14
14
A Man Is Born
[from
the book LIVING THE LIFE
]
by
B.P. Wadia
© 2009 Online Teosofiska Kompaniet Malmö
Love thyself last. The Vastnesses above thee
Are filled with Spirit-Forces; strong and pure
And fervently these faithful friends shall love thee:
Keep thou thy watch o'er others and endure.
In the Righteous War which every chela has to wage and win, the probationer must not err by measuring only the strength of the enemy – his personal nature. We have seen in the preceding article how he should recognize the strength of his own godlike nature and the powerful allies of his own Divine Ego. Not only is his own Eternal Self by his side but, as a Divine Ego, he is helped by the hosts of Friends of the Eternal Self.
The first lesson in practical Occultism which the neophyte has to learn is that he is indissolubly linked with the whole of nature, that he is the Microcosmos an exact replica of the Macrocosmos. His Eternal Self is the Supreme Spirit of the universe, and every power of that Supreme is possessed by him. His human Soul, the Higher Mind, is an aspect of the Divine Mind-Soul, Mahat or Maha Buddhi. Further, the constituents of his personality are derived from the Spiritual Forces acting in Matter. This lesson of the Occult Philosophy has to be learnt and assimilated by the neophyte. The first task is that of extricating his Manas from Kama and establishing the Antahkaranic Centre, looking upwards or inwards towards its parent and watcher, Manas, the Divine Ego.
The second lesson is to perceive that the powers in great Nature are his helpers; Sages or Rishis, Gods or Devas, Nature Spirits or Devatas are ready to help. By knowledge and awakened will that Antahkaranic Being is able to command the Nature Spirits or Elementals. The Esoteric Philosophy teaches that there are four types of Elementals related to the four great elements – earth, water, air and fire; next, that the Gods or Devas presiding over these great elements are among the builders of man – the sevenfold being. By acquiring special knowledge of the science of Occultism under the guidance of its Professors and Doctors, the neophyte learns how to conjure them and to invoke their help for winning the war in which he is engaged. Then there are the Sages and the Seers, the Mahatmas and the Nirmanakayas, the Silent Directors of the probationer's Divine and Eternal Self. These Living Mahatmas are Siddha-Purushas, Perfected Beings who hold the powers of Life in Their own strong hands. Their Philosophy-Science contains all the necessary knowledge for living the life of the Warrior-Soul, the fortune's favoured soldier. Even theoretical knowledge of the major principles of the Esoteric Philosophy purifies the lower man; as he ponders over the great teachings, assimilation takes place and this elevates him and thus enables him to see the light of his Divine Ego, to hear the voice of that Silent Speaker. However indirect and short-lived this experience of seeing and hearing, it confirms the neophyte in the firm position he has taken with the end in view, of being a helper of Nature on her path of Life and Light.
The neophyte must learn the truth that the army on his side is made up of pure Intelligences of Sages, Gods and Elementals; further, that in the army on the other side (his lower nature) there are also some pure forces, which are there captured by the lower and dark aspect of Nature – and that they help the neophyte in their own peculiar manner. Thus in the Gita allegory, Bhishma and Drona and Kama contributed each his own share to the great victory of Arjuna. This aspect of the war the help to the true Warrior-Soul from both the light and the dark sides of Nature – is difficult to comprehend. But it is well for the neophyte to know of it, at least in theory, and to strengthen his soul with the truth that in a real sense the whole of Nature is on his side, as he wages the war against human darkness and evil.
The Sun, the Moon, the Stars; air, fire, water, earth; gold and silver; flowers and fruits; birds and beasts; slum-dwellers and geniuses; saints and sages – all befriend the Warrior-Soul, all become his educators. As he transmutes his lower nature, he brightens up the sub-human universe, and becomes more and more a channel of the super-human Intelligences and of the Most High. In transmuting his personality he has become a Personage – a Man who has realized the truth that he is one with the indivisible Macrocosmos.
Unity is the Law; Rhythm, the Motion of Life. Man, in his ignorance, does not recognize this fact. Man is a Spirit-being, a Mind-being, a Body-being. He does not know this. But Theosophy gives him this knowledge. In his illusion and delusion man fights man. Theosophical wisdom alone gives a complete and satisfying exposition of the injunction of the Oracle at Delphi – ”Man, know thyself.”
Says Light on the Path (pp. 12-13) :–
Having obtained the use of the inner senses, having conquered the desires of the outer senses, having conquered the desires of the individual soul, and having obtained knowledge, prepare now, O disciple, to enter upon the way in reality. The path is found: make yourself ready to tread it:
Inquire of the earth, the air, and the water, of the secrets they hold for you. The development of your inner senses
will enable you to do this.
Inquire of the holy ones of the earth of the secrets they hold for you. The conquering of the desires of the outer senses will
give you the right to do this.
Inquire of the inmost, the one, of its final secret which it holds for you through the ages.
The great and difficult victory, the conquering of the desires of the individual soul, is a work of ages; therefore expect not to
obtain its reward until ages of experience have been accumulated.
B.P. WADIA
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