through the windows of which he is looking out at us. lie closes one of these windows, and we say "he" is winking "his eye" at us. We say truly, for the real being, the Soul that does the winking, is back of the thing he winks. Has the reader not, more than once, looked into the eyes of a friend, or stranger, or loved one, and said to himself something like this: "What is the thing that sits just back of those eyes looking out at me? It is intelligent. It knows things. It thinks. It calls itself "/," for it says "/ see you." But it doesn't really see ME. It sees only my body. It can no more see what is back of my physical eyes than I can see what is back of its." And then has he not turned the subject of inquiry upon himself, and found himself just as profoundly puzzled in his efforts to analyze and understand himself? Has he not at some time said to himself: "What is the thing I call "I"F What is this "/" that sits back here within this physical body I call "mine," and looks out at other things that call themselves "I"f "What is it that sits here quietly contemplating these other things that seem to be no greater mystery to me than T am to myself?" And hasn't he turned his attention to other CONSCIOUSNESS 223 things with a sensation akin to hopelessness, at the thought that one is not only unable to see the essential reality back of those other eyes, but that he is just as far from being able to see his own essential "Self" ? You can see your physical body, and you say of it — "It is MINE." You know it belongs to you, for a time at least, but you know also that it is not YOU. You know that some day the body will cease to respond to your commands. It will become useless to you as a means of expressing yourself. Then you will throw it away, or Just creep out of it and let others who call themselves "//' bury it, or burn it, while YOU will go on about your business in another world of conditions. Now let us approach the subject of Consciousness along another line. Let us determine, if it is possible for us to come any closer to the thing in essence, or uncover it yet more completely to our own view. The Spiritual World — whilst almost inconceivably finer in particle and higher in vibratory activity than the physical — is, nevertheless, a material world. This we know as surely and with as much scientific certainty as we know that the physical world is a material world. The Spiritual Body of man is a material organism. Its sense channels are material channels. The organs of Spiritual sense— though almost immeasurably finer than the organs of physical sense, and of correspondingly higher vibratory activity — are, nevertheless, material organs. That is to say, they are composed of material substance. When this is known and appreciated as a fact of science, it is possible to understand that the process by which the Soul receives impressions from the Spiritual world, through the action of its spiritual senses, is so closely analogous to that by which it receives impres- 224 THE GREAT WORK sions from the physical world through the physical senses, as virtually to be identical. Both are vibratory processes. Both convey vibrations, from their own particular world of material, to the individual Consciousness. And in the Spiritual world, as in the physical, the process can be followed with reasonable scientific certainty, to the point where that "unknown thing" occurs which converts it into a conscious psychic experience. But the Soul itself — as the term is employed in this work — is seemingly as far beyond the limits of objective spiritual sight as it is beyond the limitations of physical vision. In the Spiritual world the Soul manifests itself through its spiritual instrument, the spiritual .body — as it does in the physical world through its physical body. But the spiritually embodied Soul is just as conscious that it is something else than, and different from, its spiritual body, as it is conscious that it is different from its physical body. In both conditions it recognizes that its body is only a mere material instrument, or phenome- non, through which it may manifest itself upon that particular plane of materiality to which its body belongs. So far as the Great Masters have been able to follow the Individual Soul in its evolutionary development, there never comes a time nor a point in its unfoldment when it entirely ceases to employ material substance through which to manifest itself. What the ultimate of its evolutionary unfoldment and possibilities may be, of course, "doth not yet appear." But, so far as we have definite knowledge on the subject, the Soul is never without a material body of some kind. So far as yet known, it does not evolve to a state or condition wherein it is able to manifest itself without a material medium of manifestation. In other words, so far as science yet knows, there never comes a time in the evolution of an CONSCIOUSNESS 225 individual Soul when it stands uncovered and entirely independent of all material substance. It must now be apparent to the reader that the reason why the Great Masters do not know just what the "thing" is that occurs to transmit a material vibration to — or transmute it into — a psychic experience, is that they cannot follow the process far enough to determine with scientific certainty. They cannot see the Soul, nor otherwise sense it, except through its material phenomena. But, notwithstanding its elusiveness, and all these difficulties added, we know that the Intelligent Soul of man is Conscious. We know that it is capable of receiv- ing impressions. We know that these impressions result in what we call "experiences." We know that these "experiences" constitute our definite personal "knowl- edge." We also know that the impressions we receive, come to us through both our physical senses and our spiritual senses. We know that they result in what we designate as "physical experiences" and "spiritual expe- riences." We know that this is the reason our knowledge divides itself into the two departments which we call "physical knowledge" and "spiritual knowledge" — more commonly designated as "physical science" and "Spirit- ual Science." On the basis of this knowledge, and for the purpose of enabling us to study the subject more intimately, we have given names to certain of the attributes of the Soul, so that we may be able to identify them and talk of them intelligently and without being misunderstood. One of these attributes of the Soul we name "Con- sciousness." But this is merely a name. What this name may convey to the reader will depend entirely upon his own understanding of its meaning, and not upon 226 THE GREAT WORK what the writer or the School may intend it to convey. Therefore, if the reader would know what the Great School knows about Consciousness, he must know first the exact sense in which the term is employed by the School. For this purpose the following analysis may be of special value. The attributes of the Soul, on their func- tional basis, divide themselves naturally into two distinct classes, as follows: I. Those attributes whose offices or functions are receptive in their essential nature, as they affect the Individual Intelligence or Soul. These appear to be dependent for their operation upon natural laws and conditions over which the Soul does not necessarily exercise individual control. An illustration may be found in the sense we call "feeling." This is an inherent and necessary attribute of the Soul. It is receptive in its essential nature, from the standpoint of the individual, and operates in response to the law of its inherent con- stitution. It is not under the control of the average Individual Intelligence. It is there, and it operates with- out depending upon us to set the process in motion. In other words, it involves a process which, generally speak- ing, is set in motion by outside nature and not by the individual. Another illustration might be found in the attribute we call "memory." This is an attribute of the Soul by means of which the Individual Intelligence retains a knowledge of its past experiences. It is also receptive in its essential nature, and operates in response to the law of its own being. It is not necessarily under the control of the Individual Intelligence. It is there, and it operates in most individuals regardless of the indi- vidual will or wish. CONSCIOUSNESS 227 2. Those attributes whose offices or functions are positive, active and aggressive in their essential nature, and in their relation to the Individual Intelligence or Soul. These are under the control of the Individual Intelligence, and they operate because the individual takes the initiative and sets them in motion. An illus- tration of this class is that which we call "reason." The Soul cannot reason while in a state of absolute negation, or passivity. This is because the process is one which, in its essential nature, is active and positive. It involves a process which depends upon the Individual Intelligence, or Ego, to set it in motion and keep it going. In other words, it is not a process which runs itself automatically and without an effort of the individual. It depends upon the action of the Intelligent Soul for its initiative, and in its very nature must be at all times under the control of the individual; otherwise it would not be "Reason." The attributes of the Soul which fall under the first class above mentioned — ^because of their negative, passive, or receptive nature, and because they are not by virtue of any inherent necessity under the control of the Individual Intelligence, or Soul — ^we designate as "faculties" or "capacities." Those which fall under the second class — ^because they are active and positive in their essential nature, and must be set in motion and controlled by the Individual Intelli- gence, or Soul — we designate as "powers." "Consciousness" falls under the first class. Its office is to receive impressions. And it is receiving them all the time, whether we will or not. It does not consult us as to its initiative. It simply receives whatever impres- sions come to it through any and all of the channels of sense, and upon all the planes of individual being. It is, in truth, the "Receiver General" of the Soul. It is that 228 THE GREAT WORK faculty or capacity of the Soul which makes us aware of the existence of things. It might truly be said to be the "Faculty of Awareness." It is also that faculty upon which the Soul depends for its wakefulness, or "Attention." Those who have presented the quaint suggestion that the Soul, Ego, or Essential Entity is egg-shaped, have at the same time suggested a figure which may serve as an apt illustration by which to bring certain phases of Con- sciousness more clearly into view. For instance: Suppose we use an egg as a figure, or imaginary working model of the conscious Soul of man. But in order to make it serve our purpose we shall have to imagine that its membranous covering has not yet hardened into a shell. In other words, we will take an egg before it has developed its shell. If the reader has ever seen such an tgg, he will recall the fact that instead of a shell it has a delicate membranous covering which is very flexible and exceedingly responsive to every touch or impact upon its surface from without. Now let us, in our imagination, locate this soft-shelled egg in the brain, at the point where that "unknown thing" occurs. Let us, while our imaginations are in good working order, locate it in such manner that the inner extremity or terminus of each and every one of the special nerves of sense rests somewhere upon the outer surface of the membranous egg-covering. Now we have the egg so located that the inner extremity of the optic nerve, the inner extremity of the auditory nerve, and the inner extremities of all the other nerves of sense rest upon the outer surface of the soft, flexible, membranous covering. Having accomplished this, it is now a simple matter to understand that vibrations travel- ing along any of these special nerves, when they reach CONSCIOUSNESS 229 the inner extremity of the nerve, will produce an impact, or impression, upon the membranous covering at the particular point where the inner end of the nerve rests upon its outer surface. Let us suppose, for instance, that sound waves strike upon the outer ear, thence are communicated to the inner ear, and thence to the audi- tory nerve, and that these vibrations finally reach the inner extremity of that nerve where it rests upon the outer surface of the egg covering. It is easy to under- stand that these would make their impression upon the membranous covering, and this, being flexible, would disturb the entire contents of the egg within its covering. Now, in this imaginary figure, let us assume that the contents of the egg represent the Individual Intelligence, or Soul, and the membranous covering represents Con- sciousness. Under these conditions we can easily imagine the following: Vibrations of sight, or sound, taste, touch or smell, travel along their special sense nerve to the point where its inner extremity rests upon the outer surface of this "soft-shelled Consciousness." The impact, or impression, thus made upon Consciousness, is felt by the Individual Intelligence, or Soul, within and there- after constitutes an "experience" of the Soul. In this case, what is the office or function of this "soft-shelled Consciousness?" It is merely to receive impressions, or impacts, for the Intelligent Soul, of? the ends of the various nerves of sense, communicated to it from the great world of nature that lies without. In short, its office is to receive impressions, or impacts. The Soul within gets the benefit of these in the form of so many definite "experiences," which it retains, and which con- stitute its store of exact "knowledge." The figure might be carried out in such manner as to illustrate all the various attributes of the Soul, and show 230 THE GREAT WORK their natural division into "Faculties" (or Capacities), and "Powers." Let it be distinctly understood, however, that this is but an imaginary figure, pure and simple. Its only pur- pose is to give to the reader a reason why this School classes Consciousness as a faculty, or capacity, instead of a power; and why we conceive its office to be that of a "Receiver" for the intelligent Soul. The writer is well acquainted with the fact that psychologists do not always make a distinction between "Faculties" and "Powers." But it must be clear to everyone whose attention is called to it, that there is a perfectly natural and inherent dis- tinction between the "receiving" attributes and the "giving" attributes of the Soul. It is also well under- stood that the "authorities" generally do not distinguish between Consciousness and the Soul itself. In fact, these are often treated as identical, and the student is left to infer that they are one and the same thing. It is the perfect right of psychologists to take this view of the subject, and there is not the least desire to interfere with their perfect freedom in the exercise of that right. There is no room for controversy between their school and this, for here again it is but a mere question of "definition." It is hoped the writers and authorities of that school will take the same broad and liberal view of the subject and grant to us the right to define our own terms in such manner as to us may seem necesary to convey our own intelligent conceptions of this most diffi- cult of all scientific subjects. In order to do this, it is necessary for us to differentiate between "Faculties" (or Capacities) and "Powers," and between Consciousness and the Soul itself. For its own specific purposes, therefore, — and not because of any desire to find fault with others — ^this CONSCIOUSNESS 231 School defines "Consciousness" as "The fundamental Receiving Attribute of the Intelligent Soul." In this view it is not the Soul itself, but an attribute of the Soul. It falls under the first class hereinbefore mentioned, and its distinctive office, or function, is to receive impressions for the Soul, through the channels of sense, from as much of the universe of nature as those channels can be made to respond to. Some of the Great Masters have defined Conscious- ness as "The Sensorium of the Soul." In a mechanical sense it is not a bad definition. It makes clear the con- ception that it is a "Receiver." And this is the specific reason why it is classed here as a Faculty, or Capacity, and not as a Power of the Soul. It is, indeed, so funda- mental in its nature that it constitutes the background for all other faculties and capacities of the Soul. Consciousness is so essential in its nature that it is intimately concerned in every experience of the Soul, and constitutes a perfect register of the Soul's individual status or condition at any given time. So inseparably connected and intimately associated are they that the growth of the Soul involves a necessary and correlative increase in the capacity of the Consciousness to receive impressions. The evolutionary development of the Soul involves a corresponding unfoldment of Consciousness. And conversely, the extension of Consciousness neces- sarily involves Soul Development. The entire problem of Evolutionary Development and Spiritual Unfoldment, in one sense, is but the problem of how to extend the Individual Consciousness and thus enlarge the field of its operations. If we might be permitted to coin a word by which to express a slightly different phase of this, the most won- derful of all our faculties, Consciousness is the "Percep- 232 THE GREAT WORK torium" of the Soul. That is, Consciousness is the faculty by which the Soul perceives. Perception is but an intellectual phase of Consciousness. It is not the intention to dogmatize upon this subject. For it is admitted that there is, perhaps, no greater mystery in all the Universe than the Individual Con- sciousness. It is also admitted that all the processes of the Soul of which we have exact and definite knowledge, are conscious processes. It is not possible even to think of an Intelligent Soul without Consciousness; for Intelli- gence necessarily involves Consciousness. It is there- fore impossible to consider the Intelligent Soul without at the same time considering Consciousness which is one of its essential and fundamental attributes ; for any con- sideration of the Soul as an entirety necessarily involves a consideration of all its attributes. Indeed, so fundamentally and essentially is Conscious- ness a factor in all we know or can conceive of concern- ing the Soul, that if it were asserted as a fact that the individualized Intelligent Soul is but a "Unit of Con- sciousness," it would be impossible, from our present available data, to disprove the assertion. But solely for the purpose of enabling us to give a simple and comprehensible exposition of such phases of the Soul as are directly involved in the process of Inde- pendent Spiritual Unfoldment, we have assumed the right to consider Consciousness as an attribute of the Soul, and not as the Soul itself. On this understanding, the reader is asked to follow the subject through to its conclusion, and suspend final judgment until after all the evidence is in. CHAPTER XIV. WILL. Consciousness has been defined as "The fundamental Receiving Attribute of the Intelligent Soul." This makes it clear that man is at least a "Receiver." But in order that he may fulfill his destiny as an indi- vidualized intelligent entity upon whom rests the enor- mous burden of Personal Responsibility and Moral Accountability, he must of necessity be something more than a mere "Receiver." By the great Law of Compensation which is funda- mental in nature, — and which will be elucidated in another chapter — a man, as an individualized Intelligent Soul, must preserve the perfect balance of his account with nature. But to discharge this fundamental obliga- tion it follows that he must be a "Giver" as well as a "Receiver." This, in turn, necessarily implies that he shall possess an attribute of the Soul specifically designed for that particular purpose. That is to say, if he is to be bound by the Law of Personal -Responsibility to balance his account with nature (which includes his fellow man), he must possess a "Giving" Attribute, by means of which he shall be able to return to nature and his fellow man an equivalent for all he receives through his "Receiving" Attribute. And in the very nature of things this Giving Attribute must be the antithesis of his Receiving Attribute. This means that: 233 234 THE GREAT WORK 1. From the standpoint of the individual Soul it must be "active" instead of "passive." 2. It must be "positive" and not "negative." 3. It must be at the command and under the control of the Individual Intelligence, or Soul; and not merely an automatic process which responds only to the impulses of external nature. 4. It must not only be under the immediate control of the Individual Intelligence, but he alone must take the initiative in setting it in motion. Otherwise the Law of Personal Responsibility would be infringed. 5. It must be a "Power" instead of a "Faculty," or "Capacity." 6. It must be fundamental in its essential nature. There is such a Soul Attribute. We all recognize it. We depend upon it for all our achievements in life. We call it our "Will." The Will is a Power instead of a Faculty : 1. In that it is at the command of, and is exercised and controlled by the individualized Intelligence, or Soul. 2. Because it is the motive factor which sets in motion all the voluntary processes of the individual being, in all its various departments. It is active for the same reason that all powers are active when in motion. In this connection it may be well to note the fact that we have a term by which we differ- entiate the active state of the Will from the mere latent power of Will. The "Will in action" is known to this School as "Volition." The "power to act" we designate as "Will." This distinction should not be overlooked. The Will is also positive, from the standpoint of the individual. It is the power of initiative. It does things. It is never "done," except by the subjective process. It moves things intelligently. It is not automatically moved, WILL 235 so long as it is free from the subjective influence of hyp- notic or mediumistic control. In its normal condition it is in every sense both active and positive, and should be independent from all subjection. It is fundamental in that it is the one power of the Soul upon which all other powers depend. For illustra- tion: We call "Reason" a power — and so it is. But at the same time it depends upon the Will of the individual to set it in motion. In other words, we reason because we Will to do so, and not because we cannot do otherwise. Under the active impulse of the Will we set all the voluntary machinery of our being in motion. We thereby at once and of necessity become centers of dynamic energy and active force. But force, radiating from a center, is a movement outward. The very essence of such a process is an impulse or a movement which pro- ceeds from the center outward. But that which proceeds outward from the Individual Intelligence, or Soul, as a center, is the antithesis of "Receiving." It is the process of "Giving." This process being the result of the active Will, the Will, therefore, is a "Giver." In the Power of the individual Will, therefore, we have the one single attribute of the Soul which represents the complete antithesis of Consciousness, from a func- tional standpoint. Consciousness is passive ; Will is active. Consciousness is negative; Will is positive. Consciousness is impressed; Will impresses. Consciousness is acted upon; Will acts. Consciousness receives impressions; Will gives im- pressions. Consciousness is a Faculty (or Capacity) ; Will is a Power. 236 THE GREAT WORK These two fundamental attributes of the Soul are the concomitant factors at the foundation of intelligent individual existence. They are the special implements which nature, or the Great Universal Intelligence, has put into the possession of the Intelligent Soul. They constitute the "Working Tools" with which every in- dividualized Intelligent Entity must "work out its own salvation." These are the working tools with which each of us must build "The Temple of Human Character." CHAPTER XV. DESIRE AND CHOICE. At this point another problem of profound interest and importance presents itself and demands our consid- eration before we proceed to the absorbing task of becoming skilled artisans and expert wielders of our working tools. For this is the task of every apprentice, and until this preliminary schooling is completed he can never become a proficient "Temple Builder." Just how important it is that he become proficient in both the science and the art of building, before he assumes the obligations and responsibilities of a "Master Builder," may be suggested by the fact that his very first contract is for the building of his own Temple — the Temple of Character — wherein he must abide forever. Before entering upon that important labor, however, the problem of "Desire" presents itself for intelligent solution. What is Desire? What function, if any, does it perform in the economy of the individual Soul ? What relation, if any, does it sustain to the individual Will ? There are those among our modern psychologists who profess to believe that Will is an automatic instrument of Desire. Such a conclusion is of the most vital and far-reaching importance ; for if such an assumption could be demonstrated as a literal fact of nature it would carry with it the following inevitable results : I. It would reduce man from the status of an indi- 237 238 THE GREAT WORK vidualized, Intelligent Entity to that of an automatic instrument under the absolute domination and control of his inherent desires. 2. It would destroy completely and irrevocably man's acknowledged power of individual Choice. 3. It would release man, as an Individual Intelligence, from the fundamental obligation upon which his Per- sonal Responsibility and Moral Accountability rest, and would reduce him to a status and condition of absolute irresponsibility ; for this is the status of every automaton. 4. It would not only free him from the operation of the law of Moral Accountability, but it would at the same time reduce him to the level of the animal, whence he prides himself he has evolved some time since. 5. It would destroy the very foundation upon which the principle at the foundation of the "Freedom of Will" and the power of "Independent Choice" depends. There may be those who, in their blind folly, would be willing thus to shift the burden of Moral Account- ability and Personal Responsibility upon Nature, or Uni- versal Intelligence. It is a most convenient method of finding an excuse for all our evil propensities and of relieving ourselves from responsibility for all our "sins" of both "omission" and "commission." But after all, it is only an artful delusion and a cunning snare. It is a pitiful effort of infantile intelligence to throw the dust of sophistry in the searching eyes of Conscience. It must inevitably fail. And when it does, the individual who has sought to reach the haven of eternal peace in such a craft will find himself far from shore and his frail and punctured bark helplessly drifting toward the troubled waters. "Desire," in its broad and generic sense, represents the Soul's fundamental search for satisfaction. It is based DESIRE AND CHOICE 239 upon the Soul's primary and inherent craving for realization. In its specific and determinate sense, Desire is but a mode or phase of Consciousness. For illustration: The experience we call physical hunger is but a "craving" for something with which to satisfy a demand of the Soul for food, nourishment or supplies with which to build up and sustain its physical body. It is a certain definite phase or mode of Conscious- ness. It is a conscious sensation, the result of a demand of the Soul for satisfaction along a certain specific line. When the body has had its needs supplied, and has received the food and nourishment necessary to that end, the phase or mode of Consciousness changes from the sensation of "hunger" to that of "satiety," or "satisfac- tion." But these two distinct and differing sensations of the Soul are but the results of two distinct and diiifering phases or modes of Consciousness. The Soul experiences the sense of craving or desire in all the departments of individual being. For illustration : There is the craving of the Soul for physical food. We name it "hunger." It is a demand which can be satisfied only upon the plane of physical material. The craving for physical warmth falls within the same department of nature. It can be satisfied only by a physical process. But there are distinct cravings which transcend the plane of physical things. One of these is the craving for spiritual light, and a sense of the world of spiritual nature. This cannot be satisfied by physical processes. Its gratification is possible only upon the plane of spiritual material. Then again, we experience the cravings and desires of the Soul for a knowledge of Truth. But Truth is not 240 THE GREAT WORK a material thing. It is nature's established relationship between things. This can be satisfied only by a knowl- edge of relationships. The cravings of the Soul for ethical adjustment and intellectual companionship are demands which transcend the planes of materiality. These can be satisfied only upon the plane of the Soul itself. The highest craving of the Soul is for Individual Completion. Its satisfaction demands the highest activity of the Soul which we name "Love." Its ethical effect we name "Happiness." There are countless desires of the Soul which arise solely because of its relation to physical nature. There are countless others that are due entirely to its relation to spiritual nature. And finally, there are numberless desires of the Soul for satisfaction which can come only from its relation to other Souls, and from conditions that transcend all the realms of materiality, as we know them. But these countless different cravings for satisfaction which arise from a relation of the Soul to all the depart- ments of nature, physical, spiritual and psychical, are but so many phases or modes of Consciousness. Taken together, these furnish to the Intelligent Soul the data of experience from which to determine its course of action and lines of procedure. These multifarious cravings and desires are of so diverse and conflicting a nature as to impose upon the Soul the necessity for a continuous and never-ending series of individual selec- tions or choices in its effort for Individual Completion and Perfect Happiness. This means that the Soul, in its effort to conform to the Constructive Principle of Nature, must keep a constant supervision of and dominion over the many conflicting desires and cravings which might otherwise impel it to action along destructive lines. DESIRE AND CHOICE 241 An illustration may help to disclose this principle more clearly : The Soul is impelled by two desires which are of such a nature that one or the other must be controlled in order that the other may be gratified. Let us say, for instance, that one is the desire for food and the other a desire for spiritual unfoldment. The latter, in some instances, necessitates the use of only certain foods and those in limited quantities. Under those conditions, if the Soul should fully gratify its desire or hunger for food, it must deny its desire for spiritual unfoldment. On the other hand, if it gratifies its desire for spiritual unfoldment it must deny itself the satisfaction it might otherwise derive from the freedom to eat and drink ad libitum. This situation of the Soul between two conflicting desires demands an intelligent Choice. On the basis of its own greatest good, let us say, the Soul elects to con- trol its appetite for physical food, and thereby satisfy its desire for spiritual unfoldment. In this process of selection, or choice, the Will is the Power of Initiative that sets the machinery of the Soul in action and keeps it going until the chosen end has been achieved. In this instance, however, the psychologist, of the type hereinbefore referred to, would dismiss the entire sub- ject with the persistent assertion that the individual in making his choice was merely compelled by the stronger of the two desires, and that after all, the Will was auto- matically governed by that stronger desire. It is only necessary to point out the fact that in this instance there were two Desires. The Will acted in the line of only one of these. In other words, there was at least one of these desires that did not control the action 242 THE GREAT WORK of the Will. This proves at least that there are some desires that do not control the Will. The illustration might have been made to include as many as fifty distinct and different desires, in strict accord with human experience, from which the Soul must make its intelligent Choice. It finally chooses but one of these. It matters not what may have been the motive which actuated that particular choice. The impor- tant fact is that forty-nine desires have been set aside, denied or overruled by the Soul. Now, if the Will were an automatic instrument of Desire, it would be compelled by the law of its relation to respond, in this instance, to fifty different desires at the same time instead of one. The fact is, however, that the Soul through the Power of Will alone disposes of the forty-nine desires which it sets aside. And thus, the power of Will is the attribute of the Soul which has made the execution of such a Qioice possible. In this instance, as in all others. Desire has simply furnished the Intelligent Soul the necessary data from which to make a Choice. It has presented to the intelli- gence fifty different modes or phases of Consciousness, and by the power of Reason and the exercise of Will the Soul has made its selection. Many forceful illustrations might be given to show that by the exercise of the power of intelligent Will many dominant desires (which have become so compelling that we name them "evil habits"), have been brought under subjection and finally eradicated entirely. The desires for liquor, tobacco, opium, etc., are of this class. To those who insist that the power of Will is the auto- matic instrument of Desire, there is one way to put the subject that may help to disclose their sophistry. It is DESIRE AND CHOICE 243 this: The Will (which all agree is the Soul's power of initiative), is either an automatic instrument of Desire, or it is not. In the very nature of things it cannot be both. If it is such an automatic instrument, then be good enough to explain why you hold your fellow men and women responsible for their acts and conduct. Also kindly tell us why you pride yourself on the assumption that you are Morally Accountable and Personally Re- sponsible for your acts and conduct. You can give but one reply, and that is: "Because we are obligated by the law of our being to control our Desires." But by what power are we to accomplish that end? There is but one power of the individual Soul by which such an obliga- tion can be discharged. That is by the power of Will. In other words, we are either Morally Accountable and Personally Responsible, or we are not. We cannot be both. If we are — which you will not hesitate to ad- mit — then it is only because we, as individualized. Intel- ligent Souls, possess in our own right a power by the exercise of which we may govern our acts and conduct, at least within certain limitations. We possess but one such power. There is but one. That is the power of Will. It is only upon the basis of its supremacy over the emotions, passions, impulses and desires, that we be- come Personally Responsible or Morally Accountable for our actions and conduct, under the law of individual being. In conclusion, let it be remembered that the position of the Great School is unequivocal on this subject. It holds, without equivocation or mental reservation, that we are charged with the fundamental obligation of Per- sonal Responsibility and Moral Accountability, within the limitations elsewhere elucidated in this volume, as 244 THE GREAT WORK well as in Vol. II of the Series. It holds that this is because we are something more than automatons under the dominion and control of inherent Desires. To its own entire satisfaction it has demonstrated that Desire, in its generic sense, is the fundamental craving of the Soul for satisfaction ; and in its determinate sense it is a phase or mode of Consciousness. In this deter- minate sense all the varying desires of the Soul are but so many differing phases or modes of Consciousness. The highest and most exalted phase or mode of Con- sciousness is the desire of the Soul for Individual Com- pletion. Its satisfaction involves the highest activity of the Soul, which is Love. Its complete satisfaction we call "Happiness." CHAPTER XVI. THE LAW OF COMPENSATION. From the demonstrated facts of physical nature phys- ical science has endeavored to formulate what it con- ceives to be a fundamental "Law of Substance." One of its most eminent exponents — Professor Haeckel — finds that this "Supreme and all-pervading law of nature" embraces "two supreme laws of different origin and age — the older is the chemical law of the 'Conservation of Matter/ and the younger is the physical law of the 'Conservation of Energy.' " Inasmuch, however, as other scientists of equal stand- ing question the accuracy of these two "supreme laws" of Conservation, as thus far expressed, it may be said without criticism that the great fundamental "Law of Substance" yet remains to be discovered, or if not this, then it remains yet to be formulated into definite expression. But there is that in physical nature which all agree reaches the dignity of a "Law of Compensation." It is a law of mechanics. It operates with mathematical exactness and precision. Its results are susceptible of definite calculation and verification. A suggestion of this law may be obtained from a scientific study of the relation between "speed" and "power." It will be found that speed, in the realm of physical material, can be obtained only at the expense of 245 246 THE GREAT WORK power, other things being equal. The higher the speed the greater the power. Differently expressed, this means that, in the realm of mechanics, if we would have speed we must be willing to compensate for it in power. Or, if we assume that the degree of power is fixed and remains the same, then if we would increase the speed we must be willing to compensate for it in volume. For the law is that "other things being equal, the greater the speed the smaller the volume." The following illustration will help to make the prin- ciple appear more distinctly: Let us suppose that lOO horsepower applied to a 2,000 pound car will propel it at a speed of 60 miles an hour. Now, if we desire to move the same car at a higher rate of speed we can do so only by increasing the number of horsepower. In other words, if we desire greater speed in this case, we are compelled to compensate for it in power. But suppose we desire to increase the speed without increasing the number of horsepower above 100. How can we accomplish the desired increase of speed? This can be done by reducing the weight (or volume) of our car. For instance, if we reduce the weight of our car to 1,000 pounds, our 100 horsepower will propel it at a much higher rate of speed than it would propel the 2,000 pound car. In this case, if we would increase the speed we must be willing to compensate for speed with weight (or volume). There are many other illustrations which might be presented to show that there is in nature a mechanical law of compensation. It is recognized everywhere in the world of physical science. It is immutable, so far as we know. Under this mechanical law nature exacts something in return for everything she grants. She LAW OF COMPENSATION 247 does not give without receiving in return. But nature is generous after all, for she does not always demand of us that we pay in kind. She does, however, demand a full equivalent. ■ But what has this law of compensation to do with the Ethical Formulary? What place has it in the Great Work of Independent Spiritual Unfoldrnent? This same great Law of Compensation, or its higher correlative, obtains throughout the moral order of the universe wherein man abides. But inasmuch as Moral- ity is at the foundation of Constructive Spirituality, it follows that the Law of Compensation is also vitally related to Constructive Spirituality. And since Inde- pendent Spiritual Unfoldment and Mastership are the outgrowths of Constructive Spirituality and Morality, it is equally clear that the Law of Compensation is vitally related to the whole subject of this work. It is there- fore necessary that the student have a clear understand- ing of its application to his own life and labors in the field of psychic development. In the realm of Morality the Law of Compensation is inexorable. It is the great leveler. It is ever seeking to establish equilibrium by rounding off the rough cor- ners of human character and filling in the low places to bring the whole to a common level. It is no respecter of persons. It binds all and favors none. Among modern writers and teachers no man has sensed this great law in its ethical significance so fully and clearly as Emerson. His essay on "Compensation" is, of itself, an enduring monument to his wisdom, his greatness and his spiritual illumination. So apropos is it of the subject under consideration that it might well be substituted for this chapter with but few modifica- tions. So closely was he in touch with the realms of 248 THE GREAT WORK spiritual truth that in this wonderful essay he has sounded the depths of moral principle as only one in- spired by the spirit of the Great School could have done. The honest student in search of true spiritual illumina- tion may study the pages of all past literature and he will find no more comprehensive exposition of the law of Compensation, in the realm of the Soul, than this Master of English diction has given to the world. The following sentences, taken at random from his wonderful work, will suggest with what clearness of vision he saw the great Law, and with what unerring precision he measured its application to human life and conduct : ' ' Always pay ; for, fiist or last, you must pay your entire debt. Persons and events may stand for a time between you and justice, but it is only a postponement. You must pay at last your own debt. "Benefit is the end of nature. But for every benefit which you receive, a tax is levied. He is great who confers the most bene- fits. He is base — and that is the one base thing in the universe — to receive favors and render none. In the order of nature we can not render benefits to those from whom we receive them, or only seldom. But the benefit we receive must be rendered again, line for line, deed for deed, cent for cent, to somebody. ' ' Has a man gained anything who has received a hundred favors and rendered none? The borrower runs in his own debt. A wise man will extend this lesson to all parts of life, and know that it is always the part of prudence to face every claimant, and pay every just demand on your time, your talents, or your heart. "The exclusive in fashionable life does not see that he excludes himself from enjoyment in the attempt to appropriate it. The exclusionist in religion does not see that he shuts the door of heaven on himself in striving to shut out others. Treat men as pawns and ninepins, and you shall suffer as well as they. If you leave out their heart, you shall lose your own. The vulgar proverb, 'I will get it from his purse or get it from his skin,' is sound philosophy. "The physiologist has observed that no creatures are favorites, bat a certain compensation balances every gift and every defect. A surplusage given to one part is paid out of a reduction from LAW OF COMPENSATION 249 another part of the same creature. If the head and neck are enlarged, the trunk and extremities are cut short. Every excess causes a defect; every defect an excess. "The farmer imagines power and place are fine things. But the President has paid dear for his White House. It has com- monly cost him all his peace and the best of his manly attributes. To preserve for a short time so conspicuous an appearance before the world, he is content to eat dust before the real masters who stand erect behind the throne. "He who by force of will or of thought is great, and overlooks thousands, has the responsibility of overlooking. Has he light f He must bear witness to the light, and always outrun that sym- pathy which gives him such keen satisfaction, by his fidelity to new revelations of the incessant soul. "This Law of Compensation will not be balked of its end in the smallest iota. It is in vain to build or plot or combine against it. Things refuse to be mismanaged long. If the government is cruel, the governor's life is not safe. If you tax too high, the revenue will yield nothing. If you make the criminal code san- guinary, juries will not convict. "The law of nature is: Do the thing, and you shall have the power : but they who do not the thing have not the power. Every- where and always this law is sublime. The absolute balance of Give and Take, the doctrine that everything has its price; and if that price is not paid, not that thing but something else is obtained, and that it is impossible to get anything without its price — this doctrine is not less sublime in the columns of a ledger than in the budgets of states, in the laws of light and darkness, in all the action and reaction of nature." If this great writer, and great Soul, fell short of the possibilities of his theme at any point, it was in his failure to carry his analysis to the basis of scientific exactness and crystallize it into scientific statement. This is not a criticism, but rather an acknowledgment of the fact that he was more the inspired poet and seer than the cold scientist, and that he saw nature and life with the broad comprehensive sweep of the poet's intuitive vision, rather than with the cold and calculating eye of the unemotional scientist. But he has given us a grand composite picture of the 2SO THE GREAT WORK great Law of Compensation in operation. In so doing he has blazed the way for science, and has made possible the kind of statement at this time which the Great School has long had in contemplation, and which will make clear the application of the law in its relation to the Ethical Section of the Formulary. We have learned that Consciousness is the Soul Attribute through which we, as individual intelligences, receive from nature and our fellow man all that we now possess or ever shall possess, whether in this physical life or in the realms of spiritual life that are yet to come, so far as we have been able to determine. We have also learned that Will is the concomitant and correlative attribute of the Soul. By its exercise we may set in motion all the voluntary activities and processes of our own individual being, and thereby give back a just equivalent for all we receive through Consciousness. This gives us something very definite and exact from which to proceed. Through the Faculty of Conscious- ness we receive, and by the power of Will we may give again. In these two attributes of the Soul, the one a Faculty and the other a Power, we find our "Working Tools." They constitute our primary equipment as indi- vidual intelligences. By their exercise alone are we able to preserve that "balance of account" with nature and our fellow man, demanded of us by the Law of Com- pensation. Receiving and Giving. This is, indeed, the funda- mental business of individual life. It is the basic func- tion and process of the Soul. In its primary aspect this represents the sum total of life's activities. We receive and we give, and that is all there is to it. How simple life becomes when we thus reduce it to its final analysis. And yet, how complex the problem becomes when we LAW OF COMPENSATION 251 attempt to work out this simple process of receiving and giving under the Law of Compensation. If man, as an Individual Intelligence, were nothing more than a mechanical device and, as such, responded automatically to the laws of mechanics, the problem of life would be as simple as the multiplication table, or as the simplest problem in mathematics. For in that event all our actions and reactions would be as automatic and mechanical as are those of the chemical atoms of the physical universe. The Law of Compensation would then satisfy itself in us as it does in the chemical uni- verse. That is to say, as automatons we would have no choice of action. We would satisfy the law, but it would be an automatic or mechanical satisfaction and not a voluntary or intelligent one from the standpoint of the individual. Chemical atoms act and are acted upon automatically. Machines that are invented and constructed by men act mechanically. In neither case is there power of indi- vidual choice in the actor. In both cases, however, the Law of Compensation is satisfied. The giving and the receiving exactly balance each other. Because the proc- esses involved are automatic and mechanical the results may be determined in advance and with mathematical precision. This is the realm of mechanics, or mechanical science. But man is not an automaton nor a mechanical device. As an Individual Intelligence he rises to a plane above the realm of simple mechanics. His actions and reac- tions, being largely voluntary, do not lend themselves to the rules of simple mathematics. For this reason they cannot be determined in advance by the application of mathematical rules or mechanical principles, with abso- lute certainty or precision. Whatever may be claimed 252 THE GREAT WORK for astrology as a "science of prophecy," it must never be forgotten that man's individual power of Will is greater than the influence of any planet or combination of planets, in determining the lines of his individual life and conduct. In other words, every man is "greater than his planet." If this were not so, man would become an automaton under planetary influences. In that event it would be possible to reduce him to a "mathematical calculation" and determine at his birth every act, thought, impulse and inspiration of his life from that instant to the time of his death, however long his life may be. But, as above stated, there is that in man which lifts him above the level of mere automatism and simple mechanics. As an individualized Intelligence he pos- sesses certain attributes which make him "a law unto himself" within certain limitations. The powers of Will and Choice do not operate automatically nor in accord- ance with the law of mechanics. They are powers of the self-acting Intelligent Soul, and are not operated by planetary influences alone. From the standpoint of science, man occupies a most interesting position. For all scientific and philosophic purposes, each Individual Intelligence is, from his own point of vision, the center of the universe. In this unique position he stands as a target for all the forces and influences of nature. He constitutes the natural vortex wherein the constructive and destructive forces and proc- esses of nature are forever contending for supremacy. By the majesty of his individual Will alone can their issue be determined. While he is a creature of the Great Law, yet he alone must determine whether he will respect that Law. By the power of individual Choice and the exercise of his Will alone he may co-operate with either LAW OF COMPENSATION 253 the constructive or the destructive forces of nature. He alone may thus determine his own destiny. But he can at no point evade or avoid the Law of Com- pensation. He can at no time place himself outside the limits of its jurisdiction. In so far as he conforms his life to the Constructive Principle he not only earns nature's reward therefor, but he must receive it. In so far as he patronizes the Destructive Principle in just that far he earns nature's penalty therefor, and he must receive it. But at this point an interesting problem arises. Since the Law of Compensation demands of us that we give a full equivalent for all we receive, and receive an equal equivalent for all we give, how is progression possible? If a man gives all he receives how is it possible for him ever to get ahead? If others do the same thing, how is it possible for the human race to advance? In other words, the entire problem of Evolution involves pro- gression. It means that there is a constant and ever- increasing residuum of benefit that remains with both the individual and the race. Otherwise .how could the individual or the race ever progress or "get ahead"? From the standpoint of mechanics there is absolutely no answer. If man were nothing more than a mere physical organism, subject alone to the laws of physical material, there could be no such thing as progression, and hence no such thing as evolution. For the Law of Compensation in the realm of physics demands that the giving and the receiving shall be absolutely equal. If not in kind, it must be so in equivalent. This means, from a purely material viewpoint, that there can be no such thing as "progression" or "evolution." An illustration may serve to bring out the principle more clearly: 254 THE GREAT WORK In the realm of material nature, if you receive from your neighbor a bushel of corn, you must either return to him a bushel of corn or its equivalent in value. That is to say, you must either return to him an equal measure of the same thing, or you must return to him that which will enable him to purchase from another an equal meas- ure of the same thing. Otherwise you remain in his debt for the difference. And since the laws of physical nature are inexorable, he will continue to have a claim upon you until you have given to him the full measure of all you have received from him, or its full equivalent. But if you receive from your neighbor a bushel of corn and return to him a bushel of corn, the account between you in material value is "balanced." And from a material point of view neither of you is ahead. Or, if you receive from him a bushel of corn and return to him an equiva- lent in potatoes or wheat, you have returned to him that which will enable him to purchase from another a bushel of corn to replace the one he gave to you. In this case also you have satisfied the Law of Compensation on the material plane. But neither you nor he is ahead in the transaction, from a purely material point of view. This, therefore, does not mean "progress" from a purely mate- rial point of view, for neither of you is "ahead." This illustration brings out one important fact which is worthy of our careful consideration, viz., the Law of Compensation, as it exemplifies itself upon the purely physical or material plane, does not contemplate either progression or evolution, for it does not intend that either party shall get ahead. There are many other illustrations which might be given to show that in the actions and reactions of physical nature the Law of Compensation, or Equilibrium, does not provide for nor seem to con- template the principle of progression or evolution. LAW OF COMPENSATION 255 But a different element enters into the problem the moment we enter the realm of psychical nature. In this higher realm it is necessary for us to take an account of stock at the opening of business, in order that we may thereafter be able to determine the question of "incre- ment," either earned or "unearned." It must not be forgotten that we are all the while dealing with man, "as an Individual Intelligence," and not merely as a physical organism. As an Individual Intelligence, or Soul, every human being enters upon the business of this life with the following possessions which constitute his stock in trade: I physical body, I spiritual body, I Consciousness, I Will, I full set of appetites, passions, emotions, desires, ambitions and aspirations. With this equipment and invoice of stock he enters upon the business of life which, from the standpoint of the Soul, is that of accumulating experience and enlarg- ing his store of knowledge. Now, from the very first moment, he begins to "get ahead"; for he begins to have experiences. Every one of these brings to him an item of knowledge. There comes a time when the physical body reaches its limit of growth, but the growth of the Soul in knowledge and experience never ceases, so far as we know. His permanent income is knowledge and experience. This constitutes his "increment." But it is not an "unearned increment," concerning which we hear so much in economics. For under the Law of Compensa- tion he has paid for it all a just equivalent. Knowledge comes to the individual only as the result of Personal 256 THE GREAT WORK Effort. Every item must be, and is, paid for by his own personal effort, either physical, spiritual, mental or moral. And for this reason it becomes his earned increment. At the same time it becomes a permanent possession. Hav- ing compensated for it, paid for it, and earned it by his own personal effort, it is his of right under the law of his being. Moreover, it is a possession of which he can never divest himself, and it goes on increasing to the end of this physical life, and throughout all the spiritual lives that lie beyond, so far as we know. And this is individual progression, individual evolution. It is here, in the realm of the Soul, that Emerson seemed to lose sight of the great Law of Compensation which everywhere else impressed itself so vividly upon his consciousness. For he says: "Neither can it be said that the gain of rectitude must be bought by any loss. There is no penalty to virtue; no penalty to wisdom; they are proper additions to being." They are indeed "proper additions to being." But they do not come to the individual as gifts from nature. Rectitude of character, virtue, knowledge and wisdom are mere germs of possibility within the Soul. They have to be grown as the grain of wheat must be grown in order that they may reproduce themselves. And it is in the process of their growth that their equivalent in Personal Effort is expended. Virtue never grew and matured into a permanent possession of any Soul, except as compensation for the strivings of that Soul for better things. Knowledge and wisdom never thrust themselves gratuitously upon any man. Sometime, somewhere, he has paid their full price in Personal Effort; and they have come to him only as compensation for the energy he has spent in his struggle upward into the light of Truth. There is no achievement, in the realm of the Soul, without Personal Effort. Labor is the true meas- LAW OF COMPENSATION 257 ure of all Soul values. It might well be made the meas- ure of all material exchange in the world of economics. It is the only legitimate standard of value in the realm of sociology. In recognition of the great fundamental principle which underlies all individual unfoldment and growth of the Soul, one of the Great Masters has named this "The School of Personal Effort." With equal justice another has named it "The School of Compensation." A third sees it as "The School of Natural Science." And all of these are correct; for the School of Natural Science is the School of Nature wherein the Law of Compensation is acknowledged and the standard of values is Personal Effort. But there is yet another view of the Great Law that is worthy of our thoughtful consideration. And it is in this view that we are forced to recognize the unlimited beneficence of nature, or the Great Intelligence that expresses itself through nature. Knowledge and wisdom and experience are the earned increment of the Soul. The very law of their nature makes of them an indefeasible possession of the Soul. They are the results which accrue to man as the reward of his efforts in the right use of his original stock. Unlike material possessions, however, he may give them to others in unlimited measure without in the least diminishing their amount within his own possession. On the contrary, the more he gives the larger becomes his stock from which to give, ad infinitum. The man who gives to his neighbor half of all the wheat he possesses, thereby reduces his own stock of wheat one-half; but the man who gives from his stock of knowledge only increases it by adding to it the knowledge which comes to him as a result of the Per- z-^S THE GREAT WORK sonal Effort of giving. And thus the earned increment of the Soul is that which no man can afford to withhold from those who are duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified to receive it. And herein arises another most important phase of the Great Law. He who possesses knowledge or wisdom or power is likewise charged with the responsibility of rightly using it. These things cannot be held as indi- vidual possessions for purely selfish gratification. They must be used. Moreover, the Law of Compensation is not satisfied by simple use. They are intelligent posses- sions. They must therefore be used intelligently. This means that they must be used for the highest good. This brings us back again to the simple problem of receiving and giving. For in this simple process is embodied the entire scope, purpose and spirit of the Law of Compensation. It is the primary and fundamental basis of Ethics. It is the beginning and the ending of Morality. It is the central and inmost inspiration of all true philosophy and religion. It is the spirit of all true Socialism. It is the foundation upon which alone the Temple of Human Character may be erected safely and securely. For on this foundation only can it endure. Receiving and Giving. How supremely simple and easy this sounds. It would seem incredible, in the light of modern metaphysics and psychology, that the activities of the Soul thus should be susceptible of reduction to a basis of such simplicity as to appear almost absurd. In- deed, at first thought the mind is inclined to rebel at the suggestion. And yet, it is safe to predict that you who read these pages, free from prejudice, and who are ready for "More Light" on the pathway of spiritual life and progress, will do as others before you have done under similar condi- LAW OF COMPENSATION 259 tions. You will go back and begin your study of the problem of individual life all over again. And when you do you will proceed anew from the simple basis here suggested. Moreover, in due time you will find it pos- sible to reduce many of the complex and intricate prob- lems of your own life to the same simple basis. When you have learned to do this, new doors will open to you through which broader vistas of life's possibilities will appear, and you will marvel at the results. As you go forward in the work of individual unfold- ment under and in accordance with the terms of the Scientific Formulary, you will note the fact that at every step and with every new phase of the subject the same character of simplicity prevails. Every problem of the Ethical Section of the General Formulary is thus reduced to its primary and essential elements, and with as much certainty and precision as are the problems of Euclid. As this fact grows upon the intelligent student it enables him the better to understand and appreciate the vast antiquity of the Work, as well as the unbroken lineage of the Great School through which it comes down to us. The remarkable fact that here, in this simple Formulary, for the first time within our knowledge of history, we find "Ethics" reduced to an "Exact Science," is sufficient of itself to suggest to those who think intelligently, the fact that all this is not the result of any one mind. It should be sufficient to establish beyond question that it is the fruitage of the best intelligence of all ages, from the cradle of humanity to the immediate present. No greater fallacy could be suggested than to credit the author of this volume personally with the honor of having wrought out, from the recesses of his own brain and consciousness, the definite results here referred to. He would be most willing and happy to acknowledge 26o THE GREAT WORK such honor if he were justly entitled to it. Such, how- ever, is not the case. To him it is sufficient honor that he has been assigned the difficult task of reducing the subject to a simple and unambiguous expression in the language of his own people. The Great School, as it exists upon the earth at this time, is but the present and last link of a great unfinished chain, by means of which the crystallized results of the ages past are brought down to us of this day and gen- eration. And you who shall receive these results in good faith, and who of your own free will and accord enlist your services in the Great Work of Emancipation, will constitute the next regular link in the same great chain. And thus the cumulative results of the ages may be passed on to others who are ready, willing and able to receive them and rightly use them. As an "Entered Apprentice" in this School, your "Working Tools" are Consciousness and Will. With these alone you must build the Temple of Human Char- acter. And in all this work of Construction you must build in such a manner that you shall in no wise trespass upon the rights, privileges, prerogatives, possessions, duties or obligations of your fellow man. And during all your building you must hold yourself bound at all times to render to others a just equivalent for all the benefits you shall receive from them. In other and more specific terms, you must so build that you shall at all times hold yourself bound to balance the account of all your benefits under the great Law of Compensation. For this Law is inexorable and immutable, as well as all beneficent. Did you ever before think of life from exactly this point of view? If not, then you have something yet to accomplish in this life, and something that will richly LAW OF COMPENSATION 261 reward you for the honest effort you put into it. If you will but make this a special theme for your future study and contemplation it will open to you a world of new possibilities, enlarged significance and ever increasing beauty. More than this, it will do much to divest life of its seeming complexity and will bring many of its most intricate problems within the radius of your own intelli- gent understanding. And in the end it will help you to reduce the great Theorem of Individual Life to its final analysis and correct expression. Anticipating your effort in that direction, it will be of special interest and help to you if you will note the fol- lowing items in the process of the theme's natural unfoldment: 1. Viewing yourself as an individualized. Intelligent Entity, and nature as the cosmic source of creative energy, then as between you on the one hand and nature on the other, you were the first receiver and nature the first giver. That is to say, you first received from nature the Soul Attribute of Consciousness with which you were originally invested, in order that through this channel you might gain knowledge through individual experi- ences. By thus investing you nature opened the way for you to receive a knowledge of her laws, principles, forces, activities and processes, within your own being as well as without. 2. In your relationship to nature you, as an Indi- vidual Intelligence, have been a constant receiver from the very beginning of your conscious existence. So far as may be determined, this relationship wherein you are a constant receiver will continue to exist through- out this life and all the lives that may lie out beyond. It is therefore clear that by virtue of this established relationship you are brought into direct touch and com- 262 THE GREAT WORK munication with nature's great reservoir of knowledge. And this reservoir being inexhaustible, so far as we know, it is safe to assume that you will have employment in your capacity as a receiver for some time to come, and it may be "for all eternity." Who is there that can fix the limit? 3. In the very essential nature of your being and by virtue of the original relation, it was necessary that you in your individual capacity should first receive before it was possible for you to give in return. 4. For like reasons it is impossible for you, in your individual capacity, ever to make a voluntary gift of more than you have received. In other words, you cannot give that which you do not yet possess. These are but a few of the many interesting sugges- tions that arise from a study of the general theme. It would be possible, but scarcely profitable to the general reader, to multiply these almost indefinitely without transcending the legitimate scope of the subject. Suffi- cient has been said, however, to open a wide and fruitful field of thought and study to those who may be sufifi- ciently interested to pursue it further. The intelligent student, whose interest in the subject of this work has carried him to this point in the unfold- ment of the Ethical Section of the General Formulary, will naturally have in mind the ethical significance and scientific value of the Process. In this connection many questions will obtrude themselves upon his attention, and it is not unlikely that he may experience difficulty in formulating satisfactory answers to some of them. For instance : In what particular does the Law of Compensa- tion constitute a problem in Ethics? What evidence have we of the fact that such a Law is an important and a necessary factor in Spiritual Unfoldment? What is LAW OF COMPENSATION 263 there in the process of individual evolution that demands of the student a recognition of and compliance with such a Law in order that he may advance ? What has such a Law to do with Spiritual Growth? Is it not possible to reach the goal of Mastership by some other route ? etc., etc. To answer fully these questions and others that may suggest themselves in this connection would require a separate treatise. Such a treatise would be outside the purposes and Hmitations of this volume. But it may be possible to brief the subject in such a manner as to indi- cate or suggest the answers rather than formulate them in their entirety. It is not within the province of human intelligence, so far as we know, even to understand (much less to explain), why any law of nature exists. It is not within the legitimate sphere of science to do more than merely to determine the fact that certain laws of nature do exist. Any attempt to go back of a law of nature and explain the reason for its existence would be an attempt to analyze the mental processes of the Creator of that law, and determine what was in His mind when He estab- lished it. The Great School does not claim to be on terms of such intimacy with the Great Creative Intelli- gence as to speak with authority concerning the reasons or motives which impelled the establishment of Natural Laws. It has been and is content, for the present at least, to confine its researches to the field of nature's established facts and their relations to each other. The field of ultimate causation is one which lies far out beyond the sphere of its present limitations. The Law of Compensation is one of the existing facts of nature. Why it came into existence, and how it came to be one of the profoundly interesting and important facts of nature, are questions which the Great Creative 264 THE GREAT WORK Intelligence alone is in position to answer, if indeed they may be answered at all. But the importance of this great Law in its relation to Ethics, and the fact that it is vitally related to the process of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment, are propositions that have been tried, tested and demonstrated times almost without number. It has been discovered, in this connec- tion, that a recognition of that Law as a fact of nature, and a willing compliance with its requirements on the part of the student are necessary factors in the process of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment. Through the process of scientific experimentation it has been discovered that Independent Spiritual Develop- ment, from the viewpoint of the student's own voluntary and intelligent part in it, is very largely dependent upon two things, viz: 1. His ATTITUDE OF SOUL. 2. His voluntary personal effort in definite and . specific lines that are consistent with that attitude of Soul. Now, the attitude of Soul necessary to Independent Spiritual Growth, is one which involves a number of dif- ferent elements. One of these elements is that kind of "Unselfishness" which impels the individual to give as freely as he receives. It stimulates in him an honest and earnest desire and purpose to render to his fellow men a just equivalent for all he receives from them, whether in the realm of physical, spiritual, psychical or ethical nature. In other words, there is something in the spirit of "Selfishness"— the kind of selfishness that would impel one to receive more than he is willing to give— that chains the Soul to earthly conditions. The man whose attitude of Soul impels him to strive for the advantage in every LAW OF COMPENSATION 265 exchange will never achieve Spiritual Independence. The kind of selfishness that impels an individual to take unfair advantage of another, to receive that for which he is unwilling to render a just equivalent, or to withhold from another that which he knows to be his just due, acts upon the Soul in a manner somewhat akin to the action of opium upon the physical nervous organism. It produces a kind of psychic paralysis, or coma, which arrests Psychic Growth and Independent Spiritual Unfoldment. Why is this so? We do not know, any more than we know why opium produces coma. We simply know that it is one of the many facts of nature which is susceptible of demonstration, and which has been demonstrated with absolute certainty. And this is sufficient for all practical purposes, for once knowing the fact, we are in position to govern ourselves accordingly. The destruc- tive effects of a poison having been fully and conclusively demonstrated, it is sufficient for the protection of man- kind that the fact be known without attempting to deter- mine why it is so. But the student who is seeking to take advantage of nature, and receive something for nothing, will strive to find some way of avoiding or evading the great Law of Compensation. And there is something of consolation to the honest searcher for Spiritual Light in the fact that such a student will never succeed. This is true for the reason that it is a comfort to the honest seeker for truth, to know that nature is consistent. If it were possible for the vain, the selfish and the mean, in the spirit of vanity, selfishness and meanness, to achieve Spiritual Independence and Mastership, that fact of itself would constitute a complete justification of vanity, selfishness and meanness in human life and con- duct. If it were possible for the subtle trickster, the 266 THE GREAT WORK clever pretender, the vain boaster, and the morally degen- erate to skulk past the Law of Compensation into the Kingdom of Spiritual Light, then would nature not only condone trickery, pretense, vanity and immorality, but would become a party to them. If this were possible, then also would there be no meaning in honesty, sincerity, humility and morality. For if nature made no distinc- tion why should man? If nature provided obscure bypaths whereby the vicious and the cunning might slip past the Law of Spiritual Unfoldment and, through a dark subterranean passage and a secret panel, reach the guest chamber of the Temple of Spiritual Light from the rear, such a provision would constitute "Class Legisla- tion" of the most vicious and degrading character in favor of immorality and wickedness in human nature. In this event nature, or the Great Universal Intelligence that expresses itself to man through nature, would stand con- demned as a party to fraud, injustice, dishonesty and vice in all its hideous deformity. To the pure in heart it is a profound comfort to know that this is not true. In the legislature of nature there is no such thing as class legislation. The School of Natural Science has demonstrated through centuries of experi- ment that there are no tricksters nor moral degenerates within the "Temple of Spiritual Light," that there is no subterranean rear entrance, and that all who reach its sanctum sanctorum must do so by way of the front door, and then only after having met and complied with every section and every requirement of the Law of Light. Each individual admitted to its sacred precincts has come "of his own free will and accord." He has given "the right knock." He has proven beyond all question that he is "duly and truly prepared, worthy and well quali- LAW OF COMPENSATION 267 fied," and that upon his own merit alone he is entitled to "enter and be received in due and ancient form." In the realm of physical nature, and on the plane of purely physical things — things that are portable and may be fenced off from other physical things — we have our man-made law of compensation. It is enacted by the state legislatures and may be found in the "Revised Statutes" of the several states. It represents man's efforts to define what he is pleased to term his "Property Rights" and his "Personal Rights" in his relation to his fellow man, and establish these upon a basis of "Equity, Justice and Right." But because the statutes of the several states are made by men, and because the laws therein contained are man- made laws, it follows that the penalties which are pre- scribed in case of their violation are penalties which man only can enforce. In other words, they are not automatic in their action, as are the laws of nature. For this reason men who are not law-abiding find it possible to evade many of them in such manner as to avoid the penalties they prescribe. Even though these statutory laws often fall far short of the Equity, Justice and Right for which they were intended, and for this reason might in some instances seem to justify the practice of those who vio- late them ; nevertheless, if their penalties were automatic as are those of nature's laws, and therefore inexorable, their intentional violations would be exceedingly few and far between. For in that event no man would violate the law unless he were ready and willing to suffer the pen- alty prescribed for such violation. It is only because violations of man-made laws must first be discovered by other men, and the penalties pre- scribed for such violations, if enforced at all must be 268 THE GREAT WORK enforced by men, that the "Laws of the Land" are so little respected. And it is because of these inadequacies in the systems of men and in the uncertainty with which their laws are enforced and administered, that men in all the walks of life have grown habitually lawless. And it is because they are so successful in avoiding the laws of man that they have grown to have so little regard for the laws of nature. Then again, nature's penalties are not always immediately apparent. Some of them do not become clearly apparent to the violator until after many and oft repeated violations have occurred. And in the mean- time a habit has been formed which is not always easy to overcome. But sooner or later every man must come to know the laws of nature which have to do with his own individual detriment or welfare. And so it is that sooner or later all men shall know of the great and immutable Law of Compensation which enters into the problem of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment. There is but one way known to science whereby it may be established beyond all question that this Law is a neces- sary factor in the Ethical Formulary upon which Spirit- ual Independence depends. That is by individual experi- mentation. Within the School of Natural Science it has been tried and tested many, many times. And every experiment thus far made has produced the same result. It has thus been determined with scientific exactness and certainty that there is no such thing as Constructive Spiritual Unfoldment possible to the man or the woman who is not as ready and as willing to give as to receive, and to give in equal measure. Could there be any better or more conclusive test of the Law than this? The purposes of this chapter are many and important. But there is none more vital than to make clear to the LAW OF COMPENSATION 269 student that the Law of Compensation is one of the great and profound facts of nature. It is desired to emphasize the fact also that it is as much and as truly a factor in the Moral Order of the universe as it is in the realm of physical nature. It is not a thing of man's invention or creation. Its penalties are fixed and immutable, and they apply to all men. Under it "Selfishness," in the sense that term is hereinbefore employed, is condemned. The face of him who harbors selfishness in his Soul is turned toward Spiritual Darkness. All his efforts, while thus inspired, only serve to impel him forward into deeper darkness. If he would ever achieve the heights of Spir- itual Illumination he must turn his face in the direction from which alone that light may evef reach him. The student who reaches this point in the regular unfoldment of the Ethical Section of the General Formu- lary may well pause and contemplate himself in the light of the Great Law. For here it is that he is compelled to face his first great Ethical Test. Unless he can pass the test of "Unselfishness" this should be his present stopping place. It would be but a waste of both time and energy for him to attempt to proceed beyond this point. For it would be but an attempt to climb the steep and towering mountain of Truth backward, with his face turned toward the Valley of Spiritual Darkness. It CANNOT BE DONE. CHAPTER XVII. THE FIRST GREAT MILE-POST. Nature has a most interesting and unique way of counting by threes. This fact has been noted with a sense of wonderment by students of occultism, mysticism, and the higher science generally, throughout all the past ages of which we have any authentic records. The number three is fundamental in the symbolism oi the Great School and is a significant factor in most of the philosophic and religious teachings that have emanated from that source and reached the world through other and more modem movements. The Great Work divides itself naturally into three distinct Sections. The first of these is the "Ethical," which is here and now under consideration. In the Ethical Section there are three distinct problems which stand out with such ethical prominence and spiritual sig- nificance as to constitute distinct climaxes and veritable mile-posts on the journey of life. They seem to be dis- tinctively pivotal in their nature. They bring the honest and intelligent student to a realizing sense of their vital importance. They seem to stand, in their ethical sig- nificance, at the "parting of ways." We have now regularly arrived at one of these. It is the first of the three. It marks the first pivotal point, the first great "parting of ways" in the journey of indi- vidual life, at which every intelligent soul must arrive, 271 272 THE GREAT WORK sooner or later. It is here, at this first great "Mile- Post," that each and every one of us must stand and make our first determining election. From this point forward two divergent pathways lead. If we proceed beyond this point we must travel one or the other of these, for we cannot travel both. One of these pathways leads to the North toward the Land of Spiritual Darkness and Death, the other to the South toward the Land of Spiritual Light and Life. One leads to a state and condition of Individual Bondage, the other to that of Individual Liberty. The one ends in the complete subjection and enslavement of Individ- ual Intelligence, with all its faculties, capacities and powers; the other in the ultimate and complete emanci- pation of the Soul from the gravitative influence of evil and the destructive tendencies. These are not mere figures of speech. On the con- trary, they give expression to a profound scientific and historic truth as real as life itself. From the remotest period in the march of human progress, of which we have any authentic data, to the present time, the mighty, ceaseless and ever increasing column of humanity has been marching onward and upward along the evolutionary pathway of life to this first great Mile-Post and Parting of Ways. Here at this point of divergence the column has forever divided, the many going North into Darkness and Bondage, and only the few going South into the Land of Liberty and Light. And still the ceaseless tide of humanity marches onward, and still the many go North and the few go South. Students of psychology throughout the past, as well as those of the present, have endeavored to solve the sig- nificant problem of why it is that the multitudes delib- FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 273 erately turn at this point to the North and without appar- ent hesitation walk down the broad Pathway of Servi- tude into the Land of Darkness and Desolation, and why it is that only the few choose the way which leads to Liberty and Light. It is indeed a profound psycholog- ical problem of the most fascinating and vital interest to every traveler upon the journey of individual life. But like other profound problems of life, it is simple enough when once rightly analyzed and understood. Here is the explanation: From this first of the three pivotal mile-posts along the highway of life, the road to the North is broad and smooth, down grade all the way, in the shade and with the wind. To travel this road is so easy and delightful that one has only to surrender himself to the pull of gravity from in front and the push of the wind from be- hind, to find himself gliding forward and downward with ever-increasing swiftness over a smooth and unob- structed surface. Every impulse is to yield himself, in the spirit of delicious abandonment, to the devolutionary principle of nature, without thought of or care for the results which must inevitably come to him at the end of his journey. The path to the South is extremely narrow and rough, up-hill all the way, in the sun and facing' the wind. To travel this way is difficult. It calls for the most intense and unremitting Personal Effort. Every step of the way the traveler must overcome the pull of gravity from be- hind and the push of the wind in front. He must climb over many an obstruction and remove many an obstacle from his way. And he must do all this himself. For the path is so narrow and the footing so difficult that there is room for only one at a time. And the traveler 274 THE GREAT WORK next in front and the one next behind are both so busy with their own climbing that they cannot carry him. However many additional explanations might be given, if this one be true is it not sufficient alone to account for the remarkable fact that so many of life's travelers go to the North and so few to the South ? Add to this explanation the further fact that the vast majority of mankind have but a hazy and imperfect understanding and indefinite knowledge of the destinations to which these two diverging ways lead, and the psychological problem becomes still more simple and easy of solution. Let us suppose that you, kind reader, in your own journey of life had reached this crucial point. Let us suppose that you were now standing at this first great "Parting of Ways," and were called upon to determine which of the two roads you would elect to travel. And let us further suppose that you were not entirely certain concerning the destinations to which these two roads lead. Under these conditions which road do you think you would choose? Would you travel to the North, or to the South? There can be little doubt that you would join the multitudes in the broad, smooth, shady and much-traveled highway leading to the North, with the wind at your back and an easy descent ahead of you. The only inducement that could impel you or any other sane and intelligent individual to choose the narrow, rough, up-hill and diiificult road to the South, would be the definite assurance from those who have been over it, that it leads to the Land of Liberty and Light wherein you long to dwell. This, indeed, would be the only reward sufficient to justify the arduous and difficult struggle. In contemplating the picture herein presented, and after comparing the relative difficulties of the two roads FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 275 thus presented to the student, it is perhaps but natural that he should wonder why it is that the wrong way is so easy and enticing and the right way so difficult. We do not know. Just why it is that nature has made the road to indi- vidual and Intellectual Bondage so broad, so easy and so seductive, and the path to individual and Intellectual Liberty so difficult and narrow, is a problem which the ^Great Creative Intelligence alone, perhaps, can answer satisfactorily. At any rate, it is one which lies outside the limitations of human intelligence, so far as we know. It would therefore seem to be both unwise and unprofit- able to spend valuable time and thought upon its solu- tion, or to speculate and dogmatize concerning it. Indeed, for all practical purposes of this present life, it would seem to be sufficient for us to know that it is a fact which dare not be ignored by Individual Intelligence without thereby inviting the most unhappy results. We do not know why it is that the element of so-called "evil" is so deeply and securely implanted in the very heart of human nature. We do not know why it is that so many of our natural tendencies would seem to impel us forward into paths of life and ways of living which our own intelligent souls know to be immoral and wrong. We do not know why nature has made it necessary for us to spend so much of our time, thought and effort in overcoming these evil and destructive tendencies in us. We do not know why it is that, with all these evil ten- dencies, nature has also implanted in us that which enables us to recognize and understand the wrong and at the same time impels us to strive for better things. We do not know anyone, even ariiong the wisest and most exalted of the Great Friends, who knows why these things are so. The Great School does not assume to 276 THE GREAT WORK know. It doth not yet appear just why the Great Crea- tive Intelligence made the universe, nor why it seems to have set man the task of living his life in the midst of so many mysteries. And yet, the facts are so painfully apparent that we could not get away from them however earnestly we might try to do so. Great libraries of ponderous and profound books have been written by men who are supposed to be, or to have been, deeply learned and wise. Some of these books assume to tell us why these things are so, and what God or nature had in mind in making them so. It is evident, however, that mankind in general has not been impressed over deeply with the infallibility of these works. For the result seems to have been that out of all these won- derful creations and inventions of man's intelligence have developed all manner of the most divergent schools of theory and systems of belief concerning, man, his origin, purpose and ultimate destiny, as well as his present ethical status and moral obligations. You who read these pages have doubtless also read the books herein referred to, or at least some of them. If so, you must have been impressed, as many another has been, with the realization that they represent an extrav- agant waste of valuable energy in a fruitless effort to find or invent some legitimate or acceptable reason why man should "be natural." In other words, much of man's in- telligent effort in all ages has been spent in an attempt either to justify or excuse himself for yielding to all the evil appetites, passions, emotions, impulses, desires and tendencies of his nature. Because these tendencies are a part of his natural inheritance they are therefore "nat- ural," and he seeks to acquit himself for their indulgence because of his profound respect for the "established institutions of nature." Ingenious man, clever trickster FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 277 that he is, has thus invented the fascinating philosophy (more accurately sophistry) of Self-indulgence. Humiliating as the fact must be to every honest and aspiring soul, nevertheless it is true that men, bright and intelligent men too, have labored long and wilfully and determinedly to formulate and promulgate philosophies and religions that will justify them in the indulgence of all the baser impulses and desires of gross human nature. In some instances they have invented the most unique and subtle devices of thought in order that they may look with complacency upon their own weaknesses, short- comings, moral laxities, evil tendencies and degrading self-indulgences. All this arises out of man's desire to avoid the necessity for exercising his Power of Self- Control. The broad highway to the North is the "Way of Self- indulgence." The narrow pathway to the South is "The Way of Self-Control." It is this latter way that leads to Mastership. And this is the way that all must travel who reach the desired goal to which the work of this School is intended to carry them. Self-Control constitutes the next "regular step" along the pathway of Spiritual Unfoldment. It is the first great Mile-Post in the journey of life at which every individual must inevitably arrive on his way to Spiritual Independence and Mastership. Every individual who has arrived at the age of dis- cretion" knows how broad and smooth and seductive is the road that leads to self-surrender, self-indulgence and self-destruction. He knows that the picture has not been overdrawn. He knows that it is the way which leads downward to the valley of darkness and desolation. There is something in the essential nature of man that" tells him all this. He knows it without the necessity ofe 278 THE GREAT WORK specific instruction. It is something which individual consciousness seems to sense as a part of its inherent nature. But no man knows how narrow and rough and unin- viting is the path that leads to Self-Control until he has been over it in his search for the Land of Liberty and Light. Men talk of Self-Control. Women write of it. Both think of it, at odd moments, and most usually when there is no special demand for its practice. Both say wise and beautiful things concerning it. But the kind and quality of Self-Control that constitutes an essential element of Spiritual Unfoldment and Mastership has been but dimly sensed and imperfectly conceived by the men and women who make up the great body of our western civilization. There is a definite and specific attitude of soul at which every student must arrive before it is possible for him, consciously, intelligently and voluntarily to open the channels of spiritual sense and make the personal demonstration of another life, or exercise the powers of a Master in this School. The Ethical Section of the Formulary, taken as a whole, is an expression of that Attitude of Soul. More accurately speaking, it is an expression of the elements and principles by the appli- cation of which the student may attain to that Attitude of Soul. One by one these elements and principles are laid before him for his consideration. Each one of these constitutes an essential factor in the problem he is en- deavoring to solve. It requires the entire Formulary for the Ethical Section, and all the elements and prin- siiples it involves, to enable the student to put himself into the right Attitude of Soul for that which lies out iJjeyond the Ethical Section, namely, the Technical Work, ii^ is therefore not enough that he should merely know FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 279 these elements and principles in their individual aspect. He must know them so thoroughly and so intimately in all their relations that when he has completed the Ethical Section of the Formulary he shall be able to co-ordinate them all in their relation to himself and to each other and adjust himself to them in their aggregate sense. It is in this final adjustment to the demands of the Formu- lary as a whole that he attains the right attitude of soul which is at the basis of all Constructive Spiritual Unfold- ment. It is only when the student has reached this Atti- tude of Soul that he has complied with the demands of scientific Morality, as the term has been hereinbefore defined. It is only when he has attained to this status that he can be accounted a "Moral" man in the sense which this work demands. Self-Control is one of the elements which enters into the Attitude of Soul here under consideration. It is one of the most important achievements of the student in his struggle for Spiritual Independence and Illumination. It is at the same time one of the most difficult tasks set by nature for Individual Intelligence in its evolutionary struggle toward Spiritual Light. Its fundamental importance, as an Ethical Problem, is in the fact that it is so vitally related to all the other ele- ments of the Formulary. In some form or phase, every achievement of the Soul, from the standpoint of Inde- pendent Spiritual Development, is dependent upon the individual Power of Self-Control and upon the exercise of that power in the living of a life in conformity with the Constructive Principle of Nature. This is the one element which differentiates most clearly and distinctly between the Subjective and the Independ- ent Methods of Spiritual Development. It is the pres- ence of this element in the Formulary that makes the 28o THE GREAT WORK process Independent and Constructive. It is the absence of this element from the hypnotic and mediumistic for- mulary that makes the process both Subjective and Destructive. This fact alone should suggest the vital and fundamental nature of Self-Control as an element of the Ethical Section of the Formulary. It is one which must not be overlooked by the student who is seeking for spiritual knowledge along Constructive lines. Judging from the manner in which the subject has been and is treated by the various cults and schools of psychology, it would seem that there is no single point or problem within the realm of psychological inquiry concerning which there is so much confusion and contradiction as that of Self-Control and the relation it sustains to Spir- itual Unfoldment. This is due to the effort of weak human nature to discover or invent some system of ethics or code of life which will excuse the individual from the necessity for Self-Control and enable him to offer to the world a seemingly acceptable reason why he should be permitted to indulge himself without restraint. An illustration or two may help the student to appre- ciate some of the subtle sophistries that have been and are still employed by the clever fakir and the unscrupu- lous libertine to enable them to avoid the rough and nar- row path to the South. It is not an uncommon thing among a certain brand of those who call themselves "New Thoughters," to hear men and women of seeming intelligence learnedly dis- coursing upon the subject of "Self," in such manner as to confuse all our ideas of Moral Accountability and Personal Responsibility. By a clever trick of the mind they halve the essential entity or "Self" by a horizontal cleavage into two "Selves." One of these necessarily lies above the line of cleavage and is, for this very apparent FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 281 reason, given the appropriate name of the "Higher Self." The other Hes below the line of mental cleavage, and for a similar reason is appropriately named the "Lower Self." This clever method of psychological mutilation furnishes those who desire to avail themselves of it a most convenient fiction by means of which to avoid the necessity for Self-Control and at the same time offer to the world a plausible excuse for all manner of self-indul- gences and immoralities. This interesting psychological fiction works itself out, in the minds of some, in a manner somewhat after the following formulary: "My Higher Self is my real self. It ia, in its essential nature, pure, sinless and perfect. It is a spark of the Divine. It is therefore immortal. It can do no wrong because it is a part of God. Nothing can harm it, because nothing can harm God. It lives in the realm of the Universal. It is therefore above and beyond the influence of things material or terrestrial. "My Lower Self is my material self. It is my unreal self, because all matter is unreal. Matter is but an illusion. My Lower Self, which is also my material self, is therefore an illu- sion. It lives upon the plane of earth. Being an illusion, it is impermanent and vanishing. It is dispelled at physical death. It therefore dies with the physical body and is no more. It is only a medium through which my real self, my Higher Self, gath- ers experience. It can bring me naught but good, because nothing can harm my Higher Self." On the basis of this sort of fiction men and wonen of excellent intelligence and vicious tendencies are today indulging themselves in all manner of immoralities. This they do on the theory that the appetites, passions and desires are of the flesh. They are therefore a part of the "Lower Self." They do not in the least degree affect the "Higher Self" which is the Soul. Upon such a theory there is no reason why men and women should set themselves the burdensome and dif- ficult task of controlling the appetites, passions and desires. For on the basis of such a theory it is possible 282 THE GREAT WORK for the "Higher Self" to sit ofif there upon its immacu- late shelf of perfection in the realm of the Infinite and with perfect security and complacency observe its "weaker sister," the "Lower Self," wallow in the mire of immorality, even to the deepest depths of degradation, without in the remotest degree affecting the moral status or development of the "Higher Self," the essential Soul. To those who are not accustomed to this line of sophis- try, or who have not come in contact with those who advocate such theories, it may seem incredible that human intelligence should resort to such bald trickery and igno- ble pretense in order to avoid the obligation of Self- Control which the Moral Law imposes upon all men who have attained to the status of Personal Responsibility and Moral Accountability. There are not only men and women of this type, but there are many of them, and they are industriously spreading the virus of moral lep- rosy wherever they can find those who will listen to them. Such a theory, or "doctrine," fits in with all the vicious tendencies of unbridled libertinism: A woman of excellent intelligence who circulated much among the movements and cults that have cleverly and designedly usurped the name of "New Thought," came to the writer to obtain certain information. The subject of "Advanced Thought" came up in the course of the conversation, and she was asked to define her own posi- tion on the subject of Moral Accountability. She at once outlined the sophistry above explained. She was com- posed of two "Selves," a "Higher Self" and a "Lower Self." The Higher Self was incorruptible. The Lower Self was an illusion. Nothing that the Lower Self might do could affect the Higher Self. Morality was a Myth. Moral Accountability and Personal Responsibility for the acts of the physical body were misconceptions of a per- FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 283 verted nature. They were unnecessary, because the Higher Self, which was sinless and incorruptible, was above and beyond all our conceptions of Morality or Responsibility. On the basis of this worse than fatuous fiction she had abandoned herself to the physical appetites, passions and desires and was living a life of self-indulgence in such manner as to violate every principle of Morality. The marvel of it is that she appeared to be utterly uncon- scious of the fact that a principle of Morality or Personal Responsibility entered into the problem at all. She had listened to the "Song of the Siren" until it had lulled her conscience to sleep and lured her Soul into the Path of Destruction. It was a profound shock to her to learn that the "Essential Self" is "One and Indivisible," and that she is as responsible for the acts and conduct of her "Lower Self" as she is for the ideals and purposes of her "Higher Self." But she has come to realize that the Soul is back of all its material expressions, and that the evil propensities of human nature are as much a part of the Essential Self as are the highest and purest hopes, the loftiest ideals and ambitions, or the holiest aspira- tions and inspirations of the Soul. But her case is interesting in that it shows how easy it is to find or invent alleged "reasons" for the gratifica- tion of any desire of the Soul, however vicious and immoral it may be. It also serves to illustrate with what facility the conscience, of those who so desire, may be anaesthetized into a state of profound lethargy by the most glaring inconsistency, the most obvious fallacy, or the most self-evident sophistry. A certain business man of large brain, clever intelli- gence, strong animal nature and abbreviated conscience, spent some years and much energy and thought in the 284 THE GREAT WORK formulation of a philosophy of life that would justify him in doing as he pleased, rather than as he should. The fundamental tenet of his philosophy was based upon the evolutionary principle. It was exceedingly enticing (to those of his kind) and brought to him results in great abundance. His formulary was something after this fashion : "Individual evolution is the result of Experience. Experience, therefore, is the one thing which nature has in mind as the basis of the evolutionary process. The purpose of life, therefore, is to "get experience." In order that the Soul may graduate from earth's evolu- tionary school, it must have had all the experiences pos- sible to any Soul. This earth life is but the primary grade in the evolutionary school of nature. It is, there- fore, not only the legitimate business, but the specific duty of every individual to get out of this physical life all the experience possible to physical nature." On the basis of this unique formulary he was able to present an ingenious excuse for all his conduct, however immoral, dishonest, wicked or criminal it might be. It was necessary to his evolutionary development and self- completion that he have "all experiences," and in all his self-indulgences, however wicked, immoral and degrad- ing, he was simply "getting experience." He was merely "evolving" to something higher and better. His philosophy worked all right for a time, and the rapidity of his "evolution" was something Darwin had never dreamed of. But he was evidently too far ahead of the age in which he lives. If not, then the legislature of his state was too slow in accommodating itself to his philosophy by repealing all the statutes against crime, and as a result one of his unevolved victims landed him in FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 285 jail where he had "more experience." And this was the result of his effort to evade the Law of Self-Control. Another illustration of the same tendency of human nature to avoid the necessity for Self-Control, may be found in the various ingenious interpretations which our Occidental students have placed upon the Oriental doc- trine of "Karma." This ancient concept of an immutable Law of Cause and Effect has been tortured into many strange devices, by designing intelligences, quite foreign to its original meaning. And the purpose in all this has been to formulate an acceptable excuse for the kind of self-indulgence which substitutes lust for love and license for liberty. There are those among our western students who seem to hold "karma" to be the sole responsible cause of all their individual weaknesses, immoralities, vices, short- comings and imperfections. They seem to regard them- selves as mere automatic results of what they are pleased to term their "karma." If they are possessed of evil ten- dencies, it is due to their "karma." If they yield to these tendencies and fall into vicious and immoral practices, it is because of their "karma." Thus they invest the term with the meaning and the attributes of an overpowering personality to whose irresistible authority they are irre- vocably subject. To have found an explanation of why they yield to temptations, seems to be regarded by them as a sufficient excuse for the self-indulgence they have thereby enjoyed. To have found an explanation of why they sin, is offered as sufficient justification for the sin- ning. The man of this type deliberately injures his neighbor, knowing at the time that he is committing an offense against the Moral Law. He is called to account for his act. In his effort to evade responsibility he pleads "karma," not only as the cause of his act, but likewise as 286 THE GREAT WORK an excuse for it. He does not seem to realize that Per- sonal Responsibility holds him accountable for his act by a law of nature just as immutable and inexorable as the Law of "Karma." There are others who reduce the law of "karma" to a species of "fatalism," by means of which they not only account for their misdeeds, but at the same time endeavor to throw the burden of responsibility therefor upon na- ture. To such as these, no matter what they do nor what the results may be, they are simply "working ouj: their karma." These are but a few of the many illustrations that might be given, of the remarkable genius which intelli- gent but willful men and women will display, and the astonishing lengths to which they are ready and willing to go, in their efforts to excuse themselves for their lack of Self-Control. But the purpose of the Great School has ever been to enable its students so to uncover and analyze the Ethical Principles of human life and impress them in their sim- plicity and grandeur upon the intelligent Consciousness, as to make them acknowledged facts of nature and trans- mute them into actual, vital, constructive energies and forces for the upbuilding of the Temple of Human Character. It seeks to enable the student to discover these prin- ciples, not that he may invent clever fictions and ingen- ious sophistries whereby to disguise them and avoid them ; but that he may make them "The Rule and Guide of his Conduct" and thereby conform his life to the Con- structive Principle of Nature upon which alone he must depend for the achievement of Mastership. Self-Control is, indeed, the first of the three great fundamental problems of Mastership. Nature evolves a FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 287 Man. Nature alone, however, can never evolve a Mas- ter. Mastership involves a process wherein the intelli- gence and volition of man himself are vital and essential factors. While nature working alone can never evolve a Master, man co-operating with and supplementing nature may accomplish that transcendent result. Neither can man working alone ever evolve a Master. He can do so only by co-operating with and supplementing nature in such manner as to conform his life to her Constructive Principle and Process, and thus add the potency of his individual Will to nature's effort in one common evolu- tionary impulse. Nature, unaided by Individual Intelligence, carries the evolutionary impulse and process upward until Man is an accomplished fact. At this point nature stops. Beyond this point, it would seem, she cannot go without Man's voluntary consent and intelligent co-operation. This fact is proven beyond all question. It is accepted, con- sciously or otherwise, by all mankind. But nature has invested man with the Soul Attributes of Consciousness and Will, which enable him to know things and do things on his own initiative; or know things and not do them, as he wills. By thus equipping man with such faculties, capacities and powers as enable him to act voluntarily and inde- pendently nature has made it possible for him to add the intelligent effort of his own Soul to the evolutionary impulse of nature and by so doing he is able to carry forward the evolutionary process far beyond the point where nature would be compelled to stop if man refused his co-operation. But, by thus investing man with the Soul Attributes of Consciousness, Independent Choice and Rational Voli- tion, nature has also made it possible for us to pursue 288 THE GREAT WORK a neutral course. In this event we neither actively help nor hinder nature in her evolutionary effort. By thus electing to withhold our cooperative aid we throw the entire burden upon nature. In this event we inevitably stop at the "estate of man" to which point nature unaided has carried us, and we proceed no further. Beyond this point man cannot be forced. Further progress is impossible except by his consent and with his active and intelligent cooperation. There is yet another view of the subject which is of even more vital importance. By investing man with those attributes of the Soul which enable him to act independently and voluntarily, nature has also made it possible for us to set our own independent and intelli- gent effort in direct opposition to her evolutionary process. In this case we not only fail to add anything to nature's upward impulse, but we go still further than the neutral point and actually subtract from that impulse the full measure of all the effort we exert in opposition thereto. The inevitable result is that we thereby set in motion a process which is the exact reverse of evolu- tionary. We not only stop the wheels of evolutionary unfoldment, but we reverse them. The result is that we thereby set in motion the devolutionary process and at once invoke the Destructive Principle of Nature instead of the Constructive. In Part III of the preceding volume may be found a comprehensive exposition and a careful analysis of these conditions and a definite key to the principle that under- lies them. But the specific point it is desired to emphasize in this connection is the fact that through the intelligent exer- cise of the Power of Self-Control we may place ourselves in perfect alignment with the Constructive Principle of FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 289 Nature in Individual Life, and thereby add to nature's evolutionary impulse the intelligent effort of our own Souls. The inevitable result of this intelligent coopera- tion with nature is the attainment of individual Master- ship, in due course of time. And thus we demonstrate the interesting fact that while nature, of her own accord and by her unaided effort, evolves a Man; it requires the added impulse of man's own individual, intelligent effort, acting in harmony with nature, to evolve a Master. And this is what the Great School means by "SELF- CONTROL." This is the rough and narrow path that leads to the South, and "Self-Control" is the word in letters of Light upon the guide-post which stands at the parting of ways and points with its "Hand of Love" to this "Pathway of Duty." Perhaps there is no subject of vital interest and impor- tance to the student of Individual Life and Unfoldment more widely misunderstood, misconstrued, mis-stated and mis-taught than the subject of Self-Control in its relation to psychic development. This is due, in large measure, to the fact that the problem has been treated from the viewpoint of mechanics rather than as a problem in Morality. The Self-Control which the Great School would have its votaries attain, and which constitutes an important element of the Formulary, does not mean "Self-Sup- pression" nor "Self-Abasement," which are so generally advocated. It does not mean the entire destruction, annihilation or elimination of a single element, impulse, desire or function of individual human nature, either physical, spiritual or psychical. It does not mean emasculation in any sense. It does mean, however, that every appetite, every 290 THE GREAT WORK passion, every desire, every emotion and every impulse of the Soul, whether upon the plane of the physical, the spiritual or the psychical, shall be so absolutely under the control of the individual that he can, in an instant and by a simple act of the Will, either check it, suspend it, divert it, or convert it into channels of Constructive activity. A vast amount of time and valuable energy have been wasted by those who, under false instructions, have endeavored to annihilate, extinguish, uproot, eradicate, eliminate and entirely destroy certain elements, passions, tendencies, desires, impulses and functions of the Soul and of Individual Intelligence, instead of seeking to make of them powerful and effective instruments of the Will through the proper exercise of Self-Control. You who have labored under the disadvantage of such false instruction, or who have been groping over the pathway without instruction of any kind, will under- stand more fully what is here intended when it is ex- plained that there is not a single emotion, impulse, passion or desire of your being, whether of the kind you are accustomed to designate as physical, or spiritual, or psychical (and which if it were permitted to control you would become destructive), but may — under proper control of your Will — be transmuted into a vital impulse of Constructive Energy and Power. An illustration may help to make the truth of this statement more clearly apparent: Every impulse of the Soul, which reaches the plane of expression through the physical organism, involves the expenditure of physical energy or vitality. The impulse of fear, in any of its many shades, degrees and phases, is a destructive force when uncontrolled. It involves the loss of vital energy and power. But if the impulse FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 291 is checked by the power of Will in its inception, it may be converted instantly into a constructive impulse which will enable the individual to avoid the thing which inspired the impulse of fear. The Power of Self- Control in this instance has converted a destructive im- pulse of fear into a constructive effort to avoid that which inspired the destructive impulse of fear. The same is equally true of every other destructive impulse of the Soul. By the proper Self-Control it may be con- verted into a Constructive efifort in line with the process of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment and Evolutionary Growth. To annihilate or entirely extinguish the impulse of fear at the approach of an enraged bull (without con- verting that impulse into a constructive efifort for escape), would be to expose one's self to a danger much greater than that involved in the impulse of fear itself. Then again, it is as impossible for you to annihilate, extinguish, or entirely eradicate the impulses of the Soul (without thereby and at the same time destroying your own individuality), as it is for the chemist to extract or extinguish the Oxygen in water without thereby and at the same time destroying the water itself. And the reason is the same in both cases. It is because they are essential ingredients in the compound. The one is as essential to human nature as the other is to the nature and consistency of water. From what has now been said it will be clear to the student and thinker that it is but a fruitless waste of both time and energy for the individual who is in search of Mastership to attempt the impossible task of eradi- cating or annihilating the primary and essential elements of the Soul in the hope of thereby ridding himself of the natural tendencies of human nature. His real task 292 THE GREAT WORK lies not in this direction at all. If he is truly in search of it he may find it in the effort of the Soul to acquire that kind and quality of Self-Control which will enable him to become the most powerful and efficient cooperator with nature in the constructive unfoldment and develop- ment of all his powers. For this is the only known pathway which leads to Individual MASTERSHIP. It may be of help to the student to have placed before him a brief analysis or classification of the specific lines along which it is necessary for him to exercise Self- Control in order that he may maintain within himself the true spirit and purpose of the Work of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment and hold himself in proper align- ment with the Constructive Principle of Nature in Indi- vidual Life. It will, at least, deprive him of an excuse for any failure on his part to exercise such Self-Control within the limits here designated. Thus far, at least, he will not be able to plead "ignorance of the law," nor "want of information." To that end he is specially warned that Self-Control against any and all of the following forces, activities, processes and conditions is an absolute necessity if he would ever attain to the degree of a Master in this School; and that all of this is within the meaning and limitations of the Ethical Section of the Formulary: 1. SUBJECTION. This is one of the most impor- tant points of divergence between the two great ancient Parent Schools of Wisdom to which reference is made in Chapter IV of this volume. The subject is considered at great length and with the utmost care in Vol. II of this Series, to which the reader is referred for further and more specific information. 2. FEAR. There is no more destructive internal FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 293 psychological force or process in all nature than Fear, in all its many different degrees, phases and expressions. Psychic Subjection is the result of a force which is ap- plied from without. It involves a process which is operated by another intelligence than that of the indi- vidual who is the direct and specific subject of it. But Fear is . a destructive process and force which arises within the individual himself. It is a part of himself. Its effects are psychological paralysis and nervous dis- organization and disintegration. Fear is a thing of such varying degrees, shades, phases and aspects, that the average individual has but the faintest conception of its possibilities, or of the extent to which it is a factor in the realm of man's emotional nature. It is a theme upon which an entire volume might be written without exhausting the subject. It is one which every student must analyze to the utmost limits of his abilities before it is possible for him to understand or appreciate the importance of Self-Control or the almost unlimited material upon which its power must be exercised. If the subject is new to him he will be astonished to learn how many are the forms and phases in which it expresses itself and to what extent it enters into his own emotional life and nature. The fact that some form, phase or degree of Fear is expressed in each of the following terms in common use, will suggest something of the destructive possibilities of this malevolent influence and process in human nature : Fright, Dread, Terror, Dismay, Despair, 294 THE GREAT WORK Timidity, Apprehension, Anxiety, Mistrust, Shyness, Alarm, Awe, Horror, Consternation, Despondency, Diffidence, Solicitude, Misgiving, Suspicion, Bashfulness. Such terms as Fright, Terror, Horror, and Dismay, give expression to some of the most intense degrees and phases of Fear. The intensity of fear indicated by these terms is most destructive in its effects. It often produces instant mental and nervous paralysis, and not infrequently physical death. Its destructive nature is recognized by every individual who has the intelligence to analyze the process. It would seem that the process is one which is in some respects analogous to that of freezing. It does not produce internal heat. It is not "consuming" in its nature. It is simply paralyzing. It might, with some consistency, be termed "Psychological Refrigeration," or the process of psychological freez- ing, or the freezing of the Soul. But such phases and degrees as are expressed in Despondency, Diffidence, Suspicion or Bashfulness, are not so easily distinguished. There are those, perhaps, who do not relate these to the subject of Fear at all. FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 295 If so, however, it is only because they have not taken the trouble to reduce the subject to its final analysis. Further and more careful consideration will establish their relation to Fear as their natural antecedent and root emotion. Dread, Despondency, Apprehension, and Anxiety, give expressions to those phases and degrees of "Fear" that take possession of so many and make their lives a burden to themselves and an affliction to others. The effects are inevitably destructive. The only remedy is Self-Control. 3. ANGER. The psychological process of Anger is the exact antithesis of Fear. It is consuming in its effects upon the individual within whom it exists. The blood becomes hot instead of cold. Nervous activity is intensified instead of paralyzed. The psychological process is that of destruction through heat, and might well be termed "Psychological Combustion." As in the case of Fear, Anger expresses itself in many diflferent forms and phases, some of which are indicated by the following terms : Rage, Desperation, Irritation, 111 Temper, Pique, Resentment, Animosity, Rancour, Hate, Impatience, Fury, Wrath, 296 THE GREAT WORK Pettishness, Revenge, Bitterness, Displeasure, Indignation, Exasperation, Detestation, Annoyance. The extreme forms and degrees, such as Rage, Fury, Hate, Wrath, and Revenge, are intensely destructive in their psychological effects upon the individual who har- bors them. They are like a consuming fire within a house of dry kindling wood. They destroy the house as well as all that it contains. They consume the Soul as well as the Spirit and the physical Body. Their action is not only intensely destructive, but also very rapid. Oftentimes they result in the most serious illness, always in great depletion, and many times in instant death. Whilst their motive and intent are the destruction of others, they inevitably destroy those who entertain them. And they destroy not only the physical body, but the Soul itself of him who harbors them. Pettishness, Irritation, Bitterness, Resentment, Im- patience and Ill-Temper are the more common forms and degrees. These we meet at every turn in the daily affairs of life. So common are they, both in the home and in the larger world of business, as well as in society in general, that we have come to regard them almost as a necessity. While they are slower in their disintegrat- ing action, they are nevertheless as surely destructive in their effects upon the individual who harbors them as are the most intense phases and degrees. They are psychic combustion of a slower order. That is the only FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 297 real difference in their action upon the individual. They destroy, but they destroy more slowly than Rage or Fury. The only remedy is Self-Control. Then we have certain psychological combinations of Fear and Anger which are equally destructive in their effects. Among these are : Jealousy, Envy. Jealousy, for instance, is made up of Fear that another may obtain possession of that which we regard as our own, and Anger against him because of his desire or attempt to accomplish that end. On the side of Fear it often takes the phase of Suspicion, Apprehension, and Distrust, while on the side of Anger it expresses itself as Hate, Wrath or Revenge. A husband regards the love of his wife as his own. He observes her unusual interest in another man. If he is like the very large majority of his fellows, a sense of apprehension, uncer- tainty, anxiety, or suspicion (all of which are phases of Fear), takes possession of him. Then immediately fol- lows within his being the sense of indignation, bitter- ness, resentment, wrath, hate- or revenge (all of which are phases of Anger) . The natural and inevitable result is that he is consumed by "Jealousy." The only preventive or remedy is Self-Control. 4. SELF-INDULGENCE. This is a weakness of human nature that touches every element and phase of individual character. As the term is generally employed, it has reference more especially to indulgence of the animal propensities, appetites, passions and desires. That which we term the animal side of man, however, is as necessary to his existence (especially so long as he 298 THE GREAT WORK remains upon the plane of physical nature), as are the elements which enter into the other sides of his life and nature. Its natural functions are therefore not only legitimate and proper, but they are necessary and should be respected. But the man or woman who becomes a slave to them to the exclusion, the care and the health of the Soul, soon sinks to a level of Morality below that of the animal. This is the result which must inevitably come to those who fall into the habit of Self-indulgence of the animal side of their natures. Self-Control is the only known remedy. But Self-indulgence is by no means limited to the field of the animal nature. It not only may, but often does, extend to all the departments of human nature, the Soul as well as the Body. It is as easy for some men to indulge the tendency to Impatience or Irritability, or other phases of Anger, as it is for others to indulge the animal appetites and passions. The one is just as destructive as the other. There are, perhaps, as many women who indulge themselves in the habit of Anxiety, Despondency, Suspicion, or Dread, as there are who fall victims of their animal natures. But the indulgence of any phase of Fear is as truly and as intensely destructive as the indulgence of the purely physical appetites and passions. The indulgence of Religious Emotionalism, beyond its legitimate function, is quite as destructive of Indi- vidual Intelligence as Self-indulgence of any of the many appetites or passions which lure men and women into the Pathway of Destruction. But Religion and Religious Emotions have reference to elements and aspects of human nature wholly above and beyond the level of all that we designate as the animal in us. It may be said with equal truth that emotionalism of FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 299 any and every character, if indulged beyond the point of "Temperance," becomes destructive. The key-note of caution, therefore, is TEMPERANCE in all things that are in themselves legitimate and proper. There is not an appetite, passion, emotion, desire, ambition or impulse of human nature (which in itself is right) , but may be indulged to a point where it becomes destructive to the individual within whom it exists. The only power that can prevent it from reaching the destruc- tive point is that of Self-Control. It may thus be indulged to any point short of the destructive, in perfect accord with nature's purposes. So long as it is held within those limitations it is Constructive in its effects upon the individual. And these are the limitations which are meant to be indicated by the term "Temperance." The thoroughly tempered, or temperate individual, is he who exercises the Power of Self-Control over all the appetites, passions, desires, emotions, ambitions and im- pulses of his nature to such degree that none of them shall reach the destructive point. The thoroughly Mas- terful Man is he who is able to give to each of these its fullest possible latitude, within Constructive lines, with- out permitting it ever to pass those limitations. Thus, the student must lay hold of all his many selfish animal desires and all his intellectual ambitions. He must control his longing for mere animal comfort, whenever indulgence of the same would deprive another of the comfort to which he is of right entitled. He must control his thirst for Power, whenever and wherever its indulgence would involve the enslavement or control of his fellow man. He must control his Vanity whenever it impels him to thrust himself forward into place or position to which 30O THE GREAT WORK another is better entitled, or which he himself has not earned. He must control the impulse of Greed for material things, and compel himself to be satisfied with a just and proper measure necessary to his health, well being and reasonable comfort. He must control the "Love of Money," which is one of the lowest and most degrading cravings of the human Soul, and constitutes one of the strongest fetters that bind the Soul to earth after it has passed beyond the Valley of the Shadow. He must control the Fear that paralyzes and the Anger that destroys. It requires knowledge on the part of the individual which shall enable him to locate and determine the line of demarkation which marks the boundaries of the Con- structive process and differentiates this from the De- structive. Not only this, it requires the most exact and definite knowledge. Such knowledge can be obtained only by personal experience. It comes only as the result of experiment and demonstration. The purpose of the Ethical Section of the General Formulary is to indicate to the student, as far as may be possible, the lines within which such knowledge may be obtained in such manner as to keep within the radius of the Constructive Prin- ciple and Process of Nature. Its intent is to save him as many mistakes as possible, and thus to conserve his energies for Constructive Work, as far as may be pos- sible. In the Ethical Section of the General Formulary he has the crystallized experiences of the Masters of Natural Science throughout all the past ages of their scientific labors. If he is wise enough and strong enough to avail himself of the scientific results therein placed before him, it is possible for him to achieve the same FIRST GREAT MILE-POST 301 results, and with the least possible waste of time, energy and effort, and with the minimum of disappointment, suffering and sorrow. If he is willing to travel the road which they have so carefully blazed for him, he may thus save himself both the time and the effort, as well as the suffering, incident to finding his own way through a strange wilderness wherein many difficulties and dangers abound. CHAPTER XVIII. THE SPIRIT OF THE WORK. The next regular step in the unfoldment of the Ethical Section brings us to a subject of the most absorb- ing interest and practical utility. It has reference to the attitude of the Soul toward all we do and endeavor to accomplish in the Living of a Life. We all recognize the fact that each one of us, as an Individual Intelligence or Soul, has certain Rights, Privileges and Prerogatives, which all men should respect. Whether or not they do so respect them is quite another matter. We know that we possess them whether they are respected by others or not. We know that they are ours as a part of our natural inheritance from the Great Intelligence who honored us with the distinction of an intelligent individuality. We know this because they are necessary to our individual existence and are natural concomitants of our being. Our exist- ence as individualized Intelligent Souls would have no meaning without them. Among these are the Right to Individual Life, Indi- vidual Liberty, and the Pursuit of Individual Happiness. These are rights which we designate as "Inalienable," because we know that they are those which no man has the right to take from us. No man has the right to interfere with us in the perfect enjoyment of them, so 303 304 THE GREAT WORK long as we on our part do not interfere with him in the enjoyment of the same Rights in his own behalf. But this last suggestion brings to our attention the further fact that nature did not stop her "endowments" at that point. She went one step further. It was a most important step, too. She not only endowed us with "Inalienable Rights," but she at the same time fixed upon us certain concomitant Obligations, Duties and Responsibilities. An interesting fact in this connection which many men and some women would like to ignore is this, that these Obligations, Duties and Responsibili- ties are just as truly unavoidable as our Rights are inalienable. They bind us as uncompromisingly as our Rights, Privileges and Prerogatives bind the rest of mankind. Among the unavoidable Obligations which nature has fixed upon every Intelligent Soul is that of recognizing and respecting the "Inalienable Rights, Privileges and Prerogatives" of every other Intelligent Soul. He is bound by the law of his being so to live his own Life, enjoy his own Liberty, and pursue his own Happiness that he shall not in any manner whatsoever endanger the Life, curtail the Liberty, nor destroy the Happiness of any other human being who is doing the same thing. Up to this point the subject is more or less familiar to every intelligent man and woman who has made a study of the principles of Sociology or Civil Government. And up to this point the general principles outlined may be said to be almost universally accepted by students the world over. While there is wide diversity of judgment as to the best method of securing the results herein out- lined, there is no question as to the accuracy and the justice of the principles declared. But there is another, a broader and a higher view of SPIRIT OF THE WORK 305 the subject which transcends the legitimate scope of either Sociology or Civil Government, as these are gen- erally considered and accepted under the name of "Sciences." It is to this broader and higher aspect of the subject that the Ethical Section of the Formulary carries us. There is a principle of "Service" which, from the standpoint of Soul Growth and Spiritual Development, far transcends any of the "Inalienable Rights" or "Un- avoidable Obligations," as these are generally defined and understood. For instance : Each one of us recognizes his own Inalienable Right to Individual Life. But the mere right to live, upon which we all insist, and upon which all other individual achievements necessarily depend, would be an empty and meaningless heritage if mere living were the goal of individual attainment or of individual purpose. The man who is so busy "standing on" his Right, and who is so completely absorbed in jealously guarding it from the encroachment of possible tres- passers that he has no time left for using it, thereby makes of it an empty treasure. The rarest jewel in the world would only make of its owner an ignoble slave if its value so impressed itself upon him as to impel him to spend all his life in the selfish effort to prevent the rest of mankind from sharing it with him or in any manner whatsoever benefiting through its existence. The higher view of this one supreme and Inalienable Right of Individual Existence is, that Life itself is of no value, either to the individual or to the world, except in so far as it is made a life of Service to the Cause of Humanity. From this point of vision there is something vastly more important to be accomplished than merely to "stand upon our Rights." The thing most devoutly to 3o6 THE GREAT WORK be sought, therefore, is not a method of repelling by- force or violence those who would otherwise trespass upon our Inalienable Right to Life, but how to live a life in such manner as to render the most valuable service to both the individual and society. The individual who dedicates his life to the highest and best Service of which he is capable will never find it necessary to give either time or thought to the problem of his "Right to Life." Neither will it be necessary for him to trouble himself, except in the rarest instances, concerning the manner in which others shall "respect" that Right. For a life of Service to others draws unto itself all the "respect" and all the "protection" it is pos- sible for society, with few exceptions, to render to any human being. Again: The Inalienable Right of Individual Liberty is one which every intelligent Soul cherishes. But the kind of liberty which means nothing more than merely to be "let alone" is of small value as compared with the liberty of the Soul which comes from a life of Service in the Cause of Truth and Humanity. Liberty to work out the great problem of individual life and destiny according to the dictates of individual Conscience, is worth vastly more to any Soul than the liberty to accu- mulate material possessions, or the liberty to enjoy them to the exclusion of those who more justly deserve them or more greatly need them. The individual who is intent upon a life of Service to others need not trouble his head nor his heart concerning the respect with which his fellows may or may not honor his inalienable Right of Individual Liberty. That is a matter which will take care of itself. Such a life, with few exceptions, will command all the "Liberty" it is possible for society to grant or secure to any mortal. SPIRIT OF THE WORK 307 The Liberty which men find it necessary to "fight" for is seldom, if ever, comparable in real value with that which their fellows will freely grant them in return for beneficent services generously rendered. Then again: The right of every individual to seek his own happiness is recognized by intelligent men and women everywhere; provided he does not thereby inter- fere with others who are making the same search. But the individual happiness which does not take into account also the happiness of others seldom, if ever, rises above the level of selfish enjoyment. The kind or quality of "happiness" that consists in being "let alone" to do what- soever his selfish instincts and impulses would suggest, is but poorly and inadequately named. It is as far below the level of real Happiness as the instincts of animal nature are below the inspirations and aspirations of the most exalted human Soul. Whilst it is important that each Individual Intelligence or Soul should understand and appreciate his Inalienable Right to seek for his own happiness, it is of far greater importance that he learn to understand and appreciate the profound fact of nature, that he will never Und it alone. Happiness is not to be found in loneliness. It is the natural result of the harmonic relation between indi- viduals. This means that true Happiness is the result of our dependence upon others, and not our independence of them. Happiness, therefore, in its true sense, is one of the things which nature compels us to share with others whether we will or not. It cannot possibly be made an exclusive individual possession. The individual who attempts to appropriate it inevitably loses it or fails to find it. To the greedy, the selfish, the ambitious and vain it is a veritable will-o-the-wisp. It eludes them, and is forever just beyond their grasp. 3o8 THE GREAT WORK It is only when the Soul turns to others with a cry of love and recognition that Happiness pauses in its onward flight. True Happiness is the result of Love alone. Perfect Happiness is the result of the perfect Love rela- tion. There are no substitutes. It is therefore reciprocal in its essential nature. It is as impossible to appropriate it as it is to appropriate companionship. Two individuals are as necessary to the existence of Happiness as the two elements (Oxygen and Hydrogen), are necessary to the existence of water. And thus it is that all our "Inalienable Rights" are but empty and meaningless titles so long as we "stand upon" them in such manner as to appropriate their possible benefits and enjojmients to ourselves alone. It is only when we regard them and employ them as implements of Service to our fellows that they have a meaning or a value to us or to them. The only legitimate reason or excuse for the existence of an "Inalienable Right to Life" is that the Life shall be worth it ; and the only Life that is worth anything is the life of Service to Humanity. As stated in a previous chapter, there is no such thing as Soul Growth without Personal Effort. It will now be clear to the thoughtful student who has followed the theme closely to this point, that Effort alone is not suf- ficient. It requires Unselfish Effort. This means Effort which has for its object benefit to others as well as to Self. In other words, we come back again to the Atti- tude of Soul which is necessary to Independent Spiritual Unfoldment. And it is found that the altruistic impulse is one of the essential elements that enters into that Attitude of Soul. This does not mean that we are not to "stand upon our Rights" whenever and wherever that may be neces- SPIRIT OF THE WORK 309 sary to tile accomplishment of a just and upright Life. Nor does it mean that our life of Service shall entirely exclude ourselves from our thoughts nor ignore our benefits as a part of the purposes to be accomplished by the Service. It does mean, however, that in the exercise of our "Inalienable Rights" we shall ever keep in mind the "Rights of Others" and never allow ourselves to trespass upon them. It means also that in all our efforts for individual unfoldment and progress we are never to lose sight of the fact that each one of us constitutes a unit of force and purpose in the great Body of Humanity of which we are a part, and that we owe it to Society, as well as to ourselves, to be a healthy unit in that capacity and to render to Society the highest measure of healthful Service of which we are capable. But we have, up to this point in this chapter, been considering more especially our Inalienable Rights, Privileges and Prerogatives, and the manner in which we should exercise them in order to meet the require- ments of the Ethical Section of the Formulary. But there is another whole side of the problem which is of even more vital importance, if possible. It is that which has to do with our Unavoidable Duties and Obligations as Individual Intelligences. And it is here at this point in the journey along the pathway toward Liberty and Light that so many fail. It is here that they become discouraged and turn back, to join the merry throng in the broad highway to the North. And it is h.<;re at this crucial point that so many stop and cry out: "It is too hard ! It is too hard ! The path is too narrow ! The way is too difficult !" That which follows will give some understanding and possible appreciation of the problem to be met at this point in the journey. Duties and Obligations and Responsibilities, when con- 310 THE GREAT WORK sidered from a metaphysical or psychological point of view, may be classified as follows : 1. Active. 2. Passive. An active Obligation is one which binds us to do some- thing. A passive Obligation is one which binds us to refrain from doing something. For illustration: All honest men recognize the Obli- gation to pay their just debts. This is an Obligation which binds them to do something. It calls for the per- formance of a specific act. This is an Active Obligation. But we all recognize the fact that we are under Obliga- tion to refrain from doing anything which shall inten- tionally injure or wrong our fellow men. But this is an Obligation not to do something which it is within our power to do. This is a Passive Obligation. Then again, Duties and Obligations bind us: 1. To do or not to do something to or for ourselves. 2. To do or not to do something to or for our fellow men. From the standpoint of each individual they are there- fore either Subjective or Objective, in that one class concerns only ourselves while the second class concerns others than ourselves. From the foregoing it will be clear to the reader that, from the standpoint of subject matter alone, all our Duties, Obligations and Responsibilities, simply bind us "to do or not to do," as the case may be. From this view of the subject alone, every Duty or Obligation, in its final analysis, involves either "action" or "non-action." And it is just this narrow view of the subject that has caused so much uncertainty and confusion in the minds of men the world over. By thus reducing the problem to a basis of mere mechanics, and assuming SPIRIT OF THE WORK 311 thereby that "action and non-action" are all that is involved in the performance of Duties, the discharge of Obligations and the fulfillment of Responsibilities, the most important element of the problem is entirely omitted. And through this omission the Spirit of the entire Work is lost. In the full performance of a Duty or the complete discharge of an Obligation there is something vastly more involved than the mere mechanical act of doing some- thing or the mere refraining from the doing of some such act. Independent Spiritual Unfoldment is dependent : 1. Upon the Attitude of Soul. 2. Upon the Personal Effort of the individual in har- monious action with that Attitude of Soul. Thus it will appear that in the accomplishment of Spiritual Independence, as the term is employed in this work, the Attitude of Soul is the first thing to be accom- plished, and Personal Effort in harmony therewith is the second. And this gives us the key for which we have been searching. In the discharge of an Obligation, in such manner as to make it an impulse toward Spiritual Un- foldment and Mastership, the mechanical act necessary to do the thing involved is necessary, but it is not the most necessary thing to be considered. That which is primary and fundamental is the Attitude of Soul in con- formity with which the mechanical act must be done. What is the Attitude of Soul that will give to all our Personal Efforts, in the discharge of our Obligations, the strongest possible impulse toward Constructive Spiritual Unfoldment? The answer to this question furnishes us the solution of one of the profound psychological problems which 312 THE GREAT WORK every successful student must work out in the course of his journey toward the South. It also develops a most interesting distinction between the Oriental and the Occi- dental mind in their method of dealing with this par- ticular phase of the general theme. For instance: The Oriental intelligence, more espe- cially the Hindu, in a manner that is entirely con- sistent with his own nature, reaches the conclusion that "serenity," or "tranquility," expresses the internal attitude of Soul necessary to the most rapid and perfect Spiritual Unfoldment. He therefore endeavors to cultivate serenity and tranquility in the midst of all the conditions and experiences of life. The very spirit of Orientalism is serenity. To the Hindu the most perfect expression of Self-Control is that of serenity, quiescence, calmness and poise. He is taught these conditions of the soul from early infancy. They are a part of the very atmosphere he breathes. They are an ever-present prenatal influence. They are transmitted to him through centuries upon centuries of consistent heredity. From infancy to old age they are wrought into the texture of his essential being. It is only natural, therefore, that he should go about the performance of his Duties and the discharge of his Obligations in that spirit of serenity and tran- quility which, to him, expresses the highest attainment of Seff-Control. For he knows that Self-Control is one of the fundamental keys to Spiritual Unfoldment and Mastership. There was a time within the history of the Great School when Self-Control was regarded as the one and only key to Mastership. In a deep and fundamental sense this is true. But it was due to a superficial under- standing of the meaning of Self-Control in its spiritual and psychical significance that the barbarous systems and SPIRIT OF THE WORK 313 phases of Yogi practice came into existence among cer- tain of the Oriental schools of religion and philosophy. It was due to this misconception of the meaning and character of Self-Control in its relation to Independent Spiritual Unfoldment that the most cruel and needless physical tortures became a part of their system of discipline. A somewhat different application of the same general misconception of the true meaning and nature of Self- Control is responsible for the fundamental and distin- guishing feature of the School of Stoicism. The ability so to exercise the power of Self-Control as to betray no evidence of emotion, in the midst of the most trying experiences of life, was held to be the crucial test of the Soul. Our American Indians betray the same fundamental error in the barbarous and inhuman tortures to which they subject their physical bodies in some of their religious rites and ceremonials. The perfect serenity and tranquility with which they suffer their physical bodies to be torn and mutilated is truly an evidence of remark- able Will-Power and wonderful Self-Control. But this is neither the kind nor the quality of Self-Control demanded of the Student who is in search of Independent Spiritual Illumination and Mastership. It is neither a Duty nor an Obligation we owe to ourselves nor to anyone else thus to mutilate the material instrument of the Soul, the physical body, through which alone the Intelligence may express itself upon the plane of physical nature. Furthermore, it is a much less difficult feat of the Soul to suffer the torture of the flesh or even the destruction of the physical body, than it is so to train and develop that body as to make of it a perfect instru- ment for the Soul's expression, an instrument that is at 314 THE GREAT WORK all times under absolute control of its Master, the Intel- ligent Soul that inhabits it. In the process of Independent Spiritual Development there are many things more difficult to attain than that of patiently enduring physical pain or bodily suffering. The proper performance of some of our simplest duties of life often calls for a character and quality of Self- Control almost immeasurably superior to that which enables us to endure with patience the most intense physical suffering. Whilst "Serenity" and "Tranquility" in the discharge of all our personal Obligations are attainments devoutly to be sought, and are correct, as far as they go, they do not represent the highest nor the best there is in the spirit of our western civilization, nor do they coordinate with the activity of our mental methods and processes. While it is true that "Serenity" has become almost a normal condition of the Oriental intelligence, it is diffi- cult, even in thought, to associate the concept with a people whose very psychic constitution is that of the most intense activity. The kind of "serenity" for which we must strive is not the serenity of stagnation nor that of inertia. It must be the serenity of Action. The kind of "Tranquility" which alone will meet the demands of our western psychological momentum is the tranquility of Motion. We have in English a word which embodies all these psychological demands. It is one of the most significant and important words in our language. It is one whose psychological potencies and possibilities are but dimly sensed by the masses of mankind, and but imper- fectly understood by the more enlightened students of psychology and searchers after spiritual light and truth. It is one, however, in such common use that its orthog- SPIRIT OF THE WORK 315 raphy is familiar to almost every man, woman and child who speaks the English language. It is a word whose spirit and meaning the Master, Jesus, endeavored to impress upon all who heard his words of instruction. In its psychological analysis it might well be said to include both "serenity in action" and "tranquility in motion." That is to say, it combines all the elements of both serenity and tranquility in combination with the most healthful activities of a thoroughly awakened conscious- ness. It indicates a condition or status of the Soul far more difficult to attain and hold permanently than that of either tranquility or serenity, or both of these com- bined. It is, in like measure, a more exalted achieve- ment to set before the aspiring student, and when attained it carries him that much more nearly the goal of his endeavors. To carry our Responsibilities, perform our Duties and discharge our Obligations at all is a task before which many a strong man has fallen. It is indeed one before which any man or woman might pause with a feeling of doubt and dread. But to do all this with the Soul for- ever keyed to the level of true Spiritual Unfoldment is even a more difficult task. But it is at the same time a more exalted one. It calls for the best there is in us. It involves a character of Self-Control of which the Oriental Yogi, the ancient Stoic, the American Indian and the cloistered monk and nun of Catholic orders have never so much as dreamed. And yet it is that for which every student of the Great School must strive with all his heart and Soul. It is not easy of accomplishment, but it is within the bounds of human achievement. There is perhaps no point within the limits of the Ethical Section where so many fail as here. It is for this reason that so much emphasis is given the subject 3i6 THE GREAT WORK in this connection. The discharge of almost every specific Obligation calls for the performance of some physical act. By habit, custom, training, education, environment, heredity, conscience, and almost every other influence upon us, we have come to regard the mere physical act as the only thing involved in the Obligation. From this viewpoint it is but logical as well as natural that we should look upon the simple performance of the act itself as a complete discharge of the Obligation. But from the viewpoint of the Great Work of Spiritual Unfoldment, we thereby ignore virtually all there is of vital importance in the problem. An illustration or two may serve to bring out the principle more distinctly, and at the same time carry home to us a more vivid realization of the extent to which we fall short of the requirements of the scientific Formulary in our daily lives and conduct. Among our individual acquaintances, each one of us will be able to recall one or more who have deeply impressed us with a sense of their melancholy martyrdom to Duty. There are comparatively few, indeed, who do not, to some extent, impress us with the feeling that, to them, the Duties and Obligations and Responsibilities of life are only so many burdens imposed upon them wrong- fully and arbitrarily, by nature or their fellow man, for the express purpose of inflicting upon them more than their just or rightful share of unhappiness and misery. What a rude and unwelcome awakening awaits all those who measure life from this somber and erroneous viewpoint. With what a cruel shock they are destined some day to realize the profound and solemn truth that no duty ever yet was performed and none ever will be performed by a human being while the Soul of the actor SPIRIT OF THE WORK 317 is filled with anger, bitterness, hatred, contempt, aversion, resentment, reluctance, or any shade of protest. He who gives grudgingly the crust of bread to the hungry wayfarer has done a physical act, but he has performed only the smallest part of his Duty. He who supplies the material necessities of the home grudgingly, or with reluctance, or in the spirit of unkindness or pro- test, has accomplished but an empty, naked and mean- ingless act. But he has not performed his Duty. She who presides over the destinies of the home, even though she labor early and late to meet the multiplicity of demands upon her time, her thought and her strength, has utterly failed of her Duty if the spirit of bitterness, impatience, protest or complaint pervades her Soul and casts its somber shadow over the home. How many husbands are there today who, in actual practice, provide the material necessities of the home in such manner as to perform the Duty and discharge the Obligation in full which they owe to those who are of right dependent upon them? How many wives are there today who meet the demands upon them in such manner as to cast no shadow of bitterness, impatience, protest or complaint over the home? In other words, how many men and women are there today who perform their Duties, discharge their Obliga- tions and carry the burden of their Personal Responsibili-. ties in such manner as to obtain therefrom the highest degree of Constructive Spiritual Development and the fullest measure of Psychic Unfoldment of which they are capable? It is not possible to answer this question definitely, but it is safe to conclude that the number is comparatively small. Among those who shall read these pages, if there are any who are impatient in their desire to take up the 3i8 THE GREAT WORK Technical Work of the Second and Third Sections of the General Formulary, they are asked to bear in mind the following important suggestions: 1. The Ethical Foundation must first be laid by every student, broad and deep in his own life, before it is possible for him to enter upon the Second Section, which has been designated as "Technical Work." 2. It is for this reason that the Ethical Section is presented first for his consideration. For in this Section will be placed before him the Moral Status which it is necessary for him to attain within himself before it is possible for him to place himself in that "Attitude of Soul" from which alone it is possible for him or any other individual ever to accomplish the Technical Work. 3. The Second and Third Sections of the Work, though designated as "Technical," are no more truly and definitely "Scientific" than the Ethical Section. It is true they involve the doing of certain definite and specific things, which clearly indicate the direct line along which he must put forth his "Personal Effort," and they outline for him the meaning and the purpose of each specific act he is required to perform. But it is absolutely necessary for him first to be the thing indicated in the Ethical Section before it is possible for him ever to do the things outlined for him in the Technical Sections. In other words, the goal of Spiritual Independence and Mastership is one which cannot be reached by those whose impatience would impel them to travel "cross-lots" or to skip any of the "hard places." Those who are not willing in good faith to square their lives by the scientific requirements of the Ethical Section need not hope ever to accomplish the work of the other SPIRIT OF THE WORK 319 two. It would be but a waste of both time and energy for them to attempt it. It is impossible. The purpose of this chapter is to make clear one more element of the Formulary which enters into the "Attitude of Soul" from which alone our Personal Efforts will impel us forward in the direct line of Constructive Spirit- ual Unfoldment. That element is to be found in the Spirit in which we "stand upon our Rights," perform our Duties, discharge our Obligations, and carry the burden of our Personal Responsibilities. As hereinbefore stated, that element may be perfectly expressed in one simple every-day English word. It will be observed, however, that the specific word has not been given. The omission is not the result of an over- sight. It is entirely intentional. The reader is entitled to know why so important a key is withheld from him. The reasons for this remarkable omission are as follows : 1. The word constitutes the "Official Answer" to one of the most important "Problems" in what is known to students of the Great School as "The Masters' Catechism." 2. The independent solution of each and all of these Problems is required of every student who is admitted to the "Inner Work" of the Ethical Section. 3. The largest measure of benefit to every student who receives that Work, comes to him as a result of the "Personal Effort" he puts forth in the solution of those Problems. Even the casual reader may obtain great benefit from the fascinating search among synonyms for the one Word which shall constitute a perfect answer to the profound Ethical Problem hereinbefore outlined. In its relation to the Great Work of Spiritual Unfold- ment along Constructive lines, this common little word CHAPTER XIX. VANITY OF VANITIES. There are two kinds of Vanity, namely : 1. Vanity of Person. 2. Vanity of Intelligence. Personal Vanity is self-admiration of personal appear- ance. It is undue admiration of one's own form, figure, face, dress, decoration, ornamentation, personal posses- sions and material belongings. It stimulates in us the craving desire for the admiration, the homage and the applause of others as to our personal appearance. Intellectual Vanity is unjustifiable admiration of one's own intelligence or intellectual attainments. It impels us to seek the admiration and the applause of others as to our intellectual brilliancy, wit, humor, knowledge, judg- ment and intellectual superiority over others. Vanity, like both Fear and Anger, expresses itself in many different forms and phases, among which are the following : Self-consciousness, Self-complacency, Self-conceit, Self-sufficiency, Self-confidence, Self-approbation, Self-esteem, Self-admiration, Self-praise, Self-applause, Self-gratulation, Self-love, Self-glorification, Self-elation, Self-assurance, Egotism. 321 322 THE GREAT WORK It expresses itself outwardly by Arrogance, Boastfulness, Haughtiness, Superciliousness, Disdain, Imperiousness, Ostentation, Pretentiousness, Arbitrariness, Dogmatism, Flippancy, Audacity, Impertinence, Frivolity. As between the sexes, it would seem that Personal Vanity, or Vanity of Person, is a weakness more com- mon to women than to men; while Intellectual Vanity is, without question, one of man's most conspicuous faults and most glaring defects of character. The vanities of women manifest themselves more con- spicuously in their love of dress, jewelry, decoration, and the eiifort, through the art of self-adornment, to command attention and applause for their personal beauty and apparent loveliness. The vain woman is more likely to betray her weakness through evidences of self-consciousness in all of its many subtle forms, through haughtiness, imperiousness, disdain, ostentation, flippancy, self-assurance, self-praise and self-conceit. The vanities of men betray themselves most fre- quently through marked evidences of self-confidence, boastfulness, arrogance, egotism, self-sufficiency, arbi- trariness and dogmatism. Of course there are many exceptions among both the sexes. There are women who are consumed with Intel- lectual Vanity, and there are men who are equally devoured by Personal Vanity; but these would appear to be the exceptions rather than the rule. From a psychological standpoint Vanity in all its forms and phases is destructive. The vanities of men VANITY OF VANITIES 323 are no less so than those of women. In many respects they are even more to be deplored. The ambition for power, so common among men, is impelled by their desire for public applause. The strug- gle for political and social leadership is but a struggle that is impelled by Vanity. The impulse back of it all is the love of approbation and the insatiate desire for personal admiration and public applause. The selfish desire for personal glorification is back of most of the ambitious men. Vanity, in all its manifold forms and phases, is an expression of the most inordinate selfishness. It is an impulse of self-gratification without regard of any kind whatsoever for the well-being of others. It has been shown in another chapter that the altruistic impulse is one of the essential elements that enters into the Attitude of Soul necessary to Independent Spiritual Unfoldment. Whatever excludes it is a necessary bar to such Unfoldment. The supreme selfishness of Vanity, in whatever form or phase it manifests itself, leaves no room for the unselfish consideration of others. It is for this reason that it stands as an insurmountable barrier between every man or woman who harbors it, and the goal of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment and Power. Self-respect, within proper limitations, is one of the most essential factors in the right Attitude of Soul for which every student of the. Great School is in search. In its true and legitimate sense it is a natural result of honest endeavor. It contains no element of deception, fraud, dishonesty, pretense nor insincerity. It is en- tirely genuine, and is one of nature's just rewards of merit. The man or the woman who is truly honest, sincere, genuine and good, has the perfect right to 324 THE GREAT WORK entertain a feeling of unqualified Self-respect. The indi- vidual who, by honest endeavor, has acquired profound knowledge is justly entitled to respect himself for the achievement, so long as he uses his knowledge for the accomplishment of the highest good of both himself and his fellows. Legitimate self-respect is in perfect align- ment with the Constructive Principle of Nature in Indi- vidual Life. To be worthy of one's own Self-respect is one of the most exalted achievements of the Soul. It is that for which every student must strive who hopes for true Spiritual Illumination. But until we are able to commend ourselves to our- selves in good conscience we have no right to commend ourselves to others at all. And when we have once truly attained to a state and condition of Soul growth which justly entitles us to our own commendation it will not be necessary for us to commend ourselves to others. If, upon a basis of strict merit, we are able to com- mand our own intelligent Self-respect, our friends and fellows will not be long in discovering that fact, and when they do they will give us their respect without waiting for us to canvass them for it. It is only when Self-respect crosses the line of its Constructive limitations that it becomes something else. And the thing it then becomes is Vanity. So long as it is held within its constructive boundaries it is beautiful and ennobling and uplifting. The moment it passes beyond those limitations into the field of Vanity it becomes unlovely, degrading and destructive. There may, perhaps, arise in the mind of the reader or student a question as to the meaning of "Pride" and the position it occupies in relation to true Spiritual Un- foldment and Soul Growth. For this reason it may be well briefly to consider it in this connection. VANITY OF VANITIES 325 From the viewpoint of lexicology the term is given a number of different meanings, some of which widely differ from each other. One of its definitions would bring it clearly within the meaning which this School gives to the term "Self-respect," as hereinbefore indi- cated. Another of its definitions would place it clearly within the field of "Vanity," as the word is hereinbefore analyzed. "Pride" is defined as: 1. "Unreasonable conceit of one's own superiority, whether as to talents, wealth, beauty, accomplishment, rank, office, or other distinction, with correspondingly contemptuous feeling toward others." 2. "The manifestation of this feeling in one's inter- course with others, as by haughtiness, arrogance, or superciliousness." 3. "A proper sense of personal dignity, character and worth; self-respect," etc. Its synonyms are given as follows : "Conceit, osten- tation, self-complacency, self-conceit, self-esteem, self- exaltation, self-respect, vainglory, vanity." The first and second definitions above given fall clearly within the field of Vanity, while the third is with equal exactness within the field of Self-respect. The following analysis of the term is to be found in the Standard Dic- tionary of 1906: "Conceit and Vanity are associated with weakness. Pride with strength. Conceit may be founded upon nothing; Pride is founded upon something that one is, or has, or has done; Vanity, too, is commonly founded on something real, though far slighter than would afford foundation for Pride. Vanity is eager for admiration and praise, is elated if they are rendered, and pained if they are withheld, and seeks them; Pride could never 326 THE GREAT WORK solicit admiration or praise. Self-conceit is ridiculous; Conceit is offensive. Self-respect is a thoroughly worthy feeling ; Self-esteem is a more generous estimate of one's own character and abilities than the rest of the world are ready to allow," etc. The extreme latitude thus given to the term "Pride" makes of it a word of great uncertainty in common use. For this reason, if the term is ever used to express a condition of Soul or state of being that is within Con- structive limitations, it should always be preceded by the adjectives "just" or "worthy," or some other qualifying explanation that would indicate clearly and unmistakably the specific sense in which it is employed. When used without some such qualification it should be understood to fall within the field of "Vanity." In this manner alone is it possible to unmask the pretensions of those who employ the word in an ambiguous sense for the express purpose of taking credit for that which they do not possess. It should never be possible to confuse the Pride that means "Self-respect" with the Pride that means only "Vanity." To the Intellectual Vanities of men, rather than the petty Personal Vanities of women, are directly or indi- rectly traceable many of the past failures of the Great School in its efforts to bring to the world of intelligent humanity a definite knowledge of its science and its philosophy. The Vanities of men exhibit themselves in the irre- pressible struggle of ambitious men for leadership in all the various movements within the great body of society. It matters not what the character of the movement may be, whether religious, philosophic, ethical, political, economic or purely social, there are always strong, able and intelligent men whose inordinate vanity impels them VANITY OF VANITIES 327 to thrust themselves forward in the struggle for leader- ship and power. With the rarest exceptions it is the man of this type that pushes his way to the front, regard- less of consequences, and is found today, as in all past ages, at the head of every movement. It is seldom a matter of principle that impels him to this struggle for place. Almost without exception, the impelling motive is the enjoyment of public notice, public applause, public patronage, personal power and the homage, the flattery, the blandishments and the adulations of his fellows. Not infrequently men of this type are moved by the malicious enjoyment they get out of the envy and the jealousy of other vain men who have striven against them for the same preferment and power. Every side and angle of the proposition only presents to us a new view of pure and unadulterated selfishness. It is men of this type who have been the cause of the disintegration and death of many a most worthy and beneficent religious, philosophic and ethical movement. They thrust themselves into positions of prominence only to misrepresent the spirit and purpose of every such movement upon which they fasten themselves. The leadership of such men is fatal to any movement which has for its purpose the religious, philosophic or moral enlightenment and betterment of society. It is not necessary to go backward beyond the memory of the present generation to find a number of striking illustrations of the manner in which the leadership of men of this type has disintegrated and destroyed most worthy and beneficent movements which had for their original purpose the enlightenment and progress of mankind. The following is an illustration of the manner in which such a proposition works itself out : 328 THE GREAT WORK A wise, noble, exalted and generous Soul appears in the midst of society. His knowledge, his wisdom and his exalted life and purposes soon attract to him a number of honest men and women who look upon him as a spiritual teacher and guide. They join with him in a mutual endeavor to comfort the sorrowing, lift up the fallen and help all men to a higher and better under- standing and exemplification of life. A movement is thus formed in the midst of society, whose spirit and purpose are pure and noble and uplifting and in all respects worthy and helpful. By the time it has crystallized into definite form it has attracted the attention of a number of vain and ambitious men. Each one of these is striving with all his intelli- gence and power for his own personal advantage. They see in this new movement a possible instrument for the achievement of their designs. They ally themselves with it. They become untiring workers in its behalf. By their activity and their industry they soon earn the grateful recognition of the true and loyal and unselfish members. It is not long until some one of them has forged his way to the front and through the support of the innocent, the humble and the unsuspecting workers has become a leader among them. His unsuccessful competitors for position and place begin their work of undermining him, in the hope of thereby succeeding to his position. They are at last successful, and some one of them supplants him. But the struggle has created strife in the midst of the new movement. He has his friends who feel that he has been abused. They are ready to follow him. He withdraws and forms a new movement with himself as the undisputed head. His loyal friends in the original movement go with him. Thus the first split is accomplished and the original VANITY OF VANITIES 329 movement has entered upon the process of disintegration. Soon another "Leader" has been displaced. He also withdraws, taking with him as many of the original movement as possible, and forms another movement with himself at its head. And thus the process of disintegration goes on, until the entire spirit and purpose of the original movement are lost and its potency for good is dissipated. And the sole cause of this wreckage and ruin is the struggle for "Leadership" impelled by Vanity. The Christian movement has thus far been subject to almost 200 splits, each one resulting in the development of a new movement. And the end is not yet. It might be deemed an injustice to the cause of religion to state that the larger number of these divisions has been the result of the struggle of vain and ambitious men for personal recognition and power. But if the inner his- tory of the Christian movement could be written in detail, there can be little doubt that the largest per- centage of all its internal conflicts and dissensions has resulted from the struggle of vain and ambitious men for "leadership." The Theosophical movement, which in its inception was beneficent and worthy, has been torn and mutilated until its original spirit and purpose have been lost or forgotten in the struggle for "leadership." And it is not yet half a century old. It is one of the more modem victims of the vanities of both men and women. If the humble spirit and exalted purpose of the Mas- ter, Jesus, could have been maintained intact within the Christian movement, there is not the least doubt that their irresistible influence would have conquered the world of doubt and degeneracy many centuries ago. Instead of this, however, vanity and greed have eaten 330 THE GREAT WORK away the heart of the movement. The church, as an institution, no longer commands the sympathy nor the respect of many intelligent and progressive men and women of this scientific age. It has again become the cloak of the avaricious. Its temples once more have become a shelter for the money changers. All this and much more is especially true of the Roman Catholic Church. It has become an institution of almost unlimited wealth and power. It levies its tribute upon every industry and through these upon every home. Not content with religion, nor with re- ligious teachings and ministrations, as a vocation, it has entered boldly into the fields of politics and secular education in search of new and larger advantages to itself as an organization. It has laid its clerical hand over the mouth of the press of the country in the hope of keeping from the intelligent and liberal masses of our people a knowledge of its plans and its movements. To such an extent has it succeeded in its designs that its archbishops openly boast of the fact that they have "muzzled" the press so completely that it dare not speak without their consent. Anticipating that the time is not far distant when its designs upon the liberties of the people in general, and upon our Public School System in particular, would be unmasked, and with the unmask- ing that the righteous indignation of the liberty-loving men and women in all the religious denominations and without would awaken the spirit of true and loyal Amer- icanism and arouse the sleeping sentinel of our country to action, it has organized and equipped a secret military organization and is training an immense army of men for action in the field when that eventful hour shall come. In other words, the Roman Catholic Church of Amer- VANITY OF VANITIES 33* ica has long been planning to control both the political and the educational interests and machinery of our gov- ernment and our country. Its purpose has been and is to control them peaceably if possible, by secret Jesuitical methods and under cover of a "muzzled" press; but in the event these methods do not succeed, then, and in that event, it is preparing to force an internal revolution which will enlist with it not only the Catholics of Amer- ica but likewise the vast horde of ignorant and illiterate anti-American foreigners who are swarming to this country from all quarters of the globe as a result of Catholic influence upon the Congress of our country. The clericalism of European countries is being ex- tended as rapidly as possible to pur own beloved coun- try, until the issue is now squarely before us. The vanity and greed of Roman Catholicism that compel all Europe to pay tribute to the Vatican and have made of Europe little better than a Roman Colony have turned at last upon America, and it remains to be seen how far their plans may be successful, and how long the senti- nel of our liberties shall sleep upon his post. It is but just to the Protestant Churches in general, and more especially the Methodist Episcopal, the Bap- tist, the Congregational, the more liberal religious organ- izations, and the Spiritualists, to note the fact that they are awakening to the impending danger, more especially that which threatens our Public School System, and so far as this is true they have shown their patriotism and their spirit of true Americanism by aligning them- selves against the encroachments of Roman Clericalism. This is a splendid testimonial of their loyalty to the principles of our government and that upon which, more than all else, the guaranty of our future liberty depends -^-our Non-Sectarian Public Schools, wherein the youth 332 THE GREAT WORK of our country may be educated free from the dogmas of religious sectarianism, and uncontaminated by the growing anti-American influence of Roman Clericalism. Intellectual Vanity begets the desire for "leadership" and public applause. These impel men to force them- selves into the front of every movement. But to sustain themselves as leaders requires the power to command men in a manner which wealth alone can accomplish. Material wealth, therefore, is one of the potential ele- ments which enable vain men to gratify their vanity. This fact stimulates the spirit of greed. It is for this reason that Vanity and Greed go hand in hand as con- comitant factors throughout all human society. But it is the spirit of greed, the inordinate desire for material wealth wherewith to buy the applause of the masses that impels vain and ambitious men to resort to trickery, fraud, dishonesty and immoral practices. Hence it is that Vanity leads first to Greed and thence to Dishon- esty and Immorality. Vanity, Selfishness, Greed, Dis- honesty, Immorality. That tells the story in all its sim- plicity. But Morality constitutes the essential foundation of all Independent Spiritual Unfoldment and is the sci- entific basis of Mastership. This will make clear to the intelligent student why it is that Vanity is destructive in its tendencies. It is because: 1. Vanity is the very essence of Selfishness. 2. Selfishness is back of all Greed. 3. Greed inspires Dishonesty and Immorality. The Constructive Principle of Nature in Individual Life demands of every student that whatever of Vanity impels him to seek for "leadership" through the desire for public notice or applause must be transformed into that kind and quality of Humility which will enable him VANITY OF VANITIES 333 patiently and cheerfully to take his place in the ranks of his fellows, work with them shoulder to shoulder un- noticed by the applauding multitudes, or serve the cause of Truth and Humanity alone and in obscurity. He must acquire that character and degree of Humility which will enable him, in all the association of life, to stand upon his merits. There is, perhaps, no single trait of human character which more clearly and surely betrays the charlatan and the fakir than that form of Vanity which impels men to the struggle for leadership and power. The true Master seeks only the place wherein his in- teUigence and his abilities shall accomplish the largest measure of the most valuable service to the cause of Truth and Humanity. The badge of the charlatan is Intellectual Vanity. The badge of the Master is genuine Humility. There is yet another form of Intellectual Vanity among men that deserves special attention and consideration. It is that which betrays itself in Dogmatism and Arbi- trariness of both speech and manner. There is, perhaps, no form or phase of this prevailing weakness among men that is more radically inconsistent with the true Spirit and Purpose of the Ethical Formulary than that which expresses itself in an arbitrary and dogmatic manner of speech and action. The arbitrary man is forever getting himself into awk- ward and humiliating situations. He generally talks volubly, if not learnedly, upon subjects with which he is but indifferently acquainted. He makes many state- ments and assertions which he finds it impossible to sup- port by either facts, logic or reason. He depends upon an arbitrary assertiveness and dogmatic emphasis to silence those who are inclined to question his statements. 334 THE GREAT WORK Many times this fails to work, for he finds that there are many other men just as arbitrary and dogmatic as he, and some of them often know much more concern- ing the facts than he does. Such as these do not hesi- tate to join issue with him. And when they defeat him, show his ignorance and his error, and drive him into a corner, he seldom has the manly grace to acknowledge his defeat or admit his error. It is a rare thing to find an intellectually vain man who can or will listen with patience to those who do not agree with him. It is an equally rare thing to find one who will gracefully admit an error when it is pointed out to him. For this reason such men make poor students. They are so intent upon impressing their knowledge, or "assumed knowledge, or beliefs upon others that all the receiving avenues of the Soul are closed. They cannot take in that which others have to give. The receptive element of character is wanting. Another inevitable result of Intellectual Vanity among men is the natural tendency to intellectual combat. It is impossible for men of this type to meet for the mutual consideration of important problems, whether social, economic, scientific, political, ethical, educational, philo- sophical or religious, without dropping at once to the level of disputation, debate, controversy and intellectual battle. It is impossible for men of this type to listen to each other's views patiently, calmly, respectfully, and with the gracious attitude of Soul which makes the trans- mission of knowledge possible. The spirit of reciprocity is entirely wanting. Among such men there is no such thing possible as mutual intellectual exchange. The mental attitude is that of intellectual thrust and parry, stroke and guard, until one pr the other is either helpless VANITY OF VANITIES 335 or driven from the field of combat. Even then the spirit of hostility is not conquered. It proceeds at once to pre- pare for further conflict, in the hope of retrieving lost honors. And thus the irrepressible conflict continues un- til physical death closes the struggle. Those who are familiar writh religious history cover- ing the period of the development of dogmatic interpre- tation will have in mind a practical illustration of the manner in which Intellectual Vanity leads to controversy, dispute and intellectual conflict. The intellectual battle of the ages was that which grew out of the dogmatic interpretations of Scripture. It continued for many centuries without abating, and in a somewhat milder form the controversy has come down even to the pres- ent time. The "Doctrines" and "Dogmas" of the various Chris- tian denominations are entirely due to the interpretations of men. The doctrine of the "Trinity," for instance, grew out of the desire of religious men to understand something of the "Anatomy of God." They have taken the Bible as their text book on the subject, and with this as a basis have wrought out the interpretation of the Trinity. Mohammed, however, with the same data at his com- mand, reached a very different interpretation of the same subject. He found that "There is but one God," and with the sword as his "scalpel" he came very nearlj proving himself to be an "authority" on the subject of "Anatomy" of both God and Man. Theological dogmatism, as truly as other brands of dogmatism, is the result of Intellectual Vanity, and not of Piety, as many appear to believe. The many forms and phases of Vanity indicated by the list of terms at the beginning of this chapter, all of 336 THE GREAT WORK which we employ to express it, suggest something of the extent to which it enters into the experiences of human life. The purpose of this chapter is to make clear the fact that a due and proper "Self-respect" is not only construc- tive in its essential nature, but that it is necessary to the accomplishment of true Spiritual and Psychical Unfold- ment and Mastership. But Vanity, in whatever form or phase it may express itself, is the essence of Selfishness and is destructive in its spiritual and psychical effects. It is, therefore, one of the things of which the student of the "Independent Method" of Spiritual and Psychical Development must rid himself before it is possible for him to succeed. It is an element which is wholly and entirely excluded by the Ethical Formulary. It is Psychological Poison. CHAPTER XX. PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS. The student of Medicine, in the course of his educa- tion, is compelled to acquaint himself with the nature and physiological action of drugs and medicines of all kinds. He must know which are Constructive in their physiological action and he must also know which are Destructive. He must know which are poisons and which are panaceas. And he must know as much about poisons as he does about elixirs. His knowledge of the one is as necessary to his skill and success as a physician as his knowl- edge of the other. He must know which are poisons in order that he may not, through ignorance, kill his patients instead of curing them. The student of pharmacy must also have a definite and exact knowledge of all kinds of drugs, both destructive and constructive, poisonous and curative, in order that he may be able correctly to fill the physician's prescriptions. Without such knowledge he would be as likely to compound a deadly poison as a beneficent restorative. In like manner, and for analogous reasons, it is neces- sary for every student who enters upon the task of Inde- pendent Spiritual Unfoldment to understand the Destruc- tive elements and processes of nature in individual life as well as the Constructive. In the development of the Ethical Formulary, the 337 388 THE GREAT WORK Great School has included only those elements which are Constructive in their action upon the Individual In- telligence or Soul. They have excluded everything else. But the exclusion is understood rather than expressed. The pharmacist understands when he receives a phy- sician's prescription that the chemical formula he is to compound includes only the particular ingredients there- in designated, and in the exact amounts prescribed. He understands, without being told, that everything else is excluded. Knowing something of the disease for which the medicine is to be given, he may wonder if some other ingredient not mentioned in the prescription might not add to the therapeutic value and potency of the remedy. He may even think that a different drug might be sub- stituted for one of those mentioned; or he may even be convinced that another and wholly different formula would accomplish the desired result. It is the business of the physician, however, to make the prescription, because he is the individual who has tried and tested each ingredient in actual practice and knows its action and its therapeutic value, and also be- cause this falls within the scope of his profession and his professional duties. It is the business of the pharmacist to fill the prescrip- tion just as he receives it from the physician, because that is within the scope of his profession and a part of his professional duties. It was for this that his license was granted him. It is the duty of the patient to take the remedy as pre- scribed, if he takes it at all, for only by so doing is it possible for him to do justice to the physician whose judgment he has consulted and upon whom he has there- by placed a heavy responsibility. These suggestions apply with added emphasis to those PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 339 who enter into the work of Independent Spiritual Devel- opment under and in accordance with the Formulary of the Great School. If they accept the judgment of the School at all, then they should understand that the Formulary is one which is not to be changed. No new elements must be intro- duced. If the Formulary is changed, either by elimina- tion, addition or substitution, it is no longer the Formu- lary of this School; nor must the results of any such modified Formulary be charged to this School. In order that. the student may know something of the excluded elements which are likely to interfere with his efforts unless he is on guard constantly, it is deemed of special importance that the following explanation and elucidation be given in this connection: "Self-Pity" is found by this School to be one of the most unfortunate weaknesses to which erring human na- ture is subject. It is the immediate basis of a very large percentage of all human misery. It finds a lodgment in the consciousness of almost every individual who is striv- ing for that which he sees his fellow men and women enjoying. It is profoundly destructive in its effects upon him or her who harbors it. Moreover, it is both scientifi- cally unnecessary and morally wrong. Generally speaking, Self-Pity is based upon the assump- tion that the world, or nature, or the Great Intelligence back of these, has dealt with us cruelly and unjustly. Out of this assumption grows, very naturally, too, the conviction that we are aggrieved and injured parties. Oftentimes our grievance, or assumed grievance, resolves itself into a definite conviction that we justly and rightly deserve vastly more than we now possess or have ever received from God, or Nature, or our fellow man. And thus, without the slightest attempt on our part to 340 THE GREAT WORK justify such an assumption by a schedule of "deserts" on the one hand and "possessions" on the other, we jump to the conclusion that the ledger of life shows a large balance due us which has never been paid. On the basis of this imaginary balance we forthwith develop within us a condition of mental or psychological acidity which has the effect to sour everything sweet within us, and curdle all the "milk of human kindness" outside of us and within the radius of our influence. There are within the confines of human society both men and women who might well and truly be designated as "Constitutional Martyrs." We have all seen them. They are a distinct type. These are they who are for- ever playing the role of Martyr. They are martyrs in the home. They are martyrs in society. They are martyrs to duty. They are martyrs to their religion. They are, in truth, martyrs all the time, everywhere and to everything with which they find it possible to identify themselves. Individuals of this type, whether men or women, are never quite so nearly happy as when they are utterly miserable, or can make others think they are miserable. About the only comfort they seem to enjoy is that which they extract from the enervating emotion of Self-Pity. Their principal occupation is that of endeavoring to make the rest of mankind as miserable as they pretend to be. Like a pestilence, they carry misery and sorrow and the shadow of death wherever their influence radiates. They poison every atmosphere into which they come. The amount of misery and unhappiness which just one such individual is able to generate and diffuse in a given time is something truly wonderful. If it were not for the fact that joy and life and happiness are as truly con- tagious as misery, there are enough men and women of PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS at the type referred to, in society, to make of this a sorry old world. There is, however, not only an antidote, but likewise a natural cure for every ill. There is at least one such remedy for Self-Pity. It is important that every student of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment should be in pos- session of this remedy, lest he unwittingly carry into his life and his work germs of pestilence and destructive elements which are excluded by the Formulary under which he is working. Self-Pity may well be defined as "Psychological Phthisis." This means psychological tuberculosis, or consumption. It may not be a "germ disease," but it manifests, in a psychic sense, all the evidences of a self- consuming process. It slowly but surely eats away at the vitals of the very Soul itself until all that sustains health, strength, vitality, courage, hope and happiness is con- sumed. Health fails, strength departs, vitality is con- sumed, courage goes, hope fades and happiness is im- possible. All that gives to life its meaning and its in- spiration is thus consumed. And this is truly psycho- logical consumption. With this analysis and exposition of the subject before him the student is in position to understand and ap- preciate the reasons for excluding Self-Pity from the Formulary, and the importance of keeping it out of his consciousness and eliminating it from all his work. In order that he may accomplish this task it is neces- sary that he should know the remedy for Psychological Phthisis, generally known as Self-Pity. It is to be found in a clear understanding, a sincere appreciation, and an unqualified acceptance of a simple but sublime principle of nature in individual life. The sane and intelligent individual, whether man or woman, 342 THE GREAT WORK who once firmly grasps, clearly understands, truly appre- ciates and definitely appropriates this one simple and fundamental principle can never thereafter accuse na- ture, or the -Great Creative Intelligence, of denying him or withholding from him anything whatsoever to which he is justly and of right entitled. The principle to which reference is here made is that which determines the exact relation between our real "Possessions" and our just "Deserts." In order that this principle may be understood with certainty it is necessary that we know exactly what is meant by the term "Possessions." This is a subject upon which it is evident there exists a wide divergence of opinion. It is one, however, which is easily under- stood under proper analysis. In an exact and scientific sense, the only things we are legitimately entitled to say we "possess," are those things over which nature, or the Great Intelligence, has given us direct, immediate, continuous and individual dominion and power, as a result of our own inherent necessities as individualized Intelligences. For instance: As an individualized, Intelligent Soul, each human being actually and literally "possesses" only those things with which nature, or Universal Intelligence, has invested and endowed him in order that he may ex- press himself as such. Let us get this concept clearly in mind before we go further. It is important. It may be expressed in yet an- other form that may help to bring it more vividly within the range of our understanding. For illustration : Each human being, as an individual- ized Intelligence, or Soul, "possesses" a physical body; but he does not "possess" the clothes with which he covers it, nor the house within which he shelters it. We PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 343 "possess" our own feet, but we do not "possess" the shoes in which we dress them. As Individual IntelH- gences we all "possess" the faculty of Consciousness, but we do not "possess" the material things of earth which impress themselves upon that faculty of the Soul. We "possess" the impressions of these things but not the things themselves. Each one of us "possesses" a Will, but we do not "possess" the things of earth nor of the material universe which, acting upon the faculty of Con- sciousness, furnish the motive and the impulse for our exercise of that wonderful power of Will. We "possess" the Soul Attributes which, in themselves alone, distin- guish us from all the rounds of animal life below us; but we do not "possess" the earth whereon we tempo- rarily abide, nor any part of it save that almost infinites- simal fraction of it which constitutes our present physical bodies. The ancient Latins, from whom our word "possess" comes down to us, had a somewhat more accurate con- ception of the principle under consideration than we of today have. For instance, our word, reduced to Latin, is a compound of the two Latin words, "Po," meaning "power," and "Sidere," meaning "to sit upon." From this analysis it will be observed that the Latin meaning of "possess" was and is "The power to sit upon." But the Latins employed the term "posidere" in a strictly literal sense. They applied it more especially to what we of today would understand as "Real Estate rights and titles," or rights and interests in lands. For instance, to them it was held to be lawful for a "Free Man" to own and hold as much land as he had the "power to sit upon," but no more. That is to say, with them it was literally a matter of "power"; for, in order to hold a land estate, the individual was compelled, when- 344 THE GREAT WORK ever called upon by his neighbors for that purpose, to demonstrate his ability to "sit upon" all the estates to which he laid claim. This meant that he must prove his ability or his power to prevent all others — more especially his feudal enemies — from settling upon ("sitting upon") any part of it. But our still more ancient Brothers, from whom the Latins received their concept of material "ownership" and "possession," had a far more just and accurate un- derstanding of the fundamental principle under consid- eration. The term they used, if translated into English, would mean "to make a part of one's self." It is a matter of significant interest to observe that this is an almost literal expression of the principle here- inbefore outlined. It means that the things we "possess" are those which we are able to appropriate and employ in a definite and personal sense. Literally it means that the things we "possess" are those only which, taken together, constitute each one of us what we are, namely, an individualized. Intelligent Ego, Soul, or Entity — an individual human being, a man or a woman. And this is the true psychological concept back of all "possessions." However much we may try, it is impos- sible for us literally to "possess" any part or parcel of the great universe of material things outside the limits of our own individual, organic constitutions, physical, spir- itual and psychical ; that is, outside our essential selves. It is true, we may assume an exclusive character of jurisdiction over, and control of, a considerable part of the material universe outside of us. Indeed, it would seem that this constitutes the principal occupation of a very large majority of all mankind, women as well as men. In so far as we are successful in our efforts along this line of endeavor, we may even deprive the rest of PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 345 mankind of its use as well as of any and all material ben- efits which might otherwise flow from it. Nevertheless, it matters not how much of the material universe we may be able to exercise jurisdiction over or control of, we can never "possess" it, any more than we can possess that part of the atmosphere we do not breathe into our lungs, or that part of the ocean we do not absorb into our physical organisms and thereby make an essen- tial part of us. This gives to us a view of this life of earth which comes clearly to those only who are striving intelligently for spiritual life and light. It is a new view to most men of this day and generation. It is one, however, which was familiar to the "Wise Men of the East" long ages before it was recognized by the Master, Jesus. It is this view that gives to us a correct reading of our actual rela- tion to the material universe. It also conveys to us a just conception of the immutable relationship we sustain to our fellow men and women. It likewise affords us an exact interpretation of the perfect balance which nature has established and would have us maintain between our "Rights" on the one hand and our "Duties" and "Obligations" on the other; between what we "receive" and what we "give" again in return. This higher view of life reduces our real possessions to a simple and normal basis. At the same time it re- moves from the pathway of our higher endeavors, and from the necessity for undue consideration, the vast uni- verse of grossly material "Things" over which men and women, the world over, are forever breaking their hearts and destroying their lives in their vain and fruitless efforts to establish a character of "ownership" or "possession" which their fellows will permit them to exercise without protest or hindrance. 346 THE GREAT WORK It has been stated that there is a fundamental principle of life which if once clearly perceived and rightly applied, will make Self-Pity in a sane and intelligent human being impossible. Once universally understood and appreci- ated, it would rid the world of all its "Constitutional Martyrs," and make of society a great, active, industrious institution of happy and mutually helpful people. The principle referred to is the "Principle of Use." Under this principle every individual is obligated by the law of individual being to make active and beneficent use of all his possessions. Under its operation no man is en- titled to that which he does not or cannot use. An intelligent analysis and study of this principle in its relation to our real possessions will disclose the start- ling fact that there is not one of us, however artfully we may have played the role of "Martyr" or however pro- foundly we may have pitied ourselves, but possesses far more than he justly deserves when judged by the stand- ards of men. For illustration: Each one of us possesses a physical body. We also possess a spiritual body, though some of us are not yet wise enough to know that fact. We like- wise possess all the Faculties, Capacities, and Powers of an individualized. Intelligent Soul. These are all "gifts" to us from nature, or from the Universal Intelligence that is back of nature. It is impossible to conceive of the idea that all these were given to us for no purpose. In other words, every sane and intelligent individual will recognize the fact that we are invested and endowed with these transcendent possessions of the Soul for a purpose. Primarily there can be found but just one purpose and that is "Use." This means "Right Use," because the entire evolutionary principle of nature rests upon the use of individual facul- PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 347 ties, capacities and powers in such manner as to conform to the Constructive Principle of Nature in Individual Life. Under this law of evolution each one of us is bound by the most exalted obligation that could be fixed upon us, viz.: 1. To make use of all the faculties, capacities and powers of the Soul. 2. To make a right use of them, in such manner as to conform our lives to the Constructive Principle of Nature. 3. To do this to the full limit of our own individual abilities. 4. To do it all the time. Let the self-pitying, self-appointed martyr take these propositions home with him, think over them, analyze them, ponder them, live with them until he has made their acquaintance, and then see how long his self-pity and martyrdom will remain to torture him. If he is hon- est with himself he will condemn himself for every impulse of self-pity he has ever indulged. He will turn from his melancholy martyrdom, ashamed to look honest men and women in the face until he has demonstrated to them that he acknowledges his indebtedness and grati- tude to nature, or to nature's God, for all the transcendent possessions of the Soul which he has never earned, never rightly used, and according to our human standards of judgment never deserved. No honest and intelligent man can dwell long upon the problem without discovering: 1. That he possesses faculties, capacities and powers which he does not rightly use. 2. That many of these he deliberately and intention- ally misuses, times without number. 348 THE GREAT WORK 3. That he seldom, if ever, employs them rightly to the full limit of their capacity. 4. That much of the time he does not employ them at all. In the face of these facts but one conclusion is possible, namely, that every intelligent human being possesses vastly more than he deserves, if the problem be deter- mined according to the standards of men. And this is the standard by which we assume to pass judgment upon our fellow men in all the affairs of this earthly life. We do not hesitate an instant to declare that the man who con- trols vast wealth or large estates does not deserve them unless he puts them to their proper and legitimate use. All men sustain us in this position, thus not only recoig- nizing but declaring the evolutionary principle of "Right Use." The psychological value and importance of all this is the point upon which it is desired to place special empha- sis. To those who are able to look beyond the limitations of physical nature into the realm of the spiritual the sub- ject does not require emphasis, for in that life the Law of Use expresses itself in definite results which cannot be mistaken nor misinterpreted. The student who has once entered intelligently upon the definite task of Independent Spiritual and Psychical Unfoldment will find his work greatly facilitated by a clear understanding and a due appreciation of the follow- ing important facts, viz. : I. He is not a mere physical body and, as such, "pos- sessing" a Soul. On the contrary, he is an intelligent Soul, and as such he "possesses" a physical body whose only apparent purpose is to enable him to express him- self upon the plane of physical life and action. In this PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 349 view of life the body is a mere instrument of the Soul, and not its Master. This same concept has been expressed many times by modern writers along metaphysical and psychological lines. It has no doubt been expressed more beautifully and perhaps more forcibly. But heretofore it has been treated very largely as if it were a mere figure of speech, a poetic ideal, or a philosophic theory. In other words, it has been treated, for the most part, as if it were any- thing and everything but a Fact. The purpose, there- fore, at this time and in this connection, is not to rhapso- dize over it nor make of it a play upon the emotions ; but rather to take it out of the category of the figurative, the poetical, the metaphysical and the philosophical, and place it where it belongs, namely, in the department of scien- tific Fact. By so doing it is hoped so to present it to the student as to impress it upon his consciousness indelibly. In this event the profound truth which underlies the thought will do for him what it has done for those who have traveled the pathway before him. That is to say, it will change his entire attitude toward himself as an Individual Intelligence, and toward the sub- ject of this life in all its important bearings. It will impel him to place a radically different value on the purely material things of this physical life, over which other- wise intelligent men and women of all nations, all peoples and all times have broken their hearts and destroyed their lives without avail, and are today doing the same thing over again. 2. As an intelligent Soul with but a temporary physical body, the only fractional part of this physical universe he can ever appropriate to himself in such manner as to "possess" it, is just enough material food to replenish and sustain the physical body, just enough clothing to protect 350 THE GREAT WORK it in comfort against the chilling blasts of winter and decorate it to meet the requirements of his esthetic tastes, and sufficient shelter to protect it from the inclement ele- ments of physical nature. Everything else is not only useless but immeasurably worse than useless to the individual who spends his life in trying to "possess" it to the exclusion of the remainder of humanity. It is worse than useless because every ounce of this physical world he fastens upon his Soul (and for which he has no actual use or need) is only an incumbrance which binds his Soul to earth and holds it there with a power which only time and personal effort can ever break or overcome. It has been stated that the only part of this physical world which it is ever possible for us to appropriate exclusively to ourselves is just enough food, clothing and shelter to meet the demands of the physical body for nourishment, comfort, decoration and protection against the elements. Let it be added with special emphasis that even this is but a temporary and imperfect appropriation. For even these must elude our grasp sooner or later. We cannot hold them indefinitely. When the physical body is worn out and we no longer can use it as an instrument of expression it will fall away from us. And with it will go whatever of material "Things" we have piled up around it. We can no longer hold them. If only the sad and self-pitying could know how brief is the span of earth's trials and disciplines when compared with the enduring rewards of Courage, Faith, Patience and Cheerfulness, no one would waste his opportunities in the kind of self-commiseration that makes for Psycholog- ical Phthisis. If they could but know what the Con- structive Law of Hope, Faith, Courage and Cheerfulness can do for men and women even yet "in the body"; if PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 351 they but understood how these set in motion the active forces that "make for good" ; if they but knew how such individuals attract to themselves beneficent influences (both in the body and out) which make for social content and material prosperity of the individual man and woman who harbors them; they would turn from their pitying with a song of joy in their hearts and a benediction upon their lips for the blessings within their reach. For illustration : If one hundred men and women who are pessimists today would but cast oif their bondage of Self-Pity and doubt of nature's beneficence, and set them- selves the reasonable task of living their lives like men and women of full stature, with cheerful courage; of co-operating for mutual happiness and material good ; and of asking for the help of the Great Friends when their own efforts have failed in the achievement of lawful results; it is safe to say that within five years each and every one of them would have attained to a state of indi- vidual Content and individual Comfort in material things. For the great Law of Compensation has just as many rewards for the courageous and the faithful as it has penalties for the weak and the selfish. It is not an exaggeration to say that the greater part of Self-Pity in the world has for its basis no loftier desire than that of material Greed. And the Self-Pity that is akin to Greed is the kind of self-commiseration we indulge when we are denied material things we are forced to see others enjoy. No more degrading emotion can rend the Soul than that character of Self-Pity which is at once the hanker- ings of Greed and the pangs of Envy. Over the Self-Pity that flows from defeated Ambi- tions and unsatisfied Vanities neither men nor "angels" can be expected to waste great S3rmpathy. For the mere 352 THE GREAT WORK craving to excel, in the ordinary activities and arts of the world, is not of itself a very exalted desire nor a very ennobling impulse. If, however, one were to desire "exaltation" only in accordance with the merit of his purpose, or his real capacities, or his worthy industry, and if his defeat were a matter of exterior circumstances, then would he be entitled to a just measure of sympathy. But even in this case Self-Pity would only weaken his real powers and chill fresh impulses and fresh endeavors for future success. For the Self-Pity that flows from loneliness, from lack of appreciation, from personal deformities, from unjust condemnation or from unrequited love, we should have a just measure of genuine sympathy. The impulses that lie back of these sorrows are natural. They have their rise in the higher nature of the individual and represent the loftier demands of the Soul. Such as these should not be condemned that they long for companionship, for appreciation, for personal attractiveness, for justice, nor for the happiness of an exclusive love relation. But their error lies in the weak surrender to these emotions and a surrender of self to the kind of sorrow that stands ■ in the pathway of fresh opportunities and happier future possibilities. In truth, there is no form of Self-Pity, nor is there any character of "cause" that can sanction or justify or sanctify that which weakens, defeats and destroys the Soul of man. All men and women desire to be loved, and it is the hope of this realization that inspires us all in the Strug- gle for Happiness both here and in the realms of spirit- ual life beyond. Many of us, as yet, are denied the love for which the Soul hungers and thirsts. As yet, we are unable to command it, to win it, to find it, or to realize it. PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 353 Because of this the Soul turns back upon itself in disap- pointment and the heart grows sick with "hope deferred." If the weakness of Self-Pity were ever justifiable surely it should be under circumstances of this character. Here, however, we are dealing with facts and prin- ciples of nature. We are dealing with them also on the basis of their relation to the subject of Independent Spiritual Unfoldment. In this relation the emotion of Self-Pity is destructive to him who harbors it. This is true regardless of the motive that inspires it. It is Psychological Consumption regardless of its inception or its cause. There is but one preventive, one remedy, one cure. That is Self-Control and a broadening of true sympathy for others than ourselves, who like ourselves have also been tried, troubled, mistreated and denied. When Self-Control reverses the current of Self-Pity and awakens in the Soul unselfish compassion for the sufferings of humanity, then has that Soul lifted itself from weakness to strength. Then has it abandoned the Destructive for the Constructive Principle of Nature in Individual Life. Greed. Any consideration of the subject of our "possessions" suggests a natural "companion piece" for Self-Pity. This we recognize through all its many disguises as Greed for Material Things. While the one might well be classed as an error of negation, the other is assuredly well defined as a crhne of aggression. Both, however, belong to the Destruc- tive Process and are fairly well balanced in their effects upon the individual man or woman who indulges them. Greed, like Self-Pity, grows out of a misunderstand- 354 THE GREAT WORK ing as to our "just deserts" under natural law, and a misconception of the real meaning of the term "possessions." Greed is the inordmate and insatiable thirst for mate- rial possessions regardless of the merit or the earning capacity of the greedy one. Self-Pity is weak. Greed is strong. While one laments its "poverty," the other goes forth into the world to wrest from nature or his fellow man that which his greed demands. Self-Pity weeps. Greed demands. Self-Pity is timid, introspective and inert. Greed is cunning, active and alert. Self-Pity is an emotion and an indulgence of the imagination. Greed is a passion and an over-stimulation of animal Selfishness. Self-Pity is Consumption. Greed is Psychological Ossification. For while the one softens and weakens and lets down the barriers to all deadly psychological microbes, the other so hardens and ossifies the best and tenderest impulses and emotions that the greedy Soul seems to drop even below the level of the animal and find his native element in the cold and hard and flinty rocks. To those who independently and at will are able to view the conditions of life beyond the incident we call phys- ical death, there are few sadder spectacles than that of the "earth-bound" Soul seeking to regain its lost physical "possessions." The miser whose physical life has been spent in the accumtilation of material wealth, finds noth- ing in spiritual life to attract him. His Soul hovers about the vaults of earth where his physical treasures lie buried. He cannot leave them. Day after day, month after month, and year after year he wanders amid the familiar scenes of his earth life with his Soul set PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 355 upon the task of regaining his lost possessions. But they forever elude him. They bind him, and yet he can- not reach them. He realizes that others must find them and use them and scatter them to the four winds. And when at last his treasure is discovered he protests in vain. No one can hear his cry of anguish. None will heed him. And when his treasures are scattered, the magnetic bond his greedy Soul m physical life estab- lished between him and them draws him after them, and he is torn by a thousand pangs in his effort to follow them and regain them. Specific instances are known wherein not only years but centuries have been spent in this hopeless struggle after material "Things" of the physical plane. There are thousands of men and women today who are unwittingly binding the chains of material slavery upon their Souls by their greed for and absorption in the purely material "Things" of earth. It may be the things that beautify and adorn the physical body, such as jewels and fine clothes; or it may be material wealth such as mortgages, stocks, bonds and currency, and the things which these will buy; such things for instance, as magnificent houses, splendid estates, fine horses and stately equipages. It matters not which it may be. If the soul finds its enjoyments in these, revels in them and lives in the selfish enjoyment of them, every such mate- rial "Thing" becomes an incumbrance of the Soul. It binds the Soul to the plane of earth after the death of the body. There it must suffer th£ pangs of privation, even the privation of these identical "Things" to which a life of selfishness has attached it, until it is able, one by one, to break the material bonds it has thus riveted upon it through Selfishness and Greed of material Things. One by one the Soul must be willing to part with all 3S6 THE GREAT WORK the material treasures of earth, before it is possible for it to rise above the shadow-land of earth and find enjoy- ments in the realms of Spiritual Life and Light. When the Intelligent Soul has slipped its physical bonds and put aside its earthly instrument, the physical body, its need of physical food, physical clothing and physical shelter no longer exists. And if the individual has lived his life rightly in relation to these things he will no longer care for them. He will lay them down with a realization that they have served their purpose and that thenceforth he enters upon a higher and a finer life in the midst of finer conditions where only finer instruments will answer his demands for expression. From the viev/point of spiritual life, the man or the woman whose earthly life is spent in the accumulation and selfish enjoyment of the material things of earth, is far more to be pitied than those who have lived this life in poverty and want, and who at death have nothing of material value to leave behind. More especially is this true where the poverty and want in this life are the result of unselfishness and the generous impulses of a noble Soul to share with others the blessings of life. These are they who in spirit life wear the crown of true royalty. Whatever of the things of this material plane of earth we gather about us beyond those which answer the needs of the physical body for life, comfort and protec- tion, represent wasted energy, loss of time and misdi- rected effort on our part. It is true, we may leave them to relatives and friends who may, or may not, appreciate them or rightly use them. But from the viewpoint of our own individual best good and our own most rapid spiritual and psychical development and progress, they represent less than noth- ing. They stand for a definite and specific loss. PSYCHOLOGICAL PHTHISIS 357 Let no one misunderstand the purpose and intent of all this. It is well understood that under economic and sociological conditions as they exist today in the great world of so-called "business," it is necessary for us to devote much more time, thought, care and individual effort to the purely material problem of life than would be necessary under a just and equitable system. It is also recognized as a fact, that every man and woman who assume the responsibility of bringing an infant Soul to earth thereby obligate themselves by the most exalted and profound principle of Individual Life and Personal Responsibility, to provide for its material necessities until it is able independently to relieve them from the obligation. The time will come in the history of the race, however, when a more advanced civilization than this will solve these material problems in a manner of which the selfish and greedy of earth today have little dreamed. The solution has already been wrought out by the Great School and when the time is right it will be given to the world through channels which will insure its recognition and adoption. With a natural adjustment of economic, sociologic and ethical relations, the opportunity will come to all who are ready and willing, to develop their spiritual and psychical powers equally with the physical. CHAPTER XXI. LIONS ON THE WAY. What What What What What What What What What What is What What What What What is What What is What What is What What is What What is What is What is Sin? Duty? Life? Mind? Love? Lust? Fear? Hope? Will? Tact? Envy? Faith? Truth? Greed ? Error ? Right? Anger ? Equity ? Belief? Reason ? Desire ? Vanity ? Wisdom ? Sorrow ? Justice ? 359 36o THE GREAT WORK What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What What is Charity? s Honesty? s Loyalty? !s Courage? is Impulse? IS Emotion? !s Instinct? s Courtesy? is Jealousy? is Sympathy? s Humility? Kindness ? is Judgment? Intuition ? s Happiness? is Dogmatism? is Conscience? Gentleness ? s Friendship? s Discretion? is Subjection? is Personality? Selfishness ? s Intelligence? Cheerfulness ? s Consideration? is Individuality? is Accountability? is Responsibility? is Moral Accountability? is Personal Responsibility? is the primary Purpose of the Sou'? These are some of the problems that are laid before LIONS ON THE WAY 361 every accepted student of the Great School in the course of his progress. It is not expected that he will be able to render an exact and perfect solution of each and all of them, in conformity with the wisdom of the Great School. But he is required to work out his own solution, from his own viewpoint of life, and in accordance with his own best intelligence. His answers to these questions and his exposition of the principles they embody constitute the index by which it is possible to determine his evolutionary status as an Individual Intelligence, mentally, morally, spiritually and psychically. It would be an exceedingly simple and easy matter for him to open his dictionary, turn to these various terms and there find definitions for each and all of them. That, however, would not help him. It would only confuse him. This fact will be apparent to those who have fol- lowed the development of the work to this point. For he will have observed that the definitions of this School do not conform to those of any other authority. This is due to the fact that the work of this School proceeds from the b&sis of exact science. Its viewpoint is there- fore that of a science with which the world in general is not familiar, as yet. An illustration will doubtless help the student to under- stand and appreciate the meaning and importance of all this. If he will compare the definition of "Morality," given in a preceding chapter, with that of any of the standard modern works on Lexicology, he will observe that there is a fundamental difference and that it is of vital importance to his understanding of the subject. The Morality that means "The established harmonic relation which man, as an Individual Intelligence, sus- tains to the Constructive Principle of Nature," is a 362 THE GREAT WORK vastly different thing from the Morality that means a "Doctrine," etc. The one proceeds from a basis of exact science, while the other is founded upon a dogma of mere faith or belief. The moral man, under the first concept, is he who conforms his life to a "Principle of Nature," while under the second it is he who conforms his life to certain "Articles of Faith, or Belief" which have been formu- lated by his fellow men, and which may or may not be in conformity with the "Principle of Nature" referred to. This illustration will enable the student to understand why it is that he is required to formulate his own solu- tion of each and every one of the many problems sub- mitted to him in the course of his education and work of demonstration. It will explain why he is specially cau- tioned not to depend upon books, or so-called "Authori- ties," or upon the work of others to guide him. It may also help him to understand why it is that each problem is a specific "Study of Self," and why it is that nowhere else is it possible for him to find the solution. Each Problem submitted to him is a veritable "Lion on the Way." He must grapple with it alone, and alone he must conquer it. By this method only is it possible for him to proceed. Nature has so laid out his work for him that the Personal Effort he puts forth in the subjugation and mastery of each "Lion" in its regular order, develops within him the intelligence and the skill and the power necessary to meet and conquer the next one he is to encounter on his way. Thus, every step he takes along the Path is one of development, 'unfoldment, growth, attainment, power, Self-Control, Mastery. CHAPTER XXII. THE SECOND GREAT MILE-POST. What is Personal Responsibility? The correct solution of this Problem constitutes the second Great Mile-Post in the journey of each and every student along the pathway of ethical unfoldment. If the specific and "Official Answer" of the Great School is not given herein, the preceding chapter will serve to explain the reasons for so significant an omis- sion. It is that the student may not be deprived of the benefit to which he is entitled and which he must inevitably receive as a result of the Personal Effort neces- sary to solve the problem and formulate its answer for himself. Fortunately, however, the problem is one which in- volves an entire philosophy of life. It may be consid- ered, analyzed and elucidated at great length without in the least relieving the student or the reader of the burden of its ultimate solution according to his own conception of it. And herein is one of the unique and at the same time interesting phases of the Great Work. It is an "indi- vidual" work. It is a work of individual development, individual unfoldment, individual attainment. It cannot be delegated. The individual who is to receive the bene- fits must do the work. He cannot furnish a "substitute," as men are sometimes permitted to do in times of war when they are drafted into service. Nature steps in with her prohibition and says : "There shall be no individual 363 364 THE GREAT WORK development save that which results from individual effort." We cannot overrule nature nor go back of her decrees. Those who read these pages, and whose minds have not been prejudiced through, nor saturated with, nor fettered by the current metaphysical misconceptions that cluster about the subject, are not in position to under- stand, appreciate, nor sympathize with the feeling of natural horror that sweeps through the Soul of the aver- age student as he comes, for the first time, face to face with the great and profound problem of Personal Responsibility. The question naturally arises in the mind of the trained thinker: "Why should the problem of his own Personal Responsibility, or the beautiful and beneficent principle involved therein, come to any honest Soul with a shock of horror?" There are reasons, however, which are entirely suf- ficient to account for such feeling on the part of those who have been trained in other schools of thought and life. For instance: Among the great body of humanity who are classed as "religious," and who accept the doc- trines and dogmas of their various Churches as the rule and guide of their lives, there are many who, well know- ing their "manifold sins and wickedness," have come to believe that through the potency of their Church, or the efficacy of their Creed, or the magical intervention of their priests and potentates, a way will be found whereby they shall be able to evade or avoid the natural conse- quences of their wrong-doing. Many of these are doubt- less honest in their convictions that the merit of their religion is mainly in the fact that it does thus enable them to evade and avoid their Personal Responsibility. SECOND GREAT MILE-POST 365 The following specific illustration may serve to em- phasize the truth and the significance of the foregoing statement : The familiar doctrine of the "Atonement," as this has come to be interpreted and taught by many of our modern students and professors of religion (who regard them- selves as followers of the Master, Jesus, and who for this reason call themselves "Christians"), leads directly and inevitably to the result just indicated. By such as these, indeed, the whole "Christian Scheme of Salvation" is looked upon as a carefully planned, deliberately exe- cuted and generously devised Scheme whereby the Great Creator of the Universe has made it possible for as many as accept the conditions therein specified, to escape the natural and otherwise inevitable consequences of their sins, and thus evade or avoid their Personal Responsi- bility. The story as it has come down to us, briefly told, is as follows : Man was originally created in the image of his Maker. He was made a siiJess and perfect being. He was placed in the Garden of Eden. He was given dominion over the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air. But he was tempted, and notwithstanding his original purity and perfection, he "fell" before the very first temptation offered him. He sinned. He thus fell into the ways of sin, and from that time to the present he has been and still remains the same sinful and sinning creature, in the midst of this world of sin and sorrow and death. And all this came to pass notwithstanding the fact that he was originally created a sinless and perfect being. His omniscient Creator was compelled to observe that by reason of his fall into sin man had violated his Per- sonal Responsibility. He thereby forfeited his immor- 366 THE GREAT WORK tality, his right to "Eternal Life." His omniscient Creator further observed that unless something were done to mitigate, modify or counteract this deplorable result of the original Law of Life, man would be forever "lost," in which event his creation would have been a failure. It therefore became necessary to revise the original scheme, or at least to devise some plan whereby fallen man might be "saved" from the natural conse- quences of his sin and folly. Accordingly, Jesus Christ, by many regarded as "The only begotten Son of God," took upon himself voluntarily to come to earth, here to minister, to suffer and to die an ignominious death, as a voluntary personal "sacrifice" for the sins of the world, in order that man might be restored to his lost estate and "have eternal life." This supplemental plan of the Creator, as it is under- stood and believed by those who call themselves Chris- tians, constitutes what, to them, is the "Plan of Redemp- tion." It is the "Great Propitiation," the "Vicarious Atonement." From the theological point of view it was "The sacrifice of Christ as a substitute for the penalties incurred by sinners." And in this is embodied what is known today as "The Christian Plan of Salvation." The specific point under consideration is brought out more clearly by the following statement from one of the acknowledged authorities on Christian Theology: "Redemption, in the Christian sense of the term, is deliverance, through the blood of Christ, from the power and consequences of sin." (Syst. Theol. C. Hodge; Vol. 2, Ch. 8, P. 245.) The profoundly interesting and significant thing to be noted and remembered in all this is the fact that the Christian doctrine and dogma of Salvation, as it finds interpretation and expression today, unqualifiedly and SECOND GREAT MILE-POST 367 unequivocally recognizes and is based upon the funda- mental fact that according .to the original plan of creation man was brought into this mundane existence charged with the burden of Personal Responsibility. He was a creature of the great Law of Life. He was bound by that Law. But he was also given the power of Inde- pendent Choice. He could obey the law or he could transgress it. This was a matter of his Independent Choice. If he obeyed the Law he would remain a "sin- less and perfect being." If he transgressed it he thereby committed a "Sin" and at once became a "sinful creature." The responsibility was thus placed upon him. It was a Personal Responsibility. He elected to "transgress the Law." In so doing he violated his Personal Responsi- bility under the Law. It was this "transgression of the Law" (i John, iii, 4), this violation of his Personal Responsibility under the Law, that constituted his first "sin." Thus it will be seen that it was solely because of his Personal Responsibility that it ever became possible for him to commit the first "sin" and thus "fall" from his original state of "purity and perfection." If the reader is curious to know how it is possible for a "perfect being" to commit a sin, or to "fall" in the manner hereinbefore indicated, he is asked kindly to remember that the School of Natural Science has never alleged nor even intimated that he could. If he would unravel so profound a mystery or obtain an ex- planation of so interesting and so strange a paradox, he is respectfully referred to those who are responsible for the promulgation of such a "doctrine," or the inven- tion of such an idea. The School of Natural Science does not know very 368 THE GREAT WORK much about ]ust how man originally came into exist- ence. It does not claim to know definitely whether he is the product of "Special Creation," or the result of the "Law of Evolution." It therefore does not know nor claim to know just what he was like in his incep- tion. It does not know whether he was a "sinless and perfect" being or whether he was then what he seems to be now, an intelligent entity in a state of evolutionary unfoldment, with unlimited possibilities ahead of him. It does not know, therefore, whether he "fell into sin," or whether he simply has not yet evolved out of it. Nor is it deeply concerned about these ultimate and abstruse problems. It would be gratified, of course, to know the truth about them if the truth were available. But until that time shall come it is content to give its time, its thought and its effort to the more immediate and vital problem of enlarging the boundaries of human knowl- edge and thus helping man to make the best of his pres- ent opportunities, and inspiring him to greater effort in his evolutionary struggle toward Liberty and Light and toward the goal of individual Happiness. Its purpose in calling specific attention to the modern doctrine of "Salvation through Christ" is to emphasize the important fact that therein the law of Personal Re- sponsibility is recognized and acknowledged as a part of God's original working plan. It is also an interest- ing observation, in this connection, that the beneficent religions and moral philosophies of all times and of all peoples have recognized the same great fundamental principle of life. In other words, whatever Personal Responsibility may be in essence, it is something which all men agree upon as one of the profoundly important facts of nature. All men agree that, whatever it may be in essence, it binds SECOND GREAT MILE-POST 369 humanity because it is a part of man's estate. It binds him because he is a Man, and he is a Man because it binds him. The two are inseparable. Man would be no longer Man if the element of Personal Responsibility were taken out of his being. This makes clear one fundamental fact of profound im- portance, viz.: that Man is bound by the Law of Per- sonal Responsibility because of his essential constitu- tion. But it is his constitution that makes him Man. By changing his essential constitution, if such thing were possible, it might be that he could be taken out from under the operation of the Law. But that which would change his essential constitution would at the same time transform him into something else than Man. For a Man without the essential constitution of a Man is no longer a Man. It would therefore seem clear that it is something in Man's inherent nature that makes him Per- sonally Responsible, that he was Personally Responsible from the beginning of his "manhood," and that he will so remain while he continues to be Man. As stated in the preceding volume of this Series, there is that within Man himself upon which Personal Respon- sibility depends. It has been the work of the best minds of all ages to determine with scientific accuracy exactly what it is within the essential nature of Man upon which his Personal Responsibility and his Moral Accountability depend. And it has been determined that these are di- rectly related to and dependent upon those attributes of human nature which we designate as "Soul Attributes". These are the attributes which are distinctively "Human" in their essential nature, and distinguish man from all the rounds of animal life and intelligence below the human. The accompanying diagram will help to fix the subject more definitely in mind. It will also answer a number 370 THE GREAT WORK of other interesting and important questions that are likely to arise in this connection. Special attention is here called to it with the added suggestion that it be made the subject of the most thoughtful and critical study. This brings us to the consideration of a theme that cannot fail to be of the deepest and most profound inter- est to every intelligent student and thinker who has ever given the subject his consideration. This should be true regardless of the School of thought in which he has received his education, or of the religion with which he may be identified, or of the particular church to which he may now belong. It is this: the history of all dogmatic and "revealed" religions is, in truth, but a history of man's endeavors to discover or invent some plan, or scheme, or method whereby he may shirk his Personal Responsibility, or shift it to other shoulders than his own, or in some manner escape THE natural consequences OF ITS CONSCIOUS AND IN- TENTIONAL evasion or violation. It is possible that this thought may be new to some of those who shall read these pages. If so, it doubtless will come to them, as it has to others, with an indescribable shock, a feeling of profound regret that such a thought, even if true, should ever find utterance. There are those, no doubt, whose natural reluctance to accept such an in- terpretation of religious history will stimulate them to active researches in the hope of disproving it. Such as these will find themselves not only astonished but humili- ated to find how conclusively the proposition is demon- strated by the evidences that are accessible. There is, perhaps, no religious organization or move- ment in existence, at the present time, wherein this humil- SECOND GREAT MILE-POST 371 A EESPONSIBLB, LIVING BEING "I M OS OS i D3 OQ .Th ^ o CO alas 1^ EH OQ OS ;z; 09 P O M OS 12; o o EH e OQ I Ph OS 'O ^ bo ,55 g M I ■§ p p M fl - '■■ »* ncz NO 1 11 SPIRITUAL BODY D I (ISPIRITUAL MAGNETISM I) 3 yPHYSlCAL MAGNETISM D 4 i l PHYSICAL BODY D FIG 5 NOl f "SPIRITUAL BODY ^ ( SPIRITUAL MAGNETISM 3 ( I PHYSICAL MAGNETISR 4 II PHYSICAL BODY I) F1C6 4 L no 3 NOl SPIHITUAI. iBinaHEnKLSMiMiJ NOl 2 3 4 SPIRITUAL BODY SPIRITUAL MAGNETISM PHYSICAL MAGNETISM PHYSICAL BODY FIG 4 GamiSHEEHJ^^l 4 (I PHYStCJAL ggpY" FIG 7 are equally attracted to each other; and No. 2 and No. 3 are likewise attracted to each other. Bring them to- gether in that order, and it will be found that the four bars are at once bound together as if by a common bond of sympathy. Now let us suppose that, by a process under your own PASSING OF A MASTER 445 control, you can break or destroy the attraction between No. 2 and No. 3, what will be the physical result? Sim- ply this, that the couplet i and 2 will separate from the couplet 3 and 4. (Fig. 2.) Now let us suppose that you restore them to their original condition, and then break the attraction between No. 3 and No. 4. What is the result? In this event No. 4 falls away from the other three, and Nos. i, 2 and 3 remain bound together in the common bond. (Fig. 3.) Now let us assume that No. i represents the Spiritual Body of a living, physically embodied man. No. 2 rep- resents the Spiritual Magnetism. No. 3 represents the Physical Magnetism, and No. 4 represents the Physical Body of man. (Fig. 4.) Let us suppose again that by some process of nature the bond of attraction between Nos. 2 and 3 is broken. What happens? The Spiritual Body with its Spiritual Magnetism separates from the Physical Body and its Physical Magnetism. (Fig. 5.) Now in this instance, let us also suppose the Spiritual Body is still inhabited by the Soul. What then? In this event we have the Soul with its Spiritual Body and its Spiritual Magnet- ism, (Spiritual Magnetic Body), liberated entirely from the Physical Body and its Physical Magnetism, (Phys- ical Magnetic Body). In this case the Soul has parted from all that binds it to earth's conditions, and it rises at once into the realm of pure Spiritual Conditions unencumbered. Now let us suppose that the four elements are once more united in physical life, and that by some natural process the attraction is broken between Nos. 3 and 4. What then? The Physical Body alone falls away from the combination, and leaves the other three elements bound together. (Fig. 6.) 446 THE GREAT WORK Assuming that the Soul still inhabits the Spiritual Body after this separation, we then have the Soul with its Spiritual Body and Spiritual Magnetism still bound to and encumbered by its original Physical Magnetism, (the Physical Magnetic Body). Thus encumbered, the Soul is unable to rise to the level of the pure Spiritual Condition, or Plane. As a result, it remains in the realm of the Magnetic Field until such time as it is able to cast off its Physical Mag- netic Body. Its Physical Magnetic Body gives to the combination a "Gravity" which binds it closely to the plane of earth. While in this condition, the Soul remains in what has been designated as an "earth-bound" con- dition. While it remains in this condition it is known as an "earth-bound Soul." In course of time, however, if it continues its evolu- tionary struggle it will be able to cast off its Physical Magnetic Body, and we then have the analogy for Fig. 7. In this case the Physical Magnetic Body, being de- tached from all its moorings, floats in the Magnetic Field until it is finally dissolved by the processes of nature and is resolved back into the elements from which it was originally formed. By some writers this Physical Magnetic Body, after it has been thus cast off, is known as the "Astral Shell." It may be taken possession of by spiritual intelligences other than its original owner and preserved intact for a considerable length of time. It may be and often is employed as a sort of mask by unscrupulous intelligences on the spiritual plane, for the purpose of impersonating its original owner to subjective psychics who are unable to control the processes by which they are impressed with subjective clairvoyance. PASSING OF A MASTER 447 We are now in position to understand the following explanations : The infant that passes the crisis of physical death has not yet attained to a degree of intellectual develop- ment that fixes upon it the burden of Moral Accounta- bility and Personal Responsibility. The four material elements of its being above referred to have not yet been impressed with its own individuality in such manner as to interfere with the relations which nature has estab- lished between them. In other words, the infant, for lack of time in which to acquire wisdom, is ignorant of the entire problem of individual life. It has not, in fact, developed sufficient Individual Intelligence and Independence to oppose its individual Will to the evolutionary process of nature. As a result, up to the time of its death it has done noth- ing to interfere with a normal development, as far as it has gone. Under these conditions nothing has transpired, up to the time of its death, to fix upon it any special incum- brance to bind it to the plane of physical nature. Except in so far as the influence of heredity may have fastened upon it a burden, it is free from the bonds of earth the moment it is entirely freed from the physical body. As a natural result, a very large percentage of those who die in infancy pass almost instantly through the Magnetic Field and into the realm of the First Spiritual Sphere, or Plane. With such as these it is a compara- tively-simple matter for those who receive them into that life to liberate them entirely from all the magnetic and gravitative attractions of earth. They are not only ignorant of the law but also inno- cent of any intent or effort to violate its spirit and purpose. 448 THE GREAT WORK It is their utter innocence >^of wrong doing or evil intent that breaks the magnetu^ >honds of physical nature and enables them to ris€-^€pidlV into the pure atmos- phere of Spiritual Life.'^ -^ / \ It can now be understood "andaimly appreciated how vitally important it is for us all to "become as little chil- dren" (in the purity of our motives and in the inno- cency of any intent to offend against the Law of Right- eousness that makes for Spiritual Life), if we would "inherit the kingdom." But the infant is not only innocent, but likewise igno- rant. It enters that life as it leaves this, with the unde- veloped intelligence and powers of infancy. Though sinless and pure, it is nevertheless as helpless there as it was here. It must therefore be cared for in that life as it is in this until such a time as it is able to care for itself. This necessity of nature is met in a most beautiful and touching manner. There are those upon the spiritual side of life whose attention is given to the reception, care and education of children who pass from this life before they have attained to a development that would enable them to care for themselves. These "Angels of Mercy" belong to what is known in that life as "The Liberal League of Spiritual Helpers" whose sphere of service is on "The Border Land" be- tween the two worlds. Something of its labors, its accomplishments and its rewards will be narrated in another volume of this Series. But what of those who have grown to manhood and womanhood before they are overtaken by the crisis of physical death ? What of the evil doers, the vicious, the degenerate, the drunkard, the hypocrite, the idiot, the insane, the murderer, the suicide, the religious fanatic, PASSING OF A MASTER 449 the lascivious, the knave, the intelligent rascal, the miser, the kind, the generous, the moral, the upright, the true, the wise, the Master? What does the transition mean to each of these? In what essential respects does it differ? To which of these is the transit fraught with deepest suffering? To which does it bring the greatest joy? Which finds him- self most heavily encumbered and bound to earthly con- ditions? Which is able to rise to the highest altitude of spiritual life? For lack of space many of these most interesting and searching questions must be reserved for consideration in another volume of this Series. The limitations of this volume will permit but a brief consideration of one or two which would seem to bring the present theme to its legitimate and natural close. The ignorant, the vicious, the immoral and the crim- inal approach the crisis of physical death with a con- sciousness of their utter inability to cope with the proc- ess which it involves. They realize that they are helpless in its grasp. Within their inmost Souls there is no sense of victory or triumph. A lifetime of viciousness, immorality or crime fastens upon the individual the encumbrance of the Physical Magnetic Body. The degree of his indulgence of his baser nature seems to measure the natural gravity of that body. This, in turn, determines the depth to which he will be carried downward into the darkness of the Magnetic Field. The converse of this principle is equally true. The extent to which the individual has exercised his power of Self-Control during physical life determines the extent to which he is able to overcome the gravitative influences 450 THE GREAT WORK which tend to drag the Soul downward toward the phys- ical plane and into the darkness. One point of vital importance may be of special inter- est and value in this connection. It is this : There is an element in the impulse of self-destruction which leads to suicide, that would seem to be the most difficult of all the gravitative influences of that life to overcome. The impulse of the suicide to destroy himself seems to set in motion forces and activities of a destruc- tive nature within the Soul itself, within the very essence of individual being. These continue to operate long after the death of the physical body. As a result, the individual sinks helplessly into the condition of dark- ness and despair. To check this destructive process often requires years of the most patient and persistent effort on the part of those upon the spiritual planes whose efforts are devoted to the relief of the suffering and the helpless. The same thing, in less marked degree, obtains in case of those who pass into that life as the result of destructive habits acquired in this life. The drunkard, the opium eater, the moral pervert and the "drug fiend" are of this type. All of these processes involve self- destruction as surely as suicide, but with less of the deliberate intent than that which actuates the suicide. But what of the moral and upright man who has done his best to live a clean and righteous life? What does the transition mean to him? He may have no definite knowledge of what is in- volved in the process of physical dissolution. He may not know that Morality is the foundation of Construc- tive Spirituality. He may not even have a definite belief or conviction that there is a life beyond the grave. He may be wholly in doubt as to the great problem of PASSING OF A MASTER 451 Immortality. It matters not. For if he has lived his life free from Envy, Jealousy, Fear, Anger, Lust and other destructive and degrading appetites, passions, emotions and desires; if he has lived a clean and moral life; if he has dealt justly with his fellow man and kindly toward his dumb brothers and servants of the ani- mal kingdom ; if he has lived as nearly as possible to the standard of his own highest ideals, and by the light of his best knowledge, he has lived a life of cooperation with the Constructive Principle of Nature in his own Life and there is nothing that can deprive him of the benefits and rewards of such a life. Whether he has known it or not, he has been acquiring a status of Con- structive Spirituality all the while. The natural results are inevitable. Nature does not deny him the legitimate fruits of his Personal Effort in line with the Construc- tive Principle. The transition of such a man is truly a triumph and a victory over the forces and conditions of nature which tend to the enslavement and oppression of the Soul after physical death. Even though for the time being it may be an unconscious triumph, nevertheless nature is con- sistent in that she has made her rewards as automatic and irrevocable as her penalties. The result of this Spirituality unconsciously acquired during physical life is that at death both the Physical Body and its Physical Magnetism fall away together leaving the Soul free to rise at once into the realm of Spiritual Nature. The transition of an individual from the physical or- ganism and from physical nature is one which may be observed with perfect distinctness by the Independent Psychic. Its scientific aspects are exceedingly interest- ing and fascinating. 452 \THE GREAT WORK The separation of the two bodies — except in cases of accident catJsing instant ' death, — is always gradual, often requiring several minutes Ifrom the time actual dis- solution begins. The separation of the two >6odies occurs in a most interesting manner. The Spiritual Body begins slowly to ascend lengthwise of-'fhe ^^^ysical Body. The move- matt L.is alwaY.§ ..ifqmfeet. to head. As a result, the head and «io2I3ers'^~or~lTie Spiritual Body slowly begin to "eme/ge above the head and shoulders of the Physical Bofl^~^ At first the movement is very slow, but the furtner the Spiritual emerges above the Physical Body greater is its freedom from the physical and the lor^ rapid is the rate of movement. Its a result of this remarkable provision of nature the Sp/iritual Body would appear to "crawl out of" the 'hysical; and to those who are able to make the transit ^consciously the sensation of separation exactly coincides with the phenomenon, in that there is the distinct sensa- tion of leaving the physical body through the head. There is also the sensation of movement upward (or outward) in a line with the axis of the body. But what of the Master? What does the transition called "Death" mean to him? In direct ratio to his added knowledge of natural law and of his power over nature's finer forces the inci- dent of physical death assumes a less ominous aspect. For in the completion of the last Section of the Tech- nical Work he has accomplished the greatest task known to man in the physical body and has earned for himself the Master's Degree. That which from the beginning he accepted as his working hypothesis he has now demon- strated by the Personal Experience. That is to say, he has learned: PASSING OF A MASTER 453 1. That it is within his power voluntarily to. withdraw from the physical body, travel in the Spiritual Realms and there test the height and the condition to which he is able to ascend at any given time by force of his own Will and developed powers — and return again to the physical body without invoking physical death. 2. He has learned that there are many distinct "Spheres" or "Planes" of life upon this particular planet, of which the physical is the first. 3. He has learned, therefore, that in passing from this life into the spiritual he is but entering into other and larger fields of evolutionary opportunities and pos- sibilities. 4. He learns that the First Spiritual Sphere is but the beginning of the Higher Life. 5. He learns that it is possible for one yet in the physical body to prepare himself for immediate entry into spiritual conditions and realms that are far above and beyond the First Spiritual Sphere. And what does the transition called physical "Death" mean to such a man, one who has already proved the continuity of life and has traveled at will in the realms beyond ? When the Master comes to the final transition called "Death," he himself has no doubts as to the issue. He knows that this is but another step in the Evolution of the Individual. He knows that death does not end his career. He knows that his personal identity will not be lost, nor even clouded for an hour. He knows that in death there is no sting. When he approaches the final hour for parting with the physical it is to him but the hour of his liberation and his reward. From his earthly environment he passes with all his 454 THE GREAT WORK faculties and powers intact. He is conscious of what is taking place about him and within him. He knows his destination, for he has been over the pathway and back again many times. He is Master of the "Messenger of Death." For him there are no "Terrors at the Threshold" to be encountered, for he has passed them all long ago. He knows that his work and his place are awaiting, and that he will be able to take up the one and to fill the other. Every step of the way from the plane of earth, through all the phases and mysteries of the Magnetic Field, into and through the First, Second, Third and Fourth Spir- itual Zones, beyond these still upward and onward to the highest point of his individual attainment, is already familiar through his previous experiences. Within the past nine years there passed through the Gates of Physical Death into the splendors of the Higher Life one of the greatest of these earthly Masters. He was not known in this country, though he had been in our midst, studied our people and laid the foundation of this modem presentation of the Ancient Science. He was an Oriental, who was born a Prince of India and who was indeed of royal spirit as well as of name and estate. When, however, his love of knowledge and his love of Truth brought him to the door of the Great School, he distributed his princely revenues and divided his estates among the poor of his own country. This he did that he might the better meet his great opportu- nity and from the common level of poverty receive his instruction, make the demonstration and serve man- kind. Great Intelligence, Great Heart, Great Soul, whose wisdom and whose service have carried him far beyond PASSING OF A MASTER 455 the shining walls of the lower Spiritual Planes and given him place and authority among the Powers of Light in distant Realms! By his knowledge of the laws of nature he had length- ened the span of his physical life far beyond the "allotted time of man." This he did, not that he loved life in the body, but that he elected to remain until he had finished certain tasks set for himself by himself which he regarded as part of his Personal Responsibility to mankind. When he realized that his labors had been accom- plished and that he had "finished his work," he ceased to employ unusual means of prolonging his life. Then having returned again to the seclusion of the Central Temple, here among his Brothers in the Great Work he made the transition, leaving to them the simple cere- mony of scattering his ashes to the winds. And this man whose marvelous learning and marvel- ous powers and whose charm of personality would have won for him the admiration of the world, was content to live his long and arduous life in complete obscurity that he might better do his work and better serve his fellow men. It was from this Great Soul that the writer, almost a quarter of a century ago, received his first instruction in the School of Natural Science. To his great wisdom and patience and goodness the writer is indebted for the definite personal direction which has enabled him to verify, through a Personal Experience, the Truths which are herein set forth. When such as these lay down the burden of physical life, when the transition is made in full knowledge of the life beyond, when it is made in the clear conscious- 456 THE GREAT WORK ness of duties well performed, then it is that the liber- ated Soul — divested of its heavier mantle of materiality — rises into such conditions of Individual Freedom, Power and Happiness and into such regions of trans- cendent light and loveliness as "it hath not entered into the heart of man" to realize or understand. When such as these pass through the "Shadow" of death they find themselves, not only in the place and in the condition of personal compensations, but they also find themselves in such fellowship with the Great and Good gone before as dims the memory of their earthly loneliness. They also face such new and marvelous opportunities for further self-development and further service to mankind that all past labors, deprivations, dis- ciplines and martyrdoms appear as a most trivial price of such reward. These are they whose wisdom is so profound and whose purity so child-like that they not only seek coun- sel of each other but reverently acknowledge the yet higher Powers and still seek the aid and the blessing of Him whom we know as the Supreme Ruler of this planet, and of whom we devoutly speak as "The Father." At each Annual Convocation of the Great School, met for consideration of its Work for Mankind, that mar- velous Assembly, one in Spirit and one in Purpose, rev- erently repeat, with bowed heads, this simple Prayer, thereby invoking the continued approval of Him whose Glorious Presence illumines all Spheres below, and by whose Light all men of earth are free to travel upward toward the summit of all Planetary Wisdom, and Power, and Glory and Happiness : ^^vcat father, to whom Twe are all aa but child- ren, friends of the friend- less and Helpers of those vpho need; Be our friends when other friends have failed us; be our helpers in the hour of our ex- tremity. In so far as may be for our mutual good, be with us this day and through all the days of this our earthly life. Lead us by the hand of Love, point us to the path- way of Duty. Bear with us when we stumble over the pathway which leads onward and upward into the Light. Hnd we shall hope one day to stand with "^ou, in the midst of the Radiant Splendor of eternal ^rutb. Hnd we shall be ever grate- ful. 8e mote it be. AUTHOR'S POSTSCRIPT When Vol. II of this series was published it was the hope and expectation of the author that within a year from that time the manuscript of this present volume would be in the hands of the publishers. Much to his regret the period has lengthened to almost four years. This long delay has been due to the fact that the author is bound by many of the duties and obligations of this material life, and is without revenue, income or estates suflScient to enable him to commajid the time and freedom for a work of this nature. The manuscript of this volume has been written under great difSculties, and during only such odd hours as he could command between the many and increasing demands upon his time and strength. When the work was originally outlined it was the intention to carry the theme much farther than it has been possible to do within the limitations of a single volume. This fact was forced upon his attention only when he discovered that suf&cient manu- script had been completed for a volume of over 400 pages. It then become necessary to revise the original plan and divide the material into two volumes. By, reason of this change from the original plan the present volume is necessarily incomplete in both scope and treatment. As a result, it is anticipated that many questions will arise in the minds of his readers concerning the conditions of the Spiritual World, which are not therein fully answered. In anticipation of these possible demands upon his further time and energies, he desires to announce in this connection, that as soon as he shall be able to command the time from more pressing demands, it is his intention to take up the theme where this present volume leaves it, and prepare another volume on the subject of "WHAT SCIENCE KNOWS OF THE SPIEITUAL WOULD." Until the publication of the forthcoming volume is announced he craves the indulgence of his students, friends and increasing circle of sympathetic readers. With grateful appreciation of the generous treatment accorded his previous work, he esteems it both a privilege and a pleasure to lemain. The Atjihob. jFor S^xo^vt^^i\}t people The Great School or The School of Natural Science IS the modern name for that venerable school of Wisdom whose records are the most ancient at this time known to man. For many thousands of years this School has influenced the civilization and work of every great nation of earth and with unceasing labors its members have toiled for the advancement of the human race from ignorance to knowledge, from darkness to light. Twenty-eight years ago this Great School established its personal work in this country and since that time thousands of Progressive People have become readers and students of the Science and the Philosophy which has now been presented in three published volumes or text books of the School. Each book is complete in itself. These text-books are known as the Harmonic Series. tS^te harmonic Series; Harmonics of Evolution. By Florence Huntley. The main theme is the Natural Law of Marriage. It is the Philosophy of Individual Life based upon Natural Science as taught by the Modern Masters of the Law. A book for men and women who are studying the great personal problems of Love, Marriage and Personal Re- sponsibility. A logical and scientific treatise of the three propositions: 1. There is no death. 2. Life after physical death is a fact scientifically demonstrable. 3. Life here and hereafter has a common development and a common purpose. Cloth bound, price $2.00 net. The Great Psychological Crime. By TK. A book for all students of Psychic Phenomena, but more especially for those who are investigating Hypnotism and Spiritual- ism. It covers the most mysterious and fascinating phenomena of human life. Cloth bound, $2.00 net. The Great Work. By TK. A book for every man and woman who is trying to find a real, satisfactory working Philosophy of Life. Explains the origin and purpose of the Great School and outlines the character ■ of Work done by its students. Answers the question, How may one prove that death does not end all? Written by an American Representative and Master of the Ancient School, who is not, nor has he ever been, a Hypnotist, a Medium or a Professional Mystic. "The Great Work" is written in beautiful, clear and entertaining style. It is filled with information which no man can afford to ignore in his endeavors to make the most of his life, here as well as hereafter. "The Great Work" is a logical presentation of the Philosophy, the Science and the Religion of the Great School, in popular form. It will interest you if you have the slightest desire to solve the great problems of life. Cloth bound, price $2.00 net. Half leather Library Edition, $2.75 net. _ Full limp morocco, Oxford style, in dark blue, green, wine or black, $3.50 net. Supplemental Harmonic Sertess Offered as corroborative evidence in the lines of supplementary research and not as official expositions of the work of the School. The Genius of Freemasonry. By J. D. Buck, M.D. A book which every wide-awake Mason should read. Equally as interesting to any American citizen who be- lieves that politics and religion should be forever separated. Price in cloth binding, $1.00 net. The Crucifixion, by an Eyewitness. The story of the Crucifixion of Jesus as told by an actual eye-witness of that event. From an old manuscript found in Alexandria. Bound in cloth, price $1.00 net. ,Constructive PsycnoiOgy. By J. D. Buck, M. D. Uridertakes to make exceedingly plain those few simple principles by which the individual may adjust himself by personal effort and establish harmonious relations to God, to Nature and to his fellow men. Bound in blue cloth, $1 J)0 net. The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ. By Nicholas Notovitch. Compiled from a manuscript found by the Russian Traveler in a monastery in Thibet. Corroborates the claims of the Great School that Jesus was in India during the years unaccounted for in the New Testament. Bound in cloth, price $1.00 net. Mystic Masonry. By J. D. Buck, M. D. This is the most popular work ever written on the subject of Masonic Symbolism. Outlines the Philosophy of Masonry and explains many of the ancient symbols. Of equal interest to the non-Masonic reader. Bound in cloth, price $1.50 net. The Reality of Matter. To be published soon. tE^fie Complemental ^erieis The Bible in India. By Louis Jacolliot. This book traces back to India all the Religions, Philosophies and Sciences of the world and shows that in Ancient India we have the source of civilization. A very valuable cor- roborative work. Price, cloth bound, $2.00. A Study of Man. By J. D. Buck, M. D. A study of the physical constitution of man and the philosophy of health. Nature's finer forces in human life and action. Cloth bound, price $1.00 net. ?|armonit jFiction Series! The Dream Child. By Florence Huntley. A new edition of this beautiful occult romance of two worlds. Contains much philosophy and should be read by every student of the occult. A new chapter and some illus- trations have been added. Also a handsome cover design. Cloth bound, gold stamp, illustrated, $1.00 net. The Gay Gnani of Gingalee. By Florence Huntley. A laugh producing extravaganza and occult "take-off" which carries with it a lesson for every thoughtful student of the occult. Cloth bound, $1.00 net. harmonic Poo&let ^ertesi Who Answers Prayer. A brochure on Prayer. Answers the questions: What is prayer? For what should we pray? To whom should we pray? Who answers prayer? A text book of the Great School on this subject. Cloth bound, blue and gold, SO cents net. The Lost Word Found. By J. D. Buck, M. D. Who has found the "lost word" and wants every true Mason to know how and where to do the same thing. Bound in purple and gold, illustrated, 50 cents net. Any of these books will be shipped, charges prepaid, to your address, upon receipt of price. Remit in any con- venient way; bank draft, postofRce or express money order preferred. Indo-American Book Company 218 North Kedzie Avenue CHICAGO Hiit anb Action Widespread and ever extending interest in the Great School and its work made necessary the publication of a magazine devoted to its interests; and thus we established LIFE AND ACTION — the of f icial organ of the Great Work in America, as an aid and inspiration to the Students and Friends in their endeavors to apply the Science and the Philosophy of the School in their daily lives and conduct . No more fitting title could be found than LIFE AND ACTION for such a magazine, and if you have the slightest interest in the Great Work you will want to be on the subscription list. Since September, 1909, LIFE AND ACTION has been published bi-monthly with 56 or more pages of reading matter each issue. Twelve numbers will be sent to any address for $1.00 All back numbers may be had in bound volumes at $1.00 per volume. Volume I is now on sale and volume II will be ready in April, 1911. THE INDO-AMERICAN MAGAZINE COMPANY 222 North Kedzie Avenue, Chicago.