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THE WAY TO GODHOOD
Second text book on the new life that shall lead man from
weakness, disease, and death, to freedom from these things,
and to strength and power before unknown.
t Companion book to "The Way to Life and Immortality."
^ t GODor i/>v
%tmylt £fl Mummaii
By R. Swinburne Clymer
Copyrighted 1914 By R. Swinburne Clymer.
All Rights Reserved.
Printed by
The Philqsophical Publishing Co.,
Allentown, Pa.
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©CIA397965
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INTRODUCTORY
Humanity has reached a crisis. That this is true is
admitted by all scholars, even by the most conservative
We have reached a point that demands a change. Either
there must be a step forward or there will be a retrench-
ment from the plane we now occupy.
That it is possible for us to go backward, to retro-
grade, is a thing too appalling even to consider, especial-
ly when we bear in mind that of the vast multitudes of
human beings there are comparatively few who truly live,
that comparatively few are masters of their own actions,
thinking for themselves, fearing neither orthodox opinions
cf whatsoever sort nor legislative enactments which might
interfere with freedom.
Indeed few men are free. But it mu,st be admitted
that there are some who are bound by no creed, no law,
no philosophy, except the Great Law of Good. These
men would rather do good than to do right. It is possible
in some instances for one to do right without doing good,
especially in a world and among people where injustice
reigns supreme. Men who follow the law of Goodness
are masters. It is no small matter to stand alone, and,
under all circumstances, to obey the Law of Goodness.
The men of freedom, the men who obey the dictates
of goodness, are indeed few in comparison with the vast
multitudes who are slaves, slaves in a thousand different
ways and to a thousand different things. They are slaves
to their own desires and appetites. They desire and se-
cure that which will do them no good, that which works
6 THE WAV TO GODHO'OD
harm and weakness. They have an appetite for those
things which bring neither health nor strength. They are
slaves to deceptive, negative, destructive teachings, which
hold them in bondage and cause them even to fear to
think for themselves. They are slaves to beliefs which
are founded on superstition, and which give them no free-
dom of thought. To believe in anything — a creed, a phil-
osophy, or a law — that permits not free thought, is slav-
ery of the worst kind.
But slavery does not end there. Allegiance to any
creed, to any philosophy, to any science, so-called, which
does not permit freedom of thought also brings with it
slavery to personalities, to those who live only for the
purpose of exploitation. Being slaves to negative thoughts,
desires, appetites, they are an easy prey to the few men
and women who live upon the efforts of others. These
exploiters of others are men and women of little souls.
They are masterful in certain directions. But they are
not bound to any moral code ; and the Law is not for them.
They live as the vampires of the forest live, not by useful
labor, but upon the blood, upon the vitality, upon the flesh,
of their victims. This is the state of mankind at the
present time, at this crisis. Humanity is at the turning
of the ways. And, if retrogression should result, both the
exploiters and the exploited will go down.
But it is not the fiat of the ages that we should turn
back. The New Commandment is given — FORWARD,
EVER FORWARD, to greater things, to freedom of be-
ing, to MANHOOD, the fir f st indication of Godhood, or
supermanhood.
The multitudes have been taught simply to believe.
They have not been taught to live, to be, to gain health and
strength and power. Through their beliefs, they have
been made slaves, slaves not only to others, but, first of all,
to themselves, to their own thoughts, desires and appetites.
THE WAY TO" GODHOOD 7
Consequently, they are easily enslaved by others in various
ways. It is because of ignorance that men are not free.
Give man true knowledge, and he will not remain the serf.
Give him understanding, and the bondage that holds him
will be forced to give way.
It \s for this reason that the New Commandment is
given to men — that they may gain freedom — freedom from
the narrowness of self, first of ^all ; freedom from passion;
freedom form fear, freedom from weakness and disease.
Greatest of all, freedom from all those things which are
brought upon man through belief in negative doctrines,
dcctrines of weakness, doctrines that inculcate "worm-of-
the-dust" principles. There can be no strength where
mind is bound by doctrines of this type.
The New Doctrine teachers individual responsibility.
It inspires men to be up and doing, to think for them-
selves and to bear the consequences of their thoughts,
and of their acts, without flinching. The man who enters
business for himself does so with the intention of trying
il, to ,succeed or to fail, and to bear the consequences of
the test. As man enters business with no absolute guaran-
tee of success, so must all men enter life, think for them-
selves, act according to their instincts and best judgment.
Yet must they always remember the one great Law : to
think nothing, do nothing, desire nothing, that may bring
borm or sorrow, pain or misery, either to themselves or
to another. This is the great commandment. It includes
all other commandments that men have ever known.
It is, in no wi,se, the policy of this book to condemn
either the poor man or the man of impaired health, or the
man of wretchedness and misery. It is the mission of the
New Commandment to condemn conditions and environ-
ments, negative philosophies and doctrines, which enslave
mankind. It is the mission of the New Commandment
to point out the way to freedom. Without apology, how-
8 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
ever, the New Commandment condemns the actions of
those who exploit the innocent and the weak and helpless.
Nevertheless, it does not indiscriminately condemn wealth
and all those who have acquired wealth. For it is to be
recognized that wealth may be gained honestly. Wealth
that is not gained at the expense of others or through
exploitation of the weak and the innocent, is not to be con-
demned.
Nor is it the mission of the New Commandment to
condemn all religion, all philosophies, all science. Far
from it, for many of them are teaching constructive doc-
trines, and are in no wise responsible for the negative doc-
trines that are reducing the human family to slavery of
cne kind or another. It i,s the mission of the New Com-
mandment to teach a doctrine that will, if lived, lead man
to health, to strength, to possessions that are necessary
to happiness, and finally to Immortality and to Sonship
with the Father of all.
The New Commandment recognizes that something
more than belief and faith is necessary to the true life. It
recognizes that faith alone, faith without works, is dead.
Paith that does not show its sincerity in works is a false
anchorage, which seemingly gives security, a promise of
power, but which in reality is a bondage from which few
are able to free themselves. The New Commandment de-
mands of mankind more faith, a faith great enough, strong
enough, to cause him to live and to think according to the
faith that he professes.
The New Commandment teaches against mental slav-
ery, against the doctrine of suffering, against the desira-
bility of suffering. It teaches that it is not necessary for
man to seek or invite sorrow and suffering in order to
reach the goal of Immortality, or Peace Eternal. The
New Commandment teaches that man should seek peace
pf mind, happiness, and innocent pleasures. When ( suf-
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 9
fering does come, we should accept it as men, not in blind
faith nor in the necessity of it, but with open mind, with
a searching mind. He should seek the cause of suffer-
ing, of misery, and of gloom. Then he should seek to re-
move the cause, since there is no just reason why man
should suffer except disobedience of natural and divine
law. The New Commandment teaches that pleasures are
commendable, and that man should seek for them. If
normal and natural, they are not destructive, but are high-
ly constructive and elevating.
Man should go to the child for examples of normal,
natural living. The child is natural. It is free from de-
pressing, destructive beliefs and ideas. It accepts pleas-
ure, as they come. It manifests honest, sincere enjoyment
of pleasure. E the human tree, to be blown here and there, to be
64 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
used as a slave, to have every sense perverted and chang-
ed into weak, Nirvana-bound inertness, which lives and
dies, and shall be no more.
The new age teaches manhood, in the true sense of
the word. It teaches man to think, to desire, to plan; and,
above all, it teaches him to execute his plans, to do, even
if, in the doing, he must go through hells of fire in order
to accomplish. For it is by doing, by suffering, if neces-
sary, because of the determination to accomplish, that
man becomes more of man, and through manhood even-
tually reaches the consciousness of Godhood.
The doctrine of the new age has no compliment for
the coward, the negative being, who fears to do anything
lest he may do wrong. It is signally true that those who
fear to do are the very ones who are continually doing
wrong, doing that which tends toward self-destructiveness ;
since to do nothing because of fear is a greater evil
than to make a mistake while trying to do right. He who
continually fears that, through desiring some particular
object or through desiring to accomplish some particular
thing, he may be doing that which is wrong or detrimen-
tal to himself, is, through that very attitude of mind, reap-
ing harm more than he would by striving earnestly to
realize the desire. To such an one, life is like the ser-
pent in the grass, ever ready to lead him astray, ever
ready to lead him to that which he fears is the hell of
eternity. Such an one forgets that only he reaches the
state of nothingness who hesitates and fears to undertake
the responsibilities of manhood. On the other hand, to
him who accepts bravely the responsibilities of manhood,
life is the serpent of wisdom, which directs him into
pleasant paths.
Moreover, negative thoughts gradually change the
polarity of the brain until at last the negative being can
think no other thoughts than those of the pessimistic,
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 65
type. Eventually, he arrives at the stage in which he sees
the morbid and the destructive as right, while perversity
of thought, desire, and act become to him as virtues to
be followed. This is the delusion of a mind that has
fallen into the negative state.
Hope is not vanity and a snare. Hope is glorious and
sublime. Hope is not merely the anticipation of a happy
state in the future, but also the expectancy of success in
the present life. For the future in both this and the next
plane is founded upon the success of the present. He
who does not endeavor to live a natural, normal, health-
ful life here and now, he who does not achieve in the
present sphere, will not be given the opportunity to
achieve in another world. For the earth plane is the
testing school of God wherein souls are tried and either
found strong and willing to do and to dare or else found
wanting and cast back into the ocean of universal sub-
stance, there to lose individuality and consciousness.
He cannot hope to meet with success, in whose breast
is found the fear to do, where desire and hope should be.
It is the desire and the hope to be or to do that stimu-
lates man to act. If the desire is strong enough, not even
a doubt in regard to accomplishment presents itself to
his mind.
In every heart, unless totally depraved, there is a
spark, which, when aroused to life and activity, is a mighty
power for good. There are, in fact, two diverse desires —
the one is a desire for accomplishment, the other is a fear
that it may not be right to accomplish. The latter has
not always been a part of man; but, gradually, through
the ages, by reason of the negative doctrines, it has found
lodgment in his nature. But let it be a cause of encour-
agement that the spark of good and noble desire is native
to the soil of the human heart, and that it may be nurtured
into a mighty Flame of pure unselfishness, which shines
as a light in darkness.
66 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
The negativeness found today in many, often called
pessimism, is nothing more nor less than the germ of old
age and decay in the heart of youth. It is only natural
that the aged man should not be concerned about accom-
plishment and should look forward to peace and rest. He
has passed through the age of desire and hope, into, and
through, the age of work and accomplishment; conse-
quently, he is not at the stage of life in which fulfillment
is looked for. But to find the germ of negativeness in
the young man as it naturally appears in the aged man,
is to be deplored.
Negativeness is the natural and inevitable result of
erroneous teachings, false philosophy, and religion — teach-
ings which make of the human heart a coward, rather than
the strong character one should be. The responsibility
for negativeness in man's nature is to be laid at the door
of those philosophies which teach him that it is necessary
to kill out all earthly desires, in order to attain the state
of bliss in a world to come. This abnormal teaching, this
perverted idea, has gradually sown the seed of negative-
ness and cowardice, and has made of man almost univer-
sally a weak, negative, slave-like creature.
The negative doctrine is the doctrine of the dark-
ness of death, the doctrine of the night of life, when an
age, once young and strong and pure, gradually came to
the end of time, and when the youth of time had gradu-
ally passed away, and with its passing left the thoughts
and desires of old age.
But the age of negativeness is passing away, and
the age of manhood and positiveness is being ushered in.
Not all of that which is dead has been buried and for-
gotten, yet much of it has been relegated to the past as
cost-off and outgrown garments. The youth of the new
age is growing up, becoming strong, making use of the
new doctrine, obeying the New Command, and positiveness.
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 67
and manhood are becoming the rule rather than the ex-
ception.
Under the power of positive thought and positive
life, society will soon be marked by two classes of indi-
viduals. One clas,s will continue to follow the old belief
that it is wrong to assert manhood and to strengthen nor-
mal desires, and will become a slave to that which is nega-
tive, perverted, dark, and lifeless, thus becoming slaves
to stronger wills. The other class, having learned that
only manhood and self-assertion pays, will give heed to
the New Commandment, will strengthen desire and con-
centration, will follow the star of hope and go forward
in the work.
In the pessimist, the natural elements are perverted.
The perversions may be due to several cause,s. In some,
perversity of nature may be attributed to hereditary con-
ditions. In others, it may be ascribed to erroneous teach-
ings. In still others, environment may be responsible for
abnormal tendencies. While, in many, a combination of
causes may account for perverse and negative conditions.
Even so, there is within each individual a voice or
an instinct that pictures the active life as the only truly
desirable life to live. A mighty effort is required to
free the self from the bonds of slavery, especially the
slavery of thought. Nevertheless, if man is willing to
pay the price, he can free him ( self from all objectionable
fetters. It is the work and the message and the duty of
the New Commandment to show even the most negative
and degraded man how to assert the power inherent with-
in himself, so as to gain freedom from every type of
undesirable bondage.
The one great, throbbing, seemingly vital factor to
be overcome in the mind and the heart of man is fear.
It is fear in ^onie form or another that holds the multi-
tudes in bondage, preventing them from making an effort,
stopping them on the very threshold of manhood.
68 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
Fear comes in various guises. A very common guise
is the belief that certain desires are wrong: that desire
for normal conquest, even conquest that is not at the ex-
pense of others, is wrong; that desire for earthly love
causes one to be denied heavenly love; that earthly pos-
sessions forfeit heavenly treasures; that effort in a world-
ly way precludes heavenly reward. Such ideas as these,
abnormal and tantalizing fears, are the means of prevent-
ing man from making the start in the Higher Life, pre-
venting him from throwing off the shackles of serfdom
and putting on the mantle of manhood.
There is but one way to overcome — that is, to be a
Man. Make up your mind that you care nothing whether
it will mean destruction of soul and body or salvation of
both, but that, come what will, you will make the start,
that you will do things, that you will desire, hope, and
accomplish, come what will. W,hen the mind once be-
comes charged with a determination such as this, when
xr:an begins to work in keeping with his determination,
then, things will be accomplished. When all that is nega-
tive and destructive in nature finds that it cannot enslave
the mind, then, that which was formerly a negative, inert
nature becomes a source of power; for Nature must first
be completely overcome, before she will become the mis-
tress of man and do his bidding.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Suppress a natural desire, and it becomes a vice.
The normal youth, as well as the normal person of
middle age, is full of the de,sires that naturally form a
part of the life of man. These desires are manifold, and
embrace almost every department of nature. Some of
these have to do with the natural instincts, while others
concern the possessions that are necessary in order to
make life worth living. Each man is a law unto him-
self, and the desires of each individual differ to a greater
or lesser extent.
Now it is not possible for all of the desires of man to
be followed; for it is often the case that very different
or even conflicting desires throb in the human heart at
the same time. In this case, it becomes a matter of choice
and selection rather than repression. To suppress a de-
sire merely means that another desire takes its place. Nor-
mal desire is to be compared to a spring or stream of
water. If the channel of the spring or stream is unim-
peded, the water remains clear and pure. But, if the
channel is obstructed, the water becomes stagnant and
poisonous. Just so with human desires. Suppress them
and they become stagnant. A suppressed desire becomes
stagnant desire; and a stagnant desire breaks out in a
vice. It is for this reason, above all else, that negative
doctrines are doing an untold harm. All doctrines,
whether religious or philosophical, .-which teach that
earthly desires are destructive, and that one can gain
eternal life only through suppression of them, are doing
an immense amount of harm. Those who accept this doc-
70 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
trine, first of all become inert, desiring nothing; then this
very inertness breaks out in a vice that poisons everything
noble in the human being. From it results the lowest
forms of life — it may be even the beggar that walks the
streets, who cares for nothing, loves nothing, looks for-
ward to nothing, except a place to sleep and sufficient
to satisfy immediate hunger. As to his morality, men
who have studied the question know that nowhere on
earth is to be found deeper or more deplorable vice than
among this class of people.
The New Commandment teaches that the. religious
and philosophical beggar is not a whit superior to the beg-
gar of the streets. The one walks the earth, caring for
nothing except to eat and sleep. The other teaches that
the way to eternal happiness is by the way of no-desire,
by the way of caring for nothing, seeking not earthly
happiness or joy, because it involves care and responsi-
bility. In fact, the beggar of the street is preferable be-
cause he seldom imparts to others his destructive ideas.
The way of strength is the way of responsibility.
The way of responsibility is nature's way of making use
of the manifold desires that spring up in the human breast
— a way that is noble and divine, a way that will lead to
success, to happiness, to manhood. This path to power
is not strewn with human wrecks, nor is it marked by
those who have become lepers of morality through sup-
pression of desire. This path is for the youth and the
man of mature age who has selected one supreme de-
sire from the manifold desires that have had power over
him, and who is willing to bend all his energies toward
the realization of this one chosen ambition.
To select one supreme desire as the predominating
power in one's life, does not mean the suppression of form-
er or lesser desires. On the contrary, the lesser desires
find satisfaction in the accomplishment of the greater. All
THE WAY TO GODHO'OD 71
lesser desires are used, transmuted, changed, in the task
of realizing the greater. This is natural, normal develop-
ment. It develops true manhood through the royal road
of work, of (accomplishment, of responsibility; and it
makes truly a man and not a weakling. Of a truth, there
are many paths that lead to accomplishment, but the path
of effort, of responsibility, of service, is the only safe
path. The one who is morally weak will find it a hard
road to travel. It will not allow him the ease and the in-
ertness of a life of idleness and indecision. But, when
one is well along the path, his former weaknesses will
have pas,sed away; and he will enter the fight with zeal.
Nature will cause him to feel that he is in the right, that
he is using creative energy, which must eventually bring
success if he continues faithful to the right.
The path of energy and positiveness is a difficult path
also for the physically weak. Theirs is not the strength
to cope with conditions and to show forth good results.
But if one is faithful, every trial, every test, every failure,
will give greater strength, until, in good time, he will dis-
cover that progress is being made, and that strength and
power are hi,s. A new trial after a failure is easier than
was the former trial; and, like others, he realizes that
success and happiness are for those who overcome, and
not for those who take all things as they are, without an
effort to remove the cause of failures and reverse^. In
strength and victory, he is far superior to those who, from
fear of failure, make no attempt whatever.
He who tries to suppress the desires natural to man,
gradually comes to a stage in which he i,s weary of all
things. The earth is an undesirable place to live. Even
the thought of heaven has lost its charm. The suppres-
sion of normal desires, the suppression of desires for
earthly pleasure and enjoyment, has killed out its counter-
part — the desire for bliss, for happiness, in a future state.
72 THE WAY TO GODHO'OD
Suppression of desire is a deadly poison. It poisons
not only the body, but the heart and the soul as well. It
quenches the fires of the soul. It destroys the creative
energy of the mind. It kills manhood, and there is little
left of the human being except the body and a diseased
condition. True it is that, where there are desires for
things of the earth, and where there is joy, there will also
be the companion of joy — that is, sorrow. True it is that
he who desires and loves and knows keen enjoyment will
feel sorrow keenly. True it is that, for those who know,
and who have acute sensibilities, there is more >sorrow
than joy. All this is freely admitted. But who is so
weak as to forfeit success for fear of the possibility of
a lo,ss? What normal and healthy person would refuse
to love and be loved, simply because of the possibility of
losing love?
Indeed, there are some who will shun a joy because
a sorrow may follow. But the true man, the strong man,
the man that would know Immortality, will accept the
blessings of today and will not borrow trouble for to-
morrow. He has known joy, and i,s willing to know joy,
realizing full well that sorrow, even if it does come, can-
not last forever, and that the joy he has once known may
be known again.
Moreover, sorrow, like its twin, joy, is for a pur-
pose. The purpose is not only to strengthen, but to give
experience and knowledge. He who shrinks from the at-
tainment of experience and knowledge is not a complete
man. The normal man invites conditions which test one's
strength. He is not willing to pass anything by, which
might be to his advantage. He does not hide himself
away in seclusion, in order to avoid a disagreeable experi-
ence. On the contrary, he marks a path to be trod, and
follows it to the end, no matter what may befall him. For
life is an experience, a school; and an attempt to evade,
,THE WAY TO GODHOOD 73
lo pass something, is to be forced to return again and
again, until the character is well rounded and the destiny
of existence i k s fulfilled.
The man who is normally and naturally born is full
of desires; and, for every desire, there is potential pow-
er. The desire is proof of a power to accomplish accord-
ing to the desire. If man does not accomplish, it i,s be-
cause he has abused the talents with which God has en-
dowed him. To the man, normally born, with a fair de-
gree of health, and a natural desire to have and to do,
are entrusted certain talents. If he is truly a man, and
if his mind is not poisoned with false and destructive
doctrines, he will make use of the talents given him by
bringing his desires into manifestation by good works. As
his desires are satisfied and realized and worked out, de-
sires for greater achievement take their place. These also
he executes, and become,s an honor to God and to him-
self and to his fellow men. He gains in manhood and
makes progress toward Godhood.
On the other hand, the man born into the world with'
normal physical powers and normal desires, who does not
bring his desires and potentialities into manifestation
either because of indifference or because of belief in a
negative philosophy, is like the one in the Biblical para-
ble who buried his talent for fear of losing it, and then
charged the master with being "a hard master." Such
an one is not a true man, manhood is not part of him.
He is a weakling and a coward, and not to be classed as
one of the children of the Father. He has made the will
of the Father null and void. He has robbed himself of
his own lawful inheritance.
True it is that the master is a hard master to those
who disobey His divine law,s. His laws are so clear and
plain that no one can say he did not understand. The
first requisite of life is health and strength. To gain this
74 THE WAY, TO GODHOOD
is man's first duty. A reasonable degree of health and
strength is within the reach of all. It is only required to
follow the clear markings of Nature. Her laws are plain,
simple, and easily followed. Their name is "Simplicity
in all things."
As man becomes master, as he approaches manhood's
true estate, he nears the danger line. It is a fact well
known to all who have travelled the path of constructive-
ness, that a sense of self-sufficiency and of individuality
is attended by a danger peculiar to itself. It may incline
one to separate himself from human help and from hu-
man need. One may feel that he is no longer in need
of human association and human assistance. This is a
great mistake. No one can stand utterly alone. This is
the stage in development that demands careful watchful-
ness. Even though it might be possible for one to live
comparatively to himself and satisfy hi-5 own needs, yet the
Great Law is that as one has attained the higher conscious-
ness, so much the more should he remain among mankind,
openly and freely helping them and pointing out the way
to them. Though it may not be necessary for him to be
iti active association with the multitudes, it is, neverthe-
less, necessary for him to form a bond of unity and to
work with others who are of like thought and like inter-
ests. When individualists form a bond and become united,
the greatest power for good results.
To accept individuality and power as an indication
that we should free ourselves from others, and should
separate ourselves from those whose inclinations are for-
eign to ours, thus hiding the light that should shine, would
be to defeat the very end and aim of mastership. In a
short time, thi^s very isolation and separateness would re-
sult in destroying the individuality. Any power, energy,
or potency that is allowed to lie dormant through non-use
will become weak because it is not put to its test. As the
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 75
animal that hibernates, living on its own fat and its own
strength, by the time ,spring returns, is weak and lean, so
does the mystic become emaciated and lifeless, who uses
not his powers to the benefit of humanity.
A power, an energy, or a faculty, once gained, must
be constantly put to the test in order to keep up its own
strength. The Divine Law is so absolute that, when this
is done, additional strength is given to it. But, if it is
allowed to lie dormant even for a short time, its strength
and resistent powers are reduced. If it remains dormant
for too long a time, all its potency, energy, and power are
lost, and it becomes again as it was in the beginning. The
life of the ordinary human being illustrates this principle.
Coming into the world without power and without strength,
he grows into strength, power, and beauty; but, through
ignorance of the Law, when reaching the height of power,
he begins to v/eaken and decline, until in the end he is
no stronger than at the time of birth.
This process of accumulating, using, and declining
of strength and power, men generally have considered as
natural, ,simply because of the false philosophy, the race
belief, that it is a natural, normal process. At the same
time, nevertheless, we have been taught that man is a
piototype of God, having His power in a potential state,
though in a less degree. We are forgetful of the fact
that He in whose image man is created is today the same
as He was centuries ago, and that He has, in no wise,
declined in power or creative ability. We are forgetful
of the fact that it is inconsistent for man, made in the
likeness of the Divine, to pas,s through the stage of de-
cline — all because of false, destructive, negative philos-
ophy and teachings, an utterly false race belief in the
necessity of weakness, decline, and death.
76 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
CHAPTER EIGHT
Servitude Follows Weakness.
When the individual loses his manhood, at that mo-
ment he descends to a state of bondage, selling himself,
though possibly unconsciously, into serfdom.
In like manner, the moment a nation lqses its sense
of manhood and strength, at that moment does it begin
to decay and to decline; and, at once, other nations be-
gin to rule it, to hold sway over it, and gradually to sub-
jugate it. That this is so, take, for example, India, with
its vast millions of people, many times more inhabitants
than has the far-away nation that rules it.
Manhood, a conscious recognition of the power that
one inherently possesses, is the only safeguard to liberty.
It is the only possession that gives a man freedom — free-
dom not only from the tyranny of another, but freedom
from destructive vices, freedom from sickness, freedom
from pitiful bondage to negative thoughts and moods.
Say what we will, the strong ever rule the weak. A
negative goodness i,s no protection whatever. The man
that yields unresistingly to his own weakness, to the en-
treaties of others, and to untoward circumstances lacks
manhood, and is far from the freedom that make,s one
a man in the true sense of the word.
He who has conserved his strength, who has not al-
followed false ideas to turn his natural desires into unnat-
ural channels, who holds to a philosophy or a religion
that is strong, virile, and full of love, but, withal, full of
power and a sense of right — he is the man that is well-
nigh invincible. Just as it is with the individual, so is it
with the nation,
78 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
It is manhood of this type that the New Command-
ment teaches — manhood that results from a system of nat-
ural and rational living, which frees the body from weak-
ness and disease, which strengthens and brightens the
mind, which furnishes a natural religion, a religion that
has for its theme the soul, the Divine Spark within, pro-
totype of the Father, capable of being brought into con-
scious individuality and into a potency that is Godlike
and all powerful. A system of natural living, three-fold
in its application, including mind, body, and soul, will
make of man a true Man, will give him the strength and
the power and the goodness that enable him to resist
all undesirable forces, be what they may, which would
bind him to serfdom and cause him to do what he does
not want to do or which would take from him something
be truly loves.
It is men of this type — men who follow a system
of rational living, men who give heed to the New Com-
mandment — that will gradually free the world of it,s
weaknesses, crimes, vices, and slavery. Weakness, crime,
vice, and slavery are the result of destructive doctrines,
doctrines that teach beggarism, a negative goodness, and
the stagnation of desires and forces natural to man. As
a result of destructive teachings, man no longer knows
what is good and pure, and no longer cares whether men
live or die, ,so long as he has reason to expect a heaven
cf bliss in the Hereafter.
As a result of such teachings, man is indifferent to
everything except the one anticipation of bliss in the Here-
after, as a reward for denying himself physical pleasures
and enjoyments in the here and now. He cherishes this
anticipation, notwithstanding the fact that jhe has put
forth no effort whatever to build a spiritual body, which
will enable him to enjoy bliss in the Beyond.
This has been the history of nations: whenever a na-
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 79
tion ha,s given up positive goodness, that is, belief in the
necessity of strong, virile manhood, and the necessity of
bringing into perfection the powers of the physical being,
as well as the soul, belief in the necessity of developing
and unfolding the constructive and creative powers of his
own nature, and belief in a virile religion — then that na-
tion has begun to decline and decay.
Here, again, we have no better example than India,
with its teeming millions; for it is in India, above all
other countries, that we find negative goodness. In the
main, India is a nation that holds to negative Yogism,
which is a system of negative beliefs, negative goodness,
and negative individualism. Religion of this type consid-
ers it a glorious thing for a man to deny all natural de-
sires. This type of religion maintains that the chief end
of man is to allow every natural desire and impulse to
stagnate, and that desire for earthly possession^, earthly
joy, earthly love, is a mortal sin, which denies the soul
admittance into the realms of bliss. It may even go to
the extreme of teaching that to sit in one posture until
the body becomes stiff, to repeat certain prayers, to beg
for a living, having neither houses nor lands nor place
to lay the head, is the divine life.
It may be freely admitted that this class of religionists
are not guilty of pronounced sins of commission. In
their acts, in their conduct, in their life, may be manifest
1:0 grievous sin or evil. But theirs is constantly the ,sin
of omission. Theirs is the sin of negativeness. Theirs
is the sin of inactivity, of inertness, of weakness. They
are guilty of the sin of non-effort to develop and to use
the divine power,s entrusted to them; consequently,
through non-use, these powers wither and die, losing the
possibility of becoming the instruments of conscious in-
dividuality. They perform no useful labor, thereby
Jbreaking the first a&d greatest command pf God—which is,
8 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
that man, being born in the image of the Creator, ,should
be like Him. The Creator is truly and indisputably a
God of activity, a Being of creative skill and power. In
this respect in particular, man should be like his Creator —
ever active, progressive, and alert.
Moreover, through this negative life, they crush out
all strength and virility, that which is the glory of the
true man. Through the weakness thus induced they either
ignore or wilfully transgress the laws of nature, and
eventually become slaves not only to themselves and their
own false conception of life, but to others as well. For,
in every land and in every age and in every clime, the
stronger rules the weaker.
Of ah nations, those of northern climates are the
strongest. With few exceptions, the people of the north
have believed in a God of activity, a God that takes de-
light in accomplishments, in new creations, in evolutions
and developments and growth. Innately they feel that
strength comes to man by doing that which falls to his
lot to do.
Belief that earthly desires are wrong, belief in the
subjection of the body — that these beliefs are necessary
in order to make the soul fit for entrance into the kingdom
of heaven, is the direct cause of weakness; and weak-
ness is ever the cau^e of serfdom. He who is weak be-
comes the slave of weakness, a slave to his own wrong
conception of life, first of all, then, a slave to others. A
wrong conception of life is the cause of disease. They
who believe that it is necessary for the body to suffer and
to be in misery in order that the soul may be glorified,
will naturally make no effort to strengthen the body; for,
to do so would be sin. But physical weakness is not the
end. It is rather the beginning of decline. In the be-
ginning, the progenitors may be merely physically weak.
Physical weakness, however, spreads an.4 makes rapid in-
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 81
road,s through the entire being of succeeding generations,
until, in time, the people has become a nation of weak-
lings — weaklings in body, in mind, and in soul.
The inactive, effortless life causes the physical frame
to weaken and to become disease-racked. This state grad-
ually brings on mental weakness and disorders. Thus,
the mind loses its accuracy in viewing things. Conditions
of life are seen from a wrong angle and in an untrue per-
spective. That which, to the normal, healthy mind, is
holy and worthy becomes to the morbid mind unholy and
altogether undesirable, something, indeed, to be shunned.
To a mind thus warped and distorted, every manly sport,
everything in life that would help to build up the body, be-
comes a sin, something to be guarded against, to be con-
demned, possibly to be legislated against, until, in the end,
there is only weakness and imbecility left. Such a state
of weakness and negativeness will gradually unfit man for
all that makes life worth the living. Such men become
unfit for business. Even if they enter the legitimate marts
of trade, they are dull and slow-witted, and are left far
behind by their more active competitors.
The result is easily foreseen. Not being able to ac-
cummulate the necessities of life, they are unable to live
respectably. Then, the morbid mind begins to ferment
its deadly poisons. The mind so disordered through un-
natural living and unnatural thinking is unable to deter-
mine the cause of its difficulties and to place the blame
and the responsibility where they belong. Such a mind
accuses others of unjust dealings and all other sins of
which the human heart is capable. Such a mind blames
others and places upon other shoulders the responsibility
that properly belongs upon its own. The acceptance of a
natural religion, a natural philosophy of life, a rational
system of constructive living, would reveal to such a mind
the cause of its difficulties and would enable it to remove
82 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
the cause and to plant in its place the cause of better con-
ditions.
It must be granted, on the other hand, that exploita-
tion of the weak is by far too nearly universal. This is
freely admitted. But the fact remains that no man need
continue a weakling, that all men can gain a reasonable
degree of physical strength and mental vigor, and there-
by be able to cope with others, with those who would
despoil them. All may gain sufficient strength and self-
reliance to prevent others from despoiling him and his.
The world is sadly in need of men — men free from
weakness, free from slavery to their own unnatural be-
liefs, and free from worship at the shrine of their own
unnatural and destructive law. Sad, indeed, to think
that the masses are in bondage to themselves and there-
fore to others !
The man that is clean and pure physically, mentally,
and spiritually will have the advantage every time over
the man that is physically and mentally and spiritually
unclean and impure. The man who is truly man, physi-
cally, mentally, and spiritually, can be the slave of no one,
not even of the most corrupt politician; for, just as the
beast in the jungle knows when it meets a master, so the
most degraded, though seemingly possessed of unlimited
power, recognizes the superiority of him who manifests
true manhood and true strength. In proportion as men
recognize these facts and begin to live in harmony with
them, those who now take advantage of the weak will be
forced to give way and to relinquish their hold upon them.
Then will be a brighter day.
The greatest degradation that a nation can know is
when the men of that nation have sunk so low, through
unnatural living and abnormal thinking, that they allow
the few to deal unjustly with their women and children in
whatever way they wish, Is there a lower stage to which
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 83
a nation can fall? Can there be anything more degrading
than that the innocent should be exploited, injured, worked
to death, starved to death, given no opportunity whatever
for development either mental or physical?
Men are to be held accountable for their weakness be-
cause they have the opportunity to develop their powers,
to strengthen their weak points, to live a natural life, and
thus to become strong, virile, and free. But women and
children are dependent on men for their protection, and
where there is no manhood, then is there is no protection.
Where there is no manhood, there is no conscience to call
a halt; and the few in power without any moral sense
whatever will drive the innocent to the farthest limit of
work and torture.
And, in this instance again, India may be cited as an
example — India, with its; negative philosophy, with its
negative teachings, that normal manhood, normal desires,
desires for earthly happiness and joy, are destructive to
the (Soul and will deny it entrance into the realms of bliss.
Nowhere in all the world are the women and the children
reduced to such a state of degradation as in far India
with its once glorious, beautiful, and sublime philosophy.
The more of an imbecile a man becomes, the more
ready is he to decry all that is manly. The more a slave
to his own weakness he becomes, the more is he ready to
blame others with his condition. The working man who
is not earning a respectable 'living for his family is ready
to decry those who give him employment. It is very
probable that his employers do not treat him justly. This
may be readily admitted. Nevertheless, it must be ad-
mitted, also, that this same man is unwilling to study and
to apply himself and to put forth untiring effort to fit
himself for better conditions. He \s not willing to live a
normal, natural life, in order to gain physical health and
strength and the ability to think consecutively and con*
84 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
structively. He puts forth little effort to become so strong
that he need not be at the beck and call of the shrewd
and wiley. He does not truly seek freedom for himself
and for those he lovers. He lives only to denounce and
to be exploited.
Let man begin to live the natural, normal life. Let
him give up those things which are unnatural, abnormal,
and weakening. Let him take up the constructive life.
Let him cultivate his mind and mental powers. Even
though he has but a few minutes each day to devote to
self-improvement, things will soon change, if he will only
make the best possible u,se of these precious moments.
The man who does this will soon be able to think and to
act for himself. He will act as he thinks in spite of un-
favorable circumstances. Such a man will soon be able
by his own manliness to prevent unjust dealings on the
part of others.
Let man seek his God. To do this i t s the eternal quest
of life. Yet let it be remembered that the quest for God
and the spiritual life is not the whole, but only the half,
of the true life. The other half is his duty to humanity
iij general and to himself, in his threefold nature, body,
mind, and soul. Let him free himself, first of all, from
physical weakness and from physical defects; for, just as
long as there are physical abnormalities, so long will there
be mental deficiencies. So long as there are physical and
mental abnormalities and indiscretions, the soul cannot
reach perfection.
The tree on which the rose grows must be of good
Stock. Otherwise, \the jose cannot (be iperject. More~
over, unless the sun shines upon the tree and the buds,
the rose cannot be perfect. The shadowy grow, not beau-
tiful flowers, but poisonous fungi.
In like manner, if the body of man is not brought to
a state of strength, the soul, which is the flower thereof.
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 85
cannot be perfect. The sunshine necessary to bring the
blqssom to perfection is the joy of life, the healthy de-
sire for happiness, and love for one's fellow men.
The New Commandment, "Be a man and thou mayst
be a god," is a religion of Manhood, of Godhood, of Free-
dom — freedom from every form and description of
slavery because it is freedom from every form and de-
scription of weakness.
8S THE WAY TO GODHOOB
CHAPTER NINE
Natural Instincts Are the Promptings of Nature — the
Handmaid of God, and the Mother of Goodness —
and Are, Therefore, Good.
Natural instincts are given man for a noble purpose.
In the normal man of a fair degree of health, natural in-
stincts are the promptings of Mother Nature, telling him
what to do and urging him to do it.
In the human heart, there are two sets of emotions.
One set is the natural instincts, which have to do with the
body and the physical being, its welfare and happiness.
The other i,s from the Divine Being within the physical.
This emotion is made known through the Voice of Con-
science, or Intuition.
In the normal man, the physical part is co-equal with
the soulual part of hi,s nature. Neither one is greater
than the other. If there is a preponderance of one over
the other, the life of that man is, to that extent, abnormal
and unbalanced, and is in need of a readjustment that
will restore equilibrium.
The Voice of the physical being is natural instinct.
The Voice of the soul is Conscience, or Intuition. The
New Commandment, which admonishes the cultivation of
manhood in order that Godhood may be realized, places
equal stress on the importance of understanding and giv-
ing heed to each voice.
Those philosophies which teach that Nature herself
is the antagonist of God, and that to follow Nature is to
reap condemnation, also teach that natural instincts are
evil and will lead to destruction of soul and to the for-
88 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
feiture of a place in the heaven of peace. This is only
to be expected. The latter is the logical conclusion of
the former principle. If it be true that Nature is antag-
onistic to goodness, then it follows as an inevitable result
that man's natural instincts are misleading. The New
Commandment, however, with its emphasis upon man-
hood, virility, and activity, takes exception to the first
premise, and distinctly teaches that Nature, the Handmaid
of God, is good; and that man's natural instincts are in-
herently good. True, his instincts and impulses may be-
come perverted, as, indeed, any good may be turned into
wrong channels and thus become other than good. The
doctrine that Nature is antagonistic to God and to good-
ness is part and parcel of an unnatural, negative, destruc-
tive philosophy. It has no place in the religion and the
philosophy of him who is normal and well balanced.
Possibly the whole misconception has come about
gradually through a misunderstanding of what is ac-
tually wrong and what actually constitutes ,sin. Time was
when the falling in love of a young man with a fair maid-
en, if not agreeable to the parents of one or the other,
was labelled witchcraft. The fact that a normal, vigorous,
strong young man should become infatuated with the smile
and the charms of a maiden, contrary to the parents'
wishes, could be explained in no other way than that
she was the messenger of the evil one, a witch, and that
the boy innocently but unfortunately became the victim
of her bewitching power. Strange idea this ! So it seems
to us now. Strange indeed, that any such interpretation
could ever have been placed upon the normal, natural
event of loving and being loved. Yet it is a simple item
of history, that many have met a horrible death because
they dared to follow the laws of God and of Nature and
to cherish in the heart the most holy of all pa,ssions.
This one illustration serves as a sample of the many
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 89
misconceptions of right and wrong prevalent among men.
The discarded belief in witchcraft and the pitiful re-
strain, exacted upon the joyous spontaneity of childhood
are relics of the negative teachings of a past age. None
the less woeful and none the less disastrous, however,
are the negative doctrines of the present age and the
grievous misconceptions of right and wrong that have
grown out of them.
Fundamental among these negative teachings is the
erroneous principle that Nature and God are antagonis-
tic terms and that natural instincts in man are antago-
nistic to the spiritual instincts of his nature. This prin-
ciple inevitably leads to the conclusion that every natural
instinct and desire is wrong, and, consequently, to be
shunned. Love of home, friends, congenial surround-
ings; interest in temporal treasures and material con-
cerns; regard for the many possibilities of culture and
self-improvement; fondness for the artistic and the beau-
tiful in every department of life — under the ban placed
upon natural instincts, all these normal inclinations of
the human heart are to be regarded as wrong! No won-
der inertness and sluggishness become the pronounced
traits of him who accepts such a principle. No wonder
an entirely perverted and distorted view of life becomes
his who endeavors to carry out a principle like this.
In view of the fact that this negative doctrine, in
many subtle ways, is making inroads upon the people, the
time is ripe for marked emphasis to be placed upon the
New Commandment, "Be a man and thou mayst become a
god."
Manhood — virile, vigorous, strong, self-reliant, self-
assertive manhood — is the need of the hour. Manhood,
strength of character, activity, progress, advancement,
growth, power, virility, usefulness, and hearty co-opera-
tion in matters that concern the public weal — this must
90 THE WAY, TO GODHOOD
be the ideal of him who aspires to Godhoocl and the De-
ific Consciousness.
Individuality — development of the manifold powers
inherent, yet, for the most part, latent, in man's nature,
and the employment of these powers in channels of use-
ful endeavor — this ideal, the ideal of Individuality and
negative goodness.
Let the watchword of the INew Commandment — *
Manhood, must supplant the standard of inactivity and
MANHOOD — be made to ring incessantly in the ears of
men.
Let each honest heart become convinced of the good-
ness of Mother Nature. Let each realize that Nature is
the Handmaid of God, His helper, aye, even His Spouse,
honored and well beloved in His sight.
Let this truth be heralded far and near:
The natural instincts of the normal man represent
the voice of Nature; and, if honored and obeyed by him,
they become the means of leading him to his divine in-
heritance. They are stepping stones to the Deific Con-
sciousness. Like anything else, they may be misunder-
stood, misapplied, misdirected, and even perverted. But,
if correctly understood and normally satisfied, they are
interpreters of truth, promoters of the highest good, and
messengers of the Divine. The principle of interpreta-
tion to be applied to the instincts that prompt action i,s
simple — namely, Will gratification of ae unto him. He may choose freedom and realize joy
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 143
as a natural consequence. He may choose bondage to
some form of unnaturalness and reap the inevitable con-
sequence thereof.
The unnaturalness to which one may be in bondage
presents many forms. It may be disease, morbid and
inert states of mind, the many shades and tints of weak-
ness and cowardice by which one may be enslaved. He
who is so enslaved cannot know true peace and joy. Al-
ways present is the phantom of that which binds him, call-
ing attention to his own weakness. He who is in bondage
to anything i,s in that particular respect bereft of the
childlike spirit. The child refuses to be bound. The child
spurns the idea that joy is evil.
When natural desires are suppressed, the possibility
of joy is reduced or made impossible. In proportion as
the possibility of joy passes, in that proportion do abnor-
mal instincts and desires take the place of joy. These
abnormal instincts and desire,s, in time, become so estab-
lished as to seem both desirable and natural, causing those
who are slaves to them to believe that they are preparing
the way for a life of pleasure and happiness in a future
state.
Self-renunciation is opposed to joy. It is the very
opposite of joy. Nevertheless, it has been believed by
many and freely taught that renunciation is the gateway
to a heaven of bliss. But that this is a destructive doc-
trine is apparent to all who will think. A little attention
to nature's methods and ways reveals the absurdity of
such a doctrine. A study of the great Masters and world
Saviors reveals that not one of them has advocated such
a belief. In nature, the only renunciation is of that which
is useless or destructive. Nature does not renounce ac-
tivity. Nor does she renounce strength and satisfaction
and happiness. On the contrary, everywhere in nature,
thrift and accomplishment healtji a_nci strength, are en-
144 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
couraged. It is only through constant creation that na-
ture is enabled to meet the demands made upon her. She
is constantly taxed to the utmost to produce enough to
satisfy the needs of those dependent upon her. Conse-
quently, she is actively creating and producing. In na-
ture, this iron law i,s constantly in operation: that which
does not produce, that which does not yield profit, must
give place to that which is productive and profitable.
.Through this law, nature is constantly preaching against
renunciation.
Akin to the sense of enjoyment is that other pas-
sion known as affection. Affection for anything or any-
one, no matter what the degree of affection, brings joy.
And the more highly evolved the human being becomes,
the deeper and the more sincere will become the affec-
tion of such an one for those who are near and dear.
Nor does affection stop with mere pleasure and satisfac-
tion. It produces comeliness and strength of soul. The
soul' ( s affection will come, in time, to be all-inclusive in
its scope and its embrace. The cloak of charity and free-
dom, it spreads over all; although personal affection and
admiration, it cafanot 'bestow upon those who wilfully
bind themselves to falsity of belief and to error of ways.
,There is sympathy and charity for all, even the wayward
and the ignorant and the cruel, and tho^se who know not
the Divine Law. Charity grants to each man his free-
dom and right of choice, but, by no means, does charity
sanction and endorse the choice of slavery to ignorance,
error, and negativeness.
The doctrine of renunciation maintains that affection
binds man to his kind and to things of the earth ; whereas,
his affection should bind him only to the things of heav-
en. Nevertheless, no one can deny that we are taught in
Holy Writ to love one another and to be "kindly affec-
tionate," Love is .affection in the highest degree. Love
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 145
begins on the earth. Love for God begins on the earth
plane and must be cultivated on the earth plane. Love
for God is grown through love for one's fellowmen. He
who loves not his fellows and has no affection for his
kind, hi,s friends, his near of kin, is incapable of love for
God. The heart that is filled with illusions on earth can
scarcely become free from them immediately after the
earthly casing is thrown off.
The doctrine of non-renunciation of joy maintains
that affection for the treasures of heaven is developed
through, and by means of, affection in earthly relation-
ships. Rather than renouncing affection, one should cul-
tivate it. Love for friend and family and neighbor is the
kindergarten of love for God. The ideal of health and
/strength, of grace and beauty of character, is to be en-
couraged, as means of developing comeliness of soul. The
natural ties of home and community are harbingers of
good. Through devotion and loyalty in human relation-
ships, through service and helpfulness in every depart-
ment of human interests, the soul becomes strong and
powerful and comely, qualified to meet the demands of a
higher plane. Therefore, man should diligently seek those
relationships on earth which fit him to enjoy the realities
of existence on any plane. Joy comes through the power
to serve, the power to help, those whom we love. Thus,
health is a condition of joy because it enables us to do
and to serve. For the same reason, strength is a condi-
tion of joy. Without health and strength, the highest de-
gree of joy is impossible. According to the doctrine of joy
and happiness, all those states and conditions in life which
are denounced and discouraged by negative doctrines are
to be cultivated and encouraged.
He who is unable to know joy and happiness on the
earthly plane is not far advanced in the scale of spiritual-
ity. He who knows not joy and happiness knows not God.
143 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
joy, happiness, health, strength, are a part of the divine
nature. They are essentials of creative ability; and God
is, essentially, now and always, a Creator. Weakness and
illness, misery and wretchedness, impatience and inertness
— the.se things are, now and always, destructive, and are
to be classed among the things that pass away. They in-
terfere with creative ability and hold man on the plane
of non-productiveness. They are the conditions that must
give place to elements of power and productive skill. They
are evil because they are non-producing, because they are
non-fruitful. He who follows the law of renunciation
follow^ the negative law of non-productivity. Joy and
happiness are elements of spirituality. They are incen-
tives to usefulness and kindness to others, incentives to
service and devotion and loyalty. They are natural traits
of the productive, fruitful life.
"Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven and all these
things will be added unto you."
Seeking the kingdom of heaven certainly is not to
seek sorrow, indifference, imbecility, and inertness. One
does not need to seek, in order to find these things. One
needs only to renounce active, positive virtues and, to do
nothing at all except idle away strength in order to ob-
tain sorrow, indifference, imbecility, and inertness. But,
in order to have health and strength, in order to gain
possession of those things which bring joy and happiness,
peace and contentment, man must seek. He must put forth
efi'ort. He mu,st free the mind of undesirable habits.
He must fight and struggle for the sake of gaining strength.
He must do his duty to his fellow man. This ideal and
standard of life calls for activity, industry, usefulness,
service. It call,s for the joy of effort. This is seeking
the kingdom of heaven. Mere introspection, meditation,
reflection, and the contemplation of lofty truths is not
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 147
enough. Seeking the kingdom of heaven demands an ac-
tive, positive life of usefulness among men.
Joy in the heart is an indication of having found the
kingdom of heaven. He who has joy in his heart is to
that extent in the kingdom. The joy that results from
doing right is the joy of the kingdom. To continue in the
way of life that brings joy, is to continue in the king-
dom. The kingdom of heaven is nothing more or less than
the kingdom of satisfaction, or the plane of satisfaction.
When there is peace and satisfaction of mind and soul,
then man is truly entered into the kingdom of heaven. It
is a kingdom of joy and gladness.
Blind faith cannot free one from sorrow. We may
have all possible faith in a negative doctrine, and yet be
full of suffering and sorrow. Where suffering and sor-
row abound is not the state of bliss and satisfaction.
Faith without works, faith without demonstration, is dead.
If we have faith and if we work and thereby obtain, then
is our faith of the kind that results in salvation. Salvation
is freedom from things that are undesirable. If we have
faith in God, faith that He will give us happiness, but
have not that faith which causes us to meet the conditions
of happiness, then we shall reap disappointment. In like
manner, if we have faith that God will give us health, but
have not the faith that causes us to obey the laws of health,
we shall reap disappointment. Our faith is blind and dead,
and brings forth no fruits. We may have faith that we
shall be happy in a future state; but, unless we actively
put forth effort to obtain happiness and to give happiness
to others in this life, here and now, we are not qualified
for happiness in any state.
Since joy is the result of doing well, since salvation
is the result of an active, positive faith manifesting in
works, there i,s no ground for the doctrine of renuncia-
tion and inactivity. Think not that, after a life of re-
148 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
nunciation, joy and happiness will come to you when the
body is cast aside. For, if you do not so live as to find
peace and joy here and now, how is it possible to know
them on any other plane or in any other sphere?
Learn from the child, which finds joy and happiness
in every breath it takes, joy in play, joy in food and drink,
joy in work, joy in all things that belong to life.
"Unless ye become as little children, ye can in no
wise enter the kingdom of heaven.'*
Accept the philosophy of joy. Accept a natural,
though divine, philosophy of life. Live the philosophy of
joy. Live a natural, divine philosophy of life. And the
kingdom of joy, the kingdom of heaven, shall be yours.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Suffer not injustice to be done.
For the past few centuries, a double standard a doub-
le law, totally contradictory, has been taught mankind —
that is, the doctrine of non-resistance and the doctrine of
punishment for wrong-doing. As generally understood,
these standards are in conflict one with the other. For
this reason, justice has fled; and it is a matter of influ-
ence as to who is puni,shed and who is not punished.
The principle of non-resistance, rightly understood, is
a very important aspect of the Divine Law. But, through
prevalent misconceptions ahd misrepresentations, it has
been carried to absurd extremes, and ha,s been woefully
perverted. Instead of making men out of criminals, it
has often resulted in making criminals out of men. In-
stead of making men strong and self-reliant, it has made
them weak and omnipotent. Rightly understood, the law
of non-resistance is positive, demanding positive strength
on the part of him who obeys it. As generally accepted,
it is a negative standard, tending toward lethargy and in-
ertness on the part of him who follows it.
The law,s of resistance, non-resistance, and of punish-
ment are one and the same. These three are indeed one,
viewed from different angles. The laws of justice de-
mands a supplement. The necessary supplement and cor-
ollary of justice is mercy. The mistake of those who carry
the law of non-resistance to extreme limits is in thinking
that there is a conflict between mercy and justice. The
two are in perfect harmony. Resistance, non-resistance,
justice, and mercy are in exact accord one with another.
150 THE WAY TO GODHOOP
A prevalent misconception of the law of non-resist-
ance goes to the extreme of resisting nothing — not even
wrong and injustice. This extreme interpretation of non-
resistance leads to the attitude of utter indifference — the
very worst feature of negativism. It accepts, absolutely
and with no qualification, the principle, "Whatever is, is
best." In regard to the errors and shortcomings and
weaknesses of one's own nature, it puts forth no effort
toward improvement. Its indifference toward error and
injustice may become so pronounced as to amount to the
same thing as sanction of error and injustice. This con-
ception of non-resistance strikes at the very roots of
growth and development. It leads to inertness of the most
formidable type. It sanctions and encourages a tolerance
that i,s beyond reason and good judgment. It is directly
opposed to development of manhood and manly powers and
virtues. Thus, it leads away from the possibility of God-
hood.
This misconception is so subtle and delusive that it
is making rapid inroads upon the minds and the hearts
of the people. It is an easy road to travel, calling for no
effort whatever — easy because it is a downhill path. It is
attended, nevertheless, by dangers unforeseen and unsus-
pected. And, ere he is aware, the one who travels this
path is plunged into perilous situations, from which he is
scarcely able to extricate himself.
Since this misconception in regard to the law of non-
resistance is so delusive and leads to such errors, is it
any wonder that the alarm is being sounded? Is it any
wonder that those who comprehend the disastrous results
of this misconception are doing all in their power to avert
the ill effects of this promulgation? Let nothing be done
or said to cast a reflection upon the reality or the impor-
tance of the law of non-resistance. There is such a law.
^lore than this, it is one of the most important expres-
THE WAY TO GODH00D 151
sions of the Divine Law. The effort that is being made is
to avert the errors growing out of an extreme misconcep-
tion in regard to the meaning of the law.
The harmony that exists between the laws of resist-
ance, non-resistance, and justice can best be made clear
through the use of illustrations.
Suppose, walking down the street, you see a human
brute abusing a child or a defenceless woman. Holding
to the extreme view of non-resistance, your reflections are
somewhat after this fashion: 'None of my business, this.
Hach individual is free to do as he pleases. What i,s it
to me? Am I my brother's keeper? Am I judge as to
who deserves abuse? What law gives me right to deal
out justice or punishment to the guilty?'
With these reflections you pas A s by. But how can
there be manhood in this disposition of the difficulty?
How can there be a conscience pure and undefiled? By
allowing the abuse of helpless ones to continue, you be-
come party to the abuse. By offering no resistance, you
sanction injustice and cruelty. Is this the part of a true
man? Is this the part of courage and true manliness,
"to pass by on the other side," leaving innocence and help-
lessness to suffer ill treatment at the hands of the cruel
or the irresponsible ? No, a conscience that satisfies it-
self with the motive of non-resistance under such condi-
tions is a conscience that has withered and dwindled away
from non-use. Through inertness and stagnation, it has
lost it,s power to prick and sting. It has made a god of
indifference and non-interference with others. In many
instances, non-interference is a virtue to be highly com-
mended. But, in the case of cruelty to the helpless when
it lies within one's power to prevent, it is far from being
commendable. He is worthy indeed of bearing the form
and the figure of a man, who dares to rebuke criminal
acts and to succor the defenceless and the needy. We
152 THE WAY TO" GODHOOD
may be ourselves powerless for rendering help; but, in
that case, we can at least call the attention of one who
is in a position to exercise control over abuses.
The law of non-resistance is perverted in the conclu-
sion that we are not our brother's keeper. To exercise no
concern in regard to the welfare of another, even though
he be an enemy or a stranger, is carrying the principle
of non-resistance to unreasonable extremes. The strong
man finds satisfaction in the thought that he \s qualified
to be, in measure, his brother's keeper. He counts it an
honor to his manhood to be entrusted with the right and
the privilege of helping and serving others. His sense of
justice and right cannot bear the ,shock of seeing the help-
less abused or ill treated without offering protest. To pass
injustice by without protest belongs to the errors and mis-
conceptions connected with the law of non-resistance, not
to the law itself. The law of non-resistance honors the
standard that, under reasonable limits, we are our brother's
keeper.
The law of injustice includes man's relation to the
animal kingdom as well as the human. As in the case of
his neighbor, man's attitude toward the animal kingdom
depends upon his disposition of the law of non-resistance.
With many, there seems to be a conflict between the law
of justice and the law of non-resistence. The law of jus-
tice demands protection of the helpless. The extreme
view of non-resistance sanctions indifference and non-in-
terference with the actions of others. Abuse and injus-
tice toward one of the animal creation calls for rectifica-
tion. An unreasonable view of non-resistance conflicts
with the standard of justice and says, 'No, non-interfer-
ence is best.' Those who accept the unreasonable view
ignore cruelty to animals. Seeing a seeming conflict be-
tween the standard of justice and non-resistance, they
choose the left-hand path, that of negativeness and indif-
ference.
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 153
It is the duty of the strong to protect the weak. Any
interpretation that excuses the strong man from this obli-
gation strikers at the very roots of strength and manhood
in his nature. To exerci,se strength, to turn it to good
account in the protection of the unfortunate, to demon-
strate manliness and courage in favor of the needy — this
and this alone gives man the right to strength. Under the
iron law of nature, through non-use, power and manhood
forfeit their right to existence. The hand that refuses to
perform the duties of a useful hand, preferring to hang
idle and useless from the shoulder, ceases to be a hand
that is capable of usefulness. Likewise, the individual that
exalts the standard of non-resistance to the extent of re-
fusing to live a life of usefulness and activity among men,
(refusing to protect *he needy a,s opportunity ! affords*
loses the power of usefulness and manhood. Through
loss of manhood and manly virtues, he forfeits the possi-
bilities of Godhood. And let it be remembered that man-
hood is the gateway to Godhood.
There is no reason for our being unduly zealous in
observing occasions of cruelty toward others. It is not
for us to go out of our way in search of injustice and
roal-treatment. Guardianship over others is not a thing
to be coveted for its own sake nor for selfish purposes.
Generally speaking, punishment of injustice does not be-
long to man. Not punishment of the guilty, but protec-
tion of the innocent, is the point under consideration. The
principle that deserves emphasis ijS that man shall not
shrink from his duty nor shirk responsibility when duty and
responsibility are plain. To do so means weakness. It
does not pay to hide behind the cloak of deference to the
law of non-resistance.
Thus far, our illustrations have had to do with the
principle of non-resistence in connection with other than
ourselves. What about the law of non-resistance in its
154 [THE WAY JO GODHOOD
bearing upon ourselves? Are there erroneous, unreason-
able views of the law in its application to the individual
himself ?
To be sure, there are grievous misconceptions of the
law in its bearing upon individual growth and develop-
ment. It has already been pointed out that failure to
meet the conditions of manhood and strength when the
law of justice calls for active succor or protection of
ethers results in weakness to him who so fails to do
his duty. It remains to be emphasized that weakness is
the reward of hirn^ who exalts the law of non-resistance
to unreasonable limits in regard to his own personal
growth and development.
By many, by those who exaggerate the law to extreme
proportions, the attitude of non-interference is taken to-
ward one's own weaknesses and shortcomings. A reason-
able degree of patience is commendable. But patience
that reaches the limit of ignoring defects when effort
would have removed them has passed beyond the bound-
aries of a virtue. In the case of many who are eager in
the cause of soul development, the methods of develop-
ment are so negative as to border close to non-resistance
itself. Even prayer may become so passive as to be in-
effectual. Something more positive than "Nevertheless,
not my will but thine be done" is demanded in gaining
the victory over uprisings of the carnal nature. In human
nature generally, strenuous and persistent effort and posi-
tive watchfulness are demanded, to withstand the possi-
bility of being overtaken by a sudden outburst of anger or
jealousy or some other manifestation of carnality. He who
lapses into the state of indifference or non-interference
has already lost ground in regard to self -mastery.
The ambitious soul aims at mastership, mastery over
himself. Mastership demands zealous care, constant
watchfulness, a powerful will, and an active, positive at-
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 155
titude of mind. Remarkable power of resistance is his
who has attained self-mastery to any appreciable degree.
There are other aspects of the law, however, in its
application to ourselves. If a thief enters our house with
intent to steal that which is ours by right of honest ef-
fort; if wayfarers trespass on our grounds, trampling un-
der foot grass and flowers, destroying fruits for which we
have labored; if neighbor's cattle break their bounds and
devastate our fieflds, damaging our sun-kissed crops; if a
servant in the home proves faithless and pilfers both
coin and produce — under such conditions as these, as well
as many others that may arise, is there nothing to be
done by way of self-protection? Under such circum-
stances, does the law of non-resistance conflict with the
standard of justice toward ourselves?
No, non-re,sistance is not to be identified with non-
interference under such circumstances as these. Non-in-
terference, under ,such conditions, brands one either as
weak and cowardly or as ignorant of the law. If one
hides behind the screen of non-resistance in his disposi-
tion of such difficulties, he classes himself among those
who honor not the law, but a misrepresentation of the
law. He in whom remains one ounce of manhood must
leaTize that non-interference is but to injure those who
are injuring us by their trespass and outrage. If it falls
within our power to prevent the thief from taking that
which is ours, prevention is a kindne,ss to him. To offer
no resistance to that which is a positive injury to our-
selves, other things being equal, is a positive injury to the
cne who would cause us injury. To allow another with-
out resistance to take from us that which is ours, is to
te party to the thievery. What we owe to another, we
owe also to ourselves. If we are responsible for pre-
venting crime against another when within our power, we
are also responsible for preventive measures in the case
of attempted wrong to ourselves.
153 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
Again, what disposition is to be made of the law of
non-resistance in the attitude of the parent toward the
child? Of the school master toward those under his care?
Of the employer toward the workman in his shop? Is
the law of non-resistance here to be identified with the
principle of non-interference? Is there a conflict between
the standard of justice and the principle of non-resist-
ance? The child in its innocence is liable to encounter
danger. It is liable to fall into* wayward habits, detri-
mental to itself. At times, it is in need of reproof and
correction and careful guarding. Is the parent's authority
to be hampered by an erroneous conception of the law of
non-resistance? The boy in the school room, possibly the
youth within college walls, is forming habits that are de-
cidedly detrimental to his own welfare. Shall the teach-
er, under a false impression of the virtues of non-inter-
ference, leave him unrestrained when possibly a heart-to-
heart talk concerning the error of his ways would set him
aright? The clerk at the counter, the accountant at the
desk, the salesman on the road, may be laboring under
tension or under a temptation peculiar to his temperament.
Let the employer open his eyes to the personal needs of
him who is under his employ. Let him give word of
cheer, advice, or rebuke according to need, rather than
screen himself behind the weak excuse of non-resistance.
The principle of action is twofold. It affects both
the doer and the receiver. If one injures us, by that very
act, he also injures himself. For this reason, it is right
for us to prevent wrong-doing to ourselves if it lies with-
in our power so to do. So exact is the law of justice,
however, that, if another intentionally harms us and we
are ignorant of his deed and undeserving of harm, the
deed reacts upon the doer harmfully, while we reap bene-
fit therefrom. To permit wrong doing with indifference,
is to cause weakness and loss to him who does the wrong.
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 157
It makes him weaker rather than stronger. Whoever adds
to the weakness of another, to that extent does him an in-
justice. No matter if one's excuse is righteous non-inter-
ference with others, it is an injury to the one whom he
might have helped.
The prevalent misconception regarding the law of non-
resistance has its origin in a desire for purity of heart
and conscience. Under circumstances that (prompt re-
sistance or interference, the elements of ill-will and im-
patience easily creep into the heart; retaliation and re-
venge often are uppermost in the motive. This fact has
led to the feeling that resistance in itself i,s wrong. The
spirit of ill-will and bitterness pricks the conscience and
stings the soul. To obviate this difficulty and to secure
purity of conscience, has led to the belief that resistance
and interference with the actions of others is a sin. Thus,
non-resistance, in the sense of indifference and non-inter-
ference with the actions of others, has come to be viewed
as a virtue. This has been thought to be the only type
of non-resistance that gives the consciousness of a pure
heart and a clean motive and a clear conscience.
The fact that there \s a pricking of conscience indi-
cates that something is wrong. But — and this is the point
to be emphasized — not resistance is wrong, nor interfer-
ence, but the ill-will that accompanies resistance and in-
terference. Nbt prevention is wrong, but the spirit back
of preventive measures. The censure and the condemna-
tion and the impatience and the bitterness that attend
prevention — this is wrong. The fact that there is prick-
ing of conscience indicates that something needs to be
eliminated. The error has been in thinking it right to
eliminate resistance itself, rather than the bitterness and
the ill-will that attend resistance.
Non-resistance demands the elimination of bitterness
£nd revenge ancl hate and every form of ill-will from the.
158 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
heart of him who resists. The Divine Law sanctions re-
sistance against error and crime. It ^sanctions preven-
tion of wrong. The Law sanctions effort, will-power, and
self-mastery. Interference with others when circumstances
warrant, it also sanctions. A reasonable degree of con-
trol and authority over others when one's relation with
them permits, also receives the sanction of the Divine
Law. But, always and everywhere, the Law demands the
elimination of every type and description of ill-will and bit-
terness and revenge toward those with whom we deal.
This is the feature of non-resistance that must be em-
phasized and re-emphasized.
Let us prevent suffering. Let us rectify wrongs, and
obviate error and ignorance and crime. Let us succor the
needy, and protect the helpless, both in the animal king-
dom and in the human. Let us administer justice as op-
portunity affords. Let us put forth every effort to
strengthen the cau.se of right. Let us live an active, posi-
tive, useful life among men. But let us do all in the
spirit of love.
The law of non-resistance demands that no thought
of hate, no thought of revenge, shall creep in as the mo-
tive of our act, but that only the thought of right and
justice shall be the base of our action. Non-resistance ap-
plies to the spirit of action rather than to action itself.
The regeneration of society demands powerful resistance
against the inroads of error, ignorance, and crime. But
equally true is it that the regeneration of society demands
that the spirit of love ,shall prompt every resistive meas-
ure.
Men of strong intellect and superior ability are de-
voting their lives to the cause of peace and arbitration.
They are actively engaged in educating public sentiment
in favor of peace principles. They scatter literature broad-
cast advocating measures that prevent war and bloodshed,
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 159
They plead with congresses in favor of passing bills which
support the amicable adjustment of difficulties. In the
life of him who is actively, definitely, zealously engaged
in promoting peace principles and in preventing war and
carnage, where does non-resistance come in? Just here —
lie does what he does in the spirit of love and kindness.
He kicks not against the pricks. He does not force his
plans upon others. If his preventive measures are de-
feated, he harbors no grudge or antagonism against hi,s
opponent. In that he 'labors in patience and is preserved
in the spirit of love and charity, he honors the law of non-
resistance.
The prevalent misconceptions in regard to the law
have brought it into great disrepute among strong, right-
minded men. In its false representation, the law encour-
r.ges cowardliness and weakness. In its negative, destruc-
tive aspects, the law cultivates in a man the spirit of in-
difference toward reform and betterment of society. No
wonder that true, noble manhood spurns the doctrine of
indifference! Rightly understood, the law of non-resist-
ance must appeal to every true, strong, noble-minded man
and woman. It honors manhood and strength. In a two-
fold manner, it honors strength and courage — the strength
and courage to act, and the strength and courage to main-
tain sweet-spiritedness in the midst of action. The force
that might have been squandered in negative, destructive
thoughts of ill-wi'll are to be turned to active use in the
cause at hand. Thus, strength and force and courage are
both intensified and purified. The fact that non-resistance
is identified with indifference and non-interference an4
non-prevention, has brought the doctrine into disfavor
among men and women of noble mind and heart. That
non-resistance means the spirit of love as basis of resist-
ance and prevention, will bring the law into favor with
noble-hearted men and women,
160 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
The law of non-resistance in this sense i,s in perfect
accord with the New Commandment. Passivity and in-
difference in the midst of error and wrong i^s not a trait
of manhood. Activity and effort toward the betterment
of self and others, accompanied by the spirit of love — this
is a trait of manhood that leads to Godhood.
The law of non-re,sistance would eliminate, from all
preventive measures, the desire to "get even with" or to
"get ahead of another." When the heart is free from re-
sentment or ill-will and one puts forth effort again,st er-
ror, ignorance, and sin, he is not resisting evil in the sense
of kicking against it; he is simply preventing evil, and
promoting the cause of justice and right. If our attitude
toward wrong doing is based on the thought of punish-
ment merely, or of dealing out justice to those whom we
consider deserving of the hand of justice, then, our atti-
tude is not sanctioned by the true law of non-resistance.
Obedience to the law of non-resistance demands that our
desire ,shall be for justice and righteousness and for the
betterment of him whose ways we would rectify. If our
mind is tinctured with revenge and resentment and ill-
will and the desire to "get even," we are not fit subjects for
exemplifying the standard of justice.
What about punishment, by the state, of the so-called
criminal?
It would be difficult for any one to prove that the
system of punishment as carried out at the present time
has the sanction of the Law of God. Who can success-
fully maintain that it is free from hate and revenge? Sel-
dom is the criminal punished on the merits of his deed
alone. More often he is punished because of the hate
and (Suspicion and fear of society generally.
There is a law of punishment — a law that operates
through every department of nature. It is not according
io man-made code. According to man-made law, the
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 161
criminal is punished FOR his sins. According to natural
law, he is punished BY his sins. This principle — that
man i,s punished by his wrong doing, by his own ignorance,
error, and sin — must be recognized by the state, before a
just system of dealing with criminals can be establish-
ed.
Wrong doing is to be ascribed to one or both of two
causes. Either a man does wrong in ignorance of the
laws of life or he doe,s it because he is held by abnormal
tendencies. In either case, the remedy is the same. Little
ground is there for thinking that he is benefitted by con-
finement in a place unfit for human habitation, wherein
body and mind and soul are stunted, wherein every par-
ticle of manhood and divinity in his nature is destroyed?
If the cause of his crime is ignorance, he need,s instruc-
tion and training. If the cause is abnormal tendencies,
he is, likewise, in need of instruction and training. Pris-
ons should be turned into centers, from which men come
forth stronger and better than they went in. Instead of
this, they come out hounded creatures, from which every
shred of manhood has been taken.
Boast as we may of the superiority of the upper class-
es of society over the lower strata, it remains a fact that,
in every human being, there are traces of superstition, of
ignorance, of ignoble or even criminal tendencies. But
some are more ignorant than others. Some have stronger
tendencies toward wrong doing than others. These are
called criminals. It is only a matter of degree. The
criminal is worse than the more favored.
Life on this earth is our school. If the ignorant and
criminally inclined were given the advantages of an in-
stitution that combines in its methods the elements of
workshop and of school, they would imbibe better ideas
of life, as well as learn a useful trade. Men who serve
&s teachers in such an institution, coming in dose daily
162 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
contact with abnormal personalities, would have occasion
constantly to apply the principle of non-resistance. Non-
resistance, in the jSense of indifference, passivity, and non-
interference, has no place in the lives of such men. But,
of non-resistance in the sense of charity, patience, and
sweet-spiritedness, they require a generous fund. Such
non-resistance in the midst of activity has its sure re-
gard.
When the correct idea of non-resistance has become
established in the hearts of men, a transformation of so-
ciety will have taken place. Manhood will be the ideal.
On right and on left, manhood will be the accepted stand-
ard.
"Be a man that thou mayst be a god."
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The spirit of chivalry and fairydom is constructive in its
effects.
Another feature of negativism is to condemn fairy-
tale literature and every appeal to the fanciful and the
picturesque.
In the age when fairy tales, stories of the spirits of
nature, the fairies of flowers and of woodland, were the
rule, culture and manhood and chivalry and perfection
were at their height. When Greece was at the zenith of
its power, when it was a nation of true manhood, when
culture had reached its highest estate, at that time, its
philosophy wajS free from elements that are unwholesome
and destructive in their effects.
In the present age, alas, only a small percentage of
our children are conversant with the fairy tales that glad-
dened childhood in the ancient days. Instead of the beau-
tiful, soul-inspiring tales of fairydom, we have accounts
of unclean spirits and demons — stories which arouse
thoughts of suspicion and superstition and fear. This ten-
dency has reached its highest possible point in the stories
of malicious animal magnetism of a certain school of
philosophy.
It is a noteworthy fact that, in every age of the
world, the religion, the philosophy, and the stories for
childhood harmonize perfectly. Folk lore aind nursery
rhymes and ditties all reflect the quality of sentiment en-
tertained by the elders. Ta'les and fabulous accounts of
bea,st or woodland sprite, formed to please the fancy of
childhood, reflect the spirit of the national religion and
jphilosophv.
164 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
Greek literature preserves for us a collection of nar-
ratives concerning gods and goddesses. A multitude of
gods and goddesses, their religion embodied, a ,superior
household of divine beings. Classic myths and legends of
the palmy days of Greece serve not only as a means of
preserving their philosophy and religion, but as a means
of preserving the splendor of their literature for child-
hood.
The effect that a nation's religion and philosophy has
upon its adherents is the ultimate test of its quality and
character.
For example, note the Greek religion and philosophy
and the effect upon Greek ideals and standards. To all
outward appearances, it was a religion and a philosophy
of polytheism — in reality, a religion and a philosophy of
the utmost deference to the One Supreme God, ruler over
all. In their conception of gods and heirarchies, there
was nothing more unnatural than there is in the idea of
one supreme ruler over a nation or a country, with an
extensive retinue of sub-officers and subordinate pow-
ers whose function it ^s to exercise authority and domin-
ion in the department over which they are placed. There
is no evidence that the Greeks considered all the gods as
THE God. Nor is there any evidence of their believing
in polytheism. The individual gods and goddesses were
varying expressions or manifestations of the One Great
Deity, the One Great Power or Force of Nature. The
gods and goddesses were hierarchies over the different
departments of nature. They represent different forces; or,
to express the thought more accurately, they represent the
One Great Force functioning in different ways and in
different channels, while the One Supreme Being is the
Power or the Being that is, has been, and ever shall be.
In harmony with this doctrine of the Greeks con-
cerning rulership, is the divine ideal placed before man
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 165
'for his attainment — the standard of manhood and indi-
viduality and personal responsibility. Thi3 ideal of
^strength and character demanded physical power and en-
durance. Therefore, perfection of body was the basis
on which must be built the superstructure of noble and
beautiful character. Consequently, a part of their time
and attention was devoted to the requirements of the hu-
man form, to exercises, athletic games, swimming, bath-
ing, and other features. Nothing wa,s overlooked in their
desire that the body might reach the highest state of per-
fection. Considering weakness and disease as indications
of abnormality, the Greeks put forth unbounded effort to
free themselves from weakness and disease of every type
and dscription. A beautiful figure, perfect physique,
grace of movement and 'motion, as \welj as muscular
strength and endurance were sought not merely because
they are in themselves desirable, but especially because
they are the natural basis of noble character.
The Greek ideal of cosmogonic rulership and their
ideal of manhood and bodily perfection became chizelled
into the form of a national literature, embodying the qual-
ities of elegance, refinement, and strength. For the ma-
ture mind, there were philosophic treatises and literary
creations, exalting nobility and refinement of character.
For childhood, there were myth,s and legends and fairy-
tales, calculated to guide the child mind step by step to
an appreciation of the national religion and philosophy.
A nation of athletes, a nation that exalted nobility of
character, as well as attractiveness of physique, a nation
of culture and refinement — at its height, the Greek nation,
in its life and character, reflected credit upon the national
religion and philosophy.
Later, in history, we have the tales of chivalry and
the ideals of knighthood to satisfy and stimulate the ma-
ture mind, and fairies, myths, and legends of a pure type,
166 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
as incentives to childhood. These reflect a normal and
wholesome mind. Only the normal, healthful mind can
create and execute literary inventions of this class. Noth-
ing weak and flabby finds place in this type of literature.
Heroism, strength, and nobility are everywhere honored.
Truth of the highest and purest type is clothed in fanci-
ful designs, and in rich, perhaps even gorgeous, yet pic-
turesque coloring. Knighthood and heroes signify as-
pects of truth. They represent strong qualities and vir-
tues protecting and guarding the soul in its struggle for
supremacy over error and wrong.
Fairies, myths, and legends serve a far more exalt-
ed purpqse than merely to please the fancy. Like the
parable and the allegory, they clothe truth and make ab-
stract ideas tangible. Childhood is the age of imagina-
tion. It is the age^.that pictures and paints in glowing
colors and in startling details. Yet, underneath its pic-
turing, is a vein of truth. The fancy of childhood is
alive with expectancy and imagination. Td the fchild,
flower, tree, animal, stone, is a living creature capable of
pleasure and joy, of change and motion. Fairies are the
souls of flower, plant, animal, and stone. Water and
woodland, grove and meadow, valley and plain, mountain
and hillside are peopled with the fairy creations of child-
hood. When the minds of the elders are filled with tales of
gods and goddesses, creatures ideal in their power, strength,
nobility and beauty, is there any wonder that literature,
art, and song reflect beauty?
When you find a people that believes in the goodness
cf God, and in the goodness of the ruling powers, in the
divine heritage of man, the desirability of life on earth, the
possibility of joy and happiness, then, you find a nation
that is normal and healthy both physically and mentally.
Jhe children of that nation are of healthy minds — minds
not filled with tales of evil powers that infest the night
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 167
time. They are children who do not fear to enter the
woodlands alone, as do our children. To the children of
today, the woods are filled with evil powers, cruel beings,
and demons, hostile to childhood. But to the child in the
land where manhood rules, where a constructive religion
and philosophy is taught, woodland and field are the play-
ground of angels, gnomes of the earth, guardians of tree
and plant and shrub. In all these, the child sees something
beautiful, something desirable and uplifting. Though he
may scarcely be conscious of it, he sees in the beautiful
fairy of the flower the soul of its Maker and the handi-
work of the All Creator.
What a contrast between the two ages ! What an un-
desirable heritage is that of the child when destructive
negativism holds sway and an unnatural and wholly untrue
materialistic teaching has taken everything desirable out of
life!
The average child of today does not even enjoy the
games that once delighted youth and added health and
strength to body and mind. Its tendencies are toward a
sedative study, which accomplishes nothing. In far too
many ca,ses, the thoughts are poisoned by secret vices
which one child teaches the other at school or on the
streets, tales of vices which do not even exist and are not
possible. Vices that do not exist are twisted in the telling
until they form pictures of greater destruction in the child
mind. Say what we will, these things are facts. Pass-
ing through a crowd of boys and girls ranging from six
to twelve, we hear them talking of subjects that would
shame their elders because they are unnatural and abnor-
mal.
Yet we boast of the fact that we are living in an age
in which children know better than to believe in absurd
fairy tales, know better than to believe in Santa Claus, and
jhe Easter rabbit. We boast of the fact that our children
168 THE WAY" TO GODHOOD
no longer believe that a fairy has its home in every flower,
that the woods are peopled with nymphs jolly and full of
fun. Of these things, we boast, forgetful that the minds
of our children are peopled with entities of some sort if
not beautiful creations, kings and queens of fairyland, then
demons and monsters of vice and crime. Thoughts are
creatures that people the mind. The thought of love and
kindness is a beautiful, heaven-born fairy. Thoughts of
vice and ugliness are monsters of destruction.
We think only in symbolism. Each thought is a form,
each thought is a creative entity. Thought of the tree, of
the flower, or the shrub that we admire, is a creature 'like
that of which we think. It is an entity.. Men created the
word well when they called thoughts fairies.
As time passed, men became inclined toward a doc-
trine and a philosophy of weakness instead of one of
strength. Naturally, their thoughts turned toward idle-
ness and the desirability of ease and non-effort. They re-
garded labor as degrading and undesirable, and ea.se and
luxury as the only things worth while. Gradually, in place
cf tales of beautiful gods and goddesses, in place of dreams
cf heroes and chivalric knights and winsome maidens, in
place of fairydom with its kings and queens of splendor,
ever standing ready to grant the fondest wish of the duti-
ful child, the minds of men become peopled with monsters
and demons and devils and every description of taunting
creatures destructive and revolting. Since the age of fairy
and fable has passed away, literature and art and ,song
reflect morbidness of mind and unhealthful ideals and
standards.
With negative, destructive thoughts and the desire to
live without honest toil, men began to create and to formu-
late methods for binding the evil entities that peopled their
minds. From that day to thi,s, we have a class of men
"who toil not, neither do they spin," but who live on the
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 169
best of the land, not because they have earned it by honest
effort, but because the many are slaves while the few
are owners of slaves, because they have been enabled
through their negative, destructive philosophy to bind the
multitudes. They have taken from men and children the
heroic god,s, the fairies of the flowers, the nymphs and
innocent sprites of water and land. From man, they have
taken heroism, individuality, power, glory. Demons, evil
influences, evil entities, they have given him. His imagina-
tion, they have peopled with evil and destructive horrors,
with tortures and distresses. Instead of being ,surrounded
by angelic presences and supernatural powers and forces
of goodness and protection, he is haunted by grim mes-
sengers of fear and torture, products of a perverted imag-
ination and a troubled conscience. Weakness and disease
and a belief in the undesirability of life, they have given
him. Through these influences, they are holding the mul-
titudes in slavery — a slavery that is, however, unconscious
and willing.
But the new age with its doctrine of manhood has
come. Every effort is being made to replace in the minds
of men emphasis upon manhood, heroism, and individual-
ity. The desirability of manly courage and positive ef-
fort is receiving due emphasis. As love and good-will sup-
plant ill-will and vice, the minds of men will come to be
people with beautiful creations. In time, the rrund of man
will become ,so pure that soul vision shall be his; and,
with purified and clarified vision, he shall see the lovely
queen of the flowers, and the spritely nymph of wood and
meadow. Again shall the child gain freedom from thoughts
of vice and evil; and the morbid will have no attraction
for him. Men will understand better how to train the child
and how to make conditions suitable for his growth. Where
nature and normal conditions govern, evil and destructive
tendencies cease to exi,st.
170 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
The New Commandment brings the doctrine of man-
hood, the desirability of life, the privileges of godhood
and joy and happiness, the right of earthly possessions
through honest effort. It brings to man the gospel of
health and ,strength. It exalts heroic deeds, the right of
the strong to protect the weak, the possibility of being
free from hate, from anger, from jealousy and every form
of malice. The right to seek love, the right to love and
be loved — this the New Commandment teaches. Happiness
that is won in this world, joy that is known here and now,
is but the beginning, the path, the gate, of the greater joy
and happiness in the next world. Unless he finds peace
and contentment now and here, he will not be qualified to
enjoy it on any other plane. The New Commandment is
the gospel of freedom, of strength, of possession. It is
the gospel of a healthy body, but it is also the gospel of
the Immortal Soul, the privilege of man to become the
Son of God. It is the gospel of Sonship with the Father,
cf Godhood for him who seeks it in the power of man-
hood.
It is freely admitted that there is what is called the
evil or the negative side of nature. It is freely admitted
that there are evil entities, and there have always been
such entities and influences. They existed even in the
golden age of glorious Greece. But it i^s also claimed
beyond the possibility of successful contradiction, that,
when man is healthy and normal, strong and godlike, when
the mind is free from hate and malice and envy and re-
\enge, these poisonous entities affect him not. They are,
to the pure mind and heart, what the poisonous mush-
room is to the sun. The t sun rises and shines upon the
mushroom, and the mushroom shrinks away and is no
more. The sun feels not the evil or the poisonous effects
thereof. To the sun, it is a,s though the mushroom had
not been. Likewise, to the healthy, normal man, the evil
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 171
entities and influences that come in contact with him either
pass quickly away or they shrink and wither and are no
more.
The mind of man is so constituted that it cannot be a
vacuum. It must be occupied continually with some
thought. Either it is a thought that ^s constructive and
conducive to health and strength and power and creative
ability or it is the reverse.
In the universal mind, like the mind of the individual,
a certain type of thought holds sway. Its prevailing
thought may be along lines of health and strength and man.
hood and individuality, including honor, heroism, love,
joy, happiness, and righteous possession — the FAIRY type
ot thought. Or the prevailing thought may be of disease,
cf weakness, of the undesirajbility of life, the evil of joy
and happiness, the unreality of existence on the earth
plane — the DEMON type of thought.
It is for man to choose. As to what his choice has
been throughout the ages, literature records. With unerr-
ing accuracy, literature and art and song preserves the
thoughts that have held sway in the minds of men.
Give us the age of heroic gods, of the One All Pow-
erful, All Creative God over all. Give us the age of chiv-
alry, the age of fairydom. Take away the age of demons
and evil entities and malicious thought force.
Give us the age of manhood, the age of strength and
achievement. Take from us the age of weakness, and of
imbecility. The age of night, take from us, and give us
the age of light.
172 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Manhood or degeneracy, which ?
In the past gradually, but in the present very rapidly,
are men awakening to the fact that creeds and philosophies
of the negative type have been the ba,se of life and that
they have been leading the race to degeneracy.
These doctrines, which have emphasized the undesira-
bility of life, the sin of earthly loves, and the corrupting
influence of material possessions, have spent their force.
The world has reached a crisi,s. It is a question as to what
is to be the result. It is to be hoped there will be a turn-
ing of the way, a giving up of the old doctrines and phil-
osophies, and the adoption of a code of ethics that teaches
manhood — manhood strong and virile, above all else.
It is not intended to convey the idea that negative phil-
osophies have had in view degeneracy of the human race.
Far from it. But the fact that their negative principles
have influenced the lives of the multitudes, the fact that
they have been the base of life and action, makes them re-
sponsible for the tendency toward degeneracy.
Conventions are being held from time to time all over
the civilized world in the interests of race betterment. But,
without exception, the blame is wrongly placed. The rem-
edies suggested are even worse than useless; for they
would be destructive to mankind as conditions now are.
Eugenics and sexual hygiene are given prominent places
in the programs of these conventions.
That eugenics and sexual hygiene are important fac-
tors in race betterment i,s not to be denied. But eugenics
grafted tQ the present creeds and philosophies in their
174 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
negativeness would bring forth fruit that would utterly
dismay those who advocate them. First of all, it is neces-
sary for social and economic conditions to be changed; for
eugenics and sexual hygiene can accomplish nothing until
the fundamental doctrines of life to which the vast multi-
tudes hold are basically changed. Of what use is race
betterment if men believe that life is an evil? Of what
use are the teachings of eugeniqs if men hold to the be-
lief that the body is an enemy to the soul? Without ex-
ception, such ideas as these have been taught by the old
creeds. And he is looked upon with suspicion who dares
to teach true manhood as the base of all things.
When men believe that this life is undesirable and
that death is good because it gives entrance to a blessed
state in the hereafter, is it to be supposed that they are
working for race betterment? Is it to be supposed that
they are interested in developing the physical being unto
perfection so that it may last beyond the three score years
and ten presumably allotted to man? Ha,s not the world
been taught, during the past centuries, that the body o£
man is the repository of evil? Have we not been taught
that a strong, vigorous body is the direct enemy to the
soul because, in the strong body, there are many passions
which lead the ,soul astray ? Not in so many words per-
haps, but in principle at least, we have been taught that
illness and disease are not something to be shunned and
avoided and to be overcome, but, on the contrary, that ill
health in no wise interferes with our journey toward bliss.
Men have even gone so far as to claim that an illuminated
soul may dwell in a diseased, corrupt body. Indeed, what
is there in our philosophies to lead to the thought that the
state of the body has anything whatever to do with the
state of the soul?
Suppose that, for eighteen hundred years, the race had
been taught that in order to- have a perfect soul it was
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 175
necessary, first of all, to have a perfect body — a body nor-
mal, healthful, and strong — think you that an abnormal
outcry in favor of eugenics would now be necessary?
Suppose, during these same centuries, the race had
been taught that the All Father sanctions honest labor,
that He honors honest accumulation of worldly goods for
the sake of the fruits of righteousness thereof, think you
that beggarism would be prevalent, on the one hand, and
that, on the other hand, those called saints would be eat-
ing the fruit of other men's labor? Would this be pos-
sible?
If our religion and our philosophies had taught us,
during these centuries, that jstrict obedience to the laws of
health is the foundation of spirituality; if they had pro-
mulgated the principle that perfection of body is essential
to Illumination of Soul, think you that misery and weak-
ness and degeneracy would now be the common lot of
man? These conditions would exist only in a limited de-
gree if our philosophies had not been fundamentally
wrong, if man had not been taught for centuries to glory
in weakness, in poverty, and in idleness. During the past
centuries, the pendulum of thought has swung to the ex-
treme of emphasizing spiritual welfare to the utter neglect
of physical welfare. Now the swing of the pendulum is to
the opposite extreme. And reformers are becoming wild
in their enthusiastic desire to bring about changes and to
make regulations for the betterment of the physical status
of humanity.
Man is a twofold being. And the New Commandment
teaches that each side of his nature must receive equal at-
tention. Each is equally important with the other. We
must teach the doctrine of manhood; but, in so doing, we
must not forget the doctrine of Godhood. He who aims
at manhood's true estate without the ideal of Godhood
will become sjmply a healthy animal, He may, indeed, bq
176 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
far worse than the animal in the field ; for his shrewd brain
is able to think of acts of which the animal in its natural
state would not be capable.
It is generally admitted that the human race, except
where civilization has not yet penetrated, in many respect,s
is fast degenerating. So nearly universal is this that men
seldom even so much as think of it. If the race is to con-
tinue, a halt must be called in this degenerating process.
Degeneracy cannot be checked by passing laws concerning
eugenics and sexual hygiene, for the reason that the con-
ditions aimed at by teaching eugenics are effects and not
causes. To suppress an effect is not to cure a cause. It
is like damming up a ,stream that is continually accumulat-
ing. The original outlet may be stopped; but there will
result a new outlet, and the new is worse than the old.
In order to remedy race degeneracy, we must go to
the root of the difficulty. The New Commandment main-
tains that the root of the trouble is to be found in an er-
roneous view of life, an erroneous philosophy and religion,
erroneous standards and ideals.
Show man that life is desirable, that, unless he lives
on earth and fulfils his duty without grumbling and with-
out complaint, there can be no future happiness and peace
for him. Show him as a fundamental fact that, as is the
body, so will be the soul, that it i,s impossible for a strong
well-developed soul to abide in a body that is poisoned con-
tinually by disease and corrupt habits. Show him that his
duty on earth is to be a creator, to work, to accumulate
in a natural manner, and to enjoy the fruits of his labor.
Show him that labor, instead of being a shame, is act-
ually for the glorification of the soul. Labor gives health
and .strength to the body, and keeps the mind occupied
and free from morbidity. Convince man that he has a
right to health, joy, and happiness. Let him see that de-
nial of health, joy, and happiness is not an indication of.
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 177
soul supremacy, that it is rather a sign of weakness of
soul and los v s of manhood, and speaks not of kinship with
the Father.
First and foremost in the needs of humanity is to have
health laws incorporated into its religion. This is a funda-
mental need; and, unless it is done, the race will .continue
to decline. Without physical health and vigor there can-
not be the highest degree of spirituality. A strong physical
foundation is necessary to the attainment of absolute Son-
ship with the Father. Sonship can only be in accord with
the degree of manhood. Unless it is generally recognized
that health is a condition of true spirituality and that the
health code is on a par with the moral and ethical code,
the race cannot attain the ideal of full manhood. Men
must recognize that perfection of body, which is the temple
of the living God, i|S of equal importance with perfection of
soul. Health and strength of body gives a place to man
that is very necessary for the highest degree of Soul Illum-
ination.
Our religion must teach that manliness and manly
powers are the means of physical regeneration. Our re-
ligion must make clear as a fundamental basis the principle
that welfare of body is not antagonistic to welfare of soul.
Sad indeed, to think that countless millions have neglected
the physical being and its powers so that there has resulted
in the race a general decline.
These points in particular, the New Commandmnt
teaches. It does not, however, stop with health laws, but
includes as laws of life all things that enable man to be
at his best both in respect to the physical being and in re-
spect to the soul. Human nature is the foundation of
human acts. As such, it is in no wise evil nor destruc-
tive to the soul. But the mind of man should be so normal
and so healthy as to be able to recognize the difference be-
tween a desire that is good and constructive and one that
173 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
is harmful and destructive. The mind should be so health-
ful as not to be a slave to those desires which can injure
either body or soul.
It is to be greatly regretted that degeneracy is re-
sulting from the erroneous philosophy of life which has
held sway in the minds of the people. Religion has been
made a thing apart from other interests. We have been
taught that the soul is all that counts. And men have
laughed at the idea that one's mode of living and one's
habits and one's work have anything to do with religion
or with the religious life. But the world is fast awaken-
ing to different ideas. We are beginning to realize that
this earth life is a school and a training, that care of the
body is as important as care of the soul, and that the labor
of man is as truly a part of religious life as is develop-
ment of soul. Advance is being made in the right direc-
tion. The doctrine of manhood and strength is fast taking
hold of the minds of men. A religion that honors the
body equally with the soul, a religion that guide,s and con-
trols instinct rather than suppresses it, is absorbing the
interest of thoughtful men. Race betterment is a laud-
able work; but race betterment can never be brought
about through suppression of desire, nor through ignoring
the value of physical perfection.
Desire for physical perfection is no indication that
man worships the flesh. It is rather an indication that he
desires to become all that he should be. Desire for earthly
possession i,s by no means an indication that man desires
not Illumination of Soul. It rather indicates a desire to
have that which belongs to him in order to make the most
of life. Desire for strength and power need not indicate
that man would use his strength in forcing the weak to
obey his commands. Desire for strength and power is a
desire to honor God in whose image man is created. De-
sire to perform useful labor in no wise signifies lack of cul-
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 179
ture. It is rather the desire to be a continual creator like
the Father. All these things are part of the true man.
These de,sires should be a part of the soul. They should
be a part of the religion of the people.
Which is it to be? A religion with manhood as its
foundation, teaching progressive growth of both body and
soul? Or is it to be a religion of negativeness and decline
and degeneracy? Which is it to be?
Force and compulsion cannot bring about gradual de-
velopment of manhood. Compulsion accomplishes nothing.
The race must be educated to higher ideals and standards.
The ideal that manhood, strength, and possession, joy,
happiness, and a Godly life are desirable must be instilled
into the individual mind, and, ultimately, into the race
mind. A strong and mighty desire must be created for
these very things. Nothing can be done for self-better-
ment or for race betterment until a strong desire for bet-
terment is created. Let thi,s desire be deeply grounded
and rooted in the life of the race. Let it become the
foundation upon which our children build their lives; and,
within three generations, there will be a race of men such
as the world has never seen.
The following principles must be instilled into the
minds of men:
In order that man may become the son of God, in
order that he may be Godlike, he must round out his true
nature. He must become, fir.st of all, MAN, in the true
sense of the word. Manhood must be a 'companied and
followed by the use of his powers in working, in creating,
in accomplishing. He must truly act like a prototype of
the All Father, the Creator of all things. The life that
man lives here on earth is the life that must be taken
up again on the next plane, when the soul picks up the
thread of being after having thrown off the body. The
next life i,s but a continuation of the present,
180 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
When these ideals have become established in the
hearts of men, it will be safe to teach mankind eugenics
and sexual hygiene. For, then, these sacred sciences will
act as an incentive to the true and holy life; whereas,
under present ,standards, they would act as a means of re-
pressing natural instincts, only to create new and worse
channels of satisfaction.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
"Your Own Will Come to You"— if You Work for It.
"Your own" indicates possession. There is but one
source of power. For the individual, that source begins
and ends in possession. This being a fundamental truth,
it follows that, in order to possess power, it is necessary
to come into connection with the source of power; and all
possession must be through right methods and principles
if it is to be lasting.
In order to possess "y° ur own" — the opportunities and
the power that belong to the normal man — it is necessary to
obtain health. This is not an easy matter if one has lived
a life that was fundamentally wrong, a life that was neg-
ative in all its features; for, the desires and the thoughts
being negative, the whole being i,s held in bondage. The
philosophy of the weak and diseased man is always wrong.
This is a fundamental proposition. That his philosophy
is wrong is shown in the fact of his having poor health.
Fundamentally, one's philosophy of life is responsible for
one's state of health. As a man's philosophy, so is he —
that is, as is his real belief, not the philosophy that he pro-
fesses before men and claims to represent, but that which
he believes within his heart of hearts. And, mind you,
the vast multitudes believe something, way down within
themselves, of which they are not aware; and it is this
inner belief which is the essential factor of their life.
The average man may claim to have no religion. Ap-
parently, his claim is true. Yet deep down within him-
self he is bound as with cables of steel to the religious
philosophy of his progenitors. And the philosophy to
182 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
which he is bound is of the negative type, claiming that
the body of man is his enemy, and that, in order to kill this
enemy and its desires, it is best to make a slave of the
body and to ignore its interests, that the body, existing at
best for only a short time, is of little worth, and that the
weaker the body and the more racked with pain, the great-
er is the soul. The man is scarcely conscious of believing
these things. He makes no claim to believe them. Ap*
parently, he does not believe them. Yet those ideas are
born with him. They are the very foundation of his exist-
ence. And he proves it, proves it daily, not only in the
results of his life, but in the manner of his living. In or-
der to gain possession of "his own," the true, normal, nat-
ural man, first of all, pays strict attention to health and
strength. To do 'thisj demands normal, natural '/living.
It demands carefulness in regard to the habits of daily
life. It demands something more than the routine of ris-
ing in the morning, eating breakfast, going to work, eating
lunch, going to work again, eating dinner, smoking, or
going to a place where idle gossip or play is the rule. Such
a routine is not the natural life. It is not the life intended
by the All Father. It is not the life that make,s a man
strong and efficient and Godlike. Though in business the
man who lives such a life may be what seme call "pos-
itive," though he may be feeling less toward his fellow
men, toward women and children, and may exploit them at
every opportunity, nevertheless, his i,s a negative life. He
knows not what good health is. He knows not happiness.
He knows nothing of joy or peace of mind.
The true life of man is a double life — the life of the
material and the life of the soul. To such a man, exist-
ence meains more than eating, sleeping, {working. To
him, it means living, and living is a fine art.
First of all, the man who is zealous in securing pos-
session of "his own" adopts a scientific or systematic
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 183
mode of living. Each day has its round of observances
which serve as the outline or skeleton to be filled in and
rounded out by duties and pleasures more or less flexible.
The morning bath is indispensable, in order to free the
body from the poisons that accumulate during the night.
If the body is not thus cleansed, these poisons are re-
absorbed by the system. The bath must be followed or
accompanied tby breahing exercises which free the in-
ternal body of the poison^ therein. This is all-important;
for upon the cleanliness of the lungs depend the strength
and the power of the material being. A third exercise
equally important with physical cleanliness furnishes food
and stimulus and freedom for the soul — a ,silent individual
service to God, which should take the form of prayer or a
Sacred Mantram held in the heart. This draws the soul
near to God, frees the mind and heart of negative condi-
tions, and stimulates mind and heart for the duties of the
day.
_The complete life — the life that causey "its own" to
come to it — recognizes both body and soul, and considers
each equally important with the other. Such a life will
eventually realize the highest degree of success. For the
service of the soul to its Maker, no church is really neces-
sary; for it is in the privacy of the room, in the privacy
of the heart, that true service takes place. The time is
not far distant when every man, the head of every fam-
ily, will have a private room in his own house, to be used
a? a temple of prayer and worship for himself and his
household.
Following these three services, which aim at physical
and spiritual cleanliness, man is ready to minister to the
demands of the appetite. This should be with food fit for
the gods, simple, clean, wholesome, — food that supplies
nourishment and strength as well as satisfies the taste.
Nor should one turn immediately from the breakfast
184 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
table to business duties and cares. A walk in the open air
with deep breathing will charge the blood with vivifying
qualities, which are necessary to fit one for the day's
labor. The labor of the forenoon, whether physical or
menial, should be thought of as wholesome and, in every
respect, beneficial to one's welfare. Labor is a glory to
mind, heart, and soul, as well as a stimulus to bodily
health.
As the breakfast, so should be the lunch, chosen not
only to satisfy the taste, but to satisfy the real needs of
body, mind, and soul: Then is man ready for further la-
bor. Labor being finished for the day, he should see to it
that he and his family enjoy some wholesome exercise,
after which follows the evening meal. Then comes rec-
reation and pleasure, whatever will cheer the heart and
the soul of himself and of those dependent on him.
It is to be hoped that the time \s not far distant when
the ancient rule will be followed, when the twenty-four inch
gauge will be divided ino three parts and will be strictly
adhered to, one part for labor, one part for rest, one part
for recreation. No man should be forced to work more
than one third of the day. No one, except under special
circumstances, needs more rest than one third of the day.
He does, however, need that much and should see to it
that he has opportunity for that amount of re,st. Every
individual — man, woman, and child — requires the other
third for the needs of the spiritual being and for recreation
and pleasure. This ancient guage of life is the normal,
natural division of time for man.
While man is on the earth it is necessary for him to
have regard for the body as the dwelling place of mind and
soul. The mind should be clear and rational in its oper-
ations. The soul should be as free as possible from taint
and blemish and from the poison of negative thought con-
ditions. Unless the body i,s healthy and strong and normal,
THE WAY TO GODHOOn 185
the individual is more or less handicapped in every direc-
tion. No man can reach the highest degree of success,
who neglects the body. It is for this reason that he who
aims at true success must give first attention to physical
strength and vigor. It is for this reason that he who aim^
at Soul Illumination and Sonship with God must give first
attention to physical needs. The body is the foundation
o' the soul, and the soul cannot be at its best unless the
body is at its best. A strong, healthy body makes it easy
for the mind to be clear and to think consecutively and
logically. Health of body makes it easy to think construc-
tive thoughts, to THINK, and then to BUILD, success.
The possibilities of success are greater than they have
ever been in the history of the world. Everywhere, there
is a demand for men. But they must be men in the true
sense of the word, men of strength and not weaklings, men
whose mind,s are free from malice, hate, and destructive
thoughts. They must be men whose minds are clear, men
who recognize the fundamental fact that if they do not
succeed it is not because some one is holding them back,
not because some one has power over them, but simply
because they are slaves to weakness, to misconceptions,
slaves to the belief that others are holding them back and
that others are interfering with their desiny.
Men must gain freedom from the idea that a few men
control the world. They must recog'nize that health,
power, strength, possession, are the inheritance of all men,
and that if they do not possess these things it is because
they do not take advantage of the opportunities that are
held before them continually.
Note the difference between two men. Here is one
who is weak and far from perfect in health, but his mind
is filled with theories. He may have an understanding
of fundamental laws, but he does not make use of them.
This man is well educated; nevertheless, when it comes to
186 THE WAY TO GODMOOD
the race of life and the survival of the fittest, he is sadly
handicapped. Here is another man who may not have the
education, but has physical strength and endurance and a
great fund of wholesome thought and courage. He is able
to step in and do things. He know,s not fear. Nor does
he shrink from responsibility. In the race of life, this
man stands a better chance than the former.
The race of life is to the strong. It is to those who,
being normal, t see with clear vision. It is to them because
they have the courage and the power, because they are in
possession of that which helps them to pass others with
a bound.
But because man is weak is no reason he should re-
main weak. It is his duty, aye, his privilege, to leave
weakness behind, and to gain strength, health, and courage,
step by step, until perfection is his. At first, this requires
great courage. All new beginnings require courage. As
one takes the first ( step in the right direction and refuses to
turn back, he receives strength and courage for the next
step. And, if he continues to refuse a backward step, the
goal eventually will be health, strength, and power.
In the struggle for possession of "his own" — be it
what it may, whether possession of health and strength,
happiness, love, peace, or material treasures — there is al-
ways the enemy to be met. This enemy is fear. No
sooner is man ready to leave the old way for the new than
fear steps in and bids him halt.
Fear reasons thu,s : To give up the old is to reap con-
demnation. The old, the negative is right. To seek bodily
strength and earthly treasures is to lose the soul and to
miss the reward. Possession i,s wrong. It is better to
be a slave, slave to want, to disease, to weakness, to pov-
erty, to the exploitation of others; for this is to gain the
kingdom of heaven — after death.'
This is the old enemy to possession, the enemy that
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 187
lias held in bondage vast multitudes for centuries. The
enemy, fear, includes ignorance, bigotry, and the desire to
do nothing. On account of obedience to this cruel enemy,
we have the woe and the misery that are everywhere ap-
parent: on the one side, the vast multitudes, which are
exploited by the few; on the other, the few who exploit
men, women, and children — and all for what reason? Sim-
ply because men — or beings in the form of men — have
listened to the old destructive philosophy, which has taught
man that, in slavery, there is salvation of soul, and that
slavery is the gateway to the kingdom of heaven — after
death.
Free yourself from these shackles. Look life in the;
face. Look at it unflinchingly. Defy the evil in it. Fol-
low the right. Follow the path to strength, to possession,
to happiness, to peace and joy. Follow the path to man-
hood, no matter what the old tempter within yourself may
say. Follow the path to manhood though the , enemy 1
may try to convince you that the path will lead to destruc-
tion. Once you take a determined start in the path of
manhood toward Godhood, you will gain strength, you will
see with clear eyes, you will realize that it is good to live,
and that life is, in every respect, desirable, that honest
possessions bring joy, power, influence, which may be used
in the cause of right..
One of the most formidable of the negative principles
is this: "Your own will come to you." One of the most
inviting of the positive principles is this: "Your own will
come to you if you work for it."
Without doubt, the doctrine that your own will come
to you has been the cause of more failures, more suffering,
than all others. For it puts a premium on doing nothing.
It exalts folding one's hands and waiting, believing that
what is to be will be, that if we are to have something
we will get it, either with effort or without effort, here
188 THE WAY TO GODHO'OD
being no difference whether we make effort or not.
Truly "our own" — that which we deserve — will come
to us. And if we live a negative life, idle and listless and
effortless, nothing is due us, and that very thing — nothing
— will be sure to come to us. Man receives what he earns.
If he takes that which he does not earn, it will be snatched
from him through the power of the immutable law of jus-
tice.
Man is placed on the earth with a mission. He has
been given the right and the privilege of choice. Further-
more, he has bfen given the power to get what he chooses.
But the stipulation is made by the law, that whatever he
chooses will not come unless he makes the effort to get it.
// he makes the effort, fearing nothing, dauntless and full
of courage, allowing nothing to turn him aside, waiting not
for better opportunities or for a more favorable time, he
will get what he wants. "His own;" his cherisheed am-
bition, will be his.
Failure to possess "one's own," one's desired treasure,
is due either to fear or to a false philosophy. Fear pre-
sents itself in many shades and degrees — fear of failing,
fear of being wrong, fear of this and that. A false phil-
osophy teaches man that if he is to have a thing he will get
it, come what may; and the result is, he makes no effort.
The true man brushes aside both fear and a false
philosophy of life. He knows that nothing will come to
him unless he earns it, unless he puts forth effort. He
knows that he is co-creator with God. He knows that if
he wants a thing he must get it, that God gives man noth-
ing, but that man must take what he wants and that if he
would keep what he takes he must get it justly.
To be interested in something is not enough. It is
absolutely necessary for our interest to be so intense that
we shall not give up until we attain our wish, no matter
what may come. Neither poverty nor fear will prevent us
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 189
from attaining it. The desire to do is the power to do,
but the WILL to do must be present also.
Your own will come to you when you want it badly
enough to be willing to work for it. Your own will come
to you when you are willing to demand it, to work and to
demand until you have it. Wishing is by no means enough.
These are fundamental laws. That they are abso-
lute is amply proved by the great successes in life. Men
born in poverty have achieved. A desire to accomplish, a
willingness to work, to slave, if necessary, and an indom-
itable will to surmount all obstacles, have made successes
of men who had apparently little chance in life.
It is by surmounting difficulties and obstacles that man
gains strength. Every barrier overcome means power.
All barriers, all obstacles, give way when man says, "I
will." He who does not give up, not even if death itself
appears, will overcome even death in his dauntless search
for the thing he desires.
The New Commandment advocates a natural, normal
life, a life that leads to manhood's true estate. It ad-
vocates that manhood is necessary to the attainment of
Godhood. It teaches that soul growth, an active de,sire for
Soul Illumination, and an effort to attain this, i,s necessary
in order to reach Illumination of Soul, and that Manhood
must go hand in hand with Soulhood and Godhood.
OTHER IMPORTANT BOOKS
ALL THESE ARE TEMPLE OF ILLUMINATI PUB-
LICATIONS
THE SON OF GOD.
Called the Mystical Teachings of the Masters. This
book gives a summarization of the fundamental prin-
ciples of the Christie Interpretation and the charac-
teristics of thej Christie Law, as advocated by the
Temples of the Illuminati and Illumination. The
teachings of the Essenes under whom Jesus studied,
etc. Price in cloth, 50 cents; in paper covers, 25
cents.
CHRISTHOOD AND ADEPTSHIP.
Christie power can be awakened only though obe-
dience to the Divine Law. When we obey the Divine
Law, then will the Christ Child be born within us ; and,
if we continue in the Way, this child grows to man-
hood and enters into power. This is one of the first
text-books of the Christie Interpretation series.
Bound in beautiful cloth, side stamp in gold, 75 cents.
SOUL SCIENCE AND IMMORTALITY.
The standard text-book of the Illuminati. It is uni-
versally admitted among scholars that we are on the
Threshold of a new Dispensation. This means that
we are expecting a new Law that shall govern all
THE WAY TO GODHOOD 191
things. To state this more correctly, we are expect-
ing a New Interpretation of the old Law, an In-
terpretation that is at once practical and mystical.
This book gives such an Interpretation. More than
200 pages, beautifully bound in cloth, side and back
stamped in gold. Price $1.50.
THE MYSTICAL INTERPRETATION OF ST. JOHN
This is a complete and exhaustive Mystical Inter-
pretation of the Gospel of St. John, so well called
the Philosopher of Love. Contains 53 Chapters or
Lessons, beautifully bound in cloth, side and back
stamped in gold. Price $1.25.
THE CHRISTIC INTERPRETATION OF ST. MAT-
THEW.
This is a complete Interpretation of the Gospel of
St. Matthew. Contains 73 lessons, 265 pages. It is
the most complete book of its kind. Beautifully
bound in cloth, side and back stamped in gold. Price
$1.25.
CHRISTISIS.
The standard text-book on Higher Soul Culture.
Students who have this book say that it is the best,
clearest, and most practical book that they have been
able to find. It is beautifully bound in imitation
leather, side and back stamped in gold. Price, $5.00.
Any of these books will be forwarded on receipt of
remittance. Catalog giving exhaustive description of the
contents of these books will be mailed with pleasure.
The Philosophical Publishing Co.,
Allentown, Pa,
192 THE WAY TO GODHOOD
H 84
82 44
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